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Revanche, A French AAR of The Great War (1914-1919)

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Evans said:
Oranje- the picture *is* a bit chaotic you're right, I made them to remind me of the narrative, I guess I should refine it (i'll do so now in fact). The attack is explained above, but the counter-offensive was successful because the troops were predominantly volunteers (militia). I don't understand why the leader is a 'faceless' I think he may have been Belgian(?). I should have got a FM up there, but tbh the attack took me off guard after the AI's misleading passivity (I didn't take any troops away from that region for a start).
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Ah despite the surprise I think you are a bit glad as well now that the war has finally gotten underway ;) . I think the pictures are ok, but compared with the text i think they are lacking a bit of style and structure.
 
SirCliveWolfe said:
A true northner living in the south... why?
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SirCliveWolfe- Was interested to know is all :) I'm a true southerner living on shores of the channel :cool:

Oranje Verzet- EDIT- I got rid of them anyway, the more I thought about it the less I liked them, they served their purpose but wont be in the AAR :)

rule_brittania- Don't worry about big comments, knowing you're reading is more than enough encouragement :)
 
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Evans said:
SirCliveWolfe- Was interested to know is all :) I'm a true southerner living on shores of the channel :cool:
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Thats ok... I just thourght you were goning to have something against Northeners or Sothners.. :D

Evans said:
Oranje Verzet- EDIT- I got rid of them anyway, the more I thought about it the less I liked them, they served their purpose but wont be in the AAR :)
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Yeah... I think it looks better now, although I like to use largish screen shots instead of thumnails, so you can whats going on 'at a glance' without all that clicking business... [I know I'm lazy] :)
 
That was bad news, well when I saw the screenshot I knew you would lose, but still it was a great effort made that if it had succeeded it would have been great.
As for the Germans attacking in the north, I would be a little scared, I remember in one game of TGW I played as the USA, I sat watching the war waiting for the events to trigger that would allow me to join the war, the Germans didn’t attack for a long time, and then suddenly they attacked in Belgium, I think in 1916 and within months they had captured all of France. So you better be careful this might be the big German push…
Good luck :)
 

Chapter IV: Lusitania Sunk!

15thelusitaniaissunkbyagermans.png

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May, 1915

In the early afternoon on the 7th of May the luxury passenger steamship RMS Lusitania on a regular voyage between Britain and the United States encountered the German submarine U-20. The passenger vessel was sailing a straight course, at about 15 knots because of foggy conditions. The ship was not sailing in the 'zig-zag' pattern designed to make her harder to attack with torpedoes because the Captain, Turner, deigned it a waste of time and fuel. In accordance with the unrestricted submarine warfare doctrine of the German Empire, the U-20 fired one torpedo at the Lusitania in an attempt to sink her.

Survivors report that there was an explosion that sounded like a crack of thunder just ahead of the 2nd funnel on the side of the ship, which was followed by a second, muffled but obviously larger, explosion from within the vessel herself. The power is reported to have failed, which meant that both rudder and engines did not respond and the watertight bulkheads in the ship could not be closed- the wireless operators had to run on battery power to transmit their S.O.S. emergency distress signal.

As a result of the explosions the ship tilted to the starboard side and began to sink. Although the Lusitania had adequate lifeboats for all on board, most lifeboats simply could not be launched, the tilt to the starboard side meant that most of the lifeboats on the port side could not be launched. The Lusitania sank below the waves shortly before 2:00pm, claiming 1198 casualties amongst passengers and crew despite the best efforts of rescuers in small vessels based at nearby Queenstown in Ireland. The sinking provoked great anger in neutral powers, particularly in the United States as 128 American citizens were killed as a result of the attack. Many felt that the German's U-Boat blockade was inhumane and indiscriminate, and the incident went some way to secure popular international support of neutral parties in favour of the Entente as opposed to the Central Powers.

"An unusually heavy explosion takes place with a very strong explosion cloud (cloud reaches far beyond front funnel). The explosion of the torpedo must have been followed by a second one (boiler or coal or powder?). The superstructure right above the point of impact and the bridge are torn asunder, fire breaks out, and smoke envelops the high bridge. The ship stops immediately and heels over to starboard very quickly, immersing simultaneously at the bow. It appears as if the ship were going to capsize very shortly, Great confusion ensues on board; the boats are made clear and some of them are lowered to the water with either stem or stern first and founder immediately. On the port side fewer boats are made clear than on the starboard side on account of the ship's list. The ship blows off [steam]; on the bow the name "Lusitania" becomes visible in golden letters. The funnels were painted black, no flag was set astern. Ship was running twenty knots. Since it seems as if the steamer will keep above water only a short time, we dived to a depth of twenty-four meters and ran out to sea. It would have been impossible for me, anyhow, to fire a second torpedo into this crowd of people struggling to save their lives."

Report of Kapitänleutnant Walter Schwieger, Commander, U-20
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Oh NO! the Yanks are coming!! :eek:

What will our brave Germans do about it!?!?

Oh.. wait, erm.... Yay the Yanks!! :D ;)
 
Oranje Verzet said:
Well not yet, right?

Many casualties btw, didnt know so many died.
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Yeah it's comparable with the Titanic disaster. And no, the Yanks didn't join the war until 1917 in real life, but the sinking of the Lusitania definately swayed them.
 
Oranje Verzet said:
Well not yet, right?

Many casualties btw, didnt know so many died.
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Well I siad that they were coming... not that they were here yet... ;)

Anyway one swift attack upon German positions and it'll be hot crosants in Berlin before Christmas!! :D
 
SirCliveWolfe said:
Well I siad that they were coming... not that they were here yet... ;)

Anyway one swift attack upon German positions and it'll be hot crosants in Berlin before Christmas!! :D
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:p

I think the criossaints will take some more time to arrive in Berlin, and I hope so too. I want a long grinding war :eek:o
 
Patriotes1837 said:
Guys, it's croissants. :p

"If you can't spell it, you can't eat it!" - Pétain, 1918













O.K., I just made that quote up :D
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Sir I am a true Englishman... I therefore can't spell in English let alone French 'cross-over' words like croissants ;) :D
 
SirCliveWolfe said:
Well I siad that they were coming... not that they were here yet... ;)

Anyway one swift attack upon German positions and it'll be hot crosants in Berlin before Christmas!! :D
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Considering the succes of the last attack upon German positions, I assume that the correct statement would be "one swift attack upon German positions and it'll be bratwurst in Paris before Christmas!! :D"

:D
 

Chapter V: Surprises and a brave undertaking...

canadianpropaganda6iw.png

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May & June 1915

By the time the Lusitania had been sunk and popular opinion was swinging against Germany, many people felt it was all too late. The United States looked only slightly more likely to join the war (which wasn't likely at all), the French had recently been forced back over the Maas river, and the everybody had the feeling that German army looked set to knock them out of Belgium entirely. In Russian Poland more men fought and died for little gain, although things remained fluid the impact on Russian people's morale was mounting, and an unstable political situation looked increasingly likely to boil over. To the south the Ottoman Empire was still holding out against Russian attacks, whilst extending their influence to threaten the Suez Canal. Most depressingly for the Entente, Serbia whose independence was the reason they had all gone to war, was clinging on for dear life in the face of the Austrian onslaught.

With extra troops brought down from the Italian border the Austrians had been able to curtail the activities of Slav partisans over the spring months. By arming supply convoys with heavy escorts the partisans were forced to concentrate their forces more and engage with fewer targets, and increasing patrols forced them higher and higher into the hills. The partisans were bolstered however by two regular Serb Army Divisions that remained behind the Austrian lines, one in the Belgrade region, and the other in Hungary. The rest of the Serbian Army was entrenched in the foothills of Macedonia and Montenegro, alongside that nation's own army. Under the command of Archduke Friedrich the Austrians gathered for a final offensive, the good terrain looked to stand the defenders in good stead, and they were expected to be able to hold out for months. But the fact was that they were utterly dwarfed by the Austrians, and there was no way they could hold out forever. Things did not look good for the Entente.



However, in face of the coming crisis the Entente had several tricks up their sleeves. The British Empire stepped up their recruitment campaigns across the globe, calling on patriotic subjects to join the British Expeditionary Force. The response was great, and divisions’ worth of new soldiers arrived to fight in France each month. Japan and Belgium similarly raised and committed more troops to the fight. France had a major boost in the form of 60,000 trained, 'elite' soldiers who formed the new Guard Divisions, formed into two corps of three divisions each, lavishly equipped with artillery and engineering sections. French artillery and equipment had also benefited greatly due to research carried out by the 'Modernisation Program', and the French Army was now considered the best in the world in terms of equipment. Most importantly though the Entente had one final ace, something that suggested the winds of fortune were about to change.

Germany's attack had stalled on the banks of the Maas river, stopped in their tracks by French, Belgian and British forces, utterly unable to bridge the formidable obstacle. Hasty deployment of troops north and initially high casualties had prevented the Germans' from putting their weight into the assault. The German High Command also felt that they could not commit sufficient troops to such an attack given that the situation in Russia was still in the balance. This bought France much needed breathing space, but was dwarfed in significance when compared with the next turn of events.

17italyjoinstheentente9ft.png

Italy and Greece formally joined the Entente on the 23rd of May, 1915, issuing a declaration of war against Germany, Austria and Turkey by telegram. In accordance with secret plans drawn up beforehand, elements of the French border garrison (some 60,000 soldiers) and the Italian army deployed rapidly to the Austrian border. With most of their forces concentrated against Russia and Serbia, the Austrian defences were light and it was expected that a rapid assault would be able to dislodge and drive back the Austrians.

To go in hand with this first axis of advance, France prepared to send six divisions on a risky expedition to aid Serbia and Montenegro. By the end of June Archduke Friedrich was preparing for his final push into the mountains of Montenegro, and it was feared that unless support was sent Austria would be able to thwart the Italian offensive. The aim was to keep Austria fighting on three fronts, under the pressure of which she would inevitably fall. Suddenly, the Entente's war prospects did not look so bad...

"Our natural sympathies are enlisted on the side of the Allies, because of the brutal German aggression against Belgium and because of the vandalism of the German troops."

Italian government's official explanation for going to war.
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18frenchsoldiersinitaly2cd.png

French soldiers on the Italian border on hearing the news.​
 
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Poor old Austria... I always feel sorrow that they were in such an awful position...

Oh well, I was wrong... its one swift attack on Austrian positions and pasta in Vienna :D
 
Italy, the backstabber!!! As OV posted, an update in the Middle East would be welcomed.
 
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