For ANZAC day my friend Ian came down from Christchurch (3-4
hr drive) for a days gaming. We started WW2 game in the late 70s as kids using a
homebrewed set we created from elements of Featherstone’s and Lionel Tarr’s rules
with a dash of Charle’s Grant’s Battle thrown in for good measure (eg mortar fall
of fire templates IIRC) and later adding elements of Operation Warboard as
well.
This was my first game of RFR vs a real opponent and was another
game set in Burma. It as similar to my last game but this time three companies
of British (each of HQ, 2” mortar and 3 platoons of 8 figs), 2x 3” mortars, 2x
MMG, 2x recce carriers and a Grant tank vs 2x Japanese companies (HQ, 2x knee
mortars, 3x 8 fig platoons & 2x MMGs) + a 70mm infantry gun and 47mm AT gun
defending two river crossings.
The Japanese were slightly outnumbered. They gave a good
account for themselves but in the end broke- though I (the Japanese player) got
close to breaking a second British company and winning the game so I felt the
game was fairly well balanced.
In future we will add an improvised AT weapon team to the Japanese
companies to help them deal with the uber tank that is the Grant, and some
snipers but overall we were both happy with the flow of the game and the way it
played out although we both forgot all about the ambush rule!
The Japanese positions on turn 1
A view from the Japanese lines
British infantry support the Grant tank
Japanese open fire and cause a few casulaties on advacing British near the carrier
British reach the river- infantry can cross at 1/2 speed.
More infantry cross at the ford.
The Japanese cause some casualties but the forward platoon is destroyed.
A close assault goes in vs the survivors of the patoon nearest the AT gun.
A Japanese platoon launches a banzai charge but are repulsed with heavy losses.
With the right flank overrun the Japanese battaion commander orders a platoon to launch an immediate counter attack- but perhaps too little, too late.
The British consolidate their gains on the Japanese right flank, sending the Grant forward.
The Japanese are over run and the last surivors retreat.
Thoughts
That was a great game. The Japanese were always outnumbered and going to struggle vs the tank; the 47mm AT gun really needing a close range hit from a side shot to have a chance to damage it, but even so the game played realy well. We both enjoyed the spotting rules, when to (or not to) open fire were critical decisions and even though the Japanese force was a bit outgunned and outnumbered I still felt that I had a chance through out. We will continue to tweak the RFR rules to suit our tastes and have added LMGs at this (Company/Battalion) scale and intend to add improvised AT teams to the Japanese OOB to allow them a etter chance vs tanks.
Finally, we finished with a game of my favourite boardgame, Twilight Struggle, and I got trounced!
This month is the 75th anniversaries of the Battles of Tarawa and Makin here in Kiribati (or the Gilbert Islands as they were then known- Kiribati is Gilbert in the i-Kiribati language).
Butaritari lies a couple of hundred kilometres north of Tarawa. The atoll is roughly
four-sided and nearly 30 km across in the east-west direction, and averages
about 15 km north to south. The reef is more submerged and broken into several
broad channels along the west side.
The Japanese landed on Butaritari on December 10, 1941, three days after the attack on
Pearl Harbour and began to build a seaplane base on the island of Butaritari.
On August 17, 1942, Butaritari was attacked by Colonel
Evans Carlson's 2nd Marine Raider Battalion. Landing from two submarines the 211-man
force killed 83 of Makin's garrison and destroyed the island's installations
before withdrawing. In the wake of the attack, the Japanese reinforced the Gilbert Islands. This saw the arrival on Makin of a company from
the 5th Special Base Force and the construction of more formidable defenses.
Butaritari’s defences were centered around the lagoon
shore near the seaplane base in the central part of the island. There were two
tank barrier systems. The west tank barrier, which extended from the lagoon
two-thirds of the way across Butaritari, was 12 to 13 feet wide and 5 feet
deep, and was protected by one anti-tank gun, a concrete pillbox, six
machine-gun positions and 50 rifle pits. The east tank barrier, 14 feet wide
and 6 feet deep, stretched from the lagoon across two-thirds of the island and
bent westward with log anti-tank barricades at each end. It was protected by a
double apron of barbed wire and an intricate system of gun emplacements and
rifle pits.
A series of strongpoints were established along the ocean
side including 8-inch coastal defense guns, 37mm anti-tank gun positions, machine-gun
emplacements and rifle pits. The Japanese expected an invasion to come on the
ocean side of Butaritari, following the example of Carlson’s raid in 1942, and
established their defenses two miles from where that raid had taken place.
Without aircraft, ships or hope of reinforcement or relief, the outnumbered and
outgunned defenders could only hope to delay the coming American attack for as
long as possible.
The Japanese garrison on Butaritari consisted of 798 men: 284 combat troops
of the 3rd Special Base Force-Makin Detachment along with 100 aviation personnel and about 500 Korean labourers. The garrison was commanded by Lt. j.g. Seizo Ishikawa.
The US 27th Infantry Division was a New York National Guard unit that had been transferred to Hawaii where it remained 18 months before being chosen
to take part in the Gilbert Islands invasion.
On November 20th 1943 at the same time as the 2nd Marine
Division landed at Tarawa the 27th Infantry Division's 165th Regimental
Combat Team landed on Butaritari on Makin Atoll. infantry were supported by Lees and Stuart tanks of the 193rdTank Battalion which were to prove invaluable in supporting the infantry.
The American plan was to overwhelm Makin’s defenders with
crushing air and naval barrages followed by an amphibious landing intended to
mop up any lingering enemy resistance. The U.S. planners hoped to lure the Japanese into committing most of their forces to oppose the first landings on Red Beach which would allow the troops landing on Yellow Beach to attack from the rear. The US commanders estimated it
would take about two days to clear the island.
The
Japanese, however, did not respond to the attack on Red Beach. Instead they withdrew
from Yellow Beach with only harassing fire, leaving the troops of the 27th
Division no choice but to knock out the fortified strongpoints one by one.
Reduction operations were hampered by the frequent inability to use heavy
support weapons, including tanks, because of the danger of cross-fire.
Japanese snipers hidden in the fallen trees and shell craters started were to take a heavy toll on the attackers and the American regimental commander was killed while rallying his
troops.
Like Tarawa the Battle lasted three days and it wasn't until the morning of the
23rd of November when the troops of the 3rd Battalion reached the eastern tip of Butaritari and organised resistance was declared
ended.
In the battle of Makin the
27th Division lost 66 soldiers killed and 152 wounded. Japanese casualties were
550 men killed and 105 prisoners of war, all but one of whom all but one were
labour troops.
The Battle of Makin is less well known than the Battle of Tarawa but Makin is notable in that it was the first
amphibious assault conducted by U.S. Army forces in the Central Pacific during
World War II. Valuable lessons were learned that were to pave the way for larger operations on
Saipan, ion the Philippines, and on Okinawa. Makin also marked the combat debut of
armour in an Army-led Pacific landing and was the only time American-crewed Lee
medium tanks were used in battle against Japan.
So why the sudden interest in the Battle of Makin? As mentioned this month is the 75th Anniversary of the battle, along with
Tarawa, and next weekend I’m heading up to Buitaritari with some other kiwi
volunteers for the weekend and hope to be able to explore some of the remnants
of the battle. With a bit of luck I'll have a few pictures to post in a week or so.
The island atoll of Tarawa lies in the heart of the Pacific Ocean in the Gilbert islands approximately 4000 km (2500 miles) southwest of Hawaii and 2100kms east of Truk Island in the Caroline islands.The island was scene of a bloody battle during World War Two.
Prior to the outbreak of war New Zealand had a 18 coastwatchers stationed on the island, most of whom were civilian volunteers from the NZ postal service.
The Imperial Japanese Navy occupied the Gilbert Islands three days after the attack on Pearl Harbour in December 1943. They built a seaplane base on Makin and dispersed troops along the coastlines of the atolls to monitor the Allied forces' movement in the South Pacific.
After the arrival of the Japanese forces these coast watchers were captured and most were later executed by the Japanese.
John Jones was one of seven coastwatchers on Butaritari atoll in the north of the group. He was captured and taken to a prison camp in Japan. Seventeen others were beheaded by the Japanese on Tarawa atoll in August and September 1942 in retaliation for an American raid on the atolls. An eighteenth, Ron Third, was based on Ocean Island, now called Banaba, died in captivity after the island was captured by Japan in the August of that year. Five other civilians - three Britons, an Australian and a New Zealander - were also killed in the Tarawa massacre.
All those executed received a posthumous mention in dispatches and the civilian coastwatchers were retrospectively given military rank in 1944 so that their dependants could claim pensions and other rights. In 2014 their sacrifice was finally officially recognised in New Zealand with a memorial dedicated to them was unveiled in Wellington. John Jones, the last surviving Coastwatcher, then 94 years old, was able to finally pay tribute to his fallen friends and colleagues http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/10587923/WWII-coast-watchers-honoured.
However, the fate of the coastwatchers remained largely unknown here in New Zealand until recently and it was a long forgotten chapter of our wartime history. After having waited for so long for recognition of his comrades sacrifice, John Jones passed away earlier this year at the age of ninety-six http://www.stuff.co.nz/national/89163265/last-survivor-of-wwii-radio-operators-in-kiribati-dies
The Americans put up a memorial to the murdered coastwatchers after their forces retook Tarawa and this memorial was replaced in 2012 by a new memorial. It is interesting to note that is memorial was provide by the Australian government, not the New Zealand one!
The Battle of Tarawa Nov 20-23rd 1943
Tarawa was to become the southerly point of Japan’s defensive shield, and so its capture was seen as being important in keeping the lifeline between Hawaii, Australia and New Zealand open for the allies.
Like most islands in this region, Tarawa was actually a coral atoll and consists of 38 islands surrounded by coral reef. Betio island is the largest island group and lies at the southernmost reach of the lagoon, and it was here that the majority of the Japanese troops were based. Shaped roughly like a long, thin triangle, the tiny island is approximately 3.2 kms (2 miles) long and only 730m (800 yards) wide at its widest point. A long pier was constructed jutting out from the north shore onto which cargo ships could unload cargo while anchored beyond the 500-metre (550 yd)-wide shallow reef which surrounded the island. The northern coast of the island faces into the lagoon, while the southern and western sides face the deep waters of the open ocean.
Tarawa was selected for the site of one of the first amphibious landings to pierce the Japanese defensive shield, and as it turned out to be the first one where the beach landing was opposed by Japanese forces. Unfortunately for the marines who landed the planners had ignored the advice of a New Zealand expat who had lived on the islands for 15 years who had told them that the lagoon would be less than 3 feet deep at the time of the landing. Although the Am tracks were able to navigate the lagoon the Higgins boats and other landing vessels were unable to and so many marines found themselves floundering ashore and having to cross up to 1200 metres of lagoon, under heavy fire the whole way, to even arrive to the beaches. Many of them did not make it. Indeed about half of all US casualties were among those struggling to cross the lagoon.
The main value of the island was its airfield. Rear Admiral Shibasaki Keiji defended Betio with 4,836 troops of whom 2600 were of the Special Naval Landing Forces and about 1,000 were Japanese construction troops. There were also 1,200 Korean labourers on the island. At Keiji's disposal were also 14 large coastal defence guns, 50 field artillery pieces, over 100 machine gun nests, and 500 pillboxes dotted the landscape. To further deter landing attempts, the Japanese constructed a huge wall across the lagoons to the north.
The American 2nd Marine Division landed on 20 November and were met with fierce resistance from the Japanese defenders. indeed at the end of the first day the marines toehold was extremely precarious but luckily the Japanese commander had been killed while vacating his bunker to allow it to be turned into a hospital and this meant the Japanese were disorganised and did not launch a night counter attack, which could have had disastrous consequences for the Americans.
On the second day the Americas were able to consolidate their position and secure the beaches for reinforcements. By the end of the day, the entire western end of the island was in U.S. control though the position was still far from secure but the tide had turned in the Americans favour.
The third day of battle consisted primarily of consolidating existing lines along Red 1 and 2, beaches an eastward thrust from the wharf, and moving additional heavy equipment and tanks ashore onto Green Beach. During the morning the forces originally landed on Red 1 made some progress towards Red 2 but took casualties. Meanwhile, the 6th Marines which had landed on Green Beach to the south of Red 1 formed up while the remaining battalion of the 6th landed.
By the afternoon the 1st Battalion 6th Marines were sufficiently organised and equipped to take to the offensive. At 12:30 they pressed the Japanese forces across the southern coast of the island. By late afternoon they had reached the eastern end of the airfield and had formed a continuous line with the forces that landed on Red 3 two days earlier. By the evening the remaining Japanese forces were either pushed back into the tiny amount of land to the east of the airstrip, or operating in several isolated pockets near Red 1/Red 2 and near the western edge of the airstrip.
That night the Japanese forces formed up for a counterattack, which started at about 19:30. Small units were sent in to infiltrate the U.S. lines in preparation for a full-scale assault. The assembling forces were broken up by concentrated artillery fire, and the assault never took place. Another attempt, a large banzai attack, was made at 03:00 and met with some success, inflicting 173 casualties, including 45 dead.
The next day the island was finally secured. The Japanese fought almost to the last man, exacting a heavy toll on the Marines. The 2nd Marine Division suffered 894 killed in action, 48 officers and 846 enlisted men, while an additional 84 of the wounded later succumbed their wounds. A further 2,188 men were wounded in the battle. Of the 3,636 Japanese in the garrison, only one officer and sixteen enlisted men surrendered. Of the 1,200 Korean laborers brought to Tarawa to construct the defences, only 129 survived. All told, 4,690 of the island's defenders were killed.
As well as the Americans and Japanese losses the islands were home to an indigenous population who also suffered extensive losses during the battle, which, as so often in military history, is often overlooked.
3x SU 152s- I thought that the Soviets might need some reinforcements. I am really happy with the highlighting, a new colour I started using on my MW Rota Razvedki last year- Vallejo Green-Grey.
2x Jagdpanthers. These had been undercoarted so it was a matter of simply washing, drybrushing on the original colour and them the camoflage and finally drybrushing the highlight over the top- fast yet effective.
4x panzerjager IV- I think they are much cooler looking than stugs!
These took about half an hour to make yesterday and about the same time (between other jobs) to paint. Simple yet effective.
I simply used a 4 cmx 3cm block of balsa which I glued 4cm lengths of kebab stick onto, added some sand for texture and painted. Probably should make a couple more- they'll make great objective markers too.
