Gameplay-wise. I imagine you pause to write up the happenings in every region for the story, so gameplay should be more taxing.
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Gameplay-wise. I imagine you pause to write up the happenings in every region for the story, so gameplay should be more taxing.
Actually, when I'm playing I just take an excessive amount of screenshots and do the writeups afterwards to avoid that. This also stops the problem of writing about something you think could be important in the future that ends up being irrelevant.
In the past I have gotten annoyed at world wars in V2 and the tedium of micromanaging so much, but here I've purposely tried to take it slow and pay attention to everything, so it actually has been quite fun.
Chapter 27: Great War – Breakthrough (May 1901 – Feb 1902)
After the sudden collapse of Misr and the Suez, the government of Iraq decided that now was the perfect time to strike against Al-Turkis. When war was declared, it escalated (as expected) to become another theatre of The Great War, since Al-Turkis was allied to Livonia and Iraq was protected by England.
Iraq wanted to take a chunk out of Anatolia, but their state of war against the rest of the Coalition allowed expansion into Misr’s Levant territory as well, where there was practically no opposition left. The army of Al-Turkis was much smaller in size, but they had the advantage of more modern equipment and a very defensible border, supplemented by an impressive string of recent fortifications.
By June, the occupation of Northern Brabant was wrapping up and the majority of the army was pushing farther south to the border with Bavaria. The defenders in Brunswick still held strong, although the land around them would soon be fully occupied. Meanwhile, one advance force was pushing straight for Brabant’s capital.
On June 26, the Brabantian army defending Brunswick finally accepted the futility of dragging out the carnage any further and surrendered. The end result of the battle was around 560,000 casualties, primarily Livonian. This battle, along with Luneburg, would become the most iconic of the entire war and have a huge influence on warfare in the future.
In September, Misr was going through some serious internal issues. Most of their country was occupied, and that which hadn’t been was now being taken by Iraq. Popular support for the government was nonexistent – its repressive policies and refusal to modernize had brought the country to ruin. The huge presence of European soldiers in the country which normally had closed borders also was a huge shock to many of the locals, who weren’t aware of the quality of living that foreigners experienced.
As the government declared bankruptcy and all but dissolved, a huge void was left in the country. Foreign occupiers were managing most of the locals at the moment, but it was clear that when they left, the old regime would not return.
Iraq’s entry into the war also reopened southern Arabia as a front, although not for long – Isbani soldiers entered the region through Iraq’s borders in numbers that were far too large to oppose.
Over the next four months, almost the entirety of Brabant was taken, including the capital. As the occupation wrapped up and surrender approached, Livonian armies secretly began moving into Aquitaine to prepare for the future attacks against Genoa and Isbania.
With America and Livonia’s complete naval dominance of the main Atlantic, the former was now free to devote far more men to the conflict. Already, American soldiers were being landed in Brabant to help wrap up the occupation there, after which they would hold the area and help with the future invasion of Isbania.
Internally in Livonia, the war was putting a big strain on the country. Vilis Berkis’ new restrictions on factories, as well as the mass conscription of working men, caused the consumer goods industries to suffer. In addition, the loss of the Suez Canal and African resources in general was causing shortages across the country.
This led to mass protests in October. During wartime the government had neither the force nor political capital to effectively deal with such a movement, so in response the police force was greatly expanded with old military equipment and less restrictions on their operation. In the short term, this worked, although there would certainly be backlash at the end of the war.
In January of 1902, the government of Brabant capitulated to Livonia and Pomeranija. At the start of the war, Brabant hadn’t been considered a major opponent, but the aggression into Pomeranija and subsequent trench warfare had caused tremendous resentment against the country. At the Treaty of Hamburg, the Pomeranians came up with a rather extreme solution.
Brabant would be split – the Northern German population along most of the east would be given their own, independent federation – a more decentralized democracy, not too different than the current system of Pomeranija. In the west, the Dutch core of Brabant would remain independent, but at only a fraction of the size. The country of Holland was also annexed by Brabant, since what remained of the country was a more similar culture, and Holland was the only part of the country that wasn’t in ruin after the war.
This treaty came as a tremendous outrage to the Coalition. After all, Rom hadn’t been treated in such a way after their capitulation (although a Neapolitan independence would likely have succeeded if Livonia hadn’t intervened). The people of Rom were quite fearful of a Genoese response, but with the Coalition buildup within Aquitaine, Genoa would soon be too distracted to worry about Rom anyways.
During the war in Brabant, artillery tactics and technology had evolved quite a bit in response to the stalemate along the border. Indirect fire was already a widely used tactic by this point, but the process was refined greatly during the conflict. While implementing any sort of large-scale change in an army over such a short period of time was basically impossible, tactics and equipment would steadily improve from this point on within all of the modern European armies.
Only a week after the surrender of Brabant, on January 18 of 1902, Aquitaine officially joined the war. The suddenness of the declaration staggered the remaining Western Pact members, who weren’t aware of the scale of Livonia’s army stationed within Aquitaine already.
The plan was to rush into Genoa and quickly occupy as much of their country as possible in order to cripple their industry – the same concept as Rom had planned in 1900, but with the army to back it up this time. Aquitaine and the rest of Livonia’s satellites would deal with the Isbani border, where the plan was to push up to the mountains and hold the area until Genoa had fallen.
One day later, Khalij officially surrendered to the Western Pact. They now occupied all of Lower Africa, and England was preparing to take Madagascar.
The offensive into Genoa was aggressive: within a few weeks, the defenders along the border were forced to fall back to form a more solid defensive line, giving up valuable land. At the start of February, battles were being waged as far as Novara and the City of Genoa.
One month later, the offensive devastated Genoa and nearly half of the country was lost, including the capital. The speed of the success can be attributed to Livonia’s experienced and far better-equipped army, as well as the shock of the invasion – Genoa’s army, while large, lacked quality equipment and lagged behind its allies. This was already somewhat evident during the Invasion of Rom when they took huge casualties against the defenders, but there they had been able to succeed due to a numerical advantage which they now lacked.
And surprisingly, the Isbani front wasn’t nearly as well-defended as the Coalition had expected - it turned out that the majority of their forces had been stationed in North Africa or overseas. The Baltic Navy was currently blockading the Gibraltar strait, making quick transport impossible for the Isbani. They still were able to move along the inner Mediterranean, but it took precious time to do so.
The forces of Aquitaine started to push past the mountainous border and into the country itself, taking advantage of the temporary weakness. In addition, a large American invasion force was attacking Galicia, where no Isbani defenses were located.
1902 was already becoming a year of huge victories for the Coalition. Despite the bleak situation in Africa and the Middle East, their success in Europe would be paramount in winning the war, and Aquitaine’s entry into the fight helped to highlight just how fragile the previously terrifying countries of Genoa and Isbania were. Still, the war was putting a huge strain upon the Livonian Empire – at this point, victory would be essential if the country was to hold itself together.
After the sudden collapse of Misr and the Suez, the government of Iraq decided that now was the perfect time to strike against Al-Turkis. When war was declared, it escalated (as expected) to become another theatre of The Great War, since Al-Turkis was allied to Livonia and Iraq was protected by England.
Iraq wanted to take a chunk out of Anatolia, but their state of war against the rest of the Coalition allowed expansion into Misr’s Levant territory as well, where there was practically no opposition left. The army of Al-Turkis was much smaller in size, but they had the advantage of more modern equipment and a very defensible border, supplemented by an impressive string of recent fortifications.
By June, the occupation of Northern Brabant was wrapping up and the majority of the army was pushing farther south to the border with Bavaria. The defenders in Brunswick still held strong, although the land around them would soon be fully occupied. Meanwhile, one advance force was pushing straight for Brabant’s capital.
On June 26, the Brabantian army defending Brunswick finally accepted the futility of dragging out the carnage any further and surrendered. The end result of the battle was around 560,000 casualties, primarily Livonian. This battle, along with Luneburg, would become the most iconic of the entire war and have a huge influence on warfare in the future.
In September, Misr was going through some serious internal issues. Most of their country was occupied, and that which hadn’t been was now being taken by Iraq. Popular support for the government was nonexistent – its repressive policies and refusal to modernize had brought the country to ruin. The huge presence of European soldiers in the country which normally had closed borders also was a huge shock to many of the locals, who weren’t aware of the quality of living that foreigners experienced.
As the government declared bankruptcy and all but dissolved, a huge void was left in the country. Foreign occupiers were managing most of the locals at the moment, but it was clear that when they left, the old regime would not return.
Iraq’s entry into the war also reopened southern Arabia as a front, although not for long – Isbani soldiers entered the region through Iraq’s borders in numbers that were far too large to oppose.
Over the next four months, almost the entirety of Brabant was taken, including the capital. As the occupation wrapped up and surrender approached, Livonian armies secretly began moving into Aquitaine to prepare for the future attacks against Genoa and Isbania.
With America and Livonia’s complete naval dominance of the main Atlantic, the former was now free to devote far more men to the conflict. Already, American soldiers were being landed in Brabant to help wrap up the occupation there, after which they would hold the area and help with the future invasion of Isbania.
Internally in Livonia, the war was putting a big strain on the country. Vilis Berkis’ new restrictions on factories, as well as the mass conscription of working men, caused the consumer goods industries to suffer. In addition, the loss of the Suez Canal and African resources in general was causing shortages across the country.
This led to mass protests in October. During wartime the government had neither the force nor political capital to effectively deal with such a movement, so in response the police force was greatly expanded with old military equipment and less restrictions on their operation. In the short term, this worked, although there would certainly be backlash at the end of the war.
In January of 1902, the government of Brabant capitulated to Livonia and Pomeranija. At the start of the war, Brabant hadn’t been considered a major opponent, but the aggression into Pomeranija and subsequent trench warfare had caused tremendous resentment against the country. At the Treaty of Hamburg, the Pomeranians came up with a rather extreme solution.
Brabant would be split – the Northern German population along most of the east would be given their own, independent federation – a more decentralized democracy, not too different than the current system of Pomeranija. In the west, the Dutch core of Brabant would remain independent, but at only a fraction of the size. The country of Holland was also annexed by Brabant, since what remained of the country was a more similar culture, and Holland was the only part of the country that wasn’t in ruin after the war.
This treaty came as a tremendous outrage to the Coalition. After all, Rom hadn’t been treated in such a way after their capitulation (although a Neapolitan independence would likely have succeeded if Livonia hadn’t intervened). The people of Rom were quite fearful of a Genoese response, but with the Coalition buildup within Aquitaine, Genoa would soon be too distracted to worry about Rom anyways.
During the war in Brabant, artillery tactics and technology had evolved quite a bit in response to the stalemate along the border. Indirect fire was already a widely used tactic by this point, but the process was refined greatly during the conflict. While implementing any sort of large-scale change in an army over such a short period of time was basically impossible, tactics and equipment would steadily improve from this point on within all of the modern European armies.
Only a week after the surrender of Brabant, on January 18 of 1902, Aquitaine officially joined the war. The suddenness of the declaration staggered the remaining Western Pact members, who weren’t aware of the scale of Livonia’s army stationed within Aquitaine already.
The plan was to rush into Genoa and quickly occupy as much of their country as possible in order to cripple their industry – the same concept as Rom had planned in 1900, but with the army to back it up this time. Aquitaine and the rest of Livonia’s satellites would deal with the Isbani border, where the plan was to push up to the mountains and hold the area until Genoa had fallen.
One day later, Khalij officially surrendered to the Western Pact. They now occupied all of Lower Africa, and England was preparing to take Madagascar.
The offensive into Genoa was aggressive: within a few weeks, the defenders along the border were forced to fall back to form a more solid defensive line, giving up valuable land. At the start of February, battles were being waged as far as Novara and the City of Genoa.
One month later, the offensive devastated Genoa and nearly half of the country was lost, including the capital. The speed of the success can be attributed to Livonia’s experienced and far better-equipped army, as well as the shock of the invasion – Genoa’s army, while large, lacked quality equipment and lagged behind its allies. This was already somewhat evident during the Invasion of Rom when they took huge casualties against the defenders, but there they had been able to succeed due to a numerical advantage which they now lacked.
And surprisingly, the Isbani front wasn’t nearly as well-defended as the Coalition had expected - it turned out that the majority of their forces had been stationed in North Africa or overseas. The Baltic Navy was currently blockading the Gibraltar strait, making quick transport impossible for the Isbani. They still were able to move along the inner Mediterranean, but it took precious time to do so.
The forces of Aquitaine started to push past the mountainous border and into the country itself, taking advantage of the temporary weakness. In addition, a large American invasion force was attacking Galicia, where no Isbani defenses were located.
1902 was already becoming a year of huge victories for the Coalition. Despite the bleak situation in Africa and the Middle East, their success in Europe would be paramount in winning the war, and Aquitaine’s entry into the fight helped to highlight just how fragile the previously terrifying countries of Genoa and Isbania were. Still, the war was putting a huge strain upon the Livonian Empire – at this point, victory would be essential if the country was to hold itself together.
The Battle of Bruswick. The bloody abbatoir of Brunswick.
It really does feel like the Stalingrad of this war however.
But the cost to Livonia has to be astronomical.
It really does feel like the Stalingrad of this war however.
But the cost to Livonia has to be astronomical.
What a shame. Kudos on winning the war though! Nicely done, I would have imagined that Isbania and England put up more of a fight though. England made itself especially scarce in terms of troop commitment.
Much more of a Verdun than a Stalingrad
England committed a LOT of its troops to overseas - although mainly in Africa. The rest of them are still at home, which is probably a consequence of the American/Livonian blockade. Isbania also has the majority of its troops stuck in North Africa.
Finally
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Chapter 28: Great War – Conclusion (Feb 1902 – Nov 1903)
By late May, the new offensive had managed to push the bulk of Genoa’s army into Emilia and the Alps. It was here that they started to put up a much tougher defense than they had earlier – from this moment on, the casualty rate of the invaders would exceed Genoa’s by quite a bit.
But Isbania still failed to put up any serious resistance when Aquitanean and Livonian soldiers pushed into Catalonia. The American landing in the west was going well too, now pushing south despite the lack of reinforcements.
By July, the Genoese armies were holding strong in the Alps, while in the south the remaining defenders were pushed back to a final defensive line along the Roman border.
While a victory of attrition against the remaining soldiers would have been fairly easy, the Coalition was surprised to receive an offer by Bavaria, who wanted their Alpine territory back. While it was a bit late for the country to contribute to the war, their delay had been necessary given the pathetic state of their military in 1900. The offer was accepted, and suddenly the Genoese found themselves completely surrounded.
In August, the situation in Asia was complicated by a sudden Pattani attack. At some point they had realized that Livonia’s Asian soldiers were all fighting elsewhere, and decided to take advantage of the situation to retake their land in Indochina. There was little the Livonian soldiers could do, since they had been preparing for an invasion of Brunei. Instead, they were shipped to Malaya to defend the most valuable part of the empire.
By this point, Isbania was desperately conscripting soldiers in the homeland to try and stop the Aquitaneans, but they found limited success. Catalonia had already been occupied, although ironically the Aquitanean land along the border was still holding out, as it was much more fortified. The American soldiers were currently moving east to try and form a unified front in the north.
In September, perhaps the most ambitious plan in the war was executed – a naval invasion of England. Such an attack had been considered by Livonians for centuries, but the soldiers who actually landed on the continent ended up being Pomeranian. Since the formation of their new government, Pomeranija had been building up quite an impressive army, so with the assistance of the Baltic and American navies a plan was put in place to land them in England while the other European invasions were underway.
The initial landing went well, as English soldiers hadn’t been expecting an invasion so early. Still, England was an extremely powerful country, and it wasn’t long before they managed to regroup and form a solid defense.
On November 20th of 1902, the government of Genoa surrendered to the Coalition. Unlike the situation with Brabant, Genoa wasn’t forced into any final agreement just yet – that would be delayed until the final conclusion of the war, which at this rate wouldn’t be too much longer. However, in the meantime the government of Rom insisted on taking control of Emilia and the island of Sardinia.
At the end of the year, the American and Aquitanean forces met up and continued the push south. Meanwhile the fighting in England had reached a stalemate after an English counterattack, which had pushed the Pomeranian armies back to the southeast coast – although they still held London.
In February of 1903, the capital of Misr was seized by Communists, seeking a radical revolution which could transform the country into a modern state. The country was still completely occupied by the Western Pact, but at this point it was essentially in a state of anarchy as the armies of England and Isbania were pulled out to defend their homelands.
This complicated relations with the Coalition – Misr’s new government wasn’t recognized by any of its former allies, but it seemed likely they would be the ones to take over the country. Any foreign intervention would require a huge number of soldiers, which nobody on either side was willing to commit at this point.
By March, the push though Isbania had nearly approached the southern coast of Europe and naval control of the Mediterranean was restored to the Coalition. Afterwards, Bavarian soldiers landed in Tunisia and began capturing Isbani North Africa – eager to contribute something to the war so they could sit at the negotiating table.
Meanwhile, anarchy broke out in Genoa, as radical leftist rebels rose up across the entire country. This revolt would end up crippling Genoa for the next year or two, and ultimately bring an end to the old central government.
For the course of the entire Turkish-Iraqi front of the war, not much had changed – Iraq sent masses of invaders to attack the country, while the Turkish fought back with an excellent defense. The Iraqi army was extremely disorganized and proved to be hugely incompetent during the war, despite their overwhelming majority in numbers. At this point, around a year later, Iraq was beginning to lose to the armies of Karenia and Kiev, who pushed forward along the Caucasian border.
Not too long after, the governments of Iraq and Al-Turkis agreed to a ceasefire – Iraq was clearly not going to win, but a full-scale invasion of Iraq would be very costly and accomplish little.
After huge reinforcements from Aquitaine and Bavaria, the Pomeranians managed to break the English defense in 1903 and push far into the country. The blockade was taking its toll now, and at the rate the war was going it seemed likely that England would capitulate soon. The war had been going on for quite a while now and the casualties on both sides were quite enormous. In addition, the country was being absolutely devastated by both the fighting and occupation.
Rom’s occupation of Sicily proved to be controversial, and soon afterwards a nationalist revolt began. The government was currently in the middle of some huge changes (and the army was still only beginning to be rebuilt after the capitulation of Genoa), so it would take the assistance of the Coalition to stop the rebels.
Finally, in November of 1903, England and Isbania announced the surrender of the Western Pact to the Coalition. After years of fighting across the globe, the war had reached its end. The ensuing peace talks, despite much planning beforehand, took weeks to negotiate – particularly regarding the fate of the colonies, where very few of the Coalition countries had legitimate claims.
The Communist government of Misr was left out of the negotiations – despite the massive casualties the country had taken in the fighting, Livonia refused to allow this new radical government to make any gains.
Given the nature of the Coalition, with promises made left and right, the peace demands turned out to be rather extreme. Each Pact country was accused of various ‘international crimes’, which were used as a justification for the cessation of various territories. At the end, this became the most extreme change in global borders to ever happen at once, and shockwaves would ripple through every country as everybody adjusted to the new world which had been formed by the Coalition.
By late May, the new offensive had managed to push the bulk of Genoa’s army into Emilia and the Alps. It was here that they started to put up a much tougher defense than they had earlier – from this moment on, the casualty rate of the invaders would exceed Genoa’s by quite a bit.
But Isbania still failed to put up any serious resistance when Aquitanean and Livonian soldiers pushed into Catalonia. The American landing in the west was going well too, now pushing south despite the lack of reinforcements.
By July, the Genoese armies were holding strong in the Alps, while in the south the remaining defenders were pushed back to a final defensive line along the Roman border.
While a victory of attrition against the remaining soldiers would have been fairly easy, the Coalition was surprised to receive an offer by Bavaria, who wanted their Alpine territory back. While it was a bit late for the country to contribute to the war, their delay had been necessary given the pathetic state of their military in 1900. The offer was accepted, and suddenly the Genoese found themselves completely surrounded.
In August, the situation in Asia was complicated by a sudden Pattani attack. At some point they had realized that Livonia’s Asian soldiers were all fighting elsewhere, and decided to take advantage of the situation to retake their land in Indochina. There was little the Livonian soldiers could do, since they had been preparing for an invasion of Brunei. Instead, they were shipped to Malaya to defend the most valuable part of the empire.
By this point, Isbania was desperately conscripting soldiers in the homeland to try and stop the Aquitaneans, but they found limited success. Catalonia had already been occupied, although ironically the Aquitanean land along the border was still holding out, as it was much more fortified. The American soldiers were currently moving east to try and form a unified front in the north.
In September, perhaps the most ambitious plan in the war was executed – a naval invasion of England. Such an attack had been considered by Livonians for centuries, but the soldiers who actually landed on the continent ended up being Pomeranian. Since the formation of their new government, Pomeranija had been building up quite an impressive army, so with the assistance of the Baltic and American navies a plan was put in place to land them in England while the other European invasions were underway.
The initial landing went well, as English soldiers hadn’t been expecting an invasion so early. Still, England was an extremely powerful country, and it wasn’t long before they managed to regroup and form a solid defense.
On November 20th of 1902, the government of Genoa surrendered to the Coalition. Unlike the situation with Brabant, Genoa wasn’t forced into any final agreement just yet – that would be delayed until the final conclusion of the war, which at this rate wouldn’t be too much longer. However, in the meantime the government of Rom insisted on taking control of Emilia and the island of Sardinia.
At the end of the year, the American and Aquitanean forces met up and continued the push south. Meanwhile the fighting in England had reached a stalemate after an English counterattack, which had pushed the Pomeranian armies back to the southeast coast – although they still held London.
In February of 1903, the capital of Misr was seized by Communists, seeking a radical revolution which could transform the country into a modern state. The country was still completely occupied by the Western Pact, but at this point it was essentially in a state of anarchy as the armies of England and Isbania were pulled out to defend their homelands.
This complicated relations with the Coalition – Misr’s new government wasn’t recognized by any of its former allies, but it seemed likely they would be the ones to take over the country. Any foreign intervention would require a huge number of soldiers, which nobody on either side was willing to commit at this point.
By March, the push though Isbania had nearly approached the southern coast of Europe and naval control of the Mediterranean was restored to the Coalition. Afterwards, Bavarian soldiers landed in Tunisia and began capturing Isbani North Africa – eager to contribute something to the war so they could sit at the negotiating table.
Meanwhile, anarchy broke out in Genoa, as radical leftist rebels rose up across the entire country. This revolt would end up crippling Genoa for the next year or two, and ultimately bring an end to the old central government.
For the course of the entire Turkish-Iraqi front of the war, not much had changed – Iraq sent masses of invaders to attack the country, while the Turkish fought back with an excellent defense. The Iraqi army was extremely disorganized and proved to be hugely incompetent during the war, despite their overwhelming majority in numbers. At this point, around a year later, Iraq was beginning to lose to the armies of Karenia and Kiev, who pushed forward along the Caucasian border.
Not too long after, the governments of Iraq and Al-Turkis agreed to a ceasefire – Iraq was clearly not going to win, but a full-scale invasion of Iraq would be very costly and accomplish little.
After huge reinforcements from Aquitaine and Bavaria, the Pomeranians managed to break the English defense in 1903 and push far into the country. The blockade was taking its toll now, and at the rate the war was going it seemed likely that England would capitulate soon. The war had been going on for quite a while now and the casualties on both sides were quite enormous. In addition, the country was being absolutely devastated by both the fighting and occupation.
Rom’s occupation of Sicily proved to be controversial, and soon afterwards a nationalist revolt began. The government was currently in the middle of some huge changes (and the army was still only beginning to be rebuilt after the capitulation of Genoa), so it would take the assistance of the Coalition to stop the rebels.
Finally, in November of 1903, England and Isbania announced the surrender of the Western Pact to the Coalition. After years of fighting across the globe, the war had reached its end. The ensuing peace talks, despite much planning beforehand, took weeks to negotiate – particularly regarding the fate of the colonies, where very few of the Coalition countries had legitimate claims.
The Communist government of Misr was left out of the negotiations – despite the massive casualties the country had taken in the fighting, Livonia refused to allow this new radical government to make any gains.
Given the nature of the Coalition, with promises made left and right, the peace demands turned out to be rather extreme. Each Pact country was accused of various ‘international crimes’, which were used as a justification for the cessation of various territories. At the end, this became the most extreme change in global borders to ever happen at once, and shockwaves would ripple through every country as everybody adjusted to the new world which had been formed by the Coalition.
The next post on the peace treaties is going to be epic.
Except ... will it be a peace treaty - or merely a de-facto truce before the Western Pact seeks revenge?
Except ... will it be a peace treaty - or merely a de-facto truce before the Western Pact seeks revenge?
Well, one thing to keep in mind is that the Coalition was just that - a few allies and several vultures. Now that the war is over, most of the countries will go their separate ways.
I am really curious to see how that plays out
@Centurial You have made amazing work both with your mod and your writing presentation ! Its been long time sicne the last time I was checkign imaptiently for a Vic2 AAR progress.It is great to see a kinda " old " game to be still alive and attract people with such an engaging story to tell.Lat but not least would it be too much if I asked to get my hands on this terrific mod ?
LONG LIVE LIIVIMAA!
LONG LIVE LIIVIMAA!
@Centurial You have made amazing work both with your mod and your writing presentation ! Its been long time sicne the last time I was checkign imaptiently for a Vic2 AAR progress.It is great to see a kinda " old " game to be still alive and attract people with such an engaging story to tell.Lat but not least would it be too much if I asked to get my hands on this terrific mod ?
LONG LIVE LIIVIMAA!
Aww, thanks
I can send the mod, but it's extremely finnicky - I had to do a lot of savegame modding and whatnot to get it to work, and during gameplay theres a been a lot of behind-the-scenes bandaids I've had to deal with. If you still want it I can PM you a savefile/mod, but there might be issues (That being said, it is really fun to mess with. A while back I tried playing as Aquitaine and re-revolutioning to great success)
Saracens are fallen! Italy shall be united!
Unlike vanilla V2, Italy actually does have a chance to succeed here
@Centurial I woudl be interested in this pm Your story brought me back sweet memories since this was my first real pd game and the first one I playedd mp as well
Your story brought me back sweet memories since this was my first real pd game and the first one I playedd mp as well 
Chapter 29: The Treaty of 1903 (November)
The end of the Great War in 1903 resulted in the redrawing of borders all across the world. By far, the biggest loser of the war was England, which had its massive colonial empire destroyed (as well as its industrial heartland during the invasion)
However, the country of Brabant was even more physically devastated. The worst fighting of the whole war took place directly on its border, and the subsequent occupation only worsened conditions. Finally, the surrender of Brabant led to the forced cessation of the North German Federation, which made up about ¾ of the country’s former territory (excluding Holland) – completely cutting off a big portion of the country’s manufacturing and resources which the rest had relied on.
In 1903, the borders of the NGF were slightly revised at the end of the war, with Danija receiving a small chunk of Holstein. More importantly though, the occupying armies of Livonia, Pomeranija, and Kuyavia finally left the country, leaving it to its fate. Unlike some of the countries propped up by war in the past (such as France), this new country wasn’t controlled by a foreign power – it was simply allowed to exist in a sovereign form. The Livonians hoped that the introduction of a new potential power in the area might distract those nearby, especially given the cultural similarities between the new NGF and most of its neighbors which could easily lead to conflict.
The other major border shift in Europe was between Isbania and Aquitaine. As expected, the southeastern region of Aquitaine was returned to the country after several decades of occupation. If properly integrated, this area could easily become one of the most valuable sections of the country given its dense population and resources. In addition, the more extreme claim of Catalonia was demanded – this region had little cultural similarity to Aquitaine, but was also quite valuable; it also ensured an easy route to invasion should another war against Isbania happen in the future.
One huge change actually happened within one of the “victors” of the war. After being freed from Genoese wartime control, the dual-government of Rom and Naples was scrapped and replaced by a fully centralized Italian state. This new Italy was similar in government style to most other European countries, and finally cut out most of the bureaucratic nonsense that had strained the previous government. The new Italian borders had already been established after the surrender of Genoa in 1902 – Emilia was returned, and the island of Sardinia was taken from Genoa.
Genoa itself was in a state of complete chaos – the government had been destroyed by a radical anarchist militia, and now several different ideological factions were in arms trying to reconstruct the country in their own vision. Consequently, Bavaria actually had to fight their way to their new claimed border in the Alps, although their professional military easily did so against the disorganized rebels.
The largest physical change of borders was in Africa, where England’s colonial empire was partitioned between the major powers within the Coalition. The resource-rich country of Zaya, previously an Isbani puppet, was turned into an American colony. While the majority of America’s ambitions were in Asia, they had also strived for a presence in Africa, and Zaya was quite a good candidate given its location and value.
The northern English territory was mostly given to Aquitaine, although some land along the West Coast was ceded to Livonia. Aquitaine’s new land started at the location of their former colony along the coast and extended all the way through the Sahara near Misr. As Misr’s new communist government was not recognized, they were not given any of their claims, including any of Isbani North Africa.
Central Africa was mostly given to Italy – the new power was a committed ally to Livonia and their presence along the border would ensure there wouldn’t be another disaster in any potential future war. The failure in Africa had seriously damaged Livonia’s colonies in Africa, both due to local insurgency fueled by England and deliberate sabotage. Khalij had also suffered, although not as badly since the theatre had already been decided by the time foreigners entered their borders.
The Isbani colony in Oman was transferred to Aquitaine. Additionally, to the East the people of Ethiopia were in the middle of a rebellion against the Misri communists, trying to become independent and maintain their way of life – a rebellion which was attracting some international attention from anti-communists.
The other big colonial transfer was in the East Indies. Brunei and Malacca were given to Aquitaine, giving them a presence in Asia as well, while America was given Buton and New Guinea. The nation of Java was also allowed to take the nearby island chain from England.
The Pacific Islands, which had been purchased not too long ago by England, were divided between Livonia and America. Livonia took most of the islands nearest to Asia, while America was given all of the others across the vast ocean, including Hawaii.
Several other islands around the world were taken from the Pact. The Atlantic islands were split between America and Italy; America also took the two Isbani islands near Haiti and the small English outpost in southern Africa. Aquitaine was given Mauritius island near Madagascar to give them a presence in the area.
There was actually a region of the world where the Coalition lost territory – during the period of negotiation, Livonia agreed to end war with Pattani and return their land. Fighting a war against the heavily-populated country after coming out of such an enormous conflict would be unnecessarily risky, and the colony hadn’t been of much value in the first place.
Beyond the territorial changes, severe reparation payments were forced upon the losing powers. Isbania was forced to pay the largest immediate sum, as their country was the least devastated of the Pact, but England was given a huge burden as well. Brabant’s debts would take longer to repay, as the country was in very poor shape. Fines were also meant to be enforced against Genoa, but given the country’s lack of central government at the moment there was little that the Coalition powers could do short of military intervention.
The end of the war also meant the end of both the Western Pact and the Coalition. Naturally, the Pact was forcibly disbanded at the end of the war, leaving the countries with no allies at the moment, although the chance of any of them being attacked in the short term was quite low.
More tricky though was the dissolution of the Coalition – most of its members had only joined for opportunistic reasons and lacked a formal alliance. After the war, the only formal alliances that remained involving Livonia were with Italy and Aquitaine. Even the alliance with Aquitaine had been debated at the end of the war, but it was decided that the new colonial power would be worth aligning with for now (and in addition, there was little risk of Aquitaine fighting a war with any of the major powers any time soon – perhaps the only candidate would be Bavaria, but the alliance with Livonia would easily stop them from attacking).
At the end of the war, many countries had internal issues, including the victors. Livonia had to deal with the closure of many of its factories during the war due to conscription and strikes, as well as the transition back to civilian industry. The North German Federation was a new, untested idea of a country which was currently devastated after the war. What remained of Brabant was also in poor shape, and their reunification with Holland complicated the political situation within the country.
Some of the fighting countries made it out better than before though. Aquitaine had taken relatively few casualties and gained a lot – their main concern would be holding all of their new territory in Europe and overseas. Likewise, America had lost very little during the war, and now their ability to project power across the globe had vastly expanded.
And some countries were in a state of disaster. England had lost its huge access to overseas resources, and the country was in terrible shape after years of blockade and the destruction in the southeast. Isbania was also suffering after combat on their soil, but their biggest issue was with growing discontent against the centuries-old absolute monarchy – the country was practically on the brink of civil war after the Aquitaneans left. And of course, Genoa was in a state of anarchy – devastated by fighting, loss of land, loss of manpower, and now several factions fighting across the country to rule a new Genoa.
Finally, there was Italy. Their situation was perhaps the strangest of all – they had technically instigated the war, lost, and then completely changed forms of government – and yet thanks to continued Livonian support, they were now a colonial power with great potential to rebuild into one of the powerhouses of Europe. However, internally there was a lot of argument and opposition to the new centralized government, which in general allowed the public less personal liberties than the local democracies had.
The end of the Great War in 1903 resulted in the redrawing of borders all across the world. By far, the biggest loser of the war was England, which had its massive colonial empire destroyed (as well as its industrial heartland during the invasion)
However, the country of Brabant was even more physically devastated. The worst fighting of the whole war took place directly on its border, and the subsequent occupation only worsened conditions. Finally, the surrender of Brabant led to the forced cessation of the North German Federation, which made up about ¾ of the country’s former territory (excluding Holland) – completely cutting off a big portion of the country’s manufacturing and resources which the rest had relied on.
In 1903, the borders of the NGF were slightly revised at the end of the war, with Danija receiving a small chunk of Holstein. More importantly though, the occupying armies of Livonia, Pomeranija, and Kuyavia finally left the country, leaving it to its fate. Unlike some of the countries propped up by war in the past (such as France), this new country wasn’t controlled by a foreign power – it was simply allowed to exist in a sovereign form. The Livonians hoped that the introduction of a new potential power in the area might distract those nearby, especially given the cultural similarities between the new NGF and most of its neighbors which could easily lead to conflict.
The other major border shift in Europe was between Isbania and Aquitaine. As expected, the southeastern region of Aquitaine was returned to the country after several decades of occupation. If properly integrated, this area could easily become one of the most valuable sections of the country given its dense population and resources. In addition, the more extreme claim of Catalonia was demanded – this region had little cultural similarity to Aquitaine, but was also quite valuable; it also ensured an easy route to invasion should another war against Isbania happen in the future.
One huge change actually happened within one of the “victors” of the war. After being freed from Genoese wartime control, the dual-government of Rom and Naples was scrapped and replaced by a fully centralized Italian state. This new Italy was similar in government style to most other European countries, and finally cut out most of the bureaucratic nonsense that had strained the previous government. The new Italian borders had already been established after the surrender of Genoa in 1902 – Emilia was returned, and the island of Sardinia was taken from Genoa.
Genoa itself was in a state of complete chaos – the government had been destroyed by a radical anarchist militia, and now several different ideological factions were in arms trying to reconstruct the country in their own vision. Consequently, Bavaria actually had to fight their way to their new claimed border in the Alps, although their professional military easily did so against the disorganized rebels.
The largest physical change of borders was in Africa, where England’s colonial empire was partitioned between the major powers within the Coalition. The resource-rich country of Zaya, previously an Isbani puppet, was turned into an American colony. While the majority of America’s ambitions were in Asia, they had also strived for a presence in Africa, and Zaya was quite a good candidate given its location and value.
The northern English territory was mostly given to Aquitaine, although some land along the West Coast was ceded to Livonia. Aquitaine’s new land started at the location of their former colony along the coast and extended all the way through the Sahara near Misr. As Misr’s new communist government was not recognized, they were not given any of their claims, including any of Isbani North Africa.
Central Africa was mostly given to Italy – the new power was a committed ally to Livonia and their presence along the border would ensure there wouldn’t be another disaster in any potential future war. The failure in Africa had seriously damaged Livonia’s colonies in Africa, both due to local insurgency fueled by England and deliberate sabotage. Khalij had also suffered, although not as badly since the theatre had already been decided by the time foreigners entered their borders.
The Isbani colony in Oman was transferred to Aquitaine. Additionally, to the East the people of Ethiopia were in the middle of a rebellion against the Misri communists, trying to become independent and maintain their way of life – a rebellion which was attracting some international attention from anti-communists.
The other big colonial transfer was in the East Indies. Brunei and Malacca were given to Aquitaine, giving them a presence in Asia as well, while America was given Buton and New Guinea. The nation of Java was also allowed to take the nearby island chain from England.
The Pacific Islands, which had been purchased not too long ago by England, were divided between Livonia and America. Livonia took most of the islands nearest to Asia, while America was given all of the others across the vast ocean, including Hawaii.
Several other islands around the world were taken from the Pact. The Atlantic islands were split between America and Italy; America also took the two Isbani islands near Haiti and the small English outpost in southern Africa. Aquitaine was given Mauritius island near Madagascar to give them a presence in the area.
There was actually a region of the world where the Coalition lost territory – during the period of negotiation, Livonia agreed to end war with Pattani and return their land. Fighting a war against the heavily-populated country after coming out of such an enormous conflict would be unnecessarily risky, and the colony hadn’t been of much value in the first place.
Beyond the territorial changes, severe reparation payments were forced upon the losing powers. Isbania was forced to pay the largest immediate sum, as their country was the least devastated of the Pact, but England was given a huge burden as well. Brabant’s debts would take longer to repay, as the country was in very poor shape. Fines were also meant to be enforced against Genoa, but given the country’s lack of central government at the moment there was little that the Coalition powers could do short of military intervention.
The end of the war also meant the end of both the Western Pact and the Coalition. Naturally, the Pact was forcibly disbanded at the end of the war, leaving the countries with no allies at the moment, although the chance of any of them being attacked in the short term was quite low.
More tricky though was the dissolution of the Coalition – most of its members had only joined for opportunistic reasons and lacked a formal alliance. After the war, the only formal alliances that remained involving Livonia were with Italy and Aquitaine. Even the alliance with Aquitaine had been debated at the end of the war, but it was decided that the new colonial power would be worth aligning with for now (and in addition, there was little risk of Aquitaine fighting a war with any of the major powers any time soon – perhaps the only candidate would be Bavaria, but the alliance with Livonia would easily stop them from attacking).
At the end of the war, many countries had internal issues, including the victors. Livonia had to deal with the closure of many of its factories during the war due to conscription and strikes, as well as the transition back to civilian industry. The North German Federation was a new, untested idea of a country which was currently devastated after the war. What remained of Brabant was also in poor shape, and their reunification with Holland complicated the political situation within the country.
Some of the fighting countries made it out better than before though. Aquitaine had taken relatively few casualties and gained a lot – their main concern would be holding all of their new territory in Europe and overseas. Likewise, America had lost very little during the war, and now their ability to project power across the globe had vastly expanded.
And some countries were in a state of disaster. England had lost its huge access to overseas resources, and the country was in terrible shape after years of blockade and the destruction in the southeast. Isbania was also suffering after combat on their soil, but their biggest issue was with growing discontent against the centuries-old absolute monarchy – the country was practically on the brink of civil war after the Aquitaneans left. And of course, Genoa was in a state of anarchy – devastated by fighting, loss of land, loss of manpower, and now several factions fighting across the country to rule a new Genoa.
Finally, there was Italy. Their situation was perhaps the strangest of all – they had technically instigated the war, lost, and then completely changed forms of government – and yet thanks to continued Livonian support, they were now a colonial power with great potential to rebuild into one of the powerhouses of Europe. However, internally there was a lot of argument and opposition to the new centralized government, which in general allowed the public less personal liberties than the local democracies had.
- 1
xD
Both of the islands are cores of "Two Sicilies". That's the kind of thing I would've smoothed over in the localization files, but honestly I didn't even think of a "two sicilies" revolt on Sardinia. Realistically though it's just Genoese-descended nationalists
My goodness but the world is a beautiful mess - some parts more so than others. I realise the focus on Genoa - one wonders if it shall now have a history akin to France in this timeline - but will the Communists win out in Misr too? That would be something.
Oh...And so,(un)holy coalition is triumphant!Let's see what's next...
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