Part 132: Hearts of Iron II: Chapter 29 - The Power of Atom

January 1945 - March 1945: The Power of Atom

Panicked construction of more V2 rockets to strike the enemy nuclear reactor and disrupt their enrichment process is ordered.


All fighters and interceptors are recalled to Germany and sent up for 24-hour patrols in the hopes that they will be able to intercept any nuke-carrying plane.


The V2 rockets are ready in late January and quickly deployed to Bermuda.


Unfortunately, German engineers misjudged their range capability, and the nuclear reactor in Elk City is simply too far away for a strike.


Strategic bombers are sent instead, but on February 13th, time runs out as a Mazulan bomber slips through the air patrols and drops a single bomb on Essen.


A massive explosion, brighter than the sun, lights up the horizon, followed by a mushroom-shaped cloud rising against the sky.


Fortunately, this early bomb had limited power, but the death toll was still in the tens of thousands, possibly more, and Essen is utterly devastated. Why Mazula chose to hit a civilian target instead of a military one is unknown, but perhaps they wanted to make a demonstration, to show what could happen to *all* major German cities.

What they do not know is that as Germany reels in shock from the attack, Heisenberg has finished his own bomb. Dubbed the Rache, 'Revenge', the a-bomb is loaded into a strategic bomber and sent to Gustavia, well within striking range of most of Mazula.



Mazula does not know that we have the bomb too, and as such, we have the element of surprise. We will only have this chance once, so Waldemar has summoned the Advisory Council to hear their advice on the choice of target.

Mazula bombed a major population center, but we could demonstrate to them that we can repay in kind while also gaining the moral advantage, by hitting one of their less populated targets, such as the swamps of Central America or the interior mountains. The message would still be clear enough, though the people might be angry at our restraint - Germany desires vengeance.


We could also do tit-for-tat and hit a major population center of theirs in Barasya or Mazula. A balanced option, if wiping out tens of thousands of lives with the push of a button can ever be called 'balanced'.


Finally, we could go all out on vengeance and nuke Mazula city. We could take out parts of the Mazulan government and the army stationed there and kill possibly as many as hundreds of thousands of people in the tightly packed city. It would be a devastating strike, and would certainly satisfy the need for vengeance, though its unlikely the Mazulans would be satisfied without equal revenge in turn...


I have a nuke, how shall we use it?

Option A: Hit a sparsely populated area
Option B: Hit a major population center
Option C: Hit Mazula City