AAR: Manifest Destiny, an USA AAR.

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Settings: VLarge fleets, 100% research rate, Historical Resources, and Manual Build.

Legacy Build Roles and ideas:

DDs: Used for screening, and large ship killing.   They do not need to be all that fast, but need to mount multiple torpedoes, and enough guns to cause problems to other DDs.  They'll also be escorts. (ideal fleet: 24)

CLs: Raiders.  They need to be faster than CAs, need no torps, but should have plenty of secondary guns to take down interfering MS and Merchants.  (ideal fleet: 6)

CAs: Counter-Raiders and Foreign Station lead ships, so fast, decent guns, and plenty of secondary guns to take out CLs and DDs.  They are not going to take on Bs. (ideal fleet: 1 per claimed zone (4))

Bs: The main battle line.  as heavy as I can get them, with as heavy a gun as possible.

Next post, the actual designes

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DDs (13 - 2 each in North Am West Coast, Caribbean, and SE Asia, remaining 7 in North Am East Coast, 11 additional under construction)


CLs (6, 4 in North Am West Coast, 2 in North Am East Coast)


CAs (4, 1 Each in North Am West Coast, North Am East Coast, Caribbean, and Southeast Asia)

BBs (7 4 in North Am West Coast, 3 in North Am East Coast, 5 under Construction)

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January 1900

Intelligence set to High on all Countries.
Set Research to 10%, with special emphasis on: Torpedoes, Light Forces, Ship Design, and Turrets/Gun Mountings and Low emphasis on: ASW, and Armour
Started Training on Torpedoes and Gunnery
Halted 2 Bs because of my horrendous balance.

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June 1900

8 DDs have been built (over the past 2 months)
Restarted 1 B
got 2 dock expansion events over the past 6 months (16k dock size total)

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Jan 1901

Docks, Training completed (18k docks) Docks expansion started
First B finished, started another one (not too much ground breaking tech, so no new class yet)
Tensions are high with Germany, I've started sending out CLs to pre-position as raiders

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Oct 1901

War! War with Germany!
Current Disposition (vs are current GE ships):

NA East Coast: 7B, 1CA, 14 DD vs 1 CA, 8 DD
Caribbean: 1 CA, 1 CL, 2 DD
W Africa: CL vs CL, DD
Indian Ocean: B, CL, DD vs B, CA
SE Asia: B, CA, CL, 3DD vs 2 CA
NE Asia: B, CL, DD vs B
NA West Coast: B, CA, 3DD
S Pacific: CL
Europe: (GE) B, 10CL, 9DD
Mediterranean: (GE) CL

9 DDs in NA East Coast are in Escort mode
all CLs are in Raider mode

Since Jan, we've researched 600 ton DDs, and designed:


and started 15 of them. With the War Budget, I've started another 9. At this point, we're 1.2mil in the black, and we're saving up for when we can build BBs and BCs.

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Oct 1901 (continued)
Battle in Oct was in NE Asia, 1 DD Damaged (2) vs 1 DD sunk, 1 DD Damaged (3), and 3 TR sunk

Nov 1901
CA intercepts and sinks CL in NA East Coast
Damaged DD in NE Asia interned
8 DDs finished

Jan 1902
I've blockaded N Europe since Nov, and in Dec, GE avoided battle in most places, and was not able to find enough CA/CLs in Indian Ocean.
With the score ~2k vs ~100, GE Surrenders (6 points, Kiatchu Bay, N Marianas, and Bismark Archipelago)
Docks finished and started (21k Dock limit now)
14 old DDs scrapped

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Jan 1903
Docks are now at 23k.
I've discovered no significant tech the last year, and I figure that I pretty much have to start my BC mk1.  So, designed and started 3 of:


Nov 1903
War! War with Japan!
JA declines the surprise attack, but accepts a shore attack.
Final results, US 2 B light damage, 2 DD light damage.  JA 1 B sunk, 1 CA sunk, 3 CA light damage, 1 CL Light damage, 4 DD sunk, 1 DD Medium Damage, 1 DD Light Damage.

10 Coastal Subs started
2 more Saratoga's started (total of 7 by this point)

Current Strategic overview:
NA East Coast 5 B, 1 CA, 10 DD (10 DD on Escort) vs 2 CL
N Europe (JA) 1 DD
Mediterranean CL
Caribbean CL, 2 DD vs 1 DD
SA East Coast CL vs DD
W Africa CL
Indian Ocean CL vs B
SE Asia 3B, CA, 4 DD vs CA, CL
NE Asia 3B, 3DD vs CA, 3CL, 3DD, MS
S Pacific CL
SA West Coast (JA) CL
NA West Coast 2B, CA, 5DD vs B, 2CL, 3DD

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Dec 1903
US Forces invade Formosa

Jan 1904
US CA intercepts CL in SE Asia, and sinks it.
Docks completed and Built (now at 26k)

Feb 1904
Combat in NE Asia, B Damaged vs CA Sunk, 6 TR sunk

Mar 1904
Combat in NE Asia, B Damaged vs B Sunk

May 1904
Formosa Falls
CA intercepts JA CL in NE Asia and sinks it

June 1904
JA Surrenders, 6 points (South Korea)

Jan 1905
Docks Completed and Built (now at 28k)
Most of the Saratogas have been paused due to the budget declines after war.  The 10 Subs started in late 1903 were completed. 
The next war is probably 1-2 years away, even if I concentrate on annoying a particular enemy (the closes is at 4 tension, which is RU)

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Nov 1905
War! War with Russia!
wow, my Spies suck. I seem to have had a spy event every single month, France and Russia were caught stealing over and over. A last Balkans event got RU tension to exactly 12. So although we are at war, there was no combat yet.

In the meantime, the next generation of DDs are available, but not finished (12 building):


And while I still don't see any point to building BBs, I had a citizens donate 50 million event. So I built a minimal BB. to be used as anti-blockade units (I'll stick 4 in NA East Coast and 2 in NA West Coast):


On War here's the strategic situation:

NA East Coast: 3BC, 8B, CA, 12 DD (11 on Escort) vs CA, CL
NA West Coast: 4B, 4DD
Caribbean: CA, 2DD vs 6 DD
SA East Coast: CL vs 2DD
SA West Coast: (RU) B, CL
South Pacific: CL
NE Asia: B, CA, 4DD vs CA, CL, 2DD
SE Asia: CA, CL, 2DD
Indian Ocean: CL
W Africa: CL vs 2DD
Mediterranean: CL
N Europe: (RU) 6B, 3CA, 6CL, 14DD

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Nov 1905 (continued)
Battle in N Europe, 1 BC damaged (light) vs 1 B sunk, 1 B damaged (heavy) Wow. BCs totally outclass Bs.

Dec 1905
Battle in N Europe, 1 BC damaged (light), 4 B damaged (light), vs 1 B sunk, 4 B damaged (light), 1 CL sunk, 1 DD sunk, 6 DD damaged (med to heavy)

Jan 1905
Docks completed and started (now at 30k)
CA intercepts RU CL in the Caribbean and sinks it
Algeria declared independence from FR (have been fighting for about a year now)
2 of the Damaged B in N Europe got interned.

Feb 1905
Battle in N Europe. 1 BC Damaged (light), 2 B damaged (Medium), vs 1B sunk, 4B damaged (light), CA sunk, 2DD sunk, 6DD Damaged (light to heavy), 1 TR sunk

April 1905
My ships, they are getting interned so much. 2 Bs from the fight in Feb, 1 CL each last 2 months.
Battle in N Europe. 2 BC damaged (med and light), vs 2B sunk, 3DD sunk, 4DD damaged (light to heavy) 1 TR sunk.
The BCs are probably going to get interned as well. sigh.

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June 1906
CA intercepts CL in NA East Coast, and sinks it.

August 1906
BC intercepts CL in N Europe and sinks it

November 1906
Battle in N Europe, 2 BC damaged (light) vs 1 CA sunk, 2 DD sunk

Dec 1906
Battle in N Europe, 2 BC damaged (light) 1 DD damaged (light) vs 1 B sunk, 1 CA sunk, 1 DD sunk

Following the concept of the minimal dreadnaught, I designed a minimal Battlecruiser to use as a foreign station leader (to replace CAs, CLs will be replaced by subs):


Jan 1907
Docks completed and started (now at 32k)
Battle in NA East Coast, RU lost 1 CA sunk, 1 DD damaged (light)


Feb 1907
Battle in NE Asia, 2 B damaged (light) vs 2 B sunk
Army invades Liaotung Penninsula

July 1907
Liaotung Penninsula conquered, Army invades Sahklin Islands same month
War goals have changed. We're going to hope that RU government will hold on until after Sahklin Islands get conquered. Then I will try to get it to fall. This war has gone on for 2 years. I want something good out of it.

December 1907
Sahklin Islands falls
Combat in N Europe, 3 BC damaged (light) vs 2 B sunk

January 1908
Docks finished and started (35k)

February 1908
RU Government falls. Finland claimed.
900 ton DD and triple turrets were researched in the last year. With the new strategic situation, we'll re-arrange deployments and ships in the next post.

[director]

You're building 'badnoughts' with all those single turrets. LOL.

I wondered if you'd get your ships interned, running a blockade so far from your bases. That 'splendid isolation' is one of the strengths of the US - it is hard for a power other than Britain to get at you - but unless you have a European alliance it is hard to carry on a war in Europe.

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Before I get into the Strategic Situation (which isn't looking good), I'll wonder off into ship construction and why I built the badnaughts.

Now that I took down (or was about to take down) both JA and RU, my main concern now lies with the European powers, which means power projection to Northern Europe and possibly the Mediterranean (in the case of the Italians.) In the Pacific (and to a lesser extent the Caribbean), I don't anticipate seeing new/extremely heavy designs.

To address the minimal BBs, the Wyoming class, they are strong enough to take out all CA/CL raiders, and would add some throw weight to the main battle line. But if there was an actual fleet action, they would not participate. In fact, they are there solely for anti-blockade duties. 28 mil and 129k maintenance for 12 ship points is cheap. I'll have a group of 4 in NA East Coast, and a group of 2 in NA West Coast. NA East coast will get a division or two of real battle lines, but NA West coast should be pretty much set.

This gets to the minimal BCs. They need to be fast enough to run away from old Bs, and heavy enough to take down CA/CLs, which they would do. They're 29 mil and 140k maintenance for 10 ship points, also, since they're marked as Colonial ships, they count as 12kton for foreign station work, not as efficient as BBs, but they'll get picked in cruiser actions. Currently, I need 8, 1 each in NA West Coast and East Coast. 2 each in NE Asia, SE Asia, and Caribbean.

Eventually, when I've beaten down most dangers and no longer need the ship points, the Essex class will turn into squadron leaders, and I'll build 1600 ton MS on colonial duty to round out the numbers. So SE Asia, which currently needs 15k on Foreign station, will get 1 Essex and 2 of the MS. NE Asia, which needs 23k, will get 1 Essex and 6 MS. There'll be a corresponding drop in that opponents can now invade when they have 40 Ship points vs 80, but that shouldn't be an issue after I take down the UK.

[bcoopactual]

Jun 27, 2016 10:12:45 GMT -6 director said:

You're building 'badnoughts' with all those single turrets. LOL.

I wondered if you'd get your ships interned, running a blockade so far from your bases. That 'splendid isolation' is one of the strengths of the US - it is hard for a power other than Britain to get at you - but unless you have a European alliance it is hard to carry on a war in Europe.

Yes or get lucky and pick an early fight with Russia.  If Russia collapses, both Finland and Baltic States are 10 points and so vulnerable to being seized which gives you a base to operate from.