Spring 1936
The Japanese people needed room to grow, resources needed to be obtained so lifestyles would improve, and the Japanese empire needed to be fully recognized as a world power. To this end those in the military who truly ruled had come to some sizable decisions about how to achieve these goals. Primarily, from the country of China - it was large enough, had plenty of resources yet to be exploited, and a quick enough defeat was assured by several senior staff members. For this to occur however, a retooling of the Japanese armies would need to be undertaken. For months, a reshuffling of fleets, armies, and air machines went about mostly unnoticed by their future opponents, but carefully monitored by the cautious British and Russians. Many Soviet ships plied the waters nearby the Japanese homeland, though not so close as to cause alarm to the one nation that had bested them in naval battles. And a good thing too! The Japanese navy was among the most modern in the world with a great majority of their ships and subs able to outperform their English or Soviet counterparts.
There were some older models of subs that were scrapped for parts and the officers and submariners shuffled back into the Naval academy for further retraining. But for the most part all that needed to be done was to fully equip the growing armies. There, however lay the first of many problems the Japanese would face...
29th of April 1936, Imperial General Headquarters
Behind the closed double doors of cherry wood paneling, the men from all the different branches of the military poured over maps, orders, and reports gathered these last few days. A senior general looked up from one such report in his hand and sighed, "This news is not good. While our armored corps and motorized units are being built and fitted, we will not have enough manpower to take on the Chinese problem. This intelligence brief," he says, showing another sheet of paper," indicates they are growing quicker than we can put men into the field. Something must be done and soon if we are to strike this year!"
"Perhaps it would be more advantageous for us to wait, General Anami. The Germans are focusing attention of both the Americans and the Europeans with their demands and marchings. If we were to move now onto China it could spell disaster for our efforts."
"Hmm, your point is well taken...though I feel if we are to gain any advantage on our enemy we must act soon."
General Kanji Ishiwara looked around the room before speaking up, "Perhaps if we were to refocus our efforts and look northward? Our needs for manpower would not be as strict and our mechanized units would enjoy as much superiority there as in China."
Anami snorted, "Again with this Russia First strategy. It is not fitting for us to fight on this issue! China is where we must turn...and more men is what we need!"
The second general raised his hand briefly before speaking, "If these projections are correct, we can ascertain having a total of 600 tanks, 60,000 motorized infantry, and six armies with 90,000 men each. This could be sufficient for our needs in the coming campaign. The Chinese can barely field half that now and most are ill-equipped militia. They have no modern planes, ships, or tanks - we will have little problems, if we can wait another twelve months."
Several of those assembled today nodded their heads and finally General Anami looked at the speaker. "Very well, I will pass word on that we will wait no more than this time next year. It is best to go in fully prepared, is in not?"
Excerpted from How the East was Won by Robert Kincaid
...and the trouble brewing in China was yet to be felt by the Japanese leaders and more importantly the fighting men. Those who would bleed, suffer, and ultimately die for the rash actions of their superiors. A seemingly innocent German military contract and a seemingly obsolete German military advisor would spell this future trouble with a capital "T". Simple shipments of a resource plentiful in Asia but not so in Europe...needed for a war machine that was itself retooling for a coming conflict, but one at a time of its own choosing. What effects would this have could not be imagined in early '36. Foolish vanity, pride, and a reluctance to view the bigger picture - Japan wanted to be a world power but would not embrace the world viewpoint and this would eventually become its downfall.
Keijo province, Korea, 2 June 1936
Dawn brought another beautiful sunrise and though the promise of a hot day traveled along with the fiery orb begin to peek above the horizon, it was still a glorious day to be alive. At least for the fisherman beginning to shove his dugout into the waters. Looking about the waters he could see more Japanese transports arriving laden with troops and material. There were also several ships leaving, apparently having disembarked their contents. This had been going on for a few months now, but lately the traffic in port was busier than normal. Shaking his head he preceeded to his usual fishing spot, hoping for a busier than normal day for himself.
Interlude
Up to this point the world behaved like it usually does in most HoI games I have played. The Spanish Civil War would be firing soon, Italy would annex Ethiopia, and the Western nations would make their protests. For Japan's part, a massive building program was underway. To ensure this would happen with minimal interuptions, plenty of much-needed resources would go to placating the civilian populace. Enough supplies would be garnered to gain some daily excess to be saved for later and precious few ICs would be spent on research. By the end of Spring, Japan would enjoy a few research breakthroughs - chief among them a more advanced system of Basic Electromechanical Computers. This would hasten several needed research projects down the road, but for now the majority of excess ICs would go to building the armies. Enough would be spent to gain six 9 man armies, one 6 man motorized army, and one 6 unit tank army by early July '37. The thinking is that this will be the minimum required to attack properly into China. More men and material would be built, but later on.
Lastly, the necessity of keeping the US out of a Pacific war for as long as possible could not be glossed over. Certainly, the UK and its allies would be prime targets come 1941...but a two front war would be deadly for Japan. Germany may be able to prosecute such a conflict, but manpower-poor Japan just cannot. To that end, keeping an eye on events that will decrease or slow US desire for war with Japan would be paramount.
My intent will be to update weekly - running a season at a time in the same format as above. As war begins with China and conflicts occur, I will slow down the clock and provide a little more in depth look at this war though not every battle will be described. That would only serve to bore most people, myself include!
