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IJNAF elite A6M2 Zero unit Chitose Ku S-1 or its detachments or division(s)

3 (42.9%)

a IJAAF Ki-43 unit in Indochina, to be used in China/East Indies(mostly)

1 (14.3%)

a IJAAF Ki-43 unit in Burma(at least initially)

3 (42.9%)

Total Members Voted: 7

Voting closed: May 04, 2014, 08:49:03 am

[Erkki]

So we went one cruiser for a battleship and a battlecruiser? That sounds like a win to me.

Yeah. Repulse was actually much more powerful than Royal Sovereign. We'll soon see if IJN losses will be limited to Ashigara and 2 DDs...

[Erkki]

March 1, 1942


China: IJA attack on the Ankang road achieves 1:1 odds - and Chinese casualties are higher, including 20 combat squads destroyed. The terrain helps the defenders a lot here.

Burma: Chittagong reported to have ~50 fighters and 30 ships in the port these fighters are probably protecting. IJAAF will tomorrow sweep the base with 2 full Sentais, over 80 fighters.

DEI: a 4th enemy task force is briefly discovered by a submarine on the coast. The enemy fleet withdraws towards Perth. Fuso and Yamashiro fail to make contact and their float planes find nothing, but they are themselves found by Allied float planes. Haruna disbands into port at Koepang - her initial, minor damage repairs alone will take almost 3 months with the port and extra naval support available at Koepang, ouch! I'm planning to invade Java within a week and once Java Sea is secure, Haruna will be moved to Singapore for repairs.

On Sumatra, Bengkalis falls!

Submarines: a Free French submarine destroys a cargo ship from the Luganville amphibious TF that finished unloading supplies and is was heading home.

[Erkki]

A fresh highly experienced infantry division is freed from the Manchurian Army. I'm going to use if offensively, but havent decided where... A single division is unlikely to make much difference in China, especially as the fighting is now moving to rough defensive terrain. Java can be taken by troops already in DEI and at Singapore.

South Pacific? Efate would be the logical next target, but it is awfully alone and extended without bases behind it that could support it. Its basically within air strike range by all planes from Noumea and bombers from Fiji. Luganville is too, but at least Guadalcanal area is close and Ndeni helps with air search. Horn island? Can most probably be taken by the free Marine assault unit already underway. Australia? No place for a single division but could be the target once Java falls. Aleutians? Not worth of it IMHO, battlefield is awfully stacked to Allies' advantage and all bases there can be just bypassed. Too many potential submarine base islands that would all need to be secured.

Ceylon? The more I think about it the more I like it. I could probably land there within 2 weeks if I wanted to with 5-ish divisions. The problem with it is that there are no land bases nearby so Kido Butai would be needed there, leaving Southern Pacific vulnerable(and it seems the Allies want to fight there).

What if before Ceylon I'd take Diego Garcia first. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diego_Garcia Its a small island that can be built up to a bomber base. Nearest place that can be built big enough to support even 2-engine bombers is so far that it can be bombed only by B-29s or carrier aircraft. Its also an atoll and any invasion there forces a shock attack, so its tricky to take if garrisoned. A G4M1 unit operating there would basically cut off India from Australia - Allies would need to either run the air attack gauntlet or sail all the way via Cape Town and Mombasa!

[Sheb]

I like the idea of taking Diego Garcia, but it's awfully far away too. Still, I don't think your opponent expect you to turn up there, so it's probably lightly defended, with only whatever units are there at game start. Can you use it to support a landing on Ceylon next?

[Chosrau]

Wouldn't taking Diego Garcio tip him off that you will be going for Ceylon?

[Erkki]

I'm sketching things up now... Basically heres what is available, after garrisons and units already fighting on Sumatra and in Burma, in raw assault value(does not equal firepower, but IJA units are roughly comparable or better than Indian, Commonwealth, Philippine and very early war US Army infantry units):

Malaya:
460 AV inf division on its way to Shanghai(at Fusan, Korea, but the port is too busy, so it'll get railed to a better place first) where it'll board transports.

1750 AV with some artillery and armor at Singapore - these can board an amphibious TF right away

DEI:
550 AV at Koepang, Timor, 120 AV at Dili(paratroopers)

200 AV at Kendari

130 AV at Makassar

Lots of support units spread around, mainly in Malaya.

2 x 150 AV almost pure infantry "garrison" units on Honshu, still preparing.


Naval units near Singapore:
BBs Mutsu and Nagato
8 heavy cruisers
6 light cruisers
30-ish DDs

2000 AV should be enough to take Ceylon right away. With amphibious bonus still in effect it could be possible to land there without a warning. That operation however would delay the Java operation... But since Java is practically alone already, I'm not sure how much it'd matter. It could even encourage the Allies to reinforce Java which would be great IMHO: the island and its oil would fall to Japan later, but its logistically an easy place for Japan to fight.

[Sheb]

But what is the value of taking Ceylon, except for the lulz? Wrecking their supply lines in the Indian Ocean? Can you hold it when it's so close to India?

[Erkki]

But what is the value of taking Ceylon, except for the lulz? Wrecking their supply lines in the Indian Ocean? Can you hold it when it's so close to India?

Theres lots of restricted units, both combat and support, that cant be moved out there. Trincomalee and Colombo are Allies' largest Far East naval and air bases after Singapore, that is now controlled by the Japanese, and Calcutta. Taking Ceylon would make it impossible for Allied naval units, other than submarines, to use Calcutta. Its also big enough to defend itself: lots of bases and many of them inland. With Ceylon and Diego Garcia in Japanese hands, Bay of Bengal would become Japan's "Mare Nostrum" similar to how South China Sea is even when half of Philippines is still in Allied hands.

It wouldnt effect much the land combat in Burma though as India has a good rail network all the way from Karachi to Calcutta and the Burmese border.

[Erkki]

Actually came to think of it, another option would be landing that same army at Chittacong or even Diamond Harbor and just go for India. From other AARs I know that Calcutta can be a PITA though: heavy urban hex with river crossing hexsides around it. Its the single most difficult to take hex in the game, and with stacking limits Japan may not be able to get there enough troops to take it even if it can be surrounded to deny supply. Ceylon would be far, far easier and less risky target.

[Anvilfolk]

Would it be possible to bypass some bases and do significant landings further south? The Allies did this later on in the war. As long as you could keep these bypassed bases pinned down with land-based bombing, could this work in the longer run?

[Erkki]

Would it be possible to bypass some bases and do significant landings further south? The Allies did this later on in the war. As long as you could keep these bypassed bases pinned down with land-based bombing, could this work in the longer run?

Further south where? I'm not convinced that South Pacific is a good idea without some serious reinforcements... Which would mean forgetting about Ceylon and most probably northern Australia too.

[Erkki]

Does this plan for look entirely mad to you? Thoughts, suggestions?

operation 1:

phase a) - move combat ships to rearm and refuel at Rabaul(BB Hyuga &CO mainly)
phase b) use the Marine unit at sea now to invade Efate  - KB covers closely - simultaneously another amphib TF moves back to Luganville and loads the Marine assault div. there
phase c) drop the Luganville unit to Efate if required, otherwise use it to take Horn Island
phase d) Allied units on Efate surrender, the attacking troops are immediately loaded back aboard transports and moved to safety

This all could happen within 10 days.

operation 2:
At the same time in DEI, troops at Manado are already boarding an amphib. TF to invade Denpasar, an island down the Indonesian chain from Java, to found an air base there to better isolate Java. Another force is loading transports to invade Bandjermasin - capturing that place will allow KB to relocate from South Pacific to Indian Ocean without sailing under enemy air search(currently ships need to go around Formosa to avoid Catalinas at Manila).

operation 3: as soon as KB arrives to Singapore(hopefully 20 days from now) amphib. TF leaves port for Ceylon, to unload troops there in the final 2 or 3 days of the amphibious bonus.

I'm not 100% sure on the travel times but I will check them out once I get the turn file. I may need to divide KB to cover the Ceylon operation.

[Sheb]

Sounds very ballsy to me. How will you keep Ceylon supplied though? I guess they don't have oil or much industry.

[Erkki]

Sounds very ballsy to me. How will you keep Ceylon supplied though? I guess they don't have oil or much industry.

Ceylon is logistically easier than South Pacific. East Indies' oil wells and refineries are close, as is the industry in Indochina, Thailand, Java(later), and theres less sea between - air search from Ceylon, Andamans(already Japanese) and northern Sumatra can close the gap, where the sea lines from Honshu to Marianas, Carolines and Marshalls are already pretty exposed.

[Erkki]

Actually... I dont need to move the big KB anywhere or waste time. CV Junyo arrives tomorrow!

If I leave strike planes home, Junyo + the small carriers of CarDiv III and V can carry over 120 Zeros. Moving them from where they are now(North of Hawaii, LOL!) is done quick as they cruise at 15 knots, and is cheap in fuel. I have the airframes and the pilots, and can bring a radar set to help intercepting enemy strikes.

Looks like I have a plan.

edit: listening to this song helped with the creativity: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z7cp94KnLws