Blog navigation workaround

UPDATE, 2025-06-16 08:00 UTC

Sorry, folks, but I find myself unable to further pursue this endeavor. I'm also unable to moderate comments so I'm proactively disabling them.

UPDATE, 2024-12-04 23:15 UTC

Greetings

A new "chapter" is now available, mission 4 "Marshalls-Gilberts Raid".

First and last posts are now just stubs, the lists at just five missions in were getting rather long to scroll through. I may go back and insert stubs for those first five missions, haven't decided yet.

Just in case, when on the first or last post lists you will have to click on the title of the post for which mission you want to read to actually go to it.

Hope you enjoy.

UPDATE, 2024-11-04 18:45 UTC

Greetings

A new "chapter" is now available, mission 3 "Battle of Bataan".

First and last posts are now just stubs, the lists at just five missions in were getting rather long to scroll through. I may go back and insert stubs for those first five missions, haven't decided yet.

Just in case, when on the first or last post lists you will have to click on the title of the post for which mission you want to read to actually go to it.

Hope you enjoy.

UPDATE, 2024-10-07 22:30 UTC

Greetings

A new "chapter" is now available, mission 2 "War Plan Orange 3".

First and last posts are now just stubs, the lists at just five missions in were getting rather long to scroll through. I may go back and insert stubs for those first five missions, haven't decided yet.

Just in case, when on the first or last post lists you will have to click on the title of the post for which mission you want to read to actually go to it.

Hope you enjoy.

UPDATE, 2024-09-14 7:45 UTC

Greetings

A new "chapter" is now available, my thoughts on the Specialisations technology tree.

First and last posts will now be just stubs, the lists at just five missions in were getting rather long to scroll through. I may go back and insert stubs for those first five missions, haven't decided yet.

Hope you enjoy.

NEW CONTENT, 2024-08-11 19:15 UTC

Hello

A new mission (Pearl Harbor) is being published one post daily starting today.

This is a test to see if the problem I encountered earlier is related to publishing multiple posts within a short time interval.

There will be five posts for this mission (so five days) and comments on all but the last post will be disabled.

That is only for my ease of management. It is a lot simpler to look for comments on (now) five posts than it would be to scroll through (up to now) fifty-five.

If you absolutely feel that you must comment right now regarding the Pearl Harbor mission, please use this post to do so.  UPDATE: Last post is up as of 2024-08-15 12:00 UTC.

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PREVIOUS CONTENT, STILL VALID

Welcome.

Somehow the newer/older posts buttons were getting confused when I added missions 3 and 4. Mission 1 seems to be working properly. I will try to resolve this problem. Truly sorry for the inconvenience, it is as frustrating as it was unexpected.

Update, 2024-08-01 19:00 GMT (Summertime?)

Added labels (tags?) to mission 1 posts, please check the bottom of the page. "First post" should lead you to the first post (eventually of each mission) without needing to cycle through all posts (18 on the first mission alone) from last to first. "Last post" ditto for the last post which is the one with comments enabled. "Boot Camp Island" brings up all first mission posts in reverse order. "First" and "Last" will eventually have to be refined when I start to add U.S. Pacific missions to the four Boot Camp ones but I'll cross that bridge when the time comes.

Update, 2024-08-02 9:00 UTC

Mission 2 (Island Hopping) has labels and seems to be working as intended.

Update, 2024-08-03 9:00 UTC

Mission 3 (Fleet Command) has labels and seems to be working. So far what seems to work best is to use the "First post" label. You will then have to click on the TITLE of the post for the mission you want to read (you can still read the first post before). From there the "Newer posts"/"Older posts"  buttons seems to work WITHIN the mission label. The mission-specific labels are listing all the posts for that mission (in reverse order i.e. last to first). Again truly sorry for the inconvenience and for forcing readers to go through these hoops.

Update, 2024-08-04 11:00 UTC

Mission 4 (War Games) has labels and seems to be working. Whatever was broken isn't fixed but there's at least a clunky workaround with the addition of labels.

Update, 2024-08-05 10:00 UTC

"Campaign remarks" is up. Single post labeled "First" and "Last" (because comments). There shouldn't be more content for a month or two. I've already played "Pearl Harbor" but it will take some time to edit.

Update, 2024-08-10 23:00 UTC

I'm doing some minor cosmetic changes i.e. changing the font type (to Georgia) and size (to Medium) in order to improve readability. This is a work in progress, please bear with me.

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 9

This is the last post for "Marshalls-Gilberts Raid".

It is deliberately just a stub to facilitate navigation on the "Last Post" list.

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As promised, comments ARE enabled in this final post. Please be civil and on topic.

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 8

Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Debriefing, February 26th, 1942

Figure 1 - Final Turn Overview

Figure 1 is the final Turn Overview pop-up. All secondary objectives have been accomplished and there's $258 in the bank for next mission.

Figure 2 - Cashflow report

Figure 2 is the cashflow report. I spent $90 more than I had available at the start of the mission on activations and purchases and there were 2 Naval CP and 4 Air CP to spare throughout most of the mission. That's what I mean when I point out that "War Economy" and "Female Labor" are good to have when you have the resources to actually flesh out those extra Command Points.

I could have repaired damage on my surface units via the Support Ship but that would entail losing hard earned experience. Thus only air units were repaired and the bulk of the expense was on fighters. Half of the $28 spent on auxiliary fighters' repairs will be refunded. By the end of the mission repairing aircraft had become such a given that I spent $46 repairing my fighters on the last turn. That was wasteful as I'm going to purchase "Pilot Rotation" just before the next mission and that grants discounted repairs.

Figure 3 - Unit performance

Figure 3 is the unit performance report. Some things of note:

a) Yorktown and Enterprise earn 470 and 450 XP; as per the manual, that's just from landing aircraft;

b) Minneapolis earns 2'001 XP while Plunket manages 1'500; the cash-for-experience mechanic isn't necessarily the automatic best choice, as you are left with less resources to purchase or activate units; it is debatable whether I would have saved the resources spent on 5th "Hickam" Sqdn to buy VF4 earlier or if I would have spent it on repairs during "War Plan Orange 3" or "Battle for Bataan";

c) VB2 and VO1 weren't fully repaired because they were still airborne by the end of the mission otherwise I might be regretting those repairs too;

d) VO1's XP sent me on a wild goose chase: I didn't remember losing and reviving it in this run (I didn't); turns out it ended the Tutorial without any experience and when activating it it earned the "Flight School" bonus; VO2 ended the Tutorial with 88XP and was thus deemed ineligible;

e) as there was only one (light) cruiser on the map, seeing three cruisers on the kill roster might seem strange: Support Ships are classed as cruisers; similarly Gunboats tally as destroyers, Supply Ships as transports and land units aboard transports count as transports until the final killing blow when they are tallied as land units (e.g. SS198 Tambor);

f) Minneapolis kills a fighter (at Maloelap) and Niblack kills a strategic bomber (at Mili), VB2 heavily damages both a fighter and a strategic bomber (at Makin) that were killed by VF3; that's how one can deduce which aircraft (types) are inside hangars if they haven taken off.

Figure 4 - A peek behind the curtains

Figure 4 is the Strategic Map at the Deployment Phase with the Fog-of-War lifted. There's datasheets for JP units at that time, I didn't bother with the 25mm AA Gun that is deployed at "Wake up call". I also didn't bother with the location of IIRC an Infantry '41 escorted by a DD Kagero that show up at the southern edge of the map (SS198 Tambor's second kill). I used as unit ID plates the respective tooltips from the map but I neglected to screenshot the one for Hangars. Those are highlighted with the large yellow squares. Smaller gold squares mark the positions of the "Wake up call" AA Guns.

Final thoughts

This was a fun mission to play. So much so that I played it a number of times afterward while I wasn't (am not) tempted to replay WPO3 or Bataan. Not to say that I wasn't worried when I kept killing aircraft and destroying depots but the ships' sunk counter was stuck at eight.

Lifting the FoW at the end of each turn and seeing the JP ships that start at Kwajalein move steadily South towards the exit points was disconcerting. I didn't notice any ship actually leaving so maybe that was an option discarded by the designers. Once they reached the bottom left corner and started moving North again I relaxed a bit and trusted that the designers weren't intent on setting the player to fail.

Another disconcerting moment was the JP Infantry landing at Wotje. One less ship available to be sunk. Then IIRC SS198 Tambor spots a new Infantry plus escort at the South edge of the map. At the time I thought it was triggered by the landing but it appears it is a fixture.

I mentioned before that I was worried about my ships' and aircraft ability to deal damage in a timely manner. I didn't keep records (other than the screenshots) but it didn't feel like I was unduly delayed by lack of firepower.

I think that's it for now, on to "Coral Sea". Hope you will join me there.

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 7

Kwajalein, February 19th-25th, 1942 (Turns 19-25)

By February 19th the destroyers of TGW are in range of Kwajalein and all ships start to pound the 25mm AA to clear the way for the fighters. These welcome the opportunity to score some air-to-air kills against the Ki-43 and B5N2 (T) (Figure 1).

Figure 1 - Kwajalein, February 19th

The next day/turn the AA Gun is no more, the Fuel Depot will quickly follow suit and the auxiliary fighters twiddle their thumbs while my core VF3 and 4 rack up some experience (Figure 2).

Figure 2 - Kwajalein, February 20th

February 21st marks the completion of two secondary objectives:

Figure 3 - JP aircraft objective achieved

JP aircraft (Figure 3) and

Figure 4 - Fuel Depots objective achieved

Fuel Depots (Figure 4)

Figure 5 - Cleaning up

are no more. TGW sets its sights on yet another AA Gun and VXB1 and VB2 found a target Northwest of Jabor (a Gunboat?) (Figure 5).

At this point only eight of the required ships were sunk. Some helpful JP destroyers, gunboats and a Support Ship that have been loitering along the West edge of the map oblige by coming into range of  either TGW or VB2/VXB1. I couldn't find the energy to edit those screenshots and I feel it would add little value. The secondary objective is reached as per Figure 6 on Turn 23

Figure 6 - JP ships objective achieved

and a U.S. victory is tallied on Turn 26 (Figure 7).

Figure 7 - Victory

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 6

Wotje and Kwajalein, February 15th-18th, 1942 (Turns 15-18)

Figure 1 - Wotje and Kwajalein, February 15th

By February 15th TGW is in range of Wotje, so much so that the Supply Ship in port is targeted and brought down to 4HP. The destroyers that hit Jabor have rejoined the Group but not quite in time to engage any targets just yet. Yorktown and Enterprise's air groups are just East of Namu ready to engage the Coastal Gun, minus VF4 who has just taken off slightly South of Maloelap. Over at Kwajalein airfield the remaining JP aircraft are all airborne (Figure 1).

Figure 2 - Kwajalein and Namu, February 16th

On the next day/turn VB2 and VXB1 have hit the Coastal Gun under the watchful eyes of VXF1 and 2. VF3 has taken the bold move of hitting the JP torpedo bomber in range of a 25mm AA. VO1 was hit by the Ki-43 Hayabusa and his hanging on to dear life (Figure 2).

Figure 3 - Wotje, February 16th

Over at Wotje the Supply Ship is sunk and the Fuel Depot will soon be destroyed (Figure 3).

Figure 4 - February 17th

One more day/turn and TGW moved closer to Kwajalein. The CA try to assist in response to the JP bombers moving forward but with dismal results. The fighters, all four of them, achieve much more. VB2 destroyed the Coastal Gun and DD430 Eberle remained behind to pulverize the Wotje Fuel Depot (Figure 4).

Figure 5 - February 18th

It is now February 18th, all JP aircraft are landed at Kwajalein airfield, TGW's CA are in range and eager to finish the fighters job. The fighters are ready to intercept any JP aircraft that dares to take-off, the dive-bombers returned to the carriers to refuel and repair before going hunting for ships to sink (Figure 5).

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 5

 SS198 Tambor, high seas, February 10th-16th (Turns 10-16)

Figure 1 - US Submarines arrive...

On February 10th two Tambor-class submarines join in at the southwestern edge of the map (Figure 1). Their arrival wasn't mentioned in our briefing and I feel that the designers meant to correct the player's likely neglect of this area of the map. One is a core unit, the other an auxiliary and both are deployed submerged. The designers also opted for creating a visible area illuminating the 9-strength Infantry aboard a Transport.

Figure 2 - ...and attack...

Both submarines surface, approach the Transport and launch torpedoes for maximum effect. This time the fish work and our "dolphins" don't experience the frustration that haunted their IRL counterparts. The Transport will be engaged with deck guns over the next two turns until sunk (Figure 2).

Four turns later I'm able to test SS198 Tambor's movement characteristics and move under a Transport while submerged. Torpedoes were on cooldown at the time and deck guns were obviously unavailable. The auxiliary Tambor was the unfortunate victim of another test vs a JP Gunboat; enemy ships are in my experience anemic and timid in this mission but it was too much to hope for leaving a surfaced submarine right alongside an actual combat ship. The JP Infantry was torpedoed and sunk in the next (16th) turn (Figure 3).

Figure 3 - ...and attack again

Blue Team, February 16th, 1942 (Turn 16)

The Blue Team has remained passive until now other than some minor twitching by destroyers. It decides to start moving towards Mili and Maloelap Atolls but remains a non-entity throughout the scenario (Figure 4).

Figure 4 - Allied force

Marine Raiders, February 16th, 1942 (Turn 16)

Figure 5 - Marine Raiders

A new type of unit becomes available, Marine Raiders. They are a Special Forces infantry with very specialized usage and totally irrelevant for this mission (Figure 5).

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 4

Jabor, February 5th and 11-12th, 1942 (Turns 5, 11-12)

Figure 1 - A ship at port...

VO1 scouts ahead while TGW is engaged at Mili Atoll and on February 5th spots a 9-strength Supply Ship anchored at Jabor (Figure 1). Note the general location of Jabor as displayed on the (minimap) insert.

Figure 2 - ...is now in Davy Jones' locker.

After dealing with the forces on and around Mili DD429 Livermore and DD431 Plunket are detached and tasked to deal with it, which they do between February 11th and 12th (Figure 2).

Air group, Mili Atoll, February 9th, 1942 (Turn 9)

Figure 3 - First sorties end

By February 9th the air units that dealt with Butaritari Is. land on the carriers. Note the minimal damage inflicted by the 75mm AA and the more substantial one dealt to VXF2 at and around Maloelap (Figure 3).

Maloelap Atoll, February 5th-13th, 1942 (Turns 5-13)

VO2 has been shadowing the Supply Ship and Troop Transport and reaches Maloelap Atoll on February 5th, finding the airfield occupied (grayscale and dated insert on Figure 4).

Figure 4 - Maloelap Atoll

By February 7th the Ki-43 Hayabusa takes off and is engaged by VXF2 (main image, Figure 4).

By February 8th VXF2 and the JP Ki-43 have been dogfighting each other down to 5HP and 8HP respectively when VF4 joins the fray and reduces the Ki-43 to 5 HP (insert, Figure 4).

On February 9th VF4 decides that straffing the landed Ki-43 is pointless (grayscale insert by the February 8th color one) and instead attacks the B5N2 Kanko (T)orpedo bomber at Wotje airfield that was spottted by VO2 alongside a 25mm AA and the Wotje Fuel Depot (dated insert, Figure 4; Figure 6).

On February 10th the B5N2 flew towards Maloelap and VF4 follows suit, inflicting more damage (dated insert, Figure 4).

On February 11th VF4 is too damaged to engage the Ki-43 above Maloelap airfield and continues to harass the B5N2 to good effect. The insert's location is the actual location of the combat.

Figure 5 - TGW reaches Maloelap

By February 12th I ran out of space to place inserts on Figure 4 ;) The B5N2 turned back and the Ki-43 landed at Maloelap airfield. On February 13th VXF1 and VF3 are on their 2nd sortie, engage and destroy the B5N2 (insert, Figure 5). TGW (minus Eberle and Livermore) reach Maloelap and destroy the Ki-43 Hayabusa on the ground (Figure 5).

VO reports, February 9th-13th, 1942 (Turns 9-13)

Figure 6 - Reconnaissance first contact

On February 9th VO2 reaches Wotje (first contact, Figure 6). The grayscale stuff is at the starting position, the slightly pale stuff is in visual range at the midpoint (note the radar blip above the airfield, land terrain requires more "vision points" to uncover) and the full color stuff (25mm AA and B5N2 insert) is in visual range at the end of movement.

Figure 7 - Reconnaissance "shadowing"

Figure 7 (February 12th) illustrates VO2 keeping tabs ("shadowing") on Wotje. Grayscale at beggining and end of turn, full color at midpoint, radar blips and clear images of ships.

Figure 8 - Namu? Atoll

Figure 8 (February 13th) depicts VO1's first contact at what Google calls Namu Atoll. Again grayscale, pale and full colors indicate the relevant movement stages. The AA Gun is a 75mm AA protecting the Coastal Gun that is spotted only by the end of movement. 

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 3

Mili Atoll, February 2-9, 1942 (Turns 2-9)

Mili Atoll is the closest named land mass to the Forward Deployment Zone (FDZ). Task Group Whisky (TGW) sails in line abreast in a South-by-Southwest straight towards it and by the end of February 1st, 1942 is just outside visual range of the under-strength Coastal Gun that VO1 spotted (Figure 1, grayscale). I don't think it is a coincidence that the FDZ is just outside the Coastal Gun 9-tile range or that the maximum 4-tile movement range of ships leaves them just outside of the CG's visual range.

Figure 1 - First strike

On February 2nd VO1 spots the Fuel Depot, the Support Ship and Gunboat (that showed up as radar blips in the previous turn) and the Hangar. TGW swiftly dispatches the Coastal Gun and CA36 Minneapolis starts shelling the Support Ship at the port (Figure 1).

On February 3rd TGW splits its fire between the Support Ship (down to 2HP) and the Hangar (down to 8HP). Even though the Support Ship is a feeble opponent its guns still have a 3-tile range; TGW isn't really equipped to deal with airborne aircraft, the fighter(s) are busy elsewhere and destroying aircraft on the ground is much easier.

Figure 2 - Hangar KO

On February 4th the Hangar is destroyed (it contained one strategic bomber) and the Gunboat is brought down to 5HP (Figure 2).

Figure 3 - Wake up call

On February 5th the JP realize something is happening (Figure 3). In practical terms this means that a number of AA Guns are deployed: a 75mm heavy at Butaritari and one 25mm light each at Mili, Kwajalein and Wotje. TGW sink both the Gunboat and the Support Ship and leave the Fuel Depot at 7HP.

Figure 4 - Fuel Depot KO

On February 6th the Fuel Depot is destroyed and for lack of better targets the AA Gun comes under fire. Hey, the gunners need practice and any aircraft in the area will be somewhat safer (Figure 4).

On February 7th TGW shifts its fire onto a Light Cruiser that left Butaritari Is. on the 2nd leaving it with 8HP. Return fire leaves DD430 Eberle at 6HP.

Figure 5 - Mili Atoll is (almost) no more

On February 8th the Light Cruiser is sunk at the port, under the combined cruisers' guns and destroyers' torpedoes. DD430 Eberle resumes firing on the AA Gun, it will be destroyed on the next turn as TGW heads towards Maloelap (Figure 5).

Butaritari and Makin Is., February 2-7, 1942 (Turns 2-7)

As TGW dealt with Mili Atoll the air groups of CV5 Yorktown and X/CV Enterprise were busy at Buritari and Makin Is.

Figure 6 - Butaitari Is.

VF3 and VB2 were the first to arrive on Turn 2 (grayscale on Figure 6) but out of range to do more than spot an Hangar at Makin airfield, a Light Cruiser and two unidentifiable radar blips (one Gunboat that will scarper off along the South edge of the map towards the Southwest corner and one Supply Ship at the port).

They will hit the Hangar on Turns 3 to 5 and VB2 will join VXB1 and VXF1 on Turn 6 attacking the Supply Ship (Figure 6, main and inserts). On Turn 7 VF3 will attack and sink the Supply Ship and VB2 will attack and destroy the Hangar (one fighter, one strategic bomber).

The Type 88 75mm that is activated on Turn 5 will eventually cause 1HP damage each on VXF1, VF3 and VB3.

Stubbornly hitting the Hangar with VF3 was not the best choice as it could inflict more damage on the Supply Ship. It is even possible (desirable) to hit Butaritary Is. with just VB2 and VF3 who can deal with the Hangar, the Supply Ship and the 75mm AA in one sortie if CV5 sails independently to shorten their return flight. It will take longer and the 75mm AA will have less targets to spread the minimal damage it can cause so losses on the core units will be higher but not crippling. If a Fuel Depot is present at Butaritari it might take two sorties rather than just one.

The radar blip at the top left corner of Figure 6 (Turn 3) is the Light Cruiser spotted on Turn 2 that will be sunk by TGW on Turn 8.

Other events

Figure 7 - Ship ahoy!

VO2 will be deployed near Mili Atoll on Turn 2 and will spot a Supply Ship and a Troop Transport (Infantry '41) triggering the "Ship Ahoy" event (Figure 7). These ships were in radar range at the Deployment Phase but I ignored them, prioritizing Mili and Butaritari. They will sail all the way to Wotje Atoll on the North edge of the map and the Infantry will land. 

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 2

Force composition

As mentioned previously I had $734 at my disposal and 20/15 Naval/Air CPs where to spend them on. As per the briefing "instructions" and after studying the map a combined air and surface force is required, the auxiliary air group doesn't feel sufficient and there are campaign requirements that have to be met.

I will take a page from the playbook of Soren Tjerry, a Youtuber who devotes himself to Panzer Corps I playthroughs and has introduced in his latest run of the Grand Campaign an explicit mention of his understanding of what those requirements are.

Where it pertains to my playthrough of the U.S. Pacific campaign those campaign requirements are:

a) win each individual scenario/mission, that much is pretty obvious;

b) build up a cohesive core force, with minimal deadweight (single or otherwise very limited use units);

c) accumulate experience in my units, as evenly distributed as possible.

What that means for this mission is that I will buy my very first Aircraft Carrier and its air group: CV5 Yorktown ($288, 5 Naval CP), VF3 and VF4 (F4F4 Wildcat fighter, $85, 3 AirCP each), and VB2 (SBD3 Dauntless dive-bomber, $120, 3 AirCP).

I will activate from my imported core CA34 Astoria ($108, 4 NavalCP), DD424 Niblack and DD429 Livermore ($49, 3 NavalCP each), and upgrade DD430 Eberle (from the Pearl Harbor mission) to the Gleaves '41 version ($4, 3 NavalCP).

Also activated from my imported core will be VO1 and VO2, OS2U Kingfisher reconnaissance floatplane ($20 and 1 AirCP each).

VO2 and VF4 will be delayed until Turns 2 and 6 respectively, for lack of funds. All combat aircraft in this mission are new purchases as I will be able to deploy increasing numbers over the next two missions, which will also be more demanding than this one.

Figure 1 - Core deployment

All core units are deployed on the Forward Deployment Zone as per Figure 1. Commanders Joseph Wright (bonus vs. large ships) and Admiral P. Clark (anti-air bonus) are assigned to CA36 Minneapolis and CA34 Astoria respectively.

Figure 2 - Tutorial messages

I am thus spending $723 in the Deployment Phase, $11, 2 Naval CP and 8 (ultimately 4) AirCP remaining. Purchasing my very first Aircraft Carrier triggers a Tutorial Message and spending almost all my funds triggers another (Figure 2).  We already knew Tutorial Messages aren't confined to the Tutorial Campaign.

Fuel Depot locations

At this point I'd like to take my reader(s) on a little detour. I was aware that Edmon's Fuel Depot locations weren't the same as mine in my "Normal" difficulty run. With only those two data points (three with this "Maximum" difficulty run) I couldn't advance a robust explanation. So I did a little experimenting. I keep save files at various points of each mission, namely at the start and at the end of the Deployment Phase, just before pressing the last "End Turn" and more recently I started saving at the Campaign screen before purchasing specialisations. So I loaded the Campaign screen save file twenty different times, started the mission twenty different times and made a record of the three Fuel Depot locations for each of those twenty different times. At some point I started also taking screenshots of the locations. The result of this little endeavor is Figure 3.

Figure 3 - Fuel Depot locations are random

Kwajalein appears to be a fixture, which makes sense as it requires the player to cross the width of the map. The Kwajalein/Maloelap pair is by far the most frequent one but there's a twist: the Fuel Depot may be placed at at least two different tiles at Maloelap and I didn't think to record that variation. Mili Atoll is the third most frequent location, quite helpful as it is the closest to the Forward Deployment Zone. Butaritari shows up about a third of the time and might trick the player into either splitting the surface force or going on a time consuming wild goose chase (it is quite feasible to deal with Butaritari with air units alone). Wotje and Jabor are more or less on a natural path towards Kwajalein and thus don't create troubling delays.

Strategic Map and units' paths

Figure 4 - Unit paths

Figure 4 is what I wanted to provide for "Fleet Command" and didn't have the skill to produce (or the clarity of unit movement). It isn't perfect or even complete (combat aircraft paths aren't included).

Unit locations are indicated by squares with large size squares for each 5th turn. The Carriers merge their paths on Turn 4 and henceforth a single square represents both Carriers and the Support Ship; somewhen between Turn 10 and Turn 15 they stay put at the same location and from Turn 17 onwards they go into a "holding pattern" represented by the lozenge.

Lines generally approximate the path taken except for destroyers (green) and submarines (blue). For these the lines connect contemporary locations i.e. in the same turn. All units tend to be further West than in the previous turn so I don't think it will be too difficult to deduce which turn is represented. Destroyers can also be connected by blue or yellow lines (Turns 4, 17 and 18) when at least one DD is at the same location another occupied in the previous turn. Numbering each turn would help but I haven't yet mastered how to efficiently add text. Which also somewhat explains the submarines' paths mess. What is shown is the first draft and I couldn't find the energy to edit it into a more polished version. You may also note the lack of lines connecting the cruisers (CA) between Turns 10 and 15: they move back and forth while dealing with the JP in and around Mili Atoll and that area quickly becomes an uninteligible spider's web.

Mission plan

Having already played this mission means that a lot of thought has been had and some (most) of it is a bit fuzzy in my mind.

The protection of deployed Carrier(s) is the primary concern for this mission. To me that means that no enemy unit should ever be in a position to attack it/them. Which enemies could do so?

Submarines are one vector but prior knowledge assures none are present; a blind player doesn't have that luxury but it might make the educated guess that this is a raid "behind enemy lines" and submarines should be operating elsewhere and that having a Support Ship to conduct repairs might be enough in case of having guessed wrong.

Surface ships are another vector. The combination of radar range, cautious maneuvering and covering surface and air assets should be able to deal with that.

Strike aircraft (torpedo and/or dive bombers) are the final vector. Time to react is shorter but the concept that works against surface ships also works against air. Fighter aircraft become the primary counter rather than cruisers and destroyers.

The first secondary objective in the list is the destruction of JP aircraft. The briefing doesn't tell the player where to find them but the five airfields on the map are a clue. The auxiliary carrier's air group includes two fighters and I read that as another clue. Finding the enemy aircraft landed inside hangars is a nice bonus as that allows ships to swiftly dispose of them but that's a twist that comes as a surprise. Thematic but a surprise. The most obvious asset to deploy to achieve this goal are fighter aircraft.

The second optional objective in the list is the destruction of JP ships. Again as this is (was) a surprise raid behind enemy lines a prepared defensive battle line of powerful combatants would be a dirty trick. I don't have the imagination to predict sight-unseen what we do get: a dispersed collection of gunboats, under-strength destroyers, supply and support ships and enemy troops aboard transports. Finding them could have been harder but they mostly oblige by being at or near the ports or even starting right in radar range at the Deployment Phase. The most obvious asset to deploy to achieve this goal are cruisers and destroyers and we are already given one each.

The last secondary objective is the destruction of Fuel Depots. These should be squishy targets to be dealt with either ship's guns or aircraft bombs.

This is the reasoning behind my choice of units to deploy. I will need more fighters than the two auxiliaries. I will also need more dive bomber(s) to deal with Butaritari Is. That means more carriers but I can only afford one. That in turn means I can only have three more combat aircraft. Of those two should be fighters because JP over-strength aircraft are tough. It would have been possible to deploy five more destroyers rather than just three plus a cruiser but a cruiser packs a slightly heavier punch than two destroyers. Deploying two reconnaissance planes allows me to scout ahead (because ships will be delayed dealing with JP units) and eventually keep tabs on JP positions.

Planning units' exact movement and timing is beyond me, there's too much randomness. The path of dealing with Mili first then moving towards Maloelap (with a possible detour to Jabor), Wotje and ending at Kwajalein just feels natural. How much firepower is needed to deal with each prospective target was a slight concern because I don't have the number-crunching data to predict it. As it turns out my two-cruiser, four-destroyer force is able to deal with one ship or depot each per turn (roughly).

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 1

Hello.

Welcome to my AAR for the fourth, "Marshalls-Gilberts Raid" mission of Order of Battle: WW2 U.S. Pacific campaign.

Figure 1 - Briefing

As presented in the chapter devoted to my technology strategy, I chose "Centimetric Radar" (top left corner of figure 1). The description of warships' capabilities is accurate, all ship and aircraft up to 12 tiles from the emitter and beyond its visual range will be depicted as a radar blip. The one pertaining to aircraft's radar is misleading. All aircraft have a built-in six-tile radar and most have a three-tile visual range. This specialisation extends this radar range to eight tiles and thus contacts beyond the dominant three-tile visual range can be said to be in a "five-tile radar range". The U.S. PBY Catalina has a four-tile visual range and is "short-changed" with a four-tile radar range.

This mission is a nice change of pace in the campaign. It is the first aero-naval mission and the first where the U.S. forces have the initiative. It is also a light and easy mission where the Japanese opponent offers a rather perfunctory defense.

We are tasked to not lose any (aircraft) carrier over 25 turns, each turn earning us $20. That is all that is required to win the mission. If we also manage to not sustain any damage on our carrier(s) it (they) will be readily available on the next mission.

We are granted the use of one (auxiliary) aircraft carrier carrying one SBD2 Dauntless dive-bomber and two F4F4 Wildcat fighters (all auxiliary), and one (auxiliary) support ship. Not having taken any damage on (let alone losing) any of the carriers in any of my runs, I can only speculate that the damage/loss criteria applies only to the auxiliary carrier. The inclusion of the support ship leads me to further speculate that the relevant damage would be any not repaired by the last turn.

One New Orleans-class cruiser (CA36 Minneapolis) and one Gleaves-class destroyer (DD431 Plunket) are added to our core, both without any experience. As neither is in a port the option to trade cash for experience is not available.

There are three additional Secondary objectives pertaining to the destruction of JP units (aircraft, ships and Fuel Depots), each degrading the (unquantified) capabilities of the AI opponent in future (unspecified) missions. Clicking on the question mark for the Fuel Depot objective unequivocally identifies their location. The inserts along the right edge of Figure 1 depict the ones for this run (I'll expand on this feature on the next post).

All that remains to mention on Figure 1 is the amount of Resource Points available ($734) and of Command Points allowing the deployment of more core units (20 NavalCP and 15 AirCP). I will also expand on this on the next post when I present my force composition.

Figure 2 - Land masses

Next up is Figure 2, depicting the primary (because they are the only ones meriting a name) land masses on the map as they appear in the Deployment Phase. Other than Butaritari Is./Makin Is. (which are located towards the southeastern corner of the map) they are displayed in roughly their relative positions. As the locations of the Fuel Depots are already disclosed we can glean the probable locations of the eight aircraft (airfields) and ten ships (ports) that have to be destroyed to achieve those secondary objectives.

Figure 3 - Allies and auxiliaries

Moving along swiftly to Figure 3 which depicts the AI-controlled U.S. force of four New Orleans-class cruisers escorted by four destroyers (Blue Team), all deployed on the northeastern corner of the map. In my experience they never play a role on this mission other than take up CPU time at the end of each turn (the JP AI is sandwiched between the player and the Blue Team). The auxiliary Carrier and Support Ship are deployed amidst the cruisers.

Figure 4 - Strategic Map, Deployment Phase

Figure 4 is the last one for this post. It is the Strategic Map as of the Deployment Phase. The land masses from Figure 2 are displayed in full color. Deployment zones are highlighted and the Initial (sea only) is somewhat of a misnomer: Aircraft Carriers, Battleships and Cruisers generate their own deployment zone for the aircraft they are allowed to carry. There are two locations on the southwestern corner of the map marked in red, they are exit points for JP units.

The lines depicted on the map are more of a general time/distance assessment than of actual paths taken. The blue line pertains to the ships deployed closest to Mili Atoll and indicates that Kwajalein is reachable within thirteen turns if we approach Maloelap and Wotje Atolls on the way. The green line indicates that Butaritari Is. requires a ten-turn round trip and is thus best dealt with by air units.

The aircraft aboard the auxiliary Carrier will have to take-off one per turn. The three yellow/gold lines closest to the West edge of the map depict possible routes towards Butaritari Is. As the SBD2 Dauntless is slower (eight tiles per turn) it is launched on Turn 1 and can reach its destination by Turn 6. The F4F4 Wildcats are faster (ten tiles per turn) and can catch up, particularly as the Carrier moves closer to join the core units that will be deployed forward.

Two core aircraft (SBD3 Dauntless and F4F4 Wildcat) will be deployed in the air outside the Initial (sea only) zone's edge. This is accomplished by deploying an Aircraft Carrier at the (southernmost) edge of the zone and taking advantage of its intrinsic deployment zone (the carrier's tile and the six adjoining ones). The SBD3 Dauntless can thus reach both the airfield and the port tiles by Turn 3 (the thin yellow line indicates its reach by Turn 3) and the F4F4 Wildcat is barely unable to reach the airfield by Turn 2 (the thin gold line).

The thick white line indicates a path for a OS2U Kingfisher reconnaissance floatplane on Turn 1. Deployed just outside the Initial (sea only) zone by the same mechanic as the SBD3 and F4F4, it moves in two pulses (perpendicular ticks). The smaller white line hexagon is its visual range and the larger one is its radar range at the end of Turn 1. 

Order of Battle: World War II, U.S. Pacific, Mission 4: Marshalls-Gilberts Raid, Part 0

Hello and welcome back.

In the following posts I will be reporting how I played "Marshalls-Gilberts Raid", the fourth scenario/mission of the U.S. Pacific campaign.

On a technical note this first post is just an administrative stub and so will all future missions' first posts to keep the "first post"'s list a manageable aid to navigation.

If you are reading this message while still in the "first post" list click on the post's title to "activate" it.

If you are already at the actual post scroll down and click on the "next post" button to access the first significant post of the AAR.

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Comments on this post are disabled. That's just for ease of management. They will be enabled in the last post for each mission.