From Here It SEEMS Like an Eternity...Imperial Japan's Thoughts

[Wolfpack_MatrixForum]

I will atest to John's comittment to the game. We have played close to 2 years or more I think. He is a dangerous opponent and only in 7/44 in our game am I seeing things swing my way.

Wolfpack

ORIGINAL: John 3rd

Thank you guys!

Reading your notes cheer me up from the doldrums of abject despair.

I have had a busy week so I have not had the chance to write my AAR Combat Report for Sept 1-3, 1942.  In all honesty, I would prefer not to!

I was DEAD CERTAIN that I could take Perth with nearly 150,000 troops bersus about 30,000.  I would never have made the second landing if I thought otherwise.  I guess this is victory disease but I am an enperienced player who knows what can and cannot be done.  Do not understand why I couldn't get Perth.

Now the issue is do I have ANY chance of lifting some of these stranded troops off the beach without incurring prohibitive losses?  I cannot simply lose all those troops.  Problem is that if I don't get some of them, then the DEI will be unguarded/garrisioned.  How should I do this?

The fleet is still intact but in TERRIBLE need of yard maintenance.  My air arm is in pretty good shape for this point in the war.  It is in ground troops that I have issues.

They will know this.  The counteroffensive will start earlier then normal in the DEI if they TRULY understand the scope of losing all those troops.

There will be no early surrender in this game.  Wolfpack and Moses know that I do not do that.

Just sort of hard right now to know what to do.  Does anyone have good substantive thoughts for how I can get these troops at Perth?  I still have a substantial portion of the Fleet at Koepang (3CV/2CVL/2CVE) plus about 45 warships.

PLEASE lend me your thoughts and ears...

[rtrapasso]

ORIGINAL: HMS Resolution

Goodness, don't know how I missed it!

Probably distracted by hedgehog attack!!

[John 3rd]

Thank You Paul (Wolfpack) for the complement.  I LOVE where our game is!  July 1944 and the Japs are STILL holding out pretty well with an intact CV Fleet.  Want to tell the readers about how I sank 2 Essex and an Independence in March 1944??!!  BRILLIANT!
 
Operational CVs:
Akagi/Kaga
Shokaku/Zuikaku
Soryu
Ryuho
Rhujo
Hosho
1 Other CVL
 
I need about 6,000 hours (that I don't have) to do the update that I have in mind.  Shall do an industrial update and an exact count of sunk IJN ships.
 
Does that help?
 
 
 

[FeurerKrieg]

Can the H6K transports make it to Perth? If so, start pulling out fragments so that once you can build up those units for 44 and 45.

If the transports can't reach, send some subs down there.

[John 3rd]

That is a CAPITAL idea.  Now all I have to do is FIND them.  I think I last saw them in the Kwajelein area... 
 
It is a LONG way though.  Probably less then a 50-50 chance of this happening but will find out.
 
Might use SS to pick-up pieces like my opponents used at Samoa and Port Moresby.  I think that is GAMEY as Hell but why not??!!
 
Have been waiting for a turn since Friday night...
 

[pauk]

good luck with sub evacuations. Done that but lot of them didn't start rebuilding - fragments didn't became parent units and they are gone (although i can see those fragments i don't have acces to them - when i clik on them the other, "regular" unit appears)

[BrucePowers]

It worked for me with Dutch units. However, I considered US subs with lousy torpedos as terrible offensive weapons. I put 30 plus subs on evac duty and worked to remove whole units. The Dutch formations are relatively small, so it worked.

John, good luck. I have enjoyed this AAR very much and have learned a lot from you guys.

[FeurerKrieg]

I've successfully had fragments convert to parents before, so it can work. I evacuated a couple units from Noumea to Rabaul with H6K tranports and when the allies killed the parent, the fragment I had converted.

ORIGINAL: pauk


good luck with sub evacuations. Done that but lot of them didn't start rebuilding - fragments didn't became parent units and they are gone (although i can see those fragments i don't have acces to them - when i clik on them the other, "regular" unit appears)

[castor troy]

ORIGINAL: pauk


good luck with sub evacuations. Done that but lot of them didn't start rebuilding - fragments didn't became parent units and they are gone (although i can see those fragments i don't have acces to them - when i clik on them the other, "regular" unit appears)

yeah, something that happens to me also. You get fragments out and then they turn into ghosts..

[John 3rd]

Hello readers.
 
Our game has slowed to a crawl over the last 2 weeks due to Capt Mandrake having severe ISP and computer issues.  Vacations and trips have also clouded the turns as well. 
 
I've been quite busy with my youngest turning 1 years-old and gearing up for the Fall Semester classes.
 
Will do an update as soon as I can slice about 2 hours out of a day.
 
Suffice it to say, I have been gathering my surviving Perth naval forces at Koepang and debating some sort of evacuation attempt to get pieces of the units traps there out so I can rebuild them.  Have little hops of this so will have to see...
 
Just wanted everyone to know that I am alive!  [:D]

[Moondawggie]

John, keep at it. Your reports and Mandrake's are greatly appreciated by all of us. Yours is a tremendously interesting campaign; I'm learning a lot from it. Thanks!

[8D]

[John 3rd]

Hello All!
 
I just got back from the mountains after a few days of R & R.  The Fall teaching semester begins at Front Range Community College on Tues (I have 4 history courses) and on the 28th at the University of Northern Colorado (1 Social Studies Methodology course) and my wife and two boys wanted a little down time before school started.
 
Am working on a new attitude with the current campaign.  Since I realizaed that Perth was a TERRIBLE disaster, I have tried to get motivated into some sort of passion with little-to-no success.  With a few days off; however, I am back at it.  Just sent a turn to my opponents and we should be moving again.
 
It has been a SLOW pace over the last couple of weeks with several of us taking vacation time and Mandrake's ISP issues.  Everything now appears to be working so we should return to our turn a day speed.
 
Will do a comprehensive update as soon as possible.
John
 

[kaleun]

Welcome back!

[John 3rd]

Readers!
 
Sorry that I haven't been able to do anything about an update.
 
The Fall Semester has gotten going and I am adjusting to a new schedule of classes to teach at UNC and Front Range CC.
 
I just sent the guys the September 16th turn.
 
I have a block of time off on Thursday with no kids running around here and I intend to get a couple of entries done.
 
QUESTION:  The only way I am going to save anything at Perth is by using my Fleet SS in a sub transport manner.  How do I do that?  Do I send them to Perth's hex and select troops to pick-up or do I assign that mission from a friendly port like Koepang? 
 
Any help would be appreciated!
 

[ny59giants]

Set your subs to "sub patrol" with Peth as your "destination" hex. Once there, change over to 'sub transport" and click on "load troops only" (unless you want supply), but with an evac, you'll just want troops. [:D] I usually then click on "do not unload" as the AI sometimes will immediately unload again and start heading for home. [X(] Finally, click to return to Koepang.
 
Allied players are good at this mission as I we use it a lot to get stuff out of PI/SRA early in the war. [;)]

[witpqs]

I have found that when I have a sub with transport mission, then I send the sub to the hex I want to pick up people at, the sub will go to the hex and come right back (supposing it got there during the first movement impulse). So, I have taken to giving the sub a sub patrol mission, send it to the hex, then change it to transport, then load the troops with do not unload selected.

Does that help?

[kaleun]

I have found that when I have a sub with transport mission, then I send the sub to the hex I want to pick up people at, the sub will go to the hex and come right back (supposing it got there during the first movement impulse). So, I have taken to giving the sub a sub patrol mission, send it to the hex, then change it to transport, then load the troops with do not unload selected.

Yep you have to do that, or they will try to return with no troops.

[USSAmerica]

Hey John, I hope you and your family are well.  I've just caught up on the war from your opponent's point of view after close to a month of not reading any AAR's.  We need your side!  [:)]
 
Give us an update when you can.

[John 3rd]

After sulking over my twin defeats at Perth and New Zealand, I have been recently chastised for leaving the AAR behind. How many readers would like me to pick it back up?

We have only played about 6 weeks of time since my last disgusted entry...

[John 3rd]

I need a little confidence building from anyone out there to do this.  It has been a quiet period of time with the VAST amjority (nearly 75%) of the Imerial Fleet repairing and upgrading in the Home Islands...