Once Again into the Breach - Mike (J) vs. tc464 (A)

[PaxMondo]

[&o][&o][&o]

[Lowpe]

Adak a size 7....wow.

I personally don't like running the Yamoto up there in winter as they accumulate a lot of damage, and it is very early in the war. Like to save the big girls for Kuriles/HI. Better yet, don't build the girls.[;)] Their loss really invigorates AFBs. And the damage takes forever to repair.[:(]

[Mike Solli]

Here are the air sortie numbers:

It's day 528.

Sorties today: 5715

Total # sorties: 2,432,751

Average # sorties per day: 4607

I have nothing to compare it to, so I have no idea how well I'm doing.

Note that I have 3,737,061 supply on map not counting on ships. It's down 90k from 1 May. I've been doing a fair bit of airframe and engine expansion though. Most of it will be complete by month's end.

[Mike Solli]

Something else I've been pondering lately...

My fleet is in pretty good shape. I've lost the Hiryu, 2 CAs (Aobas) and probably less than 20 DDs. I don't have the count handy. I'm considering being more aggressive with my ships. His fleet strength is only going to get worse. I don't want to sacrifice the ships to no gain, but if they can tear into a small surface fleet or, better yet, a loaded invasion fleet, that might not be such a bad way to go. What do you guys think? Cause damage risking the fleet or keep a fleet in being?

[Mike Solli]

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

Adak a size 7....wow.

I personally don't like running the Yamoto up there in winter as they accumulate a lot of damage, and it is very early in the war. Like to save the big girls for Kuriles/HI. Better yet, don't build the girls.[;)] Their loss really invigorates AFBs. And the damage takes forever to repair.[:(]

I agree, size 7 is a lot of effort and time.

For surface combats, I like to one up my opponent: My CLs against their DDs, my CAs against their CLs, my BBs against their CAs. Always DDs escorting, but only ~4. Against their BBs? My TBs.

Edit: Also note that the bombardment of Adak was the first time Yamato and Musashi fired their guns in anger.

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: Mike Solli

Here are the air sortie numbers:

It's day 528.

Sorties today: 5715

Total # sorties: 2,432,751

Average # sorties per day: 4607

I have nothing to compare it to, so I have no idea how well I'm doing.

Note that I have 3,737,061 supply on map not counting on ships. It's down 90k from 1 May. I've been doing a fair bit of airframe and engine expansion though. Most of it will be complete by month's end.

So 5700 sorties means you used about 8000 supply for your air missions. You know you are making ~28000 day now, so ...
The supply estimate can be improved dramatically if you have a feel for how many bomb missions compared to CAP. As you can see, air missions are a major expenditure.
10,000 missions/day means something like +15,000 supply/day ... you won't be saving hardly anything and then comes '44 you run outta supply and WHAM! you're dead.

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: Lowpe

Adak a size 7....wow.

I personally don't like running the Yamoto up there in winter as they accumulate a lot of damage, and it is very early in the war. Like to save the big girls for Kuriles/HI. Better yet, don't build the girls.[;)] Their loss really invigorates AFBs. And the damage takes forever to repair.[:(]

True, they can. And yes, NOT building them is an option. Against AI though, they can be effective. For repair, I increase the size of one RSY ... helps a great deal with repairs times on capital ships.

[PaxMondo]

ORIGINAL: Mike Solli

Here are the air sortie numbers:

It's day 528.

Sorties today: 5715

Total # sorties: 2,432,751

Average # sorties per day: 4607

I have nothing to compare it to, so I have no idea how well I'm doing.

Note that I have 3,737,061 supply on map not counting on ships. It's down 90k from 1 May. I've been doing a fair bit of airframe and engine expansion though. Most of it will be complete by month's end.

BTW, I have not altered the targets you and I came to several years ago. You're spot on target for mid-43, no surprise. You don't overbuild air frames, and anything less than 6000 missions/day is within the guidelines I use until mid-44 against STOCK games.
Where I came to start really looking at this was because in Ironman Nasty, Nasty, the allied AI is throwing up +15,000 missions a day starting Dec 8. IJ cannot keep up with that, she will be outta supply, so I have had to develop strategies to counter. And one of them is to watch and allocate missions carefully. The trickle down effect is that it also means I watch aircraft builds very carefully and of course supply.

[Alfred]

Losing the fleet in 1943 would not be a wise course of action.  However, sustaining some ship losses to destroy an Allied invasion fleet can be a very good outcome.  See the impact Lowpe's destruction of the Midway invasion fleet had on his Allied opponent's plans.  Went a long way to achieving the circumstances which led to his withdrawal from the match.
 
Re airplane sortie consumption, page 252 of the manual provides the details.  Essentially supply consumption per sortie is:
 

• 1 for non level bombers flying an offensive mission
• level bombers flying an offensive mission expend (maximum load/1000)
• 1 for escort mission
• 1/3 for all other missions

Alfred

[ny59giants]

Warships:

Japan: KB and Company get 8 to 10 of my best AA DDs, Kongos split up among them, and maybe 2 to 4 CA/CL. Where possible, 6 to 8 DDs (torpedo heavy) with 2 to 4 CL/CA. And then some 4 to 6 DD TF. Willing to use Full Speed movement with low moonlight throughout the war to have as much night combat as possible.

Allies: Old pre-war CAs and DDs go into DS (Death Star). 2 to 4 Cleveland CLs with 8 Fletcher DDs in SC TF to take on anything but a BB based TF. With the speed of Fletchers, I use them at Full Speed to go 11 hexes into night battle and be back under LRCAP by morning. If I'm Ted, I'm playing chess with me up two pawns. Attrition and more attrition.

Pilot Pools: Since I'm less than a week behind you (43 May 16th), what are your pools of trained pilots looking like?

[Mike Solli]

Guys, thanks for the info on sorties. Currently, I'm using only Sallys and Helens on bombing missions, usually <150 a day. That should drop by half soon with the winding down the the bombing in Burma during the monsoon season. I don't want to eat up all the available supply out at the airfields.

[Mike Solli]

Michael, KB is similar with me, including the Kongos, Tone & Chikuma, a CL and the best AA DDs available. My surface fleets are as needed. I keep fleets available primarily at Truk and Singapore (used to be Davao too). So overall, pretty similar to you.

Here's my pilot pool:

IJA Total: 1850
F: 368
B: 1289
T: 71
R: 122

IJN Total: 1025
F: 255
B: 490
P: 226
T: 27
R: 27

IJA Pool: 312
IJN Pool: 1358

IJA TRACOM: 120
IJN TRACOM: 146

I keep extra pilots in many of my units, practically all the fighter and bomber units so the numbers are actually a little better. I occasionally cull a few 60+/75+ fighter pilots from frontline land based units and replace them with 50+/70+ out of the pool. KB has primarily 70+/70+ pilots. I pull all elite pilots from all but my fighter units. For fighters, training units have 1 elite pilot, land based have 2-3 and KB has 4-6.

Edit: I have a lot of data and can give you my pool numbers from your date if you want.

Another Edit: They're practically identical.

[ny59giants]

FP groups: Do you allow and did you re-size many of your FP groups to size 12 or 24? I did, so my IJN fighter pools are being feed mainly from these groups. Over 500 Rufe/Rex pilots training up. [:)]

[Mike Solli]

Ahh, that's a big difference. The vast majority of my FP groups are at 24 and doing Naval Search/ASW duty against subs along the SLOC to the SRA and other critical choke points. I train them in both and then put the unit at 40% NS, 40% ASW and 20% rest.

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

FP groups: Do you allow and did you re-size many of your FP groups to size 12 or 24? I did, so my IJN fighter pools are being feed mainly from these groups. Over 500 Rufe/Rex pilots training up. [:)]

Wait, you have 500 Float Fighters?

How do your FP groups upgrade to Rufe/Rex? There are only a few units in stock that will do this.

[Mike Solli]

A size 24 float plane unit can train 32 pilots at a time (and can be increased from that as well), so it probably isn't as many units as you think.

[ny59giants]

Erik, I'm playing BTS lite mod!! [;)] Used Editor to make FP groups able to stay with normal Jakes or some able to go to Rufe/Rex. Most of the 2nd FP groups on CA/BBs were enabled.

[Mike Solli]

Very sneaky. [:-]

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: ny59giants

Erik, I'm playing BTS lite mod!! [;)] Used Editor to make FP groups able to stay with normal Jakes or some able to go to Rufe/Rex. Most of the 2nd FP groups on CA/BBs were enabled.

That is crazy. Can the Allies build the FP Wildcat they prototyped to sue in this mod? Seems like the only way to equalise this kind of massive change. I see that as being as big as allowing Japan to have 4E bombers.

The WildcatFish!!!

F4F-3S

[ny59giants]

To have players who have NOT downloaded or are playing BTS or BTS Lite mod, the Allies have dedicated training groups - three USA Army, two Marine, three USN, and one Brit group that are just doing this. So, these mods are not a JFB dream set up. Many of the issues from RA which show up in Canoerebel vs John 3rd AARs, have been corrected. IMO, the current versions should be balanced, but possibly more bloody. [:)]