Matrix Games Forums

not much action today, aside from some flopped night bombing by Betties and Helens and the daily recon ops. Not even my petty barges came under fire last turn. And the day before six or seven of them sunk from these damn patrol bombers... [:@]

The transport bug continues to upset me. Really annoying thing to give orders to load "Unit XYZ" but some doofus at the pier (or wherever this moron resides) determines "Unit 123" to get onboard instead. Or no one at all.
One of the key tactics in my defensive system is to be as flexible and as quick as possible under the given circumstances. But this is getting out of the window yet...

Sep 9th, 1943

another IJ barge sunk after hits from patrol bombers.
Allied shipping traffic in the Western Coral Sea undaunted.
No Air Action (at day).
DDs trying to resume FT operations. Very curious if it works now.

have not counted the killed barges so far yet, but I guess the losses must be about 50...80. Wondering if I am going to run out of these moderately helpful vessels when all from the database (about 100 or so) are lost then or if they will revive after some time?!?

these sort of losses are no wonder to me, considering how exposed these tiny nutshells operate most of the time...

So may be I should keep them sheltered in tunnels (as historcal) and they won´t sink down to the bottom. Instead, they will just rust away after some decades...[;)][8|]





(actual picture taken at Rabaul...)

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Hey folks - turn 500 is done by now![/font]

[font="Trebuchet MS"]Only a few more than hundred days and we´re at the end of this truly great game we both germans having here in the Pacific! [:)][;)][/font]

But unfortunately, there is no much reason to celebrate. Not so because of the real war happenings but because of the strange "surprises" built into this game...!
Will post some details of the bugs we´re encountering lately in the forums "Tech Support" section. [:(][:@][X(]

Aside from this, MY own (IJA) patrol bombers finally hit some target... the first US barge was sunk![:)]

my personal favorite is waiting on the last two Nell sqd's to arrive at Truk, and they are empty instead of having 18 bombers each. So much for late game reinforcements. 

ORIGINAL: borner

my personal favorite is waiting on the last two Nell sqd's to arrive at Truk, and they are empty instead of having 18 bombers each. So much for late game reinforcements. 

Which G3M squads do you mean in particular? I never got an empty Nell unit (originally), but I agree their supply is ridicoulous. Same as for many other Types. So it happens that if you disband say a Nell unit of course they will return empty and it takes a long time to "fill up" even up to 6 A/C (two months at least!). Actually, I never had a full strength G3M Daitai with all it´s 27 planes. I think it´s impossible to gain.

Though it´s very hard for the japanese player to get along with such reinforcement rates, IMHO it´s pretty historical. After the 1942 hightide (especially in autumn 42 the japanese pumped a lot of A/C into the Solomons theathre) there came a steep fall down into the agony of late 1943. Had the four airdromes at Rabaul always up to 250...400 A/C from late 42 to Oct. 43, the Imperial High Command had to abandon this great airbase in steps from Nov. 1943 to mid-February 1944 when the last servicable wrecks were withdrawn to Truk (after the disaster there). Countless numbers of planes and -above all- the last surviving pilot cracks were lost to nothing achieved with this sacrifice. They even sent to the slaughter the CV Airgroups, which returned quite depleted, if at all.

another recon mission by paratroops at Vila, which is beeing reconnoitered some time by now.
Otherwise, some LBA tried to bomb transport convoys in the Tulagi area but failed to succeed. [8D]




AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 09/11/43

Weather: Clear

Sub attack at 35,38

Japanese Ships
AG 119, Shell hits 12, on fire, heavy damage

Allied Ships
SS Sargo


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Air attack on Hoskins , at 16,31


Allied aircraft
SBD Dauntless x 55
TBF Avenger x 9
P-40E Kittyhawk x 18
P-40E Warhawk x 18


no losses

Runway hits 3


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Air attack on Nevea , at 50,43


Allied aircraft
SBD Dauntless x 45
P-39D Airacobra x 15
P-40E Kittyhawk x 24
F-5A Lightning x 2


no losses

Japanese ground losses:
Men lost 12

Port hits 3
Port supply hits 1


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Air attack on TF, near Sepi at 38,38


Allied aircraft
Hudson x 6


no losses

Japanese Ships
PC Ch 24
AP Kinugasa Maru

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Air attack on TF, near Sepi at 38,38


Allied aircraft
PB4Y Liberator x 3


no losses

Japanese Ships
PC Ch 24


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at Vila

Allied Shock attack

Attacking force 15 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles

Defending force 2927 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles

Allied assault odds: 0 to 1 (fort level 3)



--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

[font="Verdana"]Oh, they have armor??? Now that´s new...[/font]

Anyway, not enogh to withstand the deadly projectiles of a 20mm Oerlikon!

Didn't you know? They used to hang empty saki bottles along the side in the hope that allied shells might bounce off them

The sooner you hang them on the side after you drink them empty, the better the crews thought they would work! 

Funnily enough, there was a lack of feedback from barges who had been attacked & shot up, whether good or bad. In fact, I don't think there were any barges left to make feedback... [8D]

ORIGINAL: xj900uk

Funnily enough, there was a lack of feedback from barges who had been attacked & shot up, whether good or bad. In fact, I don't think there were any barges left to make feedback... [8D]

Oh no, I still have plenty left. But these crews in particular turned from drunken to drowned, so no other feedback available than gurgling and some little blebs that rise up from the bottom...[;)] Not to forget the countless bottles scattered in the Solomons now. And there are no letters within...[:-]

ORIGINAL: borner

The sooner you hang them on the side after you drink them empty, the better the crews thought they would work! 

the stuff might also ease the impact of the hits... making them to belive its just bad weather once more... [;)]

Last night I sent two DDs (separately) out into Woodlark Isl. anchorage. Large allied transport fleets are reported there. And I know that Fuelli has based (at least part of) his battle fleet at GG. The plan was to land some fishes into the bellies of any ship. I assumed he would come out since he saw my forces in the area.
You´ll think "wow, what a silly suicidal move".


I agree it certainly looks like that, but more than once it worked and sometimes I even got out without a scratch. Nomad can tell you the tale...[8D] But not so this time, unfortunately... Both DDs sacrified in vain. [:(]



AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 09/13/43

Weather: Rain

Night Time Surface Combat at 0,0

Japanese Ships
DD Shimotsuki, Shell hits 32, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CA Pensacola
CA Quincy
CL Santa Fe
DD Fletcher
DD Converse
DD Foote
DD Spence
DD Thatcher
DD Claxton
DD Aulick
DD Calahan
DD Flusser
DD Farragut


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat at 0,0

Japanese Ships
DD Susuzuki, Shell hits 17, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CA Pensacola
CA Quincy, Shell hits 1
CL Santa Fe
DD Fletcher
DD Converse
DD Foote
DD Spence
DD Thatcher
DD Claxton
DD Aulick
DD Calahan
DD Flusser
DD Farragut


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This time I got surprised and shot into pieces.

The "surprise" mechanism is quite strange built into UV anyway. The concept in general is fine, but the way it works I cannot grasp. As stated earlier from the allied POV, it lacks some reality. (A transport fleet which got heavy shooting already can´t be surprised if they face their foe for another round...)
But OK OK OK, I know - such PC games are "just" computer programmes which work straight digital supported by some dicees... [;)]

Is there the chance/possibility built into the encouter tables that the fleets will miss one another? Particularly if one fleet, eg here the Japanese, is one small solitary and fast ship trying to do some 'blockade running' and doesnt' particularly want to be found

ORIGINAL: xj900uk

Is there the chance/possibility built into the encouter tables that the fleets will miss one another? Particularly if one fleet, eg here the Japanese, is one small solitary and fast ship trying to do some 'blockade running' and doesnt' particularly want to be found

good idea, but I don´t think so. At least I never experienced any "miss" when two opponent fleets met at one certain spot...

I have on a few occassions. Also, i f the captain/force commander is savy enough, he can move his force out of the way of a bigger/larger/more powerful force which has certainly happened to me (unloading transport force had enough presence of mind to undock and leg it just before the Yamato & Mutsu came around the headland)

ORIGINAL: xj900uk

Is there the chance/possibility built into the encouter tables that the fleets will miss one another? Particularly if one fleet, eg here the Japanese, is one small solitary and fast ship trying to do some 'blockade running' and doesnt' particularly want to be found

At first glance one would think not if the side that is blockading has a picket of radar equipped ships.

Then again, there was the battle of Savo Island...