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This is happening too often to be explained by leaders etc. I would have thrown the PC out of the window by now if it was happening to me ...

What are the settings of your CV fighter groups? Also, I presume that no Air Combat TF has more than 200 planes in order to avoid the un-coordination rule?

EDIT I just noticed that in the most recent report the problem seems to have gone away. What changed?

Sorry, I can't help but go into tech support mode sometimes ...

Japan kills a lot of Allied troops in the Phi, DEI etc. Al has played very well and I've not managed to destroy many units in either Burma, India or China. I certainly get a lot of points for capturing key bases though.

No matter how it all ends, I'm going to try to accumulate the biggest lead possible - if not the war might end very early cause Al is already one year ahead of schedule in the South Pacific. Not sure that being 5 years ahead of schedule in India will help much in the end... [;)]

ORIGINAL: ADavidB

It looks like the key to your margin is the number of Allied Army loses. Are those all the "usual" losses in the Far East?

Thanks -

Dave Barnayi

Cruft - I really don't know whether the problem is solved or not! I've not put all my Zeros on max range, set them to 40 or 60% CAP and deleted their previous target settings.
Several of my smaller raids against unprotected transports are escorted...those that really doesn't need an escort [:'(]

The Japanese are much more likely to get away with massing their cv's in 42 than the Allies, but as you've seen - the cv battles this far has never included more than 180 ac in on tf at the most. It's therefore horrifying that ALL my strikes against enemy cv's have been unescorted. There's a stink somewhere and I'm really not feeling confident about engaging enemy cv's anymore.

Afraid there will be a showdown in the South Pacific within a month or two though..then we'll see! If all my crack pilots takes off unescorted again, the puter may go out the window!-)

If your aircraft have target settings they won't escort anything outside that target. I found that out after PH. I could not get my zeroes to escort anything until I deleted the target. Everything went fine after that.

PzB, great AAR. Again. Can never get too much praise, right?
Anyway, regarding the Japanese CV commanders, I'll put up 7 of them (10 seems a bit too much since there is no way a Jap will have 10 AC TFs going about the place at one time), and those ARE the top 7 (notice a sharp drop in quality). I'm not sure about their rank though:
1. Abe,T 76
2. Yamaguchi,T 76
3. Nagumo,C 76
4. Ugaki,M 67
5. Sakamaki,M 63
6. Sugiura,K 58
7. Takagi,T 44

This is where rank question comes in. I don't know if higher rank has any benefits on command of the TF. Will an ADM outperform a CPT with the same skill? I know the question had been asked on many occasions but I don't recall there ever being a straightforward answer. So go with what your gut is telling you and try to keep the choich between the top 3

Arstadvidios - there might be something in this, getting some conflicting feedback from other players - so I would like to hear more about other peoples experiences! If it's really the case, something is in need of a fix [;)]

Thx, Honda! Never enough praise [8D]
Personally, I would assume that a Cpt that is qualified to command a carrier does this outstanding...as long as he's only commanding one carrier. A Rear Admiral could be competent to command 2, Vice Admiral 3 and a full Admiral 4. Then penalties would be given according to their skills and number of ships and ac under their command.

Again, I would like to get some more feedback regarding this issue as well. Playing WitP based upon 'I think so' and assumptions would be asking for trouble.....

Btw. is it only me, or does anyone else have problems with posing replies? My laptop sometimes ignores it when I press 'quote' or 'post reply' to posts, but the 'fast reply' button always work. The problem with this is that it opens a mini window, and it's not possible to add attachment - so I have to reboot my machine quite often to get around it.

ORIGINAL: Honda

PzB, great AAR. Again. Can never get too much praise, right?
Anyway, regarding the Japanese CV commanders, I'll put up 7 of them (10 seems a bit too much since there is no way a Jap will have 10 AC TFs going about the place at one time), and those ARE the top 7 (notice a sharp drop in quality). I'm not sure about their rank though:
1. Abe,T 76
2. Yamaguchi,T 76
3. Nagumo,C 76
4. Ugaki,M 67
5. Sakamaki,M 63
6. Sugiura,K 58
7. Takagi,T 44

This is where rank question comes in. I don't know if higher rank has any benefits on command of the TF. Will an ADM outperform a CPT with the same skill? I know the question had been asked on many occasions but I don't recall there ever being a straightforward answer. So go with what your gut is telling you and try to keep the choich between the top 3

Rank does not affect the leader's abilities at all... It's just window dressing.

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 06/03/42

Surface Combat

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat at 8,15

Japanese Ships - I dispatched a few escorts to hunt transports..impossible to miss!
PG Shinko Maru #5
PG Unkai Maru #1

Allied Ships
AK Empire Kingsley, Shell hits 1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Time Surface Combat at 8,15

Japanese Ships - the same ships engage 2 different transports in the same turn...
PG Shinko Maru #5, Shell hits 1
PG Unkai Maru #1

Allied Ships
AK Empire Sunrise, Shell hits 5, on fire
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Air Combat

Day Air attack on Kweiyang , at 41,35

Japanese aircraft - dang, I forgot to stand these bombers down!
Ki-43-Ib Oscar x 25
Ki-48 Lily x 29
Ki-49 Helen x 12

Allied ground losses:
26 casualties reported
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on Lae , at 54,87

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
Kittyhawk I x 16
Beaufort V-IX x 14
P-40E Warhawk x 26
B-26B Marauder x 36

Japanese aircraft losses
E13A1 Jake: 4 destroyed
A6M2 Zero: 2 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
Beaufort V-IX: 1 damaged
B-26B Marauder: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses: - Lae is really taking a beating
107 casualties reported
Guns lost 2

Airbase hits 1
Runway hits 51
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on 7th Tank Regiment, at 30,19

Allied aircraft Been trying to attack Lucknow for several days now, apparently without luck!
Buffalo I x 14
Wellington III x 31

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
69 casualties reported
Vehicles lost
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on 129th IJN Base Force, at 85,91

Allied aircraft - soon we'll give these guys a surprise!
F4F-4 Wildcat x 21
P-40B Tomahawk x 13

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
6 casualties reported

Aircraft Attacking:
21 x F4F-4 Wildcat attacking at 100 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 6,8

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 10
D3A Val x 23
B5N Kate x 7

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
AK Empire Resistance, Bomb hits 2, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Elk, Bomb hits 6, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Wagtail
AK Empire Carey, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 22,27

Japanese aircraft - my efforts bear fruit!
A6M2 Zero x 34
G3M Nell x 23
G4M1 Betty x 40

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
BB Ramilles, Torpedo hits 5, on fire, heavy damage *sinks* [8D]
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 9,11

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 10
D3A Val x 5

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
TK Empire Norse, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 5,5

Japanese aircraft
D3A Val x 8

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
AK Annalock, Bomb hits 1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 9,6

Japanese aircraft
D3A Val x 8

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
AK Empire Tugela, Bomb hits 1, on fire
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 10,8

Japanese aircraft
B5N Kate x 7

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
AK Sudabar, Torpedo hits 5, on fire, heavy damage
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ground Combat

Ground combat at 45,35

Japanese Deliberate attack - this attack will eventually open the door to the Chinese capital!

Attacking force 2247 troops, 0 guns, 143 vehicles

Defending force 3622 troops, 24 guns, 0 vehicles

Japanese assault odds: 4 to 1 - the enemy has created heavy fortifications!

Allied ground losses:
96 casualties reported
Guns lost 4
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at Kweilin

Japanese Bombardment attack

Attacking force 63646 troops, 747 guns, 2 vehicles

Defending force 64556 troops, 425 guns, 0 vehicles

Allied ground losses: - we just continue to pummel the defenders while other troops march on Ichang.
106 casualties reported
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at 32,24

Japanese Shock attack

Attacking force 5441 troops, 147 guns, 0 vehicles

Defending force 3336 troops, 18 guns, 0 vehicles

Japanese assault odds: 2 to 1

Japanese ground losses:
333 casualties reported
Guns lost 8

Allied ground losses:
30 casualties reported
Guns lost 2

Defeated Allied Units Retreating! - this attack drive te Indian Bde into the bush.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Situation Report

India

The severly damaged battleship HMS Ramilles was spotted in the Bay of New Japan, and a strong forceo of torpedo bombers put 5 torpedoes into her, causing her to sink immediately! The search for Warspite and other blocade runners continues.

No fewer than 60!! enemy transports were spotted in the Indian Ocean today - I only managed to sink 3-4 each day.
Wobbly is a little frustrated, the edge of the map is preventing their dispersal. Personally I found the timing a little awkward, I would have sent 4-5 transport away with supplies along the top of the map every 3rd day or so. That's why I'm suspecting that he's using the transports to cover something else...perhaps the convoys I initially spotted in the area. They might be carrying troops.

It kinda reminds me of Convoy PQ17 - it will most likely suffer heavy losses before the survivors can get away. When I feel I've had my fair share, the carriers will quietly slip away to replenish.

The attack on the Indian Bde that had marched down the west coast of Burma sent it into the jungle. We have now cut India of from Burma by placing troops in the 3 hexes just east of Asansol and Dacca. Tomorrow we enter Jamshedpur, 18000 enemy troops reported here, there are only 2-3000 left in Diamond Harbour.

China

100k troops are now marching into Ichang, the closes Chinese base to the railroad line. I'm contemplating whether operations in China should come to an end or not. We have achieved more than what was historically possible by now, and the ground combat model isn't too impressive. This could mean lessening my chance of winning an auto victory, but this isn't the most important factor here. I don't want to take too much advantage of the system, fighting on one continent at a time is more than enough for me.

Central/South Pacific

An enemy transport sank on its way from Tarawa today, I'm pretty sure Al is busy bringing in supplies, fuel etc. In 4 days the bombardment group will strike!

I'm now feeling more confident as the defenses are being reinforced each day. Each of the main bases, Truk - Rabaul and Kwajalein will soon have their own engineer regiment as well as heavy garrisons. The main line of defense runs from Lae -> Rabaul in the Solomons while Kwajalein and its supporting islands makes up the eastern flank in the Marshalls.

The Mini KB has now reached the Marianas and will reach Truk in 4-5 days.

Situation Map: The end of HMS Ramilles

Here is a summary of the last 3 turns

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 06/04/42

A large air strike against Lucknow succeeds in bombing the air field, enemy losses are
light to medium while the escorting Zeros suffers heavily. 14 are lost, a worrying development - but
mostly a result of green replacements.

Strikes against the airfield at Colombo destroyes several CAP fighters and a few bombers on the ground.

The following ships were hit by air and sea units:

AK Empire Peregrine, Shell hits 4
AK Empire Darwin, Bomb hits 3, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Antelope, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Lough, Bomb hits 3, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Bond, Bomb hits 3, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Wildebeeste, Torpedo hits 4, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Wagtail, Bomb hits 1, Torpedo hits 4, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Carey, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
TK Empire Airman, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage
AK Bhima, Bomb hits 10, on fire, heavy damage
AK Santa Ana, Torpedo hits 1, on fire
AK Empire Voice, Bomb hits 5, on fire, heavy damage
AP Empire Attendant, Bomb hits 4, on fire, heavy damage
AK Annalock, Bomb hits 2
AK Empire Cato, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Chaucer, Torpedo hits 1, on fire
AK Gran, Shell hits 7, Torpedo hits 2, and is sunk

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 06/05/42

Colombo is again hit by heavy raids from Madras - I thought the af had been subdued!
Day Air attack on TF at 11,27

Unfortunately a few Beuforts manage to avoit the LRCAP and puts a torpedo into the BB Hyuga returning
with the bombardment group from Panaji. Damage is moderate, 26 system - but it is detached from the fleet
and is heading to Trimcomalee port for repairs.

The following ships were hit by air and sea forces in the Indian Ocean

AK Paul Luckenbach, Bomb hits 10, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Darwin, Bomb hits 6, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Voice, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AP Dardanus, Bomb hits 8, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
TK Empire Airman, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Annalock, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Snipe, Bomb hits 6, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Baxter, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage
TK Empire Steel, Bomb hits 2
AK Deslock, Bomb hits 1, on fire
AK Empire Chaucer, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Derwent, Torpedo hits 1
AK Empire Lionel, Shell hits 1, and is sunk
AK Empire Raleigh, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
AK Empire Bardolph, Shell hits 7, on fire

A Japanese counterattack at Kweilin drives the enemy out - both sides suffers ca 1700 casualties.

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 06/06/42

The following ships were hit today:

AK Empire Bardolph, Torpedo hits 2, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Chaucer, Shell hits 6, and is sunk
AK Nordhval, Bomb hits 1
AK Helios, Bomb hits 5, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Kingsley, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Deslock, Bomb hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Lakeland, Bomb hits 7, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Purcell, Torpedo hits 6, on fire, heavy damage
AK Empire Derwent, Bomb hits 2, on fire, heavy damage

Close to 50 enemy transports were hit in these 3 days!

Unfortunately Wobbly got weather on his side as it prevents my vastly increased LRCAP to
escort the Hyuga into port, 12 Beauforts managed to put another torpedo into her. Damage in port is
46, she will join her sister at the repair yard for 6-12 months

The Kaga has almost exhausted her supply of aviation fuel and will soon had back to port to replenish after
striking another few transports tomorrow.

A division and engineer regiment shock attacks an Indian Division on the railroad south of Bombay.
They're heavily repulsed and suffers a shocking 3400 casualties! We have to wait for reinforcements before
clearing the rail.

In the South Pacific enemy tf's are again spotted at Lunga and heading west in the Coral Sea. More mines are laid
at Lae, Rabaul, Shortland and Kwajalein and more troops are unloaded at Truk.

In 1-2 days the bombardment groups will hit Tarawa!

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 06/07/42

India

Another 6-7 transports were hit in the Indian Ocean today. The Cvl Ryujo is now only a few hexes east of a tf identified as a ca - this might be the fleeing
Warspite. With a little luck she will wear 6 torpedoes by tomorrow [:D]

Ground combat in India continues and I'm confident that Bombay will be under siege within a week or so. The same with Lucknow - and when these two bases have
been taken we will move both east and west and put siege to Delhi at the same time as we march towards Karachi. I will consider to land a division by sea as well, I want
to assert as much pressure as possible. My BB's will play a significant role here, and I really have to bring in a lot of fuel - they're thirsty beasts of burden [:'(]

I don't really have much use for my Nells (there are no only 10 left in the pools, and most of my Daitais have been upgraded to Betties) and Betties in India, so I will leave 3 Daitais and send the others back to Singapore were they will recieve replacements and stay in reserve. The Armys Sallys and Lily's will have to suppress the enemy ground troops.
Several large base forces will soon be unloaded at Madras and engineers are developing Bangalore and Hyderabad to size 4 af's. My main bases for the final assault on India will be Bombay for Karachi and Lucknow for Dehli.


South Pacific

For several days the enemy air units at Tarawa have been strafing my ground units - the Tomahawks are escorting the Wildcats.
My bombardment group is only 3 hexes west of the place now and was spotted, don't know what Al will make of this but there are still a '5 ca tf' in the hex.
If he moves it, the island will receive a tremendous pounding. To ensure the destruction of the enemy ships, I've ordered both tf's to 'do not retire' and to engage in
surface combat. Then both tf's will bombard before heading back to base. Sincerely don't hope there are enemy cv's in the area, but I've decided that they're far
away near Nomea or in the Coral Sea. Let's hope my intel doesn't let me down...

Day Air attack on 33rd Division, at 20,12

Day Air attack on 82nd Naval Guard Unit, at 85,91

Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 21
P-40B Tomahawk x 13

No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
21 x F4F-4 Wildcat attacking at 100 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Another air battle that worries me:
I lost 10 Zeros to 0 Warhawks - are they loosing their edge already? Let's blame it on long range and rookie pilots for now.

Day Air attack on 16th Indian Brigade, at 28,21

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 12
Ki-48 Lily x 9

Allied aircraft
P-40E Warhawk x 11

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 20 destroyed

Allied ground losses:
22 casualties reported

Aircraft Attacking:
9 x Ki-48 Lily bombing at 10000 feet

The Mini KB has now entered Truk and the light carriers are continuing their sys damage repairs. The 2nd Carrier Division is now east of Borneo and will reach Truk
in a week or so. Then we will have a powerful striking force in the area. I'm pretty happy with the situation in Rabaul now, 110 Zeros are on CAP and there are now 3 forts.
330 engineers are bringing another one up each week though and another heavy AA regiment + a tank regiment have been unloaded. No way Al is getting anywere in the South Pacific for another 6 months or so!!

My next objectives are to reinforce Shortland and build a stronger reserve at Truk - I want a reaction force of at least 30k troops that can be dispatched on short notice.

ORIGINAL: PzB

[Another air battle that worries me:
I lost 10 Zeros to 0 Warhawks - are they loosing their edge already? Let's blame it on long range and rookie pilots for now.

Day Air attack on 16th Indian Brigade, at 28,21

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 12
Ki-48 Lily x 9

Allied aircraft
P-40E Warhawk x 11

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 20 destroyed

You might check their fatigue. In my air battle over PM the Zeros were barely able to suppress enemy fighters (mostly Kittyhawks, iirc). Once their fatigue is above 10 they tend to suffer heavily and while they control the sky the first day, they drop like flies the second. I had to rotate several A6M2 and two A6M3 Daitais between Lae, Rabaul and Truk continously and additionally switching between CAP, Escort and Sweep missions...

WhoCares - the Zeros got beteen 8 and 9 fatigue while one group had 10 - but that was after todays full strength sortie.
Lost 17 Zeros to 17 Warhawks and Wildcats today. Afraid it's the low quality pilots that pays the ultimate prize. Disbanded a Daitai today by joining 2 half strength units. The alternative would be even more rookies [:(] I'm not going to feed my best pilots into the grinder in India - will save them for the big showdown in the South which I'm certain will come before long.

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 06/08/42

Surface Combat

Bombardments

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naval bombardment of Colombo, at 14,24 - Coastal Guns Fire Back!

Allied aircraft
no flights


Allied aircraft losses
Beaufort V-IX: 2 destroyed, 1 damaged

39 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.
Japanese Ships
CA Mikuma, Shell hits 7
BB Nagato
BB Kirishima, Shell hits 3
BB Kongo, Shell hits 8

Allied ground losses:
367 casualties reported
Guns lost 8
Vehicles lost 3

Airbase hits 2
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 13
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naval bombardment of Colombo, at 14,24

Allied aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft losses
No Allied losses

Japanese Ships
DD Isonami
DD Yudachi
DD Yukikaze
CL Yura
BB Fuso
BB Haruna

Allied ground losses:
363 casualties reported
Guns lost 4

Airbase hits 2
Airbase supply hits 4
Runway hits 29
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naval bombardment of Colombo, at 14,24 - Coastal Guns Fire Back!

Allied aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft losses
Blenheim IV: 2 destroyed, 2 damaged

43 Coastal gun shots fired in defense.
Japanese Ships
DD Isonami, Shell hits 3, on fire - why did the escorts take part in this bombardment? Several ships sustained damage
DD Yudachi
DD Yukikaze
CL Yura, Shell hits 6, on fire
BB Fuso
BB Haruna

Allied ground losses:
159 casualties reported
Guns lost 2

Airbase hits 2
Runway hits 6
Port hits 5
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Naval bombardment of Tarawa, at 85,91

Allied aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft losses
F4F-4 Wildcat: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged

Japanese Ships
CL Sendai
CA Mogami
CA Ashigara
CA Nachi
CA Chikuma
CA Tone
BB Hiei

Allied ground losses:
1527 casualties reported [:D]
Guns lost 17
Vehicles lost 19

Airbase hits 1
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 9
Port hits 3
Port supply hits 7
--------------------------------------------------------------------------

Air Combat

Day Air attack on Jamshedpur , at 28,22

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 62
Ki-21 Sally x 39
Ki-48 Lily x 44

Allied aircraft
F4F-4 Wildcat x 16
P-40E Warhawk x 16

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 46 destroyed, 1 damaged - 17 were lost in A2A combat
Ki-21 Sally: 2 destroyed, 1 damaged
Ki-48 Lily: 4 destroyed, 2 damaged

Allied aircraft losses - 17 Allied ac lost in A2A combat
F4F-4 Wildcat: 26 destroyed, 11 damaged
P-40E Warhawk: 19 destroyed, 7 damaged

Allied ground losses:
41 casualties reported
Vehicles lost 1

Airbase hits 13
Airbase supply hits 5
Runway hits 26

Aircraft Attacking:
All Sally and Ki-48 Lily bombing at 10000 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 8,43

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 17
B5N Kate x 18

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N Kate: 5 damaged

Allied Ships - found her [8D]
BB Warspite, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage - didn't sink, but I'll stay around for another day!

Aircraft Attacking:
All B5N Kate launching torpedoes at 200 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 4,30

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 13
D3A Val x 13
B5N Kate x 4

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
AK Empire Activity, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage

Aircraft Attacking:

All B5N Kate launching torpedoes at 200 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 1,34

Japanese aircraft
B5N Kate x 21

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N Kate: 1 damaged

Allied Ships
AK Montanan, Torpedo hits 4, on fire, heavy damage

Aircraft Attacking:
All B5N Kate launching torpedoes at 200 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 8,22

Japanese aircraft
G4M1 Betty x 6

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
AK Empire Ibex, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

Aircraft Attacking:
All G4M1 Betty launching torpedoes at 200 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 7,23

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 9
D3A Val x 20

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
TK Empire Steel, Bomb hits 7, on fire, heavy damage

Aircraft Attacking:
All D3A Val bombing at 2000 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 6,41

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Zero x 17
B5N Kate x 12

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N Kate: 2 destroyed, 1 damaged

Allied Ships - I liked to find this one
AS Colombia, Torpedo hits 4, on fire, heavy damage *sinks*

Aircraft Attacking:
All B5N Kate launching torpedoes at 200 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Day Air attack on TF at 5,21

Japanese aircraft
B5N Kate x 5

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
AK Chilka, Torpedo hits 1

Aircraft Attacking:
All B5N Kate launching torpedoes at 200 feet
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Situation Report

Indian Ocean

I guessed right, it was the Warspite that was spotted yesterday - the 3 torpedoes that hit should be enough to force
Al to pull the plug - she's still a long way from safety. The Ryujo has almost cut of the leading transports that are fleeing south towards Oz and will close in for a few strikes. The massed search planes of the seaplane tenders will also take part in this effort.

The heavy strike against Jamshedpur was costly, but a 1-1 ratio is better than what I got a few days ago. A deliberate attack has been ordered tomorrow, there are still a lot of defenders left - but 4 units are fleeing NW. Guess my blocking units prevents them from going NE [:)]

South Pacific

The raid against Tarawa caused Al to write a rather depressed mail to me, he's afraid I'm coming with more troops. I'm not - but I won't tell him that. The enemy ships fled due west and my bombardment caused 1500 casualties. Another 2 bombardments have been ordered for tomorrow, and the 1st Cruisers Squadron has been told to stay behind to make Al belive I've come to stay. The name of Operation Goodbye & Good Riddance has also been leaked out as part of my psychological warfare effort....

The E-mails between you and wobbly, for some strange odd reason, brings sounds of "tokyo rose" to my ears. Surrender now yankee! You fight, while Joe is home with your wife. Excellent AAR. i continue to be impressed with the India/Burma thrust

Thx Hornblower! The emails between me and Al are really quite peaceful - I've promised always to tell him the truth, but telling only parts of it can provide for rather ambigous interpretations [;)]

Not sure I would like to repeat my Indian gambit, it leaves the Empire rather stripped of frontline divisions and reserves.
As soon as people find out that they have to abandon Burma and move reinforcements to India asap - the entire going will become a lot more difficult.

Wobbly is gone over the weekend, so there will be a pause over the weekend!

PZB,

I can see your point in saying that. From now on all the allied players have to at least reasonably consider the “PZB Burma/India trust” as a possibility from there adversary. So a bit of the strategic shock value will be lost. And should Wobbly hold out, whatever this combination was, would be the Key to stopping the trust. or delaying it to the point that opportunities elsewhere would open for the allied player.

As for the current game, nothing ventured, nothing gained.. You might just be able to put Wobbly in such a hole point wise, that he might not see the light of victory. But, then again- and I am sure that I am not stating something that you haven’t thought off- in essence, India has become a mini-Solomon islands in regards to pilot losses, 4 months early. That would worry me..Wobbly may loose the battle, but still win the pilot loss war. I look forward to the next rounds.

Take care - Hornblower

As I have said to wobbly on his side of the thread its really a public service you are both providing.

Teaching all us Allied wannabe supreme commanders as to the reasons why the allies were not more aggressive than we can be in the game.

Until this AAR started I began all my PBEM's by reinforcing Burma.

Over the last few months I have evacuated Burma in all bar one to watch India. (In one just in time to stop my opponents try to do a PZB on me I stopped one invasion at Dacca and another at Diamond Harbour but it was the Burma troops that did the final stopping !!! so thanks for the advance warning of what is possible)

You should also take into account that the Indian gambit could be played out much more efficiently by other players! This was my first WitP game - and I assure you that I didn't get it all a 100% right. My late advance into Burma was caused by stiff enemy opposition at Alor Star. The delay actually played into my hands as Al grabbed the opportunity to strengthen his front in northern Burma.

Pointwise it will certainly be difficult for Al to catch up, but that's nothing compared to the grief of playing the Jap side with nothing but under par assets. The important thing will be to keep a strategic carrier striking force for as long as possible. Only this will be able to keep the US from raiding e.g. the China Sea with a strong cv tf - and this could happen as soon as mid 43 if I doesn't carefully husband my resources.

It seems like Al will be gone for most of this week as well - guess he needs a little breather before continuing the life and death struggle in India. I've really been nasty to him - have to consider my sins.... [;)]

Andy Mac, I think you're right - holding Burma with more than a few Chinese Corps and odd ends will be difficult without opening your flank completely. I'd still like to see how it would turn out if someone did attempt an all out assault on India with 12+ divisions and the entire Combined Fleet in April 42!

Think I invaded India mainly because of Dell support [:'(]

ORIGINAL: Hornblower

PZB,

I can see your point in saying that. From now on all the allied players have to at least reasonably consider the “PZB Burma/India trust” as a possibility from there adversary. So a bit of the strategic shock value will be lost. And should Wobbly hold out, whatever this combination was, would be the Key to stopping the trust. or delaying it to the point that opportunities elsewhere would open for the allied player.

As for the current game, nothing ventured, nothing gained.. You might just be able to put Wobbly in such a hole point wise, that he might not see the light of victory. But, then again- and I am sure that I am not stating something that you haven’t thought off- in essence, India has become a mini-Solomon islands in regards to pilot losses, 4 months early. That would worry me..Wobbly may loose the battle, but still win the pilot loss war. I look forward to the next rounds.

Take care - Hornblower

Wobbly has been busy getting married - Congratulations old man [8D]
Still waiting for his return to the front, been almost 2 weeks now so it shouldn't be too long...I hope!-)

As I look at this AAR it makes me wonder what the effect of NOT fighting for Burma will have on the game. Lots of allied players are leaving Burma weak so its falling pretty fast. Does this mean that China gets weaker from lack of supply? Can the Japanese players put more troops into SW Pacific or some other point maybe North OZ if Burma will fall to a division?

By changing the allied defense of Burma you have created implecations for other parts of the map PzB.

Personally the Japanese just captured 12,000 troops in Rangoon Feb 14th 42 but I can't reveal my over all plan for the area just yet.

PZB. Given the temporary succession of hostilities, have you opted to change anything that you were going to do? Or has the time off solidified your strategy. I ask because a number of times I “think” myself out of doing moves that I normally wouldn’t if I didn’t have a day or so to think on it.