Long Live the Permament Revolution! - a Trotskyist Soviet AAR.

[ThaHoward]

So, Paraguay. How to access them for supplies and stuff?

'

No idea For now they will just stay out of the war unless the Allies attack them, they are really just more of an interesting little experiment in the Americas.

But looking at the newest dev diary I see that Trotsky can become the leader of Mexico in Man the Guns. This is clearly a sign that Mexico will embrace the revolution!

 

[ThaHoward]

Interlude III: Commonwealth of Workers
​

Artistic impression of post battle London.

October of 1945. Britain was a country in ruins. Scarred physically and psychologically from two world wars, two major economic crisis, bombing campaigns by both the Germans and the Soviets and at last the final and crippling invasion of its home isles. The cities of Britain was turned into smoldering ruins to reflect the bitter state of its society ripe with strife and despair. While the once mighty Royal Navy sunk to the depths of the sea the once famous British stoicism plunged to rock bottom. With the collapse of the British government, the exile of the remainder its leadership and upperclass the country descended into anarchy. Amidst the ruins of London, Sheffield, Manchester, Soviet soldiers were hellbent on revenge over the bombings in Ukraine and Crimea, men and women alike who were already out of work or were forced to the streets following the complete collapse of the country took it to the streets and justice in their own hands. Aided by Soviet troops, workingmen and opportunists alike banded together already by the fall of London. A series of farce trials took place greatly overshadowing the Reign of Terror in France. Anyone and everyone could be turned in to the self appointed Worker's and Soldier's Councils and hastly executed for any and all offenses. Being opposed to the self appointed councils or the Soviet occupiers was a grave offense. Where any acts of sabotage (which could indeed be self defense against Soviet acts of vengeance) against the occupiers were met with horrible and cruel acts of reprisals, acts of violence against "class enemies" or anti-communists, of any persuasion real or otherwise, were not only ignored by the Soviets but also encouraged. Britain in 1945 were nothing short of anarchy and brutal military oppression along with arbitrary vigilancy among the populace. But as the smoke from the battles cleared, the barrels cooled and the soil could again flourish 1946 brought hope. It would be transformative as the British revolutionaries sought to elevate Britain to the level of the other nations of the Internationale. To stand shoulder to shoulder with their comrades, to unite the workers of the world.

There would be no victory for Churchill this time around.

But before we examine the effects of both the occupation and "revolution" in Britain we need to go back in time, to examine what could thrust the British people into total disarray and anarchy. By the end of World War Two Soviet intentions became painfully clear to the world. With Trotsky's aggressive exportation of his ideals to almost all of Europe, including the former industrial giant of Germany, unwillingness to settle any sorts of compromise in Europe and the highly aggressive Southern Thrust which ultimately secured not only the majority of the world's oil production in the hands of the Communist sphere, but also the source to the majority of Britain's oil consumption. The Soviets along with its allies was preparing to cut the old empires off from their liveblood and prepared to finalize the world revolution. Where the communists proved they were both capable and willing to wage brutal and effective wars, the western powers were hesistant. And can they be blamed? Having just recovered from a brutal war, lasting five years and costing millions of lives and untold sorrow, who would want to go to war again? Still where the appeasment policies of the interwar years failed, ultimately the appeasment policies of Lord Halifax was poised to fail during the Cold War. Enter Winston Churchill.

The sword of Richard Lionheart being broken, a fitting foreshadowing of the state of the British government.

Discredited for his involvement during Gallipoli and the strikes during the interwar years he had always spoke up against Hitler's Germany, appeasment and the threat of socialism. However during the interwar years he was mostly a backbencher, sidelined and would not play a monumental role as his supporters would later profile him as. But he drew his strength from his role during the interwar years and became a central opposition figure during the Cold War government of Lord Halifax. Disillusioned by the lack of action, which both the Americans and British were guilty of, Churchill and the more aggressive members of the Tories, Liberals and Labour alike set forth a motion of no confidence. The final straw was the Soviet move into Turkey and outright annexation of the lands surrounding the Bosphorus and Dardanelles. The grand coalition of Halifax fell and the new government assured the Greeks they would come to their aid. By the Aegean Islands the line were drawn and after the famed clash between the Anglo-American naval forces and the Black Sea Fleet, which led to the Soviet retreat. Surely it was evident Socal Imperialism had been stonewalled and the red threat contained? If it only were so. Soon thereafter the catalyst of the war happened as Bulgaria faced a civil war, turned to NATO, all the while the Red Army crossed into the Bulgarian plains. But the British did not enter the war united. Churchill's move was labeled by his opponents, and communist subterfuge movements as nothing but a coup. Moreover his policies was in short divisive. Marshal Tukhachevsky famously claimed that the British Empire took the world through means of divide and conquer. This time around the British had divided themself, all that remained for the Soviets was to conquer.

Already before the invasion Britain was a fractured and polarized society.

He was indeed correct in his assessment. This polariation in society came mostly from th economic harship the British people (and especially the urban working class) suffered following the Second World War. In part due to British society already being a class society, in part due to the economic policies of Churchill, but mostly due to the actions of the Soviet Union and the boycott of the entire NATO alliance by the Fourth International. Britain's economy relied greatly on oil, not only for its industries, its armed forces, methods of transport but also the households. The heating of ovens and so forth relied upon oil. Without their influx of oil from the Caucasus, Romania, Persia and Mesopotamia the British was forced to look toward the west. The only problem was that Venezuelan and Mexico alike had nationalized their oil reserves, and were already under embargoes by the US and UK. As we are aware of said oil shortages would later on lead to NATO intervention in Venezuela and Black Chamber led uprising in Mexico. For the time being all of NATO and the liberal-democracies relied upon oil imports of the United States, stretching their resources thin. Moreover the oil shortages in addition with the mutual embargo by virtually all of Europe led to severe economic consequences for the entire world, top that with a destructive war and continued heavy military spending (instead of economic and social reforms) meant that events spiraled out of control. Soon the once mighty British Empire became dependant on US economic aid, along with former Dominions breaking off from the Empire.

A group of boys at work in eastern London.

Unemployment hit an all time high, and Churchill proved to not be a man of the 20th century, but rather one of the 19th century as more progressive minded and younger Tories said. A man of the Victorian age. Being unable and unwilling to cope with the dire social and economic situations the affected population turned to the red banner. Already by the miners and laborers Churchill was seen as a sort of boogeyman, alluded mostly to his harsh crackdowns on strikes and anti-unionist policies during the Interwar years. However the government of Churchill was in a pickle, they knew war was coming and was thus unable to demobilize, instead they pursued a policy of further rearmament. Inflitrated by Trotskyists, NKVD and other intelligenceoperatives along with left-wing radicals the unions became all the more aggressive in their pursuit of social justice. Strikes were common, along with the demands for increased wages and better working conditions. Meanwhile Churchill warned the British people against the dangers of socialism, even going as far to comparing the then moderate Labour Party with Hitler and Trotsky. Pressured from the increasingly radical unions, the radical left and being alienated by the harsh methods of Churchill, Clement Attlee had no other choice but to stand in solidarity with his supporters, lest they become even more radical and move toward openly communist and revolutionary movements. The Labour Party demanded a re-election and swiftly stepped down from the National Government. The Churchill government promptly refused, and with the Third World War at hand the workers became even more alienated. Of course there was patriots and non-communists among the working class, however the war waged by Churchill was increasingly seen as a war by Churchill on Trotsky. While military spending increased, the situation for the people at home deteriorated as the demands by the unions became more ambitious and bold. Meanwhile the Independent Labour Party were merged with the evermore radialized and marginalized Labour Party. At home the fronts stiffened as the once moderate social democratic party was inflitrated and taken over by Marxists and radical socialists. Amidst the fighting in north Africa, Greece, Netherlands, Norway and Denmark there was now created another front at home. Police and military units were often dispatched to restore order in the socialist hotbeds, and there was grave concerns that a revolution would burst out in cities such as Manchester, Liverpool and Sheffield. When the Americans dropped their atomic bombs over Ukraine it further antagonized the far left who held frequent demonstrations against the war, claiming they were in solidarity with their common worker and man, rather than a King or country. Let it be noted that the extremist values was not prevalent among the majority of the population. However as the Labour Party and unions had been inflitrated, many moderate voters and workers were now under the whims of much more radical organization. And as Soviet agents and arms flocked to said radicals, their control and internal justice grew to the point where others were literally forced to comply with their directions. It was under these circumstances that the Soviets came and conquered Britain.

British soldiers just after arriving to Canada.

The propaganda, domestic and foreign alike, that claimed it was Churchill's war and not one of the British withered in the face of the actual Soviet invaders. Destruction followed the red hydra, bombers, fighters, tanks and artillery bombarded the British country indiscriminate. Entire neighbourhoods, towns and cities was levelled by the Soviet doctrine of methodically obliterating one grid on the map with superior firepower at the time, before it was swarmed by massed infantry and mechanized assaults. The Soviets and other PACT nations pillaged their way through the island. For occupation duty personell from the areas affected by the atomic bombings was handpicked, their fury was unleashed upon the British people. Panick spread across the nation, and surviving soldiers, workers, middle class and upper class people alike fled from the red tide, taking up arms where they could and eventually evacuating their homeland and the fury of their occupiers leaving for Canada, America or the colonies. Hundreds of thousands of British men, women and children fled from Britain resulting in one of the gretest exodus's of all time. Soviet submarines and convoy raiders waited for them, resulting in horrible incidents. No matter what this resulted in a mass surge of recruitment for the British Armed Forces in exile, bolstering their ranks across their colonies and in America ready to liberate their country.* While large parts of the population along with the royal family fled across the Atlantic, the majority remained in Britain. The Soviets was quick to take control over the many councils and militias that was formed. In many cases the downtrodden was given the task to "restore order", often in a drunken haze of vodka on an empty stomach. The first decrees of the Worker's and Soldier's Councils was to eliminate the upper class represented by the bourgeois and the aristocracy. Wicked and senseless violence lasted for weeks without and end, the Soviet soldiers having already stifled their thirst for vengance and loot held back as the desperate and impoverished British people turned on itself. While the people tore itself apart, the Soviet Union was not interested in rebuilding the ruined country. The only employment their fellow workingman recieved was in the red guard units set up by their occupiers. Instead entire factories was disassembled, entire crops of harvests confiscated and taken to the Soviet Union for the war effort. However this senseless violence could not go on forever. With the literal death to the British upperclass, bourgeois, any anti-communists or revisionists and an end to any trace of capitalism. 1945 turned to 1946. Some sense of civilian administration had to be restored. The people, it was said, had toppled the ruling class and the red terror in Britain had come to an extreme that shocked even the die hard communists of the other nations of the Paris PACT. A new red Britain was truly born.

The puppets of the Soviet Union vanguards of the revolution in Britain. From the left clockwise: Politt, Dutt, Orwell and child, some commies and Pankhurst.

The new British government formed its basis on the Worker's and Soldier's Councils, which in turn drew its membership from the unions, the now unified and radical Labour Party, but mostly from the Communist Party of Great Britain (CPGB) and its Soviet sponsored red guards. Harry Politt and Rajani Palme Dutt was the two leading members of the CPGB and held immense power in the new communist nation of Britain. Politt retained his position as the General Secretary of the CPGB, while the various councils elected R. Palme Dutt as the new Prime Minister of the Provisional Commonwealth of Workers. However Trotsky and the Soviet brass was mostly distrusting toward these two figures, alltough they had support from France, the Soviets could not forget their open acceptance of Stalin and the Comintern. It was here Eric Arthur Blair, known as George Orwell, entered politics. Already popular not only by the British people, Spain, the labour movement in general, but most importantly personally by Trotsky. It was Orwell who had fought on the side of the Trotskyists in Spain, it was he who openly objected to both Stalinism and anarchism, not only in Spain but also at home. Being heavily influenced by the Trotskyist ideals and anti-Stalinist sentiments he soon became the face of humane and democratic socialism. Running for the Labour Party, with massive support from the Soviet Union and Trotsky personally, Orwell stood in contrast to the totalitarian CPGB who had been loyal Stalinists until the end of the Soviet Social Revolution (when Trotsky came to power), this naturally created friction between the CPGB and Kremlin. Orwell was seen as the bridge between the two, and the various councils elected him as the Chairman of the various councils, in effect making him the head of state of the new provisional government. But the last major player was not Orwell, in fact it was a lady. Sylvia Pankhurst gained much note for being a communist suffragette and during the British "revolution" she again gained prominence, mostly for her support of social justice and her many cries against colonialism. She gained the mostly nominal ministry of decolonization, but would later be granted the ministry of equality, which naturally held much power in a communist Britain.

Caricature on the Trotskyist dreams of a united Europe. ​

With the fall of Britain and the transformation of its society to a communist one, under severe and heavy handed methods, the birthplace of industrialization and the urban working class fell to communism. By 1946 all of Europe, with the exceptions of Switzerland and Albania and a few microstates, fell under socialism and the old slogan of Trotsky first published in 1923, a 'United States of Europe' was again an important question. Indeed had it not been for the failures of Stalin during the Soviet-Polish war in 1919, then Trotsky and Tukhachevsky might have reached Germany and aided them in their social revolution, to create such a transitionary state to "true communism" (whatever that is). Instead it stranded with the Soviet Union only being centered around a territory that was a reduced Russian Empire. However by 1946 things had changed. All of the former Russian Empire was now a part of the Soviet Union, moreover in the Balkans there had been formed a Balkan Socialist Union, Spain was communist, the Scandinavian countries was in the talks of creating a union of their own, meanwhile the industrial giants of Germany, Italy, France and Britain was now under communist rule. And according to Orthodox Marxist teachings the industrialized nations of Germany and UK was vital for the world to become truly communist. Furthermore the communist nations of Europe had banded together in the International, they created a common defense pact, common economic blocs, economic aid and looked toward the possibilites of all of the nations of Europe having one common economy policy. This was already starting to pan out between the Soviet Union and her eastern European puppet states, and with France and Germany over the French occupied west bank. Moreover France and Thorez expressed sincere interests in following the steps of the capitalist counterparts of their nations. With the fall of France to first Germany and then communists, Britain and France had formed the Anglo-French Union. R. Palme Dutt expressed also interest in creting such a union after initial probes by the French. He proposed a European People's Union, mainly between France and Britain and economic integration of Germany and the low countries. However the two couldn't agree on the exact terms, as it soon became apparent that both nations wanted their own to be the dominant. As of now the talks of a united Europe was mostly that, just talks. First they had to settle the war itself, then their was the issues that the nations of France, Germany and Italy mostly underwent nationalist and communist revolutions, the dispute over the west bank of the Rhine between Germany and France had not entirely been settled. Moreover there was other issues, as the Balkan Union sought to include all of the Balkans, while the Yugoslavs wanted to united all of Yugoslavia again and saw the Balkan Union as Hungarian expansionism. However with the bloody inclusion of Britain into the communist fold the possibilities of a united Europe and perhaps even a stateless Europe was a real prospect. It remained to be seen if Trotsky and the Leninist and Marxist creeds of the various communist nations were true. If that when capitalism had been twarthed away from Europe through the state of the Permament Revolution, then true socialism and true democracy would sweep over Europe and liberate the workers. But of course, first they needed to win the war against the remainder of NATO and the United States of America. The Permament Revolution was still very much in effect.

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*In game terms the British still have some hundred of thousands of soldiers. That is HoI4 for you. In lore wise it is because of a huge brain drain along with people all over Britian, from the working class to the upper class fleeing the red terror along with the many British servicemen and colonials overseas. The fact that the British have hundreds of thousands to millions of manpower left, can't only be explained by colonies (in fact game mechanics), so it is fitting that the extreme treatment from the Soviets led to an unprecedented exodus.

And there was the third interlude. It was delayed a bit, however if you have been following the twitch channel I have paid some homage to the new communist mechanism for the British. There was also a small focus on Europe as a large at the end, and the event that fire if commie France and UK merge into one country.

The fourth interlude will be about stuff that have happened in the Soviet Union, I wonder what they have been up to, espeically the scientists.. hint hint.. Then there wil be small update on the state what was once the British Empire before we roll on with our T-44s and Katyushas ever onward to the liberation of the workers!

 

[stnylan]

Britain is well and truly ravaged

 

[ThaHoward]

Britain is well and truly ravaged

The world is rapidly becoming a dystopia. Let us hope that either Communism or Democracy will bring lasting peace and prosperity to the world.. Buut the path both sides walk down now, I doubt it.

 

[TheButterflyComposer]

Mm. HOI4 favours huge casualties. I noticed that myself. A million deaths on the winning side seems to be the norm when learning how to play. And thats against the middle east alliance. Resolving asia into a stable place or under one state burns pretty much all its manpower off it. Thats what, 50 million?

 

[ThaHoward]

Mm. HOI4 favours huge casualties. I noticed that myself. A million deaths on the winning side seems to be the norm when learning how to play. And thats against the middle east alliance. Resolving asia into a stable place or under one state burns pretty much all its manpower off it. Thats what, 50 million?

Tbf they count in people surrending too. However the manpower in HoI4 is too high. Germany was depleted and dtastically reduced their inf. divisions. Their panzer divisions was nothing but ad hoc battlegroups. UK and even USSR was on their last reserves in '45, which halted the Soviet offensives then. I have a mod that correct this, but it isn't compatible(?) with this old version. Moreover I use field hospitals, meaning my wounded soldiers get back on the field in a greater degree than the non-hospital enemy divisions where their wounded often don't trickle back. However remember we suffered extreme casualties during the pre-emptive strike against Germany where the manpower pool was totally depleted. Now we have service by requirement and I hope we won't have to resort to women and child soldiers once we invade either Asia or USA.

At least supplies is low on both sides, Asia will result in massive casualties.

 

[TheButterflyComposer]

Tbf they count in people surrending too. However the manpower in HoI4 is too high. Germany was depleted and dtastically reduced their inf. divisions. Their panzer divisions was nothing but ad hoc battlegroups. UK and even USSR was on their last reserves in '45, which halted the Soviet offensives then. I have a mod that correct this, but it isn't compatible(?) with this old version. Moreover I use field hospitals, meaning my wounded soldiers get back on the field in a greater degree than the non-hospital enemy divisions where their wounded often don't trickle back. However remember we suffered extreme casualties during the pre-emptive strike against Germany where the manpower pool was totally depleted. Now we have service by requirement and I hope we won't have to resort to women and child soldiers once we invade either Asia or USA.

At least supplies is low on both sides, Asia will result in massive casualties.

Im not sure wjich recruitment i want to go for but i know i have to change it. Asia is still a problem child despite constsnt civil war and wirld wars happening completly over there. The allies meanhwile have had rhe easiest game possible. Nobody's touvh them. I'm stuck in the middle having reached the top by killing germany and the soviets one after another (not bad for a first game) but am running on manpower fumes just as I've solved the resource crisis...sigh.

 

[ThaHoward]

Im not sure wjich recruitment i want to go for but i know i have to change it. Asia is still a problem child despite constsnt civil war and wirld wars happening completly over there. The allies meanhwile have had rhe easiest game possible. Nobody's touvh them. I'm stuck in the middle having reached the top by killing germany and the soviets one after another (not bad for a first game) but am running on manpower fumes just as I've solved the resource crisis...sigh.

It is usually the best to take it up gradually. I like having limited conscription for as long as possible due to there being no penalty to training time, but when the need arise one must change to extensive conscription and the training penalty isn't that hefty. Service by requirement, however, I only pick once it become appereant I'll have an issue with reinforcing my fronts and recruiting new units mostly due to the production penalties.

And good job taking out the Teutons and the commies, however I Can only imagine the strain that must be on your manpower and resources But surely the US and UK don't have that much industrial might and manpower?

 

[TheButterflyComposer]

It is usually the best to take it up gradually. I like having limited conscription for as long as possible due to there being no penalty to training time, but when the need arise one must change to extensive conscription and the training penalty isn't that hefty. Service by requirement, however, I only pick once it become appereant I'll have an issue with reinforcing my fronts and recruiting new units mostly due to the production penalties.

And good job taking out the Teutons and the commies, however I Can only imagine the strain that must be on your manpower and resources But surely the US and UK don't have that much industrial might and manpower?

0 manpower for about a year now. The wars haven't stopped for that time. Germany was going to double cross me for slovakia so I struck first through austria which made the ai commit suicide (it had already planned out the western front) and collapse until I had already taken everything but the rhineland and saxony. Then I lost a million men in the middle east getting it all because of allied volunteers (still got the entire middle east though). Took out turkey too. And then hungary stabbed me in the back out of my own faction and joined the polish neutrals. Which included china. And china had been left alone by japan because japan was in a civil war. So after that bloodbath and unholy alliance with SU, we had some messy baltic borders and an SU with half of Asia in its faction.

Then they all declared war on each other so i decided to attack then and there. Finland helped eventually and Japan got their shit together to help out east. And korea, suprisingly enough. Nationalist china came back with a vengence and between us all, the SU died. And then we had to deal with that asian communist alliance. And spain joined in cos they were communist. Awful naval camapign that was.

Now i have the allies on one side and the rest of my faction on the other. And once again a unified and strong china. I hopeful that japan who controls half the former SU will be spent conquering the rest of asia whilst i deal with the allies. Or...i guess k could go after my faction and deal with them first. Cos we are deffo going to come to blows eventually.

So yeah, need some more men.

 

[ThaHoward]

0 manpower for about a year now. The wars haven't stopped for that time. Germany was going to double cross me for slovakia so I struck first through austria which made the ai commit suicide (it had already planned out the western front) and collapse until I had already taken everything but the rhineland and saxony. Then I lost a million men in the middle east getting it all because of allied volunteers (still got the entire middle east though). Took out turkey too. And then hungary stabbed me in the back out of my own faction and joined the polish neutrals. Which included china. And china had been left alone by japan because japan was in a civil war. So after that bloodbath and unholy alliance with SU, we had some messy baltic borders and an SU with half of Asia in its faction.

Then they all declared war on each other so i decided to attack then and there. Finland helped eventually and Japan got their shit together to help out east. And korea, suprisingly enough. Nationalist china came back with a vengence and between us all, the SU died. And then we had to deal with that asian communist alliance. And spain joined in cos they were communist. Awful naval camapign that was.

Now i have the allies on one side and the rest of my faction on the other. And once again a unified and strong china. I hopeful that japan who controls half the former SU will be spent conquering the rest of asia whilst i deal with the allies. Or...i guess k could go after my faction and deal with them first. Cos we are deffo going to come to blows eventually.

So yeah, need some more men.

So you're in a pickle You should get a new law as you are totally depleted. You may also disband some air units that you don't need right now.

Also have you annexed or puppeted the conquered areas? Non-core (including "Claims") produce virtually no manpower whatsoever. However if you puppet non-core nations (e.g Austria) you can go to recruitment, check out your puppets's Templates and then copy it. Once that is done you can change them to your needs and train those units. That way you'll train Austrian divisions who get their manpower from Austria, but they'll be under your control. Then you can use all of your puppets's manpower to bolster your ranks.

I haven't done that yet, but are thinking of doing that to my puppets here, mostly for occupation roles. Both as it free up my units for offensive ops, and I think it make sense RP wise. More on that later

 

[TheButterflyComposer]

So you're in a pickle You should get a new law as you are totally depleted. You may also disband some air units that you don't need right now.

Well to be honest I've been getting so much claimed planes from defeated nations that I'm more waiting for manpower than air units.

Also have you annexed or puppeted the conquered areas? Non-core (including "Claims") produce virtually no manpower whatsoever. However if you puppet non-core nations (e.g Austria) you can go to recruitment, check out your puppets's Templates and then copy it. Once that is done you can change them to your needs and train those units. That way you'll train Austrian divisions who get their manpower from Austria, but they'll be under your control. Then you can use all of your puppets's manpower to bolster your ranks.

Ah...okay. maybe shall look into that. What law should i go for with the aim to introduce the most extreme one? I suppose puppeting would be a good idea but messy borders are a concern.

 

[ThaHoward]

Well to be honest I've been getting so much claimed planes from defeated nations that I'm more waiting for manpower than air units.



Ah...okay. maybe shall look into that. What law should i go for with the aim to introduce the most extreme one? I suppose puppeting would be a good idea but messy borders are a concern.

It is definitely worth checking out puppets. Basically the initial goals of Italy prior to WW2/Pact of Steel was for their claimed territories in Nice, Savoy, Corsica, Malta and the Yugoslav coast to be integrated into Italy. Meanwhile Austria, Hungary, what remain of Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Greece and Romania was to be client states of Italy or part of its "sphere" with Spain being allied. To puppet these nations would be within the "spirit" of the nation, meanwhile so would an occupation/annexation of France, North-Africa, Egypt-Sudan and the middle east. Mussolini dreamed of an empire stretching from Gibraltar to the Hormuz strait. So you should be able to create a pretty impressive empire where you get the resources from the colonial holdings and manpower from the central and eastern euro puppets.

 

[TheButterflyComposer]

It is definitely worth checking out puppets. Basically the initial goals of Italy prior to WW2/Pact of Steel was for their claimed territories in Nice, Savoy, Corsica, Malta and the Yugoslav coast to be integrated into Italy. Meanwhile Austria, Hungary, what remain of Yugoslavia, Bulgaria, Greece and Romania was to be client states of Italy or part of its "sphere" with Spain being allied. To puppet these nations would be within the "spirit" of the nation, meanwhile so would an occupation/annexation of France, North-Africa, Egypt-Sudan and the middle east. Mussolini dreamed of an empire stretching from Gibraltar to the Hormuz strait. So you should be able to create a pretty impressive empire where you get the resources from the colonial holdings and manpower from the central and eastern euro puppets.

Ah, but what do i need to form the new roman empire and what can be puppeted?

I would prefer to deal with my faction first and asia cos after that i have to build a navy to take on the allies.

 

[ThaHoward]

Interlude IV: For the protection of the workers and peasants
​

The destroyer of worlds..

The Soviets and Spanish people knew all too much the pure destruction and suffering the new weapons that could unleash "awesome power" on a scale never before even fathomed. The Americans looked towards and easy way out of the war, to bomb the Soviet people into submission. Once that failed they turned to Spain, to secure a foothold in Europe against the red menace. They nearly succeeded. But nearly is not enough. It is said that the Japanese awoke a sleeping giant once they attacked the Americans, perhaps the Americans did the same once they dropped their atomic bombs. On the 9th of May 1946 Soviet, French and German scientists tested RDS-1, according to Russian lore a backronym for "Russia does it herself". However the Russo-Franco-German atomic project was not in a response to American aggression as communist propaganda would spin it. Already since 1938, a few months away from the outbreak of the Second World War the French pursued the wonders of atomic power. The Americans soon followed suit, along with the Germans. Neither fully grasping the wicked potential of the atom. With France falling to yet another revolution, allying itself with the USSR and once Germany was occupied by both France and the USSR the stage was set. In advance of the Americans the Soviets and French captured several key German engineers and scientists in their nuclear program and with the postwar setting of Europe they secured the uranium from Belgian Congo, heavy water from Norway in addition to the already expansive resources of both France and USSR. Matter of fact the German scientists soon outshined the French and the Soviets and Germans became the key developers of the new weapon of mass destruction, however communist spies in the Manhattan Project was of vital importance. Indeed the RDS-1 was for all intents and purposes a clone of Fat Man.

RDS-2 as seen from the distance.

It detonated on 7:00 over the Kazak SSR with a blast yield of 22kt, marginally higher than the American Trinity and Fat Man bombs. On the test site several makeshift apartments was constructed to simulate a city center along with over 1,500 animals and over 50 outdated air planes. The result was in short 50% more destructive than initially proposed. The Soviets were ready to exact their revenge. More pressing German and Soviet scientists had developed another nuclear weapon of their own, the RDS-2. In short the RDS-1 was first tested as the reliability of the fat man bombs was well tested - over Soviet and Spanish cities. Meanwhile RDS-2 included new technology, but not tested. The effects shook the scientists to the core, and it blew the hat right off Trotsky. Having a blas yield of over 38 kt it was even more destructive than the American atomic bombs! The Germans had already developed another of these bombs and only needed to await for a method of delivery.. The Soviets, along with the Germans started on a path to produce and weaponize said atomic bomb, all the while they developed another one. Still there was the issue of delivery. As mentioned they hadn't really managed to weaponize the atomic bombs, mostly as these early and crude plutonium bombs were heavy and quite large, not fit for the ordinary bomber. Then there was the issue of delivery, the Soviets were behind the Americans who could potentially strike at the USSR from Korea, India or Japan and southern Europe from Africa. The Soviets were in the process of finalizing their designs of the Turpolev Tu-4 which was nothing but a copy of the well tested B-29 Superfortress, the very bomber that dropped the nuclear bombs over USSR and Spain. Still there was the issue of range, the B-29 couldn't strike directly at the US as of yet, but the Soviets theorized they could perhaps strike at Canada from Greenland if large enough air fields was constructed there.. Speaking of the devil, while the Soviets and Germans believed they detonated their bombs in utmost secrecy a special purpose built WB-29 by chance picked up fallout debris as it flew from Okinawa to Alaska. The worst fears of the Americans came through, the Soviets had a nuclear bomb of their own something they didn't believe they could develop to 1953 or 1954 at the very least. Rather than announcing it to the world, Truman witheld these facts.The Americans would now up their game and looked into the possibility of creating a hydrogen bomb. If the Soviets were led to believe their adversaries were oblivious to RDS-1 and RDS-2 they would perhaps show restraint and not pursue further nuclear advancements. Regardless the Russo-German team already had one other atomic bomb ready for use, while the next purely developed Soviet bomb was expected to be finished in just over one month, around the same time as the Tu-4 would enter production...*

If only we could fit nukes on those...

But where the Soviets lacked in long range bombers they excelled in the field of rocketry. Mere days after the breakthrough in fission technology Soviet pioneers, with the help of captured German scientists, managed to create a rocket that was theorized to fly at a distance of 5,500 kilometers, however it soon proved to have the massive range of 11000 km! Put in other words, when it was deployed in Ireland and Great Britain it would leave the atmosphere and then plummet down on Ottawa. Meanwhile if deployed in the Soviet Far East it could strike at western US. With the conquest of Iceland another terrifying opportunity opened up. According to Kornolev, the brain behind the project, from a launch site in Iceland the newest Soviet invention could reach as far west as Nevada and south as Brazil. Put differently: Washington DC was in range. The Soviets kept their newest invention tight to their chest, and unlike their nuclear capabilities NATO was unaware that at any day death could reign down on them. Unsuspecting and unseen. Death from above. STAVKA wanted to build up their ballistic stockpiles before they unleashed their fury on America and Canada. Consequently the rocket project aided the nuclear project: Advances in rocketry created new methods for both jet and rocket engines and assists on strategic bombers, moreover members of the atomic project was diverted to weaponize and develop nuclear weapons that could fit into the deadly R-3 missiles. To think that the leaders and key scientists of the rocket, jet and nuclear programs was once in the crosshair of Stalin and his purge. Had it not been for the Trotskyists they might never have ended up in the secret cities. Now they had instead developed nuclear weapons of their own, was on the verge of acquiring jet figthers and now had ballistic missiles that could reach America. The world had truly changed.

Too little too late?

Despite these gains not everything was a bed of roses for the Soviets. Despite having missiles that could cross the Atlantic and Pacific, they had no oceangoing navy that could do the same. At the end of the day it is boots on the ground that win battles along with air superiority. By 1946 the Soviets may have beaten the Royal Navy during the Channel Dash, but the Americans still ruled the seas. This was appereant during several engagements in the Pacific and Russian Far East. For a time the Americans had significantly increased their presence in South Korea. The Soviets snapped this up and their small Far Eastern Fleet engaged the Americans in a guerre de course. However the fast going battlecruisers was rendered obsolete by American carrier task forces. The Soviets needed to counter the increased US pressure in the Far East, to facilate a possible invasion of Japan or even the US, but perhaps more pressing to prevent a US buildup of conventional forces and nuclear arsenal in Korea and Japan.** Old data was revised and the Ismail Class was tested, this time it would not be a conversion of the Borodino class, but rather a proper carrier of its own. Compared to the advanced US carriers it had several flaws, but the Soviets planned to station 1-2 of said carriers in Vladivostok, before another 9 more sopisticated carriers was developed. Alas the Americans was several miles ahead of the Soviets in both numbers, doctrine but also production capacity of the new kings of the Pacific Ocean. Would the Red Fleet get their carriers and disrupt US operations, or would they suffer defeat at the hands of the battle hardened American sailors?

From the left, clockwise: German soldiers during the battle of Liverpool, Soviet soldiers "liberating" Romania, Czechoslovak soldiers invading Yugoslavia.

Wonder weapons aside the Soviets looked into other aspects to bolster their ranks and free manpower for offensive operations, while they got enough rest and reconditioning while in Europe. With Europe secured and the threat of an invasion very unlikely, STAVKA turned its eyes toward their satellite states of Germany, Italy, Czechoslovakia and Romania. The Paris Treaties limited their armed forces. In the case of Germany and Italy it was a complete demilitarization, while the Romanians wasn't allowed to bolster their ranks above some 130.000 men. However with rising tensions the Soviets became more nad more liberal in their approach to the former defeated Axis powers. Matter of factly the Americans became lenient with Japan as well, encouraging them create a shadow army. With open hostilities US government directly funded the rearmament of Japan, while NATO troops was stationed on the island. The same became true for the former defeated nations.

After several years of "reschooling" most of the officers was allowed to return and the common soldier and man recieve intensive indoctrination. While PACT forces steamrolled over Europe and Britain there was officially only "police" and "border" units that fought for the former Axis nations. By June of 1946 the Soviets revisited their policies toward said nations and ordered all of their combat police and border units to be dissolved. Instead all of the former combatants was to undergo professional military training and manuevers and integration into new peoples's armies. Both domestic and Soviet weapons was issued, but most importantly the creation of these new military units was directly supervised by Soviet officers and advisors, and once they were combat ready they would be integrated under Soviet command. After rigorous training these newly created formations would be mostly purely motorized and mechanized armies, with the exception of Romania, and would become the bulk of the defenses in Europe. Intended as mobile fast responders and occupational forces they would relieve the Soviets from their occupation duties, to rest and to prepare for future offensives. However the German divisions was appereant to be much more mobile and suited for manuever warfare, than the Czechoslovak and Romanian forces who were more suited for defensive and reactive operations. The Italians was also more offensive minded, this was perhaps a testimony that the Soviets planned to incorporate German units in future offensive doctrines. The Soviets more or less ordered the following divisions from respective countries:

Italy: 9 infantry divisions, 3 alpine divisions, 4 armored divisions and one (future) mechanized division.

Romania: 12 rifle divisions, 2 tank divisions and one future Mechanized divisions.

Czechoslovakia: 5 tank divisions and 6 motor rifle divisions. With a further 2 tank divisions planned for the second fully mechanized wave.

Germany: 4 mechanized/motorized divisions, 1 paratrooper divisions, 1 mountain division and 2 armored divisions during the first "wave", with another 4 mechanized and 6 armored divisions during the "second wave" which would be fully mechanized.

In short the Soviet Union drastically became more aggressive and it looked into methods to both project its powers overseas and create new national armies to bolster their ranks. But the greatest of advancements was made in the fields of rocketry and fission of the atom. Would this result in a swift end to the Third World War or create a war so deadly that it would only fulfill the prophecy of Albert Einstein?

Spoiler: OOB, puppets

The following is a summary of the main manuever divisions and brigades as instructed by the Soviet Army to Italy, Romania, Czechoslovakia and Germany.

Divisional templates of the reorganized Italian Army.

Romania.

Czechoslovakia.

Last but not least, Germany.

Due to production shortages most of the templates miss SP artillery, tank destroyers, rocket artillery, assault guns and SP AA guns. However it is planned that each motorized/mechanized and armored formation to be reinforced by said units. Moreover Germany is supposed to gradually go from a fully motorized to a fully mechanized force, with Romania and Italy raising a further mechanized division each. Note that Romanian and Czechoslovak armored formations are very tank heavy, hinting of holding and support actions rather than offensive ones.

-----------------------------------------------------

*So a strange sidenote: The Germans already have one nuke. In the narrative it is because of close cooperation between the Germans and Soviets, whiel both getting the tech is the tests themself.

**The engagements in the Pacific will be covered in detail later.

 

[stnylan]

Time to bring on a full nuclear engagement

 

[ThaHoward]

Time to bring on a full nuclear engagement

We'll show the US a Kuzma's mother

Ah, but what do i need to form the new roman empire and what can be puppeted?

I would prefer to deal with my faction first and asia cos after that i have to build a navy to take on the allies.

I would say it depend what you aim to do. If you would rather directly create a new Roman Empire with all of its former lands directly annexed by you, or create an informal empire of sorts. Remember that you can also lower their autonomy until they become annexed in the long run, or that in the future they become integrated in some sort of union. An building up a navy, I guess you can see how much of a pain that can truly be, especially when you also need the massive amount of steel, oil etc. they consume in o producing tanks and so on.

 

[TheButterflyComposer]

I would say it depend what you aim to do. If you would rather directly create a new Roman Empire with all of its former lands directly annexed by you, or create an informal empire of sorts. Remember that you can also lower their autonomy until they become annexed in the long run, or that in the future they become integrated in some sort of union. An building up a navy, I guess you can see how much of a pain that can truly be, especially when you also need the massive amount of steel, oil etc. they consume in o producing tanks and so on.

Navy is a bit further in future. Being completely blunt, with france surrounded and asia so fsr from my core empire (but connected by rail) I'm probably going to win the land war in europe and asia. Africa dont know but the allies can't have that much stuff there, despite owning the continent.

After that, I'll have the annoying task of island cleanup in the north sea and pacific. And the US could get invovlef at aby ppint but probably not for a while. So I do need a navy but keepong the war machine supplied until I have them thrown into the sea is more important. Then I'll boats to cross it.

Siezing the old world should mean game over really. Americas would be a tough nut to cracl but i dont really need to worry. Just need a good enough navy to stop them crossing in force and then bulk nukes until they leave me alone.

Edit: for roman empire, was reffering to specifc event and nation change with bonuses. I think its specific provinces as well that i need not nations, so releasing them as puppets might not work?

 

[ThaHoward]

Navy is a bit further in future. Being completely blunt, with france surrounded and asia so fsr from my core empire (but connected by rail) I'm probably going to win the land war in europe and asia. Africa dont know but the allies can't have that much stuff there, despite owning the continent.

After that, I'll have the annoying task of island cleanup in the north sea and pacific. And the US could get invovlef at aby ppint but probably not for a while. So I do need a navy but keepong the war machine supplied until I have them thrown into the sea is more important. Then I'll boats to cross it.

Siezing the old world should mean game over really. Americas would be a tough nut to cracl but i dont really need to worry. Just need a good enough navy to stop them crossing in force and then bulk nukes until they leave me alone.

Edit: for roman empire, was reffering to specifc event and nation change with bonuses. I think its specific provinces as well that i need not nations, so releasing them as puppets might not work?

Hopefully both of us will be able to crack the American nut For forming the Roman Empire by decision I don't know to be honest. I suppose you need all of the provinces annexed then, you might of course release them as puppets later on, but seeing as you basically only need to worry about US I suppose you can rebuild and then implement start to scrape the barrel :S

Anyway, soonish a short update on the Dominions of the former Empire will come, some very weird stuff have happened there to say at the least. And then the next chapter will roll out, with interlude chapters inbetween the normal chapters when it is suitable and appliable. A small spoiler, but in the future we'll see more and more picture like this:

I've heard war never change, but I beg to differ.

 

[ThaHoward]

Interlude V: Disunion in Diversity
​

Brittania once ruled the waves and with it the world.

The world wars had its toll upon the British people and their vast Empire. The economic and humanitarian crisis imposed on the superpower by the two world wars brought the empire to its knees, by the time T-44s paraded through London the Empire was already gone. Only a few colonies in Africa and south-east Asia remained nominally under the control of the British government in exile. In reality the lands in Africa and Asia were already under severe stress and was pushed to the limit between the world wars. Had it not been for the joint efforts of the Royal Army and the United States Armed Forces, and ironically the armies of the former dominions the colonies would have broken away one by one. Said armies ruled the colonies by an ironfist, using their position to crack down and nationalist and communist inspired insurgencies alike to break the tide of the Soviets waves. The Soviet influence in Europe in the post war scene and the following Southern Thrust made the Empire's inability to protect itself and project power abroad clear for all to see - and especially the dominions and colonies. If the British backed down on their promises to protect and aid Persia, Turkey and Afghanistan and more important their former colony of Iraq, how could they possibly stand up for the rest of their Empire? Matter of fact was it not the Empire that came to the aid of home islands during both world wars, while the sprawling empire was left for itself? This led to the various dominions breaking away and along with growing nationalist sentiments, crisis at home the Soviets and communist nations funded insurgencies in Africa and Asia. While Africa and Asia would remain a thorn in their side these insurrections was, as previously mentioned, cracked down. Mostly due to the aid of the Americans and the hundreds of thousands of British soldiers and civilians who fled from Britain to their colonies and took up arms against the Soviets. Despite the Soviets turning their attention toward Africa and prepared for a future battleground, one that would claim hundreds of thousands if not millions of lives, the British Empire was already shattered as Soviet tanks and soldiers crossed into the Netherlands and Bulgaria sparking the Third World War. In several ways the PACT invasion of Britain was simply a coup de grâce that ended the Empire.

​

South Africa replaced an experienced imperialist with an inexperienced one?

However the Empire did not see its end once the Soviet tanks smashed through NATO lines. As it stands we need to go back all the way to the Second World War, to 1938 to fully see the beginning of the end. South Africa had remained in several ways an oddball out. It was a dominion, however its ties was not as close to Britain as Canada and the Oceanic dominions. Within South Africa there was a substantial population of Dutch speaking (or rather Afrikaans) settlers who resented the British ever since the Boer Wars. Ever since 1936 the secret society Afrikaner Broederbond and white nationalism as a whole saw a surge of popular support, both to strenghten the position of the Afrikaner and dutch settlers and as a reaction to what they saw as unwanted British stewarship. After a long and complicated process that won't be covered here the secret society became a sort of state within state. Pulling the strings and steering the government firmly toward the right and making further limitations of the rights of the black natives. The Broederbund along with nationalists claimed "the Afrikaner volk has been planted in this country by the Hand of God", and pursued an aggressive policy in fulfilling their destiny.

Fast forward to 1938 and the centennial anniversary of the Great Trek. The government actively celebrated this and pursued further policies of political repression of civil liberties. Naturally the British government, along with the Dominions, objected to the preceding events, however with the Nazi threat they were preoccupied. The Nationalists took their oppurtunity to slowly sever their bonds with their motherland, something that was further semented once the Ossewabrandwag was created and then actively supported by the government following the centennial anniversary. Put short the Ossewabrandwag was a right-wing radical paramilitary group similar to the Brown Shirts of Germany and the Black Shirts of Italy. Once the war broke out the Ossewabrandwag outright opposed the war, as did many South Africans, and instead advocated an alliance with Germany. By the closing months of the year members of the Ossewabrandwag was admitted into the government, and soon the South African government announced their independence from Britain. While the fascists wanted to make peace with the Nazis, this was narrowly voted down. However their paramilitary forces along with the Broederbond became the state within the state, controlling civic life in South Africa and committing unspeakable atrocities against non-whites.

The British government was pushed to intervene, but their conflicts with the Axis made them focus on their "true" enemy, this was further complicated when the South Africans rejoined the alliance and provided invaluable assistance in the defense of British Africa. This however did not come without a price. While the fascists was narrowly defeated in their pursuit of an alliance with Germany the nationalists elected the disgraced King Edward VIII as their king. A British commentator remarked that he was an "inexperienced imperalist". This proved to be a moment of clear sight as during the war the King petitioned the British that South Africa was going to be given the mandate over Bechuanaland Protectorate and Rhodesia. This was promptly refused by the British. By the end of the war Edward outright demanded said colonies, and even threatened Portugal with an invasion of Angola and Mozambique and threatened with invasion if his demands was not met. This brinkmanship almost led to war once the British again refused. While the bluff of King Edward was quickly called out by his brother King George VI, the more hawkish members of parliament demanded an intervention in South Africa, if not to restore British dominion then for humanitarian principles. The intervention, however, was called off once it became clear that the true threat came from Trotsky and communism, rather than Edward and fascism. Yet while South Africa joined NATO on their side of the world war, relations between the liberal democracies and the Apartheid state was strained at best, and even as the Red Army neared Kenya and Congo the South Africans refused to send their troops up east to support their allies. Perhaps they were only waiting for a chance to strike and claim all of Southern Africa from Portugal and Britain?*

They may be independent, but they remain dull.

The three remaining Dominions looked to the South African situation and the British inability to protect itself and keep the sprawling empire intact with great interest and suspicion. The last Imperial Congress was held in 1944 an instead of reaching an agreement of closer integration the Dominions of Canada, Australia and New Zealand declared their independence and sovereignty. They would, however, remain close allies and economic partners and all three nations kept the Union Jack in their flags. But for all intents and purposes the Dominions was freed and could pursue a foreign policy of their own.

Raja Linlithglow?

The final blow came with India. Ever since the Sepoy Rebellion the subcontinent had been a hotbed of unrest and nationalism. Led on by men as Gandhi it became appereant the jewel of the crown would embrace independence. But brilliant manuevers ensured the Quit India movement would fail, or rather succeed on the terms of British imperalism. In short the Viceroy and the Princes of India forged an alliance against Hindu, Muslim and ethnical nationalism and forged a new type of Indian nationalism rooted in authorian democracy and imperalist tradition. In short they managed to contain the Quit India movement and led an indepence movement on their own terms. Citing the growing threat from Japan, the USSR and the British inability to keep their own Dominions in check they were granted full home rule and became a Dominion on their own, equal to the white nations within the Empire. The British not being keen on an India free from the Empire and losing its invaluble resources and manpower agreed. While Churchill later rejected any form of further sovereignty the invasion of England ended most of the ties between the crown and its jewel. Viceroy Linlithglow remained the Viceroy of India as the head of government over a federation of princely states, brutally repressing all democratic aspirations along with nationalist sentiments and movements among Muslims, Hindus, Burmamese, Sikhs and other ethnicites as Bengalis. Once World War 3 started India declared its indepence, however the Union Jack remained in their flag along with the old imperial system. In several ways India continued to be ruled by the British, this was further reinforced once several British refugees and combat units arrived in India, settled down and took up arms to both quell civil unrest and prevent invasion.

By 1946 Britain had truly lost its empire. Indded the fall of London was nothing but a coup de grace. The only possessions that remained under direct British control was the Dominion of Newfoundland along with the African colonies, Hong Kong, Malaya and Signapore. Said colonies had several nationalist elements among them, and only the remaining armies of Britain and the US Armed Forces managed to quell the nationalist movements there. However for the young unified and independent nation of India their trials had just begun. Once Vlasov conquered Iceland and Greenland, the eyes of Trotsky and STAVKA turned to hotter climate and a different continent. True hell awaited them...

Trying times lay ahead..


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*So basically SA went down the path of turning to fascism. They haven't turned fascist (yet?), but they broke away from UK and the Allies as they got Edward VIII as their head of state. They also finished the focus to gain war goals against UK. However they are back in the Allies and are at war with us, complicated sitaution.

 

[stnylan]

Freed from one shackle, to be enchained by manacles far worse.