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Those naval losses by the IJN will be the biggest win from the campaign because they can't be replaced. You should get superiority in the Indian Ocean and then South China Sea which will translate into you controlling the tempo. Europe can wait, especially until you know what is happening in the East.
Chamberlain's speech would have been more impressive without that typo.
It's good to see the Japanese pushed out of the Middle East and Ceylon. The British Navy still rules the seas.
I never noticed that before; good catch!
Thank you!
That's very kind of you.
Damn right it is!
I might have actually literally squealed with delight when I sunk Kaga. The transports were almost as exciting.
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Excellent work bleeding the Japanese. I know the loss of all those ships is going to hurt them, but do you have any sense whether the loss of those divisions is going to have an impact on them?
Sneaky AI invading through Pondicherry! But in the end, just another graveyard for Japanese troops.
If you go east and liberate Singapore, do you have enough troops to defend it?
Sneaky AI invading through Pondicherry! But in the end, just another graveyard for Japanese troops.
If you go east and liberate Singapore, do you have enough troops to defend it?
Between the divisions I wiped out and the ones roaming around in East Africa, I don't think they have any more marine divisions. I'm not sure. I don't remember how many they start with, or how many they're likely to build, but I can account for twelve at the moment (eight of which are gone).
As far as defending Singapore... that's a really good point that I hadn't considered. However, my initial thought was simply to continually press forward and go from there. They can't land troops if I sink all their ships, after all.
<bows> Thank you.
I might try to play some tonight; we'll see how it goes!
And Japan are continuing with their crazy landings that seem to pay off badly. Meanwhile Germany seems to be staying in calm, be careful so they don't start doing some sneaky Pondicherry-attacks too.
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Up to speed again and a fine read it was!
Too bad France could not resist the Italians but on the upside, it's Italian territory and not German. All in all it is good to see you keep your cool and the UK is doing great, even knocking out those Japanese landings (man they can be annoying). Keep it up!
Too bad France could not resist the Italians but on the upside, it's Italian territory and not German. All in all it is good to see you keep your cool and the UK is doing great, even knocking out those Japanese landings (man they can be annoying). Keep it up!
<raises hand> Oh, yes, I've been there at times. I'll let out a whoop that makes my wife crack up.
And Japan are continuing with their crazy landings that seem to pay off badly. And Germany seems to be staying in calm, be careful so they don't start doing some sneaky Pondicherry-attacks too.
Germany has honestly been almost silent this game. They're waiting for something, or maybe not?
Up to speed again and a fine read it was!
Too bad France could not resist the Italians but on the upside, it's Italian territory and not German. All in all it is good to see you keep your cool and the UK is doing great, even knocking out those Japanese landings (man they can be annoying). Keep it up!
That reminds me! If you're just joining the AAR, I've fixed the TOC so you can get caught up.
<raises hand> Oh, yes, I've been there at times. I'll let out a whoop that makes my wife crack up.
Wives and their impact on our gaming lives. :looks furtively around to make sure she can't read this:
I'm thinking I'll start working on an update tonight, or perhaps tomorrow. I don't know if my session last night will be for one update or two (I got up to 1941). I spent a good chunk of that update on speed 5. In any case, you'll get an update in the next 48 hours!
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Chapter 8: A tale of two islands, a rock, and a continent
((Author's note: I'm going to cut down on the amount of total naval losses I report in the AAR. One, it takes up a lot of words, and two, the Japanese/Germans/Italians are very good at sinking. Only truly significant losses will appear in pictures; I might mention other losses off hand, but no more than that.))
Lieutenant Commander 'Silent Bill' Harris was looking forward to seeing SIngapore again. He'd been there once with his father, who had been a member of the civil service. Yet that wasn't the only reason he was in a particularly good mood. The HMS Ark Royal also carried a number of civilians to help get the radar station up and running, one of whom was a particularly lovely young girl named Alice Digby. She and Harris had met during an officer's mess and they'd hit it off. Of course, thoughts of young Alice could not entirely occupy his mind, and he had a job to do. The invasion task force arrived in the Straits of Malacca on 23 April 1940. The following day, Admiral Harwood's Chinese Fleet returned to Rangoon for repairs and to get the latest radio traffic. For Harris, everything was focused on the initial landing at Teluk Anson. A Japanese fleet tried to attack the unloading Marine transports and lost a cruiser for their trouble and a destroyer division a few hours later. By 26 April, the Marines had landed (unopposed) and made for the city of Kuala Lumpur. The Gurkhas landed as well and moved north.
28 April was a huge day for the Royal Navy, as two Japanese battleships went to the bottom of the straits of Malacca.
A second landing at Kota Bharu placed the British in prime position to completely secure the southern portion of the Malay Peninsula en route to recapturing Singapore. However, even Harris' most diligent scout patrols could not spot any Japanese soldiers.
By 21 May 1940, almost all of the peninsula had been taken except for Singapore.
Brigadier Wallace Graham, back in London, had spent most of the early months of 1940 trying to get transferred to a new field assignment. He liked planning and staff work, to a certain extent, but he missed combat. He'd shared a few pints with the new Lieutenant of Marines, Larry Quentin, and commiserated over their misfortunes. Graham begged and pleaded with Sir John Gort until, finally, he got what he craved: a chance to return to his old unit, the Royal Hussars, as a brigade commander. The Royal Navy had, for the first time during the war, split up the old transport division into two units of six flotillas, enough to carry an Armored Corps. The Chinese Fleet was given charge of the flotillas that would carry the Armored Corps to its final destination. Sir John Gort, this time, was ordered to remain in London and continue to conduct the war effort from there. [1] The original plan was to sail to Malta, pick up supplies, and then continue moving to East Africa. That was the plan, anyway. The Italians had their own ideas.
The invasion of Malta was entirely unexpected. While the Japanese had sunk the odd ship and the Germans had been murderous toward British convoys, no good Royal Navy man thought anything of the Italian fleet. Some sorties by fleets in the Mediterranean were able to drive off the Italian fleet supplying the troops, but they had delivered their charges to the shores of Malta. Graham and his Armored Corps were told to be ready to unload as fast as possible and support the defense of the island. Fortunately, the Maltese Garrison defeated the invasion before they could arrive, which permitted the Chinese Fleet to continue east.
On 4 June , the operation to retake Singapore started; however, given that the Japanese had, in fact, left no defenses, this was one of the most bloodless operations of the war.
Six days later, the fleets moored at Singapore for some desperately needed rest, relaxation, and repairs. Alice Digby and her friends almost instantly had the radar station back up and running, which would be invaluable if another Japanese attack came. Brigadier Graham and the First Armored Corps, meanwhile, arrived at their destination on 12 June. General Hobart, who doubled as corps commander with Sir John back in London, first ordered a direct assault on Mombasa.
Unlike Malaysia, however, the Japanese were prepared to resist landings in Africa. Rather than risk a bloody operation, Hobart called off the attack and, instead, landed further up the coast at Lamu.
Brigadier Graham approved of the decision, but privately worried. In a note in his diary, he explained why he was concerned.
Diary of Brigadier Wallace Graham said:
Although Graham's attention remained on Africa, the news that Italy was trying, again, to take Malta was also a source of concern. If Malta did fall, there were no Marines available to retake the island, which meant any operation would be extremely bloody. He didn't have much time to worry, though, because on 19 June, the corps had firmly established their beachhead and were rolling to the southwest to take Mombasa.
Back in the Far East, another British island was under assault; the Japanese had not quite given up on the strategic value of Ceylon, and were attacking the island. Unfortunately, with most of the British Far East Fleet still recuperating in Singapore, they were able to land almost effortlessly.
Worse still, on 27 June, Malta fell; the Italians had brought a far larger force this time, and even with their fleet wracked by British shells, they still landed and occupied the island.
Lieutenant Commander Harris tried to do his best to understand that the nature of infantry battle was not his forte, yet he could not help writing an exasperated letter to his girlfriend, still in Singapore.
William Harris to Alice Digby said:Dearest Alice,
I hope you are safe in Singapore. We've sunk a few ships, but the Japanese beachhead at Colombo is quite firm. Yet...
I don't know what to do. I've talked to the Commander of our CAGs here, but he's told me to keep my nose out of the Marines' business. Yet how could they decide not to attack Colombo in force?
I understand the principle: landings at Galle will allow them to more effectively isolate and outflank the Japanese at Colombo. I get that. What I can't seem to get my head round is that they aren't dealing with only Marines, but hardened infantry prepared to defend their position at all costs. I think we've gotten used to the idea that the Japanese won't fight to defend their possessions. In this case, at least, we seem to be sadly mistaken. I hold out hope that we will triumph regardless, but I do not have much optimism.
Almost simultaneously, the operations to retake Ceylon and Malta began. In fact, Malta came only nine hours after Ceylon began. Harris's predictions proved to be correct, unfortunately. The long voyage from Singapore without much time to rest meant that the Marines didn't have their full load of ammunition, which caused serious problems.
However, taking a page from the Japanese playbook, where quantity meant more than quality in the right circumstances, three full infantry divisions made preparations to retake Malta, divisions that had formerly been tasked with defending the Suez Canal. [2]
So, while things looked better and better at Malta, they looked worse and worse at Ceylon.
By early August 1940, two Marine divisions were isolated and out of supplies.
A few days later, they had no choice but to surrender: 8 full brigades of Marines would not see home again until after the war. However, the same supply situation in Africa improved markedly, with the landing of infantry to secure the port of Mombasa.
Furious with the news at the battle of Galle, Brigadier Wallace made it his mission to punish the Japanese formations in East Africa, as they pushed further into the interior. Back in Ceylon, a miraculous victory and rescue operation extricated the other two divisions of the Marine Corps from harm.
One armored division captured the completely undefended Mogadishu, ensuring even more supplies would flow to British forces.
Back in London, David James spent most of his days bored to tears; as primary liaison for the various governments-in-exile operating out of the United Kingdom, he heard the same complaints over and over again -- more money, more supplies, why aren't you landing in France, don't you care about your allies, etc. He just heard them in different languages. The latest talk around the watercooler was about Bulgaria's pressure on Romania; some people considered that a sign that Hitler might be turning his attention to the east.
Yet the news that had everybody quaking was the appearance of two fearsome German battleships, the Tirpitz and the Bismarck. The Royal Navy poured fire into each ship, forcing them to limp back to Italian-occupied Brittany, where they were bombed night and day by a wing of tactical bombers.
Brigadier Wallace Graham heard the same reports, and silently offered a prayer to the Royal Navy to sink those old battlewagons. His brother worked in civilian shipping out of Plymouth, a mere stone's throw away from Brittany. However, he kept his attention on the task at hand: the capture of Dar Es Salaam, the final Japanese controlled port in Africa (apart from Madagascar). Two armored divisions remained farther north to clean up any Japanese stragglers and recover all the British territory they could. It was up to the Royal Hussars, Second Armored, and a pair of infantry divisions to capture Dar Es Salaam and move to the west to eliminate the remaining Japanese divisions in Africa.
The fighting in Africa was hard and brutal. The key to British success was their overpowering advantage in men and armor; the Japanese, however, had the benefit of a river to screen Graham's men and the extreme difficulty of using infantry, instead of specially trained Marines, to assault the port. But there were no Marines, at least not yet.
David James, like every other Briton, sat around the radio for the news of the 1940 Elections. His father, Dr. Eliot James, spent most of the past six months campaigning, hard, both for his own seat as an MP from Oxford and for his friend Neville Chamberlain in particular. He did not need to worry: Chamberlain, as the man who stood up to Hitler and who'd seen a mostly successful prosecution of the war, won in a landslide. However, there were still some changes. Sir John Simon became the new Minister of Supply, for his talent in securing unexpected resources, allowing Chamberlain to focus more on day-to-day administration. [3] Viscount Templewood replaced Stanley Baldwin at MI5, although most observers considered that a wash in terms of talent. The Chief of the Navy was now Sir Dudley Pound and Sir Cyril Newall was head of the RAF; each of these appointments came because their forebears retired.
Dr. James won his seat as well, and the Prime Minister, in gratitude, asked him to head up the Official Military Statistics Bureau, which suited the economist just fine. David was also given a promotion; he became the #3 man in Washington DC, tasked in trying to ascertain American intent regarding the World War and securing supply contracts wherever he could.
Although Brigadier Graham was pleased as well, he wouldn't get the news until a week later, when he and his men finally secured Dar Es Salaam after a grueling eighteen days of battle. They wasted no time in breaking out, either.
Alice Digby also nodded with satisfaction upon hearing of Neville Chamberlain's re-election. She record that in her diary, as well as some other notes about the war in the Far East.
Diary of Alice Digby said:14 November: We at the radar station had ourselves a bit of a party today, after hearing about Mr. Chamberlain and his reelection. I could not be more pleased, and neither is Daddy. He is the man to win this war, and that's a fact!
24 November: Heard good news in Africa. My dearest Billy knows some Brigadier chap there; he speaks very highly of the chap, so I must wish him well, as I do all of our lads in uniform.
29 November: We detected what we thought was an exercise, but was in fact a Japanese landing task force. They've dropped off men in Teluk Anson; I know we are safe here in Singapore, with the Gurkhas watching over us, but I fear for Billy if the Japanese can so easily sneak past them. Awful news about Ceylon; why won't these beastly Japanese give up?
4 December: Heard from Billy. They've already got Marines countering the Japanese! He's flown a few bombing runs against their positions; he hasn't seen a single Marine, even in close air support. How strange! Perhaps they are learning from our moves in Malta?
7 December: Billy's been promoted to full Commander! I am so proud of him. He spotted a submarine's periscope from the deck of the Ark Royal and, rather than interrupt the sleep of his men, sunk it by himself. That will teach those rotters!
11 December: I am so impressed with these Marine chaps. They responded so quickly to our distress calls, and they've already isolated the Japanese from shore. They'll retake Kuala Lumpur any day now!
30 December: Billy promises me that he and his men have sunk almost every transport in the Japanese Navy. I think that's an exaggeration, but it's sweet how he worries. Those Gurkhas are pitching in on the peninsula, helping the Marines eliminate these two divisions of infantry. I think the opposition shall have a very unpleasant New Year, and rightfully so!
In the wee hours of 1 January 1941, Dr. James was busy at his typewriter, composing a report on the industrial production and destruction of the United Kingdom in 1940.
Although, like most British citizens, he hoped the war would end swiftly, his work was a challenge for the first time in years, and so part of him was not so eager to lose it. In any case, even the most optimistic predictions suggested the war would last well into 1941.
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[1] Unintentional on my part; I'd forgotten that HQ units had weight, and six transports can only carry 240 weight. That's enough to carry a full Marine corps, no problem, including HQ, but not quite enough to take along the HQ with the armored corps. [2] I desperately wished that I'd build two Marine Corps and made them my first priority at this stage. Still, with the Red Sea completely under my control and the Mediterranean mostly quiet (except Malta), I feel pretty comfortable stripping the divisions.
[3] I think the Ministry of Supply is the best WWII equivalent to Armaments Minister, as it exists in HOI3. Somebody can correct me if I'm wrong.
Losing those two Marine divisions hurt. Fortunately, I did finish a second full Marine Corps near the end of 1940, and I've two replacement divisions on the way, but it still hurt to lose those divisions. Running out of gas for those armored divisions also gave me cold sweats, especially because they ran out mere hours before they would have taken Mombasa on their own. Those infantry worked well as Marines in a pinch, although I'm pleased to have more troops at my disposal now. The Malta situation could have been a whole lot worse if the Italians had poured men into it; fortunately, I was able to get my fleets in position. I've been patrolling those waters a lot more closely ever since. My most inspired tactical move was to split up my transports into two groups, and attach them to the Chinese Fleet and the Mediterranean Battleships respectively. This particular period gave me a new appreciation for how easily Escort Carriers lose their CAGs. I've got a brand new Fleet Carrier with nothing to do because it has no CAGs.
I did lose a couple cruisers, but I sank many, many more Japanese ships. I could practically taste sinking the two German battleships; at least they've been hiding in port ever since. I wish I had naval bombers (some are in the queue), but the tactical bombers are good port bombers in a pinch. I'm pretty dominating the skies around the English Channel, but once "Our Finest Hour" runs out next year, that might change. Fortunately, I should also have some new fighters rolling off the production lines next year, and these more advanced thanks to technical improvements. I also got Superior Firepower, so I've got some SPARTy and anti tank brigades in production to supplement my armored and infantry divisions, respectively.
Strategically, my next move will be to retake Ceylon and keep pushing in Africa. If I finish with Ceylon quickly, I'll take Sumatra, just because I've spotted some divisions there with radar and I think Japan is using it as a place to land troops on the Malay Peninsula. I might also cleanup Indonesia as a whole.
I will try to squeeze in some playing time early next week, but we shall see, my friends.
Until then!- 1
It's too bad about those marines you lost, but at least you're reclaiming most of East Africa and pushing into Southeast Asia. Your navy seems to be holding its own quite well against everyone.
I don't have much experience with the game, but I imagine that is an awful lot of convoys you lost.
I don't have much experience with the game, but I imagine that is an awful lot of convoys you lost.
Jesus, who gave the AI crack cocaine? I've never seen Japan or Italy be this aggressive and Germany this timid! O_O
There is indeed a big fight between you and Japan! Any idea if the US might get drawn into the conflict soon, with Japan being so aggressive?
Now you see why I mentioned NAV bombers back in the beginning. Still, TACs do well, and you can end up with some air commanders who have 7+ ranks due to hitting the Japanese fleets in port. Keep hammering at those German battleships, too. You'll get them.
It's too bad about those marines you lost, but at least you're reclaiming most of East Africa and pushing into Southeast Asia. Your navy seems to be holding its own quite well against everyone.
I don't have much experience with the game, but I imagine that is an awful lot of convoys you lost.
You're telling me. It makes the problem of IC twice as bad, because I have to spend a good chunk of it rebuilding convoys that almost automatically get sunk. I'm weeding out submarines, but it's a slow, painful process.
Wouldn't cocaine make the AI more aggressive? I admit I am not up on such things.
In all seriousness, Germany being somewhat passive makes sense, yet you'd think they'd jump Poland by now. The Soviets have left the Balts entirely alone.
We are, sadly, not close to seeing US intervention. A couple events have fired to bring them closer to war, but without a DOW by Japan, I don't see them joining soon.
Thanks!
You bolster my courage to fight another day.
NAVs are in the queue, but well, see comment #1. Lots of things are in the queue.
The Baltics situation is understandable since Soviets IRL invaded under MolotovRibentrop agreement. Without it, Germany might get involved.
You know, I could have sworn they did it, but maybe they didn't. We'll have to see when I play tomorrow!