Allies win by 5 POC at the end of Turn 7.
======================================================================== POC Record Area Ax / Al 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Baltic Sea 1 2 -- +1 +1 +1 -- +1 -- -- Barents Sea 2 1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -1 -- North Sea 3 1 -1 -1 -- -1 -1 -- -1 -- North Atlantic Ocean 3 1 -1 -1 -1 +3 -1 -1 -1 -- South Atlantic Ocean 3 1 -1 -1 -1 -1 +3 -1 +3 -- Mediterranean Sea 2 1 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 +2 -- Convoys -3 -3 -3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Axis Subtotal +2 +3 +3 +6 +5 +3 +5 +? Allied Subtotal -4 -4 -3 -6 -3 -6 -6 +? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Axis Net POC -2 -1 +0 +0 +2 -3 -1 +? Axis Cumulative POC -2 -3 -3 -3 -1 -4 -5 +? ========================================================================
ALLIES:
North Sea: Eagle 1-2-4(1), Valiant 4-4-4, Warspite 4-4-4, Barham
4-4-4, Malaya 4-4-4, Q. Elizabeth 4-4-4
Barents: Ark Royal 0-2-7(3), Hood 4-4-7, Repulse 3-3-6, Renown 3-3-6,
Kent 1-1-7, Suffolk 1-1-7, Sussex 1-1-7, Norfolk 1-1-7, Exeter 1-1-7,
Cumberland 1-1-7
N. Atlantic: Glorious 0-1-6(2), Revenge 4-4-3, Ramilles 4-4-3, Royal
Sovereign 4-4-3, Dorsetshire 1-1-7, Devonshire 1-1-7
S. Atlantic: Courageous 0-1-6(2), Rodney 5-5-3, Nelson 5-5-3,
Resolution 4-4-3, Royal Oak 4-4-3
AXIS:
Uboats to Baltic
Italy: Littorio,And Dor, G Cesare, Zara, Pola
Med: V Veneto,C D Cavour,C Duilio,Fiume,Gorizia
Barents: Scharnhorst,Gneisenau,Spee,Scheer,Lutzow,Hipper,Blucher,
Land Based Air
Combat Results:
Gneisenau,Graf Spee sunk
Exeter, Kent, Renown sunk
Scharnhorst damaged
Germans withdraw
Allies control N & S ATL, N Sea, and Barents for 4
Axis control Med for 2
Allies +2 POC
ALLIED:
North Atlantic: 1-2-4(1) Eagle, 0-1-6(2) Courageous, 0-1-6(2)
Glorious
South Atlantic: 5 x 4-4-4, 1-1-7 Dorsetshire, 1-1-7 Suffolk
North Sea: 2 x 5-5-3, 5 x 4-4-3, 0-2-7(2) Formidable
Barents: Ark Royal, Norfolk, Cumberland, Sussex, Devonshire, Hood,
KGV, and POW
Speed roll for Repulse failed
AXIS:
Baltic: Bismarck,Lutzow,Scheer,Hipper,Blucher,Eugen,Uboats
Italy: Littorio,And Dor, G Cesare, Zara, Pola
Med: V Veneto,C D Cavour,C Duilio,Fiume,Gorizia
Germany: Scharnhorst repairs
COMBAT:
Axis LBA disables POW in the Barents
Allied LBA damages Andrea Dorea with 3pts
Axis control Baltic and Med for 3 pts
Allies control N & S ATL, N Sea, and Barents for 4 pts
ALLIES +3 POC
ALLIED:
Baltic: Okt. Rev.
Barents: 0-2-7(3) Ark Royal, 0-2-7(2) Victorious, 6 x 1-1-7, 4-4-7
Hood, Needing speed rolls: 3 x 4-5-6, 3-3-6 Repulse, 4-4-4 Malaya
North Sea: 0-1-6(2)Courageous, 2 x 5-5-3, 5 x 4-4-3
N. Atlantic: 0-2-7(2) Formidable, 0-2-6(2) Glorious, 1-3-3 Convoy
1A
S. Atlantic: 1-2-4(1) Eagle, 4 x 4-4-4
AXIS:
Baltic:
Bismarck,Tirpitz,Scharnhorst,Scheer,Lutzow,Hipper,Blucher,&Eugen
U Boats to N Sea
Med: Littorio,And Dor, G Cesare, Zara, Pola
Italy: V Veneto,C D Cavour,C Duilio (repairs 3 pts
damage),Fiume,Gorizia
LBA to Barents to attack Ark, Victorious, Hood.
COMBAT:
German LBA damages Ark and Victorious with 1 point each
German fleet sinks Okt Rev., Hipper disabled to Germany
U Boats lose one boat but remain in area to take a shot at Courageous
(disabled).
POC:
Allies control Barents, N & S ATL for 3 pts
Axis control Baltic and Med for 3 pts
Net POC stays at +3 Allied.
Next turn should be interesting since the U Boats have broken the blockade of the German Fleet; and with convoys out there, the stakes have gone up. Should prove to be a very important turn for both sides.
ALLIED:
North Sea: 0-1-6(2) Courageous, 0-2-7(2) Formidable, 5x4-4-3, 4-5-6
Anson, 1-1-7 Devonshire, 1-1-7 Dorsetshire
Barents: 1-3-3 Convoy 1A, 0-3-7(2)(1d) Ark Royal, 0-2-7(2)(1d)
Victorious, 4-5-6 KGV, 4-5-6 POW, 4-5-6 DOY, 4-4-7 Hood, 4-4-4
Malaya, 3-3-6 Repulse, 1-1-7 Suffolk, 1-1-7 Norfolk
South Atlantic: 1-2-4(1) Eagle, 0-1-6(2) Glorious, 4x4-4-4,
2x5-5-3
North Atlantic: 1-1-7 Sussex, 1-1-7 Cumberland
AXIS:
Baltic: Lutzow
N ATL:
Bismarck,Tirpitz,Zeppelin,Scheer,Scharnhorst,Hipper,Blucher,Eugen
(all pass speed rolls)
S ATL: 6 U Boats
Med: Complete Italian Fleet
COMBAT:
S ATL: 2 U Boats sunk, 4 disabled; no return fire
N ATL: Sussex and Cumberland sunk; no damage to German Fleet
Axis control N ATL, Baltic, and Med for 6 POC
Allies control S ATL, N Sea, and Barents, plus land convoy 1A in
Russia for 6 POC
POC remains at Allied +3:
(Basically, unlucky in S ATL with U Boats though fleets remain strong. Ray is only short of heavy cruisers. The big battles are yet to come, and the pressure is really on me to get the POC back to zero. I am concerned that I never achieved an early lead and now have no margin for error. Not a good situation to be in!)
ALLIES:
Barents: 0-3-7(3) Ark Royal(1d), 0-2-7(2) Victorious (1d), 3-3-6
Repulse, 4-4-7 Hood, 4-4-4 Malaya, 4-5-6 KGV, 4-5-6 POW, 4-5-6 DOY,
1-1-7 Suffolk, Speed Rolls: 4-5-6 Anson, 4-5-6 Howe
North Sea: 0-1-6(2)Glorious, 0-1-6(2) Courageous, 2 x 5-5-3, 5 x
4-4-3, 4-4-4 Q. Elizabeth, 1-1-7 Norfolk
North Atlantic: 1-3-3 Convoy 2B, 0-2-7(2) Illustrious, 0-2-7(2)
Formidable, 1-2-4(1) Eagle, 4-4-3 Texas, 1-1-7 Wichita, 1-1-7
Tuscaloosa
South Atlantic: 3 x 4-4-4, 1-1-7 Dorsetshire, 1-1-7 Devonshire
AXIS:
S ATL: Fiume, Pola, Zara, Gorizia and the six U-boats
Italy: C D Cavour,C Duilio
Med: Littorio,V Veneto,Andrea Dorea,Guilio Cesare
Barents:
Bismarck,Tirpitz,Scharnhorst,Scheer,Lutzow,Hipper,Blucher,Eugen, and
Zeppelin, LBA
COMBAT:
S ATL: The six U boats evade damage to sink Barham, reduce Valiant
with 4 pts, and disable Warspite. Dorsetshire and Devonshire sunk by
Italian cruisers with Zara suffering 1 pt damage. Valiant sunk.
Barents: Bismarck,Tirpitz,Scharnhorst,and Blucher disabled or escape.
Hipper,Lutzow,Eugen,Scheer,and Zeppelin sunk. King George V (5pts),
Prince of Wales (2pts), Hood sunk.
Med: Littorio suffering 5pts from airattack
Axis control S ATL and Med for 5POC
Allies control Barents,N ATL, N Sea for 3 POC
+1 Allies
ALLIES:
Barents: 0-2-7(3) Ark Royal (1d), 0-2-7(2) Victorious (1d), 4-5-6
Duke of York, 4-5-6 Anson, 4-5-6 Howe, 4-5-6 King George V (3d),
4-4-4 Malaya, 3-3-6 Repulse, 1-1-7 Suffolk, 1-3-3 Convoy 2B
North Sea: 0-2-7(2) Illustrious, 0-2-7(2) Formidable, 5-5-3 Nelson,
5-5-3 Rodney, 4-4-3 Ramilles, 4-4-3 Revenge, 4-4-3 Resolution, 4-4-3
Royal Oak
North Atlantic: 0-2-6(2) Courageous, 0-2-6(2) Glorious, 5-5-4
Washington, 4-4-3 Texas, 1-1-7 Wichita, 1-1-7 Tuscaloosa, 1-3-3
Convoy 3C
South Atlantic: 1-2-4(1) Eagle, 4-4-4 Warspite, 4-4-4 Q. Elizabeth,
4-4-3 Royal Sovereign, 1-1-7 Norfolk
Russia: 4-5-6 Prince of Wales repairs 2 of 5d
AXIS:
Baltic: Bismarck, Tirpitz, Scharnhorst, and Blucher
Italy: C D Cavour,Littorio (repairs 4 pts, 1pt damage left on
her)
Med: V Veneto,Andrea Dorea,Guilio Cesare, C Duilio, Pola, Zara (1pt),
Fiume, and Gorizia
7 U boats to N Sea (with the very best intentions!!!!)
LBA to the Barents (nothing scored)
COMBAT:
Zara sunk in an airattack. 4 UBoats sunk but break control of N Sea.
Control of Baltic and Med to Axis
Control of N ATL, S ATL, and Barents to Allies plus Convoy 2B to
Russia gives Allies +3 POC for the turn
Added to +1 Allied from turn 5: +4 POC ALLIED.
Ray is playing a watertight game. I have a 25% chance of sinking or disabling convoy 3C . I need it!
ALLIES:
Barents: 0-2-7(3) Ark Royal(1d), 0-2-7(2) Victorious(1d), 4-5-6
POW(3d), 4-5-6 KGV(3d), 4-5-6 DOY, 4-4-4 Malaya, 3-3-6 Repulse, 1-1-7
Suffolk, 1-3-3 Convoy 3C
North Sea: 0-2-7(2) Formidable, 0-2-7(2) Illustrious, 4-4-3 Royal
Sovereign, 4-4-3 Revenge, 4-4-3 Resolution
Speed Rolls: 4-5-6 Anson, 4-5-6 Howe
North Atlantic: 0-1-6(2) Glorious, 5-5-4 Washington, 5-5-3 Rodney,
4-4-3 Texas, 4-4-3 Ramilles, 1-1-7 Tuscaloosa, 1-1-7 Wichita, 1-1-7
Augusta
South Atlantic: 0-1-6(2) Courageous, 1-2-4(1) Eagle, 5-5-3 Nelson,
4-4-4 Warspite, 4-4-4 Q. Elizabeth, 4-4-3 Royal Oak, 1-1-7 Norfolk
AXIS:
S ATL: Pola,Fiume,Gorizia,Scharnhorst, Blucher
Speed rolls for Tirpitz,Bismarck
Barents: LBA
N ATL: 4 UBoats
COMBAT:
N ATL: 3 U Boats sunk, 1 disabled
Barents: Ark Royal sunk
S ATL: Courageous sunk; area held at end of turn by Fiume and Gorizia
Italians control S ATL and the Med for 5 POC
Allies control Barents, N ATL, N Sea for 3 plus Convoy 3C for a total
of 6 POC
Add that to existing Allied +4 = +5 with more to come on turn 8.
AXIS RESIGNS!
With only two U Boats and Ray controlling everything but the Med, he should finish with +7 to +9 depending on whether the Russian sails into the Baltic or not.
I think the time had come at last to admit defeat and stop banging my head against the blockade Ray held me in throughout the game. Quite frankly, my game went wrong with the first bid...I didn't expect Ray to accept the Allies and was actually hoping to play them myself! I'm afraid my Axis play is not up to scratch as much as my Allied game.
I could have improved my game on turn 4 by sending the U Boats against the two cruisers in the North Atlantic and putting my combined German and Italian Fleet in the S ATL; this would have given me better prospects on turn 5 instead of returning to Germany and the blockade again after turn 4. As it happened, all of the Convoys got through anyway, and the German fleet was therefore useless in the position it was in.
The game is a good example of what can go wrong if the Germans sail to the Barents on turn 1 and lose the battle. My other option could have been to sail to the N or S Atlantic, and perhaps that would have been a wiser choice. My only inspired moment was the victory of my U Boat/Italian cruiser combo in the S Atlantic on turn 5; that actually got me as close to evening the score in the whole game. Having said that, I couldn't throw the game till I sunk one of the carriers!
Well done to Ray. Woe betide his next opponent!
This is the WAS Ladder 13 game #19, Ray Comas (Allies) vs. Kevin Shewfelt (Axis)
Game Ends in Allied victory after Turn 7 (+5 POC).
Game Summary: Kevin bid 0.5 to play the Forces of Evil, which I accepted.
As hostilities broke out, the Royal Navy decided to abandon the Med. and sent strong patrols into the Barents and North Sea, with the intent of establishing a blockade. A small token force patrolled the N. and S. Atlantic. The Kriegsmarine sortied, but much to the surprise of the Admiralty, decided to contest the Barents rather than take the almost-free POC's of one of the Atlantic areas.
The swordfish of the Ark Royal managed to torpedo the Scharhorst for 2d. During the ensuing surface engagement, the Gneisenau and Scheer went to the bottom, along with the Renown, Kent and Exeter. The Scheer, Lutzow, and Gneisenau were put out of action, along with the Hood. That left just the two German Cruisers to face the Repulse + 4 British Cruisers. The Germans withdraw, and after much thought, the British decided to let them go, rather than risk further CA casualties.
With the Blockade established, the Germans stayed in port (the Gneisenau repairing) while the Tirpitz, Bismarck, and Prinz Eugen completed sea trials and joined the fleet. As France fell and Russia was invaded by the Dark Ones, the U-boats contested the North Sea, breaking the blockade for the loss of a single boat. In the Baltic, the Okt. Revolutia sortied, only to be blasted out of the water without inflicting damage to the German hordes.
In the Barents, the Luftwaffe has unremarkable success, hitting Ark Royal and Victorious for a point of damage each. The RAF bombs Italy, and damages the C. Duilio, but in general LBA has been a non-factor in the war so far.
As the first half came to a close, the Kriegsmarine once again sortied, this time into the virtually undefended North Atlantic sinking the Sussex and Cumberland. Meanwhile, the U-boats attempted to break the RN control of the South Atlantic. The Evil Ones hoped to base the German Fleet in France, where it could continue to threaten the North Atlantic. Their plans went awry, however, when the aircraft from the Glorious and Eagle sank two of the U-boats, and sent the rest scurrying back to Germany, retaining control of the area.
Convoy 1A puts in to Russia on Turn 4. British are running dangerously low on CA's, but have all CV's operational and a blockade in place, and have had a POC lead the entire game. The Kriegsmarine is mostly intact, with 6 u-boats, and all four Italian CA's are still operational.
The second half opened with a bang ... The entire Kriegsmarine sortied to the Barents, trying to take advantage of a failed speed roll that leaves the Royal Navy a little light in battlewagons. Simultaneously, the Italians and U-boats raid the South Atlantic.
In the Barents, everything goes wrong for the Germans: the Bismarck and Scharnhorst are disabled by air strikes, while the German air crews are unable to find their targets. The subsequent night action is short but brutal: Lutzow, Scheer, Blucher, and Graf Zeppelin are sunk, Tirpitz is sent home, and Prinz Eugen crippled. The Germans manage only to sink HMS Hood in return. The lone undammaged German survivor, Adm. Hipper, withdraws, while the Prinz Eugen is finished off.
In the South Atlantic, the situation is reversed: ASW is ineffective, and the U-boats strike with great accuracy, sinking Barham, disabling Warspite, and crippling Valiant. It is now the four Italian CA's vs. two British CA's and a "cruiserized" Valiant. The Italians unleash their torpedoes, and all three surviving British ships go down! A stunning victory for the Italians, but given the results in the Barents, it is a hollow one.
Turn 6 sees the U-boats sneak into the North Sea, trying once again to break the blockade. They succeed, but at an awful price: four of the seven u-boats are sunk.
What would be the last turn starts with the the Allies at +4 POC, with a convoy and strong escort in the Barents. The only chance for the Axis is for the LBA to sink or disable the convoy while taking a sea zone. Then they would have to take another sea zone on turn 8 for a chance at victory. However, the LBA hit the wrong ship, sinking Ark Royal but completely missing the convoy. The final Allied convoy put into Archangelsk for +3 POC. The Axis did manage to take the South Atlantic again, but would now be starting turn 8 down 5 POC. With no real chance of taking 2 sea areas, the Axis surrendered.
Turn 1: Gneisenau,Graf Spee, Renown, Exeter, Kent
Turn 2: None
Turn 3: 1 U-boat, Okt. Revolutia
Turn 4: 2 U-boats, Sussex, Cumberland
Turn 5: Hood, Barham, Valiant, Dorsetshire, Devonshire, Admiral Hipper, Lutzow, Prinz Eugen, Admiral Scheer, Zeppelin
Turn 6: 4 U-boats, Zara
Turn 7: 3 U-boats, Ark Royal, Courageous