A Lemon rises in the East: SqzMyLemon (J) vs. JocMeister (A)

[SqzMyLemon]

Not much to report.

Grinding away in China.

The two Chinese units that have entered clear terrain two hexes south of Nanyang are being bombed, but they are weak corps and are most likely just being offered up for destruction. The other 10 LCU's appear to have stopped their movement towards the N.E.

So while I continue to lay substantial minefields in the two hexes being used by enemy submarines to ingress/egress the DEI without a scratch, a British submarine hits a mine at Singapore. I'm ecstatic to finally get a hit, until I look and see that Singapore had all of two mines left. Somebody better tell me the chance of hitting a mine is based on the number of mines in the hex. I would think the die roll needed to avoid all the mines would be subject to a negative modifier that increases in relation to the number of mines involved.

Other than that, business as usual with Jocke continuing to thumb his nose at Japanese ASW by sailing right through one of my most patrolled and protected sea zones on the map. If it wasn't for an incredibly lucky mine hit this submarine would have gotten away without a scratch, as do most other ones on the map that travel through much more extensive minefields on a regular basis.

[SqzMyLemon]

Burma:

I've committed five divisions to Burma. I always struggle with how much is needed to secure this theatre. Two divisions are moving on Akyab, one based at Prome, another at Katha and the last is still broken up into its regimental components covering Myitkyina and area. I'm going to begin to establish a continuous defensive line along the Indian border. I thought about deploying the 1st and 2nd Tank Divisions to China, but decided they will be needed as a reserve for Burma/Malaya/Sumatra.

Anti-aircraft units bought out from the Home Islands are now arriving at Magwe, Rangoon and the major airbases at Toungoo, Taung Gyi and Lashio. Hopefully with the increased FLAK effectiveness they can contribute to a costly Allied air campaign.

I have six JAAF Sentai's committed to the air defence of Burma. Two each of Nick's, Oscar's and Tojo's. This number will increase to ten eventually.

I'm shipping supply to Rangoon via Palembang and Singapore. This will be a tough theatre to maintain adequate supply levels.

More to follow, I don't want to lose this post to timing out.

[SqzMyLemon]

So what's a Japanese player with eight CV's and 3 CVL's burning a hole in his pocket to do?

I've got an itchy trigger figure, but nothing currently to aim at. I think this is the hardest part for me, where to direct my angst. I may raid the Cape Town-Australia route again to keep the Allies honest, then again last time I lost a CS to lowly Dutch DD's. I need to establish myself at Attu before winter conditions kick in, so perhaps that's an operation to change it up from doing merchant fleet operations every turn.

I'm kidding about the CV's, they stay put until there's another Allied invasion pending.

[PaxMondo]

So, 9/42-ish? Me? If I haven't lost too many combatants yet, at this pont I am entering my Phase 4 of operations. I enter a game with Op's planned through 3/43. All ops have 2 goals that they must meet:
1. Secure additional oil/fuel beyond what I will expend to get them.
2. Cost the allies more in LCU/Ships than it costs me.

My phase 4 generally are either an expedition in India or Alaska/Canada. There are certain bases that you can pretty much count on to have good stocks of oil/fuel in either location.

[SqzMyLemon]

ORIGINAL: PaxMondo

My phase 4 generally are either an expedition in India or Alaska/Canada. There are certain bases that you can pretty much count on to have good stocks of oil/fuel in either location.

They really need to fix this new post timing out problem. I had just written out a long post that's been obliterated. Yeah, I know, save the text but in this case I forgot. The fact that you even have to do that is a pain.

Anyway, the abridged post is that I thought of Ceylon previously, but didn't want KB's presence to signal a green light for further Allied operations in the Central and Southeast Pacific.

I have a division prepping for Adak and will use that as a starting point. Adak has been expanded to a level four airbase by the Allies so Jocke has some activity going on here, although patrolling submarines have never spotted anything of note. I may use the CVE's and CVL's for this operation and keep KB's whereabouts unknown for now.

[witpqs]

They really need to fix this new post timing out problem.

There can be various causes for that. I had one a couple of days ago, and the matrix web site/Internet pipe does seem to be having a few slowdowns lately.

But... there is another, more subtle possibility that might be lurking. Many PCs have their Ethernet adapter integrated into the motherboard. For whatever (and possibly various) reasons, sometimes those are crap. I just troubleshot that on my own PC after having it for about a 1-1/4 years. Having terrible Internet access masked the problem, which got worse when I moved and got a much newer Internet modem/router. The most visible problem was with large downloads (podcasts, Linux, etc.). thought it was the old house Internet line, but it got much worse at the new house. To make a long story short, when they fixed the line (essentially no errors, down from a few million per day), I still had the problem and investigated further. narrowed it down to the specific PC (eliminated cables, ports, etc.), and did research via googling about the problem. Bought a ~$29 NIC to put in and use instead of the built-in port and that solved the problem.

For starters, go to someplace like ubuntu.org and download a 600 or 700 MB Linux distro just to see if it works OK. If not, investigate further as I mentioned. Good luck.

[SqzMyLemon]

In conjunction with a discussion ongoing in obvert's AAR, I wanted to post some thoughts on my current defensive preparations.

I'm planning to rely heavily on LBA. In the DEI, Philippines and Sumatra I'm planning on a defensive system where my MLR is actually the second tier of defences. What I mean is that I'm not going to build up airbases and garrisons of the first line to the maximum. I want to protect my aircraft and bases as much as possible, so my theory is to build up bases 6-8 hexes behind the forward line. This way I am within range to strike at enemy amphibious landings, but because I'm out of enemy fighter escort range my bases are protected from anything except unescorted bomber attack. In this way I hope to ensure I can contest the air over the frontlines and cause heavy bomber losses on the enemy if they try to shut my airbase down by bombing.

I'm also building up inland bases as much as possible rather than coastal ones. In some cases this can't be avoided, but again the reasoning here is to protect my main airbases. By building up inland bases I avoid the threat of devastating naval bombardments taking out my aircraft prior to the air phase.

Surface and CV assets will base behind the lines out of bomber range and react to enemy operations rather than risk being defeated during the initial approach. It's when the landings are to occur that I want to strike, but I also know with the fast unloading times of Allied vessels this window of opportunity is small.

I want to apply my defensive tactics along the lines of Kursk. Layered to absorb enemy thrusts and eventually wear them down to the point where some counterstrikes are possible. I want to force the Allies to fight under my conditions as much as possible, all of which are geared towards a slow grind that just eats up time and forces the enemy to operate at less than ideal conditions. In this way, I hope to reduce my pilot losses, ensure greater survivability of my naval forces and by defending with mutually supporting positions to increase the amount of firepower I can bring to bear.

[obvert]

ORIGINAL: SqzMyLemon

In conjunction with a discussion ongoing in obvert's AAR, I wanted to post some thoughts on my current defensive preparations.

I'm planning to rely heavily on LBA. In the DEI, Philippines and Sumatra I'm planning on a defensive system where my MLR is actually the second tier of defences. What I mean is that I'm not going to build up airbases and garrisons of the first line to the maximum. I want to protect my aircraft and bases as much as possible, so my theory is to build up bases 6-8 hexes behind the forward line. This way I am within range to strike at enemy amphibious landings, but because I'm out of enemy fighter escort range my bases are protected from anything except unescorted bomber attack. In this way I hope to ensure I can contest the air over the frontlines and cause heavy bomber losses on the enemy if they try to shut my airbase down by bombing.

I'm also building up inland bases as much as possible rather than coastal ones. In some cases this can't be avoided, but again the reasoning here is to protect my main airbases. By building up inland bases I avoid the threat of devastating naval bombardments taking out my aircraft prior to the air phase.

Surface and CV assets will base behind the lines out of bomber range and react to enemy operations rather than risk being defeated during the initial approach. It's when the landings are to occur that I want to strike, but I also know with the fast unloading times of Allied vessels this window of opportunity is small.

I want to apply my defensive tactics along the lines of Kursk. Layered to absorb enemy thrusts and eventually wear them down to the point where some counterstrikes are possible. I want to force the Allies to fight under my conditions as much as possible, all of which are geared towards a slow grind that just eats up time and forces the enemy to operate at less than ideal conditions. In this way, I hope to reduce my pilot losses, ensure greater survivability of my naval forces and by defending with mutually supporting positions to increase the amount of firepower I can bring to bear.

Seems like a good set of ideas. With the beta LBA is only going to be a supplement to the KB. It's just too fragmented and unpredictable. Make sure you have a few big bases with extra support to aim for the better coordination.

[Lokasenna]

ORIGINAL: obvert

ORIGINAL: SqzMyLemon

In conjunction with a discussion ongoing in obvert's AAR, I wanted to post some thoughts on my current defensive preparations.

I'm planning to rely heavily on LBA. In the DEI, Philippines and Sumatra I'm planning on a defensive system where my MLR is actually the second tier of defences. What I mean is that I'm not going to build up airbases and garrisons of the first line to the maximum. I want to protect my aircraft and bases as much as possible, so my theory is to build up bases 6-8 hexes behind the forward line. This way I am within range to strike at enemy amphibious landings, but because I'm out of enemy fighter escort range my bases are protected from anything except unescorted bomber attack. In this way I hope to ensure I can contest the air over the frontlines and cause heavy bomber losses on the enemy if they try to shut my airbase down by bombing.

I'm also building up inland bases as much as possible rather than coastal ones. In some cases this can't be avoided, but again the reasoning here is to protect my main airbases. By building up inland bases I avoid the threat of devastating naval bombardments taking out my aircraft prior to the air phase.

Surface and CV assets will base behind the lines out of bomber range and react to enemy operations rather than risk being defeated during the initial approach. It's when the landings are to occur that I want to strike, but I also know with the fast unloading times of Allied vessels this window of opportunity is small.

I want to apply my defensive tactics along the lines of Kursk. Layered to absorb enemy thrusts and eventually wear them down to the point where some counterstrikes are possible. I want to force the Allies to fight under my conditions as much as possible, all of which are geared towards a slow grind that just eats up time and forces the enemy to operate at less than ideal conditions. In this way, I hope to reduce my pilot losses, ensure greater survivability of my naval forces and by defending with mutually supporting positions to increase the amount of firepower I can bring to bear.

Seems like a good set of ideas. With the beta LBA is only going to be a supplement to the KB. It's just too fragmented and unpredictable. Make sure you have a few big bases with extra support to aim for the better coordination.

One aspect of this strategy that I think you (Lemon) have implied but not stated is that you don't instantly give your opponent large airfields on the coast/at his initial invasion point by doing this.

[Richard III]

ORIGINAL: obvert

ORIGINAL: SqzMyLemon

In conjunction with a discussion ongoing in obvert's AAR, I wanted to post some thoughts on my current defensive preparations.

I'm planning to rely heavily on LBA. In the DEI, Philippines and Sumatra I'm planning on a defensive system where my MLR is actually the second tier of defences. What I mean is that I'm not going to build up airbases and garrisons of the first line to the maximum. I want to protect my aircraft and bases as much as possible, so my theory is to build up bases 6-8 hexes behind the forward line. This way I am within range to strike at enemy amphibious landings, but because I'm out of enemy fighter escort range my bases are protected from anything except unescorted bomber attack. In this way I hope to ensure I can contest the air over the frontlines and cause heavy bomber losses on the enemy if they try to shut my airbase down by bombing.

I'm also building up inland bases as much as possible rather than coastal ones. In some cases this can't be avoided, but again the reasoning here is to protect my main airbases. By building up inland bases I avoid the threat of devastating naval bombardments taking out my aircraft prior to the air phase.

Surface and CV assets will base behind the lines out of bomber range and react to enemy operations rather than risk being defeated during the initial approach. It's when the landings are to occur that I want to strike, but I also know with the fast unloading times of Allied vessels this window of opportunity is small.

I want to apply my defensive tactics along the lines of Kursk. Layered to absorb enemy thrusts and eventually wear them down to the point where some counterstrikes are possible. I want to force the Allies to fight under my conditions as much as possible, all of which are geared towards a slow grind that just eats up time and forces the enemy to operate at less than ideal conditions. In this way, I hope to reduce my pilot losses, ensure greater survivability of my naval forces and by defending with mutually supporting positions to increase the amount of firepower I can bring to bear.

Seems like a good set of ideas. With the beta LBA is only going to be a supplement to the KB. It's just too fragmented and unpredictable. Make sure you have a few big bases with extra support to aim for the better coordination.

I seem to remember from past ARR PBEM`s ( and things may have changed in the Game mechanic's ) but large mutually supporting AB`s with supporting in range AHQ would generate some massed well escorted LBA anti ship strikes...anyone have recent experience with this ?

[Crackaces]

ORIGINAL: Richard III

ORIGINAL: obvert

ORIGINAL: SqzMyLemon

In conjunction with a discussion ongoing in obvert's AAR, I wanted to post some thoughts on my current defensive preparations.

I'm planning to rely heavily on LBA. In the DEI, Philippines and Sumatra I'm planning on a defensive system where my MLR is actually the second tier of defences. What I mean is that I'm not going to build up airbases and garrisons of the first line to the maximum. I want to protect my aircraft and bases as much as possible, so my theory is to build up bases 6-8 hexes behind the forward line. This way I am within range to strike at enemy amphibious landings, but because I'm out of enemy fighter escort range my bases are protected from anything except unescorted bomber attack. In this way I hope to ensure I can contest the air over the frontlines and cause heavy bomber losses on the enemy if they try to shut my airbase down by bombing.

I'm also building up inland bases as much as possible rather than coastal ones. In some cases this can't be avoided, but again the reasoning here is to protect my main airbases. By building up inland bases I avoid the threat of devastating naval bombardments taking out my aircraft prior to the air phase.

Surface and CV assets will base behind the lines out of bomber range and react to enemy operations rather than risk being defeated during the initial approach. It's when the landings are to occur that I want to strike, but I also know with the fast unloading times of Allied vessels this window of opportunity is small.

I want to apply my defensive tactics along the lines of Kursk. Layered to absorb enemy thrusts and eventually wear them down to the point where some counterstrikes are possible. I want to force the Allies to fight under my conditions as much as possible, all of which are geared towards a slow grind that just eats up time and forces the enemy to operate at less than ideal conditions. In this way, I hope to reduce my pilot losses, ensure greater survivability of my naval forces and by defending with mutually supporting positions to increase the amount of firepower I can bring to bear.

Seems like a good set of ideas. With the beta LBA is only going to be a supplement to the KB. It's just too fragmented and unpredictable. Make sure you have a few big bases with extra support to aim for the better coordination.

I seem to remember from past ARR PBEM`s ( and things may have changed in the Game mechanic's ) but large mutually supporting AB`s with supporting in range AHQ would generate some massed well escorted LBA anti ship strikes...anyone have recent experience with this ?

It seems that AHQ's adjusts the die rolls but do not guarantee results ...thus one can have everything perfect and still get "unexpected results" ...

[obvert]

I seem to remember from past ARR PBEM`s ( and things may have changed in the Game mechanic's ) but large mutually supporting AB`s with supporting in range AHQ would generate some massed well escorted LBA anti ship strikes...anyone have recent experience with this ?

With the most recent official patch coordination works too well. There was a bug, and all kinds of planes from everywhere would meet up and create a sledgehammer.

The recent beta patches removed this bug, and coordination is possible but not as easy to achieve, especially with LBA in big numbers. Now it's dribs and drabs most often unless;

1. Distance is short.

2. Leaders are top quality and HQs are present with good leaders

3. All morale is high, fatigue low

4. Planes are set compatibly

5. maybe a few other mysterious things I'm neglecting or don't know

[Crackaces]

5. maybe a few other mysterious things I'm neglecting or don't know

The infamous Grisby die roll [8D]

[SqzMyLemon]

Jocke and I aren't using any of the current beta's yet and haven't really discussed when/if we'll implement it this match or not. I'm of like mind with Chickenboy in terms of wanting to use official patches only.

In regards to LBA and the often poor showing against naval targets, I'm well aware of. The key will be leaders, HQ's and aviation support to ensure the maximum number of aircraft are available for strikes while keeping morale high to prevent aborts.

Lokasenna, yes the plan is to limit giving the Allies a free pass for capturing larger airbases, but I also believe I'll need to risk this in some areas to ensure I have the best defence possible. The larger bases will be heavily defended so they won't be a cake walk and may encourage Jocke to land on undeveloped targets to build them up. And really, lets face the fact that the Allies can build up any base quickly if they choose to do so, so there's no point sacrificing your defence in an effort to prevent this. You simply can't.

I will be relying on a combined arms approach to defence, but LBA remains the key supported heavily by Japanese naval forces, be it CV's or surface ships. I know the common approach is CV's supported by LBA, I'm reversing the commonly accepted doctrine. By doing this I hope to have the LBA take the brunt of the losses, but also be the main force used to break up enemy formations for easier destruction by naval forces, rather then the other way around. This should also help keep my naval assets intact for as long as possible. It also may confuse Jocke at times and have him looking over his shoulder for my Fleet. All forces at my disposal though will attempt to work in concert to provide the best bang for my Japanese Yen.

I should also note these tactics are meant for the DEI, Philippines, Sumatra, New Guinea and the Marianas. It's going to be quite different trying to defend single islands that are easily isolated and risk enemy naval bombardments and heavy bomber attacks. I just won't have the depth in the Central Pacific and therefore won't risk much defending it. I also don't believe a successful bombing campaign against Japan can be mounted from the Central Pacific in game terms. The bases are too small for B-29's and can't support the numbers needed I believe. The Kuriles, Philippines, Formosa and China are another matter and that is where I will defend in strength.

Nemo's strategy of preventing bases for Allied fighter escort covering the Home Islands is key in my opinion. That is how I'm planning on defending Japan proper. Keep those potential enemy fighter bases Japanese for as long as possible and bleed the Allied strategic air forces.

[SqzMyLemon]

We've reached Sept. 19/42.

Not much to report. We've got a cat and mouse game going on around New Caledonia, but neither of us is willing to show our hand.

China:

I've entered the first rough mountain hex on the road to Kunming. This is going to be a real grind. Stacking limit is only 20k and I tried a deliberate attack with a division and some arty that only achieved 1:4 odds despite the Chinese almost doubling the stacking limit. Supply penalties are too weak in this game (purely my opinion) and are practically nullified in 3x defensive terrain. I operate within the stacking limits as I buy into what they are trying to represent/simulate, but it sure penalizes the attacker if the defender exceeds the limits and relies on the terrain bonus to keep his adjusted defensive AV up. Regardless, the Chinese lost more squads than I did so that is something positive.

Sub Ops:

Completely depressing. The British submarine that hit a mine at Singapore escaped into deep Ocean after running an ASW gauntlet for four days. I dedicated two Sentai's of bombers on ASW and 10 ships (6 DD's, 2 SC's and 2 E's) to tracking down this submarine in an effort to finish it off. Despite the submarine being detected daily and reactions to its location, my forces didn't launch a single DC attack in four days. Only one report of a bomb hit from air ASW was recorded. Welcome to Japanese ASW in DaBabes. I'm not ranting, but I do get to be frustrated after watching my forces not get a chance to attack a heavily damaged submarine operating in shallow water, in what has to be the heaviest patrolled sea zone on the map.

Thoughts:

Other than that, I dig and grind away in China. Depending how some things develop, there is a growing possibility that I may be able to cut off a large number (15+) of Chinese units near Chihkiang and another 12 near Ichang.

The Ha-43 engine has just advanced to 4/45 and the NE Turbo Jet factories are now fully repaired with the first monthly acceleration occurring in a few days. The Ha-45 will advance to 4/43 in a few days as well.

[SqzMyLemon]

Sept. 21/42:

China:

Lots of movement around Chihkiang by Chinese forces as the threat of encirclement increases. I don't think I have the strength to move on Chungking to isolate all these units. I'm splitting divisions to create a continous front to maintain hex control while additional forces are redeployed. I'll be able to begin an air campaign against Chungking and Chengtu in a matter of weeks, once my position is consolidated and aviation support moved forward. The fly in the ointment could be reinforcements sent from Chungking to bolster the Chinese defence.

The Philippines:

Mindanao is 100% under Japanese control as the last Allied unit surrendered today. The last remaining enemy forces are at Cebu and preparations are already in motion for a landing. One division should be enough, but Cebu does have LI so the forts could be higher than anticipated.

Defensive Preparations

I'm securing the Kuriles. The Islands off the coast of Sumatra are being garrisoned and fortified. I've got aviation support all over the place, so no wonder I'm short on the front line. I wanted to use as many of these units as possible to get fortifications started throughout the Pacific until dedicated engineer units could be used. Luckily the lack of combat has allowed this to happen, but now I must get my air defence in order and begin concentrating aviation support and air units.

Most JAAF units have upgraded to the Nick or Tojo, but the Ki-43-IIa Oscar is also available so I will convert a number of Sentai's to this airframe. Most JAAF bomber units not deployed in China are performing training or ASW operations. Getting the bases set up for air ASW to protect my merchant shipping routes against submarines is the number one priority.

I'm receiving more garrison units now so they will replace a number of combat LCU's tied up providing coastal garrisons in China for deployment to the Pacific.

R&D

Airframes are advancing nicely now and a number will advance a few months and be available at the end of 42. The A6M3a, Judy and Tony in particular. I'm optimistic that I'll be able to advance a number of late war fighters in time to make a difference.

[SqzMyLemon]

Here's to another NFL season. Go Patriots!

[pontiouspilot]

With the Eskimos to watch I should take up NFL too!! If only they had our field and 3 downs!!!

Keep up the good AAR!

[SqzMyLemon]

ORIGINAL: pontiouspilot

With the Eskimos to watch I should take up NFL too!! If only they had our field and 3 downs!!!

Keep up the good AAR!

Glad you like the AAR, but I have to admit I'm not putting much effort into it right now. I think once things pick up I'll be more inclined to post screenshots and provide a running commentary.

As to the Eskimos, I have a hard time getting into the CFL for some reason. I go to the odd game, but it just doesn't draw me in like the NFL does.

[SqzMyLemon]

True to form, Peyton Manning has a record night and I have him and Demaryius Thomas on the bench!