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This made me chuckle.
It is a truly Great War - so many theatres, so many states ... and potentially yet more to join in the fray if they get sufficiently tempted.
The situation in Italy does look critical though.
Chapter 24: Great War - Back and Forth (June - September 1900)
By mid-June, the Pact forces were advancing across most of the border of lower Africa. The Livonian defense along the east coast had been successful in individual battles, but their concentration left the western coast open to Isbani invaders, and on the Eastern front more English soldiers were arriving.
The size of Isbania’s army in Congo came as a surprise to the Livonians – while they could be destroyed quite easily, the English were putting far too much pressure on the defenders to allow any diversion. Instead, Livonia convinced allied Khalij in the south to join the war. Khalij’s army lacked the quality of the colonial powers, but the important thing was that they had numbers – something Livonia desperately needed.
Back in Rom, the situation was worsening for the Coalition. The Battle of Ferrara continued, although the Genoese were taking so many losses against Rom’s heavily-defended trench system that they pulled out the majority of their forces to attempt an encirclement instead. Livonia’s remaining army attempted to halt the maneuver, but their numbers were declining. Meanwhile, almost all of Rom’s army was still fighting along the western coast.
In Arabia, the Livonian advance stalled as Isbania reinforced their small army with conscripted locals. Regardless, the defenders’ equipment was very outdated, and the main killer of Livonian colonial troops was attrition rather than combat.
Meanwhile, a new front opened in Asia as the Livonian colonial troops landed at Sumatra. The initial invasion turned out to be bloodless, as the entire island was currently in a state of anarchy due to a separatist rebellion.
At the beginning of July, the most important naval event of the war took place – the Battle of Ireland. This battle took place off the far coast of the island, where the American Atlantic Navy encountered the bulk of England’s. Both sides were nearly even in size, although there were a few key differences in the two navies: Following the technological advances that led to ironclad warships with turrets, the two countries had branched off into two different schools of thought. England’s navy focused on taking the slow but powerful ships and giving them the maneuverability and flexibility of previous designs. American ships decided to further improve both the armor and artillery of the ships, leaving them with a more slow and expensive navy, but one that was extremely resilient.
When the navies went head-to-head, the American ships came out successful. The battle was still quite even, but after a period of back-and-forth, the English ships began to be outnumbered as they struggled to sink those of the Americans. At the end of the battle, America had lost 3 (of eighteen) capital ships and 10 frigates, while England had lost 9 (of eleven) capital ships and 15 frigates.
Many had expected the major naval showdown of this war to be between Livonia and England, but the Baltic Navy was still patrolling the sea it was named after in preparation for the invasion of Brabant. America’s fleet had to return home for repairs as well after the battle, but the crippling of England’s navy would ensure that Livonia could control the Atlantic as soon as their fleet was concentrated there.
Meanwhile, the entire plan for an invasion of Brabant was subverted: after massing soldiers along the border and threatening invasion, the isolated government of Pomeranija crumbled and allowed their soldiers to cross through the country. A few days later, Brabant’s armies entered the borders of Kuyavia and Prussia.
The attack by Brabant was soon countered by the Livonian armies which had been stationed in Prussia already (many were still awaiting transport to Norvegija). When the Brabantian soldiers crossed back into the borders of Pomeranija, Livonia entered its borders to give chase. After a week of fighting on Pomeranian soil, the armies of Brabant retreated back into their own country.
By late July, Khalij’s entry into the Coalition had turned the tide of the battles in the African East. England’s invasion was countered by the Coalition forces which now overwhelmed them, forcing the soldiers out of Livonian territory.
In the Asian Theatre, the invasion of Sumatra truly began after Livonia secured the northern tip of the island and established all of its soldiers there. Meanwhile, England had launched an invasion of Java via their chain of islands bordering the nation.
And within a month, the Genoese maneuver in Rom had finally succeeded. All of Rom’s army was encircled near the border, while Livonia’s army which had been fighting against the encirclement was forced to retreat out of the area before being trapped itself.
England’s retreat from Livonian borders in East Africa wasn’t entirely a result of Khalij’s reinforcements – fighting in Ethiopia had also started recently when the Misri armies finally engaged the invaders, forcing more reinforcements and supplies to be devoted to what had previously been a mostly barren front.
After countering the attack by Brabant, the Livonian armies decided to take advantage of the situation with Pomeranija and move their entire remaining invasion force thorough the country. By the start of September, they reached the border of Brabant while a heavy push by the northern armies through Holstein began.
Back in Arabia, the remaining Isbani garrison had attempted to launch a counterattack, hoping to overwhelm the exhausted Livonian forces. The counterattack failed horribly as Livonian machineguns annihilated the attackers, leaving the entire region open for Livonia to invade. Meanwhile, England was taking huge losses in Ethiopia as they struggled to reinforce and supply their armies through the heavy mountains separating their colony from the front line.
In North Africa, Misr had still been delaying an attack of Isbania, hoping to catch them at Benghazi and force a similar supply issue, but this did not happen. After their retreat from Rom, the remaining Livonian troops had been boated into North Africa to help defend the front. After taking some time to regroup and supply, the Livonians began attacking Isbania, emboldened by their superior equipment.
The war has been going on for six months now, constantly expanding in scale every month. Battles are now being fought in Sumatra, Tunisia, and Ethiopia, in addition to all of the other theatres. The Battle of Ireland proved America’s contribution to this war would be more than just symbolic, and after Pomeranian neutrality was violated by both of its neighbors, fighting was about to start on an enormous scale along the borders of Brabant. Still, the situation wasn’t great for the Coalition – West Africa had fallen, Lower Africa was still indeterminate, and most dangerously it seemed Italy was about to fall to the forces of Genoa. There is no end in sight, but both sides are making big moves to tip the balance of the war.
By mid-June, the Pact forces were advancing across most of the border of lower Africa. The Livonian defense along the east coast had been successful in individual battles, but their concentration left the western coast open to Isbani invaders, and on the Eastern front more English soldiers were arriving.
The size of Isbania’s army in Congo came as a surprise to the Livonians – while they could be destroyed quite easily, the English were putting far too much pressure on the defenders to allow any diversion. Instead, Livonia convinced allied Khalij in the south to join the war. Khalij’s army lacked the quality of the colonial powers, but the important thing was that they had numbers – something Livonia desperately needed.
Back in Rom, the situation was worsening for the Coalition. The Battle of Ferrara continued, although the Genoese were taking so many losses against Rom’s heavily-defended trench system that they pulled out the majority of their forces to attempt an encirclement instead. Livonia’s remaining army attempted to halt the maneuver, but their numbers were declining. Meanwhile, almost all of Rom’s army was still fighting along the western coast.
In Arabia, the Livonian advance stalled as Isbania reinforced their small army with conscripted locals. Regardless, the defenders’ equipment was very outdated, and the main killer of Livonian colonial troops was attrition rather than combat.
Meanwhile, a new front opened in Asia as the Livonian colonial troops landed at Sumatra. The initial invasion turned out to be bloodless, as the entire island was currently in a state of anarchy due to a separatist rebellion.
At the beginning of July, the most important naval event of the war took place – the Battle of Ireland. This battle took place off the far coast of the island, where the American Atlantic Navy encountered the bulk of England’s. Both sides were nearly even in size, although there were a few key differences in the two navies: Following the technological advances that led to ironclad warships with turrets, the two countries had branched off into two different schools of thought. England’s navy focused on taking the slow but powerful ships and giving them the maneuverability and flexibility of previous designs. American ships decided to further improve both the armor and artillery of the ships, leaving them with a more slow and expensive navy, but one that was extremely resilient.
When the navies went head-to-head, the American ships came out successful. The battle was still quite even, but after a period of back-and-forth, the English ships began to be outnumbered as they struggled to sink those of the Americans. At the end of the battle, America had lost 3 (of eighteen) capital ships and 10 frigates, while England had lost 9 (of eleven) capital ships and 15 frigates.
Many had expected the major naval showdown of this war to be between Livonia and England, but the Baltic Navy was still patrolling the sea it was named after in preparation for the invasion of Brabant. America’s fleet had to return home for repairs as well after the battle, but the crippling of England’s navy would ensure that Livonia could control the Atlantic as soon as their fleet was concentrated there.
Meanwhile, the entire plan for an invasion of Brabant was subverted: after massing soldiers along the border and threatening invasion, the isolated government of Pomeranija crumbled and allowed their soldiers to cross through the country. A few days later, Brabant’s armies entered the borders of Kuyavia and Prussia.
The attack by Brabant was soon countered by the Livonian armies which had been stationed in Prussia already (many were still awaiting transport to Norvegija). When the Brabantian soldiers crossed back into the borders of Pomeranija, Livonia entered its borders to give chase. After a week of fighting on Pomeranian soil, the armies of Brabant retreated back into their own country.
By late July, Khalij’s entry into the Coalition had turned the tide of the battles in the African East. England’s invasion was countered by the Coalition forces which now overwhelmed them, forcing the soldiers out of Livonian territory.
In the Asian Theatre, the invasion of Sumatra truly began after Livonia secured the northern tip of the island and established all of its soldiers there. Meanwhile, England had launched an invasion of Java via their chain of islands bordering the nation.
And within a month, the Genoese maneuver in Rom had finally succeeded. All of Rom’s army was encircled near the border, while Livonia’s army which had been fighting against the encirclement was forced to retreat out of the area before being trapped itself.
England’s retreat from Livonian borders in East Africa wasn’t entirely a result of Khalij’s reinforcements – fighting in Ethiopia had also started recently when the Misri armies finally engaged the invaders, forcing more reinforcements and supplies to be devoted to what had previously been a mostly barren front.
After countering the attack by Brabant, the Livonian armies decided to take advantage of the situation with Pomeranija and move their entire remaining invasion force thorough the country. By the start of September, they reached the border of Brabant while a heavy push by the northern armies through Holstein began.
Back in Arabia, the remaining Isbani garrison had attempted to launch a counterattack, hoping to overwhelm the exhausted Livonian forces. The counterattack failed horribly as Livonian machineguns annihilated the attackers, leaving the entire region open for Livonia to invade. Meanwhile, England was taking huge losses in Ethiopia as they struggled to reinforce and supply their armies through the heavy mountains separating their colony from the front line.
In North Africa, Misr had still been delaying an attack of Isbania, hoping to catch them at Benghazi and force a similar supply issue, but this did not happen. After their retreat from Rom, the remaining Livonian troops had been boated into North Africa to help defend the front. After taking some time to regroup and supply, the Livonians began attacking Isbania, emboldened by their superior equipment.
The war has been going on for six months now, constantly expanding in scale every month. Battles are now being fought in Sumatra, Tunisia, and Ethiopia, in addition to all of the other theatres. The Battle of Ireland proved America’s contribution to this war would be more than just symbolic, and after Pomeranian neutrality was violated by both of its neighbors, fighting was about to start on an enormous scale along the borders of Brabant. Still, the situation wasn’t great for the Coalition – West Africa had fallen, Lower Africa was still indeterminate, and most dangerously it seemed Italy was about to fall to the forces of Genoa. There is no end in sight, but both sides are making big moves to tip the balance of the war.
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and it's become even more critical now
Paying attention to all the fronts of a world war in Victoria 2 is difficult, especially with the division spam in the base game. Luckily there seems to be less of that in this game, for whatever reason (HPM might be part of why I feel that way, as I did play a lot of Vic2 on that mod and its economy changes make division spam extremely common)
Sorry about the delay, here we are
Well, I wouldn't go so far as to call it promising in some of the other theaters, although there is still a lot of undecided back-and-forth at the moment.
By the way, please try to ignore the random navies of certain dead nations (Naples, France, and others). That's been a strange glitch that's persisted throughout the game and occasionally I miss it while playing >>
Well, with the exception of Rom the news is getting better. Much better. Rom shall have to be liberated!
Chapter 25: Great War - Maneuvers (Sep 1900 – Jan 1901)
It was late September when Livonia’s full-scale counterattack into Brabant begun. After Pomeranija’s borders were violated by Brabant, they lost the luxury of remaining neutral. The move was essentially an act of war, although Pomeranija did not risk declaring war while there were foreign soldiers within its borders - it was only after Livonian soldiers pushed them back that Pomeranija agreed to enter the war on the side of their former ally.
The initial maneuver was quite ambitious – the bulk of Livonia’s army pushed hard into the very south of the border, forcing Brabant to pull soldiers away from the north and allowing room to open a large front across the north.
The whole situation produced a strange crisis in the Pomeranija. The communist government was extremely decentralized, and the pacifist policies of the country meant that its standing army was miniscule. Aside from the obvious political consequences, the Pomeranian communist system had caused the economy to stagnate, as individual cities and regions of the country struggled to coordinate their economies in the way a centralized government could.
Consequently, the crisis with Brabant led to the dissolution of the old system and the re-formation of a centralized government (it was only this way that anyone actually had the authority to declare war in the first place). The new Pomeranian government retained the socialist ethos of the previous era, but eventually transformed the status of the country into a more traditional centralized democracy.
For the foreseeable future, Pomeranija’s contribution to the war would only be in name. Recruitment of a new army began immediately, but that would take time. Regardless, the outrage over border violation and the combat on Pomeranian soil was enough to gain widespread public support for the war.
Meanwhile, the defenses of Rom had collapsed and Genoese soldiers pushed deep into the country. Almost all of Livonia’s remaining army had already been evacuated to North Africa, and at the end of the month Rom’s encircled army surrendered.
Back in Lower Africa, the tide was turning in the favor of the Coalition. England’s push along the east had been completely halted, and Livonian soldiers now were attempting to push north and connect their front line with Misr. To the west, Isbania’s advance was finally met by the armies of Khalij, halting their push for the moment.
In October, the Livonian push into Brabant finally convinced Aquitaine to commit itself to the Coalition, in secret. Aquitaine wasn’t ready for war yet, but they were willing to join the war on the condition that Brabant had already surrendered and there wasn’t any risk of an English naval invasion. Aquitaine’s entry into the war would grant direct border access to both Genoa and Isbania, as well as a very close naval border with England.
The Livonian probe into southern Brabant was pushed back hard within weeks with severe casualties, but in the meantime the northern advances had succeeded in their goal to combine into one solid front. The southern Livonian armies regrouped on the border of Brabant and Pomeranija, taking time to reorganize all of the retreating forces and receive reinforcements from the east. Afterwards, they began to advance into Brabant once again, but they faced a powerful defensive line.
The army of Brabant had learned a lot from the conflict in Italy, both during this war and the previous one between Genoa and Rom. The overwhelming advantage of defensive formations in modern warfare became the core philosophy of Brabant’s army, and this was fully utilized here. Eventually, the Battles of Luneburg and Brunswick would become the two longest nonstop battles in the history of warfare.
In North Africa, the battle against Isbania continued. Currently, both sides remained immobile while the battles waged on between the two. Isbania was taking much more casualties than the Coalition forces, but their continued reinforcements forced Misr to devote more soldiers of their own to keep up.
By late September, the island of Sumatra was almost completely in Coalition control after a push on both sides by Livonia and Java (the majority of the fighting was actually against local separatists, rather than Isbania’s defenders). England’s attempted invasion of Java was also struggling as serious attrition from the constant guerrilla warfare wore down their army.
As the invasion of Sumatra came to a close, England and Isbania sent their Asian fleets to try and gain naval superiority of the region – it was clear that the Pact would need to control the seas or lose Asia.
The Western Pact’s Asian fleet was made up of Isbani warships and a few English transports – the bulk of England’s colonial navy had been moved to Africa’s Eastern coast to blockade the Red Sea. The Livonian fleet was quite outdated in design, but still outnumbered their enemy by about 40%, excluding transports. As would be expected, Livonia’s navy was successful
Back in Brabant, the opening of a solid front attracted enormous reinforcements by both sides. The size of the armies fighting in Luneburg and Brunswick was now absolutely enormous – so large that a continuous flood of reinforcements could theoretically be maintained by both sides if necessary.
However, there was a weak point in Brabant’s defenses: the area along the northern coast lacked the heavy fortifications of the border, and far less soldiers were committed to that section of the front by both sides. After witnessing how intense Brabant’s defense was along the border, many of the foreign armies (such as those of Danija, Norvegija, and Kiev) concentrated themselves in the north to attempt a breakthrough. Meanwhile, Pomeranija’s recruitment drive was going well, but they still kept their forces in reserve for now.
By November, the Mediterranean Sea was controlled by the Western Pact. The fall of Italy (whose remaining borders were now limited to Sicily and the bottom tip of Naples) had crippled its navy, and the Pact was committing most of their naval assets to the region. Taking advantage of this, Isbania sneakily transported several armies behind the front line in North Africa, landing them along the outskirts of Misr’s heartland.
In East Africa, the counterattack into England continued, although it was experiencing difficulty. To begin with, Misr was starting to lose the battle in Ethiopia, nullifying the whole idea of connecting the two front lines. Secondly, the inherent attritional losses of invading such a land were taking a toll on Livonia’s already-outnumbered army. Finally, the fighting near Kongo between Khalij and Isbania wasn’t going as well as they hoped, and reinforcements would need to be pulled from this front to deal with that situation.
As winter started to take hold of Brabant in December, the battles of Luneburg and Brunswick waged on. Both battles were currently favoring Brabant, which was taking far less casualties. However, the northern breakthrough was going well, assisted by Livonian naval control along Brabant’s northern coast, allowing soldiers and supplies to be transported along the coast.
The Isbani encirclement in North Africa was now squeezing in on the Coalition armies, which were now mostly trapped in Sirt. It was only a matter of time before they would be forced to surrender, and leave the rest of Misr (as well as the Suez Canal) wide open to the Western Pact.
And by the start of January, the only free part of Italy that remained was in Sicily, where the surviving armies of Livonia and Rom had retreated to as the war turned against them. Genoa launched a large attack to try and take the final remaining island, but the attack failed and cost Genoa huge casualties. Regardless, they still controlled the rest of Italy and the surrender of its governments was imminent.
At this point of the war, its first winter, both sides were having huge difficulties. For the Coalition, Misr was losing on both fronts, Rom was occupied by Genoa, and the Isbani army in Kongo still managed to survive. For the Western Pact, they had lost control of the seas in Asia and the Atlantic, and Brabant was threatened by the breakthrough in the north. In addition, the secret deal made with Aquitaine could very easily turn the tide of the war in the future. Both sides were losing on very important fronts, but only time would prove which loss would be too great to recover from.
It was late September when Livonia’s full-scale counterattack into Brabant begun. After Pomeranija’s borders were violated by Brabant, they lost the luxury of remaining neutral. The move was essentially an act of war, although Pomeranija did not risk declaring war while there were foreign soldiers within its borders - it was only after Livonian soldiers pushed them back that Pomeranija agreed to enter the war on the side of their former ally.
The initial maneuver was quite ambitious – the bulk of Livonia’s army pushed hard into the very south of the border, forcing Brabant to pull soldiers away from the north and allowing room to open a large front across the north.
The whole situation produced a strange crisis in the Pomeranija. The communist government was extremely decentralized, and the pacifist policies of the country meant that its standing army was miniscule. Aside from the obvious political consequences, the Pomeranian communist system had caused the economy to stagnate, as individual cities and regions of the country struggled to coordinate their economies in the way a centralized government could.
Consequently, the crisis with Brabant led to the dissolution of the old system and the re-formation of a centralized government (it was only this way that anyone actually had the authority to declare war in the first place). The new Pomeranian government retained the socialist ethos of the previous era, but eventually transformed the status of the country into a more traditional centralized democracy.
For the foreseeable future, Pomeranija’s contribution to the war would only be in name. Recruitment of a new army began immediately, but that would take time. Regardless, the outrage over border violation and the combat on Pomeranian soil was enough to gain widespread public support for the war.
Meanwhile, the defenses of Rom had collapsed and Genoese soldiers pushed deep into the country. Almost all of Livonia’s remaining army had already been evacuated to North Africa, and at the end of the month Rom’s encircled army surrendered.
Back in Lower Africa, the tide was turning in the favor of the Coalition. England’s push along the east had been completely halted, and Livonian soldiers now were attempting to push north and connect their front line with Misr. To the west, Isbania’s advance was finally met by the armies of Khalij, halting their push for the moment.
In October, the Livonian push into Brabant finally convinced Aquitaine to commit itself to the Coalition, in secret. Aquitaine wasn’t ready for war yet, but they were willing to join the war on the condition that Brabant had already surrendered and there wasn’t any risk of an English naval invasion. Aquitaine’s entry into the war would grant direct border access to both Genoa and Isbania, as well as a very close naval border with England.
The Livonian probe into southern Brabant was pushed back hard within weeks with severe casualties, but in the meantime the northern advances had succeeded in their goal to combine into one solid front. The southern Livonian armies regrouped on the border of Brabant and Pomeranija, taking time to reorganize all of the retreating forces and receive reinforcements from the east. Afterwards, they began to advance into Brabant once again, but they faced a powerful defensive line.
The army of Brabant had learned a lot from the conflict in Italy, both during this war and the previous one between Genoa and Rom. The overwhelming advantage of defensive formations in modern warfare became the core philosophy of Brabant’s army, and this was fully utilized here. Eventually, the Battles of Luneburg and Brunswick would become the two longest nonstop battles in the history of warfare.
In North Africa, the battle against Isbania continued. Currently, both sides remained immobile while the battles waged on between the two. Isbania was taking much more casualties than the Coalition forces, but their continued reinforcements forced Misr to devote more soldiers of their own to keep up.
By late September, the island of Sumatra was almost completely in Coalition control after a push on both sides by Livonia and Java (the majority of the fighting was actually against local separatists, rather than Isbania’s defenders). England’s attempted invasion of Java was also struggling as serious attrition from the constant guerrilla warfare wore down their army.
As the invasion of Sumatra came to a close, England and Isbania sent their Asian fleets to try and gain naval superiority of the region – it was clear that the Pact would need to control the seas or lose Asia.
The Western Pact’s Asian fleet was made up of Isbani warships and a few English transports – the bulk of England’s colonial navy had been moved to Africa’s Eastern coast to blockade the Red Sea. The Livonian fleet was quite outdated in design, but still outnumbered their enemy by about 40%, excluding transports. As would be expected, Livonia’s navy was successful
Back in Brabant, the opening of a solid front attracted enormous reinforcements by both sides. The size of the armies fighting in Luneburg and Brunswick was now absolutely enormous – so large that a continuous flood of reinforcements could theoretically be maintained by both sides if necessary.
However, there was a weak point in Brabant’s defenses: the area along the northern coast lacked the heavy fortifications of the border, and far less soldiers were committed to that section of the front by both sides. After witnessing how intense Brabant’s defense was along the border, many of the foreign armies (such as those of Danija, Norvegija, and Kiev) concentrated themselves in the north to attempt a breakthrough. Meanwhile, Pomeranija’s recruitment drive was going well, but they still kept their forces in reserve for now.
By November, the Mediterranean Sea was controlled by the Western Pact. The fall of Italy (whose remaining borders were now limited to Sicily and the bottom tip of Naples) had crippled its navy, and the Pact was committing most of their naval assets to the region. Taking advantage of this, Isbania sneakily transported several armies behind the front line in North Africa, landing them along the outskirts of Misr’s heartland.
In East Africa, the counterattack into England continued, although it was experiencing difficulty. To begin with, Misr was starting to lose the battle in Ethiopia, nullifying the whole idea of connecting the two front lines. Secondly, the inherent attritional losses of invading such a land were taking a toll on Livonia’s already-outnumbered army. Finally, the fighting near Kongo between Khalij and Isbania wasn’t going as well as they hoped, and reinforcements would need to be pulled from this front to deal with that situation.
As winter started to take hold of Brabant in December, the battles of Luneburg and Brunswick waged on. Both battles were currently favoring Brabant, which was taking far less casualties. However, the northern breakthrough was going well, assisted by Livonian naval control along Brabant’s northern coast, allowing soldiers and supplies to be transported along the coast.
The Isbani encirclement in North Africa was now squeezing in on the Coalition armies, which were now mostly trapped in Sirt. It was only a matter of time before they would be forced to surrender, and leave the rest of Misr (as well as the Suez Canal) wide open to the Western Pact.
And by the start of January, the only free part of Italy that remained was in Sicily, where the surviving armies of Livonia and Rom had retreated to as the war turned against them. Genoa launched a large attack to try and take the final remaining island, but the attack failed and cost Genoa huge casualties. Regardless, they still controlled the rest of Italy and the surrender of its governments was imminent.
At this point of the war, its first winter, both sides were having huge difficulties. For the Coalition, Misr was losing on both fronts, Rom was occupied by Genoa, and the Isbani army in Kongo still managed to survive. For the Western Pact, they had lost control of the seas in Asia and the Atlantic, and Brabant was threatened by the breakthrough in the north. In addition, the secret deal made with Aquitaine could very easily turn the tide of the war in the future. Both sides were losing on very important fronts, but only time would prove which loss would be too great to recover from.
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The Coalition seems to me to be in a situation with fewer downsides. To be sure the effective loss of Rom and the situation in Misr is bad, but - and it is a very important but - so is the situation in Brabant, and most importantly the Coalition has the possibility of strategic mobility thanks to the defeat of the English fleet, and with Aquitaine able to open a new front ...
Unless the Western Pact also has a secret alliance up its sleeve of course
Unless the Western Pact also has a secret alliance up its sleeve of course
The Coalition seems to me to be in a situation with fewer downsides. To be sure the effective loss of Rom and the situation in Misr is bad, but - and it is a very important but - so is the situation in Brabant, and most importantly the Coalition has the possibility of strategic mobility thanks to the defeat of the English fleet, and with Aquitaine able to open a new front ...
Unless the Western Pact also has a secret alliance up its sleeve of course
Well, Nepal is still neutral...
Heh but I appreciate the analysis - there are definitely things to come that aren't clear yet
Great aar! Great graphics and it's exciting to see 2 seemingly evenly-matched sides duke it out in an early great war. Eagerly awaiting the next update!
Chapter 26: Great War – a Modern Conflict (Jan - May 1901)
Now the Coalition had gained naval superiority in the Indies following the Battle of the Java Sea, America sent a small army of men over to assist in the theatre. America’s Pacific presence was purely made up of transports (as all of their warships had been sent to the Atlantic to fight England), but with Livonian escorts they could now operate in the area.
In Africa, the situation was flipping once again in favor of the Western Pact. Khalij simply lacked the military experience or production to keep up with the continuous reinforcements in the west, so now the Pact forces were advancing once again. In the east, Livonian soldiers were still retreating back to friendly territory, although they would meet the enemy there as well.
But the European theatre saw the most action in January as the northern breakthrough succeeded and Coalition forces began flooding into northern Brabant. Despite their speed though, capturing the heavily fortified regions and securing supply lines would take a long time.
Along the main border, devastating trench warfare continued. Luneburg was the smaller of the two battles, and thanks to the northern push Brabant was having trouble supplying their soldiers here. Livonian soldiers were gaining the upper hand, but progress was excruciatingly slow.
But Brunswick was where the real carnage was, and January proved to be devastating for the Livonians. The combination of several failed attacks, and horrible attrition caused by supply difficulties during winter resulted in the death of 70,000 Livonian soldiers this month alone, to Brabant’s 20,000. Still, the enormous commitment to these battles had weakened Brabant in the north, allowing the rest of the armies to succeed.
Meanwhile, tensions between the neutral countries Al-Turkis and Iraq had been rising. Iraq was being protected by England, and the current war gave them an opening to attack Al-Turkis without having to worry about Livonia. In response, the government of Al-Turkis formed a direct alliance with Livonia at the end of January, although they still stayed out of the war.
And at the start of February, the government of Rom officially capitulated to Genoa. For the moment, Rom was forced to turn over all of its military equipment to Genoa and pay them enormous sums of money for the duration of the war. With the loss of Rom, the Coalition lost all ability to project in the Mediterranean.
At this point, Sumatra had been completely occupied by the Coalition, and the English army in Java was about to surrender to the Livonian colonial forces after months of holding out against the locals.
And in March, Arabia was essentially under Livonian control – Isbania’s colonial empire was now completely occupied.
In Brabant, the northern advance continued at a very slow pace, and the Battle of Luneburg was also wrapping up as huge artillery forces were committed to the battle. In Brunswick, the defenders still held strong although Pomeranija was sending tons of newly-recruited infantry to reinforce the attack.
Only one month after its surrender, another separatist rebellion broke out in Naples. As Rom’s army had been completely dismantled by Genoa, the rebels were free to capture the region unopposed. Genoa had no reason to intervene here; the fracture of their main rival would actually be a good thing – so they did nothing to stop it.
Later in the month, the people of Guyana were caught by complete surprise when Genoese soldiers landed at the colony. While there was a local garrison, it was too small and poorly equipped to stop Genoa from capturing the area.
On March 31 of 1901, the battle of Luneburg finally concluded after six months of nonstop trench warfare. Now that the huge army devoted to the battle was freed up, more soldiers could be devoted to the main front, while a few were moved to Brunswick to assist there.
In Lower Africa, the Coalition’s front line collapsed as almost the entire west was taken by Isbania, and English reinforcements overwhelmed the remaining Livonian armies. The Pact’s forces were now approaching the border of Khalij, and the Livonians’ were quickly running out of space.
And Misr was in serious trouble – the encirclement near Benghazi had freed up the north for a rapid advance, which now had spread all the way past the Nile and into Livonian territory where the Suez canal was under attack. The Canal hadn’t been useable by the Coalition for a while after the enemy’s control of the seas, but it had also blocked any of the Pact’s ships from going through – something which was about to change.
One month after the victory at Luneburg, the front line in Brabant had barely moved. The majority of the armies were still trying to fully capture the territory from the northern push earlier in the year, and the rest were in the middle of an all-out assault on the trenches in Brunswick, where massive Coalition casualties were piling up. However, Pomeranija was fighting to cut off Brunswick from the rest of the country, hoping to starve out the defenders of supplies as they had in Luneburg.
During the encirclement in North Africa, it seemed that Livonia’s army would be forced to surrender – however, a surprising maneuver managed to solve both this issue and another. The advance through Misr caused the Livonian ships to leave port in Suez and enter the Mediterranean. Soon, they managed to load most of the encircled soldiers onboard and land them in Sicily, where the armies would then proceed to suppress the Neapolitan revolt. It was a bold move that ultimately managed to maintain the unity of Italy, at the cost of a faster defeat in North Africa and the scuttling of the navy detachment which had pulled off the maneuver.
Africa, from Suez to Khalij, was lost. Brabant was in dire straits as well. It was crucial that the advance through Europe continue if the Coalition wished to win this war, because the damage to the colonies that enemy occupation would bring was very dangerous to the future of the empire.
Now the Coalition had gained naval superiority in the Indies following the Battle of the Java Sea, America sent a small army of men over to assist in the theatre. America’s Pacific presence was purely made up of transports (as all of their warships had been sent to the Atlantic to fight England), but with Livonian escorts they could now operate in the area.
In Africa, the situation was flipping once again in favor of the Western Pact. Khalij simply lacked the military experience or production to keep up with the continuous reinforcements in the west, so now the Pact forces were advancing once again. In the east, Livonian soldiers were still retreating back to friendly territory, although they would meet the enemy there as well.
But the European theatre saw the most action in January as the northern breakthrough succeeded and Coalition forces began flooding into northern Brabant. Despite their speed though, capturing the heavily fortified regions and securing supply lines would take a long time.
Along the main border, devastating trench warfare continued. Luneburg was the smaller of the two battles, and thanks to the northern push Brabant was having trouble supplying their soldiers here. Livonian soldiers were gaining the upper hand, but progress was excruciatingly slow.
But Brunswick was where the real carnage was, and January proved to be devastating for the Livonians. The combination of several failed attacks, and horrible attrition caused by supply difficulties during winter resulted in the death of 70,000 Livonian soldiers this month alone, to Brabant’s 20,000. Still, the enormous commitment to these battles had weakened Brabant in the north, allowing the rest of the armies to succeed.
Meanwhile, tensions between the neutral countries Al-Turkis and Iraq had been rising. Iraq was being protected by England, and the current war gave them an opening to attack Al-Turkis without having to worry about Livonia. In response, the government of Al-Turkis formed a direct alliance with Livonia at the end of January, although they still stayed out of the war.
And at the start of February, the government of Rom officially capitulated to Genoa. For the moment, Rom was forced to turn over all of its military equipment to Genoa and pay them enormous sums of money for the duration of the war. With the loss of Rom, the Coalition lost all ability to project in the Mediterranean.
At this point, Sumatra had been completely occupied by the Coalition, and the English army in Java was about to surrender to the Livonian colonial forces after months of holding out against the locals.
And in March, Arabia was essentially under Livonian control – Isbania’s colonial empire was now completely occupied.
In Brabant, the northern advance continued at a very slow pace, and the Battle of Luneburg was also wrapping up as huge artillery forces were committed to the battle. In Brunswick, the defenders still held strong although Pomeranija was sending tons of newly-recruited infantry to reinforce the attack.
Only one month after its surrender, another separatist rebellion broke out in Naples. As Rom’s army had been completely dismantled by Genoa, the rebels were free to capture the region unopposed. Genoa had no reason to intervene here; the fracture of their main rival would actually be a good thing – so they did nothing to stop it.
Later in the month, the people of Guyana were caught by complete surprise when Genoese soldiers landed at the colony. While there was a local garrison, it was too small and poorly equipped to stop Genoa from capturing the area.
On March 31 of 1901, the battle of Luneburg finally concluded after six months of nonstop trench warfare. Now that the huge army devoted to the battle was freed up, more soldiers could be devoted to the main front, while a few were moved to Brunswick to assist there.
In Lower Africa, the Coalition’s front line collapsed as almost the entire west was taken by Isbania, and English reinforcements overwhelmed the remaining Livonian armies. The Pact’s forces were now approaching the border of Khalij, and the Livonians’ were quickly running out of space.
And Misr was in serious trouble – the encirclement near Benghazi had freed up the north for a rapid advance, which now had spread all the way past the Nile and into Livonian territory where the Suez canal was under attack. The Canal hadn’t been useable by the Coalition for a while after the enemy’s control of the seas, but it had also blocked any of the Pact’s ships from going through – something which was about to change.
One month after the victory at Luneburg, the front line in Brabant had barely moved. The majority of the armies were still trying to fully capture the territory from the northern push earlier in the year, and the rest were in the middle of an all-out assault on the trenches in Brunswick, where massive Coalition casualties were piling up. However, Pomeranija was fighting to cut off Brunswick from the rest of the country, hoping to starve out the defenders of supplies as they had in Luneburg.
During the encirclement in North Africa, it seemed that Livonia’s army would be forced to surrender – however, a surprising maneuver managed to solve both this issue and another. The advance through Misr caused the Livonian ships to leave port in Suez and enter the Mediterranean. Soon, they managed to load most of the encircled soldiers onboard and land them in Sicily, where the armies would then proceed to suppress the Neapolitan revolt. It was a bold move that ultimately managed to maintain the unity of Italy, at the cost of a faster defeat in North Africa and the scuttling of the navy detachment which had pulled off the maneuver.
Africa, from Suez to Khalij, was lost. Brabant was in dire straits as well. It was crucial that the advance through Europe continue if the Coalition wished to win this war, because the damage to the colonies that enemy occupation would bring was very dangerous to the future of the empire.
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Sorry about the delay. I was gone for several days and came back with a bad case of the Flu. Finally back in action now though
We'll see. Other allies will contribute quite a lot as well.
That's a really good quote, I can imagine that being spread in Pomeranija around this time.
Thanks, glad you like it. I tend to flail around with my graphics and occasionally they work well
We'll see. Other allies will contribute quite a lot as well.
That's a really good quote, I can imagine that being spread in Pomeranija around this time.
Thanks, glad you like it. I tend to flail around with my graphics and occasionally they work well
Good to see this back!
You know I'm (not so) secretly rooting for Genoa, but this is very captivating to follow.
I imagine it is quite tedious to keep all the different theatres in check?
You know I'm (not so) secretly rooting for Genoa, but this is very captivating to follow.
I imagine it is quite tedious to keep all the different theatres in check?
One bad event managed to help prevent another.
Thanks
Heh.
Do you mean keep them in check in gameplay or in the AAR?