Matrix Games Forums

March 20-21, 1942

Central Pacific

Japanese forces land and take Baker Island which is undefended.

S/SW Pacific

Taking advantage of the absence of the KB, I land additional forces at Nadi in preparation for my offensive to retake Fiji.

China

With all the Japanese fighters flying over China, I have to be very careful in how I punch back. I set up a surprise combined Tiger and Hurricane CAP over Changsha that knocks out almost ten Oscars before I pull back my fighters away from the inevitable counterattack.

Having trapped the 52nd Division at Kukong, I push a probing offensive towards Canton. This is met by very heavy Japanese bomber strikes.

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I notice that Japanese air ASW is becoming more effective - a couple of my subs near Truk had to return to base after suffering hits from Japanese Lily bombers.

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

ORIGINAL: DesertWolf101

ORIGINAL: Lowpe




+1

It is late March, and he should be fielding the A6M3 or 3a now. And he has under used the Oscar Ic by far causing him to really over work the the Zero as evidenced by the high op losses.

A big mistake when a JFB back loads his fighter research thinking that the early months will be a cakewalk.

Is it really possible to get the A6M3a by March 1942? The A6M3 arrives in June 1942 and the A6M3a in December 1942. I understand you can accelerate the research quite a bit but I am surprised to hear that you can accelerate the A6M3a that early! How do you do it if I may ask?

The 3a is a bridge too far for the end of March, but the 3 is doable but it takes a lot of focus. So one route would be get the A6M3 factories to repair to 30, and once there advance it to 3a and work hard from day 1 to get to the Ha35 engine bonus. Once you get the 3a, advance all factories to the A6M8 to get that plane in 1943 (different engine thou). You live with the 3a thru all of 1942.

Or get advance the 3 and then move to 3a.

The 3a is a great plane with range and maneuver and compares fairly favorable to the 5.

Most JFBs don't go this route and instead go rufe to A6M5 for the speed advantage that the 5 has over the 3a. Plus allocating a lot of r&d to the zero line isn't something most JFBs like to do.

Thanks. I am in the beginning of my first campaign as the Japanese and did a combination of both - maybe would have been better if I had concentrated on either the Rufe or the A6M3 approach.

March 22-24, 1942

Submarines

Japanese subs are flooding the waters between Fiji and New Zealand. I-29 finds one of my convoys there and sinks an AK with a torpedo hit.

Central Pacifc

Japanese troops land on Canton Island. Unlike Baker I have troops on Canton in the form of a Marine defense battalion and a field artillery battalion. This however is not enough to stop two Japanese Naval Guard and an SNLF unit.

S/SW Pacific

I pull back the convoys disgorging troops at Nadi as once again my naval search sights the KB heading south towards Fiji. Is the KB shepherding more Japanese reinforcements?

Indian Ocean

The MKB made a surprise appearance off Calcutta today. Unfortunate, as I had a number of convoys unloading in port and no CAP over the city. Japanese naval dive and torpedo bombers wreck almost 10 good AKs as a result.

Singapore

A very bloody day in Singapore following the latest Japanese attempt to take the city with the arrival of the reinforcements from Luzon. Once again my troops stand firm, destroying 255 Japanese combat squads and disabling 926 others for the cost of 54 Allied combat squads destroyed and 84 disabled.

China

The Japanese Mongolian Army halts on the approach to Ningsia – supply problems? Daily Blenheim strikes certainly did not help my opponents push on Langchow here.

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A squadron of the Flying Tigers, back in China after being reequipped with P-40E fighters, successfully engages and destroys a dozen Sally bombers and escorting Zero fighters during a Japanese raid on Kukong.

March 25-26, 1942

Central Pacific

Marine defenders on Canton Island wreck a Japanese AK with their coastal guns and survive two more attacks with 1 to 1 odds.

Indian Ocean

I rush aircraft to Calcutta and set up both a CAP and an attempt at a naval strike on the MKB. I also keep an AK out at sea to attract further MKB strikes. This part works and my Hurricanes get some good kills on Val dive-bombers and their Zero escorts. A raid of 5 swordfishes and 32 escorting Hurricanes however fails after the 3 surviving swordfishes do not score hits on the carriers.

Java

I received some COMINT of an impending Japanese invasion of Java at Banjoewangi. I staged an ambush with the light cruiser Sumatra and 4 destroyers and damaged and interrupted the first Japanese convoy encountered during the night. A loaded AK with troops is sunk.

China

Chinese troops enter Canton and are met with a heavy bombardment fro seven Japanese heavy cruisers. The urban terrain provides some good cover however and I am happy to tie up the heavy cruisers here instead of elsewhere.

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The British flyboys make up for their failure to hit the MKB when a large number of Japanese bombers are brought down in flames by a Hurricane squadron that I snuck into Singapore

March 27-28, 1942

Submarines

Pollack sinks an AK just outside of Truk.

Central Pacific

Following the intervention of 6 battleships who bombard the Canton defenders to smithereens, the Japanese attack and take the island.

Java

The Japanese pull back their invasion convoys, likely waiting for further warship reinforcements before they try again.

China

Advancing Chinese troops take Kweiteh and Tsiaotso.

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Recon spots the Japanese light carriers retreating towards Singapore. I start crafting a plan to ambush them MKB with my British carriers.

Following the intervention of 6 battleships who bombard the Canton defenders to smithereens, the Japanese attack and take the island.

The same battlewagons that bombarded Wake? Hmmm . . that's going to present the Japanese with a major fuel bill.

ORIGINAL: Capt. Harlock

Following the intervention of 6 battleships who bombard the Canton defenders to smithereens, the Japanese attack and take the island.

The same battlewagons that bombarded Wake? Hmmm . . that's going to present the Japanese with a major fuel bill.

[:D]

March 29-30, 1942

Submarines

Finback attacks an AK on the surface west of Wake Island and sends it to the bottom.

Closer to Japan, KXIV spots and attacks a large convoy of fat tankers but misses.

S/SW Pacific

B-17E bombers from New Caledonia unsuccessfully attempt to strike the KB south of Fiji.

Singapore

Another Japanese deliberate attack is thrown at the Singapore defense. Japan loses 129 combat squads destroyed and 691 disabled for 72 Allied combat squads destroyed and 103 disabled. The siege continues.

Java

As part of my opponent’s efforts to invade Java, a torpedo strike came in to hit the warships that previously intercepted his first landing attempt. The Dutch CAP however tore into the 16 Nells, 10 Bettys, and 15 Zero escorts and shot more than half of them down.

China

Advancing Chinese troops retake Wuchow. Further north, Chinese troops cross the river and seize Kaifeng as the battered Japanese retreat.

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The Australian 6th and 7th Divisions finally begin to arrive in Burma after their long trek through the jungle from India.

March 31-April 2, 1942

Singapore

The IJAAF gets involved in a big way with the bombing of Singapore. Hurricane fighters attempt to stem the tide and battle it out with the escorting Oscars, occasionally penetrating to the bombers and inflicting considerable losses.

Yet another Japanese deliberate attack hits Singapore. This one does better, reducing the forts to two but at a cost. 223 Japanese combat squads destroyed and 410 disabled for 60 allied combat squads destroyed and 96 disabled.

Java

The Japanese attempt a second invasion of Java, this time reaching the shores of Banjoewangi,landing troops there and taking it. The Dutch Air Force, aided by some other allied squadrons, make a big effort to hit the convoys with some success. Four AKs are moderately damaged and two transports are either sunk or rendered in sinking condition. Furthermore, Vildebeest bombers put 500lb bombs into DD Wakatake and DD Yakaze, leaving them with heavy damage and on fire.

China

The Flying Tigers ambush a Betty squadron near Canton, knocking out 8 bombers.

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A Chinese force attempting a recon of force of Hong Kong finds the city lightly defended. Just as my troops are about to enter however my opponent lands 6 Naval Guard/SNLF units as further reinforcements to the Chinese theater. It's good that he is forced to keep sending more forces here, but it's too bad I missed taking Hong Kong by so little [X(]

Southern China

My desire to maintain the pressure in China remains strong, but I got to a point where I was unsure what to do next in the theater. All of the Chinese held bases in southern China are now very secure. The Japanese 52nd division and an accompanying regiment are besieged at Kukong. Chinese forces are massing around Canton and Hong Kong but I hesitate to launch an attack against fortified towns in heavy urban terrain with the very little heavy weaponry and engineer forces available to China. A thrust to the coast would net me very few resource rich hexes and place my armies out of range of my fighter cover and within range of Japanese bomber forces in Formosa. The most obvious short term goal is to storm and take Kiukiang but beyond that I was not sure what to do. Do I dare advance on Wuchang?

Northern China

A similar situation in the north. The Japanese 37th and 41st Divisions as well as the 4th Independent Mixed Brigade are encircled in the hills north of Nanyang, and the Japanese Mongolian Army has stalled on its advance towards Lanchow. My troops have crossed the river in force, taken Kaifeng and Kweiteh, and are moving to secure the bases northeast of Kaifeng. Unfortunately, the remaining bases within reach (Suchow, Tsinan, Taiyuan, etc.) contain no resources. Is it worth pushing deep into these territories at this early stage?

April 3-5, 1942

Submarines

KX is caught in the shallows near Samarinda and sunk by a Japanese ASW task force.

APD Shimakaze, pulling back with damage from the Java invasion battles, is sunk by KXI off Makassar.

North Pacific

More activity in the northern Pacific with a Japanese landing at Amchitka Island.

S/SW Pacific

Japanese troops land and take Tulagi, but pay a price when the S-35 does stellar work when she sinks AP Ural Maru and AK Tatuwa Maru.

Java

Allied airpower tries to hit the convoys again but is mostly stymied by strong Japanese fighter CAP. A Japanese destroyer however, the Matsukaze, is hit with a bomb for moderate damage.

China

Advancing Chinese troops take Anyang and Kaoping.

My opponent is forced to withdraw a large number of Zeros and Oscars to deal with the continued resistance in the air over Singapore. This allows my fighters in China to regain the initiative. They destroy a couple of dozen bombers and fighters, particularly over Kukong, in the last few turns.

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I decide to disrupt my opponent's advance in the Aleutians by sending in a surface task force of four battleships and four destroyers. I have good Catalina search over the area so hopefully I will get advanced warning of approaching enemy carrier groups.

April 6-7, 1942

Submarines

Grayling sinks an AK with two working Mk14 torpedoes south of Tokyo.

North Pacific

I send in AVD Williamson to disrupt and delay the Japanese landings at Amchitka and later on Adak Island and provide more time for my battleship force to intercept. The AVD heavily damages an AK and puts more shells into others but is hit with a few 8cm shells from an AP that must have caused some serious damage as the AVD later sinks.

My Catalinas also get in on the action, putting a bomb into AP Suwa Maru and another into AK Tokusima Maru.

Java

Dutch bombers attempt to delay the Japanese troops advancing towards Malang and Soerabaja but with little effect.

China

Flying Tigers intercept and wipeout 20 Betty bombers near Hong Kong. Hodges is now back on top of the aces list with 16 kills.

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I-28 spots and attacks the battleship force near Dutch Harbor but thankfully misses. This means that my opponent is now aware that I have at least one battleship in the area. I pondered turning back as I had effectively lost the element of surprise but decided instead to steam forward at full speed and hopefully catch his convoys.

April 8-9, 1942

North Pacific

The Japanese take Adak and destroy my base force there in the process.

At sea however, I had split my battleship force into two to cover more ground in the hunt for the convoys. BB Idaho and BB New Mexico and their two destroyer escorts find the main troop convoy at night (largely empty of troops now) and riddle a number of valuable transports with heavy shellfire. Two APs, an AK, and a patrol boat are sunk before the convoy escapes.

Later in the day, Catalinas add to the damage with a bomb hit into an AP.

Singapore

Another Japanese deliberate attack at Singapore once again reduces fortification levels to 2. The defense holds and the butcher’s bill is 173 Japanese combat squads destroyed and 274 disabled versus 49 destroyed and 123 disabled for the allies.

Burma

A Japanese light cruiser task force bombards Rangoon. A gutsy but risky move. I lose a few fighters on the ground but nothing too serious.

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With the KB nowhere to be seen, I decided to risk another landing operation at Nadi. Learning from past mistakes, I optimized the landing forces for greater efficiency in disembarking troops this time.

April 10-12, 1942

Malaya

The B-17E by any objective measure is a significant improvement on the B-17D. Sometimes however older weapons models shine through due to particular attributes that get lost in the transition and upgrade to newer versions. The B-17D for instance, lacking the heavy armament and added durability of the E version, benefits from superior combat range. This range has already proven decisive in this campaign, as it had effectively sustained my effort to resupply Singapore from Rangoon, something no other aircraft in my inventory at this stage could do.

The aircraft again came through in a big way on April. 12 I had noted the presence of the MKB in the waters north of Singapore and was tracking it as best I could over the past week. My long-range recon (British Mitchell PR. II) eventually noted that the light carriers had likely docked at Georgetown. My B-17Es at Rangoon did not have the range to reach Georgetown, but my D versions barely did at extended range. The mission was on.

8 B-17D aircraft were all that could fly after several months’ heavy use with no replacement airframes. They were enough. Swooping in at 5,000 feet, they placed 7 500lb bombs into the Taiyo and 4 each into the Hosho and Zuiho. All three would eventually succumb to their mortal wounds.

S/SW Pacific

Once more my search picks up the KB heading south towards Fiji which forces me to interrupt the landing operation at Nadi. Fortunately, unless my opponent is bringing in additional forces, I finally think I have enough troops in the island to retake it.

North Pacific

The remnants of the convoy having fled, I order the battleships to bombard the 7th Division that is now stranded at Adak and Amchitka islands before retiring.

China

Chinese troops storm and take Kiukiang.

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A big day

ORIGINAL: DesertWolf101
8 B-17D aircraft were all that could fly after several months’ heavy use with no replacement airframes. They were enough. Swooping in at 5,000 feet, they placed 7 500lb bombs into the Taiyo and 4 each into the Hosho and Zuiho. All three would eventually succumb to their mortal wounds.

Your opponent forgot one of the cardinal rules: a port that's within range of enemy bombers in never never fully safe.

Did he have any AA or CAP present?

ORIGINAL: CV10

ORIGINAL: DesertWolf101
8 B-17D aircraft were all that could fly after several months’ heavy use with no replacement airframes. They were enough. Swooping in at 5,000 feet, they placed 7 500lb bombs into the Taiyo and 4 each into the Hosho and Zuiho. All three would eventually succumb to their mortal wounds.

Your opponent forgot one of the cardinal rules: a port that's within range of enemy bombers in never never fully safe.

Did he have any AA or CAP present?

Indeed! I think he may have been lulled into a sense of security given the significant distances between Georgetown and allied bases like Rangoon. I also hadn't employed the B-17D in anything but transport for a long time too so maybe he even thought I had fully transitioned to the E model at this stage.

Good show, bloody good show must have been lead by Colin Kelly.

ORIGINAL: Bif1961

Good show, bloody good show must have been lead by Colin Kelly.

Thanks, it was certainly fun watching the action during the combat replay!

April 13-15, 1942

Submarines

Light cruiser Sumatra is sent under the waves by three torpedo hits from I-154 near Denpasar as it was attempting to interfere with the Japanese landings in Java.

S/SW Pacific

Three Imperial battleships bombard Nadi during the night, destroying some fighters and a few Devastator TBDs stationed there. Nevertheless, 11 surviving TBDs sortie under heavy Airacobra and Wildcat escort to hit the Japanese carriers offshore. They push through a heavy Japanese CAP of 56 Zeros but fail to hit the two carriers that they attacked, the Soryu and the Shoho. B-17E bombers from Noumea join in the effort with no effect.

Singapore

Another Japanese attack at Singapore. 149 Japanese combat squads destroyed and 469 disabled for 112 Allied combat squads destroyed and 42 disabled. It’s getting harder to hold the line here.

Java

Japanese forces arrive at Soerabaja.

Sumatra

Japanese forces brave coastal artillery guns to land at Medan. Two AKs are left with heavy damage and raging fires and will likely sink.

China

A large Chinese army sallies forth from Lanchow and pushes back the Japanese Mongolian Army that has been weakened by relentless bombing over the past couple of weeks.

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Unsure of where to press next, I elect to attempt a risky advance on Wuchang despite its high forts.