UV AAR Curval vs Swoop

[Curval]

Swoop and I were conversing through our squad group e-mail about our game.  Soon everyone started asking what we were talking about and what happened.

I wrote this wee little AAR and figured I would shame myself by posting it here.  It will at least save me from repeating it to banana.

...sniff...sniff

Scenario 17:

Swoop was extremely aggressive in this game.

I had landed troops at Tulagi, Gili Gili and Guadalcanal (Lunga).  The first two loads of troops successfully took their objectives.  The third took one turn too long.  Swoop had sent reinforcements to Lunga and he unloaded a pile of troops before I could make my attack.  When I did so his troops were able to sucessfully defend.

To counter Swoop's moves I sent my carrier force south from Truk and positioned them to the North East of Lunga.  Swoop's aggression then really came into play.  His carriers were not even trying to hide.  He sent two separate strikes from his ships on my force at Guadalcanal significantly weakening my forces there and threatening to halt my advance.  At this point I did not think Swoop had spotted my carriers so I gingerly sent them a bit closer to Guadalcanal in the hopes of catching him launching strikes against my troops...at which point I had every intention of striking him.  But, my stupid carrier commander launched a strike raid against his ships in the Lunga port totally alerting Swoop as to where my fleet was.  Incredibly Swoop was unfazed by their presence and he sent his carriers right at mine.

His bombers hit both my heavy front line carriers..Shokaku and Ziukaku.  Both took a pounding.  For some unknown reason my CAP was not in place correctly...a measley group of 5 zeros were in the air to intercept.  They could not prevent the strikes from getting through.

My carrier commander quickly got his finger out of his butt and launched strikes of his own agaisnt Swoops carriers.  Of course Swoop did not have the same difficulty with his CAP which ripped into my Vals and Kates.  A few got through and got a couple of bomb and torpedos into his carriers, but it was no-where near enough to prevent air ops continuing, let alone sink any of them.

As this was happening Swoops land based bombers caught a couple of my supply ships up north and sent them to the bottom.  This will have consequences later in the game, for sure.

Then both carriers fleets broke off...well, mine kinda tried to limp off...and guess what..Swoop had a cruiser group in the area to chase down the remanents of my battered fleet.  He hasn't seen it yet, but there is no denying what happened.  His cruisers caught a screen force I had set up in the hopes of distracting any further air strikes, of a heavy cruiser and a destroyer at night and destroyed them.  The cruiser took 85 shell hits alone!  The same group then caught one of my carriers limping away.  Let's just say that it is now being kept afloat by an air bubble or two.  Given the lack of Japanese damage control I would say with confidence that it isn't going to make it to port.

Swoop is very keen to continue this game...it is a long running scenario and anything can happen in later months/years.  I have lost some of my enthusiasm, but will continue to play on despite being significantly handicapped for at least a month of game time.  Basically, without some serious luck I have put my side at an unrecoverable disadvantage.

War is hell.

Curval

[Wanker]

Ouch.

Well, now that you've lost your CV assets, you're offensive capablity is going to be reduced tremendously. The question is, how badly damaged are his CV's? If both American CV's took at least a couple bombs or torps, then they may be damaged enough to keep them in Brisbane for awhile.

Your one ace in the hole is knowing that if he has fortified Lunga with troops from Nomea, then that means that Nomea, Port Efate and Luganville are either very lightly defended, or totally undefended. Same goes for Gili-Gili. If he sent Australian troops to Gili-Gili, then Port Moresby is not heavily defended. The Allies simply don't have the troops at the beginning of scenario 17 to cover all the bases. And you will be receiving the 2nd and 38th divisions within a month.

If his CV's are still operational, and yours aren't, then I'm afraid that you're pretty much already on the defensive, unless you can find a way to use your surface forces to your advantage.

If I were you, I'd concede the defeat and beg to start over, this time playing scenario 19 with Japanese ship commitment set to at least 140% and Allied to 100%.  

Or you can just wait to finish our Coral Sea scenario, and you and I can start a scenario 19.  

[Swoop]

Concede defeat?


Give over........Curv can never concede, he's a Death Rattler, Death Rattlers fight to the last.

The only downside is he's fighting another Death Rattler.



Anyway, the US CVs aren't *that* badly damaged, a month or so in Brisbane will have em back to operational status.  However, the carrier air wing was almost completely decimated during the attacks.  I may have 2 CVs still but I don't have anything left to fly from them so Rabaul is still a no go area for me, those Bettys and Nells are damn dangerous.

This game is still very much on.

[Curval]

Originally posted by Swoop
However, the carrier air wing was almost completely decimated during the attacks.  I may have 2 CVs still but I don't have anything left to fly from them

It must have been the ack that did this to your Air Arm Swoop.  I only had 5 zeros defending my carriers for some reason.

I did not see the kind of devastation that you describe...fog of war I assume.

I'm not quitting...

I shall fight him on the land, I shall fight him in the air and on the sea.  I will NEVER give up.

[Swoop]

 I know that when reading the battle report your attention was drawn to the huge casualty list from the fleet......but if you scroll down a little further you can see the air wings losses.  

Pretty much my entire dive bomber force is gone and I think just 1 torpedo plane survived.

Even when I get replacements I have to train up the green pilots......



P.S.  Talkin of which, you home yet? Next turn!  I still havn't seen the surface action combat report.

[StSanta]

Swoop vs Planet Earth: swoop squished

/too much skydiving.

Swoop is a very nice handle though. As is Hangtime. Those guys were inspired when they came up with 'um.

[Hangtime]

Not inspired.

stoned.

in the extreme.





...whups, come to think of it, i guess it's the same thing.

[Swoop]

Hang!  Your back!  Where ya bin buddy?


And I was actually pretty stoned when I came up with it......how did you know?

[Curval]

Stop talking to Hangtime and finnish your turn.

[Swoop]

I did.  Your go.

[Hangtime]

yup.

stoned.

still.

hasn't affected my appitite, but they say it has a negative cumulative effect on short term memory loss.

now, what was the subject?

[Curval]

Hang in there Hang.  What is your e-mail addy by the way...curious about a few things related to RC planes.

Swoop...I'm off to work now..latest turn is in your hands.

Wanna tell these guys about recent developments?  

[Swoop]

Well lessee here.

USN subs caught and sank both damaged IJN CVs.

US Army forces fought off the Japanese attempt at taking Henderson field......are about to retake the port on the island north of Henderson and also beat off the Japanese at Gili Gili.

However, Japanese long range torpedo bombers have been causing havoc with the US transport fleets, several APs have been sunk and many damaged so far.

[Curval]

Originally posted by Swoop
are about to retake the port on the island north of Henderson

hmmm...not if I have anything to say about it.  Your first attack failed after my crusiers ran the slot (twice) and sank your transports unloading troops.

Swoop had withdrawn his carriers and cruisers momentarily...they are back now.    So you may yet take Henderson, but keeping it will be a different story.