Now it's time to bring down the great Japanese dragon. Nuke time *cough cough*
The Japanese will indeed fall. Not so sure calling them the "dragon" is appropriate though. Thought that appelation usually applied to China. as for Nukes, you will have to wait and see.
I see you are going to beat me by getting into Vietnam first. :laugh:
Indeed I may, though I will say that the Japanese there put up a much tougher fight then I would have expected.
We don't mind Nathan! Also, let me say how happy this update makes me! I'm excited about writing more Erich Ritter and Jochaim Krenz funtimes!
and I look forward to reading them. As this is my first ever AAR, it really makes me feel incredible that it has inspired someone to write derivitive works about it. The fact that you use a character that accurately shows how desperate the Germans and the Axis in general are at various points makes it even better.
Oh, you should. They give this AAR that extra something.
that they indeed do.
Upon finishing his conversation with Bradley, Truman could not have been more filled with anticipation. The first phase of the American attack had succeeded. Indeed, it had managed to exceed even its primary planner, Bradley's, expectations. Bradley had thought that it would take much longer to isolate the Japanese in Southeast Asia. What this meant was that an untold number of Japanese and allied troops were now caught were they could do the least amount of good. with the invasion of China, Southeast Asia had been essentially relegated to a sideshow and, with the number of Japanese and Siamese troops in the area, a sideshow that was severally overstaffed. Furthermore, the complete American naval dominance that had been established by this point meant there was no way for the Japanese to get any of those troops to where could do some good. Truman thus remained hopeful that the invasion of China would go just as smoothly as the invasion of India had. Furthermore, with the much more clear command structure, he expected it to go even smoother. This attitude had been borne out of the fact that, for years, the Americans had faced almost complete walkovers in most areas. The German and Japanese offensive earlier in the year was seen as the exception to this trend, with Germany making its last feeble attempt to dig itself out of the hole it had dug. It had been seen as a sign of desperation on both countries parts. Indeed, while both had met with early success, they had run out of stem once the Americans managed to organize a counterattack. In the end, the hoped for breakthroughs did not occur and all that the Axis had to show for it was a casualty count they could ill afford. The war in Southeast Asia seemed to have confirmed this, with the advance across Burma having been relatively smooth in comparison to the long slogs of the past. Indeed, the only real holdout remaining in the region was Bangkok, and that was on the verge of being outflanked. Indeed, the ease with which these victories had been obtained gave the Americans a growing overconfidence that verged on a feeling of invincibility for many. This was a belief that was now about to be rocked to its core.
The Japanese had always known that the decisive engagement of the Asian war would be in China. What that meant is that legions of their best troops in the area to prepare for the final showdown with the Americans. While few believed the Americans could be beaten outright, the prevailing belief was that if the Americans could be held in stalemate long enough, the American public would tire of the war and Truman would be pressured into accepting a negotiated peace. These men hoped that by doing so, they could get the Americans to give them a deal that would let them keep what they still held, regardless of how little that was. Even the most radical leaders, who still clung to a hope for victory, concurred with the plan, believing that if they could blunt and absorb the American attack on China they stood a chance to eventually launch a counterattack when the Americans had been weakened enough. This counterattack, they hoped, would be just enough to regain Southeast Asia, allowing Japan to negotiate from a position of relative strength.
In addition, the Japanese knew the main American thrust would come from the sea. What they did not know is where on the coast they would land. They had therefore stationed men both along the coast to repel or slow the initial landings and a rapid response force in the interior that could move to oppose any American landing relatively quickly. The Americans would soon find out that the advance through China would not be as easy as they had hoped.
This realization would start when their attempt to advance on Chao'an was repelled.
this was not insignificant, as the rapid rate of advance towards Guangzhou left the American rear areas open to attack. If Chao'an did not fall, then forces from there or Shantou could easily seize Bao'an and threaten the advance with encirclement. If it fell however, the Americans would be able to use it to launch spoiling attacks on Shantou or Ganzhou after they had advanced out of Guangzhou. The securing of this position was thus key to future advances. If it could not be taken, men would either have to be diverted from the advance inland or brought in from elsewhere to hold Bao'an against counterattack.
Despite this setback, Patton refused to stop his advance for anything. He ordered his troops to push forward and advance to Shaoguan, leaving just enough men in Guangzhou to hold the city.
Stilwell, not yet having gotten involved personally, was impressed. Despite setbacks, Patton continued to push on and had managed to seize several key strategic areas. Furtermore, he had accomplished something else. With the fall of Luang Prabang, the Japanese were now unable to support Southern China with troops from Southeast Asia. With America in firm control of the sea lanes in the Pacific, that meant that any reinforcements could only come from one place: Northern China. Gambling that the Japanese may have weakened the North to protect the south in the mistaken belief that Patton's attack was the main thrust, Stillwell decided to launch the invasion of Northern China. Stillwell was determined to lead this push himself and realized that, with his attention focused on the North, he would be unable to direct that action in the South fully. He therefore conferred upon Patton the position of Deputy Supreme Commander, China, second only to himself in authority. Patton understood that what this amounted to was that Stilwell had just given him full control of the Southern front. Patton would now be free to fight the war in the South his way. This move endeared Patton to Stillwell, with the former saying of his superior: "That man really knows what he is doing. He knows full well that the best way to use me is to point me towards the enemy and turn me loose, and turn me loose he has."
With Patton taking charge of the South, Stillwell now turned his attention to the North. He set his sights on the city of Shanghai. The City was one of the largest cities in China and if it could be taken, it would be a massive blow to the Japanese. With Eisenhower in support, he embarked for the city. They landed virtually unopposed by the Japanese and quickly managed to seize control of the city. They then began plans to continue the march. Stillwell would march into Suzhou while Eisenhower advanced on Hangzhou. Ultimately, Stillwell would be able to seize Suzhou first and began planning future offensive action.
So far, the advance in Northern China had been pretty much unopposed. Stillwell now began to grow overconfident. After seizing Suzhou, he had a clear march to Nanking, the former capital of China. Determined to take the city, Stillwell ordered the advance. Opposing him were several divisions of Japanese divisions. While Stillwell remained confident of victory, these Japanese divisions fought like demons to hold the city. After heavy casualties to both sides, Stillwell reluctantly called off the attack and preyed this was not a portent of things to come.
While progress was temporarily halted in the North, in the South things were progressing well. Maoming, Wenshan, and Nanning had fallen and American forces had forced several Japanese divisions to retreat to the island of Hainan. While they did not yet now it, Hainan would be one of the last holdouts of Japanese resistance in China.
Further South, In Southeast Asia, Bradley had ordered a general offensive all along the line. The Americans would attack at three points: Bangkok, Khon Kaen, and Hanoi.
To the jubilation of all involved, the offensive was a success. Only in Hanoi did the Japanese succeed in holding off the American advance. By far the most important fact, however, was the fall of Bangkok. After throwing back numerous attacks, the Japanese and Siamese were finally forced to give up the city. When Bradley heard the news, he was ecstatic. He immediately ordered his men forward. If he could manage to take the city fast enough, there remained a chance of seizing the Siamese government. If they could accomplish that, they might knock Siam, Japan's largest, and in Southeast Asia only, remaining ally.
Meanwhile, Stillwell, still reeling from his defeat, began planning his next offensive. After giving his troops time to rest from the near constant marching, he decided the time was ripe to make another attack. Free of the overconfidence that had plagued him last time, Stillwell was finally able to seize Nanking.
The news was met with much excitement back home. So far, the Japanese had only been able to delay American advances. Now the former capital was in there hands. If things continued like this, China would fall and fall soon.
Soon after, Hangzhou would also fall. It was then that Stillwell formulated a plan to trap the Japanese still fighting on the coast. First, he ordered Patton to advance Northeast on Ganzhou
He then left orders for Eisenhower to advance on Wuhu after ordering the newly arrived General Holcomb to advance on Nantong
The plan was simple. Eisenhower would seize Wuhu. Then Patton, with his fast moving tanks, would seize Ganzhou and Shangrao. This would not only link up the two landing areas of American troops, it would also turn much of the Coast of China into a massive pocket.
The plan would make steady progress with Patton quickly seizing Ganzhou on May 3 and pressing the attack onto seize Shangrao, which was completely undefended.
While the encirclement plan went ahead, Stillwell himself, however, remained pinned down. While he had seized Nanking, he had been unable to do much else. His troops now occupied a salient in American lines and if he advanced any further, he would be in severe danger of being cut off and destroyed. In order to secure his northern flank, therefore, he ordered Holcomb to press his attack and seize the city of Yangzhou, ordering newly arrived reinforcements to take up his previous positions in Nantong and gambling that they would arrive before the Japanese in Lianyungag could make an attack.
His flank, however, was not the only one he was worried about. Concerned that the Japanese might try to take Hangzhou once Eisenhower seized Wuhu, he ordered the newly arrived Nigerians to seize Ningbo, the only Japanese position that could threaten Hangzhou, and thus secure Eisenhower's flank.
In order to further secure their flanks, Stilwell also ordered General Alanbrooke to seize Qunzhou, thus ensuring a threat did not arise from there and also deepening the encirclement.
Stillwell then ordered General Holcomb to seize Lianyungang, ordering a newly arrived unit to complete the advance on the now undefended Yangzhou.
Then, finally, on May 10, Stilwell's plan came to fruition. Patton finally managed to seize Shangroa. With this final acquisition, much of the Chinese coast now became a massive pocket with many Japanese divisions trapped inside. With Japanese reserves dwindling away, this was exactly the kind of thing they could ill afford. The war in China appeared to be going America's way.
Alright, at long last, a new update. Now, along with the update itself, I am going to start another vote. While I am partial to giving Truman another term, since I do not believe he would leave the job unfinished, I want to get your opinions on who should run in this election that is approaching.
1.Truman: He has run the country successfully for 12 good years and has brought them to within sight of victory. However, he has been president a long time and through a very stressful period of its history. Furthermore, as hinted in the last election, some may be concerned that he has overstayed his welcome and that having two consecutive presidents both serve 4 terms might set a bad precedent and weaken the term restriction Amendment despite Truman being immune to it.
2.Another Politician: I could RP this person as being Truman's protege and handpicked successor. However, Truman's massive shadow may have forced many prominent politicians in his party into the shade. If this is your choice, I will also request that you suggest who you want to be run in Truman's place.
3. One of Truman's Generals: I am thinking of having him pick Bradley or another popular general to succeed him. In particular, Bradley would be interesting because they are implied to be very close in this AAR and Bradley could be seen as something of a protege.
Also, who should run for the oppostion
1olitician: Could have another Politician from the Republicans run. However, I am not sure there is a politician in there party who could amass the popular support to beat Truman.
2:General: This would likely be Clark or potentially even Patton. I will pick the general depending on which of the above options wins. I think this would be there best chance as Clark almost won last time and these successful generals could easily play on there successful campaigns to amass popular support for their campaign.
comment and let me now what you think.