Escorts question

[peabody]

I was wondering if this is based on fact or just in the game. It is late in the war, I think my mission is April or May '45 and the escorts are crazy. I have seen 1 ship with 4 escorts. I have seen 5 merchants with 7 escorts, etc. Does anyone know if it changed like that in RL or if it's just in the game. I usually get 3 of 4 escorts no matter how big the convoy is. Or were there more escorts throughout the entire war and the game just uses less?

Peabody

[seafarer]

If you look at the historical rate of IJN losses, especially from mid-1943 or so onwards, and the almost complete lack of new construction, it is just the game. By the end of 1944, the vast majority of the IJN fleet lay on the bottom, and there was nothing coming down the ways to replace the losses.

Of course, that would make for a pretty boring set of final patrols in the game if all there was to sink were some wooden junks, a few rusty old coastal steamers, and the odd barge.

p.s. listings of IJN losses by year can be found here - http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/Japan/IJN/JANAC-Losses/JANAC-Losses-3.html
The IJN had only a very limited building program during the war - eg. 10 carriers built from 1942-1945, versus 150 (fleet and escort) by the USN.

[Berinhardt]

Well, the Japanese Navy started the war with 108 destroyers with 43 being built... (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Imperial_Japanese_Navy_of_World_War_II)

and I notice that 145 were sunk during the war (http://www.ibiblio.org/hyperwar/Japa...-Losses-3.html)

Not sure how many were completed during the war, but I woudn't expect a lot of escorts at the end of the war...