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[Keita]

Posting to watch.

[Erkki]

It fills us with trepidation that the Emperor should consider our welfare for even a second.  We are certainly unworthy of divine concern.

LOL


February 1st

Secret Operation "P" by the Navy Special Attack Corps!

Let me introduce you Japanese Ko Gata type A midget submarines. These were the same that were used(and pitifully failed in their mission) at Pearl Harbour. In this campaign, I have already released one at Auckland(failed) and 2 more to Brisbane, failed.

Operation P was to use 4 mother submarines to raid Pearl Harbour again, each submarine carrying a midget sub to penetrate the Harbour.

The good thing about these subs is that they are true submarines, very short ranged, but they carry the type 98 torpedoes that have enough explosive power to sink anything, in theory. Not quite as powerful as the Type 95 "Long Lance" but easily more powerful than the Type 91 carried by aircraft.

Most players use the midgets in defensive role as in the confusion of the battle, often nighttime, they have good chances of getting close and doing damage... If you guessed the enemy's target right, that. Used offensively, they have about 10% or less chance to penetrate into a harbour, depending on its size, weather and defenses.

On December 7th in this campaign, one of them put a torpedo in USS Tennessee. This time, the first hits an obstruction and is abandoned. The second fails to penetrate defenses and is destroyed. The third, however... Gets through, and shoots its torpedoes at the first ship it sights... a destroyer! The submarine crew reports the DD hit by one torpedo, and to have blown up in an ammo storage explosion. Nice! SignInt says it was DD Anderson, but I doubt her... A Sims class DD most likely, so it *could* have been it. Unfortunately:



The 4th mother submarine runs into an enemy task force of 4 patrol crafts and a large tender ship, it shoots all 4 of its torpedoes, but fails to score hits. It has to abandon its mission, and so the 4th midget's crew cant fulfill its mission today. The force heads back to Truk. The Pearl Harbour is reported to contain 47 ships, lots of aircraft tenders, landing craft, a submarine, but only one cruiser in the 10 that are identified. No capital class ships, they would have been spotted(almost for sure). They must be at Fiji..

In the Philippines, Japanese tank battalion advances in Mindanao. I don't think I have enough men there to secure the whole island, though...

Kendari will fall tomorrow with the reinforcement battalion's help, Mix Brigade and 3rd SNLF regiment change their target to Makassar, another important airbase in Celebes, behind Kendari. They however wont land directly to it but some 80 miles to the North. No coastal defenses there(presumably).

[Erkki]

Kill, kill, kill! Blood for the blood god!

Can we have a map?

Sure:

Spoiler: Banda Sea invasions early February (click to show/hide)

These plans do have a flaw, though... I'd need more surface assets. I'm moving Truk's cruiser force closer. I have no idea why I didn't order Tanaka Squadron there now... The landings need 5 days, lets hope they wont interrupt more than the 2 carriers can handle.

[Erkki]

February 2nd

A very uneventful day... Besides standard China action. The Chinese seem to be opening the south front, I earmarked some reinforcements but I'd rather have him realize that I have 12 divisions and closer to 600,000 men that are threatening his oil fields in the North, and move those units there.

Only air action today was Zeroes shooting down 2 Buffaloes over Rangoon and G3Ms from Palembang bombing Christmas Island, one ship hit, and on fire. It was an AVG. I have no idea what an AVG is, manual doesnt mention them even in the ship list(need to check the Editor later), but apparently some aviation-related support ship. Now it burns.

Edit: reading combat report again, it was an AGP, a torpedo boat tender. I hope it sinks...

[Zrk2]

Well, all continues well. Too bad the Pearl thing failed.

[Erkki]

February 3rd:

Home Islands: a massive convoy is formed at Ominato, it will get 1,000,000 metric of tons of resources from Sapporo. If I calculated right that alone should give Honshu's industry another 4 months to run at full capacity, maybe 5 months with the convoys from China and Manchuko.

China: 2 full "Armies" of Chinese advance in the South, but my 2 reinforcement divisions should make it in time. I might need to evacuate some troops by sea but shouldnt be necessary. Our troops are advancing towards Nangyan and Sian, the Chinese dont stand much of a chance for now there.

Burma: Looks like the British forces in Moulmein are retreating, a Thai division is marching in to reinforce, the flanking British unit is still there but behind a big river, hope they decide to attack over it. 

Singapore: Today's assault penetrates yet again some defenses and actually the Allied losses are bigger than ours. Will try to get through tomorrow, this looks very promising!

Makassar: Troops landed with no interruption, they'll start marching South tomorrow.

Kendari: What a farce! Even the reinforced Marines fail! Need 3 more days to move the last Marine battalion from Ternate.

Rabaul: 2 big convoys arrived yesterday, they brought supplies to run the base for 2 years or so, a AAA battalion, more aviation support units and a regiment of engineers. These same convoys will, once they have unloaded, pick up some Marines and invade bases and towns in the nearby islands, Kavieng and Gasmata first.

27 days to the completion of CV Junyo, 148 to its sister ship Hiyo, but she too will be accelerated as soon as there is the capacity to do that - once Junyo is completed, or even before.

[Erkki]

Might of the Imperial Navy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8ZWerveuPw

[Erkki]

February 4th

China: The major Japanese push from Loyang and Chengchow towards Sian and Nangyan begins! There are a total of 10 divisions involved, the Army Air Force, a division of tanks and about a half of artillery.

Singapore: Today's assault goes very well, the LAST DEFENSES are breached, and the British forces suffer heavily. By the evening, Japanese forces are still fairly intact despite the all-out effort. We are expecting the British to surrender tomorrow.

Makassar/Kendari: A Dutch submarine finds the mini-KB! Luckily both of the torpedoes miss. The MKB TF will now relocate... Invasions progressing OK.

The rest: G3Ms bomb Christmas Island again, hitting 3 ships, of one probably sank. 2 cargo ship and the aux support ship. A Japanese recon plane was shot down over Singapore, that means the Ki-43s will sweep tomorrow. I thought all their fighters were destroyed already...

Naval yards: CVL Ryuho looks like a bad investment: its slow, doesn't come with air units, no armor, smaller capacity than the CVLs we now have. Its 6 months away so its construction is halted for now, with the spared capacity we can start accelerate CV Hiyo's completion within a week. Junyo is estimated to be ready in 26 days, Hiyo now in 147 but true arrival is probably 77 (70+7, 7 days before doubling rate build rate and halving arrival time from 140).

A training D3A squad and a small wing of Zeroes with no real tasks are transferred on CVE Taiyo for carrier training. The units are fully ready in 90 days.(pilots in non-trained units suffer much higher rate of operational losses when operating from carriers, the pilots are also more likely to ditch/bail out near the carrier if their aircraft is damaged, instead of trying to land).

[Erkki]

Forgot something important: another unescorted Allied convoy left Rangoon overnight, but met I-122 which put 3 torpedoes on 2 cargo ships. The bigger 15-ish kiloton one sank and the smaller probably did as well, but not confirmed.

[Erkki]

February 5th

Malaya: Kuching falls to the Japanese! The RAF aircraft on the base are all captured damaged, a good 20 fine... stringbags. Hudsons and Swordfishes, useless junk. Miraculously Singapore holds for another day.

Philippines: Japanese attack on Clark Field penetrates more defenses, the Americans are already about to run out of supplies.

Naval Yards: After playing some with the calculator, I put CV Hiyo on acceleration. Delays for Junyo and Hiyo are now 25 and 73 days. The shipyard's capacity is quite enough for Hiyo but there are some reserves so that I can continue CVL Ryuho's construction in 7 or 8 days.

SignalCorps reports great amount of enemy radio activity near Noumea in the New Caledonia. This 3rd contact, 1 every 3 days, is exactly on line with the 2 previous, moving at 14 or 15 knots. This confirms my doubts, they have to be the carriers, except:

Mid Pacific: enemy DIVE BOMBER reported over Kwajalein! I really this is a false report. If it truly was a dive bomber(they havent been reported before), and those things dont have even 50% of the range required to fly from Wake, it means the enemy has carriers in the area. Search aircraft however, there are about 15 of them airborne during daylight, spot nothing but a sole submarine.

[Erkki]

February 6th, and finally some proper progress!

Philippines: Clark Field falls! The Allied casualties as dead, wounded and surrendered are 7000 of the 10,000 defenders. Now the Japanese troops will rest a while before pressing to Bataan peninsula, but now, the Allies are in 2 pockets, and it is only a matter of time before either pocket runs out of supplies and men.

Kendari/Makassar: Troops advance with no resistance, and during the night, a cruiser/destroyer sweep for the Makassar landings finds 7 torpedo boats. 6 of them are sank without a loss, and the last is hunted down on the afternoon as it tries to escape to the West.

Submarines: Between Tasmania and Australia, a lone Japanese submarine far from home finds a convoy, shoots 6 torpedoes and sinks a large mine layer sailing under Royal Dutch flag.

[Zrk2]

This game simulates misidentified aircraft? This truly is the DF of WWII strategy.

[Erkki]

This game simulates misidentified aircraft? This truly is the DF of WWII strategy.

Pretty much everything has some sort of FOW, including my own industry... It isnt 100% guaranteed that factory X that on average builds, for example, 2 aircraft/day, will do so every day. Sometimes 1, sometimes 3... Not much variation but it is there, same with all building, repairing, moving etc. and then comes the intelligence and the enemy, my list of confirmed sunk ships has maybe just 60-70% of the ships that have actually gone down, and at least 2 of the reported 5 sunk submarines(after Manila strikes) must still be alive.

[Erkki]

And the Naval industry screen in the Tracker, sorted by ship type. Notice the halted CV Shinano and CVL Ryuho.

Spoiler (click to show/hide)

Lots of fancy toys being built...

EDIT: CVE Unyo down the line looks OK, its a small vessel but it has same flank speed with the Junyo class fleet carriers... Once it comes out I'll move Taiyo's current training groups on it.

[Zrk2]

Oooh, shiny toys. Let's go play with them!