Greetings all, just so you know who I am...........
I am the one who picked up the 35 dice to DAMAGE the South Dakota. Originally I picked up 15 dice to HIT the South Dakota. 7 Hits x 5 DD.
7 LONG LANCE (Type 93, 24" torpedos).
I did damage with about 10 dice (about 4 - 6's) and felt pretty good, until the bulge came into play. He made me re-roll the 10 hits, it dropped to four hit and only one six, which he shrugged off through damage control.
Just as an overview of the actual events, We lost ONE DD before it launched it torpedos and Takao got off one volley, the Sendai and Jintsu also got in a torpedo launch. In the end, a rough estimate of 20 long lances struck home and about 5 21" (from the light cruisers). We did sink a DD with 21" from the Sentai.
Fitz and I talked tonight about the old GW re-roll for 7,8, and 9s and think it will be a house rule, but something HAS to be done of Torpedo Bulges. They make BBs immune to torpedos.
Also, to remind Fitz, we did not cripple the Dakota until the SECOND volley from the Kirishima struck home. (US ignored her for most of the game). The torpedos just dropped her down so Kirishima's guns could damage her
Oh and as a final........... what the??? When we finally had the Dakota cripples the ONLY critical she still had was the SPECIAL RULE from the game about her radar going out if she rolls double 1's. Funny thing that!
So, my first opinion of the game was a little........... disappointing. I will give Fitz at least one more shot at VAS and we shall see.
Oh, one more little side bar, it only took 10 American torpedos and 20 bombs to sink the Yamato and the American aerial torpedos have a noticably smaller warhead than the Longlance. Good thing torpedo bulges did not work like this in real life, or the Yamato would still be beached on Okinawa.
-W