At the beginning of the year, things were looking quite bad for the Allies. In Europe, the Low Countries had already been overrun and the Germans were pushing into France; in Asia I was able to completely encircle British Burma-India army, and was aggressively attacking the Allied navies. Yet during the first few months of 1940, the Allies show they are quite able to withstand the heavy blows we’ve rained upon them.
French Resistance
The Germans showed every indication of a rapid and decisive victory in Western Europe. By the middle of January they had already progressed to within 100km of Paris, and the French were beginning to abandon the Maginot Line. Yet the French began to show unexpected resolve. It took another two weeks before the Germans were able to begin launching attacks at Paris, and these proved futile. Throughout February the battle raged in and around the capital; by the middle of the month the Germans had nearly encircled it, with only a one-province wide corridor connected it to the rest of the country. Yet the Allies counterattacked and drove the Germans back. It is not until March 11th, nearly two full months since the Germans approached the city, that the French finally gave in and abandoned the city.
Normally, the capture of Paris is a shortcut to conquering the remainder of France. In this scenario, however, the situation was reversed and the Germans were already rampaging throughout the country before the city fell. Despite the lengthy defense of Paris, the Germans are actually a few months ahead of their normal timeframe. This added time came at a great cost though, and I suspect the Germans suffered much heavier casualties than expected.
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| By the time Paris is captured, it is almost irrelevant. |
The Germans met a fair amount of resistance else in Europe. They declared war on Denmark on January 22nd. They can frequently conquer Denmark within a few days if the operation is planned well, but this time it apparently wasn’t, and the Danes hold out until February 18th. On March 7th, while the battle was still raging around Paris, the Germans declare war on Norway. This, like the Denmark invasion, is expected to last much longer than necessary.
Envelopment Developments
The biggest setback suffered by the Allies in Asia thus far is the entrapment of the British forces in Burma. By the end of 1939 we had captured Chittagong and thus cut the army off from supplies or reinforcements. Yet the terrain is rough, and we needed another six weeks in order to finally force their surrender. By February 11th we finally had them hemmed in at Paletwa. VI Gun was given the order to press the attack, and the British finally succumbed en masse. The final tally amounted to 39,000 POWs, in addition several thousand killed throughout the campaign. We expect the British threw everything they had into a hard defense in Burma, leaving India completely undefended. LI Gun has already fanned out in Northern India, and we have advanced all the way to the Afghan border with no sign of the British military, which reinforces my hopes.
In the Malay Peninsula, we managed to trap a large British force mostly by accident. As LXI Gun advances down the peninsula, they split up into four groups, to cover the entire front. The battles become increasingly difficult; we are halted on the western flank when we hit the Perak River. We could force the crossing, but it would be costly. Instead, I concentrate my force on the eastern part of peninsula. After a few fights, the British are in such bad shape that they begin a full retreat back towards Singapore. The British left, however, held its position and even began to consolidate around the port at Teluk Anson. This was a bad decision, and I took full advantage of it. I wheeled my forces around to occupy Kuala Lampur and southern coastal provinces, cutting off their retreat. We then compressed the pocket and drove them out of Teluk Anson, into Kampur. There, on February 14th they made their final stand. They lose 1000 dead and 25,000 captured, at little lose to us.
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| I'm handed a rare envelopment opportunity |
After the success at Kampur, we fan out again and proceed down the peninsula. With complete naval supremacy throughout February, we able to block the remaining exhausted Brits from retreating into Singapore, and we attack them in Johore Bahru towards the end of the month. We pitch everything we have at them, forcing their surrender on the 26th. This result is nearly as bad as that at Kampur; we suffer 511 dead, and kill 1410 British and capture another 21,000 POWs.
I decide to give my Rikusentai a short breather during early March while my aircraft carriers pummel the Singapore harbor. This was most likely a bad decision. We are able to force the remaining defenders to surrender on the 7th, adding another 6000 POWs to the total. However, the British are able to take advantage of a lapse in my naval screen, and ship ten fresh divisions into the city on the 12th. That causes a significant power shift on the peninsula; we are now out-numbered two-to-one, and must return to the defensive, at least until reinforcements are brought in.
Surprises at Sea
In the beginning of the winter of 1940, my offenses against the Allied navies are paying off nicely. In January I focus my efforts on the Singapore area, sending 1 Kaigun to patrol the Straits of Malacca while 10 & 11 Kaigun to conduct port strikes against the city itself. The port strikes pay off quickly, and we sink a total of four submarines, a destroyer, and the British carrier Ark Royal before the hunting dries up and we return to base. 1 Kaigun remains quite active, sinking five Australian destroyers and numerous convoys throughout the month.
5 Kaigun sets out to perform patrols around Guam in the middle of January. After sinking a few convoys, the American fleet comes out to meet us. On the 29th we hit one of their gunship fleets, sinking a heavy cruiser. We pursue and hit them again on February 2nd, sinking a destroyer and the battleship Colorado. 5 Kaigun is due for repairs and heads back to base, turning over the area to 3 Kaigun. On the 9th they find another American gunship fleet, and knock out two more heavy cruisers; repeating 5 Kaigun’s strategy, they follow the fleet and hit it again on the 11th, and sink the battleship Idaho, although I lose the light cruiser Tenryu in the process. Even still, we’re well ahead as 3 Kaigun heads back to port for repairs, leaving the area empty for now.
After a few weeks of rest, 10 & 11 Kaigun are ready for action again and return to the Singapore region. As V Gun approaches Batavia by land, we spot some Dutch ships in port there, so we decide to knock them out quickly before going back to the main event. By February 10th we sink the Dutch destroyer and two transports located there, and occupy the city by land. Over the next week, our air crews continuously hammer the British fleet in Singapore. On the 14th we sink a light cruiser and a landing craft; on the 15th we sink the battle-cruiser Repulse; on the 16th we sink a destroyer, and on the 17th we sink a light cruiser. 4 Kaigun has taken over open sea patrol and sinks an Australian destroyer on the 18th. 10 Kaigun is able to cap off the campaign by sinking the carrier Illustrious by the end of the month.
As March roles in, I am surprised when the Americans attempt another invasion of Marcus Island. I had re-taken the island before the beginning of the year, although the operation was uneventful and didn’t merit mentioning at the time. 1 & 5 Kaigun are fairly fresh, so I send them out to deal with the situation. They engage on the 3rd, and I am floored by what I see. To capture this puny island, the Americans have sent three fleets, consisting of 31 ships: the aircraft carrier Yorktown, five heavy cruisers, seven destroyers, and 18 transports. Aside from the fact that this group has the potential to deal a serious blow to my ships, the transports could be carrying a huge army capable of invading my mainland.
The battle carries on for two full days. I initially consider retreating, but the battle quickly plays out in my favor. His destroyers stay in the rear to guard his carrier and transports, and the heavy cruisers sail straight into our fleets. They are each destroyed piecemeal. Our gunships then attempt to engage the remainder of the American fleet, and are able to sink two destroyers before they break off. We are battered, and a lingering air strike from the carrier sinks the light cruiser Sendai.
To further add to my dismay, we have an unsettling encounter much closer to our mainland. Last summer I completed a group of fourth generation destroyers, which are intended as escorts for the carriers due to be completed in June. The Allies have been brazen about sending submarines into my home seas, so I sent the idle destroyers out to try to hunt them down. My anti-submarine warfare (ASW) technology is still in its early stages, so they haven’t really accomplished much. I was surprised, then, when they stumbled into a British fleet consisting of cruisers, destroyers and landing craft just east of the Ryukyu Islands. With 1 & 5 Kaigun fighting near Marcus Island, and our other fleets under much needed repairs, my only option is to fight with the destroyers and two groups of unattached carrier air groups. The battle is a nail biter, and each of our destroyers is nearly sunk. We manage to scrape together a victory, however, sinking two of the British destroyers and a landing craft, and preventing whatever plans they had.
D-Day Darwin
Ultimately, we do not have the resources to win a war of attrition against the Allies, so we need to pursue the offensive aggressively. Throughout the winter we continue to squeeze the Dutch out of existence in Indonesia. By the end of March we’ve swept through all of Java and crossed into southern Sumatra, capturing the key port of Oosthaven and the oil refinery. Eastward, LXII Gun invades the smaller ports, culminating in the occupation of Hollandia on March 13th and the capture of a Dutch armor division. They proceed east to carry the war into Australian New Guinea.
In late February IV Gun invades Darwin, capturing an Australian garrison there. They then re-embark for a strike at Port Moresby, which serves as a launching point for an invasion of the Australian mainland. Traditionally, the invasion of Australia is surprisingly tricky. The northern ports, near Cairns, are small, and inadequate to keep a large invasion force well supplied. However, starting in the south, near Sydney, presents its own problems. We will meet a larger land force almost immediately, making a larger invasion force a necessity. Also, we can expect the Australians to raid our convoys constantly, and our navy is already over-extended. I decide to begin with an invasion in the north, and then follow up with a second invasion in the south after the Australian army is drawn away. This, hopefully, should provide an adequate balance between supplies and striking force. We will know soon enough; IV Gun is scheduled to land near Cairns on April 1st.
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