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Straits of Blood 2029.4 - SCS Island Seizure
DB504; Tested in CMO Build 1328.13; Scenario Build Beta 0.68.
Mission Start Date: 01 Feb 2029
Primary Factions: US led Coalition vs People’s Republic of China (PRC).
Duration: Up to 60 Hours (Scenario will end at 50,000 VP).
Operation Name: DRAGON HAMMER
Mission Overview: Utilise Coalition forces to invade the PRC islands in the South China Sea.

Note: You, as the player, will need knowledge of CMO’s cargo features to land troops using helicopters and landing craft. You will also need to have some knowledge of how to transfer munitions between bases using either Ferry or Cargo missions. Because of this, this scenario is designed to played with “Unlimited Base Magazines” off. “Detailed Gun Fire-Control”, “Aircraft Damage”, “Effects of Terrian Type” (non-advanced), and “Weather affects ship speed” should all be on.

Feel free to delete any Coalition missions and unlocked Reference Points (RPs). Any locked RPs should be left alone.

As this is a Beta, any feedback is very welcome!

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Like with the original Star Wars, I’m starting with Episode 4 but I’ll try not to make the prequels a disappointment! This the fourth scenario of what will hopefully be a 6/7 scen package, in which the US led Coalition squares off against the People’s Republic of China. I’m not going to get too deep into what to expect in scenarios 1-3 at this time, but the backstory summary follows below:

In the chaotic aftermath of the 2028 US elections, and after years of steadily increasing the pressure on its “rogue province”, the PRC declared a full naval and air blockade of Taiwan. There were several skirmishes between Republic of China (ROC) and PRC aircraft in the initial phase of the blockade; unfortunately for Taiwan, its latest F-16Vs were outmatched by J-20Bs, which to the PLAAF being victorious in most engagements. The outgoing US president, who lost in November 2028, had been accused of being too soft on China, and withholding aid from Taiwan. However, they did quietly continue the US military to build up dispersed bases in the second island chain. The Chinese also believed the losing POTUS was less of a threat than the challenger, which had led to PRC cyber units effectively campaigning for the incumbent. The US intelligence community found proof in the midst of the elections of Chinese malware in voting machines, and also found that damaging emails that had been leaked came from People's Liberation Army Strategic Support Force (PLASSF) hackers. It wasn’t enough to sway the result of the election, but did lead to increased division and unrest in some American cities, at least until proof was provided of the PRC’s interference.

Due to the paralysis in Washington, and the reluctance of other nations to militarily confront China without US support, the blockade held throughout December 2028 and well into January 2029. The economic shockwaves were felt globally, and many countries began to fall into recession. While the US and some other nations had tried to create their own advanced computer chip industries, TSMC was still the global leader. The prices of consumer electronics skyrocketed, and governments were forced to ration the most sophisticated chips. However, the PRC was also suffering economic damage, and the Chinese Politburo was putting pressure on its armed forces to muster its invasion forces quickly.

The circumstances changed when the new US president was sworn-in, who vowed to remove the blockade, diplomatically if possible, but by military force if not.

The US military and the other Five Eyes nations had steadily increased their co-operation in the Pacific region due to the threat of the Chinese Dragon. Originally, many had thought that the PRC would make a move against Taiwan in 2027, but the death of Xi Jinping in 2026 changed that. The new General Secretary of the Chinese Communist Party was much younger, and was content to delay the invasion several more years, following the advice of much of the People's Liberation Army’s (PLA) command structure.

Western intelligence communities, especially the Five Eyes (FVEY), had increasingly began to utilise artificial intelligence (AI) to predict when the PRC would attack its neighbour. Almost all sources, AI and human, came to the conclusion that a Chinese attack was almost certain to take place before 2030, and that it was highly likely to happen during, or shortly after the 2028 US elections. Because of this, Coalition military leaders had subtly adjusted many of their readiness and training cycles to meet the late 2028/early 2029 timeframe; sometimes this was done with domestic political support, at other times it was done more covertly.

A Royal Navy submarine was now permanently stationed in Australia as part of the AUKUS deal. The AUKUS partnership, which had started with the nuclear submarine programme, had continued to expand into numerous other areas. The creation of a joint F-35 wing in Australia, set-up to train pilots from the FVEYs nations, allowed British and Canadian aircraft to be positioned much closer to Taiwan. In terms of logistics, the FVEYs community deployed more munitions, spare parts, and other vital materials to Australia, in order to respond to any Chinese aggression in a more timely fashion.

A gradual increase in Western defence budgets had occurred since the Russian Invasion of Ukraine, with 4 of the 5 nations now spending 3% of GDP on their armed forces. In the case of the UK’s Royal Navy, this meant that its two CVs were now outfitted with the ability to launch and recover fixed-wing unmanned air systems (you can also choose if the UK bought F-35Bs or F-35Cs for the carriers in this scen). Many of its ships, as well as those of the Australians, was also upgraded to use Cooperative Engagement Capability (CEC). Both the RAF and RAAF got additional F-35s, with the former purchasing several squadrons of F-35As to cover the Tempest delay.

The US began to reduce its presence in Okinawa due to its proximity to the Chinese mainland; the PRC had thousands of missiles that could be used against the bases there. Instead, it hardened its bases on Guam, and also prepared numerous smaller airports/airstrips for dispersed operations in the Philippines, and throughout the second island chain. Both the US Navy and USAF invested heavily in unmanned systems, while also strengthening their logistics trains across the Pacific.

Only days after entering office, the new POTUS announced the beginning of Operation SKYMASTER - an ambitious plan to use Coalition cargo aircraft and ships to transport vital supplies to Taiwan. They were to be under heavy military escort as it was expected that the Chinese would respond savagely…

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CLASSIFICATION: TOP SECRET REL TO FVEY

SITUATION:

Coalition attempts to break the PRC blockade of the Republic of China (ROC) were met with heavy resistance. A cycle of escalation led to both sides suffering heavy losses, before the PRC then launched an overwhelming ballistic missile attack on US/Coalition bases in the western Pacific. However, the action was not the decisive victory that the PRC hoped for, due to the Coalition defences, and utilisation of dispersed operations. Nonetheless, Operation SKYMASTER is on a pause while addition assets are brought into theatre, and also due to the inclement weather in the Area of Operations (AO).

MISSION:
Divert PRC forces from the blockade of Taiwan by attacking their forces in the South China Sea (SCS). To do that, neutralise any Chinese forces in the SCS and capture the Chinese man-made islands listed under the Primary Objectives below, using the Coalition Joint Carrier Strike Group (CSG), and supporting forces. Should any People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) vessels transit into the AO to counter your forces, these too should be terminated with extreme prejudice.

DRAGON HAMMER PRIMARY OBJECTIVES:
Use air and sea assets to land ground forces at the following locations (VPs will be added every thirty (30) minutes for each unit in the locked zones):
Objective Pink - Subi Reef.
Objective Orange - Gaven Reef.
Objective Purple - Mischief Reef.
Objective Green - Johnson Reef.
Objective Blue - Cuarteron Reef.
Objective Yellow - Fiery Cross Reef.

DRAGON HAMMER SECONDARY OBJECTIVES:
In order to commence a naval blockade of the PRC, the following Chinese-flagged vessels have been added to the target list (250 VP is awarded for each ship sunk):
MV Nanchang 4.
MV Yinhe III.
MV Hong Kong 12.
MV Titan 7.
LNG/C Shanghai II.
MV Lauren 3.
MV Yong Le 6.
MV Heidi D.
MV Gansu 5.

DRAGON HAMMER TERTIARY OBJECTIVES:
Reinforce Rancudo Airfield - Thitu Island (Pagasa Island, Philippines) with Philippine Air Force (PAF) transports, and the 729 ALS Det C-17. These aircraft are currently based at Benito Ebeun Airbase. These aircraft are already loaded with some cargo, but will likely need multiple sorties to get all of the personnel and vehicles to the island.

COALITION PLAYER-CONTROLLED FORCES:
Coalition Joint CSG Vessels:
HMS Prince of Wales [R09, CV]
USS Bougainville [LHA-8, America Flight I]
HMAS Canberra [L02, Juan Carlos LHD]
HMS Dragon [D35, Type 45 Batch 2]
HMS Daring [D32, Type 45 Batch 1]
USS Sterett [DDG-104, Arleigh Burke Flight IIA]
USS Thomas Hudner [DDG-116, Arleigh Burke Flight IIA Technology Insertion]
HMAS Hobart [DDG-39]
HMS Glasgow [Type 26]
HMAS Hunter [Type 26]
USN LUSV Det #1 [64 Cell VLS] (think of this as a powered VLS barge which relies on CEC for targeting)
HMS Albion [L14]
HMAS Supply [A195, Modified Cantabria Class]
RFA Fort Victoria [A387]
Various landing craft.

Coalition Joint CSG Aircraft:
Option: X12 617 Sqn RAF & X12 800 NAS RN F-35B Lightnings; or X12 617 Sqn RAF & X12 800 NAS RN F-35C Lightnings (chosen via Special Action).
Option: X4 Merlin ASaC.5s of 849 NAS RN; or X4 E-2D Hawkeyes of 849 NAS (chosen via Special Action).
X12 VMFA-232 Red Devils F-35B Lightnings
X8 MUX Det XQ-58A Valkyries
X4 MUX Det MQ-9B SeaGuardians
X4 700X NAS RN Det MQ-9B SeaGuardians
X4 700X NAS RN Det ScanEagles
X6 845 NAS Det RN Merlin HC4s
X6 7 Sqn RAF Det Chinook HC6s
X4 814 NAS Det RN Merlin HM2s
X6 815 NAS RN Det Wildcat HMA2s
X4 816 Sqn RAN Det MH-60R Seahawks
X6 808 Sqn RAN Det MH-60R Seahawks
X4 HSM-73 Battle Cats Det MH-60R Seahawks
X4 HSM-73 Battle Cats MQ-8C Det
X8 VMM-363 Lucky Red Lions MV-22B Ospreys
X6 HMH-462 Heavy Haulers CH-53K King Stallions
X4 MUX Test Det V-247 Vigilants
X8 AH-1Z Viper HMLA-369 Gunfighters
X6 HSV-33 Screwbirds SV-22D Ospreys
X8 1 AVN 162 Sqn (Aus) AH-64E Apache Guardians
X4 5 AVN C Sqn (Aus) Chinooks.

Other Coalition Surface Vessels:
USS Samuel H Bowie [DDG-151, Arleigh Burke Flight III-X] (think of it of a test-bed for DDG(X) tech)
USS Canberra [LCS-30, Independence Class]
USS Kingsville [LCS-36, Independence Class]
USS Henderson [USN Phantom Test Det]
X4 Ghost Patrol Boats (stationed on LCS-36)

Coalition Sub-Surface Vessels:
HMS Ambush [S120, Astute Class]
USS San Juan [SSN-751, Improved Los Angeles Class]
HMAS Waller [SSG-75, Collins Class]
X1 Orca XLUUV.

Darwin International Airport / RAAF Airbase:
X2 34 BS Thunderbirds Det B-1B Lancers
X3 69 BS Knighthawks Det B-52J Stratofortresses
X1 393 BS Tigers Det B-2A Spirit (requires the arrival of the C-40C Clipper from Canberra Airport).
X6 FVEY JSF Wing (RAF Det) F-35A Lightings
X6 FVEY JSF Wing (RCAF Det) F-35A Lightings
X12 FVEY JSF Wing (RAAF Det) F-35A Lightings
X8 1 Sqn RAAF F/A-18F Super Hornets
X6 6 Sqn RAAF E/A-18G Growlers
X3 11 Sqn RAAF P-8A Poseidons
X6 RAAF BATS Test Unit MQ-28 Ghost Bats
X2 10 Sqn RAAF MQ-4C Triton UAVs
X4 33 Sqn RAAF KC-30 MRTTs
X1 40 Sqn RNZAF Det C-130J
X3 36 Sqn RAAF C-17 Globemasters
X1 22 Airlift Sqn Det C-5M Super Galaxy
X1 CRAF Kalitta Air Det 747-8F
X2 2 Sqn RAAF E-7A Wedgetails
X2 93 BS (Reserve) 747 CMCA Det (activated via Special Action at the cost of 2,500 VPs).

Canberra Airport:
X1 Aus-US VIP Flight C-40C Clipper.

Changi International Airport / Airbase (Singapore):
X2 CXX Sqn RAF Det P-8A Poseidons MRA1s.
X1 51 Sqn RAF Det Airseeker
X2 101 Sqn RAF Det Voyager KC2/3
X4 VP-16 War Eagles Det P-8A Poseidons
X4 112 Sqn RSAF Phoenix MRTTs (requires the arrival of the C-40C Clipper from Canberra Airport).

RMAF Butterworth Air Base (RAAF Tenants):
X4 1 Sqn RAAF F/A-18F Super Hornets
X2 RAAF BATS Test Unit MQ-28 Ghost Bats
X1 2 Sqn RAAF E-7A Wedgetail (currently airborne)
X1 10 Sqn RAAF MQ-4C Triton UAV (currently airborne).

Zamboanga International Airport / Edwin Andrews AB (Philippines):
X2 5 Sqn RNZAF Det P-8A Poseidons.

Benito Ebeun AB / Mactan-Cebu International Airport (Philippines):
X1 729 Air Lift Sqn Det C-17 Globemaster
X2 221 ALS (PAF) C-295Ms
X1 222 ALS (PAF) C-130H Hercules
X12 7 Tactical Fighter PAF Det KF-21 Boramaes (activated via Special Action at the cost 1,500 VPs).

Taiping Island Airbase (Taiwan):
X3 Taiping Island ROC UAV Unit Albatrosses
X4 VUP-94 Crawfishers Det MQ-9B SeaGuardians
X4 VMU-1 Watchdogs MQ-9A Reapers.

Rancudo Airfield – Thitu / Pagasa Island (Philippines):
No aircraft, but available for forward basing.

Brunei International Airport (Western Apron):
No aircraft, but available for forward basing.

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(“ ~ ”meaning approximately)

ENEMY FORCES:
Vessels confirmed at sea:
~X5 Submarines of the PLANSF.
PLAN Liaoning CSG – X1 Type 001 CV, X1 Type 052C DDG, X1 Type 051B DDG, X1 Type 054 FFG; currently holding station to the south of Taiwan.
X1 Type 051C DDG in the vicinity (IVO) of Woody Island.
X1 Type 052 DDG IVO of Mischief Island.
X1 Type 052C DDG IVO of Cuarteron Reef.
X1 China Maritime Safety Administration (CMSA) vessel IVO of Gaven Reef.
X1 Type 056 FFL, unknown location.

Vessels confirmed in port:
~X4 Type 022 PCFGs at Subi Reef.
~X4 Type 022 PCFGs at Mischief Reef.
X1 Type 053H2G WHEC at Fiery Cross Reef.
Various People's Armed Forces Maritime Militia (PAFMM) fishing vessels at the aforementioned X3 reefs.

PLAAF/PLAN Aviation Units:

Aircraft IVO the Primary objectives:
~X30 J-10 FIREBIRDS.
~X25 JH-7 FLOUNDERS.
~X12 J-16 FLANKERS
~X3 KJ-500A CUBS.
~X3 Y-8Q CUBS.
~X6 H-6 BADGERS.
~X5 Divine Eagle UAVs.
~X6 GJ-11 UAVs.

Aircraft IVO Woody Island:
~X15 J-20 FAGINS.
~X15 J-11D FLANKERS.
~X15 J-10 FIREBIRDS.
~X3 Y-20A AEW platforms.

PLAN Liaoning CSG Aviation Assets:
~X20 J-15 FLANKER-X2s.
~X5 J-15D FLANKER-X2s.
~X5 Z-20F ASW Helos.
~X5 Ka-28 HELIX ASW Helos

PRC Mainland Aviation Assets:
J-20 FAGINS.
J-16 FLANKERS.
J-11BG FLANKERS.
J-10 FIREBIRDS.
JH-7A FLOUNDERS.
H-6 BADGERS.
Y-8Q CUBS.
KJ-500A CUBS.
Y-8JB CUBS.
Divine Eagle UAVs.
WZ-7 UAVs.
BZK-005H Sea Eagle UAVs.

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NEUTRAL FORCES AND CIVILIANS:

Due to standing NOTAMs and NMs, no civilian or third-party military aircraft should be in the AO. It is highly likely that a number of civilian vessels are still present in the AO; possibly up to X20 ships. However, due to maritime Automatic Identification System being offline, their locations are not confirmed.
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J2 (INTELLIGENCE) HIGHLIGHTS:
· “Leaked” reports to the Western press have suggested the Coalition CSG is enroute to attempt to break the PRC blockade around Taiwan, using the islands of the Philippines as cover; so far, that deception is believed to be holding.
· The tropical storm around Taiwan and the SCS has heavily disrupted operations for both sides, and the inclement weather has provided cover for Coalition forces to re-position covertly. The storm is expected to weaken in the next eight (8) hours, and fully subside within twenty-four (24) hours.
· While the majority of the PLANSF is expected to be around Taiwan, Coalition ASW assets obtained PROBSUB reports before the storm curtailed operations; at least one (1) PRC sub is highly likely to be in the choke point between the Philippines and Malaysia (X2 Suspected PLAN Sub Locations are annotated in the scenario).
· It is expected that the PRC will be forced to surge assets to the SCS to attempt to stop our invasion of reefs; as the Liaoning CSG is currently the closest PLAN CV to the AO, it is highly likely this will be sent to interdict Coalition forces when our deception is realised.
· Both the Coalition and the PRC have targeted each other’s satellites, with kinetic, cyber, and non-kinetic means. These operations are expected to continue during Op DRAGON HAMMER. Expect to be notified of these events throughout the next 60 hours.
· The US and Australia have been diplomatically working hard to persuade Singapore to enter the war on the side of the Coalition. As the theatre commander, you are to ensure the C-40 Clipper, currently in Canberra, sortied to Singapore Airport.
· Intelligence suggests that the PRC has slightly reduced its air defences on the islands in the SCS, due to the need to deploy additional SAMs near mainland ports and airports. That being said, neutralising the defences still will not be easy, and AGM-158B D-EMP weapons have been deployed to aid in this task. HQ-22s, HQ-17s, HQ-16Bs, and HQ-9Bs are based on the primary objectives. Woody Island is believed to have SA-21A/B SAMs as well.
· There are two (2) CMCA 747s at RAAF Darwin, which are available to request. The cruise missiles these aircraft carry are obsolete and were retired in the early 2020s, but have been pulled out of decommissioning for this war. The AGM-86Cs will struggle to penetrate a Chinese Integrated Air Defence System (IADS), but combined with other weapons, they should be useful against the primary objectives.

J4 (LOGISTICS) HIGHLIGHTS:
· Due to heavy munitions expenditures in the opening phases of the war, and the need to keep anti-ship missiles ready for if/when the PRC forces attempt to land forces on Taiwan, access to weapons like the AGM-158C LRASM are heavily limited in this Op.
· There are several forward bases available for use that have not been targeted by the PRC, due to diplomatic factors, target prioritisation, or lack of intelligence. As the Officer-in-Charge (OIC), you are tasked with deciding which forward bases to utilise. For example, a base like RMAF Butterworth has more capacity for aircraft, and a larger supply of munitions already stationed there, but is further away from the SCS.
· Coalition cargo aircraft are present at RAAF Darwin, which can transport pre-allocated munitions crates to any of these bases. The weapons are already in the shipping containers, but as the OIC of this operation, you are responsible for deciding on which aircraft to load these munitions onto, and where to dispatch the transports to.
· A USAF B-2A, that was airborne on a mission, had to divert to RAAF Darwin with tech issue, and is still stuck on the ground there. HQ will assign the bomber to Op DRAGON HAMMER, as well as its complement of x16 LRASMs if it can be fixed in time. In order to complete its repairs, use the C-40 Clipper, currently based at Canberra Airport, to transport maintenance team to Darwin, before then sending the C-40 on to Singapore. (Note – the Clipper only needs 10 minutes on the ground at Darwin to complete this objective).

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SCS WEATHER:
Clouds: OVERCAST 7000-16000FT; MODERATE 30000-36000FT. Very Heavy Rain. Sea State 5.

AUS WEATHER:
CAVOK. No significant weather. Sea State 1.
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MESSAGE ENDS


0.63 Changes:
Altered some of the satellite hacking times so that they'll happen earlier in the scen; I've also deleted a couple of sats.
Altered a few loadouts, such as the DDG-151 VLS SM-6s and the RAAF E/A-18Gs.
Increased the scenario time to 2 days, 12 hours (60 hours total); changed some PRC aircraft ready times to compensate,
Added several more messages, including notification of when Coalition forces have been in the vicinity of the objective for 30 minutes.
Added small arms mounts to several of the PRC Barracks and HQ buildings on the SCS islands to simulate infantry holding out in these structures.
Added penalties for losses to civilian shipping.
Probably some other tweaks that I can't remember.

0.68 Changes:
The opening post contains the the release of 0.68 which incorporates DB504 (which some noticeable updates to PLAN ships).
I've slightly increased USS Bougainville's Open Parking, and moved some of the MQ-8Cs to other ships.
I've ensured that both Ghosteye and MPQ-65 radars are available to transport to Rancudo Airfield.
The amount of weapons available to transport via Cargo has increased and, the containers are are more relevant as requested. It should now take more trips to move munitions, but no-one ever complained about having more firepower! To compensate for the increased weapons allocation, RAAF Darwin's Magazine weapons amounts have been reduced.
I've also changed to Mission Accomplished ending message to fit more in to where the scenario pack's storyline will lead.
On that note, both 2029.1 and 2029.2 are in various stages of build.

Just uploaded 0.61 which should fix the issues with spawning the airwings on HMS Prince of Wales. I've also altered some of the UAS ready times to that they won't be ready to launch until after the storm is subsiding.

Hi TempestII,

Happy new year!

I just took your scenario for a spin, and really enjoyed it.

During the first run, I made some stupid mistakes. I lost the Raiders AWACS-hunting (dumb of me), and lost a Burke escort to some YJ-12s about 15 hours in while taking the CSG west of Palawan. I didn't think I could bring the CSG into hostile waters without that escort, and didn't think I had time to pull the Bowie north and achieve a majority of the objectives, so I called it there.

In between the two attempts, I opened the scenario from your side to try to figure out what went wrong/what to do differently.

During the second run, I wound up micromanaging the units, which led to both more successes and more losses. I shut down all the SCS Island runways, but lost all the ships outside the CSG, and two of the subs, to threats that I'm still not sure what they were. After entering the SCS, I traded enemy 2 subs for 2 escorts (just not the all-important US DDGs). I eventually sacrificed a pair of F-35s to J-20s and landed Marines from 6x CH-53s on Mischief Reef. I've still got about 28 hours left to play, but I think I see the flavor of the scenario enough to provide a bit of feedback.

Here are my impressions:

Your world-building is awesome! The description and briefing are great. Readability might be slightly improved by removing the "X" in the lists of units available, but that's a minor quibble.

The concept is just excellent. Your scenario has got a really unique spin on A2AD. It's a worthy successor to the Fiery Cross Reef, 2021 and Operation Sapphire Fury, 2019 scenarios in the Community Scenario Pack. Adding in resupply, invasions of multiple islands, and bases spread out over such a large area all together makes things very interesting.

I think you might be underestimating the challenge of the operation from the player perspective. The scenario involves coordinating air assets from 2 flat tops, escorts, and no less than 6 different airbases. That makes complexity a solid 5/5 in my book on the air units alone (there's also subs and ships to coordinate!). Similarly, my perspective is that a textbook case of cracking a tough A2AD nut with substantial air/sea/land/submarine threats makes difficulty 5/5.

In fact, I think you're presenting the player with so many threats the scenario is unbalanced. You've positioned the SCS islands in the center, and Australia as the home base for the coalition, and the Hainan bases as the home base for the PRC. But an invasion is not supposed to be even; the attackers are supposed to have or achieve air and sea superiority before landing troops. I'm no professional, but if I was in command of these forces IRL, I'd 100% focus on attriting A2AD systems on the reefs, and Woody Island and Hainan Island facilities, for at least 48 hours before landing troops. You should consider eliminating all the land-based aircraft north of Woody Island.

Given the ISR picture here, and the distances the joint CSG needs to cross to get in range of the DZ/LZs, I think the player would benefit from an additional 24 hours to achieve their objectives. I definitely lost units on both playthroughs because I felt rushed to launch the boats.

I was somewhat confused by some of the things I gained and lost points for (unit damage/loss), and surprised by how much some unit losses were penalized on the FVEY side, while destroying the PRC's equivalent assets didn't affect the score. Is that the intention?

I also never got the resupply at forward bases to work as a transfer mission, but I was trying to send everything to Edwin Andrews AB. Are you sure that's working correctly?

I love the role satellites are playing here. But they also slow the scenario down significantly, and this isn't exactly a short scenario. Both attempts required 4+ sessions with my computer, and I finished neither one. You should consider reducing the number of spacecraft on each side to increase the speed of gameplay.

The addition of near-future units was really interesting - I particularly enjoyed playing around with the UAVs. However, there were a few units, especially the boats, that I couldn't figure out how I was supposed to employ. Based on how the US is dealing with the Houthis, I think the scenario threats might be too high-end for an LCS, let alone a GARC.

I hope this helps, and would be excited to play again!

Thanks for the review Fido!

Good points - for 0.63, I'll increase the complexity to 5/5. I've also increased the time to complete the operation to 60 hours instead of 48; of course, the objective is to get to the Triumph VPs to obtain victory, so the scenario should end earlier.
I don't think the cargo missions are working as I intended, so I've removed those - it seems as though the aircraft seem to want to return to Darwin after reaching the final RP. I'm not sure if that's a CMO bug, or because I set the missions up wrong, but I'll leave it up to the player to either establish Cargo or Ferry missions. I'm now mostly using the latter. I find that, as long as I press "Unload Cargo" at the airbases, the munitions will then be ready to utilise.

For the Sats, I'll see what ones I can thin out (at least Carbonite 2 can probably go), and I'll make it so the hacks happen earlier too, which should help.

I took a look at the scoring last night and it seems to be pretty balanced. I have intentionally made it more rewarding to get forces into the LZ/DZ than generally killing stuff; in my last play through, I achieved victory in circa 36 hours with that tactic - as well as killing the PLAN CV.

Yeah I'll probably remove the GARC and some similar units. I find the LCS and Phantoms useful due to their NSMs, which I usually use to remove the isolated PLAN ships around the SCS islands. After the that, they're useful for tracking the Chinese merchant vessels; unfortunately their guns are borderline useless against those ships, so I usually have to bring in heavier stuff to finish off those MVs. In terms of story, they're also present to symbolise that you're mostly stuck with the B Team in this scenario, albeit one with with some A grade assets - USS Bowie, B-21s etc.

I'm reluctant to remove the Hanian Island PRC forces for a few reasons that I'll explain below, although without trying to spoil too much of the story of how the war got to this point (2029.1-3 are a WIP still). While the blockade against Taiwan is obviously going to consume the vast majority of Chinese resources, the fact the Coalition has bases in the Philippines mean that they can't completely abandon that flank. The PRC forces on Hanian and the mainland are therefore mostly set up to defend against threats from that vector, hence the AEW and CAPs being much closer to Woody Island than the SCS islands. The good news is that the majority of Chinese northern forces, due to the weather and surprise element of the Coalition move into the SCS, need 20+ hours for their missions/aircraft into the AOR to activate to simulate their OODA loop.
But, if it then becomes apparent that their SCS possessions are coming under heavy Coalition attack, I'd expect them to pivot at least some forces to attempt to repel these moves.
What I have done it further delay some of the PRC mainland forces' ready times to better spread their response.

What I will say is that, this scenario rewards early aggressiveness, as long as it is done overwhelmingly - what I find has worked well is arming half of the UK and US naval F-35s with SPEAR 3s and Stormbreakers as soon as the scen starts. The rest I allocate to CAPs, QRA, Escorts etc. That then provides 6 hours to get your bombers into position within missile range of the SCS objectives. For the initial saturation strike, I mostly focus on knocking out the EW/AD/SAM network (with EMP JASSMs and the SPEARs/SDBs) and runways; if I activate the CMCA 747s, I'll also aim for HASs, bunkers, and barracks too. Ideally, you want to do this prior to the storm subsidising as more PRC aircraft and missions activate around this time. Of course, I wouldn't expect the PRC to, even in the middle of a storm, not react, so their forces will also begin to activate if HVAs, runways etc are attacked, which is why it's best to ensure it's a well timed saturation strike. If done correctly, the PRC shouldn't have any serviceable runways or radars/SAMs left in the SCS (except Woody Island), and therefore their initial counterattack literally won't be able to get off the ground. If a few aircraft do get airborne, my Meteor armed F-35s can usually deal with them without losses. I'll usually try to save my RGM-109I at this point but, I'll probably use the Echo variants in the strike if I haven't utilised the CMCA and KF-21s.
While the fighters for Aus usually can't get involved at this point, the MQ-28s can, so I'll use them in the OECM and ISTAR role, as part of the saturation strike. I'll usually move them to Brunei as they don't need munitions to be operational, which means that they're usually ready for early strike.

0.63 now uploaded in the opening post.

0.63 Changes:
Altered some of the satellite hacking times so that they'll happen earlier in the scen; I've also deleted a couple of sats.
Altered a few loadouts, such as the DDG-151 VLS SM-6s and the RAAF E/A-18Gs.
Increased the scenario time to 2 days, 12 hours (60 hours total); changed some PRC aircraft ready times to compensate,
Added several more messages, including notification of when Coalition forces have been in the vicinity of the objective for 30 minutes.
Added small arms mounts to several of the PRC Barracks and HQ buildings on the SCS islands to simulate infantry holding out in these structures.
Added penalties for losses to civilian shipping.
Probably some other tweaks that I can't remember.

So far I am really enjoying the scenario. Managed to pull off a Coup early in the game and have achieved air superiority which makes life easier moving forward. I've started landing Marines on the smaller reefs. Johnson went well. Cuarteron is proving something else. Somehow, my Marines are getting off the MV-22 on Cuarteron Reef preparing to fire on the local Chinese Marines only to be ported over to Fiery Cross Reef.

twwaxminer wrote: Sun Jan 07, 2024 4:57 pm So far I am really enjoying the scenario. Managed to pull off a Coup early in the game and have achieved air superiority which makes life easier moving forward. I've started landing Marines on the smaller reefs. Johnson went well. Cuarteron is proving something else. Somehow, my Marines are getting off the MV-22 on Cuarteron Reef preparing to fire on the local Chinese Marines only to be ported over to Fiery Cross Reef.

Thanks, I'm glad to hear that you're enjoying it!
When you say ported over, are they teleporting from Cuarteron Reef to FC Reef? I'd be curious to see a save as I don't think I've set any teleports up except for the bios, which happens 3 seconds in.

How do I share the file?

Upload it as a Zip is the easiest way. Alternatively, a Google Drive link can work too

Please see attached. The specific sequence of events is that the MV-22's dropped off the four units of Marines in what appears to be marked as water outside the LZ for Cuarteron. I ordered the units to move into the LZ. Approximately when the units moved into the LZ, they port to the runway on Fiery Cross. Aside from that it is working well.

Thanks, I'll take a look!

twwaxminer wrote: Tue Jan 09, 2024 9:19 am Please see attached. The specific sequence of events is that the MV-22's dropped off the four units of Marines in what appears to be marked as water outside the LZ for Cuarteron. I ordered the units to move into the LZ. Approximately when the units moved into the LZ, they port to the runway on Fiery Cross. Aside from that it is working well.


Straits of Blood 2029.4 - SCS Island Seizure 0.63.zip

Do you have the save file just prior to the issue occurring? That file seems to be the original one, meaning it starts right at the very start of the scen.

Please see this file. I think I have it saved correctly this time.

twwaxminer wrote: Wed Jan 10, 2024 7:42 am Please see this file. I think I have it saved correctly this time.

I can confirm it's definitely happening, and it did when I started a new game too. I'll try recreating the affected LZ/DZs but I have no idea what's actually causing the teleporting.

It was bewildering at first, but I found that landing on the other side of the island avoided the problem. I imagine it could be a problem if you put the chinese units on a partrol. In short order they could all be some place else.

Very tempting scenario!

My only concern is that weapon WRA is blanket set to NEZ.

What is everyone's experience, how does the game play out with such a setting?

SchDerGrosse wrote: Thu Jan 11, 2024 9:23 pm Very tempting scenario!

My only concern is that weapon WRA is blanket set to NEZ.

What is everyone's experience, how does the game play out with such a setting?

I assume that you haven't opened up the PRC side in Scenario Editor? (I'm not trying to be sarcastic; I wouldn't expect most players to.)
Slight spoiler alert - While I do think NEZ gives the best results in general, I have set some Chinese missions to 60% WRA to provide to give the player something extra to consider.

i really like this so far.... however i maybe havimg problems with aw missiles.......

i really like this so far.... however i maybe havimg problems with aaw missiles.......

magi wrote: Fri Jan 12, 2024 2:27 am i really like this so far.... however i maybe havimg problems with aaw missiles.......

Thanks for playing! What are the issues that you're having?