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DDR: PostwAAR Germany and Europe

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I

isansom

Second Lieutenant
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May 16, 2010
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Hey guys, I've read and enjoyed a huge number of AAR's and I thought I'd give one a try - first shot so sorry in advance if it's a tad dull or meandering! :)

I will post in a couple of days with a proper introduction to our story including pictures, but just as a starter: I began the game (with the BlackICE 2.1 mod - an excellent piece of work!) as Soviet Russia, preparing for the inevitable Fascist onslaught. My plans were fairly straight forward - to build a vast infantry army supported by heavy tanks and multi-role Flighter/Bombers where possible (we're talking 2000+ brigades of land/sea/air eventually). Come June 1941 Nazi Germany tosses the dice and war was declared. By early 1942 the tide had turned, and by April 1943 Europe was at peace again - under the fist of Communism.

My intention is to take the helm of the DDR as a member of the Comintern. France is in a bit of a mess, with 1/2 french control, and the rest split between Russia and the UK, so I'll sort that and probably set them to Allies under the guise of post war shenanigans. Not sure what I'll do with Italy - at the moment it's a Soviet puppet, but I think they'll not remain that way.

The Allies are still at war with Japan, it's puppets, and Peria - the last of the Axis. My AAR will follow the final phases of WW2, the build up to WW3, and hopefully WW3 itself. I'm not sure when BlackICE finishes, but as it stands right now, Comintern is close to victory, but it looks like the Allies are going to take out Japan/China/Korea, and will gain France so there's going to need to be some fighting at some point! If not, I might just have to kick something off :laugh:

Any thoughts, feel free to comment! It's going to be written in a fairly gameplay oriented manor - hopefully the situation provides as much entertainment as my writing :)

Cheers!

--
Links to chapters:
Introduction to Europe - 1st May 1943
 
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Introduction to Europe - 1st May 1943

Hopefully the following sets the scene. I intend for most of the posts to be similarly styled – please let me know if it’s not working out well. The final shape of Europe will be seen in the first post as the DDR.
--
"This is not peace. It is an armistice for 20 years" -- prophetic words of Ferdinand Foch, as he signed the Treaty of Versailles.
--

Soviet Politburo Summary 1933-1943, dated 1st May 1943 - provided to all Soviet Republics for dissemination.

In 1933 Adolf Hitler took power in Germany through a combination of popularist propaganda and strong-arm tactics, and by mid-1939 had reoccupied the demilitarised Rhineland region, absorbed germanic-Austria, and weakened Czechoslovakia with the seizure of the Sudetenland and eventually took full control of the remainder. The so-called Allies of Britain and France did little more than protest, cowed by the threat of another world war. Our glorious Soviet Union, always proffering the hand of friendship, formed an agreement to re-occupy territory lost during the glorious yet tumultuous October Revolution of 1917 in exchange for help disarming the Polish menace, and peaceful coexistence with Hitler’s Germany.

1939September_Composite_zps17462195.jpg

September 1939. Clockwise from top: Czechoslovakia annexed, Soviet/German Sphere, Invasion of Poland, Rhineland reoccupied, and Austria annexed.

Europe was on the brink of war. The final straw came with Hitler's demand for the Danzig corridor - a strip of land connecting Eastern and Western Prussia, forfeited in the aftermath of WWI. The Poles, with assurances of military help from a timid Britain and France, denied this demand. No help came - Poland collapsed within a month, and war had returned to Europe. Denmark and Norway were next, and fell with nothing more than a whimper. Next the German army (or Wehrmacht) swept through the Low Countries, and into France. It was bitter fighting - France had managed to prepare itself more than many would have expected and it would be 6 months before Paris fell and France surrendered, creating the puppet Vichy state. Yugoslavia and Greece fell in early 1941, the Wehrmacht finishing a fight the Italians started.

1940December_Composite_zpse2a330d0.jpg

December 1940. Clockwise from top: France finally about to surrender, Norway occupied, gains by Soviet Union during Winter War, Low Countries occupied, Denmark occupied.

1941June_Composite_zpsb6d0de18.jpg

June 1941. Clockwise from top: Soviet defences, Vichy France and the Spanish Civil War still raging, Ergli as an example of the Soviet fortifications, a brigade of infantry backed by heavy tanks and support units, Balkans pacified.

By June 1941 it was clear Hitler and his forces were jealously eying the wealth of minerals and industry present in the glorious Soviet Union of Socialist Republics and within the month launched a vicious and unprovoked invasion. For the next 6 months the border area of Lithuania, central Poland, and the Ukraine was a battle ground of astounding proportions - tens of thousands dead on each side every week, reminiscent of WWI France. By December however, with winter closing in, it was clear that the Red Army and its awesome numbers were wearing down the veteran Wehrmacht. Germany struggled to replace its numbers, let alone deploy fresh troops, while the Soviet Union was less paralysed.

1941December_Composite_zpsa439fbfb.jpg

December 1941. Clockwise from top: Baltic defences are hard pressed, Finland is a complete stalemate as Soviet lack forces, Ukrainian offensive into Romania and Hungary.

During 1942 Germany was thrown back, first out of the Soviet Union, then Poland, finally surrendering with much of their country occupied. With them fell the Fascist collaboration governments of Romania, Hungary, Greece, Croatia, Serbia, Italy, and finally Finland. France, the Netherlands, Denmark, and Belgium were liberated by the mighty Red Army, and were welcomed by a joyous populous everywhere.

1942_Composite_zpsa391bceb.jpg

Front during 1942. Left to Right: January, August, October.

Early in 1943 the Allies (now including the USA) and the Soviet Union held two conferences – Yalta, where the issue of Polish borders in post-war Europe was decided; and then Potsdam, to decide the fate of the rest of Europe. The Allies insisted upon a restoration of so-called Democracy to France, Italy, and the Low Countries, and Germany divided into 4 occupation zones, one for each of the UK, France, USA, and the Soviet Union. This was obviously an outrage, as the Allies had not one pair of boots on the ground in mainland Europe and for all their talk of solidarity, had left the Soviet Union to face the Fascist hordes alone.

1943_Potsdam_zps5c9a1c19.jpg

Europe on the eve of the Potsdam Conference, April 1943. Vichy France surrendered territory not currently under Red Army occupation to the Allies, this should have been a sign of their inability to be trusted.

Before a final agreement could be reached by the parties, events took their own course. Partisans, stirred up by a returning Charles de Gaulle, overthrew the provisional Soviet government of France, and declared the French Republic restored. Following this, and with suspicious speed, Belgium and Italy both also overthrew their provisional representatives and all three countries were accepted into the Allies as full member states. In disgust at this underhanded behaviour, the Soviet Union withdrew from talks, and continued with the establishment of government structures for the new Socialist Republics in Eastern and Central Europe.

1943_WarInTheEast_zps07a90c5e.jpg

War in the East, April 1943. Clockwise from top: British India presses into Tibet, Indochina is being liberated, Borneo harbours Japanese trapped in the interior but the British have control of the ports, South-Eastern China landing by British forces - a D-Day of the East.

The Allies continue their war of revenge against Japan and her puppets, while we stand vigilant for the day when capitalistic eyes turn greedily to the 'liberation' of the remainder of Europe.

--
"The Deutsche Demokratische Republik stands amid ruins, weary but ever prepared to defend our fellow Socialist Republics against any belligerents." -- Wilhelm Pieck, President and Communist.
--
 
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Great Idea and nice pictures and narration :)
 
Yup, it looks good so far. Keep at it! :)
 
Interesting setup. How is the balance of power at the moment? I presume the Red Army is a massive, veteran force capable of smashing anything in it's way after defeating Germany. Could you shed some light on the state of the allied forces or would that spoil too much (I'd understand you don't want to know exactly what you'r up against and where)
Is the USA in the allies and if so have they committed a substantial force to Europe or Japan or something? Would be good to know it's not going to be 200k allied troops being swept aside by 3 million Russians in 3 weeks:)

In any case, For the Motherland!
 
A coup in Japan to turn them communist could be fun.:D
 
What's Up Next, and thoughts on Doomsday

thank you guys for the positive comments :) The next update is going to focus on the world as of May 1943 - forces of the allied and comintern factions as well as notable neutrals. After that, a status update for the DDR, and then I'll actually play some of the game :)

I've been thinking about how to proceed with this cold-war type scenario (my inspiration for this AAR has come from East vs West!) and I want to put into place a Doomsday clock, which at midnight will cause the two factions to go to war.

My thoughts on how to progress the clock are as follows:
  • The clock starts at 11:50pm
  • If either side develops the right techs for Nukes (not sure how to script this, but I can check for Nuclear reactor existance as a poor substitute) then it's +3
  • If either side are at war with a neutral then it's +1 while the war continues
  • Random coups will occur to bring neutrals into a faction, not too often hopefully, each results in +1
  • Random Border/Naval incidents which, if both sides choose beligerence, is +1. Maybe both peaceful = -1?
  • Random Spy incidents, similar to above
  • Peace conference, perhaps with a range of values/results from -2 to +1 to country released from faction?
  • So pretty much if we end up with +10, it's on!

The idea is to have escalating tension, and because in this world the Soviet Union is more powerful, the tension is higher and war almost inevitable. I'd like to put this into place such that war turns up between 1948 and 1950 - 5-7 years after the start.

Any comments/thoughts/ideas? :)
 
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