REPLAY PACIFIC WAR SCENARIOS By Paul A Breslin Aug 2002 Hi team. Trialled these short staccatto blasts tucked away as scenarios 5 and 6 in Mark Herman's majestic design, Pacific War. See elsewhere for reviews of this most excellent sim with it's fine integration of the land, sea and air ops in the Pacific theatre. Being a relative newbie this was a learning opportunity to get used to the detailed sequencing of the various movement phases and combat procedures. So no claim to best...or even good strategy here...you'll need to check the erudite discussion folder on Consimworld lead by pacific theatre afiocianado, Markus Stumptner, and you may even catch a posting by the designer himself! SCENARIO 5 NAVAL BATTLE OF GUADALCANAL Anyway the Japs start in Truk planning to redeem the failing situation on Guadalcanal. Their battle fleet is built around a couple of battleships and some heavy cruisers supported by two light CVs. On the island base of Rabaul is an amphibious task force lifting the powerful 38 Div with air cover provided by a full complement of 90 (six steps) twin engined bombers. Pitted against these the US can muster a scratch air force on GL itself; a fleet carrier plus escorts and an infantry regiment at Noumea (I grabbed the Yorktown from the counter mix but it should have been the Enterprise). I nearly forgot some reinforcing aircraft on Esperitu Santo. MOVE TO CONTACT The main JP force moves out from Truk in two groups and rendezvous some 400 miles (4 hexes) north of GL with the amphibious force. The US counter with the Yorktown sailing separately from the flotilla with the 164 regt but both go directly for GL. The US reserve aircraft pile into Henderson Field to fill it to capacity. ENGAGEMENTS The JP air units strike Henderson but only cause light damage. The US are able to sneak the 164 regt onto GL whilst the Yorktown strikes at the JP transports, also causing minor damage. The next round of strikes leaves the JP transports badly knocked about after a combined carrier and land air strike by the US (losses in the 38 Div means the JP can only draw the scenario). The JP air attacks on the US carrier achieve nothing. As the US naval forces steam for home the JP surface fleet pounds Henderson into a pulp in a night bombardment (destroying all the land based air). Honour partially satisfied the JP fleet also turns for home and the remaining 2 weeks pass away quietly as both forces reach their bases. Technically a draw, I suppose each side would have claimed a victory anyway! SCENARIO 2 BATTLE OF THE CORAL SEA I don't really need to go over forces and missions for this well known battle. Suffice to know the JP are trying an assault landing against Port Moresby covered by two of their fleet carriers. The US decide they've been back pedalling too much and move out with Yorktown and Lady Lex. Cue the first naval battle where the opposing fleets didn't actually make visual contact. MOVE TO BATTLE The JP main group rendezvous at Rabaul whilst some Engineers are whisked towards Guadalcanal on fast transports The US counter by sending the CVs in a dead line for Port Moresby whilst the US/Aussie heavy cruisers move out from Townsville. ENGAGEMENTS The JP engineers are unceremoniously dumped on Guadalcanal and their transports starts for home. The amphib assault group with it's carriers move into the Coral Sea with the US intercept group steaming up fast. First strike is by the US naval air, with their carriers undetected, they strafe up Lae airfield trashing the JP squadron based there. Undeterred the JP task force move straight through Woodlark and launch a strike at Port Moresby with little effect. Cautious night manouvering leaves the Allied cruisers gamely in direct defence of Port Moresby as the JP invasion fleet closes in. The US CV force is out of position, still 300miles from Port Moresby. As the day dawns the JP fleet remains hidden in mist (US failed their search roll) allowing them to surprise strike directly at the port with air and naval units. Both naval air and the land air from Rabaul hit the airfield while their heavy cruisers drive off the heavily outnumbered Allied cover force. This is followed by a shattering bombardment of the airfield which destroys the remaining Allied aircraft. Buoyed up by these succeses the JP marine battalion supported by the 144 regt pile ashore and attack the Australian 30 Brigade. This fails spectactularly and a single JP battalion is left clinging to the beach line. The crisis point being over the two sides start to withdraw but not before mutual air strikes penetrate the naval flak cover leaving damage on the Zuikaku and the Yorktown. Another draw with hits on a CV each, several airsteps lost each and a badly beaten up JP battalion feeling a bit isolated in the hills around Port Moresby! COMMENTARY Well these mini-games confirmed that PW is an excellent 'clean' game system that models the integrated combats very nicely. I still need to put it through it's paces in large fleet engagements and some big carrier battles...will help me discover the various nuances to the tactics. I do like the interleaved movement and combat sequences though. Gives a nice semi-simultaneous feel to the game rather than the more traditional 'you do a load of stuff, I do a load of stuff' approach. Interestingly Simulation Canada's 'Divine Wind' on the same topic achieves this interleaving but in a completely different way. Some observations: i) the power of night bombardment by a surface fleet to bash up an airbase ii) the need for CAP over a fleet to help supplement the fleet's own flak (may have helped save those battalions of the 38 Div) iii) the attritional nature of air strikes; just need to keep plugging away with the added spice of occasional critical hits to get a 'doh' from your opponent. iv) How costly amphibious assault is. Either land further up the coast and move in overland or make sure the defenders are beaten up a fair bit before assaulting directly or...even better, send in overwhelming strength :) Also I realised I'd been some things wrong: searching too often during the move to contact phase; shifting the time marker too much and firing flak individually rather than en-masse. All part of getting used to a game system that despite these fluffs and the two drawn scenarios is both straightforward and exciting to play. Roll on 'Strategic Scenario 1' the entire Pacific War. "Find it. Buy it. Play it"