Barbarically butchering ? Twas but a clean cut.
mmmmm. Personally I would prefer El Pip's version of execution. We shall see how it works out.
Bills. Perhaps that is a more fitting punishment than death ...
Never really watched the Simpsons ...
-
We have updated our Community Code of Conduct. Please read through the new rules for the forum that are an integral part of Paradox Interactive’s User Agreement.
Barbarically butchering ? Twas but a clean cut.
mmmmm. Personally I would prefer El Pip's version of execution. We shall see how it works out.
Bills. Perhaps that is a more fitting punishment than death ...
Never really watched the Simpsons ...
Europe in Flames - Part 12
October 1 1936 …
Somewhere Over Finland …
“That is the Soviet border” Katsumoto said, pointing out the Window.
“What did it take for you to get us transport through the Soviet Union ?” asked Erica, her eyes intently gazing over the land below them.
“Another diplomatic meeting. This time though, a dinner with Stalin” he sighed. He knew that she wouldn’t like it. Hell, he didn’t like it but it was the only way to get home, back to Japan.
“Marcus ... Why the hell would you want a meeting with him? He’s as likely to have you executed or shot down as he is to let you land and then arrest you as an enemy of the people. This is too dangerous” she said, moving away from him and taking a seat on the opposite aisle.
He turned away from the window and looked at her. He could tell when she was disappointed or upset. “Erica, you know that I wouldn’t take the risk if I was not confident of the safety. You and Japan are all I care about. If I am captured, then you will be too and Japan will come to ruin in time. That is the destruction of the two things I care about. I would not allow that. Ever” he said. He wasn’t entirely sure if he was trying to convince her, or himself. Regardless, it seemed to be working.
She turned her head and looked at him with her deep blue eyes. “I know you wouldn’t endanger me or yourself without need, but it doesn’t mean that I am happy about entering a Communist country. Hell, they’re as likely to murder us in our sleep as they are to greet us into the country”
“No, they aren’t”
“No?”
“The Soviet Union wouldn’t risk a war with Japan. They’re unprepared”
“Be that as it may, I don’t like it” Katsumoto sighed and turned back to the window. Only a few more hours before they reached Moscow. When they did, they would have Stalin and half the damn Politburo waiting to greet them. Whether that would be good or bad, was yet to be seen.
London, Britain …
Neville Chamberlain and his Cabinet had been talking over the course of the war for the last hour. Europe was a mess. Lord Halifax had been brushing over the idea of a negotiated peace from their current position for the last hour. Apparently, half of the Cabinet agreed with him.
“If we go to war then we must be pwepared for a long lasting conflict without end in sight. It will be as bad, if not worse than the First World War”
“No. We will not have a peace. We must fight with all we have. We must put every last ounce of strength into our campaign. No longer can we abide the French Bloc and their sheer militarism. If we want a free world then we must ensure that they fall. That they fail to seize this Island and our Empire !” interrupted Neville Chamberlain. The Cabinet was in complete surprise for several seconds. The Prime Minister had barely spoken the entire evening.
“I must disagwee. As I said, unless we negotiate from our cuwent position then we will see the collapse of our Empire” said Lord Halifax, maintaining his negotiation policy.
Neville Chamberlain looked at him for several seconds with a blank expression. “Lord Halifax, I am unsure if you are medically fit to continue your duties as Foreign Minister. We will not negotiate. We refuse to negotiate with the French and we always will. It is not a question of what might happen, it is not a question at all. If we were to surrender then we would see the end of our empire anyway. No, we will remain in our Island and do what we can” he stated flatly.
Winston Churchill spoke up then. “I agree with the Prime Minister. We cannot consider negotiations. They would ruin our Empire and bring our country to a state that it is nothing more than a French satellite. Then, the memory of our ancestors. Of our soldiers at the Battle of Agincourt, of our Kings in the Hundred Years War would be lost. They would be disgraced. They refused negotiation with the French. They fought and died against them. The only way we can hope to achieve victory is if we follow their grand example. Our triumph will be on the scale of Agincourt. A lonely Island fighting and defeating perhaps the greatest superpower this world has seen”
Neville Chamberlain and some of the men in the room nodded. Halifax and the others hung their heads or stared angrily at the men. Neville Chamberlain and his men gradually grew silent as the Chief of the Navy and the Head of the Army and the Chief Air Marshal all began to realise that they would be fighting over funding.
Neville Chamberlain thought for a moment before speaking again. He knew the Head of the Army and the Chief Air Marshal were new to war. They had not held their positions in times of great need. Churchill had. As Chief of the Navy, he was experienced and had fulfilled his duties in world war one.
Neville Chamberlain spoke, breaking into the argument. “So as in Agincourt they had the Longbow, Britain has its Navy. As Henry V fought by distance, so too shall we. Carriers and Battleships will be the defence of this Island”
The Head of the Army and the Chief Air Marshal were in shock at the decision. Winston Churchill seemed pleasantly surprised.
Clement Attlee spoke next. “You realise that will mean abandoning Germany ? That we will lose Europe and our Empire if we focus solely on Britain ?”
“Germany is lost. They know it as much as we do. They begun their preparations too late. Their armies are not prepared and France has an Army to rival the Soviet Union. They are already crushing German resistance, just as they are resistance in Spain. We cannot help Germany. If nothing else, we can do what we can to stall the French. When a general evacuation is needed and a German collapse is imminent then we must save everything that we can” said Neville Chamberlain.
The policy would undoubtedly bring controversy. The Germans may feel betrayed, but until they collapse, Britain would aid as much as she could. It was all that she could do.
** Poor Germans, getting abandoned. Not like much could have been done though. And yes, France has the same number or a dozen more divisions than the Soviet Union at this point.
**
Hard headed but there is an unavoidable cold logic to things. The ways things are going Britain couldn't get a decent force onto the continent even if she tried. Moreover if they have to help one side or the other Spain has to be the priority; Germany's defeat would be a massive blow, but Gibraltar falling would be an utter catastrophe.
As said as I am for my beloved Germany, I am forced to agree. German Navy in Exile! Scharnhorst serving with the Home Fleet! The epicness! The Epicness!
Europe in Flames - Part 13
October 3 1936 …
Moscow, Soviet Union …
“Sergeant MacMillan, Dragons Guard, Sir !” yelled the man as he slammed the butt of his rifle into the ground. His Shogun armour proudly displaying the flag of the rising sun on his back. Such an honour guard was normally present on diplomatic occasions. As Katsumoto and Erica continued along the Red Carpet from their airplane. Before them were an arrayed group of the Politburo and the Soviet Leadership. Joseph Stalin was present alongside Mikhail Kalinin. Alongside them were the Foreign Minister Litvinov and the Head of the Army, General Chuikov along with a number of men which Katsumoto could not recognize.
Erica gripped his arm tightly, once again saying “This is a bad idea” with but a touch. She smiled and pretended to be unconcerned. Katsumoto himself may have been fooled - had he not been holding her hand.
The Soviet Union did not seem to be the place that Katsumoto had expected. The sky was blue, the air was cold, Birds sang and the sun shone down on the earth. If there was anything truly wrong with the Soviet Union as some members of the Shogun had said, it was nothing unnatural. If anything, it was human. A choice to be what they were. How odd that would be, to choose to carve a path that makes you hated by everyone.
As he drew closer to the Politburo, Stalin himself gave the Samurai and Erica a wide grin. A smile that one would swear had come from a friend of many years. One who could be counted on and trusted. Katsumoto, did not plan on being drawn in by it. Still, one good turn deserved another.
“Comrade Stalin” he said beaming, doing his best to hold his Russian. Stalin seemed rather surprised for a second before it truly sank in that he spoke Russian.
“I have looked forward to a meeting with you for a long time. It is good to finally meet you” he said. Erica smiled, completely oblivious to the whatever was being said in the Russian conversation. She had learned English, Swedish, German and French. But no Russian.
“As it is to meet you. This is Erica. A very good friend of mine” he said introducing the two. Almost recognizing her lack of Russian, Stalin switched to English.
“And what a beautiful woman you are. Katsumoto is lucky to have a friend such as you” he said, a wink towards the Shogun. It seemed to be universal that when a man in a position of great power had a beautiful lady friend - they were almost always more intimately evolved.
She smiled and responded courteously. “Comrade Stalin, I have heard many tales of the beauty of Russia. Your nation is truly a marvelous one”
“Why thank you, Erica. You are too kind” he said. The same beaming smile as when he had first greeted them.
“Please, I have made special arrangements for this evening” Stalin said, walking alongside them towards a car that was waiting. Out of this first meeting, Katsumoto was unsure of what to think. One thing was certain. Stalin was shorter than he had expected.
** Some of you will be curious about the name of the soldier. As many of the German POWs left in Japanese care remained in Japan at the end of the first World War because of how kind they found the Japanese - so too in this timeline did many of the British Soldiers and their families remain in Japan after the original posting of 50,000 Peace Keepers on Japanese Soil.
I also apologise for the short looking update. When I write them in Word they are usually a page long at least but on here they look rather short. Speaking of Word, I should write more updates this weekend otherwise I'm going to run out of Updates to post daily when I can't write one up that night.**
The British AI agrees with you, as we will see later on.
As said as I am for my beloved Germany, I am forced to agree. German Navy in Exile! Scharnhorst serving with the Home Fleet! The epicness! The Epicness!
The Bismarck and the Hood side by side ? Yes Please !
It gets much worse. Much Worse.
Finally had the time to read up on your recent updates. Seems that things look grim for the shogun with Germany falling, Britain retreating and having an evil ninja-army going after him .
.
mmmm. The update today will follow Stalin and Katsumoto once more - unless Im thinking of a different one ...
Finally had the time to read up on your recent updates. Seems that things look grim for the shogun with Germany falling, Britain retreating and having an evil ninja-army going after him
Wouldn't be a terribly intense AAR without half the world trying to kill the main character, now would it ?
But apparently he is medically fit to become Prime Minister instead.
Politicians aren't like the rest of us. Only the most medically unfit get to run a country - and every once in a while that medically unfit leader is exactly what the country needs. Even so, a shot of L-H isn't what Britain needs.
Europe in Flames - Part 14
October 6 1936 …
Stuttgart, Germany …
In a state of Mass panic, thousands upon thousands of Germans began to flee Southern Germany, hoping to make it out of the Southern Pocket and the intense bombing the southern industrial cities were receiving.
“Keep Moving ! Keep Moving !” yelled the German Sergeant. Stuttgart was being evacuated. The German lines on the border seemed ready to buckle and it was his job to make sure that everyone got out of Stuttgart alright. Men, Women and Children hobbled along with carts and baggage in tow. Some of the evacuees had even been driving out. Most of those not on foot were on horses. Germany had barely left the Depression and few people had managed to afford a car. Regardless, it wouldn’t do them much good on crowded roads further into Germany.
The trail of refugees stretched back as far as the eye could see into Stuttgart. It was the most thorough evacuation yet seen from war. If nothing else, it would certainly be a major target for the French Air Force. They would love to get their bombers over a mass of helpless civilians. The Bloody mongrels.
As the Sergeant turned to shout orders to some of the guards, he noticed a gathering of men down the road. A fight in the middle of a refugee line was the last thing he needed today. The mud, the rain, a fight with a few punks would be enough to make him whip out his Luger.
“You there ! What’s going on here !” he called to the men, gesturing for a few of his men to come in behind him. They marched quickly towards the group who were turning to them. It was not what the Sergeant had expected.
“Sir … me and the other men would like to stay behind. A sort of Militia, to slow down the French should they reach the city before the evacuation is complete”
“No”
“Sir, we have rifles and ammo. We know the city. We grew up in the outskirts. Some of us could even lay traps for them”
“What traps ? Mines ? Ambushes ?”
“Bear Traps Sir. A lot of us go hunting often and we tend to leave some around to see if we catch anything”
“Bear Traps ? Against the French ? Why ! You’ll cut them in half with those !”
“So … can we stay”
“If you want to stay with us for the fighting as a batch of irregulars then be my guest. I won’t stop you and I’m sure that no one else will - so long as you’re as useful as you sound” The men beamed as he finished.
“When do you move into the city ?” the lead asked.
“Not long now. We have to make sure that the city is clear so we’ll be going through it on our last runs. Frogs will arrive sometime around then I’d imagine. Go and do what you can” he said, grasping the man’s shoulder. These men wouldn’t last long in a firefight. Whether they’d flee or be shot would be the question. But the Sergeant knew that he couldn’t rely on them. They were not fighting men, city boys for sure. But their romanticised view of combat would get them all killed or wounded beyond measure.
As the men headed off, one of them turned back and called out.
“Sergeant ! What is your name ?”
He looked at him for a second before realising the man was serious. “Einglen Feurersturm” he said, looking back at the man. Without another word, the Stuttgart Militia turned back to their city and set about the long arduous work of trapping it, defending it and dying in it.
Their home was to be their grave.
** Here, we introduce another main character. Einglen Feurersturm, a German Sergeant who will take part in a lot of major European engagements. Also, updates might be scaled back to once every other day. First - to give readers with a tight schedule the ability to catch up easier, and Second because I am running out of updates.
**
The deeper the French enter into Germany, the shortest will be their travel to the nearest POW camp
You can't help but admire the militia mens bravery, sadly you also have to shake your head sadly at their naivety. What makes it worse is that such scenes are being copied all across the front I imagine.
NOOOOOO!
My hometown has probably already fallen to the French nine years early.
Shame. However, you'll be happy to know that one of the best pieces of text I have written (ever, not just for this AAR) regard the defence of Stuttgart. 3 pages in word. Will be a lot of text ...
The deeper the French enter into Germany, the shortest will be their travel to the nearest POW camp
One would hope.
Indeed. The Militia barely impacts the defence of the city - if only to make the siege last a day or so longer.
Talk about French Fries.
Where did you come up with that name?
Last edited:
Europe in Flames - Part 15
October 7 1936 …
Moscow, Soviet Union …
Katsumoto was standing in the Great Hall of the Kremlin. It’s golden walls and ceiling magnificently showing the wealth of Russia’s past. Regardless of whatever state the Soviet Union is in, the Russian Empire seemed to have been a glorious, rich and prosperous country for its Elite. For the common man, it must have been a train wreck coupled with a forest fire. All it needed was a man to pour on the gas and here, ladies and gentlemen, we have the Soviet Union. He grinned to himself at his excessive and adequate commentary on the situation.
He walked along the edges of the room, admiring art or the fine craftsmanship as he found it. The rest of the room was filled to the brim with Soviet Elite. With Comrades and Drowning-in-Vodka murderers. No one got into this room by being nice. Hell, Katsumoto had to flee Scandinavia with a Swedish Princess to be here. Where was she anyway ?
He looked around the room, trying to discern a glimpse of her in her red dress. How beautiful she had looked back in their room. She was probably receiving the compliments of half the Politburo by now. Whether he should be concerned over that, he wasn’t quite sure.
It wasn’t long before he found her, speaking with Stalin and some of the Soviet Generals. Evidently, they had been discussing politics as was the way with world figures at fine dinners.
“Would you not agree that the current situation in Europe has already spiralled into the magnitude of the last Great War ?” Erica was asking one of the Soviet Generals.
“No, I would not. Russia is not involved. America is not involved. No one outside Europe has anything to do with this”
“What about Argentina and Bolivia ? Surely, their skirmishes with Venezuela have brought the war to global standards ?” she pressed him for what she wanted. She had always been good in an argument. Always got her point across.
“Perhaps it does span half the globe but -”
“What then do you say of British Burma and its fight against China and Siam ? Or of Greece against Yugoslavia and Turkey ? Or perhaps even of the fighting in Africa ? Would you not agree that it runs similar to the Great War in scale and size ?”
“Still, I would not. Wars are rarely measured in size but instead by casualties. So far, this war has not seen the millions dead that were seen in the Great War”
“Perhaps from a Military point of view”
“Darling, how nice of you to join us” Erica said, obviously thankful for his ‘rescue’ against an obviously flirtatious, drunk, Russian.
“Katsumoto, it is good to see you again, my Comrade” said Stalin. The Two men shook hands, each trying discern what the other’s could tell him.
“As it is to see you, Comrade Stalin”
“Now, friend, would you not agree that War but a continuation of politics ?”
“Indeed I would, but politics by other means. The tactics change from who can garner greater support to who yields the bigger stick”
“And at current, who do you believe holds the biggest stick ? The Ace in the deck ?” asked the Russian Foreign Minister.
“I believe that the most powerful parties of the world are not yet involved in this war. The United States has a small army, true, but their industry can outdo any other nation on this earth. There is just no beating that industry capacity”
“What of Japan ? Where would you imagine Japan fitting into this ?” asked one of the Soviet Generals. Katsumoto was slightly taken aback by the bluntness of the question. He had not been used to such forward statements.
“I see Japan away from the storms of Europe - for the time being at least. We cannot be sure what change the future will bring, but we can be sure that it will bring change”
“A wise answer from a wise man” said Stalin before he took a long drink from his vodka glass. Perhaps he knew what was meant. Perhaps he guessed. Either way, he knew that Japan would not remain neutral for long. The conversation grew quiet as a general entered the Hall with an armed escort.
“Who would that be?” Erica asked, more to herself than those around her. The man looked around for a second before catching eye of Stalin.
The man walked over quickly, though not so fast as to cause concern amongst the guests of the Kremlin. “Comrade Stalin” he said, shooting a glance at Katsumoto before Stalin returned his salute. “We have news from Europe” the man said, leaning closer to Stalin’s ear.
“Немецкая линия сломана. Французы прорвались через их защиты линии фронта в Штутгарте. Город, как ожидают, будет находиться под осадой в течение нескольких часов.»
“Thank you Comrade” Stalin said as the General bowed and left with his escorts.
“ Shogun Katsumoto, Lady Erica, I am afraid that I must cut this evening short. The future has just brought change” and with that, Stalin left the Kremlin with vodka in hand. Undoubtedly, things had changed in Europe.
Something was happening.
** The last update of Europe in Flames. Indeed, the next update shall focus on a great removal of Allied Power. I warn you that Stalin may have a larger role later on, and that Erica is not all that she seems. **
Einglen Fuerersturm ?
Any other questions about him ?
I have no further questions about him at this time.
I am curious to know how you typed this sentence up.
I am curious to know how you typed this sentence up.