Webster, J.D. - Jan 27, 2004 9:09 am (#6039 Total: 6051) Whistling Death Replay Report Baka Bomb Attack (Scenario Book Page 60) This was an enjoyable, yet short solitaire game. It pits a Sumner class DD against two suicide Vals and a Betty with a Baka. I psychologically fell into the role of the Ship's crew defending themselves against Kamikazes. However, I proved to be quite inept as a ship's Captain making several mistakes that proved disastrous...and fatal. The Baka is an intimidating weapon. The ship is very capable of defending itself, if not led by an incompetent (me). Turn 1 - All A/C are on the port side, the two Vals rapidly closing in on their target. Pretty far away is the lumbering Betty with a Baka under it. Examining the ship data card, I find it to be well armed. But I also find some minor errata. Ship Errata - 1. Defensive equipment - it should list 7 x twin 20mm Oerlikon guns. 2. I think the arcs for AAA mount 20-3 are wrong. I used 02-10 pending further research. This also holds true for both Fletchers. AAA Table Errata - The A/C size modifier is missing, it should be (-A/C size x 3). This is important for the Baka, which is tiny! Orders - I roll for random orders which call for a turn to Starboard. A/C moves - The Betty is flying slightly away from the DD at a distance. The two Vals are diving in from the Port Rear. AAA Fire - I allocate the rear 5" turret manually aimed, and mounts 40-1 and 40-3 at Val #1. The planes are still out of 20mm range. I completely forget about (fail to notice) mount 40-5 the entire game (an extra quad 40mm could have made a serious difference). Hoping to pick off the Betty before it can launch the Baka, I engage it with both Forward turrets, and the radar director.. The 40mm guns miss the Val as does the single turret. The 5" front turrets score 1 attack for a 1 point plink on the Betty. Hmmm...the Betty drops the Baka....double hmmmm. Turn 2 A/C moves - the Betty heads off NNE banking to a RB to withdraw. The Baka dips into a steep dive, rockets off. It is slow and vulnerable at this point. The Vals decide to split up, one turning left to aim across the port bow of the DD, the other to swing in behind the Stern. AAA fire - The Baka must die! I retarget all 5" guns to the Baka (no shot). I continue to engage Val 1 with mount 40-1, and retarget Mount 40-3 and all 20mm guns after Val-2 (no shots). This is a critical mistake, I am being indecisive here and misreading the threat. The Baka bomb is still almost 10 turns from potential impact while the Vals are only a few turns away! Meanwhile the gun crew on Mount 40-5 awaits orders which never come. The attack on val 1 misses. I have no other shots due to retargeting. Turn 3 The ship completes its first turn to Starboard now facing S. I roll for new orders which are to continue turning S. A/C - The Vals both continue steep diving toward the DD, reversing banks to be ready to turn toward it. A sandwiche is developing. The Betty turns NE and runs, accelerating at full power. The Baka ominously rolls to an inverted right bank and turns N, the ship is at its 11 oclock position, about two miles away, 11,500 feet below. The high wing loaded flying bomb, though diving, only accelerates slightly due to the drag of the turn. AAA fire - All three 5" turrets bark at the Baka, scoring well for two attacks. Proximity fused bursts surround the little bomb which suffers 2 attacks but only 1 point of damage from each. This is sufficient for a critical check but the bomb does not blow up, nor is it severely damaged....darn! Meanwhile Mount 40-1 continues to chug away at Val-1 but misses (long range, low firepower). Mount 40-3 rolls a 00-even (dam!) missing by a mile! The 20mm guns continue to track Val-2 but are just out of range still. (The gun captain on mount 40-5 frantically waves at the Bridge!) Turn 4 ship is in a "pause". A/C - the Vals are rapidly closing in! Holy shit! Maybe two turns from impact! They each start turning in toward the DD passing 2000 feet in their dives. The Baka ignites its rockets, all of them, and dives, rapidly accelerating while turning NNW toward the DD. The Betty turns E, heading for home, its tail gunner reporting the progress of the attack while watching it through large binoculars! AAA - I have misread the threat. I should have had all guns on the Vals from turn 1, they are closing in much faster than I thought! I reallocate the aft 5" turret to Val-2, the forward turrets to Val-1 (not shots this turn). The twin 40mm (40-1) plugs away at Val-1 and misses. I reallocate the two stern twin 20mm guns to Val-1, leaving the three twin guns on Val-2. They and the Quad 40mm miss Val-2...ooh! this is bad! (The entire gun crew of mount 40-5 are all trying to signal the bridge waving their shirts and helmets - Heey! what about us!). Switching targets is costing me precious seconds I don't have. Turn 5 The ship advances south. A/C - The Vals are going speed 7 and rapidly close the distance both pulling out in level flight at 100 feet, Val 1 cutting in toward the Bow, Val 2 swinging around from the stern to starboard rear - heeled over in a tight turn (carrying turn points). both Vals end their moves within two hexes of the ship. The Baka accelerates rapidly to speed 7.0, turning west putting the DD in its sights. AAA - The Vals have slipped inside min range on the 5" guns. My retargeting effort now a waste of time, swing all turrets back to the Baka! (More lost time!). The Starboard stern quad 40 (40-4) now gets a crack at the Val, only 200 yards away coming out of a screaming dive...as do the starboard twin and rear twin 20mm guns. They all desperatly blaze away, blowing chunks off the Val! The 20mm guns plink it for 1 hit, the Quad 40mm scores one double hit/crit which turns out to be a double hollow space (Oh no!). A similar sad story for the guns firing on Val 1 on the port side, they all miss, the Val is only split seconds from impact!!!! Turn 6 - (Armegeddon!!) The ship moves one and faces SSW, swinging its stern slightly away form Val-2, but not far enough. A/C - The Betty flys east, its tail gunner excitedly calling out the hits (They got the battleship!, they got it!!!). The Baka pilot streaks down accelerating to speed 10.5, worried only that the ship won't be there for him to hit. He sees two maybe more large explosions as the ship disappears in smoke and flames. At the last instant the pilot of Val-1 closes his eyes, thanking his ancestors that he will be successful - his plane plunges into the rear hex of the DD but misses a direct hit, splashing just yards away. The bomb and the plane explode, sending up cascades of water that shroud the ship! The pilot of Val-2, is more stoic, his last vision is that of several Khaki clad figures taking cover on the bridge of the ship as he aims his plane into the bow just between the turrets and the bridge. KABOOM!!! A direct hit on the bow! Rule Clarification - In the combat phase, Kamikaze pilots that attack in mid move are not mentioned. A/C that drop weapons in mid move can be attacked at that point by AAA, but the Kamikaze never dropped. How to handle this. I came up with the following rules addition. Rules addition - Kamikaze A/C that impact ships during their move may be fired on by AAA at range 1, before impact, if the A/C expends more than half its FPs that turn to reach the ship. It may not be attacked by AAA if it expends half or less of its FPs prior to impact (rounded down). In this case no guns can fire before impact and all surviving bow guns are stunned into silence. Turn 6 - Damage to the ship. Val-1 near misses and explodes treated as an He bomb. It scores a 2-1 attack on the ship inflicting 2 points of damage. The bomb it carries scores a 1-2 attack on the ship for no points of damage. No critical hits are achieved. Val-2 scores a direct hit on the bow, treated as an HE bomb worth 52 points due to its speed and inflicts two fire hits (fuel remaining assumed to be half). The bomb it carries inflicts 40 more points of damage. The val inflicts two double crits and a single, the bomb four single hits, all on the surface table. The cumulative damage warrants six internal critical hits. The combined hits also randomly destroy 4 AAA sites on the bow or starboard bow (taking out both turrets and the twin 40mm mount). The Kamikaze criticals take out all 3 command teams, a DC team, a boiler, the #2 turret (again) and the searchlight and cause a read ammo explosion for 7 more hits. The subsequent internal hits result in the loss of two more DC teams and three secondary explosions that inflict an additional 22 hits, and cut the wiring to the searchlight and sever a DC main pipe. The ship has taken a total of 121 out of 160 hits, it has lost all its command teams, and half its damage control teams. There are 8 fires in progress....it looks grim! Turn 7 - The ship is in a pause....all bow guns are suppressed (only mount 40-1 remains alive). The Baka - the pilot dives downward, his bomb only slowly accelerating now that the rockets have burned out. The bow of the ship is enshrouded with flames, his speed is up to 11.0. AAA - the aft turret, now married to the director and radar opens fire, but misses. Turn 8 The ship moves forward, with no command teams in action, I decide that it will only steam ahead and center its rudder. The Baka - closes in, now range 17 from the ship, traveling at speed 11.5 in a steep dive. AAA - I finally become aware of mount 40-5. I immediately engage the Baka with the two Quad 40mm and the port bow twin 40mm, and five twin 20mm guns (get him boys!!!). The 40mms, my best chance miss! The 20mms miss!!! I only have the 5" aft turret left to dice! Hurrah, it scores two attacks!!! But wait, the first attack does no damage, and the second only 1 point of damage....arrgh! curses!!!, the Baka is only severely damaged (4 hits total are needed to destroy the baka!). Turn 9 But Wait! the Baka is severely damaged, and now above its max safe dive speed. I roll for dangerous dives and the bomb comes unglued, tumbling out of control! Pheew!!!! Post attack fate - Things look bad. Net negative modifiers for the command team losses, untended fires, and untended damage are -110 LH. I roll the dice. The ship is a loss, sinking in 1 hour. Lessons learned! Shoot the Vals with all you've got, deal with the Baka later. Find all your available gun mounts early, you will need them! It was exciting...solitaire time, about 3 hours dealing with everything. About 20 minutes per turn. J.D.