The Italian Job 2- Gen.Hoepner(J)-vs.-Mc3744

[Speedysteve]

Good luck Gen. With my recent history of IJN CV's maybe some luck will rub off [8D]

[Gen.Hoepner]

....AAR for 12/25/1942


Akagi at 36 flt[8D]

for the rest is only training air units, moving supplies and troops and waiting for the storm.

too tired today to write something else.

See ya tomorrow

[Gen.Hoepner]

12/26/42

Akagi at 30 flt[:D]...we're doing the trick!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Slowly my main chinese army is advancing towards Ichang. I hope for the end of Jan 43 one of the last strongpoint in enemy's hands in central China will be ours.

No other news to report

[Gen.Hoepner]

27th December 1942

Akagi now at 21 flt...almost safe[:)][&o]. For sure she'll rest into the repair yards for >6 months, but at least she's not gone forever...

My BB are recieving in these days the upgrades of 10/42 and 12/42. Gotta say that the BB fleet looks really powerfull at the moment, but i know with MC i won't be able to use those weapons for a long time.
While his fighters are getting closer to Tarawa, i'm ready to abbandon the area....i'll leave as soon as my beloved CV will have repaired its floating damage.

[Speedysteve]

Gen -

Just to ensure. This means the only CVL you have lost will be Ryujo?

If so thats not too bad at all.

[Przemcio231]

Hey GH look out becous Akagi could be hit with a torp from a sub and take her out of this port becouse when he will his this port it could end...

[Gen.Hoepner]

Yes, the Ryujo and some 200 crack pilots:-( I was lucky considering the fact that he only had 3 CVs in that task force...probably one more allied CV and now i'll have the whole KB crippled.

And yes...i'll pay attention. But his subs do not threaten me much. What is really dangerous is the dreaded Conrado PBY...a real killer even at long distances with its torps... I'll try to LRCAP from Tarawa for the first 6 hexes...then the CV will be in the hands of Gods...however a good ASW escort will be provided till Tokyo

[Gen.Hoepner]

28th Dec. 1942

The allies are becoming more aggressive every day that passes by.
Today a sufrace TF composed of 5 CAs and some DDs sunk at night 3 japanese transports at Nanoumea atoll...i'm ready to evacuate the place, leaving only a small naval guard garrison. Canton Island is being evacuated and so Baker Island.

the CARRIER AKAGI is safe![:D] Today flt dmg 9!!! Now moving escorted towards Kwalejein from where it will sail towards Japan![:'(]

In the meanwhile my positions in Burma become every day less confortable. Every day hundreds of bombers hit my divisions there....those guys are sacrificing themself to get some time for their mates to evacuate Malaya and the rest of Indochina!...i'm proud of them!

In 3 days we'll leave NG and the Solomons, leaving behind only fragments of my units...just to force him to committ some forces for his next advance...

All my BBs are today up to date with their upgrades[8D]

[String]

BEWARE!!!!!

Do NOT send ISE or FUSO to Osaka after 1/1/43, they will start converting into the useless floatplanecarrier/battleship hybrids if you do. I'm not sure if it stands for all naval shipyards or just Osaka, but Osaka is for certain.

[Speedysteve]

String isn't it Ise and Hyuga only that upgrade?

Regards,

Steven

[AmiralLaurent]

Hi, GH

I was in vacation last days, sorry for your CV defeat, such things are hard to come over. As someone said, now I will rather not play than play in a hurry, especially when CV are involved.

I missed your decision to retreat to PI. I searched this thread to find why you choosed that and still think it is a bad idea. Allied heavies may ruin Indochina and your troops but they will do so in PI too. And I can't see how you can hope to fight without the DEI oil and ressources...

What is the rate of heavy bombers replacement in this game ?

[Tom Hunter]

His game has the high replacement rate 75 or more a month, the B17 rate is especially high.

[Gen.Hoepner]

Hi guys,


i know it sounds strange a general retreat by december 42, but i realized that i cannot hope to hold such a great perimeter against 2000 4Es bombers ...they collected almost 500 ground points in the last 6 months...and forced me to evacuated every airbase in their range.
Now the allies, with this incredible umbrella, can easily face my divisions and i do not wanna lose men without any chance of holding the line. Places like PM, Daily Waters and Darwin, Rangoon etc...will be easily sorrounded and my troops destroyed.
I face with these decisions the inevitable. I know i've lost this match few months ago. Now i wanna try to fight at my conditions and not at his. a strong thinner perimeter will anable me to mass my fighters and at the same time to form a great defensive line with my divisions.

Yes, he can bomb PI with his heaviests...but not having to defend Oz,Sumatra,Java,Indochina,Malaya, Burma and China, will let me concentrate more than 1500 fighters, higly experienced there....it will be a great fight!...

I'll have soon to switch off my naval yards and most of my Hi eaters, but 1943 will be FUN!...Japan won't surrender[8D]

[Gen.Hoepner]

AFTER ACTION REPORTS FOR 12/30/42

How am i supposed to hold such a force without any air cover and being attacked by 1000 planes each day?????[&:]

Yesterday i evacuated my planes at PM...today 24 P-38 came in in bombing mode....this trick that the allies know one day before the japs movements really MAKES ME MAD[:@][:@]!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Ground combat at Mandalay

Allied Deliberate attack

Attacking force 21333 troops, 152 guns, 476 vehicles

Defending force 0 troops, 0 guns, 0 vehicles

Allied assault odds: 727 to 1 (fort level 6)

Allied forces CAPTURE Mandalay base !!!

[Gen.Hoepner]

oh...btw...217th Cst AA Us regiment...i bet it didn't come by sea[;)]

[jwilkerson]

i cannot hope to hold such a great perimeter

I don't think you[i.e. Japanese] can "hold" any perimeter ... I think the best you[i.e. Japanese] can do at this point is delay as long as possible ... if true .. then the question becomes which strategy causes the most delay ?

I find that by fighting forward - yes I always lose - eventually - but by retaining strong 3D mobile force ( LBA, Carrier, Surface ) I can make the risk of long leaps unacceptable - and thus keep pace of allied advance to shorter - hence slower leaps. Even in the game I've doing my worst in ... I expect to survive till late 1944 at the very least. Survive means production engine still working.

But as I've said often - we fight the mind of the enemy as much as the "widgets" - and you know your opponent better than us kibitzers - so you still have to do what you think is right in your game ( and you've really already won this one once - remember !!!??)

[Gen.Hoepner]

Hi J.,


i've already modelled my mind: it's like if we were at the end of 43 instead of the end of 42.
I know MC, and i think those among you who read his AAR will agree with me: he's a very conservative player. He moves forwards only when he's 100% sure of not risking anything important. So, as he's doing now, he will advance under the air cover of his LBAs, ...so to say that it will be a boring, slow agony.
Well: i do not want to lose, but giving the fact that with Japan when you doesn't win in 42 you've already lost ( more or less-...sorry PzB...not thinking about you obvioulsy[;)]) , i want to force him to risk something before the final countdown will start.
In few days the Corsairs will arrive...how am i supposed to stand a fight in the skies of Burma where there are many bases that can provide a close air support not only by the p-38s but also by the corsairs?
While...on the other hand...getting back to the PI, means that he will need some time to re-occupy the DEI and SRA and when he will finally decide to advance further he will have to take some risks with some landing operation....in those dangerous waters...with all my air and naval assets intact...he will surely be in some danger..or at least i hope so!

Same goes for Solomons/NG and Marshalls....he can easily level every base in range of his 4Es...The actions that took place in the last month south of Tarawa prooved that he has an overwhelming force that is, under these conditions, unstoppable. While, as history teaches us, The Mariannas ( or Palau) need a combined naval operation, whith strong CV support, to be invaded...and again i will have on my side thousands of men, fully rested, supplied and dig in, covered by hundreds of experienced aircrafts....

i'm not saying that this is the best ossible strategy. I know it's quite unhistoricall...but it's the only one that i think can give me any hope of inflicting some real damage to the yankees.



However...i made a HUGE mistake....with 90/9/0 damage, i sent Akagi back to Kwalajein from Tarawa...after 4 hexes of sailing she's got back to 90/17/0....so she's still sinking...and now Kwalajein is 7 hexes far away...and she's moving at 3 knots[:(]...again i'm risking to lose her...i'm such an idiot[:@][:(]

[jwilkerson]

In few days the Corsairs will arrive...how am i supposed to stand a fight in the skies of Burma where there are many bases that can provide a close air support not only by the p-38s but also by the corsairs?

Don't stand and fight with your planes pull them back. Leave the pore-ole-ground pounders forward ! It'l take him longer to slog forward through your ground troops than through your no-ground-troops. And if he first bombs them to pieces - then that takes longer than if he doesn't have them to bomb.

[Gen.Hoepner]

Don't stand and fight with your planes pull them back. Leave the pore-ole-ground pounders forward ! It'l take him longer to slog forward through your ground troops than through your no-ground-troops. And if he first bombs them to pieces - then that takes longer than if he doesn't have them to bomb.

i'll try to do that at Mouleim ( but not at Rangoon cause i do not want to get trapped there).
I'll leave 3 divisions at Mouleim to slow him down...but however with Burma in his hands he can easily go for Port Blair and so flank my positions ( i'd do that). From Port Blair he can easily jump to Sumatra or Malaya...
Anyway...i'll try to delay him at Mouleim and see what he will dare to risk.

Thanks for the inputs J

[Speedysteve]

ORIGINAL: Gen.Hoepner
However...i made a HUGE mistake....with 90/9/0 damage, i sent Akagi back to Kwalajein from Tarawa...after 4 hexes of sailing she's got back to 90/17/0....so she's still sinking...and now Kwalajein is 7 hexes far away...and she's moving at 3 knots[:(]...again i'm risking to lose her...i'm such an idiot[:@][:(]

Gen. I NEVER move any heavily damaged ship unless it's at 0 FLT. I'd suggest moving her back to Tarawa until she's at 0 FLT and then move her to Japan