Chronicles of Fail: A View from the (Caribbean) Sidelines

[Zorromorph]

STATE of AFFAIRS, 1942

The War in Asia

A quiet year again on the Japan/China front, but to the south Indochina has all but disappeared, swarmed by the combined armies of Yunnan Clique and Guanxi Clique.

The War in Europe

Germany's expansion into Russia wasn't all great at first. The Soviet Union counterattacked in Romania, nearly taking the country, and even occupied most of Greece. Once the advancing German panzers reached Odessa and cut off their supplies though, those efforts dried up. Strangely, the truce agreement still left the communists in control of the island of Crete, but everything else was taken back long before it was signed.

The War in Africa

Italy finished the year on a high note as well. Having long since been driven out of Ethiopia completely by the UK, they have taken the Nile delta and are contesting British control of the vital Suez.

International Affairs

Following their defeat, the Soviet Union is now seen as something of an irrelevancy. Germany tops the list of threats by a mile, followed by the United Kingdom, Japan, Italy, and unaccountably, Manchukuo.

Domestic Affairs

Not a whole lot happened this year politically, the most stable year in recent memory. Vincent's grip on Haiti has strengthened somewhat as a result.

 

[Zorromorph]

1942

February 6 -- The first advance of the year allows Haiti to build Mountaineer Brigades. They will only be of use in hostile terrain, but excel there. Defensive Support Weapons will now get another round of work from the engineers.

March -- Hungary has subjugated Slovakia while the rest of the Axis stands around dumbly. Somehow Hungary is part of the Allies, at war with the Axis, yet is granting military access to Germany?!

March 31 -- Hungary has now decided to fight on three fronts, Romania, Croatia, and Germany. This isn't likely to end well for them. Meanwhile, faced with a renewed Japanese offensive, the Republic on China and a couple of her allies have joined the Allied cause. Kuwait wanted in as well, but they were turned down.

April 4 -- Studies on improving the flow of resources have now borne fruit. Haiti must now work on improving the storage capabilities.

April 5 -- Apparently bored with their never-ending struggle against China, Japan has bombed Pearl Harbor. The US joins the Allies as a result, and Italy officially declares itself at war with the Americans. The war is starting to hit a bit closer to home for us ... There are also reports that Japanese troops have landed in Burma.

April 9 -- Palestine surrenders to Italy as they continue to pursue their goal of dominating the Eastern Med.

May 1 -- Apparently persistence pays off. Kuwait has now joined the Allies.

May 2 -- Hungary has been conquered. It was only a matter of time. Romania was made to do most of the work.

May 9 -- Iraq joined the Allies. If only the existing powerful nations in the alliance decided to actually do something, this might matter.

May 30 -- Germany reinstalls the Slovakian government.

June 3 -- Surface mining method studies have been finished, adding a slight bit to our metals production. Further work will involve better ways of implementing this new knowledge.

June 12 -- Switzerland joins the long and growing list of free nations defeated by the Axis.

July 16 -- Another assassination attempt goes awry. So much for things calming down in Haiti. The new industrial district, though nearly completed, is expected to be delayed about half a month from previous estimates due to the distruption.

July 23 -- Seizing upon another opportunity to enrich itself, the Vincent government has captured a smuggling group from Liberia and 'liberated' what they were carrying.

July 28 -- Infantry training methods have advanced, allowing for superior organization and morale. The Army's veteran officers have been ordered to study the history of the Great War for ways to improve operations from the top down.

July 31 -- Initial studies of anti-tank weaponry have been completed as well. A new team is now commissioned to work on mechanical and electronic engineering. It is believed this could result in a wide variety of benefits.

September 15 -- Transjordan surrenders to Italy.

October 12 -- At long last, the new industrial district is open. More will be needed if Haiti is to become a truly modern nation, but first President Vincent orders a new army division, based on the same model as First Division but a reserve one. The fortifications around Port-au-Prince are also to be improved.

October 22 -- Plans for industrial equipment specialization are now in place, which should benefit the entire manufacturing sector. Military materials production matters will be looked at next, to improve the efficiency of making supplies.

December 21 -- A coup in Thailand, which is in the middle of a cluster of conflicts at the moment. It's anybody's guess what happens there, but an ultimatum from Japan was made immediately.

December 26 -- New defensive support weapons are available. Improvements to the anti-air guns, the big towers that are basically just for show around the capital, will be targeted now.

 

[Zorromorph]

STATE OF AFFAIRS, 1943

The War in the Med

Switzerland and Hungary are no more, strengthening the Axis' vice-like grip on Europe. The situation in the middle east was far more fluid. Italy eventually took control of the Suez canal, taking Palestine and nearly Transjordan before a British counterattack in Palestine allowed the latter country to free itself completely. This proved to be a temporary reprieve though, as in the last few months the Italians wiped out resistance in the area and moved on to Iraq.

Germany, meanwhile, was bogged down in half-hearted attacks in northern Iran and Iraq. They've taken the south end of the Caspian sea, but accomplished little else of value. A couple of weeks ago it looked like Iraq was about to fall, with Baghdad in Italian hands and the new capital of Tikrit under a lot of pressure, but they have managed to reverse their fortunes and retake significant portions of their nation.

The War in Asia

It was another bad year for China, and they appear close to collapse. All is not well still for the Japanese, as they once had control of nearly half of Burma but have been kicked out. Indochina continues to come back from the dead, and Japan has switched part of it's focus to southern Thailand. Little is certain or stable in this part of the world. If you don't like what's happening, wait a week or two. Chances are it will have changed significantly.

The War in the Pacific

Little has happened here since Pearl Harbor, but the US did take a pair of islands in Eniwetok and Mili some months back.

International Affairs

Germany, followed distantly by Japan, the UK, and Italy, remains the pecking order. All are seen as a little bigger threat than they were a year ago.

Domestic Affairs

The social democrats have emerged as the strongest threat recently, but there are no imminent concerns. Vincent's grip on power is likely to solidify further once Second Division is ready to go in a few months.

 

[Zorromorph]

1943

February 24 -- Guanxi Clique has accepted the surrender of Indochina. It appears Thailand's entry into the war was the straw that broke the camel's back over there. It is not apparently whether this will matter much to the rest of the world. The Republic of China, now severed into three sections by the gradually advancing Japanese, appears to be in it's final death throes.

March 15 -- Improved use of storage facilities is the latest manufacturing push. Next to be addressed will be how the manufacturing sector can use it's employees to greater effect.

May 11 -- Second Division comes online. Improving the fortifications around the capital is next on the agenda. Officer training also gets bumped up as there are now an insufficient amount to handle all three divisions, biting into research a bit.

June 6 -- Initial theoretical research into electronic and mechanical engineering is finished. The team will now directs it's thoughts to a census tabulation machine, which is believed to help with data collection and organizing and thus has the potential to marginally speed up all research.

July 27 -- Following continued improvements in surface mining, iron ore machinery will be the next point of interest as Haiti continues to work towards making the most of it's metals deposits.

October 7 -- Advances in military material production techniques have been achieved, which will help ease supply production, presently over 8% of manufacturing is devoted to this. Improved resource management will now be targeted in an effort to increase overall industrial efficiency.

November 3 -- Initial improvements in officer training are ready, and though they will require a few more officers, unit coordination and response times should improve significantly. Artillery crews will now be trained in the technique of the creeping barrage to improve cohesion for the support brigades.

December 27 -- Xibei San Ma surrenders to Japan. It has been a quiet year overall, but Japan's empire continues to grow at least on the mainland.

 

[Zorromorph]

STATE OF AFFAIRS, 1944

The War in the Middle East

The European mainland was silent for the first time since the war began. Meanwhile, Iraq and Iran did more than hold their own. The Italians have been pushed out of Iraq completely and part of Transjordan has been liberated, while Iran appears to be winning a back-and-forth struggle against Germany. It seems ironic at the least that this is the battleground where the Axis is stalling.

The War in Asia

Here things are not so dire for the Axis. Japan now occupies most of what was Xibei San Ma and the Republic of China continues to hang on but has not managed to push back at all. There's still a constant ebb and flow out here but it does look like the Japanese are increasingly gaining the upper hand with the growing holdings on the mainland.

The War in the Pacific

Here things are not so rosy. Japan has lost most of their pacific empire to the United States. Twice they beat back attempts to take the island of Palau, but defeats have been far more numerous.


International Affairs

Haiti now has a reasonable amount of agents in both the Dominican Republic and Cuba. The garrison buildup on both sides of the border with the DR continues to grow, but there is not the slightest desire for a war by either side. Germany continues to be regarded as the highest threat with their danger pretty much unchanged, with Japan, the UK, and Italy also worth mentioning.


Domestic Affairs

It was a good year for Pres. Stenio Vincent. The nation is more stable than ever, and it appears that after nearly a decade in power, he has worn down resistance and is considered by many Haitians to be the least bad of the many bad alternatives available to them.

 

[Ikarases]

Seeing Iraq and Iran in action, I got once again the silly idea about starting a somewhat Arabic-oriented AAR. Want to give that a go sometime

 

[Zorromorph]

I say do it! Saudi Arabia perhaps? It would almost certainly be worth looking at just due to the rareness of the idea.

 

[Ikarases]

I say do it! Saudi Arabia perhaps? It would almost certainly be worth looking at just due to the rareness of the idea.

Not just that, I was thinking in particular of some crazy construct melting together several countries