So I’m playing my second game of UV (great game btw) as USN with the grog rules, i.e. no gamey cheese, Scn 17 160% Jap Committment. (My first game ended when for some strange reason my 5 USN carriers decided to try and dock in Rabaul in July ’42. The commander survived, until he returned to base. Then I shot him via execution squad)… so I don’t know “everything” there is to know.
So the situation: It’s July 25th, 42, I’m playing as USN. I just spent the better part of 6 weeks sneaking a unit of Engineers and Infantry into Lunga (Japs haven’t tried to take it) and supplies. I started feeling a little cocky, trying to lure out some Jap ships into range of my carriers (sitting off the end of the Island just out of Jap LBA range). After running a couple of supply ships into Lunga, and getting them smoked by the Jap night time express ships… I made a slight change to my plans… and here’s what happened:
I had all my ships on the ocean (all my capital combat ships, all DD’s, and a large majority of AP/AK) meet at a spot and reorganized into basically 3 TF’s, A surface combat TF (all my CA’s, most of my CL’s, and DD’s to fill the TF out), an Air Combat TF (5 CV’s + left over DD’s), and a transport TF.
My plan was to send the Surface Combat and Transport TF to Lunga, to unload supplies and troops. Survival on Lunga had been touch and go for my few troops there (heck took 4 weeks to build up airbase 1), and imho getting this load in would go a long way towards making it mine permanently (supplies for a good long time, engineers to build up air base and port, infantry to defend, LBA fighters for CAP were all part of this transport TF). My transports would bring the goods, and the Surface TF was there to spring a nice surprise against the nightly slot runs by the Japs. The Air Combat TF was sitting just out of Jap LBA range, but stilla ble to cover the Transport and Surf Comb TF with F4F’s.
I wasn’t worried about their carriers very much, as they had just run about 1 week/2 weeks worth of ops, and I figured they’d be retiring for R&R for a bit. Also, none of my Cats had spotted anything that remotely looks like a carrier in the area I’d figured they’d come from.
Well, the day broke, and here’s what happened…
Nighttime: my SC and Transports made it to Lunga, started unloading. No attack by the Jap nightly surface fleet. Hmm I think… Then ut-oh, today of all days is the day my coastwatchers sobre up, and turn their binoculars to the ocean instead of chasing friendly natives, and low and behold there pop out more carriers than I can count. It’s the whole damn Jap navy says my Aussie coastwatcher. Goody goody though, all those ships I had in the water (the three big tf’s, and some other ancilliary tf’s of replenishment, fast transport, ships coming up from Nomeua to combine with those three main ones) must have provided so much work for the mavis’s and Emily’s that they were swamped and couldn’t find my carriers.
Daytime rolls around… and this is where it gets fun. Lots of “reacting to enemy carriers” on my part, my carriers still not spotted…. And then the air-ops phase rolls around…
The first big strike had the jap carriers throwing their entire carrier based air force agaainst my Surface Combat TF sitting in Lunga. Some 300-400 planes strike, and for CAP, uggh, I only have 30ish Wildcats. Where the hell is my carrier long range cap I placed on these guys? Also, a full attack of Jap LBA attacks also. Needless to say, their escort blew through my fighter screen, and my surface task force got nuked Badly. 25 ships went in… only 8 DD’s steamed away. I lost about 6 CA’s and CL’s, and about 10 DD’s. Not good to start, sez I. There go my surface forces for the SouthWest Pacific Isles. The Surface Combat force sacrificed themselves for the greater cause, however, as my transport TF was able to dock and begin unloading unscathed. Much needed supplies and boots on the ground just fortified Lunga.
Next surprise for the day was me spotting the Jap Carriers, and getting off the attack first. But my jow was again brief. My idiot commander Spruance forgot to supply escorts for the great carrier raid of 1942. 150 SBD’s attack – but first up, 70 zeros flying CAP. Only 58 SBD’s made it through the CAP… but oooooohhhhhh – they managed to put 5 Bombs apiece into 3 Jap CV’s.
Devestators, in a reverse of Torp Squadron 8 of Midway fame, lose only half of the Devestators to japcap. The get through AA and mamange a couple of torp hits on the already damaged carriers. Sweet, no visual sinking reports, but I pretty much got 3 carriers. If not sunk, then out of the war for a long long long time.
My carriers escaped the day unscathed, and not spotted.
Day two rolled around, and I was faced with a fight or flight question. Do I stay and try and eat up some LBA/leftover Carrier planes with my perfectly untouched carrier based fighters? Do I run as fast as possible with my depleted carrier strike planes?
I viewed this question in the larger picture… considered my options, and decided upon both
.I was going to xfer my available SBD’s and Torp planes to the Lex and Yorktown, and have them stay in the area one more day. I was going to withdraw the other three back to Nomeua, and wait for aircraft to build up the squadrons again. I figured that I’d be sending the Lex and York to PH for the AA upgrades after this operation, so if they take a beating that’s all right. I wanted to keep my other carriers in theater. I also figured that so many splinter TF’s of damaged ships would continue to confuse the air attacks. I left all my damaged ships near Lunga and withdrew any undamaged ships to my Lex and York TF.
So I readjusted the Carrier aircraft orders (so they do what I want this time), and rolled the dice and hit end turn.
The results were… first Jap carrier wave against the Surface Combat TF again, Zero’s blew through the cover. All ships left over sunk (about 2 CL’s and a couple DD’s). But good, they were going to sink anyway. Jap LBA attacked Henderson, killed a couple palm trees.
Then, finally, after all this time, a Jake spots the Lex and Yorktown. About damn time I sez to myself. Carrier action occurs: Jap sends over 41 Zeros and about 20 Vals and 20-30 Kates. Big air battle ensues. Japs break through CAP. Numerous torp and divebombing attacks. York hit, and bleeding. Lex hit, bleeding. Lex hit again, bleeding badly. Neither ship sinks… both heaving damaged, but under steam capable of making Nomuea fairly easily.
Goody goody, I strike back at the Jap Carriers, with a whopping 25 SBD’s and 20 Avengers (wherever they came from), but they are properly escorted THIS time. Japcap must be tired, most of my planes get trough. Sweet jesus mary of God, they go on to pound another three more carriers (different from yesterdays attack)… leaving two of them at least heavily damaged, and one of them lightly wounded.
Night time falls, transports are about unloaded in Lunga, York and Lex a/c divert to Lunga, all ships are returning to base.
So that was the “first big encounter” of my campaign, basically the first big coordinated attack I’ve ever done successfully i.e. getting stuff to land on a hex at the same day without having anything run out of fuel (stuff like that)… but am not sure weather to be happy or sad about the days events.
Yeah, I like that Lunga is reinforced and will be able to start being a real base shortly, and don’t have to worry about the touch and go aspects of that situation (unless the japs land like 2 divisions on top of it, but then oh well). I managed to blast 5 of his carriers pretty good, and damaged a 6th. In return, I lost nearly and entire TF of CA’s, CL’s, and DD’s, a great portion of my carrier based attack planes (I’m not into the gamey “load the CV’s up with fighters and run sweeps then”, and suffered 2 damaged carriers (not a big loss to my overall strategery, since I had planned on them being gone shortly anyway)
I think I’m happy. I really like smacking those carriers, and I got a good hold on Lunga atm, so I accomplished those missions. But it feels like such a hollow victory, losing 15+ warships and almost all my carrier based attack a/c.
PS – what’s KB stand for?