Attacking HMS Repulse and HMS Prince of Wales

[Lucy]

Trying to learn how to use aircraft.

We just played a game with 60 G3M “Nells” which we made into 15 flights and 26 Betty’s which we made into 7 flights. We gave the Nells the same abilities as the Bettys. Other sources we have give the Nells similar bomb and torpedo loads and capabilities.

They attacked four destroyers and the Repulse and the Prince of Wales. We did this five times. Some times we used all torpedoes and some times a combination of bombs and torpedoes.

The results were dismal for the Japanese. The best any attack did was sink four destroyers and damage the repulse heavily one time knocking out a turret and starting a fire. The Prince of Wales had seven damages and five fires in one attack. But that was because all flights concentrated on it in game.

Of the 22 flights planes attacking the most surviving any attack on the ships was 8.

Previous post was question is from us and some observers raised from this game.

Rod

 

[Ben2]

Did you use the OOB aircraft rules where your aircraft have basically 3x the firepower?

 

[Lucy]

Yes, new OOB stats used.

torps 3 AD and 3 DD

When bombs used 6 AD and 3 DD.

What hurt the most was the Betty/Nells Target of 3+. They went down in handfuls. The saving throw for Dodge was a 5+.

Rod

 

[juggler69uk]

How were you allocating targets to the AA fire ??

1. were you just rolling the number of AA dice and taking off any "hits"

or

2. were you making the AA player allocate a number of AA dice to each aircraft.

My reading of the rules suggests method 2 (p15 VaS "AA weapons may freely split their fire among multiple targets....") and is how we play it, thus many aircraft would suffer more than one hit if they were more of a threat.

e.g. if he says 2AD on each aircraft then the rolls must be made separate so as to determine where the "hits" are

But to be honest on average at 66.6% to hit (3+) you should get 2/3 of your force hit, then save 1/3 of that with the 33.3%(5+) dodge. so you stand to lose about 4/9ths of your force if each aircraft only gets 1AD on it.

 

[Lucy]

AA fire was split. In one example the last twelve aircraft of the 22 attacked Prince of Wales. One dice was rolled per aircraft. Five of the twelve made it in and each rolled three AD for each plane, from memory he got 9 hits and then rolled 27 DD.

With armor 6+ and a torpedo belt off setting the AP he got 6 hits. Then rolled for critical hits on the 6 and got two. They all went to crew and started fires, magazine explosion, which stopped shooting for two turns. But that was the last wave of aircraft. All had been used by then. He only had 8 aircraft remaining and they flew home.

Rod

 

[DM]

Don't forget that PoW and Repulse actually presented quite tough targets. PoW went down to a rather fluky critical hit on a propeller bracket that opened up a significant part of the hull through shaft whirling (it also robbed her of power).

But see also my previous comments on the VAS rules for torpedo damage against heavily armoured ships

 

[MektonZero]

AA fire was split. In one example the last twelve aircraft of the 22 attacked Prince of Wales. One dice was rolled per aircraft. Five of the twelve made it in and each rolled three AD for each plane, from memory he got 9 hits and then rolled 27 DD.

With armor 6+ and a torpedo belt off setting the AP he got 6 hits. Then rolled for critical hits on the 6 and got two. They all went to crew and started fires, magazine explosion, which stopped shooting for two turns. But that was the last wave of aircraft. All had been used by then. He only had 8 aircraft remaining and they flew home.

Rod

Don't forget that bow and stern attacks ignore Torpedo Belts. It might well be worth throwing some at each end just to keep him on his toes.

One thing I don't agree with in the base rules is that fires are just about useless. Ships take so little crew damage compared to hull hits that it's almost not worth tracking them except for campaign purposes. I think I remember DM saying that he doesn't bother tracking crew.

Make things a little more interesting. I roll a a damage die for each fire at the end of the turn in addition to that automatic crew hit against an armor value of 4.

 

[Soulmage]

They all went to crew and started fires, magazine explosion, which stopped shooting for two turns. But that was the last wave of aircraft. All had been used by then. He only had 8 aircraft remaining and they flew home.

Rod

Try my revised critical chart and fire rules. . . could generate some very different results for you.

 

[MektonZero]

They all went to crew and started fires, magazine explosion, which stopped shooting for two turns. But that was the last wave of aircraft. All had been used by then. He only had 8 aircraft remaining and they flew home.

Rod

Try my revised critical chart and fire rules. . . could generate some very different results for you.

Yeah, torps crits just don't pack enough punch for me either. I house rule it to use standard 2d6 on the location chart but roll 1d6+1 for effect (counting 7 as 6). It's simple (uses the same charts), but makes them more deadly.

As a bonus you no longer have torpedoes hitting a ship's bridge.

 

[Soulmage]

As a bonus you no longer have torpedoes hitting a ship's bridge.

Obviously, sir, you are unfamilair with the Japanse Type 98 Leapy torpedoes! It was a late war invention.

 

[DM]

Or UNDEX-induced shock causing damage well away from the site of the explosion (both longitudinally and vertically)

 

[MektonZero]

Or UNDEX-induced shock causing damage well away from the site of the explosion (both longitudinally and vertically)

Soulmage was funnier.

 

[DM]

Dammit, there goes my standby career as a comedian then :roll: :lol:

 

[MektonZero]

Dammit, there goes my standby career as a comedian then :roll: :lol:

Good thing you're such a good wargame designer.

 

[DM]