We played this one Friday night. This is a very appealing scenario. The IJA has to take an airfield defended by some high firepower/ low morale US boys backed up by two MMG, a .50 and 4 Baz '44. The IJA has 12 1st liners, only light SW including a pair of foot-MTRs, and 4 tanks.
What made me longing for this one was the fighting for the airfield - hey, how often has this aspect of board 14 been used?
I attacked from the center to the west, and my troops made quite a lot of meters during the first two game turns. (Do IJAs make meters? I just definitely know they do not make yards:- ) Opposition was rather light, my opponent rather tried to deny me the few open ground hexes on the board edge and on the row 'P', but immediately fell back after accomplishing that. The Kunai makes a lot of Hindrance DRM, so he harassed me and fell back. I could not dare to try too much with my tanks, since those BAZ would rather easy toast my tanks, which I wanted to avoid that early. The real fighting started on the border to board 14. The US firebase in N3 was really annoying (.50, 667, 9-1, with a 666 + BAZ in O4) most of the US stayed concealed, making it rather difficult to gain ground. Stacking is very risky facing the firepower of the US, but since FG are heavy restricted due to G.3, one has to take some risks. I made a daring advance, established a firebase myself, got a tank into 37 J9, a Mtr into P9, another into P10. My 10-1 was leading two squads with LMGs assaulting the building 14 C1 backed up inefficiently by a tank. One Chi Ha had circumvented parts of the jungle via the jungle roads and emerged at 14 Y2 unloading a rider. Taking position at W3, this tank had some nice LOS all the way to 14 N7 and can also start to pound 14 N3.
I took some losses, the US took a CH from a foot Mtr, which killed the 9-1, the 667 rolled boxcars, and was eliminated by the ensuing LLMC. So much for the .50 :-)
I gacked two tank guns, and lost a tank on my right flank, when a BAZ guy in D5 hit one of my HD babies in B3. Hm, CS of three is nasty, so my boys were toast even rolling a '4' So much for my Panzer-force:-( (Do Chi-Has and especially Ha -Gos really have Panzer-status? Boy for 1944 those vehicles are really crap, and even if one assumes the crews to be no pantywaists, the player using (abusing?) them should always have a sixpack of diapers in reach if anything starts firing at them!)
I could not manage to get any WP from my MTRs, and just one SMOKE, but that one was worth 5 IPC in gold. It gave the possibility to rush forward to secure the .50 for my boys, and overwhelm the smoked US in HtH CC. This cost two of my own squads, but silenced a MMG plus leader. Now only 6 morale suckers were left. Knowing this, my boys got rather daring. Although a 666 in 14 G3 seemed to be invincible, I finally got him, when he went berserk. Actually this was feeling to be _very_ realistically. (Just like a HMG having 6+ times ROF finally rolling boxcars). This incredible 6-6-10 crossed OG while charging, ate multiple 1MC and 2MC, finally CRd on a meager 1 FP shot, but took a full squad with him in CC. I gacked the third gun, and did not dare to try to repair them, since a RECALL could not be afforded at that time. Things were looking bleak, but then I broke three of the US MMC in one PFPh, and bagged them with a combined AFV/infatry rush for failure to rout, an action that cost a further tank with a 4 hex range BAZ shoot, and a HS which got KIA. This broke the US. I got a Japanese marginal victory out of it with 10 VP on/adjacent runway hexes.
Our group has played this one three times, with one IJA marginal, one draw, and one US marginal victory. I like it, and the fighting is quite intense. It is not easy to overcome the initial FP of the US, and I have seen just one HW in the three playings of this one. The IJA has to take care not to dwindle away, otherwise he might not have enough VPs left for the VC, even if he manages to butcher most of the US troops.
The weak heel of the US is their bad morale. If broken, it is not easy to get back into action once the fighting is taking place on board 14. And the AFVs are nasty once the BAZ are located/Xed/lost. It is also most annoying for the US that the VC area can be reached via advance from jungle M4 and Bamboo K4. Troops which manage to breakthrough from the west can approach the airfield via the 3x3 kunai area.
All in all an intense scenario, hats off to the Paddington Bears! Others who played this and want to share their war stories with us?
Fritz Tichy