Duce, the time is now and speed is of the essence. If we can gain control of the Turkish forces, so much the better, but we don't need them. Get to the Caucasus, sieze that oil, and make the Soviets wheel around to deal with a second front.
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This is a great plan. Once the USSR faces a two front war, Germany can be reinforced. Not to mention Italy can also pursue Iraq and gain a monopoly on the oil sources in the Mideast. With luck we can take the Russian oilfields too, and bleed the USSR dry.
Although, it should be noted, we must not neglect our heroic colonial divisions in Afrika that stave off the British threat night and day. Perhaps we should allot them a division or two for reinforcement?
'Scarred and tired Andrea Antoninos aide, Paolo Maldini steps into the room'
General Antonino has this to say: "
I am sorry I could not meet up with you in person, but I am laying with fever at the moment and as soon as I am recovered I will ready my men for the next offensive.
I was never suspecting the Greeks would put their country in our hands on their own. It was an great victory just as I predicted. But despite that I have changed my opinion about an offensive in Spain. I still believe we would take Spain relatively easy, but with recent events in Africa and the German east front our priorities have been abruptly changed. Spain will probably only tie up more troops than it's recources is worth and we can't afford to spread our forces to thin.
This far we have won battles by concentrating our forces, we must continue to do that. And by that logic I strongly advise us to put Romania in our list of enemies. Not only do they have a strong army they have an army that can link up with Russia making them an dangerous enemy.
We should instead use the good news about our new allies to our advantage and push trough Caucasus. as we have the Turks on our side I hope any offensive there can be supported by some of Cavangis forces. But I don't believe the Russians have left that border undefended. The best would be to to take Mesopotamia first to get the valuable oil there. What do Barone di Curow say about the opposing forces in there? Inform me as soon as you get an reliable sources so I can prepare my men accordingly.
Italy per sempre, Andrea Antonino"
'Paolo Maldini steps back and listens carefully to what the others have to say'
General Antonino has this to say: "
I am sorry I could not meet up with you in person, but I am laying with fever at the moment and as soon as I am recovered I will ready my men for the next offensive.
I was never suspecting the Greeks would put their country in our hands on their own. It was an great victory just as I predicted. But despite that I have changed my opinion about an offensive in Spain. I still believe we would take Spain relatively easy, but with recent events in Africa and the German east front our priorities have been abruptly changed. Spain will probably only tie up more troops than it's recources is worth and we can't afford to spread our forces to thin.
This far we have won battles by concentrating our forces, we must continue to do that. And by that logic I strongly advise us to put Romania in our list of enemies. Not only do they have a strong army they have an army that can link up with Russia making them an dangerous enemy.
We should instead use the good news about our new allies to our advantage and push trough Caucasus. as we have the Turks on our side I hope any offensive there can be supported by some of Cavangis forces. But I don't believe the Russians have left that border undefended. The best would be to to take Mesopotamia first to get the valuable oil there. What do Barone di Curow say about the opposing forces in there? Inform me as soon as you get an reliable sources so I can prepare my men accordingly.
Italy per sempre, Andrea Antonino"
'Paolo Maldini steps back and listens carefully to what the others have to say'
Commodore Sturmgeist enters the meeting room.
Il Duce and gentlemen...
My submarines are next to useless in the Atlantic...to avoid our submarines the enemy can (and most likely has) just shifted the convoy routes a bit to the west further out into the Atlantic Ocean... In order to be more effective I suggest sending our submarines (Flotillas A and B) to patrol the waters around England. If we station them in Portugal they should have the range...if not then I suggest we send these Flotillas to be based in France (If we can do that).
We must either upgrade our submarines or face the fact that they are next to useless in the Atlantic...
Il Duce and gentlemen...
My submarines are next to useless in the Atlantic...to avoid our submarines the enemy can (and most likely has) just shifted the convoy routes a bit to the west further out into the Atlantic Ocean... In order to be more effective I suggest sending our submarines (Flotillas A and B) to patrol the waters around England. If we station them in Portugal they should have the range...if not then I suggest we send these Flotillas to be based in France (If we can do that).
We must either upgrade our submarines or face the fact that they are next to useless in the Atlantic...
"Hmm, this is almost eerie, this congruence of opininion. I do agree with General Antonio, may his recovery be speedey, that Spain should not be taken off our list when priorities arise. For Romania, I think that too should wait. We must not forget that while an offensive into Russia's Caucasian holdings is our best course of action, this will not be like seizing Gibralter or Greece, but a much longer war. Once the die is cast, we must stick to it, we will have no choice. That said, we must ensure our forces are in order before we advance. Critically, supply will dominate, as I do not think the Turks have improved their Caucasian infrastructure much. We should drive on a Black Sea port, essential for our supplies, perhaps Batumi or Sochi? Perhaps our noisy subs aren't much use against the British in the Atlantic, but patrolling for the Russian Black Sea fleet might be more usefull, particularly to protect our own shipping in that Sea."
Major General Rusini, CinC IMMY&B
Major General Rusini, CinC IMMY&B
'Paolo Maldini nervously steps forward'
Excuse me sir, but may I have a word?
I wonder if not the submarines would be better used in the east now since we have taken the Suez channel. We can cut of recources to the British on thei holdings in that area. I hope I could help you, thank you for letting me speak.
'Paolo bows and steps back form the limelight'
OOC. In other totally unrelated news, Forza Milan!
Excuse me sir, but may I have a word?
I wonder if not the submarines would be better used in the east now since we have taken the Suez channel. We can cut of recources to the British on thei holdings in that area. I hope I could help you, thank you for letting me speak.
'Paolo bows and steps back form the limelight'
OOC. In other totally unrelated news, Forza Milan!
"Perhaps the best use of our submarines would be in the Black Sea to destroy any Soviet vessels that might be in port there, the last thing we need is a surge of Soviet naval forces entering the Med. from a position we didn't expect."
"As to Romania we should attempt to bring them into the Axis via diplomacy."
"As to the other plans being discussed we should avoid the mire of the eastern front and attempt to open a southern one."
"Concerning the railroad problems in Africa, why can't we just build more?"
"As to Romania we should attempt to bring them into the Axis via diplomacy."
"As to the other plans being discussed we should avoid the mire of the eastern front and attempt to open a southern one."
"Concerning the railroad problems in Africa, why can't we just build more?"
Pariani yawns. He had the oddest dream last night. A vision of a world where Italy was the most prosperous nation, despite its lack of resources, and with a thousand years history of democracy. The Empire reborn, he had thought. Now to achieve it
"Well, I think it's clearly time to abandon the axis ship. The Russians are reaching Germany; it is only a short time before hey will conquer into it. As soon as we can, let us make peace with the soviets."
"The advance into mesopotamia is critical. I guarantee you that control of that region will be vital to the next century."
"Well, I think it's clearly time to abandon the axis ship. The Russians are reaching Germany; it is only a short time before hey will conquer into it. As soon as we can, let us make peace with the soviets."
"The advance into mesopotamia is critical. I guarantee you that control of that region will be vital to the next century."
Leave the Axis ?
How ? You believe that the Allies will say :
"OK, now you're a good guy ! We let quite !"
Please be real. We must help the German.... It's a matter of honour. Anyway if we dislike them.
How ? You believe that the Allies will say :
"OK, now you're a good guy ! We let quite !"
Please be real. We must help the German.... It's a matter of honour. Anyway if we dislike them.
General Rusini begins to guffaw loudly, pounding the table and knocking yet another glass of wine onto the floor. He thinks 'Hmm, it is good this room is not carpeted', before he speaks...
"Surely, even those who I know despise me and everything I say will agree when I point out that it is clear Pariani is mad! Or worse... he is not mad, but a traitor! There can be no talk of leaving the Axis. It is too late. Effectively our choices are three... we join the democracies, we join the Comintern, or we stay Axis. Do you honestly imagine we have a ghost of a chance with the first two? Seriously! Short of ripping out our current government, something we ALL have a vested interest in, we can never join these others. We may not like it, but we are in the company of fools, and we must sink or swim with those fools. Plus, while I agree the Russians are powerful and a difficult war lies ahead, what makes you suppose the Germans are beaten? We all know our erstwhile representative from Berlin, Herr Timme, is an emotional sort. The Russians will be cut off and destroyed in time.
By the way, has anyone seen these 'uber-divisions' the Americans are supposed to have? Anyone? Anyone? What? Not even an American destroyer has been seen? I tell you, my cousin Beni did not lie to me!"
Major General Christobal Rusini, CnC IMMY&B
PS Il Duce, how are my Yugos and Bulgars repairing from the losses?
"Surely, even those who I know despise me and everything I say will agree when I point out that it is clear Pariani is mad! Or worse... he is not mad, but a traitor! There can be no talk of leaving the Axis. It is too late. Effectively our choices are three... we join the democracies, we join the Comintern, or we stay Axis. Do you honestly imagine we have a ghost of a chance with the first two? Seriously! Short of ripping out our current government, something we ALL have a vested interest in, we can never join these others. We may not like it, but we are in the company of fools, and we must sink or swim with those fools. Plus, while I agree the Russians are powerful and a difficult war lies ahead, what makes you suppose the Germans are beaten? We all know our erstwhile representative from Berlin, Herr Timme, is an emotional sort. The Russians will be cut off and destroyed in time.
By the way, has anyone seen these 'uber-divisions' the Americans are supposed to have? Anyone? Anyone? What? Not even an American destroyer has been seen? I tell you, my cousin Beni did not lie to me!"
Major General Christobal Rusini, CnC IMMY&B
PS Il Duce, how are my Yugos and Bulgars repairing from the losses?
An aide rushes in to the Council Chambers with a slip of paper in his hands.
"I have an urgent message from General Johnson: Please indicate the future plans for my East African command. I do not wish to continue sending my troops to the front to die if we plan on doing nothing in this theater. I believe that we should either pull out of East Africa completely or I must have reinforcements!"
"I have an urgent message from General Johnson: Please indicate the future plans for my East African command. I do not wish to continue sending my troops to the front to die if we plan on doing nothing in this theater. I believe that we should either pull out of East Africa completely or I must have reinforcements!"
"If we must could we not strike out on our own, we have enough territory for quite an empire already. On the other hand it will likely be helpful to stay with the Axis a bit longer."
ooc: Does HoI not have a chart for individual country points like EU2 does?
ooc: Does HoI not have a chart for individual country points like EU2 does?
I believe you are the one who speaks of fools. I am not suggesting peace with the Western allies. But the Germans have proven themselves to be like the dog by the river, who, in this greed, drops the bone he carries to take the bone from the dog he sees in the river.
Honor? You say we should sacrafice thousands of Italian boys for honor?
Have you not read machiavelli?
Honor? You say we should sacrafice thousands of Italian boys for honor?
Have you not read machiavelli?
ooc: From what I see in screenshots and descriptions, the only possible winners are 'ideologies'. The 'ideologoy' wins... not the country. This, I think, was confirmed by Maxamilian I. Thus, if Italy were to break with Germany, we would no longer be part of an ideological alliance, and therefore be, in game terms, irrelevant. Now if we don't care about victory in the game via the game mechanics, sure, we can create our own measure of victory and break away from the Axis (which, honestly, ain't such a bad idea at this stage, though we'd lose control of Yugo and Bulg). However, I'd like to try to achieve victory through the game mechanics.
Once again *stage left* enters Hptm. Timme
" Segnoris,..ehr.., whatever.., i might got a little carried away this morning, the situations looks not good, but the war is far from over.
From what i gathered the russians haven't reached the carpahtian mountains, or Warsaw for that matter now, the ukrainian pocket is not closed until now, but the danger is real.
There are some possibile avenues the italian army could follow through to help the Wehrmacht, first, with the help of the turks, the caucasus is in immediate reach, Stalin will not want to loose those precious oil fields, furthermore the epitome of his power, Stalingrad, will be in reach, too, he will definitely protect this industrial center at all cost, lessening the pressure for the german soldiers, should Italy be able to seize that city, you must hold to it at every cost !
Second, a more daring approach, war against Romania! From what i see on the map, the endangered german Armygroups southern front is infact the romanian border, war would open a way to let the armygroup escape and regroup in the balcans ( ooc\ don't know the entire situation, especially if the german AI would use that opportunity) !
And germans are men of honor, we follow the prussian virtues, they are the basis for the entire Wehrmacht, german officers are not simple opportunists, we have taken an oath of loyalty towards the Reich, these are virtues i somewhat miss here, everytime a crisis looms on the horizon !"
This time the Hauptmann does not leave, but sits down, eagerly awaiting any response and signs of suspicious motives.
" Segnoris,..ehr.., whatever.., i might got a little carried away this morning, the situations looks not good, but the war is far from over.
From what i gathered the russians haven't reached the carpahtian mountains, or Warsaw for that matter now, the ukrainian pocket is not closed until now, but the danger is real.
There are some possibile avenues the italian army could follow through to help the Wehrmacht, first, with the help of the turks, the caucasus is in immediate reach, Stalin will not want to loose those precious oil fields, furthermore the epitome of his power, Stalingrad, will be in reach, too, he will definitely protect this industrial center at all cost, lessening the pressure for the german soldiers, should Italy be able to seize that city, you must hold to it at every cost !
Second, a more daring approach, war against Romania! From what i see on the map, the endangered german Armygroups southern front is infact the romanian border, war would open a way to let the armygroup escape and regroup in the balcans ( ooc\ don't know the entire situation, especially if the german AI would use that opportunity) !
And germans are men of honor, we follow the prussian virtues, they are the basis for the entire Wehrmacht, german officers are not simple opportunists, we have taken an oath of loyalty towards the Reich, these are virtues i somewhat miss here, everytime a crisis looms on the horizon !"
This time the Hauptmann does not leave, but sits down, eagerly awaiting any response and signs of suspicious motives.
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Hptm. Timme and all members of the Council, I will speak on behalf of my commander as he has given me the go-ahead to do so while he is busy fighting the British in East Africa. Let me say that I despise Signor Pariani's plan which he puts forth that Italy should leave the Axis. Why shall we leave our ally just because the war may be going against her slightly? I have absolute faith that the Germans will hold and, with our assistance IN THE CAUCASUS, we shall be able to turn the tide and stem the flow of Communism. Does it not concern the Council to think of an isolated Italy with a Communist aggressor controlling most of eastern Europe? It would only be a matter of time before we had a showdown with a might Soviet state (granted, it would probably be out of the timeframe the game represents) and I for one would rather have that showdown now, while we may emerge victorious.
Also, we are men of honor. I am ashamed at my countryman's assertion (glances at Pariani) that we should ignore honor in our strategy. What shall the world think of us if we leave the Germans in this time of their need? They shall REJOICE because they will have won. I know that Il Duce is an honorable and great leader and that he will make the correct decision.
Why shall we leave our ally just because the war may be going against her slightly? I have absolute faith that the Germans will hold and, with our assistance IN THE CAUCASUS, we shall be able to turn the tide and stem the flow of Communism. Does it not concern the Council to think of an isolated Italy with a Communist aggressor controlling most of eastern Europe? It would only be a matter of time before we had a showdown with a might Soviet state (granted, it would probably be out of the timeframe the game represents) and I for one would rather have that showdown now, while we may emerge victorious. Also, we are men of honor. I am ashamed at my countryman's assertion (glances at Pariani) that we should ignore honor in our strategy. What shall the world think of us if we leave the Germans in this time of their need? They shall REJOICE because they will have won. I know that Il Duce is an honorable and great leader and that he will make the correct decision.
/ooc 666 strikes again
“The news of the German failure in the invasion of the Soviet Union is most disturbing, we should send them the Alpini as the would be our best equipped fighting force at the moment. If we have milliary access via Turkey I would suggest that we attack them from the south and try and take the pressure off the Germans by threatening the Soviets oil supplies. As for the invasion of the Middle East it should continue as planned. I see no reason to cancel it. Once it is successful we can even divert some of our forces to the Soviet Front.
However Signori’s we still have some unfinished business in the West, we need to take Gibraltar to once and for all finish the British threat to the Med. Balbo’s bombers continue to hammer the Fortification. I volunteer my command to the task of assaulting the Fortress. If for no other reason than there is no other forces that we can spare at this time.”
“The news of the German failure in the invasion of the Soviet Union is most disturbing, we should send them the Alpini as the would be our best equipped fighting force at the moment. If we have milliary access via Turkey I would suggest that we attack them from the south and try and take the pressure off the Germans by threatening the Soviets oil supplies. As for the invasion of the Middle East it should continue as planned. I see no reason to cancel it. Once it is successful we can even divert some of our forces to the Soviet Front.
However Signori’s we still have some unfinished business in the West, we need to take Gibraltar to once and for all finish the British threat to the Med. Balbo’s bombers continue to hammer the Fortification. I volunteer my command to the task of assaulting the Fortress. If for no other reason than there is no other forces that we can spare at this time.”
Il Duce I have just seen the latest industrial production figures (ooc the screenies) our steel production is dire, can our diplomates do something to remedy this situation via trade?
"Could we not bring the Romanians to our side through diplomacy? Fresh Romanian Corps would serve better than dead ones, particularly at the cost of Italian blood. Do we have the troops to take Romania if all else fails?
Yes, Gibralter would be nice to take, but again, from land just seems better. But for some reason that can't be seen."
General Rusini
Yes, Gibralter would be nice to take, but again, from land just seems better. But for some reason that can't be seen."
General Rusini
*Field Marshal Badoglio walks in, he glares briefly at General Moizo before addressing the counsel*
Duce, gentlemen, I shall be brief as I have several pressing matters to attend to back at my army. I do not believe we have enough men to strike at Romania and the middle east at the same time so we should focus on the ME and then attack the soft underbelly of the USSR. However, we may need to delay this attack to defeat the British who are once again moving against us in Africa. Garrisoning our newly acquired lands is spreading our army thin, we should step up our training programs and equip them with extra AT equipment to counter the soviets tanks. Gibraltar should continue to be bombed until enough new divisions have been raised to assault it from the sea, then they can be transferred east.
Field Marshal Badoglio,
Chief of staff.
Duce, gentlemen, I shall be brief as I have several pressing matters to attend to back at my army. I do not believe we have enough men to strike at Romania and the middle east at the same time so we should focus on the ME and then attack the soft underbelly of the USSR. However, we may need to delay this attack to defeat the British who are once again moving against us in Africa. Garrisoning our newly acquired lands is spreading our army thin, we should step up our training programs and equip them with extra AT equipment to counter the soviets tanks. Gibraltar should continue to be bombed until enough new divisions have been raised to assault it from the sea, then they can be transferred east.
Field Marshal Badoglio,
Chief of staff.