Update 6 (20) - Year 1786
Non-Military Events:
The Brain Drain War continues indecisively as both Japan and EUA begin to compete with each other for various researchers. Problems appear in particular in connection with the occasional charlatans trying to abuse this.
The Pacific Trading Bloc is formed, increasing trade and cooperation between EUA, Japan and China. But certain events in Asia rather dampen both this effect and the initial outbursts of optimism (see military events)...
The PUF government - to the dismay of the EUA supporters in the Frontiere, but also to the rejoicing of the PUOists - signs an economic cooperation and boundary revision treaty with the PUO, the latter part meaning the concession of several borderland regions with particularily high support for PUO annexation. Some fear that this might unbalance the population, however, as the (now increasingly anti-government) EUAists now outnumber the remaining PUOists; a greater concern perhaps is that this agreement is in violation of the Treaty of Lyon. Then again, Emperor Valerien reportedly has a very, very large list of more important things that he could do instead.
Brazil's propaganda campaigns win volunteers for its army (+5 divisions)... however, the Brazilian government may have done this too well, as the volunteers - and pretty much the entire military already present, for that matter - are crying for war, if not with the HRE then with the EUA.
To the great dismay of both the Imperial jingoists (the exact reaction of the Imperial government itself is unknown, but presumed to be furious) and the Scandinavian nationalists (especially the Swedish ones) (-1 Confidence), Scandinavia, under Olaf Krake, quits the Second World War; by the Treaty of Sunderland, the Shetlands were turned over to Britain, and occupation of the Faroes allowed for the duration of the war (this was cause of particular outrage at home); this was compensated by the Treaty of Moscow, according to which Scandinavia retained Gotland and the Alands, and was allowed to hold on to Dago and Osel until the war's end. Also, the British recognized the Scandinavian annexation of Congo. The continuation of the war with Segu and the activities of the Scandinavian Freikorps that is fighting along the Imperial armies is little, but still consolation for the nationalist circles. Meanwhile, Scandinavia begins to recover (+1 Economy, +1 Living Standards), though the reconstruction of Reykjavik is taking more than planned.
The hunt on Emperor Valerien I seems to have begun, as seven apparently-separate assassination attempts took place through the year; they were all thwarted, in two cases just barely, and Valerien himself was badly wounded during one of these; this caused further increase in Imperial paranoia.
The National Party (Isanmaallinen kansanliike) ascends to power in Finland as Elias Simojoki is appointed High Chancellor by the Finnish king; reforms and modernization ensue, with the help of foreign advisors (+1 Economy, +1 Civilian Leadership, +1 Confidence).
Ever-greater war expenses and suffering keep having various detrimental effects on Russia (-1 Economy, Confidence, Living Standards) in particular, but also on the HRE and the Byzantine Empire, both of which struggle to maintain huge militaries (-1 Economy, Confidence for both).
Even as molten silver was being poured into Jacques' eyesockets, the Treaty of Alexandria and other agreements were signed, de facto granting the Caliphate control over most Egyptian territories, minus some lands in the south (divided between the HRE and Scandinavia), the territories in Asia (divided between Badawistan and Byzantium) and Alexandria - leased by the Byzantines, who are probably the biggest winners here with the annexation of the Levant (+1 Byzantine Confidence).
The Seguians desperately try to reinforce their manpower with the newly-conquered tribes; some resist, but most join either out of solidarity or were simply coerced very fast. Still, the economy suffers (-1 Economy).
After years of neglect and corruption, Head of State Tee is overthrown in PUASE by military cadets; one of their own, Vo Sinh Vuong, took over and declared martial law. His next moves are very much uncertain, but as Francophobic sentiments grow both amongst the people and in the government, some suspect that he might try and break away from the HRE altogether...
Some petty Maori ruler tried to raise a rebellion in New Sardinia, but made the mistake of calling the overwhelmingly pro-Japanese chiefs, who killed him on spot when he revealed his plans.
Military Events:
Helium shortages forced several air fleets to switch to hydrogen; this and the comparative inexperience in handling hydrogen increased airfleet casualties noticeably for much of this year.
The Imperials raised their blockade around the British Isles, probably realizing that, without the Scandinavians, chances of restoring its efficiency were quite low. Instead, they concentrated on air raids! The British had also used the usual improvised anti-air artillery, blowing up several airships, but the Imperials had gained lots of bombing experience by now, and managed to do grievous damage (-1 British Infrastructure, Living Standards, -London economic center).
(-1 British division, -6 Imperial air squadrons)
At sea, the Russians yet again rebuilt their fleet; however, this took them more time than expected, and as they advanced the Russians had to fight back the persistant Imperial underwater attacks. Not giving their enemies a chance to enter the North Sea as they had planned, the outnumbered (due to naval campaigns taking place elsewhere) Marine Imperiale negated this enemy advantage by ambushing the Russian fleet in the Norwegian Sea, using submarines for reconaissance. The initial attack was devastating as the Imperials crossed the Russian "T", quickly eliminatign a few of the large Russian ships and some lesser ones; but the Russian admiral recovered his balance surprisingly quickly, and the Russians, with their numeric advantage, quickly caused the Imperials to fall back to avoid complete defeat. As the Imperial fleet retreated from the slower Russians, it was attacked by British submarines; still, these were fought off, and the Imperials again, just barely, avoided annihilation. The Russian fleet soon moved into the North Sea yet again, and this time the Imperials hadn't the numbers in the air or at the sea. They tried to repeat their earlier success, but the wary Russians reacted even better this time, and the Imperials had to fall back further still, harried by enemy submarines. Choosing to maneuver out of harm's way and keep harassing Russian fleet, the Imperials had inadvertly opened their North Sea coasts to Russian bombardment. The Hague and several other Dutch cities were wiped out altogether, though the Imperial coastal artillery had taken its toll from the Russians, and Amsterdam, though somewhat damaged, was too far inland unless the Russians were to move into the Markermeer, which was a natural naval trap. To the east, the Russians plowed on, destroying Bremerhaven as well (-Bremerhaven economic center); by now, however, they had to retreat to Britain to restock and recuperate. Imperial naval supremacy was removed, although most of la Marine Imperiale survived, stealing the decisiveness from this Russian victory.
(-8 British submarine squadrons, -12 Imperial ship squadrons, -10 Imperial submarine squadrons, -2 Imperial capital ships, -29 Russian ship squadrons, -2 Russian submarine squadrons, -7 Russian capital ships)
A minor Russian attack towards Vyborg was repulsed after some skirmishing.
(-1 Russian division, -1 Imperial Freikorps division)
But the most important campaigns of the war took place elsewhere - in the south and the east...
(see spotlight)
(-Lisbon, Berlin economic centers, +1 Imperial Confidence, +5 Imperial irregular divisions, +13 Byzantine irregular divisions, +3 Krakowian irregular divisions, -1 Imperial, Byzantine, Russian, Krakowian Confidence, -1 Imperial, Byzantine, Russian, Krakowian Economy)
(-29 Imperial divisions, -9 Imperial Armoured Car divisions, -8 Imperial Foreign Legions, -2 Imperial irregular divisions, -21 Imperial ship squadrons, -20 Krakowian divisions, -1 Krakowian irregular division, -2 Krakowian air squadrons, -25 Byzantine divisions, -12 Byzantine Armoured Car divisions, -14 Byzantine ship squadrons, -5 Byzantine submarine squadrons, -1 Byzantine capital ship, -9 Byzantine air squadrons, -88 Russian divisions, -2 Russian Cossack divisions, -4 Russian irregular divisions)
The Seguian Jihad continued - past gains were consolidated, and the Seguian army secured control over former Kanem-Bornu and most of sub-Saharan West Africa. With only minimal resistance, the Seguians also conquered French Sudan, though this process took lots of time. Segu now reached the greatest extent of its advance; the Sudan campaign was the last cheap victory, as vast Imperial and Scandinavian armies were deployed to West and Central Africa. The Seguians still held the initiative at first; they reached almost as far as Congo before the main Scandinavian forces arrived at the city of Kribi, defeating the small Seguian force besieging it, and cut the supply and escape routes for the main Seguian army in the region; though this delayed other operations somewhat, the Scandinavians eventually trapped the Seguian army in the south at Loubomo, using the fortifications created by the Combat Engineers to check the usual Seguian maneuverability, and slaughtered almost all the attackers in a furious battle. After this debacle, Segu was forced to fight a defensive war first and foremost. In the west, Imperials assaulted the trade centers Dakar and Takorandi; both were heavily-garrisoned, but the Imperials deployed superior firepower and made good use both of their rapid-firing weapons and naval artillery; eventually, after very bloody battles, the surviving Seguians retreated into the countryside, though not before torching Takorandi (damage was done to Dakar too, but not as severe) (-Takorandi economic center); there they continued resistance, with the help of local volunteers (+5 Seguian irregular divisions). As the self-proclaimed Caliphate's forces are far from completely defeated yet, while the Imperials, superior technology notwithstanding, took heavy casualties as tends to be the case in amphibious assaults against superior numbers; thus the campaigning in the west died down in general. In the east, Port Kristian [1], seized by the Seguians early in the war, was assaulted from the sea and on the land; the Seguians resisted fiercely, and the city itself took heavy damage during the battle (-Port Kristian economic center), but eventually it was taken by the Scandinavians. Until then slow and indecisive, the main Scandinavian land offensive now picked up speed and gained momentum; attacking the Seguians and the various unrelated rebel tribes alike, the Scandinavians only stopped at the outskirts of Birni Ngazargamu, the ancient Kanem-Bornu capital, having outstretched their supply routes and being awed by the powerful fortifications prepared by the Seguians. Despite Segu's defeats and casualties in this year (-1 Seguian Economy), the West African Caliphate isn't completely dead yet.
(-17 Imperial Foreign Legions, -20 Scandinavian divisions, -5 Scandinavian Combat Engineer divisions, -1 Scandinavian ship squadron, -64 Seguian divisions, -18 Seguian Elites divisions, -37 Seguian conscript divisions)
Caliphal forces occupied Yemen, to the Badawin jeering; meanwhile, control over the Sahara and southern Sennar was established, but the first few attempts to reclaim Abyssinia had failed, the Caliphals having little experience in mountain fighting and having underestimated the difficulty of this task.
(-4 Caliphal divisions, -3 Caliphal irregular divisions)
Fed up with southern regionalism, the Badawistani forces invaded in force. Only minor gains were made in the Rub' al Khali, but most points west were eventually overrun after some quick, but intensive and bloody battles. Gains were made in the north, too. Some tribes refused to surrender and retreated southwards to carry on the fight against Almasra, however.
(-2 Badawin divisions, -3 Badawin irregular divisions)
Having previously largely neglected the Central Asian front, the Russians now felt free enough to deploy a fairly large army to safeguard Siberia from a Persian invasion. Although the Russian expectations related to the Sunni rebels in Persia were to be largely disappointed - some new rebellions did flare up, but they were crushed fairly quickly by the Persian army on the watch for these rebels - the large-scale Russian redeployments caught the advancing Persians somewhat off-guard. The Second Persian Army, advancing towards the Yaik River, was caught on the march and only managed to retreat southwards due to the terrain that slowed the Russians down somewhat; with the help of local Sunnis (+2 Russian irregular divisions), the Russians not only defeated the Persians badly at Nebitdag, but also made inroads into Persian territory. Elsewhere, however, things weren't as easy - the Russians have clearly underestimated the Persians, who had, over the past few years, built up a formidable military, with help from the HRE and Japan, and armed it with weapons sometimes superior to those in the Russian arsenal. Perhaps more importantly, it took some time for the Russians to deploy the bulk of their forces in the east - just enough for the Persians to claim the initiative while only the first few divisions were present. The Persians used this time well - they secured the fertile grounds of Central Kazakhstan, and from there moved on into Siberia. It was only there that they were stopped, both by Russian guerrila warfare and by the arrival of the main Russian forces, which defeated the Persians at Tyumen; a flank attack reached the Irtysh River and almost took Tobolsk, a city vital to Russia's communications and internal commerce, as well as an important industrial center; however, the Russians, sacrificing the opportunity of finishing off the Third Persian Army that fell back southwards, forced the attackers in the east back and outflanked them, destroying the Fourth Persian Army at Tara. After these campaigns, the Russians had effectively not just weather the storm, but also, though this wasn't completely clear yet, turned the tables on the Persians; Russian numerical supremacy in the region was fortified, and after resting, the Russians launched a new offensive to retake Astana and Qaraghandy. The Persians however prepared well and made good use of the mountainous terrain; the Russians suffered serious casualties, and though Astana was besieged, while Qaraghandy was captured completely, the offensive generally bogged down. The front is in stalemate now, though it still seems that Persian defeat (in this region, anyway) is only a matter of time now.
(-23 Russian divisions, -3 Russian Cossack divisions, -1 Russian irregular division, -14 Russian conscript divisions, -21 Persian divisions, -12 Persian Immortal Guards divisions)
Though General Vishwanath Pratap Singh's overthrowal of the defeatist emperor was at first considered a turning point by some, soon it became clear that this coup merely sped up the Rajput collapse, which by then was inevitable anyway; the Rajputs, never really strong or popular in the far west or the far south, soon lost both regions to local insurgencies, and the small Rajput army at Raiput was quickly crushed between the Chinese defenders in Bengal and the Marathi rebels in the south. Rajputana and the Upper Ganges were then the only regions where Vishwanath Pratap Singh had any real power; but these were precisely the regions that came under massed Chinese attacks, and despite Vishwanath's ingenious tactics and last-moment conscription efforts, the large Rajput army assembled was mostly wiped out by aerial attacks followed up immediately by a general Chinese offensive. As Rajput India detiriorated into warlordism, religious and tribal strife, the Chinese were quickly allowed into Delhi by treacherous nobles, and Vishwanath Pratap Singh fell in battle with his remaining forces during the final assault. The Japanese Imperial Expeditionary Force arrived too late, and only managed to occupy the easily-defensible Eastern Ghats. The Japanese weren't too late to strike at China itself, though, forcing the Chinese forces in India to redeploy frantically...
(-Rajput India as an independent nation, -8 Chinese divisions, -5 Chinese air squadrons)
The newest Japanese war with China - popularily considered part of the Second Worldwar, though this definition is arguable - was not completely unexpected, but still begun in the least expected date; this and the stunning speed of the conflict's development and the eventual Japanese actions have, well, stunned the Chinese population and military. As part of the celebrations of the Chinese New Year and of the cultural exchange programs related to the Pacific Trading Bloc, the Japanese sent Kabiki performers to entertain the Chinese court; the Shanxi Emperor (notoriously lightly-guarded, especially if compared to say Emperor Valerien) probably wasn't entertained when they turned out to be Japanese assassins who delivered a declaration of war and then begun shooting everyone in sight. Eventually they were killed by the Chinese bodyguards and garrison troopers that rushed on first alarm, but the Emperor himself, along with a respectable portion of his household, were dead (-1 Confidence). Now, normally, though tragic, this wouldn't have been all that fatal - the Xin Han Dynasty worked hard to build a superior bureaucratic system, and the Chinese ministers almost immediately restored order, the chief minister taking control until matters of succession are sorted out. However, it was combined with an all-out invasion, which paralyzed China for the first few months at the least. The Japanese government immediately announced to the world its declaration of war on China for its assistance to various insurgent groups all over Asia, including the Manchurian nationalists, and the military operations commenced. Though as mentioned the Chinese troops weren't completely unprepared for war with Japan, they were stunned by the initial attack, and in any case were outnumbered and outmatched (in training, in technology - where the Japanese not only employed heavier-than-air aircraft almost on par with the Chinese one, but also used a wide array of ultramodern weaponry, including that used in recent European campaigns but also some never seen before - a few even reported the use of so-called "death rays") completely, with the best and the most of the Chinese army still in India. Immediately, the Japanese overran, despite surprisingly well-organized resistance in the former, both Taiwan and Chinese territories in Terra Australis; and in the same time, the Chinese fleet, overstretched, was wiped out by the four Japanese task forces that quickly and methodically cleared the Chinese coastal waters. The Chinese home airfleet briefly attained aerial supremacy to bombard some of the Japanese transport fleets, but almost immediately the Japanese air force flew in superior numbers to defend the sea fleet, and the Chinese, though not completely crushed in the air, had to cease their attacks. Then the Japanese land forces moved in; the Chinese, still stunned and utterly outnumbered, were completely overrun in the coastal regions; Macao, Canton, Xiamen, Fuzhou, Shanghai, Suzhou, Qingdao, Beijing and Xinan all fell within the first few days, and the territories around them were quickly secured despite the beginning of Chinese resistance (+5 Chinese irregular divisions). Moving with lightning speed combined with extraordinary thoroughness, the Japanese soon secured all the Chinese coastal regions, crushed virtually all the organized resistance there, and brought the war further inland, capturing city after city. The Chinese government desperately tried to stem the advance; forces were being redeployed from India, but that was taking too much time, so conscription was ordered, and militias were levied in the threatened regions (+10 Chinese irregular divisions). Yet all this scarcely stopped the Japanese. The Chinese resistance efforts did give them a pause occasionally, but only a very brief one; the Japanese destroyed entire army corps, and plowed on and on. And in the meantime, things got even worse - with the help of Japanese agents and advisors, Tolun Khan, a major Mongol chieftain, rallied the other tribes and started a general insurgency in the north, slaughtering all the Chinese colonists that dared resist. The Japanese soon enough encircled Zhongguojing; the Chinese government just barely fled to Chengdu as the siege begun in the east, but at Chengdu too it came under attack, and only the timely arrival of Chinese forces from India saved it. This was probably the only Japanese defeat in the war, as, under threat of being encircled and taking unacceptable casualties, one of their forces had to fall back to Chongqing. But all of southern, eastern and central Chinese lands were in Japanese hands, and all that prevented further advance were the overstretched supply routes and the growing guerrila problems. This, along with Terra Australis, confirmed the Japanese military's reputation of being the most efficient army in the world, though some charge that much of its seeming invincibility comes from the Japanese only clashing with far weaker, less numerous, unprepared opponents. Still, only a miracle could save China now (2 Economy from China to Japan, -1 Chinese Confidence, Living Standards, Civilian Leadership, +1 Japanese Confidence, Culture); and barring that, Japan will soon become the unchallangeable master of Asia...
(-13 Chinese divisions, -12 Chinese irregular divisions, -20 Chinese conscript divisions, -53 Chinese ship squadrons, -12 Chinese submarine squadrons, -9 Chinese air squadrons, -10 Japanese divisions, -3 Japanese Ikkitousennonimusha divisions, -16 Japanese ship squadrons, -5 Japanese submarine squadrons, -6 Japanese air squadrons)
...especially as it had rejoined the Imperial alliance system and declared war on Russia this May, again striking quickly and efficiently into Siberia, and facing no resistance at all apart from a few unready militiamen here and there (+1 Russian irregular division). Early on, the key Russian Pacific bases of Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy and Port Ajan - abandoned by the Russian Pacific Fleet that is presently based in Dublin, British Ireland of all places - were secured, and the Japanese rapidly captured the unguarded railways, soon enough reaching Baikal and taking Irkutsk; in the meantime, the Mongols of Tolun Khan struck north to secure Chita, Ulan Ude and generally Russian Mongolia. They too didn't encounter resistance - only help from local Mongols (+5 Mongol irregular divisions). Somewhat concerned by the lack of resistance, the Japanese nonetheless pressed on westwards, taking Kyzyl. A few days later, the Russian Central Asian forces were engaged; this proved an important factor in the stop of the Russian offensive against the Persians, as both the Japanese and the Mongols linked up with the Persian Fifth Army, forming an united Siberian front. As Russians reshuffled and the Japanese consolidated their supply routes, warfare here mostly consisted of various skirmishes. Having outran their supply routes, the Japanese were unable to mount a major offensive until the Russians had already regroupped to face it; but next year seems to have many opportunities for the Imperial System in this theatre.
(-3 Russian divisions, -2 Russian conscript divisions, -2 Japanese divisions, -1 Japanese Ikkitousennonimusha division, -2 Mongol irregular divisions)
The Deccanian rebels were taken over by Raja Nayar; after a brief flurry of violence all over the Imperial colony, the rebels announced that Emperor Valerien I had officially ceded India to them; the Emperor denied this and French troops and gendarmes suddenly launched a ruthless campaign of systematic eradication of the rebels. Though Raja Nayar escaped capture and the rebel movement wasn't completely crushed, the Imperials dealt it a heavy blow, especially after defeating the main rebel army at Raichur; the Deccanian separatists in general either fled into the chaotic north or went into the underground.
(-3 Imperial divisions)
The Sumatran rebels have been crushed for good, although some of the separatism sentiments linger on.
(-1 Imperial Foreign Legion)
