Will Japanese soldiers fight to the end?

[jivemi]

Thanks guys. Forgot to mention this was a delay battle (since corrected) and was already arty overloaded at 17% force value with a 43-point penalty. Still, I'd been overloaded in previous defensive battles at 21% and won handily giving away 150 or so. Since the Japanese are infantry-heavy I should've adjusted to circumstances.

No doubt my biggest mistake was presuming they'd act like other opponents and start routing away at a certain threshold of fleeing units. But since most didn't behave "normally" my attempts to accelerate their flight by premature infantry counterattacks were doomed to failure. Better to keep infantry under cover and let them come to you after they've run the gauntlet of MGs, arty and tanks. They just don't quit.

[DRG]

Originally Posted by jivemi

No doubt my biggest mistake was presuming they'd act like other opponents and start routing away at a certain threshold of fleeing units. .....snip...... They just don't quit.

The battle for Iwo Jima lasted 5 weeks and featured a massive aerial and naval pre-bombardment to the extent that Chester Nimitz is quoted saying "Well, this will be easy. The Japanese will surrender Iwo Jima without a fight."

N O T H I N G was easy about fighting the troops of Imperial Japan for anyone who fought them....including now you

[jivemi]

Originally Posted by DRG

The battle for Iwo Jima lasted 5 weeks and featured a massive aerial and naval pre-bombardment to the extent that Chester Nimitz is quoted saying "Well, this will be easy. The Japanese will surrender Iwo Jima without a fight."

N O T H I N G was easy about fighting the troops of Imperial Japan for anyone who fought them....including now you

Harumph. Well if mostly elite British troops and tanks can't hold 'em off better call in the US Marines. Still don't get how experience and morale ratings between mostly 70 and 80 (as per the battle results screen) give them such phenomenal powers, especially the ability to recover so quickly from retreat or rout. Anyway it was a learning experience .

Here's a save (Turn 31) in case anybody's interested. Shows a lone Valentine holding off the center horde, like Horatius at the bridge, while up north the position crumbles and helpless tanks run for cover: