I don't think there is anything stopping Stalin from declaring war -- other than Benito's good looks and charm!
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I don't think there is anything stopping Stalin from declaring war -- other than Benito's good looks and charm!
I can almost guarantee that it won't be the USSR that dows you but Germany, usually just before they dow the USSR. I've played a non Axis Italy many times and a good strat is to do what you've done in eastern Europe.
My question now is will you go for Vichy France? Go for Switzerland if you like your border with Germany will be bigger but easily defensible. Vicky France on the other hand will be a huge pain. Your border With Germany will be long enough as it is but now you'll be looking if I remember right, about 30 divisions to cover and control Southern France alone. That said if you can get the troops there, and if you can hold from the initial attack it is a great area to counter attack from. More than once I've been pushed towards the med as Germany troops invaded southern France and then counter attacked from the smaller left border next to Spain and pushed up their flank.
My question now is will you go for Vichy France? Go for Switzerland if you like your border with Germany will be bigger but easily defensible. Vicky France on the other hand will be a huge pain. Your border With Germany will be long enough as it is but now you'll be looking if I remember right, about 30 divisions to cover and control Southern France alone. That said if you can get the troops there, and if you can hold from the initial attack it is a great area to counter attack from. More than once I've been pushed towards the med as Germany troops invaded southern France and then counter attacked from the smaller left border next to Spain and pushed up their flank.
Looks like you're running low on troops. What's your manpower reserve and what is currently being produced? Any relocation of Italian air units to Iberica yet? Where's the Portugese / Spanish fleet? I expected them to scramble when being attacked.
Manpower is not an issue, just the number of divisions available. I have raised 4 four division infantry corps, 4 four division Alpini corps, 1 four division armor corps, and the ever expanding marine corps, which at this point I believe was 6 divisions destined for 8 divisions. Those are my "offensive" units ready for combat operations. That means I still have two marine divisions in the production cue, as well as a large number of maniple mini-divisions (1INF+1ART). As these little divisions are created, they are being stationed around the empire as garrisons / partisan fighters. They are also being used to back fill the defenses on the french border. I also have a couple carriers in production which would have been very useful to provide my guys air cover in southern Spain prior to the occupation of Seville. But those ships have not been launched yet. (I have a picture of the entire cue two posts below.)
As far as air power is concerned, I have only moved the interceptors over to Spain. Logistics are such a pain that I didn't want the supply drain caused by the bombers, but I needed the air cover. Two wings were based in Barcelona since early in the invasion, and they have really only been providing cover. As set forth in the last chapter, three wings were sent to Seville, again only for air cover. I just want the skies clear so my infantry can do its work!
Sea power is proving very frustrating to me (and Benito). We have divided the Regia Marina into a number smaller fleets with 0% positioning penalty. The two main fleets consist of 2xBB, 1xCA, 2xCL, 1xDD. There are two more fleets based around cruisers. The transportation flotilla is guarded by 2xCA and a few destroyers, but they usually perform their missions on "defensive" and are led by a blockade runner.
With these precautions, my fleets have dominated the seas around Iberia, have never lost a sea battle, but have suffered greater casualties. It is very frustrating to see a pop up saying that you have won an engagement only to see that the Spaniards lost "none". It makes me positively batty to see a pop up saying we won, they lost none, but we lost a DD or something. Here are the ships sunk by Italy:
As you can see, in spite of 0% positioning penalty, the Italian gunners are prone to friendly fire incidents, sinking three of our own DD's. Here are the ships sunk by the Spanish fleet:
They sank 3xDD and 2xCL. The only consolation that can be taken from this butcher's bill is that Spain only sank Italian screens, and that is their job (to get sunk). The only capital ships sunk by either side were the two CA's sunk by RM Caio Duilio. The Portuguese have not sunk any ships, and we sank just one of their transports:
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i never knew there was such a thing as friendly fire in this game. is there any techs you can reasearch to prevent your own ships from sinking each other?
I imagine Destroyer Escort Role would improve DD positioning, and Fire Control System Training will give you a better chance of hitting the bad guys instead of the good guys. However, I have not had the spare leadership points to research those techs.
I found a picture of my production queue as of May 1939:
I had a rather respectable (for Italy) 212 IC. I actually had all 4 CV's, plus 8 CAG's in production at the same time! I guess I figured (wrongly?) that I had enough ground troops for Spain, and I wanted to get my carrier fleet up and running as soon as possible. I was slowly building escorts and convoys as if I was expecting a hostile navy to start sinking them. I probably should have been building more, because the Spaniards were sinking some convoys. I was building 2 CAS air wings to provide some ground attack capability with my limitation to single engine aircraft. As far as ground troops in the queue, four maniples (1INF+1ART) were set to come on line in late June or early July (with four more in queue after that), that marine division set to finish in June is probably the new one left to garrison Lisbon when the rest set off to attack Porto. I also had two combined arms divisions (2MOT+2TD) in production that would be ready in September.
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you should have put into production some more LA brigades, they would prove pretty useful in the large fronts of spain. and i dont think the spanish have any of their own, but if they do its just a few
The Spanish had a bunch of light armor. They had a few tank brigades combined with cavalry to form combined arms divisions. They also had a few tank brigades fighting by themselves. However, Benito believes the tank is waaaay overrated. Too expensive. Too much fuel. He does not plan to build ANY of them. He does, however, believe in mobile combined arms divisions. That is why he is building those (2xMOT, 2xTD) divisions. The softness of that division will be approximately 60, and it will qualify for the CA bonus. Also, the TD's will give them the hard attack to deal with any armor upon whom they happen to stumble. Here is the tech queue as of May 1939:
As you can see, resources are being poured into infantry techs to keep them either cutting edge or state of the art, and single engine aircraft techs are being researched to keep them state of the art. Don't be fooled by that medium tank brigade tech though. Benito is not going to build any, but that tech is needed to make improvements to the TD's and to open research of MECH.
The electronic computing machine will finally do away with the neutral research penalty and will actually start to speed up our research. With four CV's in the production queue, we better be researching Fleet Auxiliary Carrier Doctrine!
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i stand corrected then. those mixed MOT and TD should do the trick of replacing tanks then, just be careful if war breaks out against germany. you may not have enough TDs to hold off their mechanized force. when you finish the research of MECH, are you going to upgrade any existing INF and MOT to Mech or just train MECH to fight along side them?
The strategic situation in Iberia looks really interesting, I would have thought Portugal would crack but it must be their overseas holdings that is saving them. It might be time to secure part of their colonial empire but his would stretch you even further.
You must be feeling mightily stretched for divisions and very vulnerable with your vast empire. If anyone declares war on you now I think you could be in a really tough situation.
You must be feeling mightily stretched for divisions and very vulnerable with your vast empire. If anyone declares war on you now I think you could be in a really tough situation.
Very nice job with this AAR! Long live the Roman Empire!
It is interesting to see someone play as Italy without joining the Axis.
It is interesting to see someone play as Italy without joining the Axis.
Chapter Nineteen: The Italo-Iberian War, Part III (7/10/39 - 9/17/39)
Chapter Nineteen: The Italo-Iberian War, Part III (7/10/39 - 9/17/39)
The two amphibious invasions on the coast of Portugal had failed to knock that nation out of the fight. The front had expanded, as had Italy’s enemies. However, there were opportunities presented by this state of affairs. Lisbon was an excellent port through which supplies could be shipped, and the supply situation was the only thing preventing the forces on the southern front from making a serious drive towards Madrid. If the Lisbon beachhead could be joined with the southern front, the logistic situation would be alleviated and Messe’s armor could do its job properly. Furthermore, Spain and Portugal were not coordinating their defenses, and the long Spanish border with Portugal seemed devoid of troops. If the Italian forces could get to the Portuguese border, they would either have an unobstructed path into the heart of Spain, or Spain would be forced to transfer forces from other fronts, opening opportunities there.
However, before any such opportunities could be contemplated, the Portuguese needed to be dealt with first.
As Mannerini’s Infantry corps was fanning out throughout southern Portugal, the northern most unit, Gen. Visconti Prasca’s 1a Divisione “Supurga” in Avis, stumbled upon the entire southern Portuguese army including the nation’s central command in Gaviao. Gen. Visconti Prasca immediately attacked, but he had underestimated the number of foes and was beaten back badly. The Portuguese counter attacked, retook Avis and Santarem, and even threatened to retake Lisbon. However, Gen. Vecchiarelli’s marine division “Caterinetta”, that had ventured north of the Tagus River to occupy Terres Vedras and Caldas da Rainha, managed to make it back to Lisbon to protect the port from recapture and avoid disaster.
Further north around the port of Porto, expansion of the beachhead was proving awkward. There simply were too few marine divisions to maintain a cohesive expanding front. The marines had the firepower to move the Portuguese, but any move exposed them to being cut-off and encircled. Gen. Battisti attacked from Ovar to Mangualde, but in doing so, his division lost contact with the other marines and he was encircled. He had to attack again towards Castro Daire, just to reestablish contact with Italian lines. Similarly, 30a Divisione “Sabauda” and its fiery Gen. Reverberi attacked north from Baiona to Vigo and occupied the port. However, the Spanish forces reacted quickly to this new encroachment on their territory. The marines in Vigo were encircled and cut-off. Gen. Reverberi and his troops were in good spirits and full of spit and vinegar. With there backs to the port, they were ready to repulse any comers. However, Field Marshall Balbo decided upon a tactical withdrawal. The transportation flotilla (which had just delivered Gen. Roatta’s corps to Lisbon) ventured north to Vigo and evacuated a reluctant Gen Reverberi. However, his troops were simply redeployed to Porto where they could immediately return to the fight within the Italian lines.
In Lisbon, the introduction of Gen. Roatta’s four mixed Alpini divisions, changed everything. Upon landing, they immediately attacked the resurgent Portuguese in Santarem and pushed them back to Avis. Meanwhile two of Mannerini’s divisions under Gens. Calcagno and Balocco, who had previously been advancing south in Redondo and Evora, had maneuvered to the Portuguese rear in Gaviao and Redondo, while Vecchiarelli’s marines in Lisbon recrosses the Targus to Caldas da Rainha, to Marinha Grande, and finally to Tomar to complete the encirclement. Thus, all of the Portuguese in the south were surrounded and destroyed.
Balbo now had nine uncommitted combat divisions in southern Portugal -- Mannerini’s four infantry, Roatta’s four mixed mountain, and Vecchiarelli’s marines. Two fresh maniples had been transported from Taranto to garrison Lisbon. So, all nine of these divisions were available to be unleashed. The marines were ordered north to join their brethren in the fight in northern Portugal. Roatta’s corps was divided. Two divisions under Gens. Appiotti and Ferrari Orsi headed north to assist with the elimination of the last pockets of Portuguese. Meanwhile, the two divisions under Gens. La Ferla and Caracciolo di Feroleto (who Gen. Roatta admiringly refers to as the Ferlauto gang), were directed to cross the Targus River and attack eastward into the heart of Spain. Mannerini’s divisions were to continue their advance towards the south and east to occupy the Portuguese capital in Elvas and to finally link up with the slowly expanding southern front in Spain.
On the southern front Gens. Messe and Aymonnino finally joined up with Gen. Mannerini, and supplies started flowing through the port of Lisbon to the hungry divisions of the southern front. Once the link was established, together they broke out of Adalucia and crossed the Sierra Morena.
By August 7, 1939, the two Portuguese beachheads and the southern Spanish front formed one unified front from Arda, in the south on the Mediterranean Sea, all the way to Porto, in the north on the Atlantic Ocean. The Portuguese, who still refused to surrender, had been cornered by the marines and elements from Roatta’s corps, and the final pockets of Portuguese resistance were in the process of being liquidated. Meanwhile, Gens. La Ferla and Caracciolo di Feroleto had crossed the Targus and advanced unimpeded into Castile and Leon towards Salamaca north of the Sierra de Gredos. Even the Italian forces on the northern front decided to cross the Ebro and expand their positions south of the river in Candasnos and Barbastro on the outskirts of Zaragoza.
A week later, on August 14, 1939, the Spanish front seemed to crack. Gen. La Ferla in Salamaca turn his division’s advance southeast to Salamora then towards Avila in the direction of Madrid, while his companion division led by Gen. Caracciolo di Feroleto attacked from Peidrahita towards a concentration of Spanish forces in Sotillo de la Adrada in an effort to prevent those forces from falling back or otherwise obstructing La Ferla’s advance on the capital. Meanwhile, Messe’s tanks, which had been slogging north from the south, finally started to gain momentum on their own drive towards the capital.
By August 18, 1939, Gen. La Ferla’s single division had reached the outskirts of Madrid. He was under orders to wait for the other forces to come up from the South before commencing his attack on the city. However, when his reconnaissance in force was able to penetrate the city limits, he took it upon himself to launch an assault on the city with just his single division of mixed Alpini.
Once the street fighting began, it became apparent that the capital was merely occupied by three infantry brigades and the Spanish general staff headquarters. Unless the Spaniards reinforced, Gen. La Ferla would be able to take the capital on his own. Actually, La Ferla was reinforced first. He was joined by Gen. Caracciolo di Feroleto and the two divisions took Madrid.
By September 5, 1939, the eventual outcome of the Italo-Iberia war was no longer in serious doubt. La Ferla and Caracciolo di Feroleto held the capital against several Spanish counter attacks. Meanwhile, the other two divisions from Gen. Roatta’s corps under Gens. Appiotti and Ferrari Orsi had finished off the Portuguese and cut a wide swath of territory across central Spain, dividing the country completely in two. Gen. Nicolosi’s northern front had also broken wide open. Mancinelli’s Alpini had traversed the Pyrenees and reached the Cantabrian ports of Bilbao and Santander on the northern coast. Scattini’s corps struggled inland to Aragon and took Zaragosa. Fautilli’s corps tracked the coastline and occupied Valencia. On the southern front, Pintor’s corps finally broke out of its handcuffs and march west along the coast to take the fortified ports of Almeria and Cartagena from the landward side. The marines, no longer worried about their rear, were advancing through Galacia, herding the remaining Spanish forces towards La Coruna.
It was right about this time that the long anticipated European land war finally broke out in northern Europe. Germany attacked Poland. The United Kingdom and France, who were both allied with Poland, declared war on Germany. The Soviet Union remained neutral. These events were not a surprise to Mussolini, but he could not wait to mop up Iberia. He did not savor the concept of a world war being waged on his borders while his empire was practically naked of troops.
On September 17, 1939, Spain finally surrendered and agreed to be assimilated into the New Roman Empire. The Portuguese government, detached from reality and in spite of the fact that all of their European forces had been destroyed and all of their European territory had been occupied by Italian troops, refused to submit. Salazar and his government escaped to their African colonies, and he vowed to continue the war until their homeland was recovered. However, the realists back in Portugal accepted the inevitable and began the process of assimilating into the mighty New Roman Empire.
Fascism is like a religious concept, but it is not an article for export. -- Benito Mussolini
Chapter Nineteen: The Italo-Iberian War, Part III (7/10/39 - 9/17/39)
The two amphibious invasions on the coast of Portugal had failed to knock that nation out of the fight. The front had expanded, as had Italy’s enemies. However, there were opportunities presented by this state of affairs. Lisbon was an excellent port through which supplies could be shipped, and the supply situation was the only thing preventing the forces on the southern front from making a serious drive towards Madrid. If the Lisbon beachhead could be joined with the southern front, the logistic situation would be alleviated and Messe’s armor could do its job properly. Furthermore, Spain and Portugal were not coordinating their defenses, and the long Spanish border with Portugal seemed devoid of troops. If the Italian forces could get to the Portuguese border, they would either have an unobstructed path into the heart of Spain, or Spain would be forced to transfer forces from other fronts, opening opportunities there.
However, before any such opportunities could be contemplated, the Portuguese needed to be dealt with first.
As Mannerini’s Infantry corps was fanning out throughout southern Portugal, the northern most unit, Gen. Visconti Prasca’s 1a Divisione “Supurga” in Avis, stumbled upon the entire southern Portuguese army including the nation’s central command in Gaviao. Gen. Visconti Prasca immediately attacked, but he had underestimated the number of foes and was beaten back badly. The Portuguese counter attacked, retook Avis and Santarem, and even threatened to retake Lisbon. However, Gen. Vecchiarelli’s marine division “Caterinetta”, that had ventured north of the Tagus River to occupy Terres Vedras and Caldas da Rainha, managed to make it back to Lisbon to protect the port from recapture and avoid disaster.
Further north around the port of Porto, expansion of the beachhead was proving awkward. There simply were too few marine divisions to maintain a cohesive expanding front. The marines had the firepower to move the Portuguese, but any move exposed them to being cut-off and encircled. Gen. Battisti attacked from Ovar to Mangualde, but in doing so, his division lost contact with the other marines and he was encircled. He had to attack again towards Castro Daire, just to reestablish contact with Italian lines. Similarly, 30a Divisione “Sabauda” and its fiery Gen. Reverberi attacked north from Baiona to Vigo and occupied the port. However, the Spanish forces reacted quickly to this new encroachment on their territory. The marines in Vigo were encircled and cut-off. Gen. Reverberi and his troops were in good spirits and full of spit and vinegar. With there backs to the port, they were ready to repulse any comers. However, Field Marshall Balbo decided upon a tactical withdrawal. The transportation flotilla (which had just delivered Gen. Roatta’s corps to Lisbon) ventured north to Vigo and evacuated a reluctant Gen Reverberi. However, his troops were simply redeployed to Porto where they could immediately return to the fight within the Italian lines.
In Lisbon, the introduction of Gen. Roatta’s four mixed Alpini divisions, changed everything. Upon landing, they immediately attacked the resurgent Portuguese in Santarem and pushed them back to Avis. Meanwhile two of Mannerini’s divisions under Gens. Calcagno and Balocco, who had previously been advancing south in Redondo and Evora, had maneuvered to the Portuguese rear in Gaviao and Redondo, while Vecchiarelli’s marines in Lisbon recrosses the Targus to Caldas da Rainha, to Marinha Grande, and finally to Tomar to complete the encirclement. Thus, all of the Portuguese in the south were surrounded and destroyed.
Balbo now had nine uncommitted combat divisions in southern Portugal -- Mannerini’s four infantry, Roatta’s four mixed mountain, and Vecchiarelli’s marines. Two fresh maniples had been transported from Taranto to garrison Lisbon. So, all nine of these divisions were available to be unleashed. The marines were ordered north to join their brethren in the fight in northern Portugal. Roatta’s corps was divided. Two divisions under Gens. Appiotti and Ferrari Orsi headed north to assist with the elimination of the last pockets of Portuguese. Meanwhile, the two divisions under Gens. La Ferla and Caracciolo di Feroleto (who Gen. Roatta admiringly refers to as the Ferlauto gang), were directed to cross the Targus River and attack eastward into the heart of Spain. Mannerini’s divisions were to continue their advance towards the south and east to occupy the Portuguese capital in Elvas and to finally link up with the slowly expanding southern front in Spain.
On the southern front Gens. Messe and Aymonnino finally joined up with Gen. Mannerini, and supplies started flowing through the port of Lisbon to the hungry divisions of the southern front. Once the link was established, together they broke out of Adalucia and crossed the Sierra Morena.
By August 7, 1939, the two Portuguese beachheads and the southern Spanish front formed one unified front from Arda, in the south on the Mediterranean Sea, all the way to Porto, in the north on the Atlantic Ocean. The Portuguese, who still refused to surrender, had been cornered by the marines and elements from Roatta’s corps, and the final pockets of Portuguese resistance were in the process of being liquidated. Meanwhile, Gens. La Ferla and Caracciolo di Feroleto had crossed the Targus and advanced unimpeded into Castile and Leon towards Salamaca north of the Sierra de Gredos. Even the Italian forces on the northern front decided to cross the Ebro and expand their positions south of the river in Candasnos and Barbastro on the outskirts of Zaragoza.
A week later, on August 14, 1939, the Spanish front seemed to crack. Gen. La Ferla in Salamaca turn his division’s advance southeast to Salamora then towards Avila in the direction of Madrid, while his companion division led by Gen. Caracciolo di Feroleto attacked from Peidrahita towards a concentration of Spanish forces in Sotillo de la Adrada in an effort to prevent those forces from falling back or otherwise obstructing La Ferla’s advance on the capital. Meanwhile, Messe’s tanks, which had been slogging north from the south, finally started to gain momentum on their own drive towards the capital.
By August 18, 1939, Gen. La Ferla’s single division had reached the outskirts of Madrid. He was under orders to wait for the other forces to come up from the South before commencing his attack on the city. However, when his reconnaissance in force was able to penetrate the city limits, he took it upon himself to launch an assault on the city with just his single division of mixed Alpini.
Once the street fighting began, it became apparent that the capital was merely occupied by three infantry brigades and the Spanish general staff headquarters. Unless the Spaniards reinforced, Gen. La Ferla would be able to take the capital on his own. Actually, La Ferla was reinforced first. He was joined by Gen. Caracciolo di Feroleto and the two divisions took Madrid.
By September 5, 1939, the eventual outcome of the Italo-Iberia war was no longer in serious doubt. La Ferla and Caracciolo di Feroleto held the capital against several Spanish counter attacks. Meanwhile, the other two divisions from Gen. Roatta’s corps under Gens. Appiotti and Ferrari Orsi had finished off the Portuguese and cut a wide swath of territory across central Spain, dividing the country completely in two. Gen. Nicolosi’s northern front had also broken wide open. Mancinelli’s Alpini had traversed the Pyrenees and reached the Cantabrian ports of Bilbao and Santander on the northern coast. Scattini’s corps struggled inland to Aragon and took Zaragosa. Fautilli’s corps tracked the coastline and occupied Valencia. On the southern front, Pintor’s corps finally broke out of its handcuffs and march west along the coast to take the fortified ports of Almeria and Cartagena from the landward side. The marines, no longer worried about their rear, were advancing through Galacia, herding the remaining Spanish forces towards La Coruna.
It was right about this time that the long anticipated European land war finally broke out in northern Europe. Germany attacked Poland. The United Kingdom and France, who were both allied with Poland, declared war on Germany. The Soviet Union remained neutral. These events were not a surprise to Mussolini, but he could not wait to mop up Iberia. He did not savor the concept of a world war being waged on his borders while his empire was practically naked of troops.
On September 17, 1939, Spain finally surrendered and agreed to be assimilated into the New Roman Empire. The Portuguese government, detached from reality and in spite of the fact that all of their European forces had been destroyed and all of their European territory had been occupied by Italian troops, refused to submit. Salazar and his government escaped to their African colonies, and he vowed to continue the war until their homeland was recovered. However, the realists back in Portugal accepted the inevitable and began the process of assimilating into the mighty New Roman Empire.
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An excellent AAR, thus far, you've made some very impressive progress. I wonder where you'll go next?
Glad to see the Italians prevail once again! Your next move will undoubtedly be a tricky one to make.
look at switzerland, just sitting there, waiting to be brought into the mighty New Roman Empire. And Ireland is already green on the map, why not give it a reason to be green?
I also see an ugly splotch of red still in Iberia. I feel that it should be taken out
its gonna be a bit difficult to defend all of that with the troops you have available. Great AAR though!
This is most excellent!
What do you intend to do now that World War II has broken out? Your choices of action are beginning to run thin now if you do not wish to wage war against one of the factions.
What do you intend to do now that World War II has broken out? Your choices of action are beginning to run thin now if you do not wish to wage war against one of the factions.