One Sided Miniature Wargaming Discourse: Don't Mention The War

AUSGAME 2023

JAN/FEB 1944

Production for the J/F 44 turn, the .25 BP increment increase is welcomed by all. Japan spends up big, spending 6 of its stored oil to max out its build to get extra units on board, especially with the 1944 pool additions. Italy is down to 5 BP as Germany is no longer shipping any resources and Mussolini is not looking forward to the Allies interest in an empty Sicily and a vulnerable Italian Coast. Reinforcements placed – Russia reinforces the Russo-Sino Front as the M/A turn sees the Garrison Value (GV) no longer being doubled – it will be close if the Allies win the initiative. However, the initiative is won by the German rolling a 5+1 (6) tying with the Russian’s 6 already rolled, with Axis winning ties as they have the +1. The weather is a 9, rain in the Arctic, fine everywhere else – the US is delighted. Germany is also happy as rain halves the Allied air-forces effects and there is a handy -2 on all attacks – they are likely to be safe on both the Western and Eastern Fronts. Italy not happy with fine in the Med, but Japan is pleased if not with the weather roll, certainly with winning the initiative roll as they can reinforce the Russo-Sino front and keep the ‘Russian bear’ at bay for another turn.

Axis 1st Impulse, Germany takes a Land action, Italy a Comb and Japan a Naval. The Italian sub searches in the W Med on a speculative roll but fails to find. Axis land units in Russia step back in the South leaving behind a rear-guard of the Berlin MIL and a Div (8 points) that just cannot withdraw quick enough – its rain. In the North reinforcements from E Prussia head out to bolster AGN’s line. Units are railed into Italy securing Italian factories and cities. Aircraft are rebased forward by both Germany and Italy to replace the J/F losses on both the Western and Eastern Fronts. Japan’s naval is similar to J/F opening moves, with the Advance Fleet sailing into the 1 Box of the China Sea and the Sea of Japan covered by naval assets in both the 4 box and 0 box. Their mission of convoy protection and securing the valuable resources into Japan. The Strike fleet is kept in Reserve to react to US intervention or Allied targets of opportunity. The Japanese Subs are sailed out on patrol, again on interception duties rather than conv attacks – no searches. Two more land units are landed into Russia to bolster the GV as well as several rebased acft – there will be no breaking of the Pact in M/A 44. EOT advances by 1.

Allies 1st Impulse – With fine in all but the Arctic (rain) the US elects to take a ‘Super Combined’ (Naval/Air and Land) spending 16 O-points, the CW takes a Naval/Air spending 10 O-Points, Russia and China a Land and France a Comb. The US flies 8 Ftrs and 3 NAV into the China Sea to contest the Japanese control and searches for the Japanese Advance Fleet, no find as both the Japanese and US roll a 9 and a 10 – apparently no one wants to play this round. The CW Naval action sees the massed fleets of the RN sail off the Coast of Italy to again support landings and invasions into Italian territory. Escorts are sent to protect convoys just in case the weather deteriorates and Tpt’s ship units from the US to France. The US massed GS in Western Europe are pitiful with very few inversions, but in a clear warning of things to come, most of the Germans front line is targeted by an Allied bomber. The Luftwaffe again shoot down the second Mosquito again on its maiden flight – there seems to be a problem with these planes or their pilots are flying too close to the ground. The air over the Western Front is filled with planes and both sides lose acft and pilots. The Strat bombing phase is similar as all the US Strategic bombers are shot down including the 7 factor B17G over Ploiesti – although it cost the Axis Ftrs the bombers are expensive to replace, but 19’s and 20’s on the A2A table is death and destruction and there were lots of them rolled. Allied land attacks were limited to a single coastal hex in Belgium with a soft retreat result. In the Med the CW expanded their occupation of a now empty Sicily and invaded the islands of the Dalmatian coast in Yugoslavia in an attempt to open new fronts and stretch the Axis resources. In Greece – led by the Greek 1st MTN Corps 3 x Greek Partisans attack the Italian 4.3 Milan MIL guarding the port of Solonika, despite air and Arty Spt the hex is taken on a costly squiggly 14 – the Greeks lose 3 x Partisans but overrun the port. The four Italian CA’s attempt to escape but two are found in the W Med by British Navs and two are found by the massed fleets of the RN off the Coast of Italy. Italy losses the CA’s Bolzano, Fume, Trento and Garibaldi for no loss to the British with fleet air arm doing the heavy lifting.

Russia’s Land saw little activity as the GS were poor and the attack dice rolls even worse, Russia is back to rolling 5’s again which saved the German rear-guard of the 7 factor Berlin MIL and the 1 Factor Luft DIV from almost certain destruction as they get a helpful retreat, the Russian second attack was equally poor with 13 -/- result. Russian units advance on both the Eastern Front and on the Russo-Sino border and pray for Snow or fine weather.

In the Far East – the US efforts are rewarded with inversions on the NEI oil hex and on the Chinese mainland. Attacks by a combined AUST and US force against Bangkok defenders takes the capital with ease and the final 2 x oil facility on Java is taken with the US capturing unused oil. The Communist Chinese launch an attack under the cover of their first Yak Ftr piloted by Russian trained PLA pilots, and despite the Japanese getting air and arty Spt and doubling the defence value, the Chinese roll TOTT with a +5.6 and a roll of 18 and take the hex adjacent to Sian, destroying both defenders – the Japanese line is now becoming dangerously thin. In Southern China Nationalist attempt to outflank the Japanese, further stretching the line.

Axis 2nd Impulse – Weather roll is a 4, SNOW in the Arctic, with bad weather everywhere else but fine in the N Monsoon, +3 to the EOT and +1 to the next weather roll. with an EOT advance of 3 the Allies can end the turn on a 1. End of session – Axis to kick off the next gaming session in two weeks as the Japanese player is on holiday in Noumea (Hex 1511) - it is the only way that the Japanese player will get there in this game.