Perfection, of a kind, spence (A) vs fcharton (J), no spence, please

[PaxMondo]

The chinese struggle to restore disabled troops, they simply do not have the supply.  Disabled is even better than dead as they cannot return to Chungking 1/3 restored ...  I beleive you will have have Chungking, I think your opponent tried to defend too far forward and is paying for it. 

[SqzMyLemon]

ORIGINAL: fcharton

PDU Off

Before embarking on my first turn clickfest, I thought I would comment a bit on this setting. I actually asked for PDU Off. Having never played the late game, I might be totally wrong, but I am not convinced it is such a problem for Japan.

First, PDU Off cuts both ways. Since it prevents both sides from maximizing their technological advance throughout the game, I would believe it hinders Japan in the first half of the game, but also helps slowing the Allies when the tide turns. Like many other features in this game, I suspect our negative view of it is biased by our lack of collective experience of the second half of the war.

Second, it is not true that PDU off forces one to fight with old frames that can’t upgrade. A close look at Tracker statistics shows that many squadrons can upgrade to advanced models. But front line squadrons will not be the same through the war. For instance, several Nate training squadrons that begin the war in Japan or Manchuria update into good late war models, whereas some of the early Zeroes that will help me take the DEI will keep their early Zeroes, and become training outfits as the campaign proceeds. This means a different sort of planning, and some PP costs.

Lastly, I suspect PDU Off helps one rationalize plane production. An extreme case of PDU On strategy would see a player overproduce every model, to equip as many squadrons as he can, and just dump all those frames once a new model is available. This is a waste of resources, which implies a heavier dependence on imported fuel and oil, and more vulnerability for Japan.

Hi Francois,

I've just been going over your AAR from the beginning again and saw your comments concerning PDU off. I thought I'd ask how you are finding it to date? I was very vocal about my dislike for this setting, but I agree, the lack of information concerning how the late game will play out doesn't allow for completely condemning it yet.

I think you'll begin to see problems in late 42 and early 43. It took only two massed Allied raids to break the back of my entire fighter force in Burma. You'll never be able to mass enough better airframes locally to contest large Allied raids, unless you strip entire areas of your perimeter of aircraft to provide the numbers you'll need. If the Allies push you in more than one threatre, this is where I think you'll find PDU off restrictive. You just won't have enough of the better aircraft to spread around in the numbers needed to be effective. I have nothing other than my own experience to base this on, and unfortunately my game ended prior to receiving the Oscar IIb and Tojo IIb, which would have allowed me to increase the number of updated air units to frontline duty. So my experience is obviously limited and I'll never know now.

I'm looking forward to seeing how PDU off plays out in the later stages of your game, although I think Scenario 2 will help. Scenario 1 with PDU off still remains a huge handicap to Japan in my personal experience.

If you are still relying on Oscar IIa's in the latter half of 42 and early 43, produce a lot of them, you'll need them. [8D]

[fcharton]

Last day of holidays, we are travelling tomorrow, and then, the war will be back.

Letters to the editor

Hi Pax,

I am quite surprised by this war in China. In my previous game (“now when the land rings…”), my opponent did defend forward, I used troops from Kwantung, and lots of tanks, and followed a similar strategy (except that I evacuated Ichang, moved on Hami earlier, and took a while to realize than I needed Yenan, and why). Yet, at the end of May (when the game ended), Lanchow was still Chinese, Ankang was a battlefield, and we were fighting for control of the northern crossroads east of Tienshui. There had been many battles on the way, but much less casualties on the Chinese side.

In this game, my opponent did pretty much the same, he fought a decent retreat over the plains, and did a very good job harassing my supply lines in the south and Fujian. The only difference were that I brought the artillery earlier, held Ichang, and pushed for Yenan before the western drive on Hami.

There were, I believe, two strategic errors. In the north, he lacked a second line of defense in the forests between Nanyang and Sian, and another one in Lanchow. In the centre, failure to reinforce Changteh, Hengyang and Pingsiang allowed me to bypass and cut off Changsha (and pocket three dozen units).

But I don’t think this can explain the complete collapse of the Chinese front, which is now broken in the north, centre, and soon in the south west. Also, we are only in April, and my opponent does not seem to have repaired his industry, or built bases. This seems a bit early for a supply crunch (normally, you get that in August).

My impression is that the heavy casualties suffered by the Chinese explain the situation. Right now, Allied LCU loss VP is over 9000 points, more than double what I had in my previous game (with about the same advance in the DEI). And as VP are only awarded for destroyed squads and vehicles, those come along with a lot of disablements. This is in line with my accounts of destroyed combat squads.

This might prove an important point about the war in China. It is a war of attrition, won by destroying squads, not conquering cities or industry. And as an old principle of land warfare goes, whereas battles conquer enemy territory, the destruction of his forces is achieved through pursuit. We will soon know whether this is the case here: China first strategies are very common these days, and a lot of AAR feature deep thrusts, and attacks on supplies, instead of attrition.



Hi Joseph,

So far, PDU off did not prove too difficult, but bear in mind that we are in April 1942, when Oscars and Zeroes rule the airs. So far, I am still leading in terms of air losses (meaning, the Allies lost about 200 more planes than the Empire). The long brawls over Port Blair, and now Buna, are reducing this advantage, but I am still leading.

My main difficulties were not with having to cope with old frames, but organizing the rotation of fresh fighter squadrons to forward bases, coping with fatigue, moving air support to forward bases. Typical stuff, that is.

As for PDU off, I like it so far, for several reasons.

First, it forces me to have a practical approach to R&D. No point in investing a lot on late war models if you can’t upgrade squadrons. Right now, I am focusing on late 42 and early 43 models (Oscars, Zeroes, Helens, Tojos and Nicks).

Also, it encourages me to make the most with what I have. I don’t really need Oscars and Zeroes in China, Nates fit the task. I don’t need Sallies and similar heavyweights to disrupt troops in open terrain, or slow the march of reinforcements: Anns, Sonias and even Idas are just fine. The interesting consequence is that I have less training squadrons, and more planes flying combat missions. I have several Kwantung bases in central china for this effect.

Recently, this sent me wondering about pilot training… Is it as important as we think? Could a Japanese player manage without, just by using his squadrons wisely?

Finally, I like the planning side of it. With PDU Off, every squadron has a history, specificity and function. They cease to be “bunches of planes”.

(As a side note, it also fits my frugal approach to the industry.)

I do realize it is still early, and the real problem with PDU off might only appear in six months or so. We’ll see then…


April 18th 1942

Tjilatjap

…fell today, the five Dutch units defending the base surrendered. Java is now free of enemy units, save the dozen bottled up in Surabaya. Meanwhile, we will land tomorrow in Sibolga, the last Dutch base on Sumatra. It seems that capturing ALL bases is important if one wants to eliminate enemy units. As soon as a unit cannot trace supply back to some base (even an empty one) it apparently stops retreating once it is defeated, and surrenders instead.

Subs around Port Moresby

I have a couple of submarines prowling between Port Moresby and Cooktown. So far, they were quite harmless, but today, both managed to catch a light cargo. Over Buna, we managed to shoot down a B17-E, and damage two more. This will be a long and boring battle.

Bombardment reports

In Changsha, we are destroying a dozen squads every day. The city is now surrounded, which means the 2000 AV that defend it are lost for good. I intend to keep bombing, and see whether I can take Chungking before finishing those guys.

In Kweiyang, we now have more than 2000 AV, against less than 350 enemies. We will attack tomorrow, with a little luck…

In Bataan, daily bombardments are destroying the garrison, which is now badly unsupplied. AV went from 1500 to less than 1100 these days. I am giving it a few days, and will attack again.

[SqzMyLemon]

Hi Francois,

I felt much the same way in my game with PDU off, utilize what I had and was fine with Ann's and Sonia's in China as no escort was needed. It's when you run into coordinated and massed Allied raids of better aircraft that things might fall apart rather quickly.

Once I realized the limitations of PDU off I too toned down R&D and production numbers, and I agree if forces you to plan differently. I did like that aspect of it.

How are your Ops losses? I think this is the benefit of training squadrons as they limit Ops losses in frontline units. My Ops losses were through the roof, I had too many inexperienced pilots in forward air units.

I think "bunches of planes" is relative. In PDU off, every aircraft has a role and the player that can best utilize each aircraft to it's specific function will do well. In PDU on, I think you still can apply that logic, you don't have to have every unit a Tojo or Frank and in some cases you need a variety of aircraft to meet your needs. I still plan on having varied air units regardless of now playing PDU on, just my personal preference. What I do like best is it's now my decision, not the historic OOB's. I can determine the structure of my air force based on my preference of playing and style. I think this is key for me.

Looking forward to seeing what happens. In no way am I trying to criticize your decision for PDU off (I hope it doesn't come across as such), just furthering the discussion and I hope sharing my experience and thoughts about PDU off can help you in some way.

Joseph

[fcharton]

Hi Joseph,

My ops losses are not as low as I would like, but still quite reasonable. I am a firm believer in the Cuttlefish school of thought on pilot management. I have relatively few sorties every day, and tend to rest my pilots as soon as their fatigue level exceeds ten. I am also trying to understack my frontline airfields, and avoid overusing LRCAP (it is quite efficient, but it comes at a cost).

I am currently trying to organize my air force, I will report on it soon.

And this sure doesn’t come across as criticism, please keep it going, I am learning a lot.

Francois

Back from holiday, the game is on, but the AAR is lagging, again…

April 19th 1942

Most of the action was in China today. Over Buna, we both are resting, and sweeps over Port Blair found nothing.

South of Kienko, we attacked the Chinese stack we defeated two days ago. AV had gone from 600 to 400, a good thing, but which shows a defeated stack is still combat worthy. I had infantry in the hex, but only my tanks attacked.

Ground combat at 78,42 (near Kienko)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 2308 troops, 0 guns, 322 vehicles, Assault Value = 1073
Defending force 11391 troops, 77 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 412
Japanese assault odds: 5 to 1

Japanese ground losses:
Vehicles lost 10 (1 destroyed, 9 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
6104 casualties reported
Squads: 249 destroyed, 128 disabled
Non Combat: 134 destroyed, 16 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Guns lost 13 (5 destroyed, 8 disabled)
Units retreated 6

400 destroyed squads for just one tank lost, it doesn’t look quite right… I suppose I’ll be on the receiving end of that, some day.


In Changsha, today’s bombardment destroyed 50 squads, almost a record.

Most importantly, the big stack between Tuyun and Kweiyang was defeated after a month long battle.

Ground combat at 75,50 (near Kweiyang)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 83675 troops, 1020 guns, 219 vehicles, Assault Value = 2223
Defending force 21533 troops, 202 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 346
Japanese assault odds: 4 to 1

Japanese ground losses:
814 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 80 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 10 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 7 disabled
Guns lost 12 (2 destroyed, 10 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
9372 casualties reported
Squads: 399 destroyed, 21 disabled
Non Combat: 345 destroyed, 12 disabled
Engineers: 23 destroyed, 12 disabled
Guns lost 61 (42 destroyed, 19 disabled)
Units retreated 8

This is an important victory, because it cuts the southern KMT bases (from Kukong to Tuyun) from the Sichuan basin. About 2500 AV will now march on Kweiyang, two fresh divisions are arriving tomorrow and will garrison the hex, lest my opponent tries to attack from Tuyun. I don’t think such an attack can succeed, as we will be in defensive terrain and they will be unsupplied, but I’d rather be safe…


The situation in China looks good, we have broken in Sichuan from the North, we will soon be in Kweiyang, and are closing on Tuyun, and quite a few units are stranded in Changsha. We suffered very little losses throughout this campaign. I am beginning to hope that we can finish China by June. This means I probably need to start moving support troops from Manchukuo South. Sooner or later, I will need those guys in Burma and Thailand.


The economy today

I have not commented upon this for a while. So far, the frugal approach to production seems to work. I have closed almost all my merchant yard, and some of the naval ones. So far, I only halted the battleships and some late programs. The vehicle crisis of the early war is now over, and I have 5500 vehicle and 13000 armament point in stock, while still producing an excess.

I am saving about 7000 HI per day, and our stocks will probably be a little under 850k after the pilot draw at the end of the month.

In terms of raw materials, we are pretty much swimming in resources, with an excess production of more than 22k tons / day. Stocks are now over 10 million tons, I don’t repair those, and the allies are welcome to bomb those centres.

Fuel stocks are around 6.5 million tons (plus 1.1 million tons in ship bunkers), growing by about 10k/day. It this can be maintained for a year (and holding the DEI in April 1943 does not look like a mad gamble), I will probably be out of trouble. Oil stocks are almost stable at 4.4million tons down by 3000 tons/day.

Finally, supply levels are stable, and very close to their starting values.

[fcharton]

April 20th, 1942

Very little to report today. We had a pretty bad time over Port Blair. I usually sweep one day, and then rest for a while, but since we had not found anyone home yesterday, we swept again today. Enemy Hurricanes were there, and we probably were fatigued, and this is how you lose 36 planes to 18 enemies…

I am pretty certain that rest patterns are the key to an efficient use of air units in this game. This, unfortunately, means a lot of work every day, as you pretty much need to stand down every front line squadron, and give orders to some. I have not yet found a solution, something like a “turn routine” that I should be taken care of every day, in a reasonable amount of time.

In China, a lone unit appeared today in the hex between Kweiyang and Tuyun. Since it did not shock attack over the river, it must have come from Kweiyang, reinforcements that my opponent forgot to cancel, I believe. This delays my advance on Kweiyang, but also means destroyed KMT squads.

In the south, we are now marching on Kanhsien. I don’t really need this base, but it will help isolate enemy troops in Fujian. The enemy still holds fifteen bases in China.

Flak, and radars

The more I play this game, the more I realize I am still clueless about many aspects of it. For instance, most of my anti air units are still sitting in their starting positions, in Manchuria, Formosa or Hainan. Now, most of those should be either in Malaysia or in Burma, defending my bases, and freeing the AA units there for duty in the Indies or in the Pacific.

I am sending most of those to two staging points; Wuchang and Hangchow. From there, they will march to Southern China, and Indochina, or take position in newly conquered industrial centres. I intend to develop Chinese industry (and, perhaps, the refineries in Sian and Lanchow), and need flak to cover them.


While looking at flak units, I noticed I now have quite a few radars, 90 in mobile units, and 25, long range, in static base forces around Japan, and 65 more are due in June. I don’t know how efficient Japanese radars are, and whether it makes sense to stack several in the same base, but I am under the impression that I should take some care in setting those in front line bases.

This is something I like with those long campaigns: every day, you discover something you’ll have to do better, in your next game, in five years or so…

[obvert]

It's only 4/42, so you have plenty of time to get the AA units out to where they need to be. Unfortunately, unless you're using a babes scenario, they are fairly ineffective. You have to really put a lot of units in one base to make any difference.

[fcharton]

@Obvert : We are playing stock, but I thought the current version of the game engine had improved the flak. Is it so?


April 21st 1942 - China, mostly

On the crossroad halfway between Kienko and Chungking, the units that once defended Kienko were defeated again. They were 650 AV strong when we first met them, and are now down to 110 AV, and probably half that after the battle.

Ground combat at 77,43 (near Chungking)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 2332 troops, 0 guns, 321 vehicles, Assault Value = 1117
Defending force 6931 troops, 69 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 146

Allied ground losses:
1421 casualties reported
Squads: 164 destroyed, 10 disabled
Non Combat: 90 destroyed, 5 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 1 disabled
Guns lost 40 (21 destroyed, 19 disabled)
Units retreated 5

Our Sichuan column will now march north on Chengtu, and let reinforcements arrives before we move on Neikiang and Chungking.

Between Kweiyang and Tuyun, the unit that marched in yesterday turned to be a 250 AV strong infantry corps. Scratch one battle worthy unit…

Ground combat at 75,50 (near Kweiyang)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 85830 troops, 1000 guns, 251 vehicles, Assault Value = 2551
Defending force 5804 troops, 23 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 256

Japanese ground losses:
895 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 48 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 12 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 12 disabled
Guns lost 7 (1 destroyed, 6 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
3033 casualties reported
Squads: 115 destroyed, 202 disabled
Non Combat: 60 destroyed, 35 disabled
Engineers: 4 destroyed, 3 disabled
Guns lost 20 (3 destroyed, 17 disabled)
Units retreated 1

Outlaws of the marshes

This is one of the strange side stories of this war. Back in December, when the KMT tried to attack Ichang, several Chinese corps moved into the marshes between Ichang and Wuchang. I believe my opponent wanted to isolate Ichang, and perhaps march on Hankow.

Unfortunately, as Ichang never fell, and as the IJA marched on Changteh, those troops ended up surrounded in the marshes. Back in March, they tried to invade Ichang, but that happened as I was reinforcing from Hankow, and they were thrown back into the swamp.

Now, they seem to have marched south, and their vanguard crossed the river between Wuchang and Changsha… into the waiting arms of two Japanese regiments.

Ground combat at 83,51 (near Wuchang)
Allied Shock attack
Attacking force 6119 troops, 56 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 28
Defending force 8330 troops, 68 guns, 26 vehicles, Assault Value = 298
Allied assault odds: 1 to 99

Allied ground losses:
626 casualties reported
Squads: 75 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 17 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 5 disabled
Guns lost 12 (1 destroyed, 11 disabled)

And so, the outlaws will remain in the marshes…

[PaxMondo]

Some improvement in flak, but the major change is in DBB mod.

[obvert]

I find I do have good days when I stack several AA units in a base. So overall there is an improvement, but not like what I hear about from the various levels of babes scenarios.

[fcharton]

From the receiving end, I noticed two uses of flak. First, it will be deadly if you fly at low altitudes, so, there goes skip, dive and torpedo bombing. Second, the presence of flak seems to make my raids less effective, probably because it forces my bombers lo lose formation, just like enemy CAP. But I agree you need concentrated flak to achieve something.

Nemo once made the point that flak tends to be more damaging than combat report suggest, because some of the planes it damages will end up ops losses, and that this creates some form of "concentration bonus": once you reach a certain level, flak becomes very deadly because of the cumulative damage, which results in very high ops losses. I would love to try and test this in Burma (and I regret not having thought of it earlier).

Along these lines, my current flak doctrine says I should have some flak in the ports where my ships are anchored, to avoid raids, and flak concentrations in bases where enemy raids are expected, refineries and oilfields typically.

[JocMeister]

I have found flak to be mostly useless in stock scenario. Sure if you amass most of the British and Indian AA in one hex it will do some damage but nothing stellar. Just started playing Babes but its too early to tell any differences. I have high hopes though!

In stock I wouldn´t bother too much with the placements of flak unless you intend to seriously mass it somewhere.

[fcharton]

Hi JocMeister, and welcome

I believe I agree with you. I don’t have high expectations for my flak. Two things I believe it can achieve, though, is reducing the damage done by enemy bombers, and, perhaps, helping the CAP, for those flak units that have radar.


April 22nd 1942

In Burma, a sweep over Chittagong found the 605th RAF, which used to be in Port Blair a few days ago. It seems that my opponent is using Chittagong, and perhaps other bases in the area as rest points for his Andaman squadrons.

In the Banda sea, the allies seem bent on bombing the empty port of Taberfane. Did they get some incorrect intel about something brewing there? Is this a default AI choice? I am sending a few Zeroes from Ambon to catch the unescorted Hudsons there, one less Allied plane is one less Allied plane.

Over Buna, and with an Air HQ now in Rabaul, we manage to have a permanent LRCAP, by rotating fighter squadrons, and are slowly making enemy bombardment less effective.

Apart from that, it was a dull day in the Pacific.

April 23rd 1942

Wellingtons bombed Rangoon during the night. Oscars caused them to miss the refineries and hit the light industry instead. I cannot say I have suffered, but I hope some of them will fall to ops losses.

Over Buna, the enemy is now bombing the port, I suppose they want to prevent us from building the forts. I don’t think this works: ground units are still digging in, and engineers repair such damage at a pretty good rate. We are using Mavises. I know some spell this Mavii, or Mavi, but this looks strange, in latin Mavis would be third group, so Maves, Mavii would be for something like Mavius, and Mavi for Mavus)

And you know nothing is happening in the war when you end up discussion latin grammar in an AAR.

Right, it is afternoon here, and a perfect day to go canoeing up the river that flows in our backyard. As I am writing this, my children are running in the yard with paddles, life jackets and our usual riverine gear. The 24th of April 1942 will have to wait, I'm afraid!

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: fcharton

... is reducing the damage done by enemy bombers, ...
.

Agreed. In the stock scenarios which I am also playing. Clearly see effects of AA vs no AA in bomb raid damage. I think the ops damage on the bombers also happens, but I have little proof. Strictly observation and likely colored by desired perception. [8D]

[fcharton]

April 24th 1942

New developments in the Andamans

For a couple of days, reconnaissance reported no fighters in Port Blair. So, in complement of our usual heavy sweep, a few bombers were sent to attack the airfield. The sweeps were unopposed but my Betties and Nells found SBD-3 Dauntless, and destroyed a few on the ground. The runway is now damaged. We are going in again tomorrow, to see whether the fighters are back.

It is still too early to judge, but this might be a milestone in the battle for the Adamans. The enemy has lots of troops there. If the airfield can be attacked, and bombed on a regular basis, we probably can cause complex supply problems.

Battle in Bataan

We launched a deliberate attack, which caused heavy losses for a fort level, but achieved 1:1 odds for the first time.

Ground combat at Bataan (78,77)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 33989 troops, 460 guns, 229 vehicles, Assault Value = 983
Defending force 41525 troops, 617 guns, 500 vehicles, Assault Value = 1056
Japanese assault odds: 1 to 1 (fort level 3)
Japanese Assault reduces fortifications to 2

Japanese ground losses:
3175 casualties reported
Squads: 21 destroyed, 333 disabled
Non Combat: 2 destroyed, 56 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 16 disabled
Guns lost 68 (4 destroyed, 64 disabled)
Vehicles lost 43 (9 destroyed, 34 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
717 casualties reported
Squads: 19 destroyed, 93 disabled
Non Combat: 3 destroyed, 43 disabled
Engineers: 2 destroyed, 10 disabled
Guns lost 24 (1 destroyed, 23 disabled)
Vehicles lost 9 (1 destroyed, 8 disabled)

I need to rest my troops, but I believe we only need a few more of those to take the base.

And in Kweiyang

Our first attack failed to take the city, but confirmed that the 16 units holding Kweiyang are mostly remnants. Since odds were 1:1, disruption levels are acceptable and we are attacking again tomorrow. With a little luck…

Ground combat at Kweiyang (74,49)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 86415 troops, 1000 guns, 251 vehicles, Assault Value = 2612
Defending force 32391 troops, 246 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 644
Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 2
Japanese assault odds: 1 to 1 (fort level 2)

Japanese ground losses:
2910 casualties reported
Squads: 5 destroyed, 261 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 20 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 36 disabled
Guns lost 20 (2 destroyed, 18 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
2304 casualties reported
Squads: 34 destroyed, 58 disabled
Non Combat: 35 destroyed, 82 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 12 disabled
Guns lost 14 (2 destroyed, 12 disabled)


April 25th 1942

Port Blair

A second day of bombing further damaged the runway, but found no planes on the ground. Has the airfield been evacuated?

My bombers are flying low, and taking lots of damage from the flak. I will now rest them, and order sweeps for tomorrow, just in case…

Chengtu

My armored spearheads attacked Chengtu. The infantry is two days behind.

Ground combat at Chengtu (75,41)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 2654 troops, 0 guns, 372 vehicles, Assault Value = 198
Defending force 8600 troops, 60 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 322
Japanese assault odds: 1 to 2 (fort level 1)

Japanese ground losses:
Vehicles lost 12 (1 destroyed, 11 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
736 casualties reported
Squads: 1 destroyed, 86 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 8 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 3 disabled

300 AV behind level one forts. I will have 1100 AV in two days, I am pretty confident about this one. Once those troops are defended, we will probably pursue (over the river on the slow road to Kunming, to make sure they will not recover).

Further south, the 104th division arrived in Tsuyung, where my opponent massed 350 AV. This will probably take a while.

Kweiyang

As I hoped, the defenders of the city could not withstand a second day of attack.

Ground combat at Kweiyang (74,49)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 84426 troops, 998 guns, 251 vehicles, Assault Value = 2412
Defending force 30118 troops, 233 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 555
Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 1
Japanese assault odds: 3 to 1 (fort level 1)

Japanese forces CAPTURE Kweiyang !!!

Japanese ground losses:
1693 casualties reported
Squads: 6 destroyed, 108 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 14 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 16 disabled

Allied ground losses:
12535 casualties reported
Squads: 434 destroyed, 56 disabled
Non Combat: 534 destroyed, 58 disabled
Engineers: 138 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 82 (72 destroyed, 10 disabled)
Units retreated 15


I am splitting my units into three stacks. Two depleted divisions will guard Kweiyang, two full strength division and artillery will march to the northwest, threatening Kunming and the road west of Chungking, and the rest of my troops will pursue the defenders, and march on Chungking. I believe very little is left between Kweiyang and the Sichuan basin.

Meanwhile, two Chinese corps tried to take the hex between Kweiyang and Tuyun. I had two fresh IJA divisions there, so the shock attack over the river was a bloody affair…

Ground combat at 75,50 (near Kweiyang)
Allied Shock attack
Attacking force 9271 troops, 142 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 338
Defending force 25486 troops, 216 guns, 69 vehicles, Assault Value = 940
Allied assault odds: 1 to 336

Japanese ground losses:
158 casualties reported
Squads: 2 destroyed, 6 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Allied ground losses:
6680 casualties reported
Squads: 336 destroyed, 24 disabled
Non Combat: 259 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 19 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 54 (42 destroyed, 12 disabled)

I will throw those back into Tuyun tomorrow.

Kanhsien

I didn’t intend to take this base, but since it was almost empty. The KMT now holds thirteen bases. And this was our best day so far in China, with 900 combat squads destroyed (and as many support).

[PaxMondo]

Keep them on the run in China.  Disabled squads in chinese units are your friend.  They fight at vastly reduced strength, consume supply as a normal squad, require supply to repair (which they don't have) and generally have low morale.  Just push them all the way to Chungking.  Banzai!!  [:D]
 
 
[&o][&o][&o] 

[SqzMyLemon]

Hi Francois,

Does the Tojo require the Ha-34 engine in your game? If so, I'm curious on what you decided in terms of bomber production? I'm leaning towards both Helen and Sally production, not sure yet. If I go with the Helen I'll have to produce over 400 engines monthly and that's a big expense, while if I go with both I have less factories to expand/convert. I have four more game days to decide before I finalize my aircraft production. I know you put a lot of thought into crunching the numbers, what's the more efficient and cost effective route in your opinion?

[fcharton]

Hi Joseph

The Tojos are Ha-35 in this scenario. I have not invested a lot in my plane production so far. Being PDU off, my upgrade options are limited, and the game is more about rotating squadrons and pilots than equipping every one with the latest model.

Right now, I am focusing on the Sally. The IIa has better range and maneuver than the Helen Ia. I also have more planes that can upgrade to Sallies. But I am researching later Helens, which outclass the Sally. The Helen IIa should be out in July, and I believe I will have the IIb in April 43. I am also trying to produce more Lilly IIa, as I have many squadrons that can use them.

But again, I am more focused on using all the squadrons I have (so far, most of my PP were spent on air units), than on production.


April 26th, 1942

Surabaya, for a change

Our first attack on Surabaya went well. We achieved 3:1 odds, and reduced the forts. Unfortunately, disruption and fatigue are high, and I will probably need to rest every other day. I believe I can take the base by the beginning of May.

Ground combat at Soerabaja (56,104)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 59881 troops, 555 guns, 393 vehicles, Assault Value = 2214
Defending force 25463 troops, 346 guns, 323 vehicles, Assault Value = 624
Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 2
Japanese assault odds: 3 to 1 (fort level 2)

Japanese ground losses:
1771 casualties reported
Squads: 13 destroyed, 125 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 29 disabled
Engineers: 3 destroyed, 20 disabled
Vehicles lost 18 (2 destroyed, 16 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
1139 casualties reported
Squads: 25 destroyed, 47 disabled
Non Combat: 3 destroyed, 66 disabled
Engineers: 35 destroyed, 14 disabled
Guns lost 30 (8 destroyed, 22 disabled)
Vehicles lost 24 (5 destroyed, 19 disabled)

Punishment

The four Chinese units that tried to attack the hex between Tuyun and Kweiyang yesterday, were defeated today

Ground combat at 75,50 (near Kweiyang)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 25369 troops, 216 guns, 69 vehicles, Assault Value = 929
Defending force 3996 troops, 102 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 103
Japanese assault odds: 55 to 1

Japanese ground losses:
111 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 13 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Allied ground losses:
1262 casualties reported
Squads: 59 destroyed, 31 disabled
Non Combat: 55 destroyed, 15 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 39 (17 destroyed, 22 disabled)
Units retreated 4

The had 350 AV yesterday, and lost 330 squads in the river crossing. The 60 more squads destroyed today reduce this stack to very little. This means those KMT unit trapped in southern China will probably remain there.

There are now quite a few pockets in China. Two large stacks are trapped in the mountains around Lanchow. There are defeated corps in the woods near Ankang. And then we have Changsha, and the south (Kukong to Tuyun). All these units are too far away to retreat, and not strong enough to launch counterattacks. Besides, my supply lines are secure.

As a result, I intend to move most of my forces towards Chungking, and see if I can capture the place before June. I believe the KMT is in bad enough shape to make this possible.

Once Chungking falls, we will turn back to those pockets…

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: fcharton

As a result, I intend to move most of my forces towards Chungking, and see if I can capture the place before June. I believe the KMT is in bad enough shape to make this possible.

Once Chungking falls, we will turn back to those pockets…

BANZAI!!!!

[fcharton]

A few days ago, my internet connection broke down, then my opponent was on holidays, and we are right in the hectic season at work. As a result, turn exchange rate is slightly reduced, from the turn-a-day we used to have, to four turns a week. This also means I have less time for this AAR. So, here is an almost weekly update…

April 27th – May 1st 1942

Closing on Chungking

On the 28th, Chengtu feel on first try. Forts were level one, and only two corps and a base force defended the city. I believe my opponent should have tried harder, because the loss of Chengtu is a big dent in his remaining industrial capacity. We are pursuing the defenders, and moving on the Neikiang, which seems weakly garrisoned.

The rest of the plains are empty, and most of the remaining Chinese troops are in Chungking. A small mystery is unfolding there, as the number of units (and estimate of guns and troops) has changed a lot lately. Recon used to report 50-60 units, 150 000 troops, and about 700 guns. But yesterday, the number of units fell down to 23, and only 200 guns.

The decrease in the number of units might result from my opponent rebuilding split units, but this would now explain the gun figure. It might just be FOW, we’ll see tomorrow.

North of Kweiyang, we are making good progress clearing the roads to Chungking. There is no way the enemy can escape.

In the west, the fourth Guard Division is crossing the mountains towards Mengtze, and the 104th is still besieging Tsuyung, where forts were destroyed.

Changsha besieged

Whereas all the surrounding hexes are under Japanese control, the two river hexsides north west of the city were still under allied control, as I would not risk a shock attack to cross them. This was corrected on the 29th, as both hexes were crossed simultaneously. It was a bloody affair.

Ground combat at Changsha (82,52)
Japanese Shock attack
Attacking force 54995 troops, 975 guns, 774 vehicles, Assault Value = 1812
Defending force 70299 troops, 605 guns, 0 vehicles, Assault Value = 1846
Japanese engineers reduce fortifications to 4
Japanese assault odds: 1 to 8 (fort level 4)

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

Japanese ground losses:
5485 casualties reported
Squads: 76 destroyed, 564 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 64 disabled
Engineers: 5 destroyed, 41 disabled
Guns lost 56 (5 destroyed, 51 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
1140 casualties reported
Squads: 26 destroyed, 124 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 47 disabled
Engineers: 1 destroyed, 12 disabled
Guns lost 16 (2 destroyed, 14 disabled)

Yet, I believe it was worth the losses. The Chinese are now isolated and unsupplied in Changsha. I can reduce the garrison, especially move all those guns towards Chungking for the kill. With all hexsides captured, and Changsha too far back behind the front to be rescued, the pocket is harmless.

Clearing the SRA

Koepang fell at last. This was a long battle, but not a very bloody one.
Surabaya, the last Dutch base on Java fell on the first of May. VP jumped by more than 1000 points as a result.

Ground combat at Soerabaja (56,104)
Japanese Deliberate attack
Attacking force 59599 troops, 574 guns, 388 vehicles, Assault Value = 1854
Defending force 20579 troops, 309 guns, 306 vehicles, Assault Value = 360
Japanese assault odds: 3 to 1 (fort level 1)
Japanese forces CAPTURE Soerabaja !!!

Allied aircraft losses
B-25C Mitchell: 5 destroyed
B-339D: 1 destroyed
CW-22 Falcon: 2 destroyed
Do-24K-1: 2 destroyed
PBY-5 Catalina: 2 destroyed

Japanese ground losses:
1034 casualties reported
Squads: 24 destroyed, 35 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 14 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 5 disabled
Guns lost 11 (2 destroyed, 9 disabled)
Vehicles lost 22 (21 destroyed, 1 disabled)

Allied ground losses:
22570 casualties reported
Squads: 625 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 2043 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 212 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 438 (438 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Vehicles lost 333 (333 destroyed, 0 disabled)
Units destroyed 17

Both Java and Sumatra are now clear of enemy presence. I have five divisions on both islands, now available for redeployment, and I am hesitating about my next move. I might land two divisions on Luzon, to finish Bataan, and free two more divisions there. The rest would either move down to the jungles of New Guinea, for a fun land campaign there, or maybe go for northern Australia, which doesn’t seem to be strongly defended.

Finally, my Nells in Georgetown have detected an enemy task force off the western coast of Sumatra. The first reports spoke about carriers. I doubt it, but all my planes in the area are on alert… With a little luck…