downfall maproom

[joegrundman]

Summer 1942

German offensive in the northern/central sector of the Russian front isolates much of the red army, captures Gorky and isolates Moscow



Japanese offensive breaks into India and completes conquest of Solomons, Aleutians and Gilberts

[joegrundman]

Fall 1942

Germany makes another encirclement, this time in the Stalingrad region



Japan wins costly naval battle of Santa Cruz Islands and successfully retakes control of Santa Cruz from the US

[joegrundman]

Winter 42

german winter offensive widens the breakthrough on the Ural front

But axis position in the mediteranean and north africa collapses after string of allied victories. In the western Med, Patten's anglo-american force captures algiers, morocco and advances towards sicily, while Monty's force overruns the axis position in Egypt.

Most importantly the decisive Royal Navy victory at Bizerte has given control of the Med to Britain and the axis can no longer supply Africa

[joegrundman]

Fall 1943

US has begun counter-offensive. Dutch Harbor and Midway have been reconquered, relentless air and submarine attacks have finally isolated the key Japanese held port of Lae on New Guinea. Japan has also declared war on Russia and captured Vladivostok



German offensive in Russia has captured Leningrad, Stalingrad and Kuybyshev and brought German armor units very close to the Ural industrial area. Russia on the brink of collapse

Western Allied offensive on the other hand has inflicted another defeat on the italian navy, routed axis forces from Africa and invaded Malta, Corsica and Sardinia. There has also been a substantial allied invasion of France, with Brittany now under allied control, albeit firmly hemmed in by german forces

[joegrundman]

Start Winter 1943

Germany keeps putting pressure on the Urals area, advancing towards to the city of Uralsk

But in the west, allied bombing continues over germany, damaging German synthetic oil refining capability.

The allies invade sicily, landing at Syracuse, overrunning Messina and crossing the Messina Strait into Italy. An American Airborne assault captures the port of La Spezia.

The Royal Navy crushes an attempt by the Vichy Navy to interdict the supply line to the American airborne units. The combined shocks led to the collapse of the Italian government and the disbandment of most of the Italian armed forces. Some Italian ships and units have put themselves under German control. Mostly they have disappeared. Italy is for now virtually empty of axis forces.



In the pacific, allied forces invaded Singapore and the Marshall Islands. A Japanese surprise hit and run carrier/submarine strike resulted in the devastating loss of three US carriers in the Battle of the Marshalls, but for reasons not fully understood, the Japanese fleet then returned to base allowing the US invasion to proceed.

Also, US troops fought there way to the north coast of New Guinea over the Owen-Stanley range. US submarines also having an effect on Japanese oil shipments for the first time

[joegrundman]

Winter 1943

Germany accepts Russian surrender. Russia begins war reparations at rate of 20brps/turn

Germany transfers the Luftwaffe and many ground units to the west and constructs new defensive line along the river Po in northern Italy

Americans liberate Rome in drive up the Italian peninsular while the British invade Greece at Salonika and exploit into Bulgaria.

Allies attack Luftwaffe bases in Western France



Japan successfully recaptures Singapore, but the Japanese attempt to reinvade Midway was decisively defeated by an American Task Force with heavy losses to Japanese cruisers and a battleship

A lightweight American attempt to invade Nauru in the Gilberts was crushed by Japanese battleships, but American invasions of Santa Cruz and Lae were successful

[joegrundman]

Oops forgot to update this for a while..

Allies advance in france, having captured all uboat pens on the biscay coast, and isolate paris after a breakthrough in the german defenses between Paris and Lyon

The Balkan front sees the capture of Athens and Albania from the Axis

The Red Army offensive has produced a huge breakthrough in the Southern half of the front threatening the total collapse of the German position in Russia



In the pacific, there have been no major naval engagements for nearly a year, but lots of invasions as the US pacific drive pushes into the Carolines and Celebes and Timor in the Dutch East Indies.

From the India sector, an invasion of Medan has put Japan's oil sources in a vice.

The allies have mostly driven the Japanese out of India and Burma and have now broken into Thailand.

In china and Manchuria attrition is building up but no decisive battle has yet occurred involving Red Army units