Saipan:LVT's

[JayTownsend]

Next time hide your Colonel in one of the stacks, so even you don't know where he is!

Let me know the progress of your scenario?

Haha, problem is you can never really hide a leader as you need to declare you chain of activation, so it becomes obvious where he is. The only way is to delay and hope for a FoW so he does not come onboard on the first reinforcement turn. For future thought, I am a fan of putting in the setup instructions that they can enter on the turn or any future turns. I don't like being forced to enter the board all on the same turn.

As for the game, it is done, finished with a big Japanese win. They were able to plaster the Americans with AT fire while they were still on the water. Twelve steps lost even before they hit the beach. Then the OBA kicked in with 2's and 12's taking out another six steps. Japanese OP fire and DF fire took out the rest. The Americans to some beach hexes but it was only about 15 possibly with more turns the Americans could clear more hexes, but they just could not get going until turn 8. Between the landings and the DIS/DEM from the OBA, they really were pinned for a little more than half the game. Wiping out the Colonel in the water did not help. Half the units were stuck in the sights of the AT guns for two turns. On the plus side, I nice assault on an entrenchment on the cliffs on board 80. Americans took heavy casualties, but once they assaulted the hex with INF, HMG and a +2 Captain was able to score a two step loss and then wipe out an offending AT gun. The Japanese 75/88 gun is a nasty spud. Place that in a key position and entrenchment and the Americans are in for lots of trouble. FLM units are disappointing. They usually get hit by some sort of fire before they can make a difference, but I find this with every game that uses them. Casements similarly troubling like the European counterparts. Luckily, they don't have AT values.

So those are my thoughts for now...

Alan, just wondering but did you roll for Japanese units being disrupted and demoralized from the pre-bombardment in the beginning of the scenario? Use those APCs like halftrack for extra fire power, stack of 3 plus three INF and you have some awesome firepower but that off-board artillery can hurt you. I wanted to simulate the hell on those Saipan Beaches! The Marine's KIA & WIA was huge on that first day.