Part 15: Turn 29, Turn 30

Turn 29: July 22nd, 1915



Well now. Things are going to get interesting. By occupying half of France, we do deny Italy a route to hit our invasion force. That said, they are going to put everything they have into fighting Austria.

Production



Right when things are going to shit, we get some good news. Austria has an air force and The High Seas Fleet has more screening vessels. They can be used to reinforce our engaged ships or to supply the first wave of Sea Lion troops as they land.

Research



Steel helmets, aside from killing the Pickelhaube will add to our defense against shells and grenades. Soon we will have bomber technology and stronger gas for Germany.

Diplomacy



So Italy is in, bringing the Entente back up to 3. Bulgaria hasn't been delayed by the naval conflict and Romania is still planning on joining the Entente eventually. Portugal, however, still fears us enough to be locked out.

Management



More sea capacity but we are just 3 percent away from our first penalties as we pluck able workers away from the fields and factories and throw them into the din.

Eastern Front



AGN repairs and upgrades and will launch an attack with full strength in two weeks. With the holes in the Russian line they should have success once they can dig out the enemy.



AGC is currently split but they destroy a Russian corps and surround an army. To the north, 2nd Austrian Eastern hits at Minsk in an attempt to easily take some more production from Russia.



AGS destroys one corps and is working on another. There is no way that those second rate troops can hold us back here.

Italian Front



We rush everything we can towards Italy, though unfortunately we were caught unsuspecting and away from rail lines. Trieste will fall but hopefully we can put some units in front of Zagreb and use air and shells to push Italy back.



We move the navy up here and find that Italy is really close to launching an attack. German Line Corps are here to hold Trento but we won't be able to mount an effective attack through the Alps with these troops. If we can hold here and have the Austrians advance, Italy should crumble quickly.

Italy has 700 manpower but they live or die by events. Taking Trento is a huge morale boost while having troops on their soil, especially German troops will drop their morale quickly. They can flip as high as 70 morale so if we can recover from being unprepared we should be able to recover from this

Ottoman Front

Caucasus gonna Cauc.



Pre double artillery clusterfuck things look great. We have a line, we have reserves, and we bloody a corps that isn't fully dug in. If I didn't know two bombardments and two full army attacks were gonna strike us right in the center I would feel better.

Sea Lion Phase 1 and 2 fffffffffff



With the bodies just recently put to sea, the memories of the last skirmish are fresh in our sailors minds. It was not lost on them how humiliating it is to have cruisers and destroyers sink German battleships. With Scheer still recovering from his wounds, our lesser admirals make a bold move to split around and strike at the stronger cruiser squadron. We take some hits on our capital ships as we get into position, but the blistering fire from two sides destroys over half of the remaining screening vessels. Only a few scattered destroyers and a handful of cruisers stands to oppose us. They will either flee or be sunk and then we can deploy east to support the landings.



Knowing the battleships of the Grand Fleet could show up at any time in the west, our men make haste and launch the first wave. Consisting of two armies and a reserve, we strike at Norwich. Being away from the main British garrisons, we have a chance to capture the city undefended next round if they can't get a unit to block. It also should force them to rail their artillery and other units killing their morale.



Last but not least, we choose Norwich because our newest cruisers are just east of there and should be able to supply our invasion force upon landing.

Our sub feels around for the capital ships of the Grand Fleet but finds nothing.

Allied Response



Contact! The Grand Fleet's battleships are moving towards the fight. We still have at least a turn to spare but it looks like we will have a shot, albeit a long one, at hitting them right back. Home water advantage will be a bitch but I think we can draw them into our other cruisers.



Their screening vessels don't flee. We may be able to sink them while sending our big guys to get patched up before their main ships appear.



Hard to see but they are railing everything they can to block the invasion. They will still be outnumbered and we should have air support and good supplies.



The Italians launch their attack on Trento and take Trieste. They don't get much farther than that, so hopefully we can establish a line at Zagreb.



Britain only switches out their weaker corps. Maybe Sea Lion has diverted their attention. Or maybe having double artillery be a giant douchebag has killed their shell production.



In Russia, their artillery hits AGN and they continue to rail troops away. This will be an unpleasant delay but right now they are still the most well rested Army Group.

Turn 30: August 5th, 1915



Austrian reserves are ready for Italy, Germany has her helmets, and not pictured is Austria getting the 90% manpower warning.

Eastern Front



AGN starts to hit Vilna while two armies stand in front of Kovno.



Two armies are hitting Minsk now and we are through the Pripyat marshes.



This corps isn't fucking around, but Vinnytsia is ours next turn.

Ottoman Front



Repairs are made as our men gaze out over the wire. They can do nothing but await a sky full of burning lead.

Italian Front



Trento corps get upgraded and repaired. We deploy two the corps as close to Zagreb as we can get. The bulk of the soldiers are still on the move.

Our saving grace is that our planes and battleships strike at the army in Trieste. We take down some of their morale and two divisions worth. This should delay them striking Zagreb with full strength.

Operation Sea Lion



Unfortunately, though we don't take any casualties, home water forces us to use everything to kill of the remaining screening vessels. I hope we can repair our capital ships before the British arrive but we will see. With the other ports in tow, we can afford to let Brest be, pull back east, then support our invasion lane.



The first units make landfall without incident. Unfortunately, we have to divert around Norwich to avoid getting gunned down on the beach. We also set up our supply lines. With the first groups down, we should be able to embark two more armies next turn.

Allied Response



Britain shifts their troops. The 9 on our army means that it is in fact out of supply. We can shift our cruisers over but it appears at this stage we can only supply units within one hex of a cruiser. If we can't capture a city soon we will have to bring the rest of the fleet in just to supply our men.



Italy is going full bore now. They are hammering the defenders of Trento, bombing Munich from the skies, and continuing to advance on Zagreb. It is hard to see, but they have a reserve that is going to try and creep toward Munich that will have to be dealt with.

Next time, though our fleet is victorious for now, we deal with supply issues, embark two more armies, and scramble to battle the Italians.

It would be great if Russia gives up right on the dot in 1916 so we can rail those men over, disband them, then buy the shit out of planes and ships.

Oddly enough, Russia and Egypt are quiet during this Entente round.