Did I wake that giant AGAIN? vicberg(j) vs. BillBrown(A) - No Bill Pls

[vicberg]

ORIGINAL: witpqs

I interpret that as meaning the experience of the ships' crews, and of course leader stats matter too.

Where do you look to see crew experience in the UI? I've seen people mention it, but I can't find anything displayed.

[vicberg]

Wait, just found it. It's a single number for day and night. Never noticed that before. So does "experience" apply to everything?

[vicberg]

Central China

I could be knocking China out of the war if it weren't for Wenchow. 5 Divisions, 2 Brigades and 1 Regiment tied up here. I haven't reduced the level 4 forts once. Daily naval bombardments for a month. Some aerial bombardments. Multiple attacks and not ONE fort. Oh well. 13th Army is about 1/3 strength overall. It simply going to have to rebuild and continue the attacks.

I've amassed 6 divisions for the 11th Army that will go and sit on Changsha at a minimum. My understanding is that will take out production from that city when enemy units are in the hex. I'll test the defenses there and see if I have any chance at all. If opportunity presents itself, I may maneuver around the city and isolate it.

[vicberg]

Burma

No opposition. Looks like he is trying to save a few Chinese units. 3 divisions there. I'll focus two of them on China for as long as I can.

[vicberg]

SRA

Tarakan fell to Paratroopers which are being picked up at Manado and will be dumped on Ambon to reinforce the regiment already there and avoid the coastal guns.

There's 3 Sentia of Army Bombers getting more target practice on Ambon out of Kendari.

Another month of mop up in this region. Koepang is in Japanese hands and getting built up.

[vicberg]

Aleutians

The worst for last. The Guards Mixed Brigade wasn't enough to dislodge the defenders. I have Netties in the area now, so that will make a difference. Airfield attacks on Dutch have started.

[witpqs]

ORIGINAL: vicberg

Wait, just found it. It's a single number for day and night. Never noticed that before. So does "experience" apply to everything?

If you mean a single number for day and a separate single number for night (separated by a slash) then you found it.

Experience type factors and random factors apply to so many things in this game that the answer might just be 'yes, applies to everything' but I don't recall seeing that stated. I assume things it doesn't apply to are rare exceptions.

I should add that the ship experience numbers are 'Day/Night'.

[vicberg]

Yep that's it. So any experience is a good thing affected by leader. Works for me. Another one of many details buried in this game.

Thanks! [:)]

[Lowpe]

There are some good discussions about ship experience in other AARs....Japan has a terrific edge early on, and it normally shows with really superior results in ship engagements in 41 and 42. But, like most of Japan's advantages it goes away, sadly.[:(]

You may want to check out some of you converted ships and have them train up their experience, like AMcs. Just sitting in a task force and not moving will do it...some of those ships start with under 20 exp and they are more likely to plow into mines than sweep them with that level of experience. Different classes of ships have different caps they can train to.

[vicberg]

March 8th, 1942

The experience concept seems to be working. More hits on Allied Subs.

Sub attack near Adak Island at 162,52

Japanese Ships
PB Magane Maru
PB Seikyo Maru

Allied Ships
SS Tuna, hits 8

SS Tuna launches 2 torpedoes at PB Magane Maru
Tuna bottoming out ....
PB Seikyo Maru fails to find sub, continues to search...
PB Seikyo Maru fails to find sub, continues to search...
PB Seikyo Maru attacking submerged sub ....
PB Seikyo Maru fails to find sub, continues to search...
PB Seikyo Maru fails to find sub, continues to search...
Escort abandons search for sub

First Assault at Suva

Didn't drop the forts any. I'm going to wait until the Combined HQ makes it to the area. That Command HQ helped greatly at Moresby.

Ground combat at Suva (132,160)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 16934 troops, 176 guns, 11 vehicles, Assault Value = 550

Defending force 9818 troops, 89 guns, 87 vehicles, Assault Value = 291

Japanese adjusted assault: 182

Allied adjusted defense: 619

Japanese assault odds: 1 to 3 (fort level 3)

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), forts(+), experience(-)
Attacker: leaders(-)

Japanese ground losses:
1487 casualties reported
Squads: 9 destroyed, 103 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 7 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled
Guns lost 9 (1 destroyed, 8 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
471 casualties reported
Squads: 3 destroyed, 64 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 7 disabled

Assaulting units:
6th Ind.Infantry Brigade
Karafuto Mixed Brigade
1st Maizuru Assault Division

Defending units:
1st Fiji Battalion
8th NZ Brigade
2nd Fiji Battalion
14th NZ Brigade
1st RNZAF Base Sqdn
Suva Naval Base Force
35th RNZA Bty
37th RNZA Bty

[ny59giants]

Koepang - Great base to have an Air HQ with Nell/Betty based out of with some Zeros. Closes off most of northern Australia to Allied ships.

Suva - double check leaders. May have a bad one there and/or drowned coming ashore and the XO is not very good. Somebody politcally appointed. [:D] Command HQs are truly valuable when paired with an Army or Corp HQ. If used solo, they act just like an Army or Corp HQ.

[vicberg]

Because I had Army and Navy mixed together, my guess is that they were so busy pushing each other to get to the front and win the battle, they all fell over and got splattered.

[vicberg]

March 9th, 1942

Disaster over Changsha. I got a bit lazy on the sweeps/escorts over Changsha and I paid a steep price. AVG showed up in spite of the damaged runway and nailed 52(!) bombers for a loss of 1 P-40E. Yuk.

Still racking up the sub hits

ASW attack near Adak Island at 162,52

Japanese Ships
TK San Clemente Maru
PC PB-64

Allied Ships
SS Tuna, hits 6

SS Tuna is sighted by escort
Tuna bottoming out ....
PC PB-64 fails to find sub, continues to search...
PC PB-64 fails to find sub, continues to search...
PC PB-64 fails to find sub, continues to search...
PC PB-64 fails to find sub, continues to search...
PC PB-64 attacking submerged sub ....
Escort abandons search for sub

Attack on Lanchow
The first attack shows promise. Shouldn't be long now.

Ground combat at Lanchow (81,34)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 34794 troops, 288 guns, 519 vehicles, Assault Value = 1116

Defending force 41089 troops, 204 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1267

Japanese adjusted assault: 866

Allied adjusted defense: 357

Japanese assault odds: 2 to 1 (fort level 3)

Japanese Assault reduces fortifications to 2

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), preparation(-), experience(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
1103 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 86 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 20 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Vehicles lost 23 (1 destroyed, 22 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
2532 casualties reported
Squads: 16 destroyed, 305 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 48 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 13 disabled
Guns lost 28 (4 destroyed, 24 disabled)

Assaulting units:
3rd Ind.Mixed Brigade
13th Tank Regiment
9th Tank Regiment
23rd Tank Regiment
5th Tank Regiment
26th Division
5th Armored Car Co
37th Division
15th Tank Regiment
10th Tank Regiment
Mongol Garrison Army
6th Medium Field Artillery Regiment

[vicberg]

March 10th, 1942

Yenan was a mistake. To my surprise, the garrison requirements are 450! Yikes. A division is transferring there. Not what I wanted.

Lanchow fell to the second consecutive attack. Tienshui is the next target. I'm already across the river with 3 divisions, but they got hammered in the crossing and have returned to about 1/2 strength. 4-5 Divisions (based on size) plus the armored regiments should make short work of that base even with the terrain.

The China Command HQ is moving down to Nanyang where it will be able to support both north and middle. The North China Army HQ is moving down to Sian. RGC is down at Wenchow awaiting reinforcements. That HQ has only a 1 range.



Ground combat at Lanchow (81,34)

Japanese Deliberate attack

Attacking force 33886 troops, 288 guns, 518 vehicles, Assault Value = 1009

Defending force 38967 troops, 200 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1033

Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 1

Japanese adjusted assault: 1180

Allied adjusted defense: 255

Japanese assault odds: 4 to 1 (fort level 1)

Japanese forces CAPTURE Lanchow !!!

Combat modifiers
Defender: terrain(+), preparation(-)
Attacker:

Japanese ground losses:
525 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 76 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 27 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 8 disabled
Vehicles lost 59 (5 destroyed, 54 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
9619 casualties reported
Squads: 147 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 209 destroyed, 29 disabled
Engineers: 62 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 36 (31 destroyed, 5 disabled)
Units retreated 6

Defeated Allied Units Retreating!

Assaulting units:
5th Tank Regiment
37th Division
9th Tank Regiment
5th Armored Car Co
15th Tank Regiment
26th Division
23rd Tank Regiment
3rd Ind.Mixed Brigade
13th Tank Regiment
10th Tank Regiment
Mongol Garrison Army
6th Medium Field Artillery Regiment

Defending units:
57th Chinese Corps
76th Chinese Corps
8th Route Army
3rd Chinese Corps
81st Chinese Corps
34th Group Army

[vicberg]

Now that I've learned the mechanics for ground, it's critical to fully learn the mechanics for air after reading Lowpe's AAR. One would think Lowpe would get slightly better results for all the planes he sent. And for all I know, the Deathstar is impenetrable in 1944 (Luke...it is your destiny...heavy breathing sounds).

Cannonfodder has posted (he also emailed me) about using different planes at different altitudes for defense, but that still isn't clear as to what planes at what range and at what altitude and that can't be done everywhere in Japan. In order to break through CAP, do all strikes need escorts at the originating bases at the same altitude as that strike? Do the fighters need to be massed at one spot and pray (or rub Buddha's belly?). I've read that relative cruise speeds of escorts and bombers needs to be roughly the same. Can you sweep a carrier force by setting the carrier force as the target destination?

I need to get the air mechanics down now. Next step in this game. 52 bombers lost because escorts/sweeps were messed up a bit is scary. What would have happened later in the war? How do I insure that my planes don't fly without escorts (in case I do mess up).

[ny59giants]

I need to get the air mechanics down now. Next step in this game. 52 bombers lost because escorts/sweeps were messed up a bit is scary. What would have happened later in the war? How do I insure that my planes don't fly without escorts (in case I do mess up).

SAME - altitude (or not more than 2 to 3 k difference; same AF; close enough speed (some players say their cruise speed difference cannot be huge)

Leaders - don't have bomber groups with high Aggressiveness (anything over 60, but if its in the 70s...YIKES!!). If so, you will here them say, "we don't need no stinkin fighters" before they fly off to their death. [:D]

[KenchiSulla]

Couple of tips:

- Make sure that the bases you are attacking are scouted
- Set your escorts to the same altitude as the bombers
- Let escorts fly from the same base as your bombers. If the weather is crap both won't fly instead of your bombers going in unescorted because of weather issues over the fighter base
- Sweeps can originate from a different base but there will be a chance that they won't fly. Best results are achieved by sweeping at least a day or two before sending in bombers. Ofcourse, sometimes you just want to suprise your opponent. Strikes are never without risk! As the Japanese you can take heavy losses so use that!

[vicberg]

Let me get this straight then

I need the following leaders for fighters and level bombers
- Inspiration > 55
- Air > 55
- Leadership > 55 (if Possible)
- Aggression < 70

If I take the coefficient of these, multiplied by the tangent of the missions they will perform, divided by pilot experience * cosign of range, that should equal success!

I think I get it!

[vicberg]

On a more serious note (I can't help being a wise-ass, no disrespect to the game), I realized my training squadrons are all messed up as I used air rating as primary stat. Same with pretty much all my squadrons, except some of the fighter/bomber groups where Air Rating is critical. 3 months of training not a complete waste, but could have been much better. Luckily I have 2 days to fix this as Bill is out of town and I need to avoid PTWS Syndrome (Post Turn WITP Syndrome). If that syndrome starts progressing, I'll avoid mentioning the more nasty side affects (see Joc's AAR where I posted the details of it).

[vicberg]

What I could do then with my knowledge now. It's a good thing Yamamoto keeps doing this again and again (next game).

I see why Wenchow didn't fall. RGC Army HQ should have been transferred down to Wenchow from the beginning (with it's pitiful 1 range). China Command stays in Nanking and preps for Wenchow while in the north units position for Sian/Lanchow. Wenchow would have fallen by now. Instead, I smashed up against a wall without much affect and depleted my 5 divisions and 2 brigades.

I'm preparing for Changhsa. His supply situation isn't good as all attacks are coming up supply (-). Once the China Command is in position at Nanyang and Tienshui is taken, I'll take a pop at Changsha and see what I'm up against.

Around Wenchow, those divisions have to replenish and I'll need to wait for China Command to get down to Hankow. Not much going is going to happen there for a bit. I might make one more attack when the units in Wenchow approach stacking limit but otherwise a holding pattern with a surface fleet doing periodic bombardments out of Shanghai.