Empire Mod PBEM ( From 1 Jan 43) Game finished Sept 45 as a draw.

[Cavalry Corp]

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[Cavalry Corp]

4th - 5th Feb

A quiet day - little allied activity - they are consolidating and the air resting - so we are preparing an attack.

One sub lost attempting to engage allied carriers.

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[Cavalry Corp]

air losses

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[Cavalry Corp]

6-7 Feb 43

Emperors Directive 22 - Japan will attack Akyab where we believe the base is full of bombers but defended by naval and air

2 TF will attempt to bombard, one is DD the other is Mutsu and Nagato based. Nearby 70 fighters sweep followed by nearly 100 bombers - other attacks will target allied land units outside Rangoon.

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[Cavalry Corp]

2nd part of air from Chiang

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[Cavalry Corp]

They say no plan of attack survives contact with the enemy.

The destroyers managed to slip past two allied task forces to engage the anti-submarine task force at Akyab and sank them all before bombarding on the 2nd day with modest success.

The battleships were not so lucky they bumped into the smaller allied cruiser force( no doubt en route to Rangoon) , sinking most of it but the Nagato took 1 TT from a British Destroyer, which started a bad fire and she was sunk by 7 TT from LBA the next day the Mutsu also took two TT to limp away with 70 Flt damage.

The main allied cruiser force failed to find anything except a couple of Thai MTB outside Rangoon.

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[Cavalry Corp]

Sweeps found not a single fighter up they were flying to sweep Rangoon. Akyab was full of bombers.

Nearly 100 4E terror bombers were destroyed over two days - for little loss but a lot of damaged planes.

We are withdrawing expecting a big revenge attack. These shots are just a couple of many over 100 Japanese Bombers and the same number of fighters participated.

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[Cavalry Corp]

CV Build program as of early 43

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[Cavalry Corp]

Potential CB/BB production - Note one CB with 11 inchers arrived late 42.

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[Cavalry Corp]

ALLIED AND JAPAN CV LOSSES AS AT FEB 15-16 43

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[Cavalry Corp]

FEB 17-18 1943
Allies are very inactive but are building up I am sure - we continue to re enforce central Pacific and North Borneo

Here are the repairs and upgrades currently going on around Tokyo.

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[Cavalry Corp]

Planning another massive air raid in Burma - this time against the refineries at Magwe. Fighter sweeps and bombers in all c 200 aircraft including 72 Liz- we hope the allies are still licking their wounds after the Akyab raids - for certain a lot of fighters are now at Akyab according to recon.

The Liz even the upgraded version is slow and very vulnerable to flak and fighters - have to be used with care.

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[Cavalry Corp]

FEB 18-19 43

Alas bombers did not launch and what the fighters went found nearly 100 Allied fighters including Spitfire MK VIII !
Then on the second day the allies visited Rangoon just when I did not need it - a lot of planes damaged but only light damage to the airfields.

Allied surface units battled it out with the CL TF guarding the Rangoon estuary and got the worst of it just with 3 DD sunk I think for the loss of two TB. The three transport ships evaded.

Allied subs are having a purge on the DEI tankers or trying to.

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[Cavalry Corp]

20-21 Feb 43

Allied failed landing at Eniwetok.... Landing caught us by surprise yet again. Allied Regt was decimated though as we were well prepared if a shade over stacked - a sign that hasty expansion is costly. Dean is very aggressive and many of his risks have paid off.

Allied raids continue on Rangoon mainly hordes of medium bombers but the attrition must be telling as he seems to have raised his altitude ( there is more flak in this mod BTW).

Japanese subs continue to have some success here and there.

We have swapped the accelerated CV to another due in November - also started some more shipyard expansion this turn. Oil is declining now and we need to bring back more and more efficiently. Merchant ships at full tilt to keep up with resource demands.

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[Cavalry Corp]

22 Feb 43 Gasmata falls after a good fight with no supply. Elsewhere other sites are still contested as per the map below.

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[Cavalry Corp]

28th Feb

The allies try another surprise Regimental sized landing on wake after a heavy bombardment and CV plane attack which destroyed most of the CD guns but the attack was held - see if we can turn them out !

Meantime at Manus we receive a lot of supply under their nose - while Judys/Jills are used for the first time with some success.

Central Pacific seems to be their main drive - but it seems to hasty to me.

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[Cavalry Corp]

28TH Feb 43

Allies pull out of Wake... and are destroyed on Eniwetok but the capture Kasaie base... a rough struggle indeed.

Japanese sub and Kreigsmarine U boat sink two more.

Heavy alled raids continue and Manus is bombarded and several unloading transports are lost.

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[Cavalry Corp]

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[Cavalry Corp]

We reach March 43 , some new planes coming in that's nice. Have switched one CV to accelerated from November 43. We aim to have 3 CV and around 4 CVL ready by about end of May. This may give us a fighting chance in a stand off before the autumn when allied arrivals accelerate further.

The loss of one more small base is announced.

Judy's/ Jill bag some more x AP. We await arrival of the LST/ APA - they may transfer some edge away from us. In the meantime we need to rebuild and beef up the central pacific atolls again.

I have put the total aircraft loss chart here as well.

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[Cavalry Corp]

Inter player game chat -

Dean,

In response to your compliment and comments, I will also put this on my AAR.

You have done well by launching surprise attacks and extreme dogged defences; you are actually the first allied player I have played against who has come through the central Pacific. I had spent a lot of time reinforcing other areas and had neglected it, that is true. I was also lacking a lot of supply in that area, and some of the bases you took had completely run out by the time you got there. We also had the issue that when we lost our carriers, we were ready for a huge invasion of Australia. We had to redeploy all those forces, and it seemed to take months.

You have attacked with slow unload ships, much to my surprise. I know it will be worse when you have the last unload ships – but we are also getting ready. You have seen two landings fail now – you need bigger landings with better troops and quicker.

Unlike in stock, I am able to build quite a lot of new stuff, and I believe in mid-1943, we will be able to take on your depleted CV force, providing you haven't received the third Essex. And have lots of Hellcats as my CV planes are slightly better now than yours. I think in the mod, Japan has a brief window, say Oct 42 – Jan 43, where the CV planes are better if higher SR. It will be tempting for players to try and get the engines in play and get the Jill and the Judy – Judy especially carries a nice big bomb! At one point about 40 days ago, my CV (remaining) was just outside the landings you were making, and I changed orders about three times, wondering whether or not to engage with the support of land air. I also forgot that I also have 3 CVL under conversion but alas, many of the arriving CV/CVL do not have air groups and they like in RL have to be patched together from others -rebuilt and or currently training.

We have stalled the British in Burma I like to think – until you take Rangoon or pop up somewhere else but our surface navy is still quite strong. We have built two Niitaka class CA which has been a big help and they are probably the best CA in the game (we cannot afford the others). There are tons of ships that could be built but cannot, it makes it v interesting to see what players could be tempted to build. Japan receives better ship AA guns for CL+ than in stock and esp in mid-44 we will have flak approaching yours… . Until then, its tricky to put much faith in ship flak. Even the 3.9 inchers most of my ships have upgraded from the 5-inch DP do not detract from the balance being the 25mm rubbish.

In this mod FP development is taken further (by both sides) Japan who really wants to exploit this path, has some good ones arriving some of which have some good abilities and are well armed against bombers without escorts. They are also very useful in that they can survive when the tarmac it full of holes!! I decided it is worthwhile making a few of the BBCV conversions as well as some of the Mogami's on this basis – in stock, the FPO are not good enough to warrant it. Allies too have some much better ship based recon and some FF that may prove useful.

We are able to build better AC now, and we will also have planes to take on the 4E bombers with success. I would like to think we will be ok provided the 4e bombers cannot reach the homeland by say mid 44 – at which point we will have planes to deal with it. You also have lots of toys, bigger and better and more bombers. If the Peacemaker can reach us maybe its game over – Evoken said. Its an unopened box. This war will be very different in the long run.

Until you take a big port with repair facilities, you will be very stretched for repair issues as well as to some extent, refuelling and so on.

With me - Oil is going down a bit fast ( but we have better lift than in stock) and we are only just getting enough resources back as the improved industry is very very hungry. Planes and Engines are lacking, esp engines. With realistic research and development on it really does make things much better. Some planes need to be kept in production for interesting reasons – esp the rule on the CVL/ CV/ CVB basing of carrier planes not being suitable for certain types.

Glad you are enjoying things so far – the patches/tweaking and making it even more interesting for both sides we hope.