January 14, 1942 – January 25, 1942
I’m back from vacation at last and able to do an update. In this installment we learn that the only problem with looking for trouble all the time is that occasionally you find it. But though Japan loses its first capital ship of the war the aggressive approach has meant that so far no Japanese invasion force has been intercepted.
Malaya: Tip of the Spear. Japanese units have captured Malacca, so now there is only one more stop before Singapore itself. In the meantime the Temuloh pocket is well and truly sealed and the 2nd Division is advancing to eliminate the units therein (recon estimates of the troops trapped are up again, to about 10,000).
DEI: Allied Victory in the Banda Sea. The Japanese drive down the Makassar Strait is proceeding well. In a bit of very good news the oil and refinery centers at Samarinda and Balikpapan were captured 100% intact, with large stores of fuel and oil falling into the eagerly waiting hands of the Empire.
Tanaka’s Southern Force (
Haruna,
Kongo, and friends) pushed through the Sunda Strait and hit Tjilitjap, which in my experience Allied players often use to try and remove fuel from Java in the early going. They found nothing there, however, so they wandered down to Koepang, where they sank a lone xAKL. As they looped up into the Banda Sea they ran into CL
Marblehead and five DDs.
Marblehead was sunk and two DDs badly damaged, while one Japanese DD was hit hard enough to be detached and sent back to Cam Rahn Bay for repairs.
The following turn a massive Allied force appeared. The only major ships were BC
Repulse and CA
Houston but there were seven CLs and thirteen DDs with them. This force first found and dispatched the crippled Japanese DD (
Oshio), then engaged Tanaka’s force.
On paper, with two battleships and three heavy cruisers, the Japanese might have scored a major victory. But my ships had expended all their torpedoes and a lot of their main gun ammo against the smaller force the night before and in the close-range encounter
Haruna was quickly crippled by Allied torpedoes. The battleship later sank, as did DD
Asashio. A number of Allied ships sustained moderate damage and
Repulse had fires aboard but I doubt any of the Allied ships sank.
The battle, while a defeat, did discover the Allied force and damaged it enough to prevent it from interfering with Japanese operations, which is what I am sure that force was dispatched to do. Also on the plus side,
Hibiki emerged from the battles unscathed and performed with distinction, putting a shell into DD
Bulmer at 17,000 yards (pretty good shooting).
Luzon: Reserves Dispatched. The Allied force at Clark is hanging tough so I have dispatched a reserve division, the 4th, to speed things along there. Allied dispositions remain unchanged.
Pacific: New Britain Invasion. Japanese forces will begin landing at Rabaul, Gasmata, Kavieng, and several other bases in the area next turn. These invasions are covered by a powerful SCTF and
Kido Butai will be on scene as soon as it refuels and rearms at Truk, which should happen next turn.
China: Loyang Is Captured. Loyang fell to the first Japanese attack and the divisions involved have turned and are now driving on Nanyang. Chinese forces are finally moving to consolidate but I think they will be too late to save the city from quick capture. This will secure the north-central China plain and its important supply centers.
In the south a Chinese corps pushed past Chuhsien, which is in my hands, and captured Shaohing. The corps is about to be surrounded and destroyed by Japanese forces, though, so this will be a short-lived triumph for the Chinese.
Burma: Stalemate at Pegu. The Allied forces in Burma are standing at Pegu. The Japanese 33rd Division and supporting armor are unable to evict them but are too powerful to be driven back. If Charbroiled maintains this posture after the fall of Singapore it may get interesting. I have taken to heart Andy Mac’s recent comments about the importance of destroying Burma Corps to prevent an early Allied counterattack in Burma. It’s hard to do if the Allies run away, but if they stand and try to slug it out…
The situation in Malaya:
.
