Forgot to mention it I was playing as Germany.

Then you can't get America into the Axis because they don't want to? You can't force a country to do something against their will. But there is hope. Support Deustch-Amerikana Bund (is that spelt right?), and coup the country. Then the Fascists will be in power, America will be couped out of the Allies, and drift toward you!

Anyway, learn from teh pros!

CHAPTER TWO: 1937, The Great Albanian War

The year of 1937 was generally a quiet one. Research was conducted into expanding industry and improving the training and weapons of our special forces.


In 23 March, the Nationalists won the Spanish Civil War, as per history. If we're lucky, we might have an Axis Spain, but I believe that it's hardcoded that Spain won't join the Axis unless the UK falls. The best we can hope for is that additional Spanish influence in Portugal will result in Axis Portugal, which happens far more often.


Sadly, certain parties printed shameless leaflets that demeaned the government and the great Anti-Comintern Pact. Such dissent must be dealt with.

On 22 August, further weakening our great country and giving the shameless anti-government movement credibility, there was a Parliamentary Scandal, causing a re-organization of the Party.

The very next day, on the 23, Turkey joined the Axis, causing her neutrality to drop enough to declare war on the great Enemy: Albania. This gives an excuse to introduce COMPULSORY CONSCRIPTION, so we may CRUSH the little Albanian BASTARDS who dare demean our country! We also can mobilize our economy, giving twice the effective industrial capacity, and pulling away factories from making plush dolls to building TANKS! Well, we don't have tanks, but we are making cheap weapons for our soldiers so they don't just have to take one from their dead comrades.


Meanwhile, joining the Axis allows me to see how the Japs are going. They seem to be making progress and have conquered the Shanxi warlords of China.


And finally, our neighbor Persia, which is also leaning toward the Axis, offered us Transit Rights. Excellent.

I own HoI3. It took me about 10 hours to learn how to play it with just the booklet. I ran over Western and Eastern Europe, going about half way into Russia (damn that place is massive). I never figured out if AA guns worked or not though. England kept bombing the crap out of me and I had 10 AA guns in like every single province they could get to which seemed to do absolutely nothing. I didn't feel like I knew how to wage effective air war either. That part just didn't make any sense to me.

10 AA can really maul any airstrikes, so it's probably either idiotic AI or installation strikes.

But anyway, just put your AA at strategic locations - i.e ports, airfields, industrial centers, RADAR sites, missile testing facilities, reactors, etc, and get about 20 wings of interceptors, put them in groups of four, and put them on Air Superiority missions using a max radius, which basically makes them patrol as far as they can for enemy aircraft. OR, alternatively, place RADAR up and micro your interceptor wings with the Intercept mission. Also, Runway Cratering with TACs can help, as well as putting Air Superiority missions over single provinces that are airfields, basically every time they take off you engage them.

I literally had 10 AA guns in every single Western European province, not knowing if they worked against aircraft that had to fly over each province to reach its target, or just in the target province. So even if there were no targets in a province, it had 10 AA guns anyways. They just kept bombing me relentlessly throughout the span of like 3 years. Without suffering any air casualties (it appeared). I was hoping not to bother with England until I had forced a surrender with Russia but my massive AA gun defense did nothing.

The problem is on e the AI decides to bomb a province, it keeps going, even after horrendous casualties. You were doing more damage than you think.

I was playing on normal. I'm going to have to give that game another go pretty soon. This time without using avatars. They confuse everything.

Paradox banned and removed one of the most promising mods for Darkest Hour, one that linked WW1 to WW2 with possible ahistorical options. All the threads just disappeared and all discussion of the mod is banned.

What the hell Paradox.
I was gone for a year and the place turned from St. Awesomeville to North Korea.

I put some Orwell-inspired text to my signature which I assume will get me into trouble there. But I don't care. Not even DH's developers know why AAR got banned so I'm standing with them.

I find that hard to believe, I have an idea an I don't own or play the game.

I know they don't want cross-forum dram here so I will PM you a link I have.

It was probably banned because it mentioned swastikas, the holocaust, or something as such, which is officially banned.


CHAPTER THREE & FOUR: 1938 & 1939, The Balkan Expansion

Last chapter we passingly mentioned the success of the Sino-Japanese war, and how the Japanese seemed to be routing the Chinese warlords. Skip to 1938, and indeed, Communist China has already been crushed. Indeed, in May, the war was over and Japan annexed China.


Sadly, I've realized I cannot continue constructing my Garrison units right now if I want to actually fully reinforce my units. So, I cancel construction. So, instead, I start constructing Coastal Forts and airfields to boost my Construction practicals.

On the 10 of March the Anschluss of Austria event fired, and Germany occupied Austria.

In April, Italy joins the Axis, giving the Strategic Modifier 'Pact of Steel' giving a bonus to Research Efficiency and Supplies Production. This is handy because my Leadership levels are absolutely atrocious.

On the 16 of July, war is declared on Bulgaria.


And it was. It took a single month to defeat and annex Bulgaria.


And for some ridiculous reason, I kept getting bombarded with Parliamentary Scandals. Both removed ministers were from the Foreign Ministry, sadly (First scandal removed Ismet Ionu from office, and he was replaced by Refet Bele. Then Bele was removed from office, oddly). What the hell are they doing in there?


War was declared on the 22 of September on Yugoslavia, and on the 3rd of November Yugoslavia was annexed and Albania defeated. War in South Africa to boost laws.


On the 28 September of 1938, the Treaty of Munich was decided and the Sudentenland was ceded to Germany. Neville Chamberlain returned to London declaring Peace in Our Time.

On 19 March, war in Greece. A pocket quickly closed around 6 divisions, each numbering roughly 9000 men. 6 x 9000 = 54, 000 troops trapped inside that pocket.


6 April - Hungary accepted into the Axis after tensions about core territories possessed by Turkey in Yugoslavia.

26 April - The 54,000 troops surrounded in the pocket surrender.

18 May - Greece is annexed. All forces are transferred to the Soviet Front to prepare for
Barbarossa. Sadly, this means that Partisan uprising roam free for days until the Militia partisan hunting units I've been training are deployed to take care of them and guard the ports.


Then, it's relative peace until operation Barbarossa. My plans are to develop Light Armour divisions for exploitation (rather than slower Cav divisions), and to train more Mountain brigades. Soon, war with Russia.

Oh god.

(I might declare war on Iraq, considering I have around a year. But if I DOW the Allies I am automatically in any other war Germany declares, meaning I could by surprised by the USSR. I might just allocate my Light Armour and Cav when it's completed, maybe another Mountain corps until Iraq is taken care of, then the cav can roam free and take Suez).