Matrix Games Forums

ORIGINAL: Jorge_Stanbury

You should escort important convoys, those carrying divisions, fuel is not so much of a problem for the Allies, hence you can use the R battleships to guard premium convoys

regarding dot bases:
if you can, try to use level 1 ports instead, there are plenty of them in the SRA; the key advantage is you can resupply by submarine. and then it is less of a headache to keep that base supplied

There is no way on earth I am going to use a battleship to guard a convoy. The larger the convoy, the more likely it leaks intel. They don't really ever fight well in a convoy and require far too many ships to protect them from iboats.

I will guard important convoys with patrolling SAGs and other forces, but the battleships aren't going. Ever. They are simply VP bonanzas for Japan until 1943 sometime.

However they do have some uses...bait, misdirection, a gambit of some type.

ORIGINAL: Jorge_Stanbury

I agree Ceylon can be a nice trap, in my game I built airfields at Madurai and Tanjore, which are on range and without risk of naval bombardment; I was waiting for a possible Ceylon invasion.. in the end the invasion never came, thus ended up abandoning those bases and resupplying/ refueling Colombo which is now where most of the British fleet is parked

Too bad that didn't work out for you. What kind of naval strike planes did you have available?

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

Be careful about upgrading Australian armoured units. Those Matildas might get bypassed and then rust in storage. Maybe stockpile the next tanks in line so you will use the Matildas up. That way, if they see heavy fighting, you will have tanks to refill them.

Not sure I understand.

Oz Matilda goes to Grant/Lees, Grant/Lee goes to Churchill something.

I think I would rather have a unit fight with Matildas, than a generic hvy AFV, and if I could instead have Grant/Lees over Matildas I would rather they rust in the pools than provide Japan with easier VP.

You get many Matildas. Your supply of the Grant/Lee is limited. I do not know if it is a shared Commonwealth device as I have not had the game open on the Allied side for some time. But too many times the Improvised AFV upgraded and bypassed the Matildas. Then, if those units see heavy action or a bunch of AFVs are sunked, then you might run low on the Grant/Lees.

Another suggestion when you have your active Australian units, strip away the soft devices so it is pure vehicle. That makes it less likely to take damage. Those soft devices don't necessarily help the unit too much. An armoured unit with Matildas and trucks should be fairly effective on defense against the Japanese Army, especially if there is no Japanese armor there.

You also have Australian and Commonwealth Matildas, they are not shared. [:(] It would be easier if they were shared.

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

Feel free to help Japan out with advice in their thread in the War Room about splitting the KB. I have avoided that thread, myself.

Thanks.

That is very nice of you to say. Based on what i have read about you and the questions asked over there it might be very important for some of the veterans to help. just my 2cents being relatively new.

Ok, that I understand.

I suspect a lot of AFBs are not allowing upgrades to restricted units until they buy them out, and by then you are further down the AFV upgrade path skipping plentiful machines for the top of the line precious ones.

Years back M-M I think came up with a tactic of stripping the tractors from IJA heavy artillery since they are useless mouths. I argued at the time, and he eventually discovered, that those useless mouths acts as a damage sponge...soaking up damage that would otherwise go to the AFV in your example. With IJA heavy artillery, stripping off the tractors made the unit very fragile and subject to destruction very easily.

ORIGINAL: RADM.Yamaguchi

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

Feel free to help Japan out with advice in their thread in the War Room about splitting the KB. I have avoided that thread, myself.

Thanks.

That is very nice of you to say. Based on what i have read about you and the questions asked over there it might be very important for some of the veterans to help. just my 2cents being relatively new.

Common sense always appreciated.[:)]

It can be a long, long game, and an opponent is really more a partner. It is also a game, and equally important that everyone involved has fun.

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

ORIGINAL: Jorge_Stanbury

I agree Ceylon can be a nice trap, in my game I built airfields at Madurai and Tanjore, which are on range and without risk of naval bombardment; I was waiting for a possible Ceylon invasion.. in the end the invasion never came, thus ended up abandoning those bases and resupplying/ refueling Colombo which is now where most of the British fleet is parked

Too bad that didn't work out for you. What kind of naval strike planes did you have available?

I was actually planning to use USAAF heavy bombers to destroy the ports and airfields; because naval strike capabilities are very poor for the Allies in 42 some sorry collection of Vildebeest, Swordfishs, Banshees [8|], you just need one CAP trap to get you and 3 months worth of replacement are gone..

The idea was to negate the use of ports and airfields so that the only way for Japan was to keep the KB on patrol perpetually or to eventually leave and be open for an allied landing once the KB was sighted somewhere else.. I don't know how this would had worked, but I am certain that by mid 42, I could had closed the ports and airfields of Ceylon by using all the heavies

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

Ok, that I understand.

I suspect a lot of AFBs are not allowing upgrades to restricted units until they buy them out, and by then you are further down the AFV upgrade path skipping plentiful machines for the top of the line precious ones.

Years back M-M I think came up with a tactic of stripping the tractors from IJA heavy artillery since they are useless mouths. I argued at the time, and he eventually discovered, that those useless mouths acts as a damage sponge...soaking up damage that would otherwise go to the AFV in your example. With IJA heavy artillery, stripping off the tractors made the unit very fragile and subject to destruction very easily.

Some of the armoured units have mortars, some non-motorized support and a few recon/infantry squads. I mean that those should be removed as they are vulnerable and would easily increase the overall fatigue and disruption.

ORIGINAL: RangerJoe

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

Ok, that I understand.

I suspect a lot of AFBs are not allowing upgrades to restricted units until they buy them out, and by then you are further down the AFV upgrade path skipping plentiful machines for the top of the line precious ones.

Years back M-M I think came up with a tactic of stripping the tractors from IJA heavy artillery since they are useless mouths. I argued at the time, and he eventually discovered, that those useless mouths acts as a damage sponge...soaking up damage that would otherwise go to the AFV in your example. With IJA heavy artillery, stripping off the tractors made the unit very fragile and subject to destruction very easily.

Some of the armoured units have mortars, some non-motorized support and a few recon/infantry squads. I mean that those should be removed as they are vulnerable and would easily increase the overall fatigue and disruption.

I understand perfectly what you mean, but my point is they serve a purpose beyond their AV contribution. I like having them as damage soaks.

Lack of support in off base fights can also be detrimental.

I was thinking of defense at Horn Island and other locales with other supporting units. But yes, I understand what you mean by damage soaks.

ORIGINAL: Jorge_Stanbury

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

ORIGINAL: Jorge_Stanbury

I agree Ceylon can be a nice trap, in my game I built airfields at Madurai and Tanjore, which are on range and without risk of naval bombardment; I was waiting for a possible Ceylon invasion.. in the end the invasion never came, thus ended up abandoning those bases and resupplying/ refueling Colombo which is now where most of the British fleet is parked

Too bad that didn't work out for you. What kind of naval strike planes did you have available?

I was actually planning to use USAAF heavy bombers to destroy the ports and airfields; because naval strike capabilities are very poor for the Allies in 42 some sorry collection of Vildebeest, Swordfishs, Banshees [8|], you just need one CAP trap to get you and 3 months worth of replacement are gone..

The idea was to negate the use of ports and airfields so that the only way for Japan was to keep the KB on patrol perpetually or to eventually leave and be open for an allied landing once the KB was sighted somewhere else.. I don't know how this would had worked, but I am certain that by mid 42, I could had closed the ports and airfields of Ceylon by using all the heavies

Usually, I also build up Madurai/Tanjore for the same reason as you have. Additionally, I'm buying out some Marine SBD and Fighter squadrons and sending them off-map to India just to be able to pose a credible naval attack threat.

For some reason I seldom use the Marines or the USN in India, that said I always buy some USA divisions or Independent regiments and move the Banshees there to help that theater
at the very least a couple division should be preparing for Indian bases, so that if needed, they can be purchased already prepared

I also believe India is the natural scenario for heavy bombers, at least early on: lots of rails and land locked airfields are the key benefits, infrastructure is not great, but better than in the Pacific, supply is also less of an issue, air support and engineers can be purchased or concentrated for key bases

For India, you can even use the restricted base units and engineers.

Thinking very conservative for the troops already at sea. Mainly have to wait and see what Japan does on the 7th and 8th.

You can get pretty creative with these troops, but I worry about the non-historical no limits open. A lot of mischief can happen.[;)]

The Straits of Malacca are open in stock, making an invasion of Ceylon or Rangoon very possible. Although, I think the best bang for the buck is Mersing and perhaps a deep invasion in the SRA.

In one day turns you can't hit Portland, but maybe it is possible in two day turns? Losing Portland would hurt. Not much I could do about it though.

Aye, the experience and equipment level of the Indian army at the start is so poor those units have to go to India (at least at the start)

A look at the unrestricted ground reinforcements available in the first 30 days (excluding Engineers).

It seems that it beefs up the early forces available to the Allies, which means it has a similar effect for Japan. Subject to the RNG gods of course.[:)]

There's a monument to the lost Bn at Fort Richardson, TX. I guess that's where they were mustered in before departing for Java.

ORIGINAL: Bif1961

There's a monument to the lost Bn at Fort Richardson, TX. I guess that's where they were mustered in before departing for Java.

That lost battalion was probably the Texas National Guard battalion that was "lost" in WWII which the 22nd Regimental Combat Team rescued.

Lost Battalion of the Pacific, World War II. 131 st Field Artillery 2 nd Battalion. Mobilized at Fort Richardson, Jacksboro, Texas, 25 Nov 1940. Captured by the Japanese Forces 8 Mar 1942. Liberated 15 Aug 1945.

More on understanding the Chinese Infantry Corps, without even going into the TOE:

The units on the left are sorted by load factor.

The units on the right are sorted by assault value.

Big difference between the two sorts.

And finally, some Chinese Corps already start at 100 prep, which makes experience gains likely to occur to Chinese levels. Gaining experience will generally be prioritized over changing prep. There are always exceptions to every rule, though. [;)]

A lot of the high load cost Corps start around Ichang. This is a good thing, since the infrastructure is so good around Changsha Triangle all the way to my supply depots at Kweiyang/Kunming.

Care needs to be taken not to allow the high load units be cut off and eliminated early. They need time in R&R bases designed to repair disablements quickly.