“SINGAPORE”

Japanese Attack on the Island: 8th February 1942:

LAND:

Army Assets:

1x –8 Corps HQ: 25A [Japanese corps were called armies hence the letter ‘A’]

1x 2-1-16 Tank II: 6 [37 Type 97 medium, 220 Type 20 light tanks]

1x 3-16 Heavy Artillery III: 3, 18 [24 15cm howitzers each]

1x 3-2-16 Heavy Artillery III: 18 [16 10cm guns, 8 15cm howitzers of 2nd Artillery Battalion]

1x 2-1-16 Artillery III: 3 [24 7.5cm field guns]

2x 2-12 Mortar II: 3, 5 [36 9cm mortars each]

1x 0-1-16 Eng II: 3 [of 3 Tank Group – the HQ of the tank units in Malaya]

1x 0-1-? Eng II: 15A [under discussion – later a river transport supply unit in Burma]

West Attack:

18thDivision [one regiment was in Borneo – hence no divisional counter as yet]

2x 4-8 Mountain III: 18/56. 18/114

1x 3-8 Mountain III: 18/55

1x 1-0-12 Cavalry II: 18/C

2x 0-1-6 Engineer II: 4, 23

1x 2-16 Heavy Artillery II: 21 [12 10cm cannon – attached]

1x 1-12 Anti-Tank [III] [its own 24 guns plus a company of 8 4.7cm guns]

North-West Attack:

5th Division [12-8 Light XX]

1x 2-1-16 Tank II: 1

2x 4-8 Light Infantry III: 5/11, 5/41

2x 3-8 Light Infantry III: 5/21, 5/42

1x 0-1-16 Recon II: 5/R

1x 0-1-6 Engineer II: 15

1x 1-6 Mortar II: 14 [16 32cm spigot mortars]

North (Causeway) Attack:

Imperial Guards Division: [11-16 motorised XX]

1x 1-16 Light Tank II: 14 [45 Type 20 light tanks]

2x 4-16 Motorised III: G/3, G/4

1x 1-12 Anti-Tank [III]: 2 [four converged companies – each with eight 4.7cm guns]

1x 0-1-6 Engineer II: 20

East (diversionary) Attack:

1x 3-16 Motorised III: G/5 [really just one battalion – the others in divisional reserve]

1x 0-1-16 Recon II: G/R

AVIATION

Air:

1x Ki 43-Ib ‘Oscar’

2x Ki 27 ‘Nate’

3x Ki 21-IIa ‘Sally’

1.5x Ki 48-Ib ‘Lily’

1x Ki 30 ‘Ann’

0.5x Ki 51 ‘Sonia’

Notes:

Land:

1: Note that although most divisions have four elements – three infantry regiments and a cavalry or recon battalion there are exceptions. For example two of the divisions present still retained the old ‘square’ format of four infantry regiments – however that of the 18th Division in Borneo (in fact it never rejoined the division). All three were among the very strongest in the IJA – many that appear later or elsewhere in the game are weaker, either having only three infantry companies per battalion instead of the four of those at Singapore or lacking a recon or cavalry battalion. In the game all divisions are considered to have a supporting battalion, with those that lacked one assigned a weak infantry battalion instead (this being a game mechanism to ensure that there is no need for endless breakdown displays since all divisions have the same number of units and all sub-units are division specific).

2: All Japanese divisions (the vast majority considered to be ‘light’ or ‘mountain’ in game terms) are very effective measured in terms of infantry combat, more so than those of other armies of the 1941-1943 period, hence their high rating (though note that, as mentioned above, some of those going into Burma are much weaker). They were both strong in number (an 18th Division regiment has about 4,000 men) and also well equipped with light mortars, machine-guns and multi-purpose infantry guns. But they had limited artillery – a 36 gun field regiment and 18 more in the regiments – and usually much lighter than those fighting in Western Europe. For example, there were only twenty 10cm field howitzers in the three divisions, the rest of them being 7.5cm field and mountain howitzers. And to make matters worse these Japanese divisions were not upgraded as were those of the CW and US armies – being restricted to the addition of new medium mortars (the 18th Division instead using those abandoned by the CW at Singapore!) and a company or so of field howitzers. In practical terms they fought the CW in Burma in 1945 equipped as they were in Malaya in 1941.

3: Of course the Japanese Army had very limited artillery and tank support compared with those of its opponents, especially later in the war. Indeed the attack on Singapore saw the biggest concentration of guns and armour the Japanese would manage during the first four years of the war. In contrast a much larger army in Burma (nine divisions compared with the three at Singapore) had a much more typical allotment – just one tank battalion and three artillery units. There was, in this respect also, very little improvement during the war – after all the Japanese managed to only build some 500 medium and heavy guns from 1942 on, an utterly derisory figure by German, Russian, CW or American standards. To be fair however this was because there was a substantial wartime production of 7cm and 7.5cm guns and 8cm mortars.

4: What is NOT shown here is the Combat Effectiveness value – it remains a debatable issue. For what it is worth I think that it is high as the IJA was extremely capable in terms of combat capability for at least the first three years of the war, being far more capable than its opponents on the battlefield. Indeed the only checks came when the Japanese were unable to perform their customary impeccable flanking and blocking manoeuvres, Bataan being the best case. But elsewhere IJA infantry units, almost all of them long term veterans of China, routinely defeated stronger British, Australian and American forces and stubbornly resisted far stronger and better equipped attackers, inflicting severe casualties in the process. But against this one needs to set the questionable command quality and especially the severe mutual antagonisms between most corps and division leaders, as well as the lack of depth in their supply and replacement structures.

Air:

As the CW air was largely wiped out in Malaya and Singapore the Japanese had started to use air units elsewhere. In particular the following were being used to fly cover over Southern Sumatra, especially Palembang as a fresh amphibious and parachute assault was starting just as Singapore came under attack. But they were, in theory, available should the CW have moved their Hurricane units from Sumatra to Singapore:

1x Ki 43-Ib ‘Oscar’

1x Ki 27 ‘Nate’

Other air units were by now active over Rangoon and the rest of Southern Burma, some diverted from the attack on Malaya, others arriving from the Philippines after the destruction of its American aircraft

Naval:

Of course there were no Japanese warships involved in the attack on Singapore, but such would never dissuade a board gamer! So below are those IJN assets that were in theory available to support the attack (in reality they were being used to support the invasion of South Sumatra):

1x CVL: Ryujo

0.5x A6M2 (F)

0.5x D3A (DB)

1x SL: Kamikawa/Sagara Maru

0.5x E8N1 (FP)

5x CA: Chokai, Kumano, Mikumo, Mogami, Suzuya

3x CL: Kashii, Sendai, Yura

16x DD: Amagiri, Asagiri, Asakaze, Ayanami, Fubuki, Harukaze, Hatakaze, Hatsuyuki, Isonami, Matsukaze, Murakumo, Shikinami, Shirakumo, Shirayuki, Uranami, Yugari