Rain dance and the Pacific Fleet strikes back at Japan

 The Allies win Initiative for the first time in 1943! The weather is rotten - mostly rain but storm in the Arctic and North Monsoon zone- but fine in the Med. Stalin chooses a Land impulse. Near Berlin all the Soviet offensive points are used to get a break through but Stalin rolls poorly and only forces the defenders to retreat with half the attackers flipped over. Stalin would shoot the general but its Zhukov his best general. Still at least Konigsberg is being slowly surrounded. South of Lodz the Soviets move forces out of Lodz and Warsaw (only the Warsaw garrison is replaced by weak infantry) and the German SSS panzer spearhead is surrounded. The Germans send bombers to support and in the dogfight the Germans shoot down the Soviet fighter (but the pilot survives). The attack is low odds but but with the help of the HQ the Soviets manage to Blitz the SS who now have to leave the game til l next round. One mechanised corps is lost but another is promoted to Guards Banner Army and half the rest of the Soviets are flipped over. Hitler rages in his bunker. 

The US, UK and France wish they had chosen Land impulses to add to Hitler's woes but had played it safe by choosing Naval impulses. They send out escorts and subs into the Bay of Bengal. The US starts sending forces to the Pacific including a carrier and planes. Transports from Australia set off on the road to the US to pick up more forces. The Pacific Fleet in Australia incorporates carrier planes and three Essex carriers. It is now close to the strength of the Kido Butai and with the support of the US Air Force they expect to dominate any carrier battle. Canadian and US ground forces are transported to the West of France from North America.  The British marine engineer crosses the Channel to land in North France. China passes this Turn.

Mussolini chooses a combined impulse and retreats some units in South France. He sends a couple of planes including the "nazgul" into the East Med. There a Beaufighter attempts to intercept. In the air combat the Beaufighter shoots the nazgul down! Curses! Germany chooses a Land impulse and starts withdrawing from Southern Poland but opportunistically grab the vacant Lodz. Defences are strengthened particularly in the northern end of the Belgian line. Japan chooses a Naval and Land combined and sends its convoy escorts out. Some subs try to intercept Allied convoys but fail. The Kido Butai sails into the Coral Sea trying to force the issue with the Pacific Fleet along with some sub support. My understanding of the rules is that a Naval Offensive points bonus only lasts for this impulse so Yamamoto does not pay for one. He moves a fighter wing to help cover the carrier fleet. He moves a garrison division by sea to Siam and then air transports it to Kumming. He moves the Advance fleet into the Bay of Bengal to cover the transport moving Yamashita into Rangoon. Japanese infantry disorganise themselves by moving to close any gaps facing the Commonwealth in Burma. A strong garrison corps moves by sea to Pyongyang. The two hexes of the neck of the Korean peninsula have a Japanese corps each to help slow down any Japanese offensive. A Japanese cavalry corps with the supply unit starts moving towards the isolated Japanese tank corps - if they can reach them then the supply unit can resupply the tank corps.

The weather is fine everywhere except the North Monsoon zone. Roosevelt chooses a combined action. He moves troops in East France towards the front lines. In the Pacific he moves his medium bombers to Hawaii from the US and moves fighters from there towards Samoa. More importantly he moves fighters into the 3 box in the Coral Sea and moves out his big Pacific Fleet to challenge the Kido Butai Japanese carrier fleet. Both sides fly in naval bombers. The US gets 4 surprise points - it could choose a sub combat where it has an advantage but we want to refight Midway so carrier air combat it is with the US having +2 advantage in air combat. In the first round the Ki43 is shot down. In the second round a weak US carrier bomber (chosen to be at front of the bomber force is aborted but a Japanese carrier A6M2 is shot down. The Catalina gets through to attack the Japanese. The Japanese shoot down the land based F4U corsair but one of their weak bombers is turned back. An advanced carrier F6 is aborted but the best carrier A6M2 is shot down. Both sides clear through a bomber. A US F4 is aborted and a Japanese bomber gets through. A US carrier bomber is aborted and a Japanese carrier bomber is aborted. The Japanese lead fighter is aborted. Another US bomber gets through whilst a Japanese bomber is aborted. A US bomber is aborted but another Japanese carrier fighter is shot down. A US bomber gets through but another Japanese fighter is shot down. The Japanese planes abort and pray the Americans do not hammer the fleet. One Japanese bomber is shot down in a hail of fleet AA fire. The remaining bomber forces 2 Essex carriers back to port and damages a cruiser. The Japanese AA only aborts 3 sea factors but a massive 22 factors are going in to attack the fleet. Yamamoto prays but loses a carrier Kaga with Shokaku damaged and 2 light cruisers are sunk. The carrier planes on both sides are exhausted and Yamamoto has the advantage in surface warfare so stays in the sea zone. The losses in ships are not severe but the carrier air force is mauled badly. On the other hand this can take 3-4 turns - much less than replacing carriers - but the carrier force will have to pull back from contesting with the Pacific fleet until this happens. Both fleets fail to find each other in the next round. Deep breath - enjoyed that battle. The Japanese lost badly in the air contest but didn't do too badly in the naval losses. 

Stalin chooses a Land action. He moves forces into East Poland and attacks the Hungarians in South Poland but only manages to get a Retreat on them.  Lvov is surrounded by a ring of steel. Fighters move closer to the front line. Timoshenko flips over to reorganise the two units surrounding Konigsberg on the East. Churchill and De Gaulle chose Land actions. The French. move their new mechanised corps to help surround a German Italian salient in the woods near the Belgian border. In the South they move to contact with the Italians. A Mosquito evades a Bf109 interceptor and disorganises the Italian HQ Graziani. Paratroopers and Marines move away from the front line to be ready for air assault and amphibious assault potentially.  On the Indian/ Burmese border the Commonwealth forces approach the Burmese border with Japan. In China the Nationalists bombard Kweihan and disorganise the militia there. They send bombers to support but in the dogfight the bombers are sent back. Despite the Nationalist having half attack factors Vinegar Joe Stillwell carries out an excellent attack and shatters the Japanese militia whilst all his forces are disorganised along with the defending Japanese HQ.

Hirohito chooses a no cost Combined impulse. A moderate strength infantry corps is moved from Korea to Canton which then moves by land to the mountains next to Kweihan. A militia corps moves to Kweihan. The Japanese bombard Wuhan disorganising the motorised corps there. They launch an attack and lose a division but destroy a powerful infantry corps there. all the attackers and defenders are disorganised. Yamamoto moves a sea plane into the 3 box in Coral Sea and searches for the Yankees. He only succeeds in another air combat but his plane is better than the US Catalina. Unfortunately the Catalina aborts the Japanese plane. The Catalina heavily put off by Japanese AA achieves little against the Japanese ships. The next round the US has advantage and decides to send the Catalina in again and with its surprise points ends up getting to roll 2 damage attacks against the Zaikaku - it only succeeds in damaging it but thats gone to repair along with 2 planes. In the next round the Catalina goes again for Zaikaku  and finally sinks it! This is turning into another catastrophe for Yamamoto. A Japanese battleship is also sent back to port. The next round is better- he gets to chose surface combat which favours the Japanese fleet. Washington battleship is sunk! Yamashiro is damaged. Some cruisers on both sides are damaged. Yamamoto feels that at least some blood has been repaid. Sadly next round US subs finish off Yamashiro and a light cruiser for the cost of a damaged sub. The naval combat finally ends with US naval dominance confirmed. The Kido Butai flees back to Rabual. Mussolini chooses a Land impulse and moves his units in France to form a defence line protecting his resources in Southern France. Hitler chooses a Land impulse. He closes the gap in his line in Northern Poland and continues to retreat into the mountains in South Poland's border. He evacuates Lvov. 

Weather is awful next impulse with Storm in most regions. This pleases Hitler for whom bad weather has saved him on the Western front.  Roosevelt chooses a Land and reinforces the South Pacific with air units. He air transports paratroopers to NW France and Darwin in Australia. He rail moves units from Brest to NW France and disorganises Bradley to flip them over. Churchill chooses a no cost combined move and puts his fighters closer to the front in NW France and moves units to occupy Metz. He moves Carrier Force H into the Arabian sea intending to move it to Ceylon in the Return to Base phase. China moves weak partisans to try and surround the Japanese tank corps to make it hard for the Japanese relief column. De Gaullle chooses a no-cost combined. He sends a transport to Africa with Commonwealth carrier planes to help  out Churchill. Stalin chooses a Land Impulse. He occupies Lvov and flanks the Rumanian river defence line at the Dnestr. Stalin starts moving powerful Guards Banner armies to replace the the units east of Konigsberg- Stalin may fancy a cheeky attack to seize it next impulse. The Soviets attack the militia unit at the western end of the Dnestr line. As they have a winterised bonus they manage to blitz the militia and breach the line with loss of a division and one corps disorganised. The Rumanian defence line has been unhinged! The Soviets move planes closer to the front lines. Konigsberg looks like Stalin might try an assault there next impulse. China uses 4 offensive points to reorganise Stillwell from the US. The Turn doesn't end. 

Germany pulls back forces in Rumania. In Southern Poland he retreats forces into mountains. His best hope is for the turn to end now and to win initiative next Turn and retreat his forces in Rumania. So the other Axis forces pass to get a 1 bonus on ending the Turn. He succeeds in ending the Turn leaving the Allies frustrated as they had hoped to achieve so much more. Hitler keeps doing his rain dance.

No partisans arrive. Ships return to base. Another Essex class heavy carrier joins the Pacific fleet. The Royal Navy carrier fleet  Force H- albeit with mostly rubbish planes - arrives at Ceylon. Commonwealth and US transports head to the East Coast so that they can transport troops across the Atlantic next Turn. 

In the Production phase Germany cannot get enough resources to fully use its factories. Its being outproduced by the USSR and the UK (who benefits from a Belgian factory and resource) - albeit the Commonwealth is splitting production between Europe and the Pacific fronts. The US is out producing Germany with its resources dedicated to Europe. Germany is drowning not waving in the MaterialSchlact.  The Commonwealth starts building two mechanised corps to help finish Germany off. 

Italy focusses on building planes and ground units and feels it can hold off the Allies in the mountains of the South of France. Stalin builds lots of planes and is building four mechanised corps and begins two engineer divisions and a katyusha rocket artillery division. France build two motorised infantry corps, an artillery division and an infantry HQ. China with its bonus build point from the cadres of a shattered infantry army builds a (Communist) mechanised corps. Japan completes its 4 light carriers, repairs cruisers and a carrier and builds many planes. It starts the final build cycle of the lark Kii carrier and begins the first build cycle of two carriers. The hope of getting parity with the US Pacific Fleet will have to wait. The US focusses on building planes, naval units and Offensive Points instead of Land units. It continues to build a Canadian artillery division and Mosquito fighter unit. In the Pacific Front Japan is being outproduced but still has the strongest land army and holds a vast swathe of territory.

The US gets two Intelligence points. The Soviets get a low value counter for being able to declare an offensive but they lack the combat strength to press an attack. The Germans destroy factories in Lodz and Bucharest despite Rumanian protests. The Italians destroy a factory in Lyon. The road near Rangoon will be completed next Turn. Another short Turn has ended. The Allies feel frustrated on the Western front but are beginning to establish dominance on the Pacific Front.