It's a World wAAR!

[Emp_Palpatine 501]

In early May 1915, two more British corps are shipped toward Montenegro, in order to prevent a total collapse of the Serbian front.

 

 

There is indeed no longuer any consistent defense there, with the exception of Belgrade, Sarajevo and Montenegro strongholds. The three powers armies have used their numbers to sneak behind established lines and conquer much of the country.

 

 

In the southern part of Serbia, Germans and Bulgarian are presently unopposed...

 

 

 

The situation is quite worrying. And the supply situation will soon be grim too.

 

 

On the franco-belgian front, the Entente powers are willing to exploit their past month offensives by attacking Germany in Rhineland.

 

 

But if the northern part of the offensive is a success, meeting very light resistance, it is soon explained by Germany's plans... The 2nd Reich had launched a dreadfull counter-offensive in the Ardennes and did achieve total surprise on a french army who had set its mind to attack, not to defend. First positions are easily overrun and in a few day, french positions in the Ardennes did collapse until the Meuse came to help defense.

 

 

What had been the fourth (or is it fifth?) battle of the Ardennes/Bulge of this war is an humiliating french defeat.

 

The front by the last days of May 1915.

 

Germany is obviously not defeated yet. And the offensive might not start again in the West until a few months, especially with more and more troops "resting" (as said by French diplomats in Rome these days) on the Alps.

 

 

May wasn't an enjoyable month for the Entente.

[Emp_Palpatine 501]

Things are quite eventful in June too.

 

British Expeditionnary forces in Serbia try some attacks on Central Powers forces in Serbia.

 

 

The offensive toward Dalmatian coast is a failure because of Austrian entrenchments in the rough terrain.

 

 

Inland, british soldiers were more successful. But it is still quite light to face up Central Powers onslaught.

 

 

On the Eastern Front, German armies are launching new offensives in Prussia. They bog down, stopped by Russians entrenchment along the Oder.

 

 

 

Unfortunately, Austria-Hungary still have the initiative on the Galician Front (which is not any more in Galicia since a couple of months), despite Russian reinforcement.

 

 

Whatever, it's high time to remind Ottoman Empire of the war! The Caucasus front is very successful. It should be exploited!

 

 

 

 

And, of course, what about the Western front?

Entente high command tries an ad-lib counter-attack in the Ardennes. Once again...

 

 

Sadly, German forces do stand still, and the defeat here is twofolded by German success in its counter-offensive in Rhineland.

 

 

Fortunately, a new German attack is defeated in Lorraine. That closes the spring offensive era, Entente armies are back to their starting positions...

 

 

The war is obviously far from being over...

 

[Emp_Palpatine 501]

July-August 1915.

 

Strategic phase.

 

Of course, as usual, diplomatic news and actions are flocking, with the same goals as usual.

 

 

Driving Romania into the Entente would prove to be quite a bad surprise for Bulgaria, and would relieve Serbia of some of its burden.

 

 

Breakthrough!

But only in R&D: first researchs are now available for Assault (or "how to form stormtroopers the way Germany did in 1918 and make trench warfare obsolete") and tanks. Is WW2 already in sights?!

 

 

Apart from technology, the Entente is gaining power on the terrain: more planes are coming on the front, thanks to production efforts made months ago.

 

 

And other nasty and bad surprises are ready for the Central Powers...

 

 

If the Central Powers do not have equal gas technology, it's going to be an important asset in the upcoming weeks.

[Emp_Palpatine 501]

For the two summer months, a big french push in Lorraine, using Gas, is planned. The first weeks of July are used to store up corps, artillery battery and "special" ammo.

 

 

In a very WW1 fashion, the show began with weeks long artillery barrages.

 

 

Then, suddenly, the barrage does end, substituted by strange shells emitting enormous clouds of strange fumes from which emerge infantry men in horizon-blue, wearing strange and monstrous masks on their faces. In their trenches, German soldiers are choking, bleeding to death. Those able-bodied enough are just fleeing. The fellow couragous enough to stand are killed either by the gas or by the French soldiers. The German line between Metz and the Vosges had just collapsed.

 

 

 

Further North, in the Metz aera, only the huge forts of the city did saved the German line for the time being.

 

 

In Caucasus, Russian offensive resumes against Ottoman Empire into Turkish Armenia.

 

 

The Turkish armies are defeated and pushed back to Erzurum forts.

 

In Silesia, Russia does take the initiative back too.

Two offensives are planned in order to limit Austrian push and to retake Dubno.

 

Dubno is back into Russian hands.

 

 

 

The northern part of the offensive is a failure...

 

 

In Serbia, British expeditionnary forces efforts to expand their holds are quite mixed.

 

 

On this front, things are not getting better.

[Emp_Palpatine 501]

In August, because of the initative weakness of Russia (lack of precious "HQ points") and the situation in Serbia, only the French front saw some actions.

The gas-supported offensive must go one, before any counter-measures does cancel this avantage (hence the numbered limit of gas attacks: it does not mean gas are no longer used, it just simulate the small number of attacks with effective surprise one can make with new gas, before efficient counter-measures are found and used by the ennemy, cancelling the advantage).

Of course, Metz and the Vosges are the goals of these offensives.

 

But the targets are harder nuts to crush now.

Metz forts are still holding, with Germans falling back from fortifications to fortifications. But the ennemy cohesion (readiness) and morale are sinking, and the french are advancing with hardly a few loses.

 

 

In the Vosges mountains, it's thanks to the terrain that the French offensive is slowed down. But as in Metz, the ennemy morale and cohesion is sinking because of those dreadful gas...

 

 

What seems to be setbacks are indeed quite interesting. Combat reports show that the ennemy readiness is just about to be zero, because of the gas, and that attrition had taken its toll. It won't recover enough by september to prevent success in future offensives. It's not a breakthrough, but it's quite promising

 

Edited August 11, 2008 by Emp_Palpatine

[Emp_Palpatine 501]

September-October 1915.

 

 

It was expected, but it's still a bad news. Italy is now officialy in the brawl. As the Alps were ready since the summer, it would not be that serious, hadn't be this problem:

 

 

Italian fleet, combined with Austria-Hungary one, is sufficient to contest Entente's superiority in eastern Med! That means that British forces in Serbia are cut from supply and for the time being, isolated there.

It might be the end of Entente expeditionnary forces there, or at least the begining of a "Dunkirk" style operation...

 

 

Serbia is indeed in an increasingly bad shape.

 

 

How are the big guns of the Entente?

Russia is finally enterring a war economy. HQ points and arm refits can now be purchased in significant numbers

 

Britain still do the core job of research and naval things, but must now take care of its infantery commitments.

 

And France, of course, is still focused on the ground war.

 

 

Research efforts stay the same: artillery, assault, tanks, gas.

[Emp_Palpatine 501]

And now, what are the military situations for September-october 1915?

 

In France, September is the logical continuation of August. The offensive goes on.

The Lorraine fortress-town of Metz surrender to Pétain's forces. 55 years earlier, following Franco-prussian war, it was annexed to Germany. Freed at last!

Pétain's legend is born.

 

 

Despite these setbacks, German High Command still tries to get back on the offensive and to reduce the Entente salient in German line, and actually, into German Empire. Without much success.

 

 

In Serbia, the difficulty of supply situation has been clearly understood by the Central Powers, and general offensives are on their ways!

Belgrade is definitively surrounded. All hopes of having the situation recover are gone for the Entente.

 

 

British expeditionnary forces are pushed back toward Scutari.

 

The port itself is under attack! But for the time being, British soldier did manage to hold it. This port is the vital link toward the outside word. If they are to be re-embarked, it would be there or not at all and face destruction.

 

As usual, good news are coming from the Caucasus, where Russia do seems unstoppable and is now deep into Turkish-owned Armenia.

 

 

In Middle-East, British forces are still advancing too, without much opposition. By the end of September, Jerusalem is in Christian hands. The last time was 700 years ago, during the Crusades.

[Emp_Palpatine 501]

Without surprises, Germany tried to take Metz back in October. The forts are now french-maned and what's left of them ironically are now helping french defense.

 

 

Apparently withou much intelligence about the french lines and troops, German GHQ launch several offensive once again, perhaps with the hope to get back the initiative on the western front. They are defeated in the Vosges and in Lorraine.

 

 

 

Sadly, the quary goes on in Serbia. Still, Belgrade hasn't fall yet! Brave Serbians...

 

 

But Skopje defenders, surrounded, are now flying the white flag after a bloody fight.

 

 

 

Finally, maybe learning from the Western offensives, Central powers are trying the offensive in the East. Russian armies do hold, but it's sometime close.

 

 

 

We are yet in the second fall of the war.