How could the Axis Powers win WW2?

[Jolthig]

Essentially, the USSR was a pretty big country for Germany to take on.

[Valrifell]

They could start by not wasting men and ammo at murdering civilians

But then they're not Nazis.

[Torrocca]

Taking Moscow wouldn't have defeated the USSR nor even stopped them from fighting, not by a long shot.

You have to remember that the Nazis were committing millions of atrocities wherever they were in the USSR with all the troops and resources they could possibly muster for such a task; practically nobody in the USSR was without some kind of tragedy caused by the Nazi incursion. Lebensraum was, after all, the entire purpose behind the invasion.

It wouldn't have destroyed their will to fight but it would have crippled the USSR in every way possible. Their logistics network especially would be a mess because everything in some way linked to Moscow.

Though I still argue Case Blue was the best chance the Germans had to win, but they bungled that by diverting to the Caucasus early.

Actually, the heart of Soviet logistics, their rail network, had more than enough sub-connections and workarounds in 1941 that they could've managed despite losing Moscow.

[Scottish Socialists]

Actually, they could have won if they just spammed add_latest_equipment

Nah, nah.

Just open the console and type ‘annex SOV’, or better yet. ‘annex all’.

[Hammer Britannia]

Ah yes.
Italy.
The France of the Axis Powers.
Sticks and stones may break my bones, but they will easily kill the Italian military.

Including sticks and stones:
Greece
Partisans
Angry Albanians
North Africa
Ethiopia

A bear

[Torrocca]

Taking Moscow wouldn't have defeated the USSR nor even stopped them from fighting, not by a long shot.

You have to remember that the Nazis were committing millions of atrocities wherever they were in the USSR with all the troops and resources they could possibly muster for such a task; practically nobody in the USSR was without some kind of tragedy caused by the Nazi incursion. Lebensraum was, after all, the entire purpose behind the invasion.

Another reason is that the USSR politcal climate would make sure that they would fight to the bitter end like in the napoleonic wars.

They fought to the bitter end specifically because their families were being raped and murdered by the millions, not because of some, "Enemy At the Gates," commissar-style bullshit.

[Tokora]

Assassinate FDR maybe? Worked in "The Man in the High Castle".

[Washington Resistance Army]

It wouldn't have destroyed their will to fight but it would have crippled the USSR in every way possible. Their logistics network especially would be a mess because everything in some way linked to Moscow.

Though I still argue Case Blue was the best chance the Germans had to win, but they bungled that by diverting to the Caucasus early.

Actually, the heart of Soviet logistics, their rail network, had more than enough sub-connections and workarounds in 1941 that they could've managed despite losing Moscow.

Oh yeah they could still move some stuff around but not at the scale and speed they'd need for total war, and if Case Blue worked it would have been rippity rip for Stalin cuz even if the US and friends quintupled Lend Lease it wouldn't be enough.

[Torrocca]

Actually, the heart of Soviet logistics, their rail network, had more than enough sub-connections and workarounds in 1941 that they could've managed despite losing Moscow.

Not if Stalin was captured or killed, he had refused to leave Moscow.

The the USSR collapses.

Another leader could've kept the fight going strong.

Again, you have to remember that this is an entire country where almost every family felt some kind of loss from the murderous policies of the Nazis. The Soviet people weren't going to break that easily.

[Jolthig]

Assassinate FDR maybe?

Nope. That would've just fueled American hate against the Axis.

[Nantoraka]

Invading Russia, attacking Pearl Harbor, invading Poland, and sieging Malta were all ways that the Axis could've won WW2.

[Torrocca]

Actually, the heart of Soviet logistics, their rail network, had more than enough sub-connections and workarounds in 1941 that they could've managed despite losing Moscow.

Oh yeah they could still move some stuff around but not at the scale and speed they'd need for total war, and if Case Blue worked it would have been rippity rip for Stalin cuz even if the US and friends quintupled Lend Lease it wouldn't be enough.

Case Blue would've only potentially worked if they diverted resources from the other two army groups, which... would've freed up numerous Soviet units and helped bolster the defense of Stalingrad and the Caucasus oil fields.

[Scottish Socialists]

Including sticks and stones:
Greece
Partisans
Angry Albanians
North Africa
Ethiopia

A bear

Honestly not surprised. Even a penguin could probably beat the Italian military.

[Hammer Britannia]

Assassinate FDR maybe? Worked in "The Man in the High Castle".

The man in the high castle is a meme of an alternate history.

If even one German stepped foot in America there would be at least 10 armed civilians resisting.

[The Black Forrest]

Not having the Einsatzgruppen for starters. They probably turned the Baltic states against them.

[Scottish Socialists]

Assassinate FDR maybe? Worked in "The Man in the High Castle".

The man in the high castle is a meme of an alternate history.

If even one German stepped foot in America there would be at least 10 armed civilians resisting.

Probably be the same case in the UK, too.
And tons of diversions.
I mean, they had fake guns, fake people, and fake tanks all made to strike fear into invading Germans.
Drain pipes, mannequins and inflatables.

[The Black Forrest]

Another leader could've kept the fight going strong.

Again, you have to remember that this is an entire country where almost every family felt some kind of loss from the murderous policies of the Nazis. The Soviet people weren't going to break that easily.

The USSR was a cult of personality built on invincibility. Countries where all power is concentrated at the top are extremely vulnerable if the head is cut off the snake. Dictatorships with no clear favored ad competent successor collapse.

Was it? Did they forget the pasting the Poles gave them in 1920?

[Washington Resistance Army]

Oh yeah they could still move some stuff around but not at the scale and speed they'd need for total war, and if Case Blue worked it would have been rippity rip for Stalin cuz even if the US and friends quintupled Lend Lease it wouldn't be enough.

Case Blue would've only potentially worked if they diverted resources from the other two army groups, which... would've freed up numerous Soviet units and helped bolster the defense of Stalingrad and the Caucasus oil fields.

Simply not breaking the initial thrust in half would have given Case Blue a not insignificant chance of working.

That being said I can understand why the choice was made to push for Baku and the Caucasus early but with hindsight it was absolutely the wrong choice. Taking Stalingrad as the main objective and seizing control of the river and rail lines in the area would have made it an absolute pain for the Soviets to supply units south of the now German controlled territory and also would have wreaked havoc with the Soviets fuel.

Also kick out Paulus and put Schörner in charge of the whole thing.

[Vassenor]

Honestly, the Axis could have won had they not let Hitler:

A) Command the Luftwaffe to attack cities instead of airfields and naval bases and such
B) Invade Russia for ‘mein Lebensraum’
C) Be a psychopath.

And also, for Japan, not attacking America.

I understand that C is impossible, as being a psychopath isn’t something you can just ‘not let happen’, but in that case, the solution would be letting Rommel or Göring become leader.

At that point there's so many "ifs" that it's litteraly fiction.

Also regarding the Luftwaffe, Göring should've looked for new models instead of upgrading already existing ones.

He was a good pilot.

Good soldiers never make good commanders.

Is that when they're still trying to sneak under the Versailles radar or not?

[Torrocca]

Another leader could've kept the fight going strong.

Again, you have to remember that this is an entire country where almost every family felt some kind of loss from the murderous policies of the Nazis. The Soviet people weren't going to break that easily.

The USSR was a cult of personality built on invincibility. Countries where all power is concentrated at the top are extremely vulnerable if the head is cut off the snake. Dictatorships with no clear favored ad competent successor collapse.

Yes, it had that, and it would've struck hard into the morale of the people, but that alone wouldn't have broken them, not when millions of people who were brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, daughters, sons, and so on of these people were being slaughtered for the crime of being born a Slav, or a Jew, or whomever else was in the sightlines of the Nazis.

[Valrifell]

Assassinate FDR maybe? Worked in "The Man in the High Castle".

The man in the high castle is a meme of an alternate history.

If even one German stepped foot in America there would be at least 10 armed civilians resisting.

Per square mile.

[Christian Confederation]

Since the Nazis were the main threat I will focus on them, the Nazis could have easily won the war by doing a few simple things.
1. countinue the strategic boaming of southern England, this would weeken military assets in southern England clearing a way for a secsesful landing, plus the decision to stop boaming stritigic military Targets and Start boaming was a big mistake.
2. Finish England off before heading to fight Russia, this is just comman sense you never run into a two front war unless it's understandably needed.
3. Don't waste military recerchers for pointless projects, basically any stupid Nazi idea that was scraped or impossible.

[Hammer Britannia]

The man in the high castle is a meme of an alternate history.

If even one German stepped foot in America there would be at least 10 armed civilians resisting.

Probably be the same case in the UK, too.
And tons of diversions.
I mean, they had fake guns, fake people, and fake tanks all made to strike fear into invading Germans.
Drain pipes, mannequins and inflatables.

Yeah, the UK and America would probably be possible to invade for long.

Nuclear war would probably be the only way either side could win, but with the whole "Germany is a dysfunctional state occupying lands from Moscow to Paris" it's pretty obvious who would win.

[Hanafuridake]

There were serious problems from the get-go. The Nazis had an amateur for a leader who would always bite off more than he could chew, the Italians lacked the industrialization and modernization necessary to field a fully equipped army, and Japan was dominated by militarists who would assassinate civilian leaders they didn't like and alienated the rest of the world through a combination of brutality and over-expansion.

That said, it is possible things could have turned out vastly different had Mussolini not invaded Greece and instead focused his forces in Libya. The diversion of armored divisions, airpower, and mechanized equipment to the Albanian Front dramatically hurt the Italian war effort in North Africa, seen by the disastrous Operation Compass. Had Japan chosen to invade Siberia instead of East Asia, that could have significantly altered the course of the war combined with Operation Barbarossa.

By not being Nazis.

If that were the case, the Italians and Japanese should have won.

[Washington Resistance Army]

As for Japan, well, even if we're being generous they kinda dug themselves into too deep of a hole for any real potential theories for a victory to be very plausible.