Archive for Axis & Allies ForuMINI Specialised in the World War II Axis & Allies Miniatures and War At Sea Games
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Duck Crusader
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US/Japan 300 point fleets and battle reportARK and I had a brutal 300 pt face-punching exercise tonight, here's the skinny:
US (Duck Crusader)
BB California
BB Tennessee
CV Enterprise
CV Yorktown
CL Atlanta
DDE Samuel B Roberts x3
SS Barb x2
PBY x2
B-25 x4
Dauntless x3
Wildcat x3
Japan (ARK)
BB Yamishiro
BC Harunta
CV Shokaku
CV Zuikaku
DDE Akitsuki x2
SS I-19 x4
H8K x2
Zeke x4
Judy x5
Played on map 5, US set up first.
Turn 1 Exchange of fire
Us moves first, full court air press launched by both sides. Yamishiro's engines strain to propel her into the battle but the current proves too strong for her and she lags behind.
B-25s skimmed in low over the water with their heavy strafing ability and scored two hits on Shokaku. At the same time Dauntless dive bombers scream down on the Haruna and in spite of heavy AA and Zekes manage to slightly damage her with bombs for the loss of one of their number. The Japanese attempt to repay the US with a carrier strike of their own, but Enterprise's AA downs the only Judy to break through her aircover. A lone PBY caught without escort is downed by a prowling Zeke, and finally one of the Barbs blunders into an I-19 and sinks to her watery grave.
Turn 2 Death of the Haruna.
Cunningly the US forces hold back to see what Japan will do. Haruna forges ahead while the Yamishiro continues to struggle. On the US side the Sammy B escorting Atlanta is likewise delayed.
Once again Judys shriek in on the Enterprise and this time one breaks through to hit her. Enraged, LT Owens holds his dive to the last second and scores a devastating hit on Haruna which sinks her. A skulking I-19 is also hit by the surviving PBY. Now all alone in front of the battleline, the Akitsuki fires a torpedo at Tennessee but it goes wild. Her gunners do better, crippling the Sammy B escorting her. Their celebrations are short lived as the Tennessee's forward turrets swing around and obliterate them.
Turn 3 Hell on the center OB.
The Americans still have the advantage over the Japanese as they both close on the center OB. The Tennessee and her crippled escort slide on to the southern OB while all the other ships save the CVs surge ahead to the one in the center, the Yamishiro's captain having given her chief engineer the choice between seppuku and getting the damned engines going.
The B-25's go after the enemy carriers again and succeed in holing the Shokaku, who sinks with a Judy and a Zeke still on her decks. All other air is turned away by alert gunners and fighters on either side.
Inspired to avenge their fallen sister the Yamishiro cuts loose with every gun and scores a direct hit on the California's magazines, breaking her back and sending her to the bottom in mere minutes. Her secondaries likewise destroy one of the Sammy B's. Not wishing to be shamed by their big sister the Akitsuki escorting her cripples a Sammy B, though her torpedoes run wild. In response, the desperate gunners from the California blast the Akitsuki as she goes under, who is finished off by the Atlanta while her single torpedo strikes the Yamishiro. Depth charges from the Sammy B's give the crippled I-19 and one of her sisters passage to the Emperor while a final long-range shot from Tennessee strikes the Yamishiro.
I-19s claim hits on Tennessee and Atlanta, crippling the latter while the combatants prepare for another round.
Turn 4 Knife fight in a closet
Stunned by the savagery of the Japanese counter-attack, the US is put on it's back foot and the sons of Nippon take the lead. Tennessee forges toward the center OB at top speed, leaving the crippled Sammy B behind. Only for a moment however, as the Sammy B sights a periscope and redlines her engines to intercept. The badly damaged Atlanta and her Sammy B escort close valiantly to point blank range with the remaining Japanese BB.
Shocked Zuikaku deck crews look up to see a PBY slam a bomb right into her decks, having been ignored whilst they turned away the Dauntlesses and Wildcats of the main attack. Their own planes once more attempt the American carriers but they have their measure, with one shot down and another, blinded by heavy AA but attempting to do his duty, holds his dive too long and crashes into the waves. The Tennessee is less fortunate, and in spite of having only a single attacker to deal with takes a hit from bombs.
Tennessee blasts away at Yanishiro as she closes, scoring a single hit while the Sammy B's depth charges cripple another I-19. In response once more every gun on Yamishiro cuts loose (In fact one after action report claims that the chief engineer, shamed by his earlier performance, was seen firing a rifle from the after deck!) When the smoke clears the Atlanta and her Sammy B escort are gone and another round has impacted on the Tennessee.
Turn 5 Endgame
Having taken the measure of their enemies, the US regains the edge. Both fleets maneuver only to bring their guns to bear.
The B-25's once more roar into the attack on Zuikaku, and this time her diminished AA offers no support, her CAP having gone to support their last BB. She goes to the bottom still holding one of her Zekes. At the same time a Dauntless breaks through to cripple the Yamishiro. In bitter revenge, a circling H8K finishes off the last Sammy B while yet another Judy attempting to press his attack strikes the water.
Yamishiro's guns once more strike the Tennessee, causing her shot to go wild and crippling her.
Finally seeing her opening, an I-19 slams a torpedo into the Tennessee and finishes her off, though in response the forgotten Barb, crippled earlier in the game, likewise puts paid to the Yamishiro. With one objective taken and the enemy surface fleet put down, the US takes the field.
2 Zekes, 2 H8Ks and a single Judy limp off to their airbase, while the crippled I-19 is escorted home by her sister.
2 Dauntlesses and three Wildcats return to the Yorktown and her damaged sister, who turn for home themselves with the crippled Barb in tow. One Pby and 4 B-25's are welcomed back to their land base.
All in all a good game, which went wildly back and forth. You should have seen ARK's face when I vitaled Haruna on turn 2 with a dive bomber. I didn't press any of my attacks and just about every time ARK did he suddenly discovered he was flying an anti-shark kamikaze. Just goes to show how much fun you can have with two well-balanced fleets.
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acs0424
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Wow nice AAR.
SOunds like a lot of failed Press the Attack rolls, funny because (being honest here) I have never failed one with my Dauntless's and absolutely destroy my enemy's fleet.
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ARK
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Yeah I was failing my press the attack left and right. My carriers did a good job of taking my planes down with them as well. Those B25's are harsh.
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Duck Crusader
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And ya don't even have to escort them a lot of the time...
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ARK
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I still needed more fighters to throw at those B-25s
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Duck Crusader
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Ah but you hadn't the points old boy. That was the air strategy, to overwhelm your defenses.
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The_lucky_Y
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I would cut one I-19 to beef up the Haruna to a second Yamashiro and a extra zeke.
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Okie
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Wow! A very fine game and naration. I would very much like to fight either side. It was such a good fight I felt like I was there. Thank's for the report and keep them coming.     
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Duck Crusader
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I Think that was the beauty of it Okie, either side could have won at any time and the edge kept swinging back and forth.
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ARK
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| The_lucky_Y wrote: | | I would cut one I-19 to beef up the Haruna to a second Yamashiro and a extra zeke. |
That wouldn't have been a bad idea at all. I was restricted because my Japanese fleet is very small compared to how many ships there are for it. I only have 1 Yamashiro and 4 zekes so I was maxed out there. I do think that build would have been better. Though if I remember the dice right I think the 2nd Yamashiro would have still been vitaled turn 2..............Grrrr stupid dauntless.
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Duck Crusader
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Yes, yes it would have. in fact it would have nearly vitaled Yamato.
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DaJudge
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Excellent report.
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