One Sided Miniature Wargaming Discourse: World in Flames via FB

Bad weather delays play.

Long post - a couple of sessions

1942 S/O  EOT – N/D 
Axis 2nd Impulse and with Snow in the Arctic Storm in the Temp and N Monsoon.  GERM takes a land and resets its line, moving forward several Axis Minor Mtn units, including the Italian Alpine Corps. Italy a no cost Comb sails a conv out to the E Med and under instructions from Berlin sends another land unit to the French Coast to man the Atlantic wall, acft are rebased. Japan takes a no cost Comb, conserving oil – they land units in China and in Manchuria, withdraw another hex South as they straighten their line and more Zeros are redeployed to Hong Kong. 

Allied 3rd Impulse - Russia rolls weather +1 ( – same roll as before - snow again in Sept 10% chance,  GERM complains bitterly about the weather – 2nd Arctic snow impulse in Sept! The Russian launches its second winter attack for S/O, this time in the Pripet marsh against two low grade units a 3.3 SS and a 2.5 Rum Cav – GERM groans as the expected result will create another GBA with a probability of a dead unit, possibly two. Russian orchestration is not as good as it should have been with a Mech Div left out of the battle and a their best Ftr (6) in Kiev not flying offensive CAP. The GERM support with  several acft and elect a Blitz hoping to see a retreat on the units and limit the GBA opportunities. Another ‘get out of free card’ is handed to the GERM as the Russian rolls a below average 8 for modified (19) and losses a WP Corps as the SS and Rum Cav are spiralled – Stalin not happy – two +11/12 attacks and the only losses are Russian, having rolled a 5 and an 8. Anything rolled marginally above average would have seen GERM A/T, Arm, SS and/or the Rom Cav eliminated and two hefty GBAs on the table. Instead, the Russian first winter offensive has cost Stalin 11 valuable O-points and a 6.4 SIB Inf for 1 x INF GBA upgrade and recapturing 1 hex with no loss to the GERM – not the return of investment he was hoping for – so much for the two ‘bonus’ S/O snow turns. The CW takes a Naval to move Tpts as the turn is likely to end as the US takes a combined to search for Jap conv and SCS, again all their searches fail as they roll more 9’s and 10’s. To add salt into the wound, the Russian rolls the EOT – helping the Axis position (Initiative roll shift to the Axis) and again the Partisan EOT roll of 6 sees no Partisans in China for the sixth consecutive turn, over a year of no Chinese Partisans.
EOT rebasing, production, and reinforcements. The US delivery of 3 x BPs to France; sees that construction of the Brazzaville factory. Japan bites the bullet and builds its second oil facility – sucking up most of this turns production.

1942 N/D 
A new month, the last of the year and GERM finally rolls a respectable Initiative with a very handy 9, and the Allies do not contest/re-roll as the weather is likely to be bad and no Allied theatre is under threat – Russia rolled a 2. The Axis weather roll of 8 +2 for a 10, mixed poor weather Blizzard in the Artic and snow in the Temp/Med with rain in the N Monsoon – advancing by 3 – this will be another short bad weather turn – not what the Allies want.
Having won the initiative, GERM takes a Land as it needs to adjust its Russian front line, needing more than 6 x land moves – the U-Boats stay in port. The Italian takes a Naval and Japan a Comb. GERM attempts a GS on Chisinau losing a Stuka with its pilot for the cost of the intercepting Lag9, the Russian AA averts any GS success by the remaining bombers.  Italy transports two more Garrison Corps to Libya/Egypt to counter the Allied build up in Morocco and Saudi Arabia landing a 6.1 Gar in Port Said and railing a 6.4 Inf into the Egyptian city of Asyut, Italy escorts its valuable Tpts with SCS and air in the E Med. Japan aborts surplus Convs from the South China Sea, leaving only 2 to deliver the oil.  Escorts are sailed into the China Sea, the US subs patrolling search and finally roll a 3 for a find, but their delight is soon overshadowed by the Japanese roll of a 1, the dice gods have favoured the Axis as Japan damages one sub and aborts the other. The Italian sub operating in the Arabian Sea likewise rolls a 1, yep two searches, and two 1’s, damaging and aborting 3 British Convs.
End of session – A pleasing turn for the Axis, especially Japan whose convoys were not found so they are able to ship resources and oil to Japan, losses on the US Subs were welcomed, and again no partisans in China. GERM and Italian losses are minimal as the weather has stopped further land operations.

1942 N/D (EOT) - Bad Weather Worsens
Allied 1st Impulse, and the US takes its mandatory Naval with reinforcements arriving in the (Pacific) Pearl and Europe, two more Essex arrive, the Essex and Lexington II and the first US CVL Cowpens. The US Pacific Fleet sails into the South China Sea under the cover of two 7 factor long rng Ftrs – issuing the challenge to the Japanese fleet to fight for this sea area if they want to keep their NEI oil. A US CV and several CA’s are despatched to support the CW enterprise and provide valuable air cover to the British Tpts in the Red Sea. The US Ftr searches for the GERM Conv in the Baltic supported by Russian and CW Nav air operating out of Riga – and so it begins – no find. US searches for Convs off the coast of Japan and in the South China Sea are non-events as the US rolled 10’s and the Japanese not much better. The US naval forces in W Europe  take up the duty of Conv escort as the CW has elected a land. Launching from Saudi Arabia CW MECH and MOT units advance West  capturing the Jordanian port of Aqaba as Mountbatten HQ debarks from India to direct operations to retake the Suez. Alexander and a 7.4 Inf commence a long rail journey, not quiet the Orient Express, from Archangel to Iran’s port of Basra and Aust Inf advance into the Egyptian city of Aswan. The Axis seemed to be aware of the CW plan as a GERM 6.1 had railed into Asyut to bolster their Italian Allies and a 6.1 Gar had arrived in Port Said. The arrival of CW forces led by Mountbatten into Jordan, threatening the Suez will illicit further responses from the Axis as the back door to the Med, now ajar needs to be kept firmly closed. 
2nd Axis Impulse and the weather roll of 8 +2 (10) sees the weather remain the same, importantly for the GERM it is Blizzard in the Artic, so there will be no attacks on their line. GERM and Italy take land actions as the CW venture in Jordan attracts some attention as the Italian and GERM garrisons  advance to cover the eastern approach to the Suez. A number of Axis Ftrs and Navs are redeployed to the E Med. Japan decides to take a Naval and challenge the US Pacific fleet in the S China Sea, flying long range zeroes and Navs into the 3 box to support the combined fleets of Advance and Strike – both sides fail to find with a roll of 10 from the US and a 8 from the Japs – no one wants to play apparently – hundreds of ships and acft all fail to find each other! 
2nd Allied  Impulse. The US takes a combined, Russia a Land and the CW a Naval. The CW Naval sees more Tpts sent to N Africa, convs sailed and escorts to cover convoy routes, Amphs and Tpts left out at sea. An Indian and S African Ftr arrive in Jordan’s Red Sea port of Aqaba to provide at least some modest air cover. The US combined sees additional ships committed to the South China Sea but a third in a row 10!, yes three 10’s in a row by the US leaves him more than perplexed. Japan also fails to find which is another huge relief for the US. Allies fail to roll EOT.
3rd Axis impulse – weather worsens with a roll of 10 +2 for a 12 Blizzard/Storm everywhere. GERM finally feels confident to take a Naval and the U-Boats are released to hunt Allied Convs. The BC Scharnhorst and Gneisenau sail out to the N sea and roll a 1 – a find and D the British CA Ceylon, clearing the sea area, U-boat searches are favoured by the dice gods as the Germ rolls two more 1’s and a 3 – four finds out of five searches in terrible weather – the sub commanders were well pleased. In the Bay of Biscay, the 1 – 5 split sinks 3 Conv’s and the British with a loaded Amph at sea elects to abort the Bay and return to port as the GERM die rolling is superb and the night is theirs. The Vichy Sub in the Cape St Vincent, its crew sacrificed by the GERM, gets a 1 – 8 split and selects a loaded Tpt (Mech Corps) for an X – a 50/50 roll favours the CW as a save is rolled, damaged it aborts with its cargo – a close run thing as the Vichy Sub is sunk by return fire from the Allied escorts. GERM Search rolls were 1, 1, 3, 7, 1, four finds in five searches in bad weather. The Italian takes a no cost land as the Italian Egyptian Garrison occupies a forward defensive line and ‘digs in’ and welcome the arrival of its Piaggio Hvy Bomber from central Europe to assist with defensive support of the Suez. With Blizzard in the N Monsoon, Japan takes a combined and seeing an opportunity to ‘take on’  the Pacific Fleet aborts all its CV from both its fleets so that they cannot be found – in the irony of dice rolling that has been the session tonight both Japan and the US roll 10’s! Axis roll the EOT to set up a double impulse, but more importantly deny the Allies a third impulse, the initiative shifts to the Allied +1. The Axis roll Partisan and again a 10 sees no Partisans in China for the seventh consecutive turn.

J/F 1943
A new year J/F 1943 and the dice gods still favouring the GERM, they win the initiative roll and elect to go first, ironically the US rolled a 1 for the Allies (he could have used that roll in any search last turn), on a hiding to nothing the Allies do not contest/re-roll as the weather will be certainly bad. The Axis roll weather and roll bad weather 7 +2 for a 9 Blizzard on the Artic again (Russia mumbles) Snow in the Temp and Med but fine in the S China Sea – the US is pleased – not so the Japanese. A good roll for the Axis – again, advancing by 3 – this will be another short and bad weather turn, excellent start for the year.
End of session – Another pleasing turn for the Axis, almost a replication of the previous N/D session with few Axis losses and Japan’s convoys and fleets remained unfound allowing her again to ship resources and oil to Japan, further losses on the US Subs and yet again No partisans in China extending the record to 7 consecutive turns since a Chinese partisan has been rolled. A bonus for the Axis with the EOT U-Boat attacks sinking 3 Convs, aborting 3 and cutting one of the main CONV links to the UK forcing it to use its last 8 UK stored oil to maintain CW production. The Allies having only two impulses has severely curtailed the opportunity to develop the land operations in Morocco and Jordan – both were about to be launched. The Allies are stretching the Axis and forcing them to react and commit both land and air units to multiple fronts, rather than reinforce the Russian Front.  Ominously for Japan the Pacific fleet has elected to base out of Manila threatening both the South China Sea and the China Sea

End of Year Summary.
A mixed year for both sides – but clearly still in the Allied favour with the failure of the GERM 42 Barbarossa Campaign – this was huge – to be on the Polish/Rumanian border at the commencement of 1943 is rare. The poor Japanese position, compounded by the entry of the US into the war does not bode well for the Axis when the 43 weather finally clears. That said, the Allies have had their opportunities curtailed by the bad weather and consequent short turns during 42. This has seen the last 6 months (3 turns) of offensive operations result in marginal losses to the Axis allowing the GERM and Italian to focus on new builds rather than replacements. Typified perhaps by the two Russian S/O Winter (Snow) attacks that failed with rolls 5 and 8, with the only loss a Russian WP INF Corps and the inability of the Western Allied air forces to find neither Italian SCS or Axis Acft in the W Med has given them the opportunity to build out force pools – the GERM has been advance building FTRs in 1942 and with little progress in Europe has created  a tactical pause to build up Axis defences. 

1943 should be the turning point. The Russian will hold the key to defeating Germany. Germany is stretched as it is fighting in Russia, Rumania, Poland, Norway, N Africa, Egypt and having to maintain a viable defence along the Western European Coast.  The clear weather turns of 43 will be decisive as the Russian air-force will be substantial, Russia will have ‘spare’ land units and O-Points to burn in order to break the German line. In Europe Allied air supremacy is increasing with every turn, paras and marines are already stationed in N Africa and the UK and the first of the Mdm and Hvy bombers are arriving from the US. Japan’s maritime advantage has dwindled with the arrival of 5 x Essex class CVs and their 6/5 ftrs air groups supported by long range land based Ftrs and Navs. It will be very surprising if Japan is not isolated from the Chinese mainland in 43 leaving the land forces in China OOS and vulnerable to the Chinese land attacks who have had unprecedented success in 42 and seek their country’s liberation. There will be little to stop the Pacific fleet, now based out of Manila from simply sailing into the China Sea – well apart from rolling 10’s! In the Med the Allies will be pushing from both the E and the W, from Morocco and Jordan as the CW seeks to liberate the French Territories and the Suez. 

The Second Front - when is it coming demands Stalin, Churchill responds that he has a 2nd front Norway, a third front Morocco and now a fourth front Jordan! The CW only has so many troops