Japanese AAR, post game

[ernieschwitz]

In the center, I was getting really close to Chengtu and Chungking. I really wanted them. My movement of troops down the road towards Chungking had been optimistic, but the troops ended up getting routed. Still I was pushing ever closer. I was building a road through the mountains as well, to get there from multiple sides, without having trouble with supplies.

[ernieschwitz]

Near Kweiyang I was stalled, for now. The Chinese had gotten a hold of some American medium tank I's. So something akin to my Chi-Ha's. I was giving them a lesson or two in armored warfare though.

[ernieschwitz]

After a three sided assault the city of Canton fell to Japanese forces. The remaining Chinese troops and HQs fled across the river, to fight another day. My next target was Nanning, or perhaps Hong Kong.. or maybe both.

[Ormand]

Nice. And giving out tips!!

And a nasty little surprise that you had to respond to.

You point out a weakness in the TOE system. With a chain of HQs it can be too slow to get troops up to the front. The system will lag 1 or more turns behind the losses or the need. It kind of defeats the purpose of having a chain of HQs that might be needed for supply purposes.

[ernieschwitz]

You point out a weakness in the TOE system. With a chain of HQs it can be too slow to get troops up to the front. The system will lag 1 or more turns behind the losses or the need. It kind of defeats the purpose of having a chain of HQs that might be needed for supply purposes.

It is a weakness, but if it was such that each "step" happened all in the same turn it would be very very powerful. Maybe what needs to be done is that only 50% of the requested troops get through to each layer. The way I work with the TO&E however makes it work very well.

[sedmi patuljak]

This is such a great read. With everyone going after you tube let's plays it's rare to find good written AAR. Thanks.

[ernieschwitz]

Turn 19:

Big development in the south of China. Both Nanning and Kweiyang fall. This threatens not only the Southern approaches to Chungking and Chengtu, but also the Hanoi Rail and Burma Road, where the Chinese can get troops and equipment from.



The troops in Canton stay there, and form a line along the river. They do this becuase well, there is nothing of value to be gained by crossing the river, and Hong Kong looks tasty, or threatening, if the British should try and put a force there.

[ernieschwitz]

Speaking of Chengtu and Chungking, they too are under threat. My armies have broken onto the plains there, and plains are tank country, which the Chinese haven't any of commited here.



My front is not particulary strong here either, but it seems in much better shape than the Chinese I am facing. Most of the forces I can see are actually located between the river south of Chungking and north of Kweiyang (see map i post above).. here they are out of supplies, and thus get less and less readiness for each turn I wait in dealing with them.

[ernieschwitz]

The area around Lanchow, is reduced to a cleaning exercize. Not much to see. The collapse is complete.

[ernieschwitz]

North of Lanchow, in the desert near Hohhot, the collapse too is all to clear. There are now only token forces left. I keep on the pressure, trying to take out the HQs first. This would cause the already weary Chinese troops to become even easier to deal with.

[ernieschwitz]

Now to the new front that has opened up. The Soviet one in Manchuria. I have a great deal of respect for the Soviet troops. Some of them have up to 40 XP, which is a lot, considering that you need combat experience to get over 25. We start off looking at the troops I have dispatched to deal with the threat to Korea.



My thought here is to just establish a line. Maybe if my new opponent decides to not move towards Korea to move against him. So far there is no telling what will happen.

[ernieschwitz]

The main front in Manchuria, I've decided will be the river south of Harbin, and the swampy areas, where tanks cannot enter. My forces are still forming, but the 12th, 13th and 14th Infantry divisions are well trained. The 53rd however is newly formed, and newly transported in.



I've put a delaying force in the Harbin mines, consisting of just Manchuko Militia men, and to the east of Harbin I've placed two of these as well, while the Manchuko cavalry is ready to take on what comes from the North. Well, ready is a big word, for being able to delay. In Harbin I have put a Garrison of Japanese troops. These will fight to the death, and I have changed their unit name to the "Heroes of Harbin".

[ernieschwitz]

turn 20:

Let us jump right to the exciting part of this turn, the Far East/Manchuko front(s). The Soviet forces are coming in, in ernest. From the Northeast troops have been been moving from Chita. From the west (and partially from the north) the Soviet forces are coming in too, from Vladivostok and Khaborovsk.



My screens have worked. The Harbin mines and Harbin have held, although both have been surrounded. I managed to break the road open to Harbin, but decide to let the Heroes of Harbin do what they were put there for. The Soviets are using their big corps like tank units, that are a mix of BT-7s, T-26s and T-28s. The last two move at a medium speed, while the BT-7 is a fast tank. I think he made a mistake here in not splitting them into two types of armor, and thus getting the speed of the BT-7s.

More units are sent from the Peking HQ, to bolster the defense south of Harbin. The 63rd and the 64th. Both fresh troops, raw training, at best. It's the best I can do.

[ernieschwitz]

The front near Korea is moving towards Vladivostok, slowly. Good news. I managed to hit some units that he had put in the hex occupied by the 49th Infantry division now. Nothing like artillery and bombers to soften up a unit. It seems that the Soviets only intend to hold this area.



Some of you may have noted I sunk the entire Soviet Far Eastern Fleet, and it's subs too. Yet there is still no showing of the Imperial Japanese Navy. This is because I have a healthy respect for Naval Airpower. The Soviets have some Naval Bombers located in Vladivostok, as well as some Naval Patrols. These keep me from doing much else than hit and run tactics with my Coastal Carrier force (Some old carriers, with Divebombers on them (5) and some world war I destroyers).

[ernieschwitz]

Help is on the way to my Japanese forces in Manchuria however. The "purple army" is, as I have mentioned before, moving from Hohhot and Yenan towards Peking. Their slower units have been strategically transferred once they hit the rail network (I have more trains than cargo trucks for the purpose) to a position much closer to Manchuria. My hope being they will have regained their readiness (which strategically transferred units lose some of), before they will be needed in combat. The faster moving units, like the armor, is moving on its own.



My thought at this point is that it is going to be close, but they will just make it. Also worth to note are a few units in the light blue of the HQ in Peking. These units I found I could not add to the HQs of the "purple army" (The 3rd Army I think), without going over the limit of the HQs command capacity. I have been adding units to the HQ, that are new too. The 61st, 62nd and 63rd Infantry divisions to be more exact.

[ernieschwitz]

The area near Lanchow is the scene of more cleaning, and clearing away of Chinese units. One of the HQs cleaned up by the troops in this area, contained one General, that most of you will know: Mao.

[ernieschwitz]

The symbolic collapse of China is completed here near Chengtu, as a HQ containing Chiang Kai-shek is destroyed. This is a bigger thing than you'd think. My opponent has forgotten to reorganize his HQ structure. The destroyed HQ contained all the supplies of the whole army, and no HQ now has a centralized High Command.



It gets worse. Chengtu and the last supply source the Chinese have (Chungking mines) are taken. From here on out, cleaning up, is what I expect the campaign in China is reduced to. At this point the Chinese have 4 cities. Kunming, Chungking (which is on the front line) and two small insignificant cities in the West of China (Urumqi and Kalgan)...

[ernieschwitz]

The forces near Nanning have now expanded from the area. To be honest I thought that I had Nanning too weakly defended when I ended the turn last time. I was wrong. I reach the coast, and the troops between Canton and there are isolated from supplies (if any were to come) and they are isolated form their own HQ too, making it even harder to get supplies there...

[ernieschwitz]

Turn 21:

The front at Korea/Vladivostok is more and more looking like it is going to move towards Vladivostok, and not Korea. He has moved some tanks and armored cars into position to take care of my units, but, Artillery and Air quickly reduce them, and the big Japanese infantry units, take care of the rest. I can even follow up with some more airstrikes.



I was initially worried that he had his fighters set to intercept. Apparantly he has forgotten. Good news for me. I tested this out by sending my recon planes in to gather information close to where I wanted to bomb...

[ernieschwitz]

A complete overview of the rest of the Manchurian Front.



Again, my recon planes help me uncover his positions, while my fighters cover most of the front, from their bases. Harbin falls, and the Heroes of Harbin die. The Harbin Mine falls too, but both were to be expected. I have made a counter attack but haven't followed up, south of Harbin, mauling his armor.

It is also worth noticing that since he has no recon, really, he is unaware of the forces I am bringing up from the rear. I think at this point I am nearing a turning point.