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HecNev

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Frieden in unserer Zeit? – A Germany AAR

hitler-nazi-germany-czechoslovakia-annexation-1938-ww2-prague-005.jpg

Introduction


Up until September 1939, the German Reich had been expanding its borders by basically using the land-locked version of gunboat diplomacy.
1938 saw Austria and the Sudetenland incorporated into the Third Reich, the remainder of Czechoslovakia followed suit in early 1939. In the end, the German giant would choke upon its own greed when demanding Danzig and receiving a war that would plunge Europe into chaos and, ultimately, destroy the one that started it.

What if, instead of claiming Danzig, Germany had offered exchanging the city with its gains in Slovakia?
What if Germany had further pursued this kind of expansion?

War would still break out eventually, but when?

And, most importantly, how does it play for Germany to enter a late war with a politically stable France and a USSR that has fully recovered from the Great Purge?


Settings:

Version: 1.1
Difficulty: Regular. The intent of this AAR is not to prove what a bad-ass player I am but to see whether the idea has potential.
Start date: 1st of January 1936
AI: Historical AI choices.
Status: To begin soon.
Aim: Try to expand “peacefully” for as long as possible while building up a strong army and air force to be ready when war does break out.
Style: The story will be told from the point of view of several characters, both historical and unhistorical.


Table of Contents

Act I: Setting the Stage
1936 - February 1938

Chapter 1: A Quiet Year
Chapter 2: Testing Grounds
Chapter 3: The Gathering Clouds

Act II: Reshaping Eastern Europe
February 1938 - February 1941

Chapter 4: Birth of an Alliance
Chapter 5: Reunification
Chapter 6: Escalation
Chapter 7: The Eve of War

Interludum: The Status Quo

Act III: War in the West
February 1941 - February 1942

Chapter 8: Fall Geld und Fall Rot
Chapter 9: Preparing to jump the Channel
Chapter 10: Unternehmen Seelöwe
Chapter 11: New Tensions

Act IV: War in the East
February 1942 -

Chapter 12: Unternehmen Sturmflut
Chapter 13: The 4th Partitoing of Poland
Chapter 14: Unternehmen Winterstille
 
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Subbed! Looks good and exactly how I would try to play Germany if I could
 
Well, I suppose I should wish you luck! :p I certainly like the 'handicaps' for the AAR--I like to play that way too for AARs, it adds some spice and changes things up. Will be watching.

Cheers!
 
Good luck! You'll need it with those handicaps, I think.:)
 
Chapter 1: A Quiet Year

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1st of January 1936 to 31st of December 1936


20160614203017_1skl8v.jpg


2nd of January 1936, Reichsaußenministerium
Two young diplomats are having lunch in the ministry’s cantina

Kurt: “And I’m telling you it might prove unwise to push our luck this soon!”

Gerhard: “I don’t think so. The Great War has been over for almost 18 years now. 18 years in which we have suffered under this damned piece of paper which some dare to call a treaty. It’s about time the Reich starts offering protection to its citizens in the Rheinland again.”

20160614203301_1ycud4.jpg

Kurt: “I will concede you this much. But do you really expect the French to let this go unpunished? Especially now that secret missions have been issued to support fascist movements in the Netherlands, Denmark and Sweden? The French probably don’t care about Scandinavia, but the British definitely will. And both care about the Netherlands.”

20160614203453_1qeb98.jpg

Gerhard: “If those movements get uncovered while we are moving into the Rheinland, things might get a little tricky. But since Johann has joined the General Staff of our Heeresabteilung Westwall, I doubt that any French soldier can cross our border and live.”

Kurt: “Oh Johann will be fine. There are a lot of new divisions starting to form up, and our number-loving friend will probably want to calculate how to best supply them all…”

20160614203414_1ebbap.jpg

Gerhard: “Exactly. So don’t worry. If the Netherlands and Sweden become Fascist, we will have no resource problems. Even with our growing industry.”


20th of May 1936, Freiburg at the Franco-German Border
A staff officer and his general are looking across the Rhine towards the Maginot Line

20160614204508_186jp3.jpg

Johann:Herr General, we have finally completed deploying and accommodating all 24 infantry divisions of the Heeresabteilung Westwall. So far, we have not seen any French activities along the border. It really seems like they will grant us this small success.”

rhinelandlrg.jpg

General List: “It’s a shame, really. They will soon weep for the chance that they’ve missed. Der Führer has announced today that we will build our own defensive line along the French border. Although it won’t be as glorious as the Maginot Line, it should be enough to make the French miss the last time we had comparably open borders.”

Johann: “That should solve most of our accommodation problems. The local population was not always pleased about having to cede a room for a few of our soldiers. I’m looking forward to taking part in the planning, Herr General.”

General List: “No, that won’t be necessary Johann. I have something else in mind for you.”

Johann: “…am I being fired?”

General List: “No, son. Quite the opposite. The higher ups are building a new force of tanks, the Panzerwaffe. They want to modernize our military doctrine along with it. They were looking for promising staff officers and I suggested you. Let’s just say someone was very impressed with your resume. You will pack your bags to Berlin in a week.”


6th of September 1936, Reichaußenministerium
Kurt and Gerhard attend the morning briefing.

20160614205250_1wfxf6.jpg

Speaker: “Italy’s dictator Mussolini announce this morning that his forces have finally managed to subdue Ethiopia. And thus the last independent country in Africa is occupied by a colonial power. Since we are not trading with either of the two warring states, this move is considered to be of little consequence to our general foreign politics. And that conclude’s today’s morning briefing.”

Gerhard: “I never thought they’d be able to defeat Ethiopia. It has taken them ages.”

Kurt: “Now I understand the new assignment that Johann has recently told us about. It must have been a true meat grinder down there.”

Gerhard: “Or maybe Mussolini overestimated his abilities. Ideologically, he is very similar to us and does seem like our natural ally. But on the other hand, he’s too much of a smoking gun.”

Kurt: “I’d say Japan is pretty similar in that regard. Their ambitions could ultimately clash with our plans of making the Netherlands a close ally. Japan needs the same resources we do. So we both also need the Netherlands. Or the Dutch East Indies, to be precise.”

Gerhard: “From what it seems, Japan is currently more focused upon China. Which we are still supporting. We’ll see how der Führer and von Ribbentropp ill get us out of this perdicament…”


16th of December 1936, Oberkommando des Heeres
Johann and General Guderian review the status of the industry

20160614205813_19qkfv.jpg

General Guderian: “Johann, please give me the current status. And make it short if you will. It is late already.”

Johann:Jawohl, Herr General. Since the construction of the Westwall, the Reichsarbeitsdienst has been making huge leaps in providing us with more civilian industry. Those factories have been constructed with a conversion for military use in mind. Also, those factories have provided us with more research capacities. As per your request from two weeks ago, der Führer has agreed to focus on army innovations. Also, since both us and the Soviet Union are shunned by the democracies of the west, you have suggested cooperating with those Bolsheviks for better tank research… Herr General, may I speak freely?”

General Guderian: “I see. So you still don’t agree with my methods. Well, I will not explain myself to you again."

Johann: "I am sorry, Herr General. I meant no disrespect."

General Guderian: "It's fine, I don't trust comrade Stalin either. But der Führer thinks that war will come at some point. And I'll be damned if we're not prepared for it. Even if it means doing research with the devil. Besides, it looks like the political climate in Spain has just turned into a storm which might cause a civil war. If we can support the nationalists, we may be able to test some of our ideas in the field."

Author's Note:
Thank you foe the kind words! I hope I won't disappoint you.
1936 has been a very quiet year. Not even the Spanish Civil War broke out. So I decided to put some major events into the first chapter and not bore you with all the nothingness that occurred.

I'm looking forward to reading some of your feedback!
 
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Love the Coca Cola adverts in the beginning.:p
 
Ha. No Spanish Civil War yet...pity, the volunteers and the coverage of the war is/could be a good filler until the inevitable. Funny, since I've had similar experiences, where the Spanish Civil War breaks out in early March, all the way until November.
 
subbed!
 
Chapter 2: Testing Grounds

1st of January 1937 to 14th of May 1937

16th of January 1936, a military training ground somewhere in Brandenburg
General Guderian addresses his staff

General Guderian: Guten Morgen, meine Herren! Those of you who follow world politics have probably expected it to happen for some time now, for the rest here’s the short version: a civil war broke out in Spain.”

hoi4_16guln.png

General Guderian:Der Führer has decided to send volunteer forces in order to support the Spanish Nationalists. In order to prove that our Blitzkrieg doctrine works, we have been volunteered. So pack your things. We’re going on a field trip to Spain!”


30th of January 1937, a Spanish dockyard along the Northern coastline
Johann reports the equipment status

Johann:Herr General, we have successfully unloaded all of our equipment. Food and ammunition have been distributed among the men and the first reconnaissance reports are in. It appears the area around Bilbao is entirely undefended, except for one division in the very east.”

hoi4_3jyroc.png

General Guderian: “Perfect. We will sweep the area clean immediately. We will not be able to decide this war out here on the northern coast. Also, the fact that this area is already separated from the rest of Republican territory does not really help us prove that encirclements are important to achieve. Johann, get your hands on as much knowledge as you can on the area around Barcelona. I want to attack along the Ebro river and capture the city.”
Johann: “Jawohl Herr General! I will look into it immediately!”


2nd of February 1937, Bilbao pocket
Johann and General Guderian are watching the Legion Condor defeat the last remnants of the Republican division

Johann:Herr General, I would like to suggest a plan based on the information I could gather. We should mass our Panzers along the northern bank of the Ebro River. The Republican lines are thin there. We can then follow the river to its mouth and turn north-east. If we are fast enough, we might be able to take the city and the port without opposition. The next step should then be to secure the airport to the north-west of Barcelona. From there on out, we should be able to clear the mountains with our Spanish allies.”
General Guderian:Hervorragend. I see you’ve been a good study. We’ll see how your use of the Schwerpunkt plays out. We will bring the men in position immediately after our business here is done.”
Johann: “One last thing: A friend of mine from the Reichsaußenministerium has relayed the information that the French might allow Republican forces to retreat onto their soil.”
General Guderian: “That complicates things. The Republicans might be able to receive supplies from there or gather in different mountain holdings. We cannot drag the French into this. Under no circumstances. We will just have to make do with the situation.”

hoi4_51eut2.png

19th of March 1937, on the banks of the Ebro near Barcelona
Johann and General Guderian are studying a military map of central Spain

General Guderian: “It seems like the borders outside our reach have barely moved since the outset of the war. How is our supply situation?”
Johann: “The Panzers we lost while clearing the pocket have been replaced via the port of Barcelona. Capturing it intact has really helped us here. The Nationalists are great hosts and provide us with almost all the food we need. After our recent victory and eliminating roughly six Republican divisions, the men are in good spirits.”
General Guderian: “Perfect. I want to proceed south and capture Valencia. We will trap the Republican divisions currently stationed on the coast and eliminate them. After that, we’ll see how the Spanish have adjusted to our way of waging war. We shall encircle Madrid.”

hoi4_13gguqn.png

7th of April 1937, on the Spanish coast just south of Valencia
Two German officers watch the Republican Fleet slip into distant waters

Johann:Herr General, we are still within range of their battleships. Are you sure it is a good idea to remain this close to the water?”
General Guderian: “Nonsense. If they were able to shell us, they would have done so before we could enter Valencia. The only thing that pains me is that we’ll have to watch this fleet move south to another harbor. No chance of destroying it from here. We need to take Madrid now. Johann, funnel all our equipment into the 3. Panzer-Division. They will lead the charge.”
Johann: “Our forces are terribly overstretched. One of our three divisions is still mopping up Republican divisions along the coast to the north, another is defending our recent conquests against Republican counterattacks to the south.”

hoi4_14yduuz.png

General Guderian: “We must not lose our momentum now. Just yesterday you told me that recon has reported Soviet divisions pouring in to support the struggling Republicans. So far, we have destroyed, encircled or exiled about 13 Republican divisions. We need to end this soon.”
Johann: “What about our flanks?”
General Guderian: “The Nationalists have thus far always supported our pincer movements with their infantry. It will work this time as well. How soon can you make the equipment assignments happen?”
Johann: “We should be able to attack west in four days.”

hoi4_15zsyzq.png

6th of May 1937, Railway between Dresden and Berlin
Kurt is in a train with foreign minister Konstantin von Neurath

hoi4_19vvzxd.png

Von Neurath: “Don't look like your grandmother just died. We have scored a diplomatic success today. Also due to your excellent preparation of the negotiations. General Guderian will be pleased that his suggestion to cooperate with the Russians for military research has come through. Der Führer is rewarding him for encircling Madrid on the 23rd of April.”
Kurt:Vielen Dank! I still cannot help but think that this is wrong. During the last few years, it was always said that the Soviets are our worst enemies, and now we help them with military research?”
Von Neurath: “Both parties stand to gain something from this. In the long run, his will help us open the way to trading agreements. All of Herr Goebbels’ propaganda aside, the Reich doesn’t have many resources to offer.”
Kurt: “But that is why we already have ‘diplomatic’ missions in the Netherlands and Scandinavia. For the sole purpose of securing resources for our industry.”
Von Neurath: “Indeed. But I think der Führer is wise to spread our economic interests like this. It is good that you mention the Netherlands. In your resume you stated that you speak a little Dutch. How good is it, really?”
Kurt: “Ik spreek een beetje, mijn heer.“
Von Neurath: „Excellent. The Abwehr has approached me recently for an assignment in the Netherlands which requires someone with diplomatic skills. Are you interested in a trip to Den Haag?”


14th of May 1937, Madrid
General Guderian addresses his men

hoi4_20qcas4.png

General Guderian: “Within five months, we have decided the Spanish Civil War and proven that our extensive training was not for naught. I am proud of each and every one of you. We will redeploy to Bilbao and then home. I have put in several commendations for military honors, but I’m sure that der Führer will honor you all for your bravery. He was also kind enough to grant all of you a month-long holiday upon our return.”
 
you won the CIvil War by yourself!
 
Chapter 3: The Gathering Clouds

15th of May 1937 to 10th of February 1938

16th of June 1937, Oberkommando der Wehrmacht

Johann and General Guderian attend a debriefing with the head of the Wehrmacht

Von Blomberg:Der Führer and I have have carefully reviewed all your reports on the events in Spain. Needless to say, we are both very pleased with your successes.”
General Guderian:Vielen Dank! Have you also reviewed our suggestions on division layouts?”
Von Blomberg:’Our’ suggestions?”
General Guderian: “I give credit when it is due. My Aide-de-Camp Johann has been thoroughly monitoring our logistics as well as the combat state of the entire Legion Condor. And I must say he did a great job. Based on his and my observations, we would suggest adding maintenance battalions to all our Panzer divisions. Another point would be enhancing the medical capabilities of the Wehrmacht’s infantry divisions.”

hoi4_23vpkd0.png

Von Blomberg: “We will consider it. What about this Panzer design?”

sd_kfz_141_pz_kpfw_iii_ausf_h-25840.jpg

General Guderian: “This is an idea I first conceived a few years ago. The experiences I made in Spain have further strengthened my belief that an independent Panzerwaffe is very beneficial to waging war successfully. And, with our new research treaty with the Russians, we should be able to bring such a design to the field next year.”
Von Blomberg: “Indeed. I will run it past the Führer.”


30th of July 1937, Reichsaußenministerium
Gerhard is preparing a dossier for Foreign Minister Konstantin von Neurath

hoi4_255ouc5.png

Gerhard: “After the armed incident near the Marco Polo Bridge about two weeks ago, tensions between Japan and China have been on the rise. It seems only a question of time when Japan is going to attack the Chinese. This is putting us into some serious peril: The Reich has strong ties to China and is even supplying and training some of its army, while we have recently made advances towards a closer relationship with Japan.”
Von Neurath:Der Führer is also aware of this. What kind of consequences would you derive from the situation?”
Gerhard: “I think it might be necessary to make a decision between the both of them. Both countries command vast amounts of manpower. Japan is more industrialized than China and possesses a navy that can easily match the British Royal Navy. But the industrialization is also Japan’s major downfall: it requires the same resources we do. So while we are looking towards keeping the Netherlands neutral or even in our sphere of influence, Japan will most likely want to control the Dutch East Indies at some point. This could effectively cut us off from those resources.”
Von Neurath: “Why is that? After all, if the Japanese are friendly to us, why shouldn’t they supply us with the rubber instead of the Dutch?”
Gerhard: “The Japanese expansion will most likely put them against strategic interests of the British Commonwealth and even the USA. In other words: an alliance with the Empire of Japan might drag us into a war with the western democracies sooner than we want to. If we manage to stay clear of the fires Japan is currently setting, the Reich may not be perceived as threatening, thus allowing us to grow our territory via ‘peaceful’ annexation.”
Von Neurath: “Very comprehensive assssment. So what is your ultimate recommendation?”
Gerhard: “As a final conclusion for this dossier, I think we should continue to support the Chinese with training and equipment. At a later point of time we could also send a volunteer force to support the Chinese Nationalists, should we desire a stronger position in Asia.”
Von Neurath: “Great. Of course, there is always the chance that der Führer does not follow our recommendations. But I do think you did some great work here.”


23rd of September 1937, German Embassy to the Netherlands
Kurt receives an assignment from the Abwehr

hoi4_31norny.png

Ambassador: “Kurt, I have heard you have grown accustomed to the Dutch way of life and, more importantly, to their Fascist party which we support. With the recent Japanese declaration of war on China, the Dutch are obviously concerned about Japanese Imperialism so close to their colonies.”
Kurt: “I had the exact same thought, mein Herr. But how does this factor into our influencing of the Dutch popular opinion towards the Fascist party?”
Ambassador: “We could use this to further boost the party and maybe even force the current democratic government to resign. We just have to play our cards right. The Abwehr has asked me to have someone reach out to the Dutch Fascists and foster our idea of impeaching the current Dutch government. Do you feel up to the task?”
Kurt: “Jawohl mein Herr.”


1st of December 1937, a back-office somewhere in Den Haag
Kurt meets the leader of the Dutch Fascists, Anton Mussert

Mussert: “We really appreciate the German support for our cause. However, why should we not turn towards the British as a strong ally?”
Kurt: “Because the British will never support a Fascist government against the Japanese. They would probably prefer to watch you and Japan bleed yourselves and then cite their own interests to annex your colonies. The Reich is different. We support our partners against Japan.”

hoi4_33qspd6.png

Mussert: “When will this be in the newspaper?”
Kurt: “We have planted it in all major Dutch news outlets that you own or that we could influence. Der Führer will extend the hand of friendship and the shield of protection to those who want and deserve it. Just as we have done with the Chinese. The Japanese have barely made any progress. And it will most likely stay like this.”
Mussert: “And what does the Reich want in return?”
Kurt: “We are German. We like to watch our money grow in the bank we put it into. So we would like you and your part to cause an impeachment vote on your government. From there on out, it should be easy for you to get into power even though you lost the elections in April.”


10th of February 1938, outskirts of Vienna
Johann and General Guderian are supporting the peaceful Anschluss of Austria

hoi4_360hqdn.png

General Guderian: “It is almost disappointing that the Austrians caved in so easily.”
Johann: “Well, we had all our divisions on their border ready for an invasion. Bei allem Respekt Herr General, I would not call that ‘easily’.”
General Guderian: “Indeed. But I would have liked to further test and improve on the experiences we have made in Spain. With the recent success of the Abwehr and the Reichsaußenministerium, the Netherlands are also no longer potential training grounds.”

hoi4_40hjobo.png

Johann: “As far as I’m aware, we are now also guaranteeing their independence towards the British and the Japanese.”
General Guderian: “Indeed we are. Well maybe we will have to travel to China to do some more testing, then.”


Author's Note:

Thank you for your responses and subscriptions!

How do you like the style so far?

And, just as important, shoud I send Johann and Guderian along with a small aroured task force to China?
 
Nice AAR so far, and it's good to see you backing China over Japan. Interesting idea.

Also, I hope they patch in a proper Dutch fascist flag, rather than using the flag of Holstein. Lazy devs. ;)
 
Nice AAR so far, and it's good to see you backing China over Japan. Interesting idea.

Also, I hope they patch in a proper Dutch fascist flag, rather than using the flag of Holstein. Lazy devs. ;)

How weird, Victoria II has a fascist dutch flag.

iKo3rID.png


(seriously, they should bring in whoever did these. They have a flag for everything... What if Iraq becomes a Great power, transform into Babylon and becomes fascist in the last 15 in-game years? Yeah we've got a freaking 7-headed dragon flag for that!)
 
that's a really weird Facist Dutch flag...

btw, I like the ongoing style
 
I get the lions, but the colors?
 
Nice AAR so far, and it's good to see you backing China over Japan. Interesting idea.

Also, I hope they patch in a proper Dutch fascist flag, rather than using the flag of Holstein. Lazy devs. ;)

Thank you. I'll see how it plays out.
The most crucial moment is probably the status of the Sino-Japanese War once I managed to get the Netherlands into the Axis. From that point on, it may be more beneficial to get Japan into the Ai if they are winning in China.
After all, I would then have their fleet protecting the rubber in the East Indies. But we'll see...

How weird, Victoria II has a fascist dutch flag.

iKo3rID.png


(seriously, they should bring in whoever did these. They have a flag for everything... What if Iraq becomes a Great power, transform into Babylon and becomes fascist in the last 15 in-game years? Yeah we've got a freaking 7-headed dragon flag for that!)

Do you know if there's a mod for those flags? It would be an interesting touch to replace the current Dutch fascist flag with the one shown above.
Apparently, this won't interfere with the Ironman-status of the AAR-save.

that's a really weird Facist Dutch flag...

btw, I like the ongoing style

I get the lions, but the colors?

Thank you!
 
Thank you. I'll see how it plays out.
The most crucial moment is probably the status of the Sino-Japanese War once I managed to get the Netherlands into the Axis. From that point on, it may be more beneficial to get Japan into the Ai if they are winning in China.
After all, I would then have their fleet protecting the rubber in the East Indies. But we'll see...



Do you know if there's a mod for those flags? It would be an interesting touch to replace the current Dutch fascist flag with the one shown above.
Apparently, this won't interfere with the Ironman-status of the AAR-save.





Thank you!

Can't find any that introduces all the awesome Vic 2 flags (I also think the game versions are way too low res), but there's this far more specific mod http://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=702150890