The question is how can this game screw both players so badly in one turn? Here's how:
My CVTF move ESE 5 hexes except for the Lexington TF which remains behind one hex. That is a fact that will become important later. The main US fleet ends up launching no strikes at all this turn. During the AM phase the convoy I was trying to get was clouded over. During the PM phase the hex the CVTF's were in was clouded over. This if frustrating because the IJN carriers appeared near Jolo. They were five hexes away but I guess for some reason the US fleet didn't think a long range attack was worthwhile. So no launches at all from a force of 3 CV and 6 CVL.
During the AM phase, the Lexington TF was clouded over so the IJN concentrates on the big three. Four major strikes were launched and the CAP wiped them all. That's right not a single leaker. In the AM phase the Japanese lost 37 A6M5, 124 Judy, 83 Jill, and 9 Kate. Also a weak Kamikaze strike from Mindano say 24 Tony and 6 Sally destroyed.
During the PM phase the Lexington TF reacted to the Japanese alone. Nice huh? This TF launches a strike that yields some nice results:
CV Kasagi, Bomb hits 1, on fire
BB Musashi, Bomb hits 1
CV Taiho, Torpedo hits 4, on fire, heavy damage
CL Jintsu, Bomb hits 2, on fire
In addition another 3 A6M5 are shot down. Nice to get the TT hits on Taiho with her armored flight deck. The hit on Kasagi gave an internal explosion critical. Of course the hit on Musashi bounce. I suspect Jintsu is hurting. The counter strike was devastating but here is where the game did me a favor. Only two CV based strikes accompanied by two Kamikaze strikes. Again we see the A6M5c in Kami mode. In all the IJN lost another 20 A6M5, 7 Judy and 13 Jill plus all the Kamikazes. But as hard as this may be to say I got lucky here. Every last attack concentrated on CV Lexington with the exception of one non-penetrating Kami hit on BB SoDak. Lexington sunk and I now have the distinction of losing both Lexington I and Lexington II. This could have been much worse if the Japanes had spread their attacks out on all three carriers. Lexington took 5 TT and 10 Kamikaze hits before succombing.
Total air losses on the day were 462 for Japanese vice 101 for Allies. Very few of the Allied losses were F6F-3's. I am taking a gamble here and moving my entire CV force to just S of Jolo. My hope is to at least catch Taiho and perhaps Kasagi. If I am luck I may get a shot at the entire CV force. Will be interesting to see if Larry keeps all his CVTF in the area to cover the retreating cripples. My thinking is that with all those losses, the Japanese carrier air wings have got to be about shot. The risk of counterstrike is as low as it might ever be. I feel fairly comfortable with this as the combined CVTF's were able to fend off everything the Japs sent at them. Even though I lost Lexington, the three carriers in that TF aquitted themselves pretty well. Should be an interesting turn. I gave all the CVTF the same destination hex, i.e. no follow TF order. In addition, I put the distant groups at Full Speed to assure they crossed the intervening 5 hexes in one turn
To be honest I was pretty hacked off when I saw this turn play out. It was bad enough to have that lone CVTF go off on its own but to have not a single strike from the bulk of my force killed me. Then I looked at the Ship Availability screen and I get 10 USN and 1 RN CV in the next 195 days. With that force I can reign death upon the IJN. Also there are three CV and 2 CVL in CentPac right now.
[/center]
