With the sudden loss of our WW2 expert, the late great El Alamein, our small wiki community has lost a pillar of knowledge and civility. A pillar who frequently showed us all how to better argue and vote with his dissenting opinions.My own personal exeperience with him was honestly quite short if i'm being honest, but I still highly appreciate his contributions to the wiki. I personally consider him my main inspiration for my love of WW2 battles and of course this battle.
Which leads me to another result of EA's sudden departure from our community. His battles are now left to be unfinished if no one takes them. Of particular noteworthiness is his planned rematch of Manofgod's Bernard Montgomery vs Douglas MacArthur battle. Since EA absolutely adored Montgomery, and believed the battle to be unsuitable for the two commansders, he successfully acquired the rematch.
But with him leaving, someone else would have to carry on this battle. And that's where I come in. Today I'm creating this battle not only to rematch MOG's battle, but to hopefully make EA proud and preserve his memory.
So with that out of the way we can get into the real battle
Throughout my season I've tried to use WW2 warriors that have gone unused and unnoticed in this wiki.I wanted to highlight some of the unsung commanders such as Yan Xishan. But today, I'm throwing that out of the window in this rematch of two prolific commanders that have proven their mettle many times over. One was particularly famous for his prowess in the North African Campaign and the other in the Philippines Campaign. The former being Bernard Montgomery, the famous British general who outsmarted the Desert Fox, Erwin Rommel at the 2nd Battle of El Alamein. The latter being Douglas MacArthur, the American general who orchestrated many of the Pacific Campaigns throughout the entire war.
WHO IS DEADLIEST
Bernard Montgomery[]
| “ | Every soldier must know, before he goes into battle, how the little battle he is to fight fits into the larger picture, and how the success of his fighting will influence the battle as a whole.
— Bernard Montgomery
|
” |
Bernard Law Montgomery was an officer in the British Army. He was second lieutenant during the First World War and the commander of the British 8th Army during the Second World War. His most famous victory, at the battle of El Alamein (from which a certain resident user found inspiration in the creation of his username), turned the tide of the Second World War in favor of the Allied forces - the Allies had won no major victory previous to El Alamein and suffered no major defeat following El Alamein. Montgomery was a master of desert warfare and a strategic genius, employing an impressive defense against Erwin Rommel's Afrika Korps before launching a massive counterattack that removed Axis presence from North Africa and allowed the Allied invasion of Italy. After the war, Montgomery enjoyed the title 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, and later died in 1976.
The Fairbairn-Sykes Fighting Knife (also called the Commando Knife; abbreviated to "F-S Knife") is a double-edged fighting knife used mainly by special forces for close-quarters combat. It was first used in WW2 by British Commandos, specificially the Royal Marine Commandos. The knife is designed to inflict both stabbing and slashing wounds, and can be thrown at a distance. It saw extensive use by WWII-era commandos as a stealth weapon. The weapon is still in production today for both for collectors and as a military close combat weapon.
Weight:varies
Length:11.5 inches
The Webley Revolver (also known as the Webley Break-Top Revolver or Webley Self-Extracting Revolver) was, in various marks, the standard issue service pistol for the armed forces of the United Kingdom, the British Empire, and the Commonwealth from 1887 until 1963.
Capacity: : 6-round cylinder
Round: .455 Webley (11.5x19.6mm)
Weight: 2.4 lb (1.1 kg), unloaded
Length: 11.25 in. (286 mm)
Range:50 yd
The Lee-Enfield was a British bolt action rifle that was the standard issue weapon for the British Army and most Commonwealth armies from 1895-1957, seeing service in both World Wars. While there were initial reliability problems, these were resolved with the Short Magazine Lee-Enfield, which featured higher velocity rounds and improved handguards. In both World Wars and Korea, the weapon was equipped with a scope and used as sniper weapon. A 7.62mm NATO conversion, the L42A1 remained in service in this capacity until the 1990.
The weapon was finally replaced in British and Commonwealth by the L1A1 Self Loading Rifle in 1957, but but is still used by Indian and Nepalese Police forces, the Canadian Arctic Rangers, and by some militias in developing countries, most notably Afghanistan.
Capacity: 10-round magazine, loaded with 5-round charger clips
Round:.303 Enfield
Weight: 4 kg
Range: Effective Range: 550 yd
Max Range: 3000 yd
The Lanchester is a submachine gun (SMG) manufactured by the Sterling Armaments Company between 1941 and 1945. It is a copy of the German MP28/II and was manufactured in two versions, Mk.1 and Mk.1*; the latter was a simplified version of the original Mk.1, with no fire selector and simplified sights. It was primarily used by the British Royal Navy during the Second World War, and to a lesser extent by the Royal Air Force Regiment (for airfield protection). It was given the general designation of Lanchester after George Herbert Lanchester who was charged with producing the weapon at the Sterling Armaments Company
Capacity:32-round detachable box magazine
Round:9×19mm Parabellum
Weight:9.57 lb
Range:150m
Rate of Fire:600 round/min
The Vickers machine gun or Vickers gun is a name primarily used to refer to the water-cooled .303 British (7.7 mm) machine gun produced by Vickers Limited, originally for the British Army. The machine gun typically required a six to eight-man team to operate: one fired, one fed the ammunition, the rest helped to carry the weapon, its ammunition, and spare parts. It was in service from before the First World War until the 1960s, with air-cooled versions of it on many Allied World War I fighter aircraft.
Capacity: 250-round canvas belt
Round:.303 British
Weight:33–51 lb
Range:2,000-4115 m
Rate of Fire:450 to 500 round/min
The Bofors 37 mm anti-tank gun was an anti-tank gun designed by Swedish manufacturer Bofors in the early 1930s originally for Swedish use. It was exported to several countries during the 1930's of which several bought licences to produce it themselves. The gun was used in several conflicts but most of its fame comes from its use in the Spanish civil war and the Winter war where it was used very successfully against light tanks and armored cars among other targets. Beyond its use as an infantry gun it was also used as the main armament in several armored cars and tanks such as the Dutch M39 Pantserwagen and the Polish 7TP to name a few. As the armor of tanks was increased during World War II the gun very quickly became obsolete as an anti-tank gun but was still used effectively as an infantry support gun for the entirety of the war, and well into the Cold War. This was due to its high fire rate, great mobility and effective high explosive shells.
Round:37 mm
Action:vertical sliding-block
Rate of fire:12 rounds per minute
Range:Effective firing range 4,000 m (4,374 yds)
Maximum firing range 6,500 m (7,108 yds)
Developed by William Mills of Birmingham in 1915, the standard issue grenade in the British Army, from the end of WWI until 1972 was the No. 36 Mills Grenade (Mills bomb). The No 36 is arguably the most recognized grenade the world over. The Mills was a classic design; a grooved cast iron "pineapple" with a central striker held by a close hand lever and secured with a pin. According to Mills' notes the casing was grooved to make it easier to grip and not as an aid to fragmentation, and in practice it has been demonstrated that it does not shatter along the segmented lines. A competent thrower could manage 15 metres with reasonable accuracy, but the grenade could throw lethal fragments farther than this. The grenade itself weighs 765 grams, is filled with Baratol explosive compound, a blast radius of 80 yards and has a fuse delay time of 4 seconds.
Weight:765 grams
Charge:Baratol
Detonation Mechanismseven (later four) second fuze
Blast Radius: to 100 yards
The Ordnance ML 3-inch mortar was the United Kingdom's standard mortar used by the British Army from the early 1930s to the late 1960s, superseding the Stokes mortar. Initially handicapped by its short range compared to similar the Second World War mortars, improvements of the propellant charges enable it to be used with great satisfaction by various armies of the British Empire and of the Commonwealth.
Caliber:3 inches
Rate of fire:Eight rounds per minute
Maximum firing range:2600 m
The Hawker Typhoon (Tiffy in RAF slang) is a British single-seat fighter-bomber, produced by Hawker Aircraft. It was intended to be a medium–high altitude interceptor, as a replacement for the Hawker Hurricane.
The Typhoon was originally designed to mount twelve .303 inch (7.7 mm) Browning machine guns and be powered by the latest 2,000 hp engines. Its service introduction in mid-1941 was plagued with problems and for several months the aircraft faced a doubtful future. When the Luftwaffe brought the formidable Focke-Wulf Fw 190 into service in 1941, the Typhoon was the only RAF fighter capable of catching it at low altitudes; as a result it secured a new role as a low-altitude interceptor.
Top Speed:412 mph
Armament: 4 × 20 mm (0.787 in) Hispano Mk II cannons
8 × RP-3 unguided air-to-ground rockets.
2 × 500 lb (230 kg) or 2 × 1,000 lb (450 kg) bombs
Crew: 1
Range:510 mi
The de Havilland DH.98 Mosquito is a British twin-engine shoulder-winged multi-role combat aircraft, introduced during the Second World War. Unusual in that its frame is constructed mostly of wood, it was nicknamed ,or "Mossie". Lord Beaverbrook, Minister of Aircraft Production, nicknamed it "Freeman's Folly", alluding to Air Chief Marshal Sir Wilfrid Freeman, who defended Geoffrey de Havilland and his design concept against orders to scrap the project. In 1941 it was one of the fastest operational aircraft in the world.
Originally conceived as an unarmed fast bomber, the Mosquito's use evolved during the war into many roles, including low- to medium-altitude daytime tactical bomber, high-altitude night bomber, pathfinder, day or night fighter, fighter-bomber, intruder, maritime strike, and photo-reconnaissance aircraft. It was also used by the British Overseas Airways Corporation (BOAC) as a fast transport to carry small, high-value cargoes to and from neutral countries through enemy-controlled airspace. The crew of two, pilot and navigator, sat side by side. A single passenger could ride in the aircraft's bomb bay when necessary.
(For this battle the Mosquitos will be fitted as fighters which lends to their multi-role functions)
Top Speed:415 mph
Armament: 4 × 20 mm (0.787 in) Hispano Mk II cannons
4 x .303 (7.7 mm) Browning machine guns
Crew:2
Range:1,300 mi
The Tank, Infantry, Mk IV (A22) Churchill was a British heavy infantry tank used in the Second World War, best known for its heavy armour, large longitudinal chassis with all-around tracks with multiple bogies, its ability to climb steep slopes, and its use as the basis of many specialist vehicles. It was one of the heaviest Allied tanks of the war.
The origins of the design lay in the expectation that war in Europe might be fought under similar conditions to those of the First World War and emphasised the ability to cross difficult ground. The Churchill was rushed into production to build up British defences against a possible German invasion. The first vehicles had flaws that had to be overcome before the Churchill was accepted for wide use. After several marks had been built, a better-armoured version, the Mark VII, entered service. The improved versions performed well in the later stages of the war.
The Churchill was used by British and Commonwealth forces in the North Africa campaign, in Italy, and in northwest Europe. In addition, a few hundred were supplied to the USSR and used on the Eastern Front.
Armament: QF 6-pounder
Top Speed:15 mph
Weight:39.1 tons
Armor: 102 mm hull front 89 mm hull side 51 mm hull rear 89 mm turret front 76 mm turret side and rear
The Sherman Firefly was a tank used by the United Kingdom and some Commonwealth and Allied armoured formations in the Second World War. It was based on the US M4 Sherman, but fitted with the powerful 3-inch (76.2 mm) calibre British 17-pounder anti-tank gun as its main weapon. Originally conceived as a stopgap until future British tank designs came into service, the Sherman Firefly became the most common vehicle mounting the 17-pounder in the war.
During the war, the British Army made extensive use of Sherman tanks. Though they expected to have their own tank models developed soon, the previously rejected idea of mounting the 17-pounder in the existing Sherman was eventually accepted, despite initial government resistance. This proved fortunate, as both the Cruiser Mk VIII Challenger and Cruiser Mk VIII Cromwell tank designs experienced difficulties and delays. Armament: QF 17-pounder (76.2 mm) gun, 77 rounds
coaxial .30 in (7.62 mm) Browning M1919 machine gun, 5,000 rounds
Top Speed:20-25 mph
Weight:35.3 tons
Armor:89 mm (turret front)
The M22 Locust, officially Light Tank (Airborne), M22, was an American-designed airborne light tank which was produced during World War II. The Locust began development in 1941 after the British War Office requested that the American government design a purpose-built airborne light tank which could be transported by glider into battle to support British airborne forces. The War Office had originally selected the Light Tank Mark VII Tetrarch light tank for use by the airborne forces, but it had not been designed with that exact purpose in mind so the War Office believed that a purpose-built tank would be required to replace it. The United States Ordnance Department was asked to produce this replacement, which in turn selected Marmon-Herrington to design and build a prototype airborne tank in May 1941. The prototype was designated the Light Tank T9 (Airborne), and was designed so that it could be transported underneath a Douglas C-54 Skymaster transport aircraft, although its dimensions also allowed it to fit inside a General Aircraft Hamilcar glider.
Armament: 1 × 37 mm Gun M6 50 rounds
1 × .30-06 Browning M1919A4 machine gun 2,500 rounds
Top Speed:40mph
Weight:7.4 tons
Armor:9.5 millimetres (0.37 in)–12.5 millimetres (0.49 in)Douglas MacArthur[]
| “ | Duty, honor, country. Those three hallowed words reverently dictate what you ought to be, what you can be, what you will be.
— Douglas MacArthur
|
” |
Douglas MacArthur was an officer in the US Army and Field Marshall of the Phillippine Army who was famous for his service as a key leader in the Pacific Front of World War II and the Korean War. Born in the west of America, MacArthur was the valedictorian of his class in the West Texas Military Academy. In the Veracruz Expedition, he led a recon mission and received the Medal of Honor in 1914. MacArthur has also served in World War I, and received several more military awards afterwards. During World War II, MacArthur led an attempt to defend the Phillippines but was pushed back to Australia and awarded the title of Supreme Commander. After fighting for two more years, MacArthur finally returned to the Phillippins as promised. He signed the official surrender of Japan in 1945 and led the forces of the United Nation in the Korean War until he was released from command by President Harry Truman. He later died in 1964 of biliary cirrhosis.
The M3 fighting knife or M3 trench knife was an American military combat knife first issued in March 1943. The M3 was originally designated for issue to soldiers not otherwise equipped with a bayonet. However, it was particularly designed for use by forces in need of a close combat knife, such as Airbornes and Army Rangers, so these units received priority for the M3 at the start of production.As more M3 knives became available in 1943 and 1944, the knife was issued to other soldiers such as Army Air Corps crewmen and soldiers not otherwise equipped with a bayonet, including soldiers issued the M1 Carbine or submachine gun.
Length:11.75 in (29.8 cm)
Blade length:6.75 in (17.1 cm)
The M1911 is a semi-automatic pistol that fires the .45 ACP. The weapon is single-action and is recoil-operated. The famous firearms designer produced the pistol to be used as the standard sidearm for the United States military. The weapon was used through countless conflicts like World War II and the Vietnam War. Production for the weapon came through the United States' need to modernize its arsenal. It is still being used by American law-enforcement and military forces in limited amounts. A large amount of variants were made, the most popular being the MEU(SOC) pistol. 28 countries currently have the pistol in their arsenals.
Capacity: 7-round magazine
Round:11.43x23mm (.45 ACP)
Weight: 2.44 lb (1,105 g)
Rate of Fire:Semi-automatic
Range: 70m
The M1 Garand was the standard issue servie rifle of the United States Armed Forces from 1936 until 1957. It is an air-cooled, gas-powered semi-automatic rifle, the first of its kind. Thousands of M1 Garands were issued to American Allied forces around the globe. It has since then been decommisioned in most areas, but continues to be a popular weapon for hunting. It was a signifigant combat innovation because of its ability to rapidly fire powerful catridges.
Round:.30-06 Springfield (7.62x63mm)
Weight:9.5 lb (4.31 kg)
Rate of Fire:Semi-automatic
Range:402 m (440yd)
The M3 was an American .45-caliber submachine gun adopted for U.S. Army service on 12 December 1942, as the United States Submachine Gun, Cal. .45, M3. The M3 was a superior alternative to the Thompson Submachine Gun as it was cheaper to produce, lighter, more accurate, and was also chambered in .45 ACP. The M3 was commonly referred to as the "Grease Gun" or simply "the Greaser", owing to its visual similarity to the mechanic's tool.
Capacity: 30-round detachable box magazine
Round:.45 ACP
Weight:8.15 lb
Range:91m (100yd)
Rate of Fire:450 rounds/min cyclic
The M1919 Browning is a .30 caliber medium machine gun that was widely used during the 20th century. It was used as a light infantry, coaxial, mounted, aircraft, and anti-aircraft machine gun by the U.S. and many other countries, especially during World War II, the Korean War, and the Vietnam War.
Capacity:250-round belt
Round:.30-06 Springfield
Weight:31 lb
Range:1,500 yd
Rate of Fire:400–600 round/min
The term "Bazooka" refers to a series of shoulder mounted rocket launchers used by the US military during and after the Second World War. The first bazooka, the M1, was first deployed in 1942. The Germans captured American bazookas in North Africa and reverse engineered it into their own, larger rocket launcher, the Panzerschreck. The bazooka had difficulty, however, penetrating the armor of heavy German tanks such as the Panther and Tiger. The later M9 and M9A1 model partially rectified this, but they were still most effective against the side or rear armor, and best used defensively, not for hunting tanks offensively. After WWII, a large 90mm bazooka was developed, the M20 "Super Bazooka", which saw service in Korea and limited use in Vietnam before being replaced by the M67 recoilless rifle and M72 LAW.
Caliber:60 mm
Action:Trigger-Actuated
Rate of fire: 5 rounds per minute
Range: Maximum: 400–500 yards (370–460 m)
Effective: (claimed) 120 yards (110 m)
The Mk 2 grenade (initially known as the Mk II) is a fragmentation type anti-personnel hand grenade introduced by the U.S. armed forces in 1918. It was the standard issue anti-personnel grenade used during World War II and in later conflicts, including the Vietnam War. Replacing the failed Mk 1 grenade of 1917, it was standardized in 1920 as the Mk II, and redesignated the Mk 2 on April 2, 1945.
Weight:595 grams
Charge:2 oz trinitrotoluene (TNT) or EC powder
Detonation Mechanismpercussion cap & time fuse: 4–5 second delay
Blast Radius:50 yards, fatalities most likely within 5-10 yards
The M2 4.2-inch mortar was a U.S. rifled 4.2-inch (107 mm) mortar used during the Second World War and the Korean War. It entered service in 1943. It was nicknamed the "Goon Gun" (from its large bullet-shaped shells, monopod, and rifled bore – like a rifle for shooting Goons) or the "Four-Deuce" (from its bore size in inches). In 1951 it began to be phased out in favor of the M30 mortar of the same caliber.
Caliber:4.2 in
Rate of fire:5 rpm for 20 minutes 1 rpm indefinitely
Maximum firing range:4400 m
The Curtiss P-40 Warhawk is an American single-engined, single-seat, all-metal fighter and ground-attack aircraft that first flew in 1938. The P-40 design was a modification of the previous Curtiss P-36 Hawk which reduced development time and enabled a rapid entry into production and operational service. The Warhawk was used by most Allied powers during World War II, and remained in frontline service until the end of the war. It was the third most-produced American fighter of World War II, after the P-51 and P-47; by November 1944, when production of the P-40 ceased, 13,738 had been built, all at Curtiss-Wright Corporation's main production facilities at Buffalo, New York.
Top Speed:334 mph
Armament:
6 × 0.50 in (12.70 mm) M2 Browning machine guns with 235 rounds per gun
250 lb bombs to a total of 2,000 lb
Crew:1
Range: 716 mi
The Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress is a four-engined heavy bomber developed in the 1930s for the United States Army Air Corps (USAAC). Competing against Douglas and Martin for a contract to build 200 bombers, the Boeing entry (prototype Model 299/XB-17) outperformed both competitors and exceeded the air corps' performance specifications. Although Boeing lost the contract (to the Douglas B-18 Bolo) because the prototype crashed, the air corps ordered 13 more B-17s for further evaluation. From its introduction in 1938, the B-17 Flying Fortress evolved through numerous design advances, becoming the third-most produced bomber of all time, behind the four-engined B-24 and the multirole, twin-engined Ju 88.
Top Speed:287 mph
Armament:
13 × .50 in (12.7 mm) M2 Browning machine guns in 9 positions
4,500 lbs of bombs
Crew:10
Range:2,000 mi
The M3 Lee, officially Medium Tank, M3, was an American medium tank used during World War II. In Britain, the tank was called by two names based on the turret configuration and crew size. Tanks employing US pattern turrets were called the "Lee", named after Confederate general Robert E. Lee. Variants using British pattern turrets were known as "Grant", named after Union general Ulysses S. Grant.
Armament:
1 × 75 mm Gun M2/M3 in hull 46 rounds
4 × .30-06 Browning M1919A4 machine guns 9,200 rounds
Top Speed:26 mph
Weight:27 tons
Armor:
51 mm (hull front, turret front, sides, and rear) 38 mm (hull sides and rear)
The M4 Sherman, officially Medium Tank, M4, was the most widely used medium tank by the United States and Western Allies in World War II. The M4 Sherman proved to be reliable, relatively cheap to produce, and available in great numbers. Thousands were distributed through the Lend-Lease program to the British Commonwealth and Soviet Union. The tank was named by the British for the American Civil War general William Tecumseh Sherman
Armament: 75 mm gun M3 (90–104 rounds)
50 caliber Browning M2HB machine gun (300–600 rounds),
2×.30 caliber Browning M1919A4 machine guns (6,000–6,750 rounds)
Top Speed: 22–30 mph
Weight:30.3 tons
Armor:12.7 mm (0.5 in)
The M18 Hellcat (officially designated the 76 mm Gun Motor Carriage M18 or M18 GMC) was an American tank destroyer of World War II, also used in the Korean War. It was the fastest U.S. tank on road.The speed was attained by keeping armor to a minimum, using the innovative Torqmatic automatic transmission, and by equipping the relatively light vehicle with the same main gun used on the much larger Sherman tank.
Armament:
76 mm gun M1A1, M1A1C, or M1A2 45 rounds
50 caliber (12.7 mm) Browning M2HB machine gun 800 rounds
Top Speed:50 mph
Weight:19.5 tons
Armor:4.8-25.4 mm (0.19-1.0 inches)Tactics[]
Montgomery[]
The 2nd battle of El Alamein
Things weren't looking great for the Allies by the time 1942 rolled along. Erwin Rommel's Panzerarmee Afrika had been pushing ever westward across the North African front, fighting his way closer to the Suez Canal and the oil-rich fields of Egypt. Axis victories at battles like Gazala and Tobruk had given the Germans a glimmer of hope for reaching the Suez Canal - but they were low on fuel. The scenario was quickly set for a do-or-die battle that would determine the fate of the North African campaign.
British General Claude Auchinlek had been in command of the British 8th Army and its supporting units in North Africa, but in mid-1942 he was relieved and replaced with Bernard Montgomery, who quickly set up a defensive line at the port town of El Alamein in Egypt. He knew that Rommel's men were tired, hot, and running desperately low on fuel - all he had to do was hold his ground and he could bleed the Germans dry.
Rommel began his assault on July 1, 1942, with artillery and Panzer tanks laying heavy fire on British defensive positions. Montgomery held firm and fought off wave after wave of attack. The Germans attempted to flank the Allied positions with tanks, but minefields and anti-tank emplacements complicated their advance. Rommel was forced to retreat by the end of July, but the battle had only begun.
Both sides assessed the damage, and Rommel advanced again in October 1942. This time, Montgomery launched a counterattack, making daring night raids and crumpling the German line under their attack. Unable to muster enough resources to fight back, Rommel had no choice but to order full retreat. His Panzerarmee Afrika had been defeated by Montgomery and he was pushed all the way back to Tunisia. Without the Battle of El Alamein, victory in North Africa would have been impossible - and, by extension, so would have been victory in Italy, Europe, and the rest of World War II. It was Montgomery's patience against a rash foe that brought victory in WWII.
MacArthur[]
The Battle of Sio
At this time MacArthur was in the middle of the New Guinea Campaign. By this time, MacArthur had been seeing some major success within this campaign. Him and the Australian forces had been seeing back to back victories in the landings at Lae and Nadzab as a part of Operation Cartwheel. But the Japanese weren't crippled in logistics, and could still supply their men. So the major objective of the battle was to hammer the Japanese supply system so that they would be unable to maintain themselves.
A three-pronged approach was taken to cut the supply line.First, the US 5th Air Force would bomb the collecting centers for foodstuffs and tracks leading from the coast. This drove away the native carriers that were the lifeblood of the Japanese supply. Second, PT boats of Task Group 70.1 attempted to interdict barge traffic along the coast by night, while Fifth Air Force fighters conducted sweeps for barges by day. Third,the land forces attempted to physically cut the Japanese supply lines. The 9th Division captured Pabu, thereby cutting the most convenient inland track, while the landing on Long Island occupied an important barge staging area.
With these combined efforts, the Japanese logistical system was on the brink of collapse. For the ground force tactics, The main Australian advance was by infantry-tank-engineer teams moving along the coastal tracks. Japanese positions were generally sited at creek crossings in the jungle. The advancing infantry kept strictly within range of the supporting artillery, except when the difficulty of moving the artillery forward quickly was too great. A secondary outflanking movement was made inland, over the higher ground, which was usually coral cliffs covered by kunai grass and rising as high as 4,000 feet (1,200 m). Since the Japanese intent was to delay rather than fight to the death, a threat to their escape route usually prompted a withdrawal. When this did not occur, the position was reduced by a combination of maneuver and tank, mortar, and artillery fire.
And finally, this battle was vital for the cryptographic material acquired from the Japanese by the Australian Army. This allowed a much more streamlined method of deciphering messages sent by the Japanese Army, and made future campaigns much easier to go through.
Montgomery fought throughout WW1, fighting in the Battle of Ypres and Passchendaele, and commanded multiple units across the inter-war period, seeing service across Palestine and British India in the Arab Revolt. Then in WW II he was instrumental in various campaigns across the entire war.These include the evacuation of Dunkirk, the North African campaign (with a certain battle which he is famous for) and the Tunisian, Sicilian, and Italian Campaigns, where he then joined the Western Front. At this point he took command of multiple land operations, including the land forces of Operation Overlord, Goodword,Cobra, Market Garden, Veritable, and led a major army in the Battle of the Bulge. After this, he continued with the other Allies in the invasion of Germany, leading Operations Varsity and Plunder.
MacArthur(as an older man of course) started before Montgomery, first becoming part of headquarter staff in the occupation of Veracruz, then transferring back to the War Department where he was put in command of the 42nd Rainbow division, who he led through the Champagne-Marne and the Meuse-Argonne Offensive. Through the interwar, MacArthur didn't have any combat experiences, mostly being put in non-combat roles. Then he returned from retirement for WWII, becoming the Supreme Allied Commander South West Pacific Area. He spends the vast majority of his time in the Pacific theater, through two campaigns in the Philippines, in battles such as Bataan and Leyte and through the New Guinea and Borneo Campaigns. He then finally went through the Occupation of Japan for the rest of the war.
Montgomery attended the Royal Military College, Sandhurst, where he was commissioned as a second lieutenant when he graduated from in 1908. Then in 1915 he went under the 104th Brigade for training. After this in 1919 he attended the Staff College in Camberley, Surrey (after persuading the C-In-C of the College in a tennis match).
MacArthur himself as a teenager attended the West Texas Military Academy where he scored as the valedictorian. Then after a few rejections of presidental appointment, MacArthur made his way into West Point in 1899 and graduated first in class in 1903.He then was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
Montgomery had very little tact or diplomacy. He was known for his egotistical outlook, which frequently made him a bit of a prima donna, but look at almost every other major general in the Allies. They're all like that. His unpopularity mostly stemmed from his relationships with senior commanders( and their accounts of course made him look like an ass). He was actually quite popular with junior officers and frequently made sure his men and subordinates were well cared for and they looked up to him.He did make major blunders, such as Market Garden, and sometimes made it difficult for other equivalent commanders to work with him, but for those under him, he was a great leader.
MacArthur was also a highly popular leader. He was seen as a hero by many and brilliant strategist by just about everyone who made contact with him. He believed in particular in a leadership style represented by what he called the three Cs. They were the confidence to stand alone, the courage to make tough decisions, and the compassion to listen to the needs of others.He was also known to have an intuitive knack for generalship, being able to somehow figure the enemy out beforehand and "feeling" out his victory. Like Montgomery however, he was something of an egoist himself, and had a quick and comprehensive mind and his efficiency throughout his career.Both of these commanders would have access to a great amount of supplies, being in charge of even larger groups than the amount of soldiers and vehicles within this battle Montgomery was a major commander of a major Allied power that took part in many large scale battles/campaigns, leading the 8th Army, and the 21st Army Group. Even more so would apply to MacArthur, who throughout the war led the entire Southwest portion of the Pacific theater.They should easily enough supplies to maintain a long campaign, unlike suffering industrial powers such as Germany and Italy.
Notes/Battle[]
This is not your standard squad v squad battle or even a large skirmish. This is a full army v army battle. This is also a combined arms battle including aircraft, tanks, and all other necessary equipment.
For reference, I am basing the size of both armies off of the field army unit size which is 100,000-300,000 men. I'm going in the middle and taking around 200,000 infantrymen for both sides.MacArthur will have 500 Medium Tanks and 500 Tank Destroyers. Montgomery will receive 500 Light Tanks,400 Medium Tanks, and 100 Heavy Tanks for.They will have 750 aircraft in total on both sides with 500 Fighters and 250 bombers.
This is on a neutral battleground, with no major obstacles or terrain features to impede movement.
MacArthur receives "intelligence" that the United Kingdom and especially Montgomery have been secretly and majorly encroaching upon US operations throughout the war. As he is mobilizing his army, Montgomery also receives intelligence that MacArthur is being sent to defeat him.
Both have equal knowledge and prep time beforehand, so there will be virtually no element of surprise in this battle
Any suggestions for the battle itself(the approximate length, story details,and obviously some memes) are highly appreciated to benefit the sim.
I'm slightly changing the requirements for non-edge based voting just due to the sheer scale of the battle
Format 1: Detailed edge based vote with good grammar and that isn't just a couple of words or a sentence.
Format 2: A few paragraphs detailing why you believe a certain warrior will win.
X-factors are not required in your vote but are appreciated.
I hold the final say as to whether a vote counts or not, guidelines not withstanding.Voting will end when I am satisfied the the quality and quantity of votes.