Subs around Townsville sighted CA's De's and other apparent warships, i usually wouldnt trust sub sightings, as my air and sub sightings have been previously unreliable, but rob hit Port Moresbys Port with a large level bomber raid today, so i think its pretty definate that hes gonna invade Port Moresby.
KB is sailing full speed towards Rabaul..Zuikaku will join it there, and we will resist the Allied invasion in the coral sea.
Attu invasion will go ahead, but with nightime tokyo express bombardments to keep the airfield shut, and the troops soft, my assault points at Attu have risen above robs assualt points, im tempted to launch a deliberate attack as he should be short on supplies, unless hes flying C-47s on supply missions from Adak... Ill wait till the 2nd wave lands..
It was a good turn in general for Japan though, but ill update later. [:'(]
The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Moderators: wdolson, Don Bowen, mogami
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
24th - 25th February 1943
The resistance at Baker continued, but without LBA in the form of Bettys due to rob flying in a squadron (or two) of Wildcats.
However on the night of the 24th the Cruiser taskforce sailed into the Allied invasion fleet, and ecountered a bunch of AKs brimming with troops and supplies, protected by a solitary Destroyer
Sunk a handful of Aks and the Destroyer, inflicting plenty of ground casualities and disruption to the ground units, good result.
Some Carriers i had on patrol in the Indian Ocean to pick up on a comment rob made a while ago, about convoys taking ages to pass under South Aus, finally engaged and sunk some ships in what appears to be a supply and fuel convoy, several tankers and Aks sunk, bit of a anticlimax, i was hoping to sink some troop/plane convoys. Allied have plenty of supplies and fuel, sinking these doesnt really change a thing, but ill stick here purely for the points, and to try and justfiy the fuel ive wasted waiting..
Some Zeros and betties/nells wasted themselves by launching a naval attack on Luganville, (ill have to reduce their max range) [8|]
Only other news is as i mentioned earlier, Rob did a big raid on the port facilities of Port Moresby, burning plenty of supplies, so much so the 56th Division stationed there is now in the orange, ill try and fly in some transport aircraft to keep them supplied, and ill send in a kamikaize supply ground of Aks that are currently at Gili Gili. USN most probably at the Townsville i suspect, ive just got to home my LBA can resist and deter him from invading long enough for the Kido Butai to arrive at Rabaul.
Im very excited at the prospect of engaging robs carrier force again, its obviously weak enough for him to only chose to invade when my KB is sighted elsewhere, but strong enough for him to beleive it can complete its task. 3 USN carriers including the Essex, vs the 6 original KB carriers...should be a no contest and another major setback for rob, just got to get into position in time...
The resistance at Baker continued, but without LBA in the form of Bettys due to rob flying in a squadron (or two) of Wildcats.
However on the night of the 24th the Cruiser taskforce sailed into the Allied invasion fleet, and ecountered a bunch of AKs brimming with troops and supplies, protected by a solitary Destroyer
Sunk a handful of Aks and the Destroyer, inflicting plenty of ground casualities and disruption to the ground units, good result.
Some Carriers i had on patrol in the Indian Ocean to pick up on a comment rob made a while ago, about convoys taking ages to pass under South Aus, finally engaged and sunk some ships in what appears to be a supply and fuel convoy, several tankers and Aks sunk, bit of a anticlimax, i was hoping to sink some troop/plane convoys. Allied have plenty of supplies and fuel, sinking these doesnt really change a thing, but ill stick here purely for the points, and to try and justfiy the fuel ive wasted waiting..
Some Zeros and betties/nells wasted themselves by launching a naval attack on Luganville, (ill have to reduce their max range) [8|]
Only other news is as i mentioned earlier, Rob did a big raid on the port facilities of Port Moresby, burning plenty of supplies, so much so the 56th Division stationed there is now in the orange, ill try and fly in some transport aircraft to keep them supplied, and ill send in a kamikaize supply ground of Aks that are currently at Gili Gili. USN most probably at the Townsville i suspect, ive just got to home my LBA can resist and deter him from invading long enough for the Kido Butai to arrive at Rabaul.
Im very excited at the prospect of engaging robs carrier force again, its obviously weak enough for him to only chose to invade when my KB is sighted elsewhere, but strong enough for him to beleive it can complete its task. 3 USN carriers including the Essex, vs the 6 original KB carriers...should be a no contest and another major setback for rob, just got to get into position in time...
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
26th February - 1st March 1943
I decided to pull the Burma army further down the rail, and ordered the Saesbo unit at Tyang gui down the trail behind the Salween river, to disuade him from marching down this way, if he does ill beef up the number of ground units outside and around Raheng, and bring in army bombers to attempt to get his army units stuck there.
Allies march into the deserted Pagan, new IJA position on the rail
Im less likely to get encirled in these new positions, the next fall back position will be behind the Salween at Moulmien where we will turn the river red with British blood! Not one step back and all that..
My Carriers in the Indian Ocean, assorted CVES and CVLS continued thier cull of the merchants, the larger taskforce retired due to lack of fuel towards Batavia, but the smaller single carrier taskforce continued to stalk and sink merchants.
The Hiyo taskforce and co found fresh targets outside Baker, troops loaded up in LSTs this time to limit the losses i suppose, sank a couple they had another base force on them, robs loading the island full of plenty of enginneers and such but seemingly not assault units, unless of course im not sinking the transports full of combat units, unfortunately the 1st Guards failed to head towards the place, and where stuck on Tarawa, the convoy must hav e retired there and unloaded. [:@]
Not that it really matters i wont be landing troops now without prior bombardment, the Battleships and Cruisers are refueling at Kwaj and will sortie next turn towards Baker, to bombard the place before my counterattack lands, if the Port Moresby ambush works as planned, i will be able to take the island back with full support of the KB as well.
Talking of which the KB is sailing past the Marinias, some ships are sneaking up the low teens in damage, meaning they will be sighted easier, if i time the attack right it shouldnt matter...
One more turn of full speed, then ill slow them down to mission speed and they should be in Rabaul by the 7th or so.
No signs of Carriers, Recon set to Townsville wont fly, lots of Asw attacking my subs outside the place, id laugh if his carriers are sailing towards Baker as we speak, but i doubt it as Rob continued flattening Gilli Gilli, itd be a waste of his B-17s if he was doing this for no reason.
I decided to pull the Burma army further down the rail, and ordered the Saesbo unit at Tyang gui down the trail behind the Salween river, to disuade him from marching down this way, if he does ill beef up the number of ground units outside and around Raheng, and bring in army bombers to attempt to get his army units stuck there.
Allies march into the deserted Pagan, new IJA position on the rail
Im less likely to get encirled in these new positions, the next fall back position will be behind the Salween at Moulmien where we will turn the river red with British blood! Not one step back and all that..
My Carriers in the Indian Ocean, assorted CVES and CVLS continued thier cull of the merchants, the larger taskforce retired due to lack of fuel towards Batavia, but the smaller single carrier taskforce continued to stalk and sink merchants.
The Hiyo taskforce and co found fresh targets outside Baker, troops loaded up in LSTs this time to limit the losses i suppose, sank a couple they had another base force on them, robs loading the island full of plenty of enginneers and such but seemingly not assault units, unless of course im not sinking the transports full of combat units, unfortunately the 1st Guards failed to head towards the place, and where stuck on Tarawa, the convoy must hav e retired there and unloaded. [:@]
Not that it really matters i wont be landing troops now without prior bombardment, the Battleships and Cruisers are refueling at Kwaj and will sortie next turn towards Baker, to bombard the place before my counterattack lands, if the Port Moresby ambush works as planned, i will be able to take the island back with full support of the KB as well.
Talking of which the KB is sailing past the Marinias, some ships are sneaking up the low teens in damage, meaning they will be sighted easier, if i time the attack right it shouldnt matter...
One more turn of full speed, then ill slow them down to mission speed and they should be in Rabaul by the 7th or so.
No signs of Carriers, Recon set to Townsville wont fly, lots of Asw attacking my subs outside the place, id laugh if his carriers are sailing towards Baker as we speak, but i doubt it as Rob continued flattening Gilli Gilli, itd be a waste of his B-17s if he was doing this for no reason.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Robs away till the Saturday, nice to have a break from it anyway, been having to make too many big decisions in a short space of time, very stressful.
Hope robs carriers are where i suspect.
Got my Gcse results today, 2 A's 9 B's 2 C's....including a B in history. [:(]
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Nothing much in the last few turns, rob is boming me into the ground in China, destroying hundereds of aircraft on the ground, not much i can do to stop him.
More developments in the Coral sea, a MSW cleared some mines at Gilli Gilli, Gilli Gilli would be a dream engagement for me, i was expecting an invasion of PM/Gili this turn, with Minesweepers and all, but nothing, and Townsville is still seemingly stuffed full of ships, must be soon though...
Kido butai arrived at Rabaul, and is now heading out to Shortland islands to react quicker to now what looks like a certain invasion of Western PNG.
The Zuikaku dropped to 8 system damage, and is now meeting up with a Asw group of 3 destroyers outside Japan, where it will join the battle, if it arrives soon enough remains to be seen, the mini carrier forces i had in the Indian ocean have nearly returned home to Soerbaja, when they have refueled and refitted, they will also sail to the battle site.
We must throw everything we have at the USN before its strength becomes to great to bare!
More developments in the Coral sea, a MSW cleared some mines at Gilli Gilli, Gilli Gilli would be a dream engagement for me, i was expecting an invasion of PM/Gili this turn, with Minesweepers and all, but nothing, and Townsville is still seemingly stuffed full of ships, must be soon though...
Kido butai arrived at Rabaul, and is now heading out to Shortland islands to react quicker to now what looks like a certain invasion of Western PNG.
The Zuikaku dropped to 8 system damage, and is now meeting up with a Asw group of 3 destroyers outside Japan, where it will join the battle, if it arrives soon enough remains to be seen, the mini carrier forces i had in the Indian ocean have nearly returned home to Soerbaja, when they have refueled and refitted, they will also sail to the battle site.
We must throw everything we have at the USN before its strength becomes to great to bare!
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
8th-9th March 1943
The deadlock continues, 60-40 mid expierience Nicks fail to hit anything on night airfield attacks, you would have thought at least one of them would have found thier target and release the bomb load in the vincinity of a relatively large base... They gain expeirience anyway, hopefully theyll have enough by late 44/45 to be decent at night naval attack, which will be the only way i can hurt him..
The Mini Kb docked at Soerbaja, not enough fuel at the place for them to sail to Rabaul, so they will sail to Kendari to fill thier tanks and then sail on to Rabaul..
More recon of Port Moresby and Gili Gili, Townsville is still stuffed full of ships, KB is ready in wait at the Shortlands, and Lae received a squadron of A6m3s from the DEI. The Zuikaku also began its journey to the battlefield..
The past few turns i also received the Taiho and Musashi, Musashi will stay in Tokyo, until i can place it into a needing surface/bombardment group, and the Taiho, will eiether support the operations at Attu, sail to the Baker battle, or join the rest of the KB in the solomans. I think i will unload the A6m5s and Judys, and fill it with vals and zeros, and go and perform some air attacks on Attu, to convince him that some, or if not all of the KB is still in the north, whilst if he hesistates and calls off the PM invasion it will be good for me, id rather catch him with his pants down...
The waters imbeteewn Parasishumo Jima and Attu are festering with allied subs, several merchants are hit and a few sink, the crew of CA Myoko owe thier lives to poor allied sub training and armourment
three allied subs lined up thier torps at the cruiser steaming towards Attu, and only one hit, albiet with only one torp, so the Cruiser is fine, few weeks in Hiroshima and theyll be ready to roll.
However the situation around Attu is probably getting worse, hes landed parts of another RCT, must be by sub, not much i can do to prevent this, and he has level 9 forts at the place, so my 3 to 1 assualt point bonus isnt really that big. Not sure i want to commit another division here, soo...if i cant take the place might as well make him bleed for it.
The deadlock continues, 60-40 mid expierience Nicks fail to hit anything on night airfield attacks, you would have thought at least one of them would have found thier target and release the bomb load in the vincinity of a relatively large base... They gain expeirience anyway, hopefully theyll have enough by late 44/45 to be decent at night naval attack, which will be the only way i can hurt him..
The Mini Kb docked at Soerbaja, not enough fuel at the place for them to sail to Rabaul, so they will sail to Kendari to fill thier tanks and then sail on to Rabaul..
More recon of Port Moresby and Gili Gili, Townsville is still stuffed full of ships, KB is ready in wait at the Shortlands, and Lae received a squadron of A6m3s from the DEI. The Zuikaku also began its journey to the battlefield..
The past few turns i also received the Taiho and Musashi, Musashi will stay in Tokyo, until i can place it into a needing surface/bombardment group, and the Taiho, will eiether support the operations at Attu, sail to the Baker battle, or join the rest of the KB in the solomans. I think i will unload the A6m5s and Judys, and fill it with vals and zeros, and go and perform some air attacks on Attu, to convince him that some, or if not all of the KB is still in the north, whilst if he hesistates and calls off the PM invasion it will be good for me, id rather catch him with his pants down...
The waters imbeteewn Parasishumo Jima and Attu are festering with allied subs, several merchants are hit and a few sink, the crew of CA Myoko owe thier lives to poor allied sub training and armourment
three allied subs lined up thier torps at the cruiser steaming towards Attu, and only one hit, albiet with only one torp, so the Cruiser is fine, few weeks in Hiroshima and theyll be ready to roll. However the situation around Attu is probably getting worse, hes landed parts of another RCT, must be by sub, not much i can do to prevent this, and he has level 9 forts at the place, so my 3 to 1 assualt point bonus isnt really that big. Not sure i want to commit another division here, soo...if i cant take the place might as well make him bleed for it.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
10-11th March 1943
I think this turn marked the end of Japanese offensive operations, Attu is now receiving reinforcements and i suspect supplies from his subs, the operation had its required effect, it has reduced his sub war, but only to reinforce his 'encircled' troops and to blow up my merchants in the Attu area. [:(]
The final of the troops transports headed to Attu where ambushed by some PTs, also at Baker my bombardment taskforces lost a Destroyer to the evil PTs.
He must still suspect i have carrier forces in the area, as no transports outside the place..i dont think.
At Baker the much delayed counterattack hit the beaches, and its lateness was unfortunately really evident, the AP's where shot up pretty badly by costal guns, even if they weren't i didnt bring enough assualt points to the party, the shock attack was replused and the 200 odd assault points that stepped off intact off the APs where reduced to 40, thankfully a sub attack by him outside Tarawa crippled one of the Aps, so ive still got a sizeable cadre of the unit left to rebuild one day..
I left my bombardment groups outside Baker, to help support the invasion, the Aoba was hit by a LBA attack, usually wouldnt matter but they where packing 2000 pounders for the first time in the war. Thankfully its ok, should make home, thats two Jap Cruisers in as many turns needing repairs...
123 B-17's escorted by Lightenings hit Port Moresby, so maybe hes changing his mind... Hundered or so ships whent missing from Townsville, whether thats just my poor recon or somthing setting sail i dont know..a RO sub i sent outside the coral reefs of Townsville was promptly sunk by B-17s on ASW.
Rangoons cap was blown away as well, by P-40Es and the AVG, horrible losses, caught me at a dodgy time i was one Zero squadron down, as i was rotating them in and out of the DEI to get thier expierience levels up, the Oscars where totally destroyed about 1-20, the Tojos and A6m3s managed about 2-1/3-1...
Sending aviation troops to Moulmien, to set u a new airfield over there, to attempt to attrit him from his eventual bombing of the place, i hope enough supplies can be drained through from Bangkok as combined with his airfield at Andaman its the only safe haven i have now for supplies to the Burma front. Hell have probably liberated Burma by the end of the year at best..
I think this turn marked the end of Japanese offensive operations, Attu is now receiving reinforcements and i suspect supplies from his subs, the operation had its required effect, it has reduced his sub war, but only to reinforce his 'encircled' troops and to blow up my merchants in the Attu area. [:(]
The final of the troops transports headed to Attu where ambushed by some PTs, also at Baker my bombardment taskforces lost a Destroyer to the evil PTs.
He must still suspect i have carrier forces in the area, as no transports outside the place..i dont think.
At Baker the much delayed counterattack hit the beaches, and its lateness was unfortunately really evident, the AP's where shot up pretty badly by costal guns, even if they weren't i didnt bring enough assualt points to the party, the shock attack was replused and the 200 odd assault points that stepped off intact off the APs where reduced to 40, thankfully a sub attack by him outside Tarawa crippled one of the Aps, so ive still got a sizeable cadre of the unit left to rebuild one day..
I left my bombardment groups outside Baker, to help support the invasion, the Aoba was hit by a LBA attack, usually wouldnt matter but they where packing 2000 pounders for the first time in the war. Thankfully its ok, should make home, thats two Jap Cruisers in as many turns needing repairs...
123 B-17's escorted by Lightenings hit Port Moresby, so maybe hes changing his mind... Hundered or so ships whent missing from Townsville, whether thats just my poor recon or somthing setting sail i dont know..a RO sub i sent outside the coral reefs of Townsville was promptly sunk by B-17s on ASW.
Rangoons cap was blown away as well, by P-40Es and the AVG, horrible losses, caught me at a dodgy time i was one Zero squadron down, as i was rotating them in and out of the DEI to get thier expierience levels up, the Oscars where totally destroyed about 1-20, the Tojos and A6m3s managed about 2-1/3-1...
Sending aviation troops to Moulmien, to set u a new airfield over there, to attempt to attrit him from his eventual bombing of the place, i hope enough supplies can be drained through from Bangkok as combined with his airfield at Andaman its the only safe haven i have now for supplies to the Burma front. Hell have probably liberated Burma by the end of the year at best..RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
12-13th March 1943
With this order phrase i entered a new phrase of thinking and put greater emphasis on consolidating my defences in the two theatres Rob is making gains (or rather a gain) The Pacific and Burma.
In Burma the aviation squads where busy all throughout the day ensuring that the IJA could escape Rangoon in some decent shape before being bombed into the ground, bit disheartening that so many fighters where destroyed and every squadron pretty much wrecked over the course of two days, but ah well, im sure rob would have said the same thing when i sunk every one of his carriers for no great loss of my own, but really ground air combat should be a lot less bloody imo. (not that that hasnt been said before)
By the end of the turn Rangoon was empty apart from a few remnants and odd bits that will have to hope that the 100+ level bombers that are on the way next turn, dont totally shut down the AF.
The squadrons have been divided amongst Moulmien/Malaya and Hanoi/Haipong..
In the Pacific i have given up hope of retaking Baker, and have begun ordering its supression, P-38s out of the place soon as it turns level 2 will soon systematically destroy my AF , Sallys at Lae are being packed up on AKs and will go to Tarawa/Apanama to try and prevent the af going to level 2 or supporting his fighters on offensive missions.(Ill have to remember to move in some more level bombers at Lae though, for when/if he retakes PM.)
Too accomodate this im shipping up a couple of aviation regiments and a Air HQ to Tarawa and Apanama, talking of which the newly arrived 31st Division arrived in Shanghai, and is loading up to head to Hanoi/Pakhoi, as hes got me checkmated in this region, and him having a level 3 port and a potentionally good airfield there would be a nightmare for my shipping.
With this order phrase i entered a new phrase of thinking and put greater emphasis on consolidating my defences in the two theatres Rob is making gains (or rather a gain) The Pacific and Burma.
In Burma the aviation squads where busy all throughout the day ensuring that the IJA could escape Rangoon in some decent shape before being bombed into the ground, bit disheartening that so many fighters where destroyed and every squadron pretty much wrecked over the course of two days, but ah well, im sure rob would have said the same thing when i sunk every one of his carriers for no great loss of my own, but really ground air combat should be a lot less bloody imo. (not that that hasnt been said before)
By the end of the turn Rangoon was empty apart from a few remnants and odd bits that will have to hope that the 100+ level bombers that are on the way next turn, dont totally shut down the AF.
The squadrons have been divided amongst Moulmien/Malaya and Hanoi/Haipong..
In the Pacific i have given up hope of retaking Baker, and have begun ordering its supression, P-38s out of the place soon as it turns level 2 will soon systematically destroy my AF , Sallys at Lae are being packed up on AKs and will go to Tarawa/Apanama to try and prevent the af going to level 2 or supporting his fighters on offensive missions.(Ill have to remember to move in some more level bombers at Lae though, for when/if he retakes PM.)
Too accomodate this im shipping up a couple of aviation regiments and a Air HQ to Tarawa and Apanama, talking of which the newly arrived 31st Division arrived in Shanghai, and is loading up to head to Hanoi/Pakhoi, as hes got me checkmated in this region, and him having a level 3 port and a potentionally good airfield there would be a nightmare for my shipping.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Will a level 3 port be enough to save a Carrier?
Taiho is in trouble after being struck by one torp from a sub (much like it was in the real war) and Saipan is biggest port in the vincinity.
The Ise's flooding has been contained in a level 3 port, but i noticed the Taiho has a bigger durability.
[:(]
Allies have landed at Sabang, quite a few transports hit by Mines though...
Thanks in advance for any answer.
Taiho is in trouble after being struck by one torp from a sub (much like it was in the real war) and Saipan is biggest port in the vincinity.
The Ise's flooding has been contained in a level 3 port, but i noticed the Taiho has a bigger durability.
[:(]
Allies have landed at Sabang, quite a few transports hit by Mines though...
Thanks in advance for any answer.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Thanks all for your many detailed responses you c**ts [;)]
14- 17th March 1943
The war continues to turn against Japan, and whilst we can still rely on our naval superiorty, our airforces and imparticular ground forces are so understrength that we can only hamper certain Allied advances from under thier LBA curtain.
Highlight of the past couple of turns was as you guessed the Taiho being hit by a single torp from the American Submarine Peto the crews greeness was shown as fires started by the attack where allowed to spread to the Ammo storage and cause a massive explosion.
Lucky the Destroyer escort where able to chase away the persuing sub, allowing the crew to get some real damage control expierience and contain the fires, the Striken ship was diverted to Saipan in an attempt to save it.
Taiho docked in Saipan
Also in other news Commonwealth forces landed at Sabang, some APs and Aks where hit by the extensive minefield i had placed there, unfortunately i only had a small cadre of the 2nd Para regiment there to oppose the invasion and the base fell on the 4th day of fighting, LBA recently fleeing from Rangoon (rob inadvertantly helped me by clearing out Rangoon, as my airforce wouldnt have been in Malaya) Sorties from NE Malaya, hit many ships, and some surface combat beteewn Japanese destroyers and Patrol gunboats managed to further harass the invasion fleet, could this be a step to far? I think it could be.
The surface combat also revealed British carriers operating a few hundered miles West of the base in the British ocean, brave of rob to place his carrier fleet here when only a few turns ago i had a sizeable carrier force raiding in this ocean, said carrier force are now sailing around Borneo as we speak, where they will then dock at Singapore before heading up the Malacca straight to engage the British carriers, i dont beleive the Carrier force is that strong, as im semi sure he has some British carriers in the pacific side of the map, even so the British carrier force cannot be that strong, judging by the size of the cap placed over Sabang by it, and the size of the strikes. Lets hope he doesnt retire these assets.
Its becoming more and more clear that the limting factor in the japanese defense startergy in 1943, where my naval and airforces are still strong enough to allow small windows of oppertunity for a counter invasion, will be my ground forces. This was illustrated by me needing to react to rob marching down the trail towards Raeheng, not expecting this i looked to my ground reserves, and found i had none!So im having to pull out Brigades from the South DEI, where rob hasnt been sniffing around for some while, 2 Brigades will be sent to this area, one to sit in Raeheng, and another to bolster the garrison of Malaya to deter rob from getting more agressive.
Im gonna have to think about evacuating my troops from Attu when my Carriers are free, as i really nee as many ground units as i can get, its quite ironic that the British Commonwealth forces have reclaimed more ground from the Japanese empire than the Americans have, quite the alternative reality. This looks set to continue with rob having me hemmed in at SE China, he will probably take Pakhoi (a nice level 3 port for his subs to repair damage from) unless the newly arrived 31st Division can arrive in Hanoi in time and releive the encircled defenders..i dont think so though..
14- 17th March 1943
The war continues to turn against Japan, and whilst we can still rely on our naval superiorty, our airforces and imparticular ground forces are so understrength that we can only hamper certain Allied advances from under thier LBA curtain.
Highlight of the past couple of turns was as you guessed the Taiho being hit by a single torp from the American Submarine Peto the crews greeness was shown as fires started by the attack where allowed to spread to the Ammo storage and cause a massive explosion.
Lucky the Destroyer escort where able to chase away the persuing sub, allowing the crew to get some real damage control expierience and contain the fires, the Striken ship was diverted to Saipan in an attempt to save it.
Taiho docked in Saipan
Also in other news Commonwealth forces landed at Sabang, some APs and Aks where hit by the extensive minefield i had placed there, unfortunately i only had a small cadre of the 2nd Para regiment there to oppose the invasion and the base fell on the 4th day of fighting, LBA recently fleeing from Rangoon (rob inadvertantly helped me by clearing out Rangoon, as my airforce wouldnt have been in Malaya) Sorties from NE Malaya, hit many ships, and some surface combat beteewn Japanese destroyers and Patrol gunboats managed to further harass the invasion fleet, could this be a step to far? I think it could be.
The surface combat also revealed British carriers operating a few hundered miles West of the base in the British ocean, brave of rob to place his carrier fleet here when only a few turns ago i had a sizeable carrier force raiding in this ocean, said carrier force are now sailing around Borneo as we speak, where they will then dock at Singapore before heading up the Malacca straight to engage the British carriers, i dont beleive the Carrier force is that strong, as im semi sure he has some British carriers in the pacific side of the map, even so the British carrier force cannot be that strong, judging by the size of the cap placed over Sabang by it, and the size of the strikes. Lets hope he doesnt retire these assets.
Its becoming more and more clear that the limting factor in the japanese defense startergy in 1943, where my naval and airforces are still strong enough to allow small windows of oppertunity for a counter invasion, will be my ground forces. This was illustrated by me needing to react to rob marching down the trail towards Raeheng, not expecting this i looked to my ground reserves, and found i had none!So im having to pull out Brigades from the South DEI, where rob hasnt been sniffing around for some while, 2 Brigades will be sent to this area, one to sit in Raeheng, and another to bolster the garrison of Malaya to deter rob from getting more agressive.
Im gonna have to think about evacuating my troops from Attu when my Carriers are free, as i really nee as many ground units as i can get, its quite ironic that the British Commonwealth forces have reclaimed more ground from the Japanese empire than the Americans have, quite the alternative reality. This looks set to continue with rob having me hemmed in at SE China, he will probably take Pakhoi (a nice level 3 port for his subs to repair damage from) unless the newly arrived 31st Division can arrive in Hanoi in time and releive the encircled defenders..i dont think so though..
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Robs Carriers remain elusive, Townsville is still 'missing' a hundered or so ships, an invasion force would have hit home by now, so im suspecting that the missing ships where perhaps several single CV taskfroces, like one - two Cvs and several cruisers, destroyers etc, im not sure.
The Port Moresby invasion looks less and less likey as time progresses, KB will remain at the Shortlands, it can cover the Gilberts/Solomans/PNG well from this port, i need to catch his Carriers before they grow too strong, perhaps laying a trap, using Battleships/Cruisers as bait??
His Carriers could be anywhere, but i do beleive that he was intending to invade PNG/PM the absense of any carrier activity up north perhaps shook him and hes bailed, it wouldnt make sense to go to Brisbane/Townsville for any other reason, Noumea/Fiji are safe havens.
Not much has happened over the past few turns, more sucessful sub attacks, an APD hit, more merchants etc To counter this ive once again been forces to step up my sub war, AV's carrying seaplanes will patrol my sealanes, with APDs always close behind to find and hunt down this sub pesks.
An example of the new sub hunter groups
As you can probably see in the above image, Pakhoi also fell, but the 31st Div also arrived in Haipong, so hopefully i can stabalise the front, and maybe take back Pakhoi
The Port Moresby invasion looks less and less likey as time progresses, KB will remain at the Shortlands, it can cover the Gilberts/Solomans/PNG well from this port, i need to catch his Carriers before they grow too strong, perhaps laying a trap, using Battleships/Cruisers as bait??
His Carriers could be anywhere, but i do beleive that he was intending to invade PNG/PM the absense of any carrier activity up north perhaps shook him and hes bailed, it wouldnt make sense to go to Brisbane/Townsville for any other reason, Noumea/Fiji are safe havens.
Not much has happened over the past few turns, more sucessful sub attacks, an APD hit, more merchants etc To counter this ive once again been forces to step up my sub war, AV's carrying seaplanes will patrol my sealanes, with APDs always close behind to find and hunt down this sub pesks.
An example of the new sub hunter groups
As you can probably see in the above image, Pakhoi also fell, but the 31st Div also arrived in Haipong, so hopefully i can stabalise the front, and maybe take back Pakhoi
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Defense Stratergy for the Burma front 1943
The Burma army will continue to fight down the rail, eventually abandoning Rangoon, which will spell the end of the Burma campaign, and open up the fight for Malaya and Thailand.
It is here im working on stopping him, most of the Burma army is already prepping for Moulien, and Raeheng, which are both in the process of being built up to leve 9 forts the 'Salween line' named after the river the defensive fortifications sit behind.
These level 9 forts, coupled with the river it sits behind which will force a shock attack and the massive ground forces in these two bases will halt the Allied advance and force them to manuvere around it, and launching a amphibious invasion which the Royal Navy cannot support, the amount of mines at Sabang (1000 or so) caused considerable damage to his transports, baring in mind that the mini KB is now in residense at Singapore, and that the Malaya coast will be mined heavy will hopefully bleed the Allies.
The place that is most vunlnerable to invasion is Tavoy/Victoria point/Moulmien/Rangoon, i wouldnt be suprised of a amphib invasion in this area in the next few months, robs got the LBA supreiority to prevent the IJN from getting in the Bay of Bengal, and im short on ground forces here, ill have to scrape the barrel of my Ground reserves to remedy this, building up forts for now...Tavoy is only protected by the 9th coastal gun regiment :I.
Thats all for now, a little email conversation beteewn me and rob has made it clear i was correct in my predictions of the PM invasion, but its not off, too little info about my Carriers, and the Emilies flying recon over Townsville spooked him off, a sort of roundabout victory the Japanese, but like ive said, would have rather to have caught him in the act.
The Burma army will continue to fight down the rail, eventually abandoning Rangoon, which will spell the end of the Burma campaign, and open up the fight for Malaya and Thailand.
It is here im working on stopping him, most of the Burma army is already prepping for Moulien, and Raeheng, which are both in the process of being built up to leve 9 forts the 'Salween line' named after the river the defensive fortifications sit behind.
These level 9 forts, coupled with the river it sits behind which will force a shock attack and the massive ground forces in these two bases will halt the Allied advance and force them to manuvere around it, and launching a amphibious invasion which the Royal Navy cannot support, the amount of mines at Sabang (1000 or so) caused considerable damage to his transports, baring in mind that the mini KB is now in residense at Singapore, and that the Malaya coast will be mined heavy will hopefully bleed the Allies.
The place that is most vunlnerable to invasion is Tavoy/Victoria point/Moulmien/Rangoon, i wouldnt be suprised of a amphib invasion in this area in the next few months, robs got the LBA supreiority to prevent the IJN from getting in the Bay of Bengal, and im short on ground forces here, ill have to scrape the barrel of my Ground reserves to remedy this, building up forts for now...Tavoy is only protected by the 9th coastal gun regiment :I.
Thats all for now, a little email conversation beteewn me and rob has made it clear i was correct in my predictions of the PM invasion, but its not off, too little info about my Carriers, and the Emilies flying recon over Townsville spooked him off, a sort of roundabout victory the Japanese, but like ive said, would have rather to have caught him in the act.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
28th - 29th March 1943
A Japanese sunk sinks a merchant ship NW of Sabang, quite an event for the IJN, espically when i only have 20 subs left!
Rob has built Sabang up to level 3 airfield, so its looking bad for Malaya, not much i can do, the first of my evacuation subs arrived in Attu, and loaded up a cadre of the 21st of Division, sad that the last Japanese offensive has to end like this with a few squads feeling onto a sub in the dead of the night, ill try to get a cadre of every unit there over the next few weeks, drop them off in the Marshall islands. Then ill try an pull more and more of them out, so the cadre doesnt take the rest of the war to rebuild.
Ill try to launch a more widespread evacuation when i can free up some carriers, sadly im not sure when this will, Robs still bombing PM heavily, so it wouldnt suprise me if the PNG invasion is still relatively high up on his to do list. So KB needs to be on stanby, he gets his Essex respawns in 100 days or so, so i guess thats the window ive got to evac as much as possible...
Robs up to more manuevering in Burma...
Thats a Chinese div in the jungles looking to encircle somthing, they're eiether going SE to destroy that Saesbo unit and to clear the path to Rahaeng, SW to threaten, Raeheng and cut off the main route of supplies into Burma, or the most obvious route. West and trapping the Burma army again.
Ive pulled out the 18th Division and 21st Brigade, to protect the rear, should be more than enough to kick out a Chinese division which will be 200 assault points at most, and low on supplies, its those two units sitting SE of Pagan that worries me, i think they're probably going to the same place, and i dont know what units they are, so ive ordered some recon, and pulled some more troops into the rear areas.
A brigade loaded up from Kendari is on its way to Bangkok to garrision Raeheng, so that option should be secure, i want to get the Burma army out of Burma intact, and behind the 'Salween' line(which isnt really anywhere near finished) but whilst buying myself as much time as possible. A tough balance..
A Japanese sunk sinks a merchant ship NW of Sabang, quite an event for the IJN, espically when i only have 20 subs left!
Rob has built Sabang up to level 3 airfield, so its looking bad for Malaya, not much i can do, the first of my evacuation subs arrived in Attu, and loaded up a cadre of the 21st of Division, sad that the last Japanese offensive has to end like this with a few squads feeling onto a sub in the dead of the night, ill try to get a cadre of every unit there over the next few weeks, drop them off in the Marshall islands. Then ill try an pull more and more of them out, so the cadre doesnt take the rest of the war to rebuild.
Ill try to launch a more widespread evacuation when i can free up some carriers, sadly im not sure when this will, Robs still bombing PM heavily, so it wouldnt suprise me if the PNG invasion is still relatively high up on his to do list. So KB needs to be on stanby, he gets his Essex respawns in 100 days or so, so i guess thats the window ive got to evac as much as possible...
Robs up to more manuevering in Burma...
Thats a Chinese div in the jungles looking to encircle somthing, they're eiether going SE to destroy that Saesbo unit and to clear the path to Rahaeng, SW to threaten, Raeheng and cut off the main route of supplies into Burma, or the most obvious route. West and trapping the Burma army again.
Ive pulled out the 18th Division and 21st Brigade, to protect the rear, should be more than enough to kick out a Chinese division which will be 200 assault points at most, and low on supplies, its those two units sitting SE of Pagan that worries me, i think they're probably going to the same place, and i dont know what units they are, so ive ordered some recon, and pulled some more troops into the rear areas.
A brigade loaded up from Kendari is on its way to Bangkok to garrision Raeheng, so that option should be secure, i want to get the Burma army out of Burma intact, and behind the 'Salween' line(which isnt really anywhere near finished) but whilst buying myself as much time as possible. A tough balance..
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
30 - 31st March 1943
Managed to fight back somewhat against robs agressive sub war, think ive sunk at least one sub, and damaged another near Tarawa and Guadacanal, its subs that are near the frontlines that can be dealt with easily, as ive plenty of destroyers sitting around, its the ones around the Marinas and such that are annoying.
Hopefully the death of a Yankee sub
The battle for Burma continues, the 48th Division and a Tank Regiment was released, the 48th Division however wont be engaging the Chinese in the jungles of Burma, as my recon has sigted Aps outside Andaman, could just be a blip in the recon, (like earlier in the aar) but its about time i reinforced the Tavoy/Moulmien area, so this division is marching towards Victoria Point.
The 18th Div and the 21st Brigade should be into the jungle hex next turn (unless they get striken by another movement bug) Marching into this Jungle hex will eliminate any of my worries about having a group of ground units bogged down in my rear (Ohh errr) If i get stuck in a deadlock here it wont block my supply lines. And ill be able to waste more of robs time. The Salween is anywhere near ready, Rahaeng at level 5, and Moulmien at 2, although plenty of engineers incoming.
Burma front as of April fools day 1943, with 'mystery' APs.
The 31st Division ejected the chinese from Nanjing, and has 'sort of' encirled the chinese at Pakhoi, but im pretty sure he has the force here to boot the 31st Div out of Nanjjing, to help prevent this a large Bombardment group in Camarahn Bay that was going to hit Sabang, before the Malacca straight became invested with subs.
The Musashi's first combat will be bombarding Chinese troops, whodathoughit?
This group will try to flatten the chinese at Pakhoi and stop them breaking out of Nanjjing, maybe into submission so i can bag some chinese.
Managed to fight back somewhat against robs agressive sub war, think ive sunk at least one sub, and damaged another near Tarawa and Guadacanal, its subs that are near the frontlines that can be dealt with easily, as ive plenty of destroyers sitting around, its the ones around the Marinas and such that are annoying.
Hopefully the death of a Yankee sub
The battle for Burma continues, the 48th Division and a Tank Regiment was released, the 48th Division however wont be engaging the Chinese in the jungles of Burma, as my recon has sigted Aps outside Andaman, could just be a blip in the recon, (like earlier in the aar) but its about time i reinforced the Tavoy/Moulmien area, so this division is marching towards Victoria Point.
The 18th Div and the 21st Brigade should be into the jungle hex next turn (unless they get striken by another movement bug) Marching into this Jungle hex will eliminate any of my worries about having a group of ground units bogged down in my rear (Ohh errr) If i get stuck in a deadlock here it wont block my supply lines. And ill be able to waste more of robs time. The Salween is anywhere near ready, Rahaeng at level 5, and Moulmien at 2, although plenty of engineers incoming.
Burma front as of April fools day 1943, with 'mystery' APs.
The 31st Division ejected the chinese from Nanjing, and has 'sort of' encirled the chinese at Pakhoi, but im pretty sure he has the force here to boot the 31st Div out of Nanjjing, to help prevent this a large Bombardment group in Camarahn Bay that was going to hit Sabang, before the Malacca straight became invested with subs.
The Musashi's first combat will be bombarding Chinese troops, whodathoughit?
This group will try to flatten the chinese at Pakhoi and stop them breaking out of Nanjjing, maybe into submission so i can bag some chinese.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
As i put some cap over the bombardment group thats about to hit Pakhoi, i wished that i could send it against Sabang before its level 4 and can pack torpedos and medium/heavy bombers, bombarding up the Malacca straight would be safe from air attack, due to the cap i could place over the TF, and thre high level ports at Kaula Lumpa and Singapore, but i KNOW those subs will get multiple chances at screwing the tf.
Just like at Attu, expcept the Malacaa straight is a lot more concentrated, as is it ill have to grin and bare as it goes to level 4 and flattens Malaya, not prepared to lose Battleships over it.
Him taking Sabang is kind of the Oriental version of him taking Port Moresby, and Singapore in the 'Rabaul' of this area, so it isnt game, over, it would be worse if he could bomb Bangkok escourted (Truk) but i dont think he can (famous last words)
Except unlike PM, Rabaul and Truk the DEI and imparticular Palembang is on the doorstep of all this, so theres a lot more at stake..
Rob hit Rangoon which i long empty, so nothing bad, most of my supplies are coming through Siam/Indochina from Bangkok, so this place is no longer the major supply depot it used to be...
Just like at Attu, expcept the Malacaa straight is a lot more concentrated, as is it ill have to grin and bare as it goes to level 4 and flattens Malaya, not prepared to lose Battleships over it.
Him taking Sabang is kind of the Oriental version of him taking Port Moresby, and Singapore in the 'Rabaul' of this area, so it isnt game, over, it would be worse if he could bomb Bangkok escourted (Truk) but i dont think he can (famous last words)
Except unlike PM, Rabaul and Truk the DEI and imparticular Palembang is on the doorstep of all this, so theres a lot more at stake..
Rob hit Rangoon which i long empty, so nothing bad, most of my supplies are coming through Siam/Indochina from Bangkok, so this place is no longer the major supply depot it used to be...
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
5th - 6th April 1943
Burma
The Chinese encirclers have been long routed, the 18th Div, 21st Brigade and the 2nd (i think) tank regiment will now dig in at the hex to max this route of encirlement at least much more difficult for Rob.
Theres a Chinese div the 55th marching on Raeheng, along with that carbineers regiment, this area is still vulnerable, the 48th Division and some artillery than i pulled out from the main 'battle' are all headed for the Thailand coast which is just as important to hold. Reinforcements will eventually be on the way froom...
The DEI
Robs getting frisky around here, maybe the masses of troops hes got stored at Townsville will be headed to north Aus? Kai island imparticuarly looks to be reconned a lot, only a lone 5th Nlf here, and a possible max level 3 AF, with im sure with enough engineers could be squeezed up to level 4, and threaten the minor oil fields at Sorong, and the command headquarters for this area at Kendari.
The Reinforcement Brigade from Kendari should be in Singapore the next couple of turns, bolstring the defense of NE/N Malaya slightly.
Meanwhile at Timor my Aps are loading up one of the three Brigades at Koepang and with the intention of unloading them at Lautem to balance the defense of Timor a bit better,Rob interdicted this transports with a raid of B-25s escorted by Beaufighters, it was greated by a meaty cap which managed to underperform quite a bit, the A6m3 continues to somehow prove its a better interceptor than the Tojo and Tony by downing more bombers than the interceptor aircraft.
Gonna have to russel some more ground defenses of Kai island from somewhere too... I get a good sized ground reinforcement surge in a Couple of months time, so i guess ive just got to keep him scared in areas like this for a while longer..
PNG/Solomons
He gives his B-17s a rest from bombing PM, he thinks ive got my garrision division here behind level 9 forts, in reality, only level 2
I cant really afford to send my Tonys and Zeros to intercept these flights, as every couple of unescorted B-17 raids he does a 100+ P-38 sweep, sometimes mxiing it up, so im grounded here for now..
KB leaves Shortlands for Kwajalien now, as Robs on the verge of turning Baker into a level 4 airfield, which i wasnt even sure was possible, i guess american seebees can do anything they put there mind too..[:(]
The Gilberts
Tarawa is nearly a level 8 fort, and is looking more and more solid as days go by, now has that Air HQ, and plenty of supplies to sustain its airfield, although it could all be in vain once hes flying Hunderds of Medium bombers escourted by P-38s towards me i planned to make these twin islands (Tarawa/Apanama) so tough that rob would have no choice but ignore them until he gets his hordes of Essexs, which is 3 months or so, but now they are both under his LBA curtain this might not be the case..
Marinas
The Taiho left Saipan with moderate damage on a zigzag course to the repair ports of Japan, by the time its operation the golden age of the Japan's carrier dominance will have well and truly ended with the arrival of 5 Essex Carriers.
Aleutians
All the subs involved in the evac operation are full, so i now have cadres if the majority of the units there, when the subs return i will have cadres of all of them, still not sure how im gonna get the majority of them out..
China
The 31st and the base force in Nanning are moving out, towards Hanoi, Indochina, as theres a New Chinese div on the trails behind me, if this gets itself on the rail and i get locked in combat then these troops are good as encircled, so ive lost this battle despite the 31st's best efforts, having a Div in Hanoi will force him to garrision Pakhoi and Nanning considerably though, so maybe i can use this to my advantage eslewhere in China..
Theres quite a comprehensive update for all my adoring readers and regular posters. [;)] No turn from rob today, hope hes ok, although i suspect his PC is playing up again.
Burma
The Chinese encirclers have been long routed, the 18th Div, 21st Brigade and the 2nd (i think) tank regiment will now dig in at the hex to max this route of encirlement at least much more difficult for Rob.
Theres a Chinese div the 55th marching on Raeheng, along with that carbineers regiment, this area is still vulnerable, the 48th Division and some artillery than i pulled out from the main 'battle' are all headed for the Thailand coast which is just as important to hold. Reinforcements will eventually be on the way froom...
The DEI
Robs getting frisky around here, maybe the masses of troops hes got stored at Townsville will be headed to north Aus? Kai island imparticuarly looks to be reconned a lot, only a lone 5th Nlf here, and a possible max level 3 AF, with im sure with enough engineers could be squeezed up to level 4, and threaten the minor oil fields at Sorong, and the command headquarters for this area at Kendari.
The Reinforcement Brigade from Kendari should be in Singapore the next couple of turns, bolstring the defense of NE/N Malaya slightly.
Meanwhile at Timor my Aps are loading up one of the three Brigades at Koepang and with the intention of unloading them at Lautem to balance the defense of Timor a bit better,Rob interdicted this transports with a raid of B-25s escorted by Beaufighters, it was greated by a meaty cap which managed to underperform quite a bit, the A6m3 continues to somehow prove its a better interceptor than the Tojo and Tony by downing more bombers than the interceptor aircraft.
Gonna have to russel some more ground defenses of Kai island from somewhere too... I get a good sized ground reinforcement surge in a Couple of months time, so i guess ive just got to keep him scared in areas like this for a while longer..
PNG/Solomons
He gives his B-17s a rest from bombing PM, he thinks ive got my garrision division here behind level 9 forts, in reality, only level 2
I cant really afford to send my Tonys and Zeros to intercept these flights, as every couple of unescorted B-17 raids he does a 100+ P-38 sweep, sometimes mxiing it up, so im grounded here for now.. KB leaves Shortlands for Kwajalien now, as Robs on the verge of turning Baker into a level 4 airfield, which i wasnt even sure was possible, i guess american seebees can do anything they put there mind too..[:(]
The Gilberts
Tarawa is nearly a level 8 fort, and is looking more and more solid as days go by, now has that Air HQ, and plenty of supplies to sustain its airfield, although it could all be in vain once hes flying Hunderds of Medium bombers escourted by P-38s towards me i planned to make these twin islands (Tarawa/Apanama) so tough that rob would have no choice but ignore them until he gets his hordes of Essexs, which is 3 months or so, but now they are both under his LBA curtain this might not be the case..
Marinas
The Taiho left Saipan with moderate damage on a zigzag course to the repair ports of Japan, by the time its operation the golden age of the Japan's carrier dominance will have well and truly ended with the arrival of 5 Essex Carriers.
Aleutians
All the subs involved in the evac operation are full, so i now have cadres if the majority of the units there, when the subs return i will have cadres of all of them, still not sure how im gonna get the majority of them out..
China
The 31st and the base force in Nanning are moving out, towards Hanoi, Indochina, as theres a New Chinese div on the trails behind me, if this gets itself on the rail and i get locked in combat then these troops are good as encircled, so ive lost this battle despite the 31st's best efforts, having a Div in Hanoi will force him to garrision Pakhoi and Nanning considerably though, so maybe i can use this to my advantage eslewhere in China..
Theres quite a comprehensive update for all my adoring readers and regular posters. [;)] No turn from rob today, hope hes ok, although i suspect his PC is playing up again.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
7th - 8th April 1943
Burma
I can now confirm certainly that the Allied force on the right side of the Salween on the trails to Rahaeng is the 55th Chinese Div and a Carbineer regiment, whats stopping him from crossing the river before i have a chance to reinforce it with more than a half strength Saesbo unit im not sure...
His heavy bombing of my ground forces continues..
Malaya/Indochina
The 48th Div is 300 miles from Victoria Point, and not a moment too soon, as a sub is parked off the coast and he bombed it quite heavily, its pink on supplies, despite me sending my considerable air transport armada on supply missions, so ive pulled out a HQ unit to Victoria point too. I also loaded up the 9th Base Unit from Batavia this turn, and am going to send it here also.
Construction work on the Salween line continues, and plenty of reinforcements of engineers are still to come. The recent skirmishes in Burma have bought these engineers more time.
The DEI
The transport convoy carrying the 4th Mixed Brigade from Koepang left harbour and is half way to Lautem, however it was further Interdicted by PB4Y bombers flying a long range attack out of Darwin, that even our Betty bombers would be proud of! The convoy is looking a bit beat up, and i can only imagine this damage will get worse when it lands at Lautem, cant really put any cap over it..ho hum.
The aftermath...
A Yankee sub also had a lot of fun outside Batavia harbour this turn, even surfacing to sink one of the two Aks it managed to sink this turn. [:(]
Also in reaction to the lessened threat to PM ive flown out several Betty squadrons from Lae to Ambonia, along with a A6m2 and A6m3 squadron, to help the resisitance, i can do vica versa in a instant if the threat level to PM rises suddenly..
Im also sending the Musashi large Bombardment group to Kendari, to amek the place a bit tougher again..got no other naval assets here..
PNG/Solomons
Gili Gili was subjected to the largest B-17 raid of the war, a paltry cap of around 8 fighters rose but was soon beat off by the 190 odd B-17s, the AF was flattened, and the two beat up squadrons destroyed, iv evaced the small remainders of them too Lae..
I loaded up a Naval guard unit sitting in Rabaul and sent it to Jalut in the Marshalls, ill try not to repeat the same mistakes i made at Baker, and will try to have a good sized reserve ground force at this island, along with APs on constant standby, to serve as a quick counterattack force, to harm the enemy before they can consoliate, i plan to have a divisions worth (400-500 AP) of troops here to aid the defense of the remaining Gilbert islands..
Also my H8K's from Lunga seemed to have (although there was no report of it on the combat replay) sighted some enemy Battleships at Luganville, ive increased my Bettys at this base naval attack range to a mighty 7 hex's in reply to this, and sent the mini KB that fought at Baker to sit a few hexes north of Guadacanal..just in case. Strange that i seem to have found info on a base without any recon mission visabily being shown on the replay, but i suppose it helps me in the end. [:D]
Ideally id like to mine up this base, but the nearest level 9 port is at Truk, which makes it a bit of a strech, and the majoirty of my Minelayers are in the DEI/Malaya..
The Gilberts
Rob continues to recon Apanama and Nauru islands, he can have Nauru if he wants, itd take even his american engineer vechiles a while to make anything of it, so the island is ungarrisioned..
China
The Mixed Brigade that should have been destroyed at Pakhoi, looks like it will escape to fight another day, as it got to Nanning before it became contested, so it should fly down the rail and join the 31st in Hanoi by the end of the week. No idea why rob didnt kick the Brigade out of Pakhoi uncerimoniously onto a open hex, i think he was trying to encircle it completely and wasnt expecting the 31st to turn up to break the seige.
Rob bombed Chenting into the ground again, didnt like my level bombers here hitting his Chinese troops which are now a few miles from the border of the Soviet Union on the verge of being destroyed, i dont think ive documented the battle going on up there so ill take some screenies next turn.
He destroyed hundereds of Level bombers, doesnt really matter ive got plenty of airframes, and i dont think any of us are playing for points, im in this till Japan is conquered anyway...
Burma
I can now confirm certainly that the Allied force on the right side of the Salween on the trails to Rahaeng is the 55th Chinese Div and a Carbineer regiment, whats stopping him from crossing the river before i have a chance to reinforce it with more than a half strength Saesbo unit im not sure...
His heavy bombing of my ground forces continues..
Malaya/Indochina
The 48th Div is 300 miles from Victoria Point, and not a moment too soon, as a sub is parked off the coast and he bombed it quite heavily, its pink on supplies, despite me sending my considerable air transport armada on supply missions, so ive pulled out a HQ unit to Victoria point too. I also loaded up the 9th Base Unit from Batavia this turn, and am going to send it here also.
Construction work on the Salween line continues, and plenty of reinforcements of engineers are still to come. The recent skirmishes in Burma have bought these engineers more time.
The DEI
The transport convoy carrying the 4th Mixed Brigade from Koepang left harbour and is half way to Lautem, however it was further Interdicted by PB4Y bombers flying a long range attack out of Darwin, that even our Betty bombers would be proud of! The convoy is looking a bit beat up, and i can only imagine this damage will get worse when it lands at Lautem, cant really put any cap over it..ho hum.
The aftermath...
A Yankee sub also had a lot of fun outside Batavia harbour this turn, even surfacing to sink one of the two Aks it managed to sink this turn. [:(]
Also in reaction to the lessened threat to PM ive flown out several Betty squadrons from Lae to Ambonia, along with a A6m2 and A6m3 squadron, to help the resisitance, i can do vica versa in a instant if the threat level to PM rises suddenly..
Im also sending the Musashi large Bombardment group to Kendari, to amek the place a bit tougher again..got no other naval assets here..
PNG/Solomons
Gili Gili was subjected to the largest B-17 raid of the war, a paltry cap of around 8 fighters rose but was soon beat off by the 190 odd B-17s, the AF was flattened, and the two beat up squadrons destroyed, iv evaced the small remainders of them too Lae..
I loaded up a Naval guard unit sitting in Rabaul and sent it to Jalut in the Marshalls, ill try not to repeat the same mistakes i made at Baker, and will try to have a good sized reserve ground force at this island, along with APs on constant standby, to serve as a quick counterattack force, to harm the enemy before they can consoliate, i plan to have a divisions worth (400-500 AP) of troops here to aid the defense of the remaining Gilbert islands..
Also my H8K's from Lunga seemed to have (although there was no report of it on the combat replay) sighted some enemy Battleships at Luganville, ive increased my Bettys at this base naval attack range to a mighty 7 hex's in reply to this, and sent the mini KB that fought at Baker to sit a few hexes north of Guadacanal..just in case. Strange that i seem to have found info on a base without any recon mission visabily being shown on the replay, but i suppose it helps me in the end. [:D]
Ideally id like to mine up this base, but the nearest level 9 port is at Truk, which makes it a bit of a strech, and the majoirty of my Minelayers are in the DEI/Malaya..
The Gilberts
Rob continues to recon Apanama and Nauru islands, he can have Nauru if he wants, itd take even his american engineer vechiles a while to make anything of it, so the island is ungarrisioned..
China
The Mixed Brigade that should have been destroyed at Pakhoi, looks like it will escape to fight another day, as it got to Nanning before it became contested, so it should fly down the rail and join the 31st in Hanoi by the end of the week. No idea why rob didnt kick the Brigade out of Pakhoi uncerimoniously onto a open hex, i think he was trying to encircle it completely and wasnt expecting the 31st to turn up to break the seige.
Rob bombed Chenting into the ground again, didnt like my level bombers here hitting his Chinese troops which are now a few miles from the border of the Soviet Union on the verge of being destroyed, i dont think ive documented the battle going on up there so ill take some screenies next turn.
He destroyed hundereds of Level bombers, doesnt really matter ive got plenty of airframes, and i dont think any of us are playing for points, im in this till Japan is conquered anyway...
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
You planning anykind of big offensives? I mean Rob has had pretty much his way lately and personally I feel you do not want him to start planning safely his advances.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Attu has been a defeat, and i would imagine Midway is a similarly fortified, i dont have the ground forces to persue any offensive unfortunately, as ive been saying im desperately short of ground forces in some areas.
Even in AARS where the Japanese player has done exceptionally well, PZB/Admiral Laurent, theres little chance of a sucessful offensive in April 1943, Allied land base air is too strong to make it worthwhile.
If rob landed 3 or more Divisions at Victoria point, there would be nothing stopping him eiether capturing Malaya or encircling the Burma army (not sure what would be more disasterous)
The best thing that might come out of my offensive at Attu is keeping his 6 Essex Carriers busy for a month or so.
Rob has three choices for his 'last' advance before the Essexs arrive.
1. Use his base at Sabang to support an invasion of the Victoria point area, and eiether march down on Singapore, or march East and threaten the Burma armys supply lines at Bangkok/Moulmien/Rahaeng.
2. Use his soon to be level 4 airfield at Baker to invade Tarawa/Apanama. (Probably the invasion that i could crush most easily)
3. Launch an invasion from Darwin/Derby, invading Kai island/Timor.
Theres not much i can do to prevent any of them from happening, all i can do is prepare and fortify, if i lose the KB in a needless invasion then rob can split up his Essexs and interdict my shipping lanes freely.
Even in AARS where the Japanese player has done exceptionally well, PZB/Admiral Laurent, theres little chance of a sucessful offensive in April 1943, Allied land base air is too strong to make it worthwhile.
If rob landed 3 or more Divisions at Victoria point, there would be nothing stopping him eiether capturing Malaya or encircling the Burma army (not sure what would be more disasterous)
The best thing that might come out of my offensive at Attu is keeping his 6 Essex Carriers busy for a month or so.
Rob has three choices for his 'last' advance before the Essexs arrive.
1. Use his base at Sabang to support an invasion of the Victoria point area, and eiether march down on Singapore, or march East and threaten the Burma armys supply lines at Bangkok/Moulmien/Rahaeng.
2. Use his soon to be level 4 airfield at Baker to invade Tarawa/Apanama. (Probably the invasion that i could crush most easily)
3. Launch an invasion from Darwin/Derby, invading Kai island/Timor.
Theres not much i can do to prevent any of them from happening, all i can do is prepare and fortify, if i lose the KB in a needless invasion then rob can split up his Essexs and interdict my shipping lanes freely.
RE: The Decline and Fall of the Japanese Empire 1943-1946 LilJoe v Rob
Another quick question, hopefully itll get more of a response than th e Taiho one..
Would it be worth launching a deliberate attack in a open rail hex, when I the Japanese have 3910 Assault points and Rob has 2610. ????
Would it be worth launching a deliberate attack in a open rail hex, when I the Japanese have 3910 Assault points and Rob has 2610. ????