Turn 1 Battle Report - Sector 42

Initial Deployment: Two opposing battle fleets engage with a resource rich sector as the prize.

Turn 1: The Chiyoda launches both mini-subs, giving the Japanese a numeric advantage under the waves.  Both sides launch heavy air strikes.  The Val is downed by flak while the He 111 manages to land a bomb hit on the Sendai.

 Turn 2: The Japanese fleets stays back but the Germans forge ahead.  The Kate lands a hit on the Prinz Eugen while the Gneisenau makes a successful Long Shot on the Fuso.

Turn 3: The Germans continue to close and the Japanese come out to meet them.  The Sendai is blown up by a bomb from a Stuka while the U-518 is crippled by the Emily.  The fleets exchange gunfire in vicious fashion.  The Gneisenau is hit by a long lance torpedo and the Z-20 is crippled by gunnery.  The U-85 is hit by depth charges from the destroyers and goes down.  In return, the Fuso is hit twice and suffers from a Crippling Salvo.  German gunnery also hits the Agano.  The I-34 then manages to land a torpedo on the Gneisenau.

Turn 4:  The intensity of the battle causes both Admirals to forget to call in their land based air, but it is nonetheless full of noteworthy action.  The squadron of Judy's is aborted by flak but in attempting to Press the Attack, is finished off by the German gunners.  The Me 155s, acting in an escort roll, are splashed by the Zekes but allow the Stuka to get through and sink the Agano with a vital hit.  German gunnery cripples the Fuso and sinks the Yukikaze.

Turn 5:  Wary of the Japanese torpedo threat, especially with three submarines, the Germans pull back.  Neither side forgets their land-based air this time.  The German bombers finish off the Fuso while the Emily falls to German flak.

Turn 6: The German fleet waits for the Japanese submarines to commit to a side of the island and then swing around to the weaker side.  Most of the available air engages over the last Japanese destroyer, but the defenders are unable to prevent the Stuka from crippling the ship.

Conclusion: Night falls on Turn 7 and the Japanese withdraw the remnants of their fleet under the cover of darkness.  The Japanese have suffered heavily, losing a battleship, two cruisers, a destroyer, and three squadrons of aircraft but the Germans, with their battleship heavily damaged and losing a key fighter squadron are not likely to be able to take immediate advantage, beyond securing the sector.