This one was F-t-F the day after Christmas, in Buffalo Grove, IL. I was the Japanese.

My setup was mostly along the creek that fronts the Japanese set-up area. I designated three units and two leaders as hidden: one INF and a leader at the left edge of my line, and two INF and a leader recessed on my right. Both would try to slip past the approaching Marines and get within the required distance of the objective hex from the SSR - as a hedge in case the Americans eliminated their required number of steps to win.

On the left, my hidden unit snuck out into the kunai grass, where it encountered a Marine stack that foiled its secret mission. However, it was able to launch a surprise Assault and slow up that wing of the Marine attack. The rest of the line saw the enemy close to point-blank range (this is at night, so visibility is 1 hex anyway.) A spirited firefight commenced. My Japanese did some fancy (i.e. lucky) shooting early on, and Marine casualties mounted. I took a few hits as well, and spent some time with a stack of three combat units - risky since the US had the only artillery, but it also gave me enough firepower to do more damage.

Most of the game developed into a brawl along the creek. On my right the Americans eventually crossed the creek and started a prolonged assault. But as the game wound down, the 6th Marine step was lost, ensuring me victory if I could hold my own with no more losses. Some good fortune in the last couple of Marine attacks resulted in no step losses on my part, leaving me one loss shy of the American requirement. As a result, it was a narrow win for the Emperor and his minions.

But what of my other flanking force? The only units it flanked were insects, plants, snakes and perhaps an occasional crocodile. Disorientation sent it back through its setup hex twice after it initally moved out, and it wound up still in the same jungle it started in - still several hexes from the more open terrain needed to make a move towards the objective. I think Russell Crowe in "A Beautiful Mind" would have had fun diagramming the force's moves. Luckily, I didn't need them to turn a US victory into a draw. I suppose once morning came, they found their way back to the rest of the command...