Matrix Games Forums

Posted: **Mon May 16, 2011 10:34 pm**

Is he suppressing your airfields?

Posted: **Tue May 17, 2011 3:03 pm**

Cruft,

Yes he is. I am managing to get him to hit my front-line airfields - where I'm mostly basing second-line fighters ( early models of the A6, N1K and Ki-84 ). He is hitting those airbases hard every night... which is something I'm encouraging through allowing him access to those airframes since that is setting him up for my riposte due in 2 or 3 days, depending on bomber placement. My Glens are just about in position.

Today was a bad day for Hapan as my fighters proved incapable of keeping his CV-based airpower from destroying many ships around Amami Oshima.

I'll give the higlights below....
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 30,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
MTB G-840
MTB G-845
MTB G-872
MTB G-882
MTB G-1003
MTB G-1025

Allied Ships
BB Nevada
BB Arkansas
CL Detroit
DD Talbot
DD Dent
DD Crosby
DD Kennison
SC-642
SC-644
AKA Starr
AKA Stokes
LSV Saugus
LSD Shadwell
LCI-986
LCI-987
LCI-988
LCI-989
LCI-990
LCI-991
LCI-992
LCI-993
LCI-994
LCI-995
xAK Bowdoin Victory
xAK Bozeman Victory
PF Pasco
PF Everett
AP Gen. H.W.Butner
AP Gen. W.M.Mitchell

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
DD Shinyo
DD Shinyo, Shell hits 13, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CL Boise
CL Honolulu
CL Amsterdam
DD Marshall
DD McCord
DD McDermut
DD McGowan, Shell hits 2
DD McKee
DD McNair

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 5,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
MTB G-548
MTB G-555
MTB G-841
MTB G-848
MTB G-873, Shell hits 2, and is sunk
MTB G-451

Allied Ships
CL Boise
CL Honolulu
CL Amsterdam
DD Marshall
DD McCord
DD McDermut
DD McGowan
DD McKee
DD McNair

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
MTB G-1022
MTB G-1027, Shell hits 3, and is sunk
MTB G-155
MTB G-156
MTB G-165
MTB G-12, Shell hits 1, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CL Boise
CL Honolulu
CL Amsterdam
DD Marshall
DD McCord
DD McDermut
DD McGowan
DD McKee
DD McNair

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 5,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
MTB G-843
MTB G-879
MTB G-884
MTB G-885
MTB G-887, Shell hits 6, and is sunk
MTB G-888, Shell hits 1, and is sunk

Allied Ships
BB Nevada
BB Arkansas
CL Detroit
DD Talbot
DD Dent
DD Crosby
DD Kennison
SC-642
SC-644
AKA Starr
AKA Stokes
LSV Saugus, Shell hits 1
LSD Shadwell
LCI-986
LCI-987
LCI-988
LCI-989
LCI-990
LCI-991
LCI-992
LCI-993, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
LCI-994, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
LCI-995, Shell hits 1
xAK Bowdoin Victory
xAK Bozeman Victory, Shell hits 3, on fire
PF Pasco
PF Everett
AP Gen. H.W.Butner
AP Gen. W.M.Mitchell

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Submarine attack near Naha at 95,68

Japanese Ships
SS Ha-D-140, hits 26, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CL Phoenix
DD Robinson
DD Hawkins
DD McCook
DD Doyle
DD Rowe
DD Ross

SS Ha-D-140 is sighted by escort
DD McCook attacking submerged sub ....
DD Doyle fails to find sub and abandons search
DD Rowe attacking submerged sub ....
SS Ha-D-140 forced to surface!
DD Rowe firing on surfaced sub ....
DD Ross firing on surfaced sub ....
Sub slips beneath the waves

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Naha at 95,68

Japanese Ships
SS Ha-D-141, hits 36, heavy damage

Allied Ships
CL Nashville
DD Owen
DD Benson
DD Stephen Potter
DD Picking
DD Philip

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Sub attack near Tokara Retto at 99,63

Japanese Ships
PB Saiko Maru, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
xAK Natisan Maru
PB Sozan Maru

Allied Ships
SS Bumper, hits 3

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Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 137 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 28 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 6
Ki-264 Angel x 77

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 29
P-61C Black Widow x 18
F4U-1A Corsair x 10
F6F-3N Hellcat x 8

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIb Helen: 1 destroyed
Ki-264 Angel: 4 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D25 Thunderbolt: 2 damaged
P-47D25 Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed on ground
F4U-4 Corsair: 3 destroyed on ground
P-47N Thunderbolt: 2 destroyed on ground

Allied ground losses:
5 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 3
Runway hits 10

There were many, many more PT encounters and also many more raids on the airbases. I am just showing these as representative of the whole. Each of the combat replay files is about 4Mb in size, about 33% greater than normal.

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Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid detected at 110 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 26 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-32 Dominator x 35

Japanese aircraft losses
A7M2 Sam: 2 destroyed on ground
Ki-94-II: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-84b Frank: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied suppression of Japanese airbases.

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
7 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 2
Airbase supply hits 3
Runway hits 14

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Night Air attack on Nagasaki/Sasebo , at 102,58

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 132 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 41 minutes

Japanese aircraft
J1N1-S Irving x 8
Ki-46-III KAI Dinah x 4

Allied aircraft
B-29-25 Superfort x 241

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
B-29-25 Superfort: 2 damaged

Japanese Ships
xAKL Tatibana Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
BB Nagato, Bomb hits 1
CL Kashima, Bomb hits 2, on fire
xAP Baikal Maru, Bomb hits 1

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Night Air attack on Shanghai , at 92,55

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 120 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 37 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-29-25 Superfort x 32

No Allied losses

Heavy Industry hits 6
Manpower hits 182
Fires 60241

Day Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 94,67, Range 8,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
DD Shinyo, Shell hits 10, and is sunk
DD Shinyo, Shell hits 8, and is sunk
DD Shinyo, Shell hits 5, and is sunk
DD Shinyo, Shell hits 2, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CA Baltimore
CL Birmingham
CL Mobile
CL Biloxi
CL Miami
DD Taussig
DD Waldron
DD Black
DD Boyd
DD Bradford
DD Braine
DD Brown
DD Bryant
DD Bullard
DD Burns

This is what happens when the Allies meet Shinyos during the daytime. At night, however, the Shinyos manage to do quite some harm.

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Morning Air attack on Amami Oshima , at 98,64

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 19 NM, estimated altitude 45,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 5 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 15
N1K5-J George x 34
Ki-84b Frank x 4
Ki-84r Frank x 10
Ki-100-I Tony x 7

Allied aircraft
P-51H Mustang x 47

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K1-J George: 3 destroyed
N1K5-J George: 5 destroyed
Ki-84b Frank: 1 destroyed
Ki-84r Frank: 1 destroyed
Ki-100-I Tony: 2 destroyed

No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
36 x P-51H Mustang sweeping at 41600 feet

P-51 H sweeps at high altitude are murderous. The Allies get about 250 of these planes per month and my second-line fighters simply cannot survive in the air vs the P-51Hs when they are on CAP over their own bases or not fatigued by long oversea flights. When I meet P-51Hs at the end of a 20 hex flight to the target though my fighters do noticeably better. That's a nice outcome of the game design.

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Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Batan Island at 85,69

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 79 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 9 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ohka Model 22 x 16

Japanese aircraft losses
Ohka Model 22: 8 destroyed

Allied Ships
CA Shropshire
DD Sigsbee
DD Dunlap

Aircraft Attacking:
16 x Ohka Model 22 flying as kamikaze
Kamikaze: 1 x Ohka Bomb

This is the first kamikaze attack of the war which actually got through to attack the enemy ships. Of course there was no CAP. Still, I think I'll begin expending some Ohkas on targets of opportunity around Okinawa. I have to harrass the Allies somewhat. I also will begin committing a small number of torpedo-bombers to night-time torpedo attacks just to try to push the Allies back a little - right now they are directly beside Okinawa and able to provide far too much LRCAP for my tastes.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Amami Oshima at 98,64

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 118 NM, estimated altitude 9,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 55 minutes

Japanese aircraft
N1K1-J George x 1
N1K5-J George x 2
Ki-84b Frank x 3
Ki-84r Frank x 7
Ki-100-I Tony x 5

Allied aircraft
FM-1 Wildcat x 12
F4U-1D Corsair x 64
F6F-5 Hellcat x 33
SBD-6 Dauntless x 14
TBM-3 Avenger x 57

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-84r Frank: 1 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
FM-1 Wildcat: 1 destroyed
F4U-1D Corsair: 2 destroyed
F6F-5 Hellcat: 2 destroyed
SBD-6 Dauntless: 1 damaged

Japanese Ships
xAK Kogane Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
xAK Daijo Maru, Bomb hits 4, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Matumoto Maru, Bomb hits 3, on fire
xAKL Kyodo Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
E No.97, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Keyaki
xAK Kyusyu Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
xAK Okiyu Maru, Bomb hits 1
xAK Matsue Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Asukasan Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
E No.124, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage
DD Take
AMC Nosiro Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
xAK Tuyama Maru, Bomb hits 1, on fire
E No.71, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires, heavy damage
xAK Ikuta Maru
xAK Hakkaisan Maru, Bomb hits 1, heavy fires
xAK Syoan Maru, Bomb hits 2, heavy fires
xAKL Tatsuaoi Maru, Bomb hits 3, heavy fires, heavy damage
E No.102, Bomb hits 2, and is sunk

Japanese ground losses:
66 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 8 destroyed, 6 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Guns lost 17 (3 destroyed, 14 disabled)
Vehicles lost 8 (5 destroyed, 3 disabled)

A high cost but worth it. I have decided to use Amami Oshima as a supply hub. Ships will load at Kagoshima, move through the shallow waters ( which I've mined wherever there is shallow water and a base ) to Amami Oshima. Barges with a couple of SC as escort will then carry the goods and troops to Okinawa. From now on I can hugely reduce my vulnerability to enemy air attack. Unfortunately to create the supply hub I need to sacrifice these ( and more ) ships for the next couple of days.

The actual CR is about 4 times this size with many more surface clashes and suchlike.

My airgroups around Okinawa are beginning to shatter. I'll keep them there for a few more days... and then I'll strike the B-29 bases with my Ki-264s. Once that's done I'll pull out my fighters and only carry out pinprick ambushes from time to time to keep the Allies honest.

Allied forces get 3,400 B-29s during the course of this scenario. At present they have 600 on-map. This means that over the next 15 months they get roughly 240 per month. That means I have to kill 8 B-29s per day in order to keep up with replacements.

Posted: **Tue May 17, 2011 3:32 pm**

How many Ohka model 22s does this mod start out with and what are you able to produce under the best case scenario ,if you don't mind me asking?

Posted: **Tue May 17, 2011 3:36 pm**

ORIGINAL: Nemo121

My airgroups around Okinawa are beginning to shatter. I'll keep them there for a few more days... and then I'll strike the B-29 bases with my Ki-264s. Once that's done I'll pull out my fighters and only carry out pinprick ambushes from time to time to keep the Allies honest.

Allied forces get 3,400 B-29s during the course of this scenario. At present they have 600 on-map. This means that over the next 15 months they get roughly 240 per month. That means I have to kill 8 B-29s per day in order to keep up with replacements.

[X(][X(][X(][X(]

Posted: **Tue May 17, 2011 4:38 pm**

Well, so far I'm hitting a rate of 20-30 B-29s destroyed per day so things aren't going too badly. The cost is pretty horrific for Japan but 20 days of losing 30 B-29s per day will wreck his bomber force for a couple of months. So, it is possible if you're willing to take the horrific casualties necessary.

Don't forget that we're actually some time ahead so I happen to know that Operation Keep the B-29s Moving is working out pretty well [8D]. Obviously I'd prefer if this was contemperaneous as that'd be more fun and interesting but due to FatR that isn't possible at this stage. I do plan to creep closer and closer to contemperaneous though if he remains outside of this thread and doesn't contact my opponent leaking my plans and dispositions.

Posted: **Tue May 17, 2011 11:17 pm**

I know this isn't Downfall exactly, but I reckon from my brief experience playing that scen that if the Allies put everything into *comprehensive* airfield destruction before even attempting to do anything else then Japan is hosed. It just doesn't have the engineers to repair it all, and then there is the much under-estimated morale hit to any airgroup which gets bombed on the ground.

Without airfields Japan has, regardless of anything else, no teeth. If I was playing the Allies I would even cruise my CVs around bombing the more remote airbases in NE Japan etc.

Posted: **Thu May 19, 2011 10:55 pm**

Hmm, the forum ate my last reply. So, I'll just post the highlights again.

Cruft,
Yes he is suppressing my airfields but that's all part of the plan. Make him suppress my airfields instead of hitting HI and then use his suppression of my airfields to manoeuvre him into position such that he uses his own initiative to create the conditions which make him vulnerable to a counter-strike. Today that happened.

9 PT Boats were sunk over the course of about a half-dozen skirmishes with USN surface combatants around Okinawa.

The USN has also deployed an ASW TF at Okinawa. Tomorrow I'll commit some Ohkas to try and take them out. I might get lucky - although the random CAP altitude bug is still present. Anyways, it'll complicate his defensive dispositions and spread his fighters thinner.

Night Air attack on Amami Oshima , at 98,64

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 16,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 25 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-29-25 Superfort x 230

The big raid of the day...

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-84r Frank: 9 destroyed on ground
N1K5-J George: 7 destroyed on ground
Ki-100-I Tony: 6 destroyed on ground
N1K2-J George: 12 destroyed on ground
N1K1-J George: 12 destroyed on ground
Ki-84b Frank: 4 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-29-25 Superfort: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
11 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 25
Airbase supply hits 7
Runway hits 60

This was expensive bait but only the Ki-84r and N1K5J are first-line fighters anymore so the rest are expendable --- particularly as I plan to use them in the kamikaze role once I make enough J7Ws and Ki-94s. The great thing about this attack ( another 150 B29s followed over the course of the night to make for a total raid of 400 B29s ) is that by attacking at night for a second night running I was able to be sure his bombers would be on the ground during daytime... Thus my second major riposte of the war could go ahead --- a daylight Ki-264 raid on the Marianas.

Morning Air attack on Saipan , at 108,93

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 175 NM, estimated altitude 23,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 36 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-264 Angel x 121

Allied aircraft
F6F-5 Hellcat x 8

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-264 Angel: 3 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
B-29-25 Superfort: 9 destroyed on ground

Airbase hits 4
Airbase supply hits 2
Runway hits 22

The results in terms of destroyed planes wasn't amazing - only 18 destroyed on the ground - BUT several score B-29s were damaged and will be easy pickings tomorrow night, when the Ki-264s will attack again. Remember, I need to kill 8 a day to keep B-29 levels steady. Any more than that and I'm actually reducing B-29 numbers.

Several USN strikes went in around Okinawa. My CAP got roughly handled by P-51Hs while my fightes got in amongst the bombers and destroyed 20 or 30 of them. Overall I shot down more planes than I lost and suffered far fewer fighter losses.

Tomorrow, for the first time since we realised there was a bug, I'm going to try introducing a few kamikazes into the fray around Okinawa and Formosa on a test basis. I think I've found a way to have them be effective even in spite of the bug. We'll see if it works or not. In addition the Ki-264s will return this evening, after detection levels were boosted by multiple Glen recons during the day --- I think one result I only had about 18 kills was because my D/L was only 3/10. This evening it should be 9/10 so I'm hoping to destroy quite a few of the damaged and grounded bombers.

The idea is to spread his fighters out to cover all of his rear echelon bases, leaving fewer at the front killing my fighters and also to cause his bombers attritional losses AND decreased operational readiness due to constant shifting of their bases.

In other news the changeover to new fighter types is going well. I have 4 xx Ki-94 and 4 x J7W fighter groups in service now. I am experiencing a bottleneck in engine production for the Ki-94 but should have that sorted by the end of the month. Right now I'm making about 10 of each fighter per day. By month's end I should be making 15 to 16 Ki-94s per dayand about 12 J7Ws per day. Once I've upgraded the squadrons I need I will look into transferring the older planes ( A6M7s, Ki-61s, N1Ks, Ki-84s etc into kamikazes). With sacrificial escorts of poor bombload fighters ( Ki-44, A6M5 etc ) I expect the speed and manoeuvrability of these older fighters to allow a significant number of them to get through and attack enemy shipping.

In reality when the Japanese committed good, fast planes they got much higher hit rates than when they committed slower, older types. I expect this to be mirrored in-game.

#1: + 29.9

Posted: **Fri May 20, 2011 6:40 am**

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 17, 45
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Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 5,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
MTB G-548
MTB G-555
MTB G-841
MTB G-848
MTB G-451, Shell hits 2, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CL Boise
CL Honolulu
CL Amsterdam
DD Marshall
DD McCord
DD McDermut
DD McGowan
DD McKee
DD McNair

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 4,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
MTB G-889
MTB G-1006
MTB G-1007, Shell hits 1, and is sunk
MTB G-352
MTB G-353
MTB G-452, Shell hits 1, and is sunk

Allied Ships
CL Boise
CL Honolulu
CL Amsterdam
DD Marshall
DD McCord
DD McDermut
DD McGowan
DD McKee
DD McNair

It looks like the transports have pulled out and the unit count fell from 41 to 37. Interesting, he's probably pulling out non-combatant units. The fewer mouths he has to feed the better.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub vs Sub: SS Guavina attacking SS Ha-D-142 at 93,67 - near Naha

Japanese Ships
SS Ha-D-142

Allied Ships
SS Guavina

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Saipan , at 108,93

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid detected at 119 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-264 Angel x 32

Allied aircraft
Corsair IV x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 10
F6F-3N Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-264 Angel: 1 destroyed, 4 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
Corsair IV: 1 destroyed on ground
F4U-1A Corsair: 10 damaged
F6F-3N Hellcat: 1 destroyed, 3 damaged
B-29-25 Superfort: 26 destroyed on ground
F6F-5 Hellcat: 2 destroyed on ground
F4U-4 Corsair: 1 destroyed on ground
F-5E Lightning: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied ground losses:
16 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Airbase hits 42
Airbase supply hits 7
Runway hits 226

This was a weirdly effective night raid. Instead of 132 bombers only 32 flew but they scored a huge number of hits. I can only put it down to the sky-high DL and the overstacking on the ground. Over 50 B-29s and about 20 other planes were destroyed on the ground.

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Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 28 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G3M3 Nell x 6
G4M2a Betty x 18
G4M3a Betty x 26
P1Y2 Frances x 15

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 31
P-61C Black Widow x 17
F4U-1A Corsair x 11
F6F-3N Hellcat x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
G3M3 Nell: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged
G4M2a Betty: 3 damaged
G4M3a Betty: 2 destroyed, 4 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

My nightly attacks on Naha.... I think the storms significantly impacted these raids.

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 76 NM, estimated altitude 5,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 22 minutes

Japanese aircraft
P1Y2 Frances x 20

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 22
P-61C Black Widow x 13
F4U-1A Corsair x 8
F6F-3N Hellcat x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
P1Y2 Frances: 1 destroyed
P1Y2 Frances: 1 destroyed by flak

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
P1Y2 Frances x 15

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 18
P-61C Black Widow x 13
F4U-1A Corsair x 7
F6F-3N Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
P1Y2 Frances: 1 destroyed, 4 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 76 NM, estimated altitude 3,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 26 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G4M2 Betty x 20

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 16
P-61C Black Widow x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 6
F6F-3N Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
G4M2 Betty: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D25 Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed on ground

Runway hits 1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 4,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 25 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-Ic Sally x 19
Ki-48-Ib Lily x 19
Ki-49-Ia Helen x 8
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 3
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 20
Ki-67-Ib Peggy x 6

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 15
P-61C Black Widow x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 6
F6F-3N Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIa Helen: 1 damaged
Ki-49-IIb Helen: 2 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-47D25 Thunderbolt: 2 damaged
P-51H Mustang: 1 destroyed on ground
P-47N Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed on ground

Airbase hits 2
Runway hits 9

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 71 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 22 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 13

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 13
P-61C Black Widow x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 6
F6F-3N Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-IIb Helen: 1 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 4,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 27 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-Ic Sally x 15

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 12
P-61C Black Widow x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 6
F6F-3N Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-21-Ic Sally: 2 damaged
Ki-21-Ic Sally: 1 destroyed by flak

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 79 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 6
Ki-67-Ib Peggy x 10

Allied aircraft
P-47D25 Thunderbolt x 12
P-61C Black Widow x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 6
F6F-3N Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-67-Ib Peggy: 2 destroyed, 4 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-47N Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed on ground

Airbase hits 1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Manila , at 79,77

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 56 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-264 Angel x 4

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 14
F6F-3N Hellcat x 8
F6F-5N Hellcat x 5

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-264 Angel: 2 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-61C Black Widow: 1 destroyed
F6F-5N Hellcat: 1 destroyed

I'm concerned bomber defensive fire accuracy is still too high. I have multiple Ki-264 pilots with multiple kills and I'm sure my opponent has multiple B-29 pilots with multiple kills as well.

After tonight's raid my opponent asked for new rules on night-bombing. I'm quite happy with this since:
a) I was able to accept the night bombing losses I was taking. That he finds the effectiveness of my 130 bombers such that he wants a change in HRs which will also effect his 1000+ four-engined bombers is a good sign for me IMO.

b) I made a counter-proposal that if we were increasing night-bomber ceilings ( to diminish number of bomb hits ) then we should increase day bomber ceilings also since I had so few Ki-264s that I was mostly limited to night bombing and if we diminished that while not diminishing the effectiveness of day bombing in a similar fashion we'd just end up penalising the Japanese while leaving the Americans bomber fleets untouched in terms of effectiveness. My rule for HRs is that they shouldn't be a means for players to gain advantage - although sometimes if the code is borked then HRing for that code breach gives someone advantage. So there's always a balance to be struck.

Anyways, four-engined bombers now have minimum altitudes of 15,000 feet at night and 25,000 feet during the daytime. In addition I'm going to look into creating a new device for four-engined bombers which will model a "stick" of 4 bombs. In-game 4-engined bombers are so effective because each bomb dropped rolls to hit. With 20 or even 32 bombs per plane those rolls to hit eventually reach such numbers that you get huge numbers of hits ( as we saw at Guam and as we see regularly when the B-29s attack HI and 50 B-29s might get 100 HI hits... In 3 days of attacks I lost 1/4 of the entire Japanese HI... which is not something supported by the historical records.

Anyways, by creating this new device we should reduce the numbers of "check if bomb hits" rolls by 75% and lessen their over-effectiveness vs HI while still keeping their effectiveness vs airfields and troops ( since this devide will have four times the explosive power but unchanged penetration... So it'll basically say that each hit from this device is the same as being hit by 4 x 500lb bombs.

It'll probably need a bit more tweaking but that's the basic idea. It should make my Ki-264s and his B-29s less over-effective vs resources, HI etc whilst mostly preserving their effectiveness vs airfield runways and services --- but, crucially, making them less likely to destroy planes as this appears to be a function of number of hits and not the damage potential of those hits.

I think we both realise that a game dominated by 4-engined strikes closing airfields left, right and centre isn't realistic. Causing attritional losses? Sure but not closing them completely. In the long-run abandoning this ability will hurt Japan more than America since this is pretty much my only chance to destroy hundreds of B-29s over a short period of time but it has to be changed since it is leading to ahistorical results and play.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Daito Shoto , at 98,69

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 30 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 12 minutes

Allied aircraft
PB4Y-2 Privateer x 10

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 1
Runway hits 5

I'm trying to draw some raids off by placing seaplanes at various bases to draw air attacks from which they are, largely, immune.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 128 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 30 minutes

Japanese aircraft
D4Y2-S Judy x 3

Allied aircraft
B-32 Dominator x 35

Japanese aircraft losses
D4Y2-S Judy: 2 damaged
D4Y2-S Judy: 1 destroyed on ground
A6M2-K Zero: 1 destroyed on ground
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-84b Frank: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-94-II: 2 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
34 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 5 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 14
Airbase supply hits 11
Runway hits 73

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 127 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 39 minutes

Japanese aircraft
D4Y2-S Judy x 3

Allied aircraft
B-29-25 Superfort x 27

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 13 destroyed on ground
N1K5-J George: 1 destroyed on ground
A6M2-K Zero: 4 destroyed on ground
Ki-94-II: 4 destroyed on ground
Ki-84b Frank: 2 destroyed on ground
A7M2 Sam: 1 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
107 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 13 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 4 disabled

Airbase hits 20
Airbase supply hits 15
Runway hits 222

Pretty much a mirror of the result I got at Guam... except that I don't mind losing these older fighters.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Amami Oshima , at 98,64

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 119 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 37 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-29-25 Superfort x 25

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-100-I Tony: 2 destroyed on ground
Ki-84r Frank: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-84b Frank: 1 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 3
Runway hits 64

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 125 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 42 minutes

Japanese aircraft
D4Y2-S Judy x 3

Allied aircraft
B-24J Liberator x 103

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 2 destroyed on ground
A6M2-K Zero: 1 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
9 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Airbase hits 1
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 84

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 87 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 30 minutes

Japanese aircraft
D4Y2-S Judy x 3

Allied aircraft
B-24J Liberator x 62

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 3 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 18

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Amami Oshima , at 98,64

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 108 NM, estimated altitude 14,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 33 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-29-25 Superfort x 22

Japanese aircraft losses
N1K5-J George: 1 destroyed on ground
D4Y2-S Judy: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-84r Frank: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-84b Frank: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-100-I Tony: 1 destroyed on ground
N1K2-J George: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-29-25 Superfort: 1 damaged

Airbase hits 4
Runway hits 97

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near San Fernando at 79,73

Japanese Ships
SS I-53, hits 7

Allied Ships
DD Murray
DD Melvin
DD Metcalfe

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Nago at 96,63

Japanese Ships
MTB G-848
MTB G-841
MTB G-548

Allied Ships
SS Angler

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Nago at 96,63

Japanese Ships
MTB G-353
MTB G-1006
MTB G-889

Allied Ships
SS Angler

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Amami Oshima at 97,63

Japanese Ships
MTB G-352
MTB G-353
MTB G-1006

Allied Ships
SS Spot

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Amami Oshima at 98,62

Japanese Ships
MTB G-353
MTB G-352
MTB G-1006

Allied Ships
SS Cabezon

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 39 NM, estimated altitude 41,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-94-II x 24

Allied aircraft
P-51H Mustang x 50

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-94-II: 5 destroyed

Allied aircraft losses
P-51H Mustang: 2 destroyed

Hmm, even the Ki-94 II can't dominate the P-51H at close range. I'll be glad when he has to fly a dozen hexes to reach Okinawa.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 43 NM, estimated altitude 44,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 12 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51H Mustang x 50

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Palembang , at 48,91

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 43 NM, estimated altitude 45,900 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51D Mustang x 10

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 17 NM, estimated altitude 43,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51H Mustang x 16

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Palembang , at 48,91

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 30 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 12 minutes

Allied aircraft
PB4Y-2 Privateer x 9

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
7 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled

Airbase hits 2
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 36

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Takachiko Det. , at 81,73 , near Aparri

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 30 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Allied aircraft
Beaufighter 21 x 48
Mosquito FB.40 x 22

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
120 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 9 disabled
Non Combat: 1 destroyed, 3 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Also attacking Shobu Group Army ...
Also attacking Hayashi Detachment ...
Also attacking 23rd Div Remnants ...
Also attacking Takachiko Det. ...
Also attacking Shobu Group Army ...
Also attacking Hayashi Detachment ...

I've already pulled about 400 AV of the 900 AV which began the war trapped in the northern Phillipines out by seaplane. I'm working hard at flying the remaining 500 AV out and expect to have that done by the end of the week.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 241 NM, estimated altitude 44,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 69 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51H Mustang x 25

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Naha at 95,66

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 33 NM, estimated altitude 5,100 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

These guys went in at 100 feet. With a time to target of three minutes there wasn't any opportunity for an interception to occur and all 23 Ohkas made it to the ships, that ASW TF I have grown to hate so much [8D]

Japanese aircraft
Ohka Model 11 x 23

Allied aircraft
P-47N Thunderbolt x 22
F4U-1D Corsair x 14
F4U-4 Corsair x 14
F6F-5 Hellcat x 11

Japanese aircraft losses
Ohka Model 11: 7 destroyed

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
DE Snyder, Kamikaze hits 1, and is sunk
DE Stern, Kamikaze hits 3, and is sunk
SC-643, Kamikaze hits 1, and is sunk
SC-641, Kamikaze hits 1, and is sunk

A 25% hit rate. Excellent. I've noticed that when not disrupted by interception kamikaze hit rates are much, much higher than when they've taken losses on the flight in.

CAP engaged:
VBF-7 with F4U-1D Corsair (2 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VBF-9 with F4U-1D Corsair (1 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(1 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VBF-10 with F4U-1D Corsair (1 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(1 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VBF-11 with F4U-1D Corsair (1 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(1 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VBF-12 with F4U-1D Corsair (1 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(1 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
1 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VF-14 with F6F-5 Hellcat (2 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 37300
Raid is overhead
VBF-17 with F4U-1D Corsair (2 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VF-81 with F6F-5 Hellcat (3 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(3 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
3 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 37300
Raid is overhead
VBF-81 with F4U-1D Corsair (2 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VBF-82 with F4U-1D Corsair (2 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VF-84 with F6F-5 Hellcat (3 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(3 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
3 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 37300
Raid is overhead
VBF-84 with F4U-1D Corsair (2 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 39300
Raid is overhead
VF-85 with F6F-5 Hellcat (3 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(3 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
3 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 37300
Raid is overhead
VMF-211 with F4U-4 Corsair (2 airborne, 6 on standby, 0 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 41600 , scrambling fighters between 41000 and 41600.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 31 minutes
VMF-225 with F4U-4 Corsair (2 airborne, 4 on standby, 0 scrambling)
2 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 41600 , scrambling fighters to 41000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 34 minutes
413th Fighter Group with P-47N Thunderbolt (7 airborne, 15 on standby, 0 scrambling)
7 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 42000 , scrambling fighters between 1000 and 42000.
Time for all group planes to reach interception is 25 minutes

I highlighted a couple of airgroups to show their altitude was far too high. 42,000 feet vs attackers at 100 feet. There was no way they were ever going to intercept. And with only 3 minutes to the target there was no way the fighters they were scrambling would reach either. He is going to have to begin properly splitting the CAP into high, medium and low level now.

My opponent wasn't used to facing low-level kamis so asked me my advice about how to deal with them. I advised him to stagger them at 1,000 feet, 15,000 feet or so and 30,000 feet or so so as to have enough planes at every altitude to guarantee at least a few firing passes. Even if he didn't shoot anything down he'd cut losses by 50% just by disrupting my attack profiles.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Aparri at 82,73

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 101 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 33 minutes

Japanese aircraft
B6N2a Jill x 9

Allied aircraft
P-51D Mustang x 7

No Japanese losses

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
CA Shropshire

Aircraft Attacking:
9 x B6N2a Jill bombing from 12000 feet
Naval Attack: 2 x 250 kg SAP Bomb

That's quite an audacious raid. I'd meant to set them to night attack only. Oops! I got away with it though. The lack of CAP around the northern Phillipines is interesting though. I'll have to bring more planes in to take advantage of that and force him to spread his fighters more thinly.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Aparri at 82,73

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 35 NM, estimated altitude 3,100 feet.
Estimated time to target is 14 minutes

Japanese aircraft
B5N2 Kate x 8

Allied aircraft
P-51D Mustang x 12

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N2 Kate: 5 destroyed

No Allied losses

Allied Ships
DD Fanning
DD Rooks
CA Shropshire, Kamikaze hits 1

The kamis came in at 100 feet again and the CAP was, again, too high. I got one solid, penetrating hit on the CA Shropshire. Tomorrow there will be far more CAP here but that serves my purposes, spreading his fighters out.

Aircraft Attacking:
8 x B5N2 Kate flying as kamikaze
Kamikaze: 2 x 250 kg SAP Bomb

CAP engaged:
No.78 Sqn RAAF with P-51D Mustang (12 airborne, 0 on standby, 0 scrambling)
(2 plane(s) diverted to support CAP in hex.)
12 plane(s) intercepting now.
Group patrol altitude is 41900
Raid is overhead

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 151 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 70 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-94-II x 8

Allied aircraft
F4U-1D Corsair x 113
F6F-5 Hellcat x 154
SB2C-5 Helldiver x 93
TBM-3 Avenger x 258

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-94-II: 1 destroyed, 1 damaged
Ki-94-II: 1 destroyed on ground
A6M2-K Zero: 1 destroyed on ground
D4Y2-S Judy: 1 destroyed on ground
N1K5-J George: 1 destroyed on ground
A6M2 Zero: 2 destroyed on ground
Ki-84b Frank: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
SB2C-5 Helldiver: 2 damaged
TBM-3 Avenger: 4 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
8 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 15
Airbase supply hits 5
Runway hits 161

These Ki-94s leaked from the adjacent base and got slaughtered. *sigh* Time to pull them back.

#1: + 41

Posted: **Fri May 20, 2011 11:39 am**

You are destroying B-29s at an alarming rate.  I would be so pissed at myself to let my opponent destroy so many, let alone on the ground...[:-]  Keep up the good work, this is such an interesting scenario... I just started a new GC game last night against the AI, I know it will take a while, but my final goal is to invade the Home Islands if I can stick with the game that long...

Posted: **Fri May 20, 2011 11:46 am**

Yeah, by today's date in the game 17th September I had destroyed 240 B-29s. Since we'd only started actually fighting on the 8th September that's 24 B-29s per day, almost triple what I need. My hope was that this rate would force an operational pause on the B-29s and not just lessen the ferocity of their attacks. We'll see...

Posted: **Fri May 20, 2011 12:45 pm**

How many B-29s did the US lose historically during the war?  You just seem to be destroying them left and right, and in this case below you [:D]
 
Maybe you're just that good.

Posted: **Fri May 20, 2011 3:40 pm**

Do these kami raids mean the bug is fixed or is sending them in at 100 feet a way to work around the bug?

Posted: **Fri May 20, 2011 4:33 pm**

No, this was under 1108m2/3 in which the bug still existed. What this merely shows is that the fewer the number of groups on CAP the more likely the Japanese will be randomised to low altitude while the US are randomised to high altitude ( a 1 in 9 chance if you accept a trinary of hi, medium and low altitudes. 1/3rd of the time they will be randomised to the same altitude, 4/9ths they'll be randomised to within 1 altitude band and 2/9th of the time they'll be randomised to either hi vs low or low vs hi and get through easily ). I simply decided that a 22% chance of getting through scott free was worth it with Ohkas.

Over the next week or so sometimes it worked, sometimes it didn't - when the randomisation bug worked against me. Under 1108m4 the bug is fixed as michaelm found the comparators which were being evaluated in the wrong order and fixed them.

Of course opinions differ on this and JWE would tell you you're a lying, unwashed weasel with no brain who has never been laid for thinking this might be a bug [:D].

My personal advice is to upgrade to 1108m4 if you are trying to split CAP over TFs. The problem with CAP altitude being randomised has been confirmed by michaelm and when he said it was fixed kamis ( and other strikes ) suddenly began behaving a lot more historically. THis is very important since the difference in distance at which the raid is spotted when coming in at 100 feet and 6,000 feet is huge and without radar the USN is a lot more vulnerable to Japanese attacks. At this stage of the game ( under 1108m4 ) it is my absolute SOP to send everything except my specialised high-altitude kami attacks in at 100 feet - that includes Ohkas, kamikazes and torpedo bombers. Dive-bombers have to go in at their normal altitude unfortunately... although I'm thinking of simply training them in LOW NAVAL so they skip bomb. That ought to be effective. 1108m4 is stable and without it you might as well not bother specifying an altitude for your CAP/strikesas it is randomised.

Posted: **Sat May 21, 2011 6:14 am**

ORIGINAL: Nemo121
In addition I'm going to look into creating a new device for four-engined bombers which will model a "stick" of 4 bombs. In-game 4-engined bombers are so effective because each bomb dropped rolls to hit. With 20 or even 32 bombs per plane those rolls to hit eventually reach such numbers that you get huge numbers of hits ( as we saw at Guam and as we see regularly when the B-29s attack HI and 50 B-29s might get 100 HI hits... In 3 days of attacks I lost 1/4 of the entire Japanese HI... which is not something supported by the historical records.

Anyways, by creating this new device we should reduce the numbers of "check if bomb hits" rolls by 75% and lessen their over-effectiveness vs HI while still keeping their effectiveness vs airfields and troops ( since this devide will have four times the explosive power but unchanged penetration... So it'll basically say that each hit from this device is the same as being hit by 4 x 500lb bombs.

It'll probably need a bit more tweaking but that's the basic idea. It should make my Ki-264s and his B-29s less over-effective vs resources, HI etc whilst mostly preserving their effectiveness vs airfield runways and services --- but, crucially, making them less likely to destroy planes as this appears to be a function of number of hits and not the damage potential of those hits.

Uuuu, lets see how it woks out. If good, DC number is next in queue

I think, that ultimately, number of "bomb" Devices on 4Es should be less, that this number on 2Es.
That way it will be clear, what type of bomber use for tactical support, as they simply will have more attack rolls, and inflict this way more damage.
I wonder, if this will be possible under this model...

Anyway, as you strongly modified Downfall:
What are the initial pilot pools, experience, and "training/production" rate?
Have you utilised all those Type 100/44 SMGs, and Type 4 70mm AT Rocket Launchers stored in-case of mainland invasion?
What is the initial Armament/Vehicles pool?

Posted: **Sat May 21, 2011 9:22 am**

Inqistor,

Well, we've recently made a change to heavy bomber bombloads along the lines you suggested. Instead of the heavy bombers having 20 to 32 bombs they now have "sticks" of 4 bombs so the B-29-25 doesn't have 20 x 500lbers anymore. It has 5 x 500lb sticks ( each stick comprising 4 bombs and having the same penetrating power but fout times the explosive power of a single 500lber ). Same thing for the 250 Kg bombs in the Ki-264.

This keeps the effectiveness of the heavy bombers vs planes on the airfield ( since each hit has a high chance of damaging or destroying multiple planes ) whilst reducing the effectiveness in terms of total closure of the airfield a little. The big impact will be in terms of a reduction in effectiveness of port attacks and HI/ factory bombing. Currently vs HI with each bomb having a separate "to hit" roll there is just far too much chance for each bomber getting multiple HI hits.

Before I made the changes we had a situation where 100 Allied bombers dropped 600 bombs and managed to get 480 hits on an airfield. Needless to say that airfield was closed entirely.

2. Initial pilot pools... Graduating pilot experience was boosted for all sides but the differential in pilot production maintained with the Allies producing 3 times the pilots. In addition Allied graduating pilot experience was upgraded to 80 while Japanese pilot experience was capped at 70.

3. I haven't upgraded to the type 100/44 SMGs but I have included the Type 4 AT rocket launched in IJA 1945 Pattern infantry squads and engineer squads. This gives Japanese infantry a much better chance to survive vs tanks. Very few units begin with Pattern 45 infantry squads. Japan has to take the time and effort to upgrade its infantry units.

4. AAA changes: The 12cm AAA gun becomes standard as does an upgrade from 20mm to 40mm AAA within AAA units. AT guns upgrade from 37mm to 47mm. Tanks remain relatively unchanged.

5. Armament and vehicle pools are untouched.

Posted: **Sat May 21, 2011 4:32 pm**

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 18, 45

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 8,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 30 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G3M3 Nell x 26
G4M2 Betty x 27
G4M2a Betty x 13

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 18
F4U-1A Corsair x 10

Japanese aircraft losses
G3M3 Nell: 1 destroyed, 2 damaged
G4M2 Betty: 2 destroyed, 1 damaged
G4M2a Betty: 2 damaged

No Allied losses

Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 3

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 4,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G4M2 Betty x 20
P1Y2 Frances x 73

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 13
F4U-1A Corsair x 7

Japanese aircraft losses
G4M2 Betty: 3 damaged
P1Y2 Frances: 3 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 28 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G4M2 Betty x 15

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 13
F4U-1A Corsair x 7

Japanese aircraft losses
G4M2 Betty: 1 destroyed, 2 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on TF, near Calayan at 83,70

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 121 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 33 minutes

Japanese aircraft
B7A2 Grace x 20

No Japanese losses

Allied Ships
AM Kingfisher
LST-915
LST-914, Torpedo hits 1, and is sunk
LST-919
PF Long Beach
SC-645

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 78 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-48-Ib Lily x 8
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 4
Ki-67-Ib Peggy x 9

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-48-Ib Lily: 1 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-61C Black Widow: 3 damaged
P-61C Black Widow: 1 destroyed on ground
P-51H Mustang: 1 destroyed on ground
P-47N Thunderbolt: 1 destroyed on ground

Airbase hits 2
Runway hits 7

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 108 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 34 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 3

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 6

No Japanese losses

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Thunderstorms

Raid detected at 72 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-Ia Helen x 11

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 9
F4U-1A Corsair x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-Ia Helen: 1 destroyed

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Daito Shoto , at 98,69

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid spotted at 19 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 7 minutes

Japanese aircraft
D4Y2-S Judy x 3

Allied aircraft
PB4Y-2 Privateer x 16

No Japanese losses

No Allied losses

Airbase hits 7
Airbase supply hits 2
Runway hits 13

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Tokyo , at 114,60

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 151 NM, estimated altitude 19,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 46 minutes

Japanese aircraft
C6N1-S Myrt x 19
J1N1-S Irving x 4
S1A1 Denko x 41

Allied aircraft
B-29-25 Superfort x 104
B-29B Superfort x 6

No Japanese losses

Allied aircraft losses
B-29-25 Superfort: 1 damaged
B-29B Superfort: 1 damaged

Heavy Industry hits 2
Manpower hits 6
Fires 2900

Very few of my night fighters intercepted. I have over 100 at Tokyo. Ah well, I suppose I'll have to wait for the Ki-102c with its functional radar to really begin hurting these night-time raids.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 144 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 34 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-32 Dominator x 34

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Tokyo , at 114,60

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 165 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 51 minutes

Japanese aircraft
C6N1-S Myrt x 12
J1N1-S Irving x 3
S1A1 Denko x 27

Allied aircraft
B-29-25 Superfort x 89

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-264 Angel: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-61-Ib Tony: 1 destroyed on ground
L2D2 Tabby: 1 destroyed on ground
Ki-43-IIIa Oscar: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-29-25 Superfort: 2 damaged

Heavy Industry hits 1
Fires 2825
Airbase hits 2
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 7

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 133 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 45 minutes

Allied aircraft
B-24J Liberator x 148

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 133 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 45 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-24J Liberator x 111

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2-K Zero: 1 destroyed on ground
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-24J Liberator: 1 damaged

Japanese ground losses:
7 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Runway hits 9

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Calayan at 83,70

Japanese Ships
SS RO-68, hits 28, heavy damage

Allied Ships
SC PC-807
LST-918
PF Long Beach
PF Grand Forks
SC PC-808

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Kuroshima at 98,61

Japanese Ships
E No.52
E No.40
E No.150
E No.132
E No.76

Allied Ships
SS Sargo, hits 4

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TF 26 encounters mine field at Naha (95,66)

Japanese Ships
SSX Ha-42, Mine hits 1, heavy damage

My own mines... Worth it though to keep the pressure on.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on 239th USN Base Force, at 80,74 (San Fernando)

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 175 NM, estimated altitude 40,370 feet.
Estimated time to target is 48 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-74-I Patsy x 7

Allied aircraft
P-51D Mustang x 3
F4U-4 Corsair x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-74-I Patsy: 3 destroyed

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Aparri at 82,73

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid detected at 25 NM, estimated altitude 2,100 feet.
Estimated time to target is 8 minutes

Japanese aircraft
A6M2 Sen Baku x 16

Allied aircraft
P-51D Mustang x 10
F4U-4 Corsair x 20

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Sen Baku: 9 destroyed

Cap randomised unfortunately for me. Ah well, maybe next time.

No Allied losses

#1: + 70.1 - 18/7
#2: + 41.7 - 3/7

Posted: **Tue May 24, 2011 5:19 pm**

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 19, 45

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub vs Sub: SS Thornback attacking SS Ha-207 at 95,67 - near Naha

Japanese Ships
SS Ha-207

Allied Ships
SS Thornback

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 28 minutes

Japanese aircraft
G3M3 Nell x 27
G4M2a Betty x 20

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 14
F4U-1A Corsair x 11
F6F-5N Hellcat x 11

Japanese aircraft losses
G3M3 Nell: 1 destroyed, 3 damaged
G4M2a Betty: 1 destroyed, 3 damaged
G4M2a Betty: 1 destroyed by flak

Allied aircraft losses
P-61C Black Widow: 1 damaged
P-61C Black Widow: 1 destroyed on ground
F6F-5N Hellcat: 1 damaged
F6F-5N Hellcat: 1 destroyed on ground

Runway hits 6

In a few days I'm going to stop these raids by IJNAF bombers... they are costing more than they achieve and restrict them to my newly upgraded IJAAF Ki-67b units. Basically the Ki-67 carries twice the bombload and with experienced crews ( which are beginning to come online following my training regime ) they should be able to actually achieve something.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 7,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 25 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-Ic Sally x 23
Ki-21-IIb Sally x 4
Ki-48-Ib Lily x 16
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 4
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 3
Ki-67-Ib Peggy x 4

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 8
F4U-1A Corsair x 7
F6F-5N Hellcat x 8

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-21-Ic Sally: 4 damaged

No Allied losses

Runway hits 1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 75 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 20 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-Ic Sally x 15
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 11
Ki-67-Ib Peggy x 12

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 8
F4U-1A Corsair x 7
F6F-5N Hellcat x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-21-Ic Sally: 4 damaged
Ki-67-Ib Peggy: 2 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 78 NM, estimated altitude 5,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-Ia Helen x 15
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 15

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 8
F4U-1A Corsair x 6
F6F-5N Hellcat x 6

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-49-Ia Helen: 1 damaged
Ki-49-IIb Helen: 2 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Severe storms

Raid detected at 110 NM, estimated altitude 10,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 34 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 3

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 8
F4U-1A Corsair x 5
F6F-5N Hellcat x 6

No Japanese losses

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Manila , at 79,77

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 114 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 23 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-264 Angel x 3

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 12
F6F-3N Hellcat x 7
F6F-5N Hellcat x 7

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-264 Angel: 2 damaged

No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
3 x Ki-264 Angel bombing from 9900 feet
Port Attack: 20 x 250 kg GP Bomb

This group bears some talking about. I've given 12 x Ki-264s the mission to harrass Manilla, get my opponent used to this harrassment and then, every so often, I'll hit him with a 100+ plane raid --- basically whenever I think his CVEs have docked.

In the course of these night-time raids these 12 Ki-264s have accounted for over 20 Allied night-fighters and one of the Ki-264 pilots is an ace. By the end of next week I expect this Ki-264 group to have multiple aces. The bomber defensive fire model is still not working properly... It appears to still be significantly over-powered during night-time. I'm not quite sure why that would be but, definitely, my Ki-264s are killing a lot more intercepting fighters at night than during the daytime.

Right now my opponent's night-fighter force is gettin butchered by Ki-264s when they attack. The bomber sweep is back.

I'm going to suggest a further decrease in bomber defensive fire accuracy. The problem is we'd have to downgrade and upgrade our squadrons for that to take effect in-game. This would mean a week or so free of four-engined bombers.... or we could just stand down half of them for 1 week and then the other half the next week. I'll talk about it with my opponent and if he is agreeable I'll make that change. The performance of this Ki-264 group is just so out of kilter that it shows something needs to be done. I shudder to think how much worse it would have been if I hadn't reduced the accuracy already. In the stock game this would be much worse.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Daito Shoto , at 98,69

Weather in hex: Moderate rain

Raid spotted at 27 NM, estimated altitude 12,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 11 minutes

Allied aircraft
PB4Y-2 Privateer x 14

Allied aircraft losses
PB4Y-2 Privateer: 1 damaged

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TF 66 encounters mine field at Naha (95,66)

Japanese Ships
SSX Ha-50, Mine hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Hengchun , at 84,67
Weather in hex: Light rain

Raid spotted at 122 NM, estimated altitude 11,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 36 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51D Mustang x 10
A-26C Invader x 60
B-25J11 Mitchell x 60
P-51H Mustang x 14

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
12 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 31
Airbase supply hits 14
Runway hits 442

Closed!

Of course I don't actually have fighters there, just floatplanes flitting around my bases in order to draw such strikes... Every bomber hitting an empty base like this is one less bomber hitting something crucial to my defence. At this stage the majority of enemy sweeps and bomber sorties are unchallenged strikes against decoy targets. The maskirovka is going well. I've also established safe naval and aerial bases beyond range of the Allies ( now that they are being pushed out of Okinawa ) and am refitting and upgrading and training my forces at those bases.

In addition the fight around Okinawa is allowing me to move fuel, oil, supplies and resources into Japan from China. So far I haven't lost a single ship from these convoys and have moved well over 1,000,000 tons of fuel and supplies over the past fortnight. Another month of this and the Japanese merchant fleet will have brought all the supplies, fuel, oil and resources available in China etc home and it'll be time to redeploy it for its next offensive mission --- another invasion of American-held territory.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Okinoerabushima , at 96,65

Weather in hex: Partial cloud

Raid spotted at 17 NM, estimated altitude 41,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 4 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51H Mustang x 25

No Allied losses

Aircraft Attacking:
25 x P-51H Mustang sweeping at 41600 feet

There's no point fighting these ueber-fighters at such short distances from their bases. Let fatigue do its work and then my fighters will do theirs. This is one of the things I am gaining from the Okinawan adventure.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on TF, near Batan Island at 85,70

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 16 NM, estimated altitude 1,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 6 minutes

Japanese aircraft
B5N2 Kate x 9

Allied aircraft
Spitfire F.XIV x 20
P-51D Mustang x 6
F4U-1D Corsair x 4
F4U-4 Corsair x 10

Japanese aircraft losses
B5N2 Kate: 6 destroyed

No Allied losses

Well, it would appear that despite my flight coming in at 100 feet the Americans were randomised to 100 feet also. All 9 kamikazes were shot down. I have a 22% chance of getting a strike in unopposed though and that's enough for me to continue throwing away old airframes.

In other kamikaze-related news:
1. If the enemy tries to run ships into Okinawa again he will find himself opposed by roughly 360 Ohka kamikazes with high aggression leaders. Even with only 22% of them getting through CAP and a 25% hit rate once through CAP that'll get me about 20+ hits... and each hit should sink a USN ship.

2. My kamikaze corps of Ki-43s is also ready and comprises 350 Oscar IIIs. I will commit them en masse with a sacrificial escort cadre of 100 Ki-44s and some A6M2/5s

3. More and more Shinyos are rolling off the production lines and they and their MTB cousins are taking up position in southern Japan ready to island-hop via Amami Oshima to Okinawa. Again, they'll go in once a resupply/reinforcement force is spotted.

4. Midget submarines. I have created about 40 midgets at Okinawa and will send them in, along with approximately 20 conventional submarines, once the Americans show up.

In the meantime my initial wave of forces ( infantry ) is almost ready to attack the Americans. They'll fail and then I'll "have" to bring in tanks to pry the Americans out. I'll also have to feed a few ships on the way to Okinawa to the American submarines to help bolster the maskirovka of further reinforcements flowing into Okinawa as I am facing more resistance than I had planned for. In reality most of my forces will either:
a) fly in using my transports and Ki-264s for the heavy equipment ( I can fly in roughly 150 AV per day and have had an additional 5,000 AV budgeted for Okinawa and moving to the appropriate airbases for air transport into the airfield )
b) be transported to Amami Oshima from Kagoshima - I have created a cleared "lane" through the submarines by the expedient of placing 600 mines on each of the three coastal bases along the 6 hex route to Amami Oshima and aggressively patrolling the rest with my ASW TFs - which are sinking 2 to 3 USN submarines per day in this region. - From Amami Oshima they will board some of the 80 barges I've created there for the short trip to Okinawa proper.
c) my fast transports can bring in a Brigade in a single trip. Obviously that means another 160 AV every two days and means that I can bring more reinforcements to bear than my opponent.

As ever logistics will determine who will win this fight. It really comes down to a question of whether or not I can use my shorter SLOCs to bring troops in or whether the Americans can use their greater sealift to bring more troops in while using their naval airpower and seapower ( SC TFs etc ) to raid into my SLOCs and prevent my movement of troops... That's one reason why I always planned to bring in most of my troops and equipment by air and front-loaded the invasion TF wtih the heaviest units ( tank units ).

Why am I willing to commit up to 10,000 AV to Okinawa?
1. That's what it will take.
2. It may foster the belief that I'm focussing on Okinawa to the exclusion of all else. I'm not. I have already reconned invasion targets in the enemy's strategic depth and have allocated forces and gotten them into position, upgraded and accepting replacements. In addition I am also actively sending forces into my own defensive regions ( China/ Korea/Kuriles etc ). Still, 10,000 AV looks like a huge over-focus and I won't attempt to dissuade my opponent of that.
3. Training. The more troops I commit there the more troops will gain experience which will stand to them when Okinawa finally does fall and they are shipped out to other islands to form the core of the defenders in those islands.

I'm also, in the meantime, trying to upgrade and repair a few units which I'm trying to form into an ersatz Airlanding Corps configured for rapid air transport to invaded islands. I have high hopes that once the Allies have created a cordon sanitaire around an island they intend to invade I'll still be able to fly large numbers of combat troops in IF I take care to maximise the combat AV per plane load among the units chosen for the mission... hence my creation of the Airlanding Corps and its dispersion into ready-reaction sites with a division located in a major airbase along each of the main axes of projected American advance. My short-range transports will move the closest division while my longer-ranged transports will fly the next division and my Ki-264Ts etc will fly the most distant division in. With a little luck the Airlanding Corps could allow me to move in up to 1,000 AV in situations where, otherwise, Japan would have no ability whatsoever to reinforce. That could be enough to turn an easy win into a slogging match --- which is all Japan can hope for in this game.

In the meantime though I have to take heavy losses in order to keep a believable narrative going around Okinawa which will support the maskirovka operations which have been ongoing there and elsewhere. On the plus side Allied aerial losses still remain higher than mine with pretty equal levels of A2A losses - not bad when one considers that many of my A2A kills comprise about B-29s which were mobbed with all the grace of a barfight.

#1: + 90.1 - 19/7
#2: + 58.3 - 4/7 incomplete

Posted: **Tue May 24, 2011 5:36 pm**

Well done so far. This is a great read. Very bloody, but such is 1945.

Posted: **Tue May 24, 2011 7:14 pm**

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR Sep 20, 45

A very quiet day. My Ki-264s ar doing maintenance mostly and prepping for a couple of days raids into Manilla later in the week while his B-29s seem to be re-organising a bit following my raids. Once I've hit Manilla and completed a maintenance cycle out of range of his bombing I'll re-engage the Marianas.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub vs Sub: SS I-53 attacking SS Hoe at 87,68 - near Orchid Island

Japanese Ships
SS I-53

Allied Ships
SS Hoe, Torpedo hits 3, on fire, heavy damage

Glug! Glug!

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TF 80 encounters mine field at Naha (95,66)

Japanese Ships
SSX Ha-34, Mine hits 1, on fire, heavy damage

My own mines again. I've dumped about 500 mines into Naha and every day they either hit my own MTBs and SSX or I hear a couple of USN ships/subs hit them. In another couple of days I'm going to dump another 120 mines there using the I-120 class boats. I LOVE those things.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Okinoerabushima at 97,66

Japanese Ships
MTB G-872
MTB G-1003

Allied Ships
SS Parche

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Okinoerabushima at 97,66

Japanese Ships
MTB G-207
MTB G-161

Allied Ships
SS Spadefish

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Naha at 96,66

Japanese Ships
MTB G-405
MTB G-487
MTB G-158

Allied Ships
SS Besugo

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Kobe at 107,61

Japanese Ships
DD Yadake
DD Wakazakura

Allied Ships
SS Rasher, hits 4

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
MTB G-151
MTB G-158
MTB G-161
MTB G-207
MTB G-302, Shell hits 1, on fire
MTB G-405
MTB G-487
MTB G-621
MTB G-623
MTB G-632

Allied Ships
PT-61
PT-112
PT-114
PT-115, Shell hits 1
PT-116
PT-120, Shell hits 2, heavy fires, heavy damage

I'm clearing the waters around Naha because tomorrow or the next day ( depending on progress ) I'm going to be sending the IJN into Naha to bombard the airfield. I'm even bringing my single BB and the single functional CA along. They might as well die gloriously if they're going to die.

In order to conserve fuel in the Home Islands I am running the remnants of the Combined Fleet out of Formosa and China so they are drawing fuel stocks from those areas instead of the Home Islands. It is a passive means of reducing consumption but every bit helps

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
TF 97 encounters mine field at Naha (95,66)

Japanese Ships
MTB G-404, Mine hits 1, heavy damage

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Time Surface Combat, near Naha at 95,66, Range 2,000 Yards

Japanese Ships
MTB G-880
MTB G-883
MTB G-886
MTB G-1001
MTB G-1004
MTB G-1005
MTB G-1013
MTB G-1016
MTB G-1022
MTB G-1023
MTB G-1031
MTB G-154
MTB G-164
MTB G-303
MTB G-408
MTB G-624

Allied Ships
PT-122
PT-124
PT-125
PT-126, Shell hits 1
PT-127
PT-128

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Naha at 95,66

Japanese Ships
MTB G-404, heavy damage

Allied Ships
SS Caiman

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Aparri , at 82,73

Weather in hex: Heavy rain

Raid detected at 158 NM, estimated altitude 19,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 32 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-264 Angel x 81

Allied aircraft
no flights

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-264 Angel: 2 damaged

Allied aircraft losses
P-51D Mustang: 1 destroyed on ground
B-24J Liberator: 1 destroyed on ground
F4U-4 Corsair: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied ground losses:
6 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 4
Runway hits 20

In order to avoid the game becoming "low-level night-bombing in the Pacific" we've agreed to limit night-time four-engined attacks to 15,000 feet and daytime four-engined attacks to 20,000 feet.

Sheer weight of numbers still allows the Americans to crush airfields but that's ok, my defensive plan doesn't significantly depend on my airfields being available outside of the Home Islands.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 78 NM, estimated altitude 6,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 24 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-Ic Sally x 11
Ki-21-IIb Sally x 3
Ki-48-Ib Lily x 19
Ki-49-IIa Helen x 9

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 14
F4U-1A Corsair x 10
F6F-5N Hellcat x 25

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-21-Ic Sally: 1 destroyed, 2 damaged
Ki-48-Ib Lily: 1 damaged

No Allied losses

Runway hits 1

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 79 NM, estimated altitude 5,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 21 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-67-Ib Peggy x 8

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 13
F4U-1A Corsair x 10
F6F-5N Hellcat x 23

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-67-Ib Peggy: 2 destroyed, 2 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 80 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 25 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-49-IIb Helen x 5

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 12
F4U-1A Corsair x 9
F6F-5N Hellcat x 21

No Japanese losses

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Naha , at 95,66

Weather in hex: Overcast

Raid detected at 74 NM, estimated altitude 8,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 25 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-21-Ic Sally x 15

Allied aircraft
P-61C Black Widow x 10
F4U-1A Corsair x 8
F6F-5N Hellcat x 19

Japanese aircraft losses
Ki-21-Ic Sally: 2 damaged

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 159 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 37 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-32 Dominator x 39

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2-K Zero: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-32 Dominator: 1 damaged

Runway hits 6

A fair waste of B-32s IMO.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 146 NM, estimated altitude 18,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 50 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-24J Liberator x 105

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed on ground

Allied aircraft losses
B-24J Liberator: 1 damaged

Runway hits 9

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Night Air attack on Nago , at 95,65

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 121 NM, estimated altitude 13,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 41 minutes

Japanese aircraft
no flights

Allied aircraft
B-24J Liberator x 81

Japanese aircraft losses
A6M2 Zero: 1 destroyed on ground
D4Y2-S Judy: 1 destroyed on ground

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
6 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 1 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled

Airbase hits 2
Airbase supply hits 1
Runway hits 47

That's over 200 four-engined bombers hitting something I don't even need to keep open, except to facilitate air transport and, to be fair, I can just land troops using floatplanes and land the ones flying in using non-floatplane transports at the island next door and barge them in.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sub attack near Amami Oshima at 97,64

Japanese Ships
MTB G-158
MTB G-632
MTB G-623
MTB G-621
MTB G-487
MTB G-405
MTB G-302
MTB G-207
MTB G-161

Allied Ships
SS Springer

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Matsue at 106,55

Japanese Ships
E No.77, Torpedo hits 1, on fire, heavy damage
LST T-159
LST T-154
LST T-145
LST T-140
E No.83

Allied Ships
SS Muskallunge, hits 5

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
ASW attack near Calayan at 82,71

Japanese Ships
SS RO-50, hits 4

Allied Ships
APD Raymond W. Herndon
APD Weber
APD Kinzer

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Amami Oshima , at 98,64

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 37 NM, estimated altitude 45,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 10 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51H Mustang x 22

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on 24th Infantry Division, at 81,81 (Naga)

Weather in hex: Light cloud

Raid detected at 237 NM, estimated altitude 43,370 feet.
Estimated time to target is 65 minutes

Japanese aircraft
Ki-74-I Patsy x 4

No Japanese losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Hengchun , at 84,67

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid spotted at 138 NM, estimated altitude 15,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 41 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51D Mustang x 8
A-26C Invader x 63
B-25J11 Mitchell x 60
P-51H Mustang x 14

No Allied losses

Japanese ground losses:
7 casualties reported
Squads: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Non Combat: 0 destroyed, 0 disabled
Engineers: 0 destroyed, 2 disabled

Airbase hits 22
Airbase supply hits 10
Runway hits 328

My floatplanes survive quite nicely again.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Morning Air attack on Amami Oshima , at 98,64

Weather in hex: Clear sky

Raid detected at 262 NM, estimated altitude 41,600 feet.
Estimated time to target is 75 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-51H Mustang x 3

No Allied losses

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Afternoon Air attack on Takao , at 84,65

Weather in hex: Heavy cloud

Raid spotted at 14 NM, estimated altitude 46,000 feet.
Estimated time to target is 3 minutes

Allied aircraft
P-38L Lightning x 25

No Allied losses

Below you can see the forces which will attack Naha tomorrow. They won't be nearly enough to take it but when the next attack comes in with tanks I will play the narrative of reinforcing... and then future attacks will see additional forces piecemealing into the action as they air-transport in which will support that narrative and help both mislead the Allies to the true focus of Japanese efforts and invite them to counter-concentrate their forces into the depth of the trap I am crafting... not a decisive trap but an attritional one. I have 1500 Ki-43s in the pool and have every single one dedicated to kamikaze missions. At 350 Oscars per strike and allowing one week for the squadrons to replace and repair their planes that will give me a five week expenditure of 1750 Oscars in the kamikaze role around Okinawa. Over the next month I should produce enough planes/free up a few Tonys for kamikaze duty to be able to have the 1750 necessary airframes.

Even with a 10% hit rate that's 175 hits which I expect to be directed mostly at USN SC and CV TFs. The Ohkas and Shinyos will be expended in the Naha hex against transports and close escorts.

In other news the USN CV Boxer continues to show up in the sunk ships list. I hit it and I think it went into Naha and may have hit a mine but I have difficulty believing it sank. It'd be a pleasant surprise though to add to the USS Iowa which I am confirmed to have sunk with Shinyos.

Posted: **Sun May 29, 2011 3:25 pm**

Nemo- can the US drop the atomic bomb in this scenario? I was thinking about your AAR. WW2 in Color is on the Military Channel today, and I am at the Home Island bombing part...

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Nemesis...

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