S3 Series

UPDATED POST FOR PLANNING FRAME 5

FRAME 5 MISSION OBJECTIVES
1. Cover our CV and some static shipping targets.
2. Locate and destroy enemy carrier group (2 CVs and all destroyers)
3. Kill as many fighters over their CV group as possible.

Basing and Missions:

Fighters:
352nd FG (3 steps) (CV) (Send out scouts to find the carrier group. Coordinate timing with bomber group to arrive at CV group ahead of them.)
4th FG (3 steps) (28, 37) (Cover our static shipping at F25, Slot, and F36)
VFA-211 (1 step) (38) (Coordinate with 4th)
American Eagles (1 step) (CV) (Coordinate with the 352nd in attacking the enemy CV group.)
352nd FG (1 step) (38) (This covers the extra step that you don't normally use. COOLON says that you'll be adjusting the step value down to 3 in next series.)

Bombers/Strikes:
Night Stalkers (1 step) (40)
Nomads (1 step) (45)
Doolittle's Raiders (3 steps) (38, 40)

All Bomber/Strikes will be attacking the enemy carrier group in the North. We will be divided into groups of 3 a/c and each with a lead. Each group will be assigned a single ship upon arrival at the drop zone.

Bomber Group Rendezvous point: 6,6x (then follow 6-horizontal line north)



Rebasing of 352nd FG and Strike Forces:
The 352nd will rebase to the south land bases (F38 and F40) and allow the bomber group to rebase to the carrier. The bomber group will either be finished for the night, or will launch a second sortie to finish off carrier group ships or #6 shipping North of Bougainville Island depending on time remaining for striking ground targets. If the 352nd needs to refuel before heading south, they will land at the CV and take-off before the bombers land there. The goal is to get the fighters south to help protect our static shipping for the remainder of the night. The 352nd confirms that they should have the ability to rebase in the South for continued operations for the remainder of the night.

Penalty Planes (JABO has spoken)
All of the following pilots appear to be in the 4th FG, therefore, they will coordinate with the 4th FG as they will be covering the static shipping in the area, anyway. Be sneaky. Please let me know of your plan to get these a/c to and from F19 safely. Thanks.

Broncs – Extended sortie out of 53, landed back at 53, launched from CV/F09.
Billpe - teleported from F53 to CV after an extended 1st sortie.
Vangrd - teleported from F53 to CV after an extended 1st sortie.
-dazed - teleported from F53 to CV after an extended 1st sortie.

All these players will be flying C47 mission to start Frame 5 unless there is something the log is missing from these entries. Log gods are checking into if the sinking of a carrier puts you back to the nearest outpost. Removed the issue of a sinking carrier putting you at an outpost. This still leaves the 4 remaining to be cleared up.

**********************************
Available Bases:
Medium Bases: 28, 38, 40 (handles 6 steps) and 53, 54 (handles 4 more, but they are far away)
Small Bases: 37, 45 (handles 2 steps)
CV Group: (handles 4 steps)

Enemy bases:

Large: 24, 16, 6, 2 (holds 3 steps) (12 total)
Medium: 21 (holds 2 steps) (2 total)
Small: 14, 5 (holds 1 step) (2 total)
Grass: 11, 8 (holds 1 step) (2 total)

Forward Fields: (possible distribution)
24 (3 steps of fighters) JG51 and JG77
16 (3 steps of fighters) 23rd and TK (Luftlotte 6)
21 (2 steps of bombers) Knights
14 (1 step of strikes) RCAF 127
11 (1 step of strikes) RCAF 127
CV (4 steps total) Knights and RCAF 127 and 100th FBG

It would be my guess that they might do one of two things. Repeat last frame with lessons learned and improved timing. OR they spread out their defenses and remove our TBDs.

You probably want at least 3 steps of fighters on the CVs Nomads & Nightstalkers were combined for 1 step last frame but we had higher turnout at about 9 (4 + 5) pilots total, so you might want to ask if that is acceptable again.

Steps were as follows:
(3) 4th fighters
(3) 352nd (they have 4 but never have that many to show up.... they told me this themselves)
(1) American Eagles

(3) Doolittle Raiders
(1) Nomads
(1) Night Stalkers

So it looks like everyone can be put in front of 53/54 without a problem. (I put the 4th step of 352 here just in case)

Long flights and moving ships... not so many static ships on the map, I'll need to scout some more to see if there are any decent targets.

Speaking as A member of the 352nd, not FOR the 352nd...just to make that clear up front.

We usually have 20 plus/minus 2 on any given S3.

Todd or Wolf can give you a statistical analysis/pie chart/spreadsheet of historical trends...but this is what I see. Just to help you out now...

Dobs

Just be sure to use the "Squads and Rides" lising for the step value of each Squad.
The 352nd is listed as 4 step and you have to plan for that. IMHO.

Based strictly upon the frame 4 summary that JABO did, I don't think we should expect an all out assault on or CV group.

In frame 4, the axis side accomplished their goal of taking out the CV group. They almost took it out in frame 3. In both instances, they paid a very heavy price for going fangs out on our CV groups. JABO's post pretty much pointed out that perhaps they should have had a different goal with a higher point potential. They need a ton of points and need to prevent us from gaining points. The points sit in the water in the form of static and AI shipping, not in spending the night trying to kill 2 carriers.

IF they could formulate a plan that could quickly and efficiently take out the CV group, that would be one thing. Thus far, the price for them just doesn't seem to justify the effort.

If I were them, I would send multiple small strike packages to multiple targets with fighter caps of 8-12 planes for each package.

Of course, I'm not them! I still believe that they will need to seek out as much low hanging fruit as possible, and the CV group hasn't proved to be that thus far.

Salute!

I gotta go with Dazed.

If IJN wants a few points for the big boats - the CV's, let them have at it. They won't know if we'll defend or can come in unmolested. And be sure if they try, it will be like last frame with many escorts and such. I would imagine they will go after our other boats and try to defend their own boats ( not their CV).

On our side, the lucrative shipping seems to be south. Looking at Treasury and Shortland. Then port at 17, plus the one at Treasury 22. Last frame their were a half dozen static boats at the ports, and we done good.

The biggie, seems to me, is to have escort for our TBD's and SBD's. Last frame we dodged the bullet due to their plan and the fact we had support for the first run at F37. Then IJN went after the CV fleet.

There are fields down south that need to be capped or vulched. Does no good to close, IMHO. Being last frame, seems we could make their life hard with our own lites vulching them and removing threats to the buffs if they can make second runs.

Jez thinking.

Gums thinks....

The 352nd is "appropriately" characterized as a 3 step Squad with the numbers we have been flying lately.

12. CV Groups - each side has two possible CV groups, one in the south and one in the north. They can have 0-3 CVs and 0-12 DDs in each group and this changes from frame to frame depending on the force allocated by High Command. Each CV may base 2 steps of a/c for the frame. CV groups have a set course for each frame travelling at 30mph with little direction changes during a frame. They never get closer than 60 miles from enemy CVs but can approach quite close to enemy fields and are not limited to their side of the frontline.

An observation is that carriers have "almost enough" airplanes on each one just to CAP over it. Using (4) steps of fighters to CAP the carriers means that unless the bad guys attack the carriers en masse like they did last Frame that (4) steps of fighter airplanes may not see an enemy airplane the whole Frame.

Introduce AI DDs running all over the place, over which the players have no control of their courses or what they fire at, including the CAP aircraft, as well as having some predetermined outcome, and you end up with a real mess CV-wise IMHO.

In our game CVs should be floating airfields which take some amount of skill from which to operate. With the "code" that we have, each CV should be protected by a DD "shield" that is VERY difficult to penetrate as CVs cannot be allowed to have defensive fire or they become unserviceable for takeoffs and landings.

Salute!

I don't see a south IJN carrier on latest map. Nor a U.S.N. carrier.

The disposition that Donkey shows looks more like a Coral Sea CV versus CV battle. And I don't think we should try that.

Gums sends...

Just for Reference Dept.

•small fields, grass fields and seaplane bases = 1 step
•medium fields and CVs = 2 steps
•large fields = 3 steps





"Just like Frame 4" might not work IF the issue of several C-47 penalty planes being required to be flown has not been resolved. Just that happenstance "could" take up to (9) strike aircraft out of the equation for the first part of the Frame. How is that going?

For offense --It's ship, ship, ships -Period!
That be Me Think!