Brüder gegen Brüder [REALISM&RP ONLY]

[Germanischen Staaten]

Konstantine's Office in Berlin

The moment the Empress of The Belkan Islands stepped into the Emperor's Office, Konstantine stood up and bowed lightly, saying as he stood straight, "<it's a pleasure to be meeting with you, Empress Irisviel.>" He waits for her to take a seat before taking his own and hears her simple question before saying, "<why, today, I was hoping we could discuss a possibility of peace rather than war. I assume you know much as I do that it's a horrible thing, and the squalor of a few thousand who took to absolute violence against my own men shouldn't be cause of war.>"

At the border...

With the presence of new troops being stationed at the border by both sides, a number of which were freshly conscripted and, in the case of the Germans, recruited, tensions were increasing by the minute as both sides wondered who would initiate the fighting. The soldiers on both sides knew it to be an inevitability, and it was assumed that the Torroccans hoped the Germans would engage them in combat as the aggressors, in order to sway the International Committee into forming a coalition to assist in the war effort. The Germans, on the other hand, hoped that the inexperienced, poorly-trained, and physically unfit soldiers of Torrocca would fire the first shots and attempt to attack to provoke the exact opposite. While neither side had yet to openly declare war on the other, it seemed with the mobilization of both sides' forces that it was to happen soon enough.

[Torrocca]

At the border...

Tensions were heightened as the presence of new soldiers from the German military appeared on the border, almost by the day. While the initial German military force of roughly one million men was just barely prepared for war, the sudden surge of recruitment and conscription in the country led to the Torroccans at the border to believe that they were entirely doomed. The original fighting force of 350,000 in the German military was already greatly experienced from wars previous and had found itself in a situation where it was better trained and supported with superior ground, sea, and air vehicles. The sudden surge from nearly one million personnel to four million in just a few days' time utterly disheartened the under-trained and often under-equipped members of the Torroccan military, a few of who already took to desertion, some across the border even.

Despite this, those still holding guard remained determined and vigilant, ready to hold the line at all costs. Despite the fact that 37,000 men could barely keep the border security in check, let alone hold it for more than a day, the steadily increasing numbers of conscripts and even a small number of actual recruits to the Torroccan military made the inexperienced and outnumbered soldiers feel more secure. Despite this, they knew if even one mistake was made by them, if even one shot was fired first by them, the Germans would be swift to jump on this information and name them to be the aggressors in an attempt to persuade the world that they didn't take up arms against the Torroccans without reason. Still, neither side hoped for war, and both hoped that, if there was to be war, that the other side would initiate the first battle of the conflict, both for their own reasons.

[The Belkan Islandic Federation]

Konstantine's Office in Berlin

The moment the Empress of The Belkan Islands stepped into the Emperor's Office, Konstantine stood up and bowed lightly, saying as he stood straight, "<it's a pleasure to be meeting with you, Empress Irisviel.>" He waits for her to take a seat before taking his own and hears her simple question before saying, "<why, today, I was hoping we could discuss a possibility of peace rather than war. I assume you know much as I do that it's a horrible thing, and the squalor of a few thousand who took to absolute violence against my own men shouldn't be cause of war.>"

At the border...

With the presence of new troops being stationed at the border by both sides, a number of which were freshly conscripted and, in the case of the Germans, recruited, tensions were increasing by the minute as both sides wondered who would initiate the fighting. The soldiers on both sides knew it to be an inevitability, and it was assumed that the Torroccans hoped the Germans would engage them in combat as the aggressors, in order to sway the International Committee into forming a coalition to assist in the war effort. The Germans, on the other hand, hoped that the inexperienced, poorly-trained, and physically unfit soldiers of Torrocca would fire the first shots and attempt to attack to provoke the exact opposite. While neither side had yet to openly declare war on the other, it seemed with the mobilization of both sides' forces that it was to happen soon enough.

After 20 minutes of Conversation, Irisviel finally shook her head. "Whether Belka participates or not is trivial. All of Europe stand against you, my friend. If you want to spare bloodshed, I'd recommend surrender. Otherwise Germany will witness a war unlike any it's seen before." She stood up, putting on her coat and hat. "Anyway, I'm glad we made attempt at Diplomacy, but I must return to my country. If there is anything further you wish to discuss please mention it now. If not, contact my Office. My aide will inform me of further discussions on your behalf. Auf Wiedersehen~!" She said, smiling, before exiting.

---

At the same time, Somewhere deep in Venezuela, in the Main Bunker Complex of 'The Federation of South America', a group of Military Officers had gathered for a meeting on the European situation. "Fuhrer has performed well." A Colonel said. "Europe is on the Brink of war, just as you anticipated, General." General Diego Gaspar Almagro was not what you'd call a pleasant man. His appearance was immaculate, but he had also personally strangled his predecessor to take control of Venezuela. He sat now, at the head of the Planning table, looking faintly bored. "Europe is not our concern at the moment, Belka is. Those Subs of theirs could cause us trouble if we invade Asia. What does Nightingale say about it?"

Another Colonel put some files on the table, copies of Nightingale's reports. "She is currently working to get rid of them, General Almagro. She predicts success in two months."

Almagro stood up. "The Meeting is over. Report back to your installations and await further orders." The officers present saluted, before filing out. Almagro was the last to go, but he turned and went a different direction, two Federation soldiers following him. At the Cell Block, he motioned for them to stand guard outside Cell 93F as he went in. He surveyed the uncomfortable-looking figure, clad in a black Federation Prison Uniform.

"Good morning, Irisviel," He said. "How are you today?"

[Yakzistan]

April 19th, 2015

Yakzistani Air Force Su-27s intercepts defecting Germanstaaten Eurofighter Typhoon


The lone defecting Eurofighter Typhoon being intercepted by an Su-27

Today was an troubling day for the Yakzistani forces in Krajstali an defecting Germanstaaten pilot in his fighter jet. Somewhere at noon, an small Krajstalian radar outpost near the Germanschien border detected an unknown signature heading towards them. After quick reporting of this, the 2nd Fighter Aviation Squadron scrambled 3 of it's Su-27MK jets to intercept the unknown aircraft. After 10 minutes, the 3 aircraft of the Yakzistani Air Force finally intercepted the aircraft, an Eurofighter Typhoon of the Germanstaaten Air Force.

After diverting the plane, the aircraft landed at the Ljubljana Jože Pučnik Airport. The Germanstaaten aircraft's pilot name was Xaiver Nadelman, who served the Germanstaaten Air Force for several years. He located to another unknown location by Krajstalian authorities for questioning shortly awards after landing at the air base. No word from Germanstaaten officials has come out yet.- AAN News

[New Austzeland]

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19/04/2015 – Zolevskoy Begins Sending Troops to Czechoslovakia and Elektrograd

Pictured above: RZAF vehicles being loaded onto an Air Force Il-76

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President Nikolic Woronoff announce on Saturday that a force of 10 brigades will be gradually deployed to Czechoslovakia and another 2 brigades to Elektrograd for "defensive purposes". It is estimated every 2 days, 3 brigades will arrive in Czechoslovakia, along with 1 brigade being deployed to Elektrograd every 2 days.

Woronoff appeared alongside Minister of Defense Borce Kovac and Commander-in-Chief of the Republic of Zolevskoy Armed Forces Alexej Zdislav in a press conference on the noon of Saturday to announce the deployment of Zolevskoyan forces to Czechoslovakia and Elektrograd for defensive purposes, and to deter any possible aggression from Germanischen Staaten, who have been reported to be making provocative moves on the border with Torrocca recently.

Most forces include light infantry, motor rifle, and air mobile brigades from the active services of the Republic of Zolevskoy Armed Forces. A total of about 100,000 soldiers will be deployed to Czechoslovakia and another 10,000 to Elektrograd over the next coming days.


More info on the situation as it becomes available right here on AAN Zolevskoy.

[Elektrograd]

20/04/2015
Elektrograd amasses forces along western border


Pictured above: Zaskroniec 1A3 without additional turret armour

Following recent Zolev deployment, president of the Republic of Elektrograd Cyryl Lebowski announced that a battlegroup of 8 brigades is to be located along Germanstateen border. Our soldiers will support deployment of allied units (Korvan, Zolev and Belkan contingents) and coordinate aforementioned defensive actions. Those units will also deter Germanstateen army or irregular units from taking any offensive actions, hopefully putting an end to recent border incursions (April 19th Eurofighter Typhoon interception.)

Battlegroup will consist of three armoured brigades, four mechanized and one mountain infantry brigade (Podhale Rifles) together with air (Squadrons of strike aircraft were sighted flying over Silesia and Mazovia) and logistic support. After this deployment our western border will be protected by around 75 thousand, well equipped, active service troopers.

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[Yakzistan]

April 22nd, 2015

Germanstaaten troops accidently cross into Krajstali border


Yakzistani VDV infantry men near the Germanstaaten border

Two squads of the Germenstaaten military accidently crossed the Krajstali border during one of the patrols during heightened crisis between Germanstaaten and rest of European nations. According an sources from the Krajstali media, the Germanstaaten troops got about a mile into Krajstali when they spotted by an Yakzistani VDV patrols group stationed a ridge near the border. As soon the infantrymen sighted the trespassers, they fired several warning shots ordered from the commander of the unit.

Seconds later, the trespassing troops fired back at VDV. Thus caused a small firefight engagement between the two forces. The engagement lasted 18 minutes until a platoon of Krajstali troops arrived and the Germanstaaten troops begun to retreat, realised the have crossed into border. No casualties were reported from either sides. After this firefight, the 6th Motorized Infantry Company was moved to this area due to concerns. This second incursion by the Germanstaaten military forces in the Slovenia region of Krajstali.- AAN News

[Germanischen Staaten]

Midnight at the border...

Initially, the few days after the mobilizations of both the Germanischen military forces and the Torroccan military forces were quiet at the border, with no shots fired or incursions into either sides' land. The only things that occurred were patrols and the launching of flares at night, which were green for both sides to indicate non-hostilities. Interestingly, despite being a sort of deathtrap to cross, a majority of the German soldiers were found on the other side of the inadequately defended Maginot Line, a ruse to divert Torroccan attention to this section of their border which worked like a charm. With the Belgo-Torroccan border heavily unmanned, an attack through the Ardennes would lead to a swift and decisive victory for the Germans, as well as the ensnarement and capture of most of the Torroccan 1st Army.

On the third day of what seemed to be a lack of hostilities, in the middle of the night, the normally-green flares used by the Germans were switched out for a set of red flares all across the border. As these made their descent into Torroccan territory, illuminating defensive positions across the way, the distant echo of cannons and rockets confused the ill-trained and poorly prepared sentries and left the rest of the men undisturbed as they slept. It wasn't until the distant whistling of bombs and the slight roar of thousands of rockets overheard that the sentries took to waking up men all over the border, but it was well too late by then. Thousands of explosives pounded into the defensive lines, slaughtering nearly three thousand at the Maginot Line and another one thousand along the Belgo-Torroccan border. Rapidly, gunfire began to overtake the silence of the night on both sides, as skirmishes broke out across the front lines. In the Ardennes, tanks and infantry tore through the vast forest while planes screamed overhead, firing rockets at the presumed locations of Torroccan units.

Within an hour, the northwestern most corner of Torrocca was entirely secured and German units were racing to surround the remaining Torroccan forces at the border before they could even make an attempt to retreat to the major cities of the country. Thousands were dead or wounded on the Torroccan side already, with thousands more in captivity. On the other hand, less than five hundred Germans were slain in the first battle, with only a few hundred more wounded, leaving the vast majority of them in a good enough condition to continue on and ensnare the remaining 25,000 soldiers of Torrocca at the border before they could retreat. The war was finally beginning.

[New Austzeland]

Breaking

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23/04/2015 – Germanischen Forces Invade Torrocca, Zolevskoyan President Quickly Condemns Invasion as "unacceptable and barbaric"

Pictured above: Torroccan soldiers fighting against Germanischen forces

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Tonight, news has hit home that forces of the Germanischen Staaten military have began a full invasion of their western neighbor, Torrocca. Very quickly, Zolevskoyan president Nikolic Woronoff condemned the invasion, accusing it of being an "unacceptable and barbaric action by the hands of the Germanischen military and government". Nikolic also promised "swift and harsh punishment" if GS forces do not withdraw and make compensations within 2 days.

"The swift, unacceptable and barbaric invasion of Torrocca at midnight by the military forces of Germanischen Staaten is a blatant breach of international law. The invasion heavily damages not just relations with the Zolevskoyan Republic, but also the international community." President Woronoff said earlier this morning in a statement regarding the invasion. "Constantine must respect his obligations, spirit and principles under international law in order to maintain peace and stability in the region of Europe."

The government of Zolevskoy has stated that they will maintain a very close eye on the developing situation in Torrocca. Meanwhile, the deployment of Republic of Zolevskoy Armed Forces troops to Czechoslovakia is intended to be hurried. Along with that, the 7th Fighter Wing, consisting of numerous JSu-90 Sochev air superiority fighters and JSu-95 Mstka multirole fighters will be deployed to Czechoslovakia, along with the 4th Ground Attack Squadron, equipped with several, and new JSu-97 Toran strike fighters.

More info on the situation as it becomes available right here on AAN Zolevskoy.

[Korva]

Excerpt from The Guns of April, a historical account of the Staaten Conflict:

…The official Korvan response to the Staaten invasion of Torrocca was characteristically sardonic. A simple press release from the Ministry of Defense stated that operations would commence in accordance with the mandate provided by the Authorization and Spending Act for Cooperation in Europe and Abroad.

No speeches were given in public squares, nor were any reporters privy to the opening shots of what would later be known as the April War…

Maszewo Base, Republic of Elektrograd
2300 hours

The relative quiet of the Spring night was rent apart by the thundering roar of rocket artillery. Rockets shot into the sky like blinding beams of light atop a pillar of choking, grey smoke. If the launch sites were a fearsome sight then the target zones were the very vision of hell. Korvan intelligence had located significant stockpiles of Staaten men and materiel at numerous villages near the border, the most prominent of these had been handpicked for targeted strikes in the event of hostilities.

The towns of Prenzlau, Pasewalk, and Torgelow would be unhappily remembered as the first Staaten casualties of the war. Ammunition depots, fuel dumps, and barracks were struck repeatedly by 200lb warheads. Each target was allotted a dozen rounds, the full load of M270. The streets of those formerly quiet towns were choked with chaos as civilians fled and local units were mustered.
A second wave of rockets fired at closer targets, their deadly loads not HE but sub-munitions. Every shot that rippled from the massive launchers brought two dozen land mines to the approaches of Prenzlau and Torgelow until their primary egress routes were thoroughly saturated.

Baltic Sea, 10 km north of the Staaten border
2315 hours

The flight of VVA-14K’s cut across the dark Baltic waters, scanning with their radar for Staaten ships. The crews studied their screens carefully, eager to detect something on the scope. These ungainly planes, with their rotund cockpits and massive wings were the heralds of the Korvan fleet. Their goal was to clear the Ostsee of any Staaten pickets so that strikes could be carried out against the mainland.

The weapon’s officer of the first aircraft yelled out as the radar indicated a large ship was ahead. He began feeding the target data to the Harpoons as the flight officer confirmed that they had permission to fire. An intense look cut across his face as the weapons acquired a lock. They were getting close, too close perhaps, to the Staaten ship and it would only be minutes for they entered SAM range. Two of the heavy anti-ship missiles ripped from the pylons and soared into the night sky. The massive aircraft wheeled about as the other craft in the formation also let loose with their own armaments. The WO lived for these moments, but he was also glad that the nature of his job didn’t call for witnessing the actual strike. At this range the Harpoons would still have plenty of fuel when they impacted, which would turn the decks of the Staaten ship into a twisted hell of flames and charred humanity.

Entering Staaten Airspace
2320 hours

Minutes behind the naval wing, a strike squadron of A-7F’s screamed across the sky, having cut north from their Elektrogradian bases and then circled back to evade Staaten radar. They tore through the air heavily, each plane loaded for bear with two dozen GBU-12’s. Ahead and above them was a flight of F-16E’s, AGM-88E’s hanging menacingly from their wings. The F-16’s were there as a shield against any Staaten SAM’s and they penetrated far ahead of their wards. The whole affair was a bit of overkill, as the majority of the Staaten army was committed to the fighting on the Torroccan border. Still, the Korvan command had no use for half measures.
The strike package’s targets were the bridges linking the Pomeranian islands of Rugen and Usedom to the mainland. To that end the formation split in two, each half flying to their respective targets. They lased the Rügendamm Causeway as well as the Route 110 bridge and then let loose with their payload. Dozens of bombs fell from the sky, their fins pushing them into a sinusoidal pattern. Massive explosions tore across the causeway and a few late night revelers were unfortunately caught in the blast. Man and machine both were devastated as the bombs rippled into the bridges and the structures crumbled into the waves.

Further to the west a lone E-2C flew lazy orbits across Elektrogradian airspace, its crew working frantically to coordinate the various combat air patrols that were being launched to cover the invasion. The men and women aboard the aircraft were swamped as they attempted to stay on top of the developing situation. The early days of the invasion would be their finest hour, as their capable efforts were to provide the backbone of continued air superiority in the Korvan area of operations

1km outside of Stettin, Republic of Elektrograd
2345 hours

Back on dry land, the tanks of the 3rd Armored Regiment trundled from their staging grounds outside of Stettin and crossed the Staaten border with little resistance. This armored formation was the very tip of the Korvan spear and their target was the picturesque hamlet of Locknitz. Behind them poured the rest of the Korvan Division de Sud: four brigades and over 30,000 men in all.

Korvan attack helicopters cut across the treetops, eager to use the terrain to mask their approach as they covered the advance. The roadsides were a mess of blackened metal, slaughtered livestock, and burning houses as Korvan artillery bracketed the flanks of the attack in order to preempt any ambushes.

[Galmarch]

24/04/2015 - Galmarch mobilises military after invasion of Torroca

Following the invasion of Torroca by Germanischen troops the government of Galmarch has decided to mobilise its armed forces.
All, soldiers are to converge in their designated area to receive further instructions and equipment. The move is to get the half strength units to full strength and readiness, munitions and fuel is being brought forth as is food and other humanitarian aid. In case refugees from Torroca and southern germans arrive.

Robert Verne the Prime minister and de facto head of state together with the minister of foreign affairs Anne Steinberg condemned the Germanischen attack and as they did with the shooting of protesters offered asylum for any Torrocan civilians for the duration of the conflict.
"The actions of the Germanischen leadership is an affront to human rights and decency" Said Verne, followed by "the shooting and imprisonment of protesters in the south followed by the attack on Torroca leaves us no choice but to mobilise our forces."

More information on international reactions as they become available right here on AAN.

The

[Bjornoerne]

Despite already neck deep in a war with Norway, the Bjornoese Monarchy and the Aurvarild felt that the situation between Germanischen and Torrocca, as well as the blatant disregard for civilian lives by the Germanischen government and mlitary, was too severe to simply let it blow over. It was in this belief that they authorized the invasion plan established in case of war with Germanischen Staaten. Of course they didn't have enough manpower to do it alone and so they waited. They waited until the Germanischen military rolled through the Torroccan army and away from Slesvig-Holsten. And then they rolled.

Northern Slesvig/Slesvig-Holsten Border
2200 Hours

Unlike the Korvans on the Eastern Border who were leveling everything in sight with artillery strikes, Bjornoerne's commanders chose precision on military targets over massive damage to the infrastructure. Win the hearts and minds of the people who were once Bjornoese and they would win the war. Soon after the order for the invasion to begin, MiG-29s and Su-27s flew into enemy territory to begin their reign of terror on the remaining elements of the Germanischen air force. Their sole job was to keep enemy air units under control while Su-39s moved in to target enemy SAM units.

As the air units provided cover from enemy aircraft, the twin divisions stationed on the border advanced into enemy territory. The Heavy Armor Regiments spearheaded the advance into enemy territory while utilizing the Armored Infantry Regiments to provide assistance with their 30mm guns whenever enemy infantry positions were found. They avoided major industrial centers as much as possible, knowing that an urban war would only slow their advance to their objective of Hamburg. Their ROE regarding Germischen civilians was to use force to defend themselves against attacks or threats of attacks, hostile fire may be returned effectively and promptly to end a hostile attack, non-lethal means are to be used against unarmed hostiles, riots, and/or mobs, all force should be one that is necessary to insure the safety of themselves and their fellow soldiers, they have the right to seize property if that property can be considered a weapon with the intent of being used against the Bjornoese Military, and detention of civilians is authorized.

Most soldiers agreed that these practices would help save lives of their fellow soldiers, some felt that they would not help them win the hearts and minds of the civilians.

Baltic Sea
2330

The task force was a simple one. Their job was to approach the coast near Rostock and perform an amphibious landing with a Armored Infantry Division. Unlike the I and VI Armored Divisions moving towards Hamburg, the V Armored Infantry Regiment had already seen combat in Norway. They had not lost many men and, after having replenished those lost, were tasked to perform the amphibious landing. Their Patria AMV XLs would be the deciding factor of the invasion. Ferrying these veterans was a token task force and three frigates, four corvettes, two Landing Helicopter Docks, and five patrol vessels. While only a token navy compared to the one currently embattled with the Norwegians, the Bjornoese Military Leaders decided that they would be sufficient in dealing with any threats when combined with two squadrons of MiG-31s and MiG-29s waiting for the order to begin flying at the closest airfield while there was already a squadron of Su-27s flying protection with a single MiG-31 to provide assistance with targeting enemy air craft.

Carried underneath the decks of the LHDs were eight Mi-18s and two Mi-24s each. They would not be moved to the deck until they were closer to the shore and safe from enemy aerial force so as to ensure that their forces will land as safely as possible. Aboard the LHDs, the bearded warriors of the Bjornoese Military did final checks before the order came to mount their vehicles. Their ancestors would be proud of them as they prepared to begin raiding like they did so long ago. This time, however, they were in pursuit of something worth more than gold and gems. They were in search of honor and the utter destruction of a tyrant that disregarded his people as if they were trash to be discarded when no longer useful.

[New Austzeland]

24/04/2015 - 0920 local time, Operation Tamed Eagle 1

Objective: Eliminate Germanischen Staaten airfields to ensure air supremacy, with JSu-95s and JSu-97s attacking airfields and hangars of enemy airfields, JSu-90s for the role of protecting attacking aircraft, Beriev A-50 AWACS, and MQ-9 Reaper drones. Beriev A-50s will be protected by pairs of 2 or 3 JSu-95 Mstkas with CAP armaments.

Battle strategy: Over 90 jets will take off from several areas in Zolevskoy and then to airbases in Czechoslovakia to make final preparations on the day before the operation begins. In the peak hours of the next morning, Operation Tamed Eagle 1 will be commenced. Aircraft will operate in three levels. JSu-95s and JSu-97s will attack enemy airfields. On the second level, similar formations of aircraft about 12,000 feet in the air will circle and wait for orders. And at the third (top) level, JSu-90s will be stationed to ensure air superiority. The first level of aircraft will attack in the areas set to be attacked, to destroy the command of the Ordian SAM units.

Before the operation is conducted, the A-50 AWACS will be launched. They will fly at a very high altitude, and hang around the area. The goal for this is to intercept any possible aircraft that come from Ordian radar units. However if this does not succeed, a UAV will be sent to strategic positions to hopefully tease air defenses.

At 0920 in the morning, the operation will be officially executed. At 1030 the first strikes will be conducted, and the Zolevskoyan aircraft will take off in pairs. The first wave will be made up of 25 JSu-95s and 23 JSu-90s, they will attack radar stations. The second wave which will attack the SAM sites and batteries themselves will consist of 30 JSu-95 Mstkas and 28 JSu-90 Sochevs.

Zolevskoyan aircraft will carry electronic and infrared countermeasure pods to foil radar tracking, and missiles that could potentially lock on them if the electronic countermeasures failed for whatever reason. The Zolveskoyan aircraft will receive real-time command pictures of the battle through various data sources and links. A-50 Berievs with airborne surveillance radars will down-link pictures to the command posts. A squadron of MQ-9 Reaper UAVs will keep at least two vehicles in the air at all times for areas being attacked, providing constant intel of enemy actions and locatiions. A two-way voice communications link between the commander of the operation, will be set up and will allow real-time command.

Teams will be made to attack different areas. Yellow team will attack airfields and areas closest to the border between Germanischen Staaten and Czechoslovakia. Green team will attack in central South Germany. Finally, Red team will attack areas in the west of South Germany.

Map of areas being attacked in South Germany

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Meanwhile on the ground in Czechoslovakia
*WIP post*

[Yakzistan]

April 24th, 2015

Yakzistan sends more troops to Krajstali as Germanschien pushes into Torrocca


Unit 158 Task Force operators awaiting orders

As the Germanstaaten forces pushes into Torroca, the second deployment force in Krajstali has finally arrived today fresh from the Sakhalin region. Just released from the short deployment in Sakhalin region in early 2015, most of them seeing combat. However, the special forces of Yakzistan has arrived; the Unit 158 Task Force. Most of the deployment will be stationed in the Slovenian region of Krajstali.- AAN News

Units sent to Krajstali

-8th Motorized Infantry Regiment(990 men)
-2nd Airborne Infantry Company(110 men)
-Unit 158 Task Force Group (atleast 600 men)
-2nd Surveillance and Recon Platoon(36 men and 2 MD-500 Helos)
-1st Airborne SPG Company(15 ASU-85s)
-2nd SPA Field Team(15 M107 SPGs)
-4th Light Tank Platoon(3 Type 62s)
-5th Light Tank Platoon(3 Type 62s)
-3rd COIN Flight(5 A-37Bs)

[Elektrograd]

Border near Gorzów Wielkopolski
2230 Hours

Soon after the start of Korvan offensive, Elektrogradian forces began their own. In no time the North German army was under heavy artillery fire from SHA Brzoza self-propelled artillery and older but still effective 2S1s. German bases and FOBs located along the border were quickly levelled to the ground by the relentless artillery barrage. The long awaited April War had started, as the first brigades moved into the North Germany.

At the same time dozens of F-16s, armed with SEAD AGM-88 missiles, crossed the border, protected by other fighters, which were armed purely for air to air combat. Four squadrons of fearsome YF-23’s spearheaded the attack. They flew towards the enemy radars and AA positions in order to cripple the Germanstateen air defence and air force. The area surrounding the capital was too risky to send aircraft, so MSCMs cruise missiles were used instead, effectively turning preselected targets into shapeless piles of burnt down metal. The first part of the plan, risky as it was, would provide air supremacy for a time long enough to allow the Elektrogradians to bring their own SPAAGs and the rest of Air Force.

The ground attack was spearheaded by armoured brigades from 20th Armoured Division. Dozens of Zaskroniec 1A4 tanks, each armed with 120 mm Rheinmetall L55 smoothbore guns and protected by depleted uranium mesh-reinforced composite armour, proved that the upgraded Tigers were no match for the Elektrogradians. Even with additional armour plates, the Tigers couldn't stand a chance against modern ammunition or Spike ATGMs fired from Bojar IFVs. Every secured city was cleared by infantry and Kościuszko tracked fighting vehicles. Mechanized infantry, ruthless and effective, was ordered to shoot every man with visible weapon, every barricade or MG nest was burnt to the ground with incendiary and HE rounds, no matter whether manned by militia or the regular army. The Elektrogradian advance, protected by aircraft and attack helicopters, was fast and brutal. After breaching the border, the bulk of units started to move north and south from Berlin, hoping to siege the city as fast as possible. Another two brigades joined Korvan forces, which were pushing towards Hamburg, where they would meet with Bjornoese soldiers. The least numerous battlegroup, the reinforced Podhale Rifles brigade, aided by Belkan troops, rushed towards Leipzig.

While the main forces were pushing through enemy territory, specialists from UAV task forces struggled to ensure the safety of the flanks. Several dozen MQ-9 Reaper and Heron drones were sent to scan territory around main units, searching for signs of hostile activity. If an enemy unit was detected, MQ-9s would try to destroy it with Hellfire missiles or call rapid response unit to keep enemy busy, until the reinforcements or air strike arrive.

Map of current Elektrogradian movements

[Mislau]

Mislaun Courier

24/4/15

De Rijksfederatie joins the "Anti Konstantin" Coalition and joins the war!

[Krajstali]

Krajstalian-Germanischen Border,Carinthia and Styria Regions
0430 - 26/4/15

Several hours after the first offensives were made in the north, it was time for the Krajstalian forces to do their part.Only a few hours from the crack of dawn. As the command was given out to artillery forces out on the field, several positioned M-94 Plamen-S and M-87 Orkan begun unleashing a barrage of rockets followed by several batteries of 2A36 Giatsint-Bs and M84 NORAs upon the Germanischen border devastating most of the Germanischen Military positions,infrastructure and bases. The Artillery had tried it's best to avoid civilian targets as the Commander overseeing the Operations carried out in the Fifth MR Zagreb North-Western Theatre Military Region including Marshal Karadsevic himself had decreed that No civilian is to be harmed unless engaged upon as the "KNA is to not only aid in the liberation of the Southern German Territories but also in the liberation of the Germanischen people from their tyrant" according to a notice handed to Soldiers stationed in the region and upon arrival including Yakzistani Personnel.

Several Sukhoi Su-30 accompanied by a few other fighters flew into the nation breaching it's Airspace. Two Squadrons of MiG-29s leading the strike swooped in upon Germanischen Communications and Radars before being joined by two more squadrons leading attacks onto Airbases hoping to secure air dominance.

Several armored and mechanized brigades begun entering Germanischen territory. Spearheading the attack was the armored brigades of the 12th Armored entering the country with the new M-95 Degman, a modernization of the old but classic and ever loved M-84 being put under several other modernization programs. Followed by several Mechanized brigades of BVP M-80s and BOV-VPs. Resistance was minimal thanks to earlier artillery bombardment, at least a few tanks were functional before being put out swiftly by the M-95 Degman tanks or the crew killed as soldiers went on foot. The Advance pushed northward accompanied by aircraft was at a swift and steady pace , joining the Krajstalian forces were several detachments of Southern German freedom fighters whom the Krajstalian government had aided in supplying which explains the sudden appearance of Zastavas and Papovkas among them. Due to the fact that Carinthia is a mountainous region, two mountain units were deployed to tackle the alps. The 1st "Ljiljan Divizija" or Lily Division from SR Montenegrin and the 5th "Planika Divizija" or Edelweiss Division from SR Sloveniansk.

So far, due to Krajstalian troops entering Southern German and Austrian Land under Germanischen occupation.Several Villages and towns had welcomed their liberators from the South with wide open arms not only from Austrians but even Slovenianskan minorities oppressed under the rule of Konstantin whom were offered Krajstalian Citizenship.

[South Germany and Austria]

0200 26 April – Outskirts of Klagenfurt, Carinthia - Before Krajstalian invasion


“Leutnant, wake up, we’re here”
"Ja? Oh right" the South German rubbed his face as his eyes opened with his leather gloves and looked around him before slinging his Zastava M90 jumping out of the G-Wagen Technical he was in.

The Elektrogradian snipers started to scout the outside of the Supply Depot, spotting 50 soldiers at the very least and spoke through the radio; "This is Adler, we have confirmed visuals of 50 enemy soldiers, how copy?"

Leutnant Franz answered through the radio and said; “Roger that, Adler, proceeding to attack, over”
“You heard them, platoon. Wilhelm, tell the mortar team to open fire. When the barrage stops we’ll attack.”

*BOOM*


Instantly after Wilhelm signaled the mortar team, the barrages started, and they lasted for 2 minutes. When the mortar barrages stopped, Leutnant Franz ordered his platoon to attack.

“Gott mit uns, Kameraden! Angriff!”

The snipers opened fire, and the South German platoon went into position. The snipers shot down the two machine gun posts at the entrance of the depot, grenades and explosions were everywhere to be seen and heard.

A fierce battle was being fought outside, but meanwhile a team of Saboteurs sneaked into the Fuel Depot and planted their explosives.
“Kurfürst here, we are ready to blow the whole damn thing up!”
Outside, the battle was still going, and they weren’t ready to evacuate the depot yet.
“What do you mean you’re ready?! We can’t evacuate this place, not yet!”

Leutnant Franz hysterically shouted for munitions for his Zastava, as he had run out of ammo already.
“Munitions! Where’s the guy with the munitions!?”

Viktor, the youngest fighter in the platoon, aged 18, was the one carrying the ammo. He rushed towards the Leutnant’s position but was shot when he was going for cover close to the Leutnant.

The Leutnant stopped for a second and felt like time was eternal, and realized that he had as much chance of dying as the boy who just died in front of him. Frantically he waved his hand towards him calling in a rebel medic, the Leutnant blindfired his Zastava behind cover pinning down whoever fired upon him. The Medic dragged the boy into cover and the leutnant handed him his Zastava "Lay down covering fire upon them" Without another word the Leutnant sprinted to another cover as the medic begun firing several rounds upon them. He continued to shift from cover to cover until he was at a close position, he ran emptying his pistol at the enemy leaving a lone one who was presumably the shooter of the boy. "Bitte verschone mich!" cried out the lone soldier, he was tackled onto the ground before being held onto the neck by the leutnant, he looked into the soldier's eyes with ones of fury. He breathed in deeply and threw his knife away, (in Austro-Bavarian) "Ihr Kampf ist nicht mit euren Brüdern, sollte es gegen Ihre korrupten Führer. Seien Sie froh, schweinhund" He let the soldier loose as he dropped his helmet and ran for the forrest in the direction of the south where the Krajstalian Forces are advancing, the leutnant looked back at the boy who was announced dead by the medic. Closing his eyes and preforming a cross onto himself before carrying on the rest of his mission.

“Everyone, this is Franz, get out of here now!”

The Leutnant then ran immediately to the exit of the depot, and as he got out the Depot blew up in flames. Only 10 of his 30 men had made it. They then proceeded to head into the woods and prepare for another mission.

[The Belkan Islandic Federation]

April 26th, 2015, Dresden

"Eagle to Wanderer, come in."

A gloved hand picked up the quietly buzzing radio. "Wanderer here, I copy. I'm in the middle of the city. What are my orders?" Second Lieutenant Felicia Heidemann was currently inside the bombed out penthouse of an apartment. Rubble was strewn around her, but she was in her element. She commanded a bird's eye view of the surrounding area, including the Germanischen Sentries on the buildings nearby.

"An allied bombing raid is coming within the hour, so you'd might want to head down to the basement and wait it out, over."

"Roger." She got up from her sniping position, putting the VC32 Sniper Rifle into her duffel bag. As she put this on her shoulder, she took an M82 Assault Rifle from a nearby table and set off for the ground floor. She was on the 12th, so it would take a while to navigate the damaged building. As she walked down the stairs to the second floor, a burst of gunfire skimmed above her head, coming from two sentries she had missed on the way up. She ducked into cover, picking up a piece of debris and throwing it with some force at one of them and connecting with the head, sending her backwards into, and over, a couch that had seen better days. She unhooked the duffel bag and sprinted forward, catching the second soldier by the arm and silencing him with an Assault Rifle butt to the neck. she trained her sights on the first soldier, aiming at her just as she scrambled to her feet and saw the barrel of the rifle in her face. A tense moment followed, before Felicia spoke quietly in German. "No fancy moves, my friend. Otherwise things would get messy."

Slowly, the sentry got to her feet, and was swiftly disarmed. She was tied up and put in a nearby room while Felicia quickly donned the first sentry's uniform. When she walked in to fetch the sentry, she spoke to her. "A bombing Raid will happen soon. By your good luck, I've decided to spare you. No trying to shoot me. You'll be in front of me and at the first chance I get, I'll put a bullet in your spine and hide by myself." A nod greeted her, and she led the sentry to the basement. They found a good spot to hide just as the bombs started to fall and the Belkan/South German Army started their advance on the city.

[Germanischen Staaten]

In Torrocca...

The first two days of battle were disastrous for the Torroccan military, as it lost nearly sixty percent of its combat effectiveness due to the loss of the entire 1st Army to the German blitz. Nearly 30,000 men were now prisoners of war, another 12,000 were dead (of which 3,000 were Germanic forces), and the remaining 15,000 were missing or wounded and in retreat to Paris, leaving the Torroccan north to be ravaged by the Germans accordingly. Surprisingly, despite Konstantine's brutish and vile nature, he almost immediately decided to effectively commit the Torroccans captured to penal battalions rather than execute them, to have them fighting for the German cause rather than the Torroccan one. Furthermore, most of the men capable of fighting that weren't actually involved in the fighting from Torrocca were conscripted into these new German units, effectively further bringing up the German military strength by another 40,000 men. Meanwhile, the able-bodied women, the elderly and the young were put to work in factories untouched by German air raids or on farms in order to up food and materiel production for the German military.

With the remnants of the Torroccan 1st Army in full retreat, the Germanischen military took no time to reap the benefits of the lack of Torroccan air supremacy, slaughtering droves of soldiers making a break for Paris and bombing several convoys driving south to the jewel city of the nation. With the Torroccan air force annihilated, the Germans made it the job of their air force to carpet bomb the major cities of Torrocca, in an attempt to force a surrender by the nation's president. Despite the bombings occurring, the unwavering Torroccans from the smaller-sized 2nd Army took the initiative to drive north despite threats from the Cartians to the south, fully prepared to engage the Germans with what they could. Since the first day they'd been driving north, in an attempt to establish a link with the remaining forces from the 1st Army. The beginning of the second day of the invasion was when the Germans finally took notice to their advance and hastily sent fighters and bombers to stop them. This was initially effective, as it slowed their first advance to a grinding halt, but failed later on as their further advances went unstopped despite the amassing death toll.

In the Torroccan waters, the Torroccan naval forces were utterly and entirely destroyed, left at sea to burn. Those that surrendered were, like the airmen and infantry of Torrocca, integrated into the Germanischen military force. This integration was more easily pulled off with the promises of sparing the families of the soldiers that surrendered, as well as offering them better jobs and land once the war was over. With this all said and done, those integrated into the German military were being sent or to be sent to the east to assist in holding back the invading Coalition forces.

In the East

The initial incursions by the invading Coalition forces into Germanischen Staaten were particularly brutal... for the men left behind by the German military. Just a few days prior, quietly and unknown to anyone but the Germans, most of the forces along the border were withdrawn into the German country, mainly just 30 kilometers east of the fortress city of Berlin. Garrisons were also left stationed in the major cities along the border of Elektrograd, in an effort to delay their assault as well as the Korvan one into the country.

Many garrisons were utterly wiped out in the artillery barrages done by the Korvans and the assaults by both them and the military forces of Elektrograd, but those that were strong enough to fight held back the invaders long enough for the Germans to dig in along their new defensive line 25 kilometers east of Berlin. The major cities of Vienna, Dresden, Hamburg, and Berlin itself saw an increasing number of military units occupy it, further fortifying these already fortress-like cities. That, plus the soon-to-be arrival of the new penal battalions would further strengthen their defenses, swelling them to the point where the invaders would have to burn the majority of the country to the ground to break them.

In the open sea...

The German navy soon found itself under attack from both the sea and the air by several enemy forces, forcing them to retreat to the shallower waters near the coastline or risk being destroyed. With a sizable force from the navy diverted to the Torroccan waters to blockade the nation, these forces were dreadfully spread out and forced to defend the beaches at all costs, otherwise risking opening up a larger front in northern Germany.

In Dresden, before the bombing...

Oberleutnant Erhard Hochberg was on the rooftop of a skyscraper, observing the land east of Dresden through a pair of binoculars when he noticed the most abhorrent sight of hundreds of thousands of people, supported with tanks and other vehicles, gathered up and heading their way. He quickly had the report sent to Generaloberst Daniel Winter of this possible attack, allowing him to send the order to the artillery units in the region to open fire on their location.

Within minutes, thousands of guns and rocket artillery roared far from the lines, sending thousands of shells and rockets towards the advancing force, still some distance from Dresden. The guns and rocket artillery fired volley after volley after volley, in an effort to either neutralize or diminish this threat well enough that the 65,000 strong garrison at Dresden could hold the line more efficiently.

[Yakzistan]

Somwhere in Ferlach, Austria
9:00, April 27

Lt. Sharshin Velimir peered through his binoculars as he watched several Germanstaaten troops patrol the town of Ferlach, a decent sized settlement of 7,000. However most of the occupations were Slovenians and opposed the unjustly reign of Germanstaaten. Most of them formed opposition groups days after the Protest Massacre. After studying the movements of small Germanstaaten fireteam. Velimir commanded Cpl. Sokol to load the SPG-9D recoiless rifle they have brought with them after the paradrop an day earlier. "Load an HEAT round." The corporal loaded an 73mm round into rifle and elevated the gun to it's target position.

Once at target, Lt. Velimir barked his command "FIRE!". The SPG-9D fired and hit the target and several Germanstaaten troops went flying from the explosion. The Spetsnaz advanced as their BMD-1 gave them cover as Germanstaaten MG-3 machine gun fired at the advancing troops. The turret of BMD turned as several burst of 7.62 NATO bounced of the turret of the tank and fired an HEAT at the machine gun nest and nearly annihilated the top of the building. The formation continued as teams of unprepared Germanstaaten troops run to the scene only to be lite up from the full auto fire of the Spetsnaz's AKS-74U carbines. As the they advanced, they group was forced to take cover when an Carl Gustev rocket from an abandoned apartment building nearly hit the BMD-1 forcing it to take evasive maneuvers and launched an smoke grenade for concealment.

Lt. Velimir ordered his radioman, Pvt. Dyrbov to get airsupport on to the scene. After several minutes being under heavy machine gun, the aircraft finally arrived. An A-37B from the 5th COIN Flight fired it GShG minigun at the building followed by an barrage of S-5 rockets destroying the building in the process. The fight continued until 12:13 when then commanding officer of the forces in Ferlach, Major Heinrich Kocher. At the end of the battle the casualties for Germanstaaten troops was 12 killed, 11 wounded and 19 captured. While the Yakzistani Spestanz suffered 1 killed and 8 wounded. After the battle most of town welcomed the liberation of their town from the Germanstaaten troops. The mayor of town offered Velimir, an hunting rifle which the town produces as token of appreciation.

Soon, the roads where then filled up tanks and UAZ-469s as Yakzistani troops crossed into the Austrian border..........

[Yakzistan]

Over the Austrian Alps
early dawn, April 30

Major Ivan Zharkov and his weapons officer Captian Roma Yurenev flew over the horizon in their Sukhoi Su-30MK jet. Ther mission was to be Zharkov's squadron of Su-30s to escorts several Tu-22 bombers to strike several Gemrmastaaten installations inside of Austria. Zharkov's squadron was fresh from traning exercises they have participating in. About when the Tu-22s reached their targets, several dots appear on Yurenev's radar. As Zharkov's head turned to his weapons officer, two Eurofighter Typhoons flying at Mach 1.5 flew over Zharkov's Su-30. The major radioed to his pilots to devert their V formation and iniate combat maneuvers.

As the bombers striker their targets with their cruise missiles, an Typhoon was right behind Zharkov's jet. As the jet gained closer to Zharkov, he made an "Cobra" manoeuvre to evade the oncoming jet. The Germanstaaten pilot was stunned by this move Zharkov made but swiftly turned into heaps of metal by the Su-30's 30mm cannon. The Yakzistani and Germanstaaten pilots had even engagement with aircraft but the Su-30s came out the winner however, but they suffered damaged from the engagement and lost an Tu-22 to AA fire and crashed on the way back to Slovenia. However the Germanstaaten lost 4 aircraft in the engagement over the mountainous alps.

But their mission was done, several military installations crippled by cruise missile attacks from the bombers. The airfields was cratered by the explosives and garrisons smoked as the were burned down to the ground. The planes landed back at their Slovenian airbase in Krajstali and celebrated their victory with their whiskey they brought with them. The two other Su-30s jets were hauled to their hangers as their wings were to be repaired after they been shot by the Typhoons and made nearly unflyable.

[South Germany and Austria]

Friday 08/05/2015, 18:00 PM, Wittelsbach Castle, Iceland.


King Johann had noticed a few differences since Empress Irisviel had come back from her trip to Germanischen, mainly the lack of her distinct gait, a darker eye shade than usual and a few pronunciation problems. This, of course, worried him. If Germanischen had somehow contrived to switch his wife with one of their agents, this would mean a fiasco of epic proportions of the revelation ever leaked to the mass Media. On one of their customary walks in the Castle Garden, Johann decided to test her.

"Hey, Iri," He started, using their 'Pet Name' for her. "I forgot. What did we agree on for naming our children?" He asked, looking at her, waiting for the answer that would answer his fears.

Irisviel took a few seconds to reply, which worried him. "Uhm...I'm not sure. Why not name him after yourself? King Johann the Second?" She giggled a bit.

This confirmed Johann's fears, the Irisviel he had in front of him was not the real Irisviel. Both Irisviel and Johann, during one of her visits to him, had agreed that their children would be named Maximilian or Illyasviel, or both, if they had two.

Johann continued walking along the garden with the Fake Iri next to him, thinking of a way to imprison the Impostor without alerting her. "Say...could you follow me, Iri? There's something I want to show you. The arrangements for our Wedding Day. Before I finalize them, I'd like for you to look at them, to see if you have any edits to make. Care to accompany me?"

She nodded, and followed him to the castle. Johann, when they reached a supply closet, immediately turned around and dealt a haymaker to the impostor, knocking her out cold. He inwardly felt guilty as he felt blood on his hand, guessing that he must have broken her nose. He then tied her up with some spare rope and locked her in the closet, not telling anyone, and proceeded to go up to his room and call Azulon, Irisviel's father.

"Imperial Advisor Azulon?" He said when Azulon answered, Yawning. Inwardly Johann felt guilty for this, since he had probably interrupted his sleeping time for this message.

A loud yawn "...Yes?"

Johann went straight to the point. "This is Johann von Wittelsbach, your Daughter's future husband. Have you experienced anything odd about Irisviel lately?"

A few more seconds as Azulon probably mentally adjusted himself to this odd question. "Not that I'm aware of. Why?"

"Well, since she left for that trip to Germanischen she's been acting very weird, she's pronouncing some words from our mutual language incorrectly, she has a different walking gait and her eyes are darker." A pause. then Azulon was sounding more awake, at this point very interested.

"Darker eyes, you say? I see. And what of Irisviel? If the one with you is not her, where could she be?"

Johann felt as concerned as Azulon sounded. "I'm not sure, Imperial Advisor. I'll have my Intelligence Services try to figure out when she was replaced. If you could direct your Agencies to do the same, it would be most appreciated." A rustle as a nearby Attendant on Azulon's side of the call rushed fromt he room to give the order.

"I will do what I can. Thank you for informing me."

"Thank you, Imperial Advisor. I will not forget this service." Johann hung up, and went to gather his Agents.

[hr]

"ALMAGRO!" Azulon yelled into the receiver.

A Calm silence greeted him, before a cool, unruffled voice replied in German. "Yes?"

Azulon grimaced. "Your Spy was very convincing, I'll give her that. But why didn't you tell her the names that Irisviel wanted for her children? Johann's onto us now!"

A short, amused laugh from Almagro. "Johann is irrelevant. Belka, and its Military, is the Priority here."

Azulon straightened up in bed. "And our agreement will be fulfilled?"

He had annoyed Almagro. There was a sigh of frustration. "Yes. You will be governor of the Islands. This all depends, of course, on whether yourself and the rest of Sakura complete their duty." Sakura was the codename for the South American Federation's Agents in Belka, ready to collapse the country around the Monarchy's ears.

Azulon was pushing his luck by now. "And what of Irisviel? Is she irrelevant to our goals now, too? I never liked her, anyway. A childish naive fool who has no comprehension for her birthright!" At this point, his contempt for his only daughter was made apparent.

By now Almagro, on his end, was disgusted with Azulon. "NO. Irisviel is NOT Irrelevant. I am not like YOU, Azulon. I do not condemn my own relative to death because she no longer serves a purpose. You will NOT institute Directive 39, You will NOT take emergency control of Belka, and you will NOT disobey me."

An unnerving silence as the Receiver added an echo to Almagro's orders.

"Put it this way, Einzbern." Almagro continued, his voice deceptively calm. "If you do indeed kill Irisviel, consider our agreement null and void. We will take Belka regardless of Sakura's new efforts to stop us, and we will put you on trial for daring to disrupt our plans. We will send back Irisviel, and we will be monitoring her as well. So don't even think of trying to defy me. Almagro, out."

Azulon cursed Almagro's softness and stalked off to get dressed.

[hr]

At 6 AM, a few days later, Johann got up, as per his regulation for the weekdays. After a few moments, he got the impression that someone else was in the bed. Wondering to himself as to who was silly enough to intrude on him during his sleep, he leaned over, and turned on the light. He turned around to give out to the intruder, and found himself looking at the innocent, sleeping face of his future wife. A few minutes later, her eyes opened as she yawned, rubbing the sleep from her eyes. Johann appreciated how she still managed to maintain and elegant atmosphere while doing so.
She blinked a few times and saw him. "...Johann?"

[Korva]

Excerpt from The Guns of April, a historical account of the Staaten Conflict:

…The advance into Staaten was a lightning affair, with Korvan armored units racing across swathes of territory nearly uncontested. The tankers of the 3^eme Regiment de Char led the westward thrust of the Korvan attack and won great renown for their performance…

Polzow suburbs, outskirts of Pasewalk
April 27, 2015

The ghostly silhouettes of Staaten armored vehicles slipped in and out of view as Sergent Nicolle peered into his IR viewfinder. The young officer was sleep deprived and hungry, operating on caffeine supplements and the little bits of stale beef jerky he had managed to cram into his vest pockets. His tank had been among the first to breach the defenses of Locknitz three days prior and Nicolle doubted that he had slept more than five hours since then.

His tank lay in wait, foliage and camo netting covering nearly every exposed inch of the 44 tonne beast. The fighting of the last few days had taken its toll on the vehicle: the gunner’s primary sight had been replaced after a burst of Staaten autocannon fire had knocked it out. That same ambush had claimed Nicolle's MG, the gun had been shot to pieces. Most frustratingly of all was the fact that the tracer fire had ignited most of the crew’s personal effects, which had been strapped all along the turret sides and bustle.
Nicolle blinked twice, shaking those thoughts away. Normally he would be laser focused, but the lack of sleep clouded his mind, making even simple tasks difficult. He click into auto-pilot as the Staaten convoy finally slipped into the open:

Tireur, char, sabot
-Identifié
Feu

Nicolle began counting down from 10 in his head.

-En route

A half second passed and then the Staaten tank shuddered and veered to the right. Smoke spewed from its barrel and from under the turret ring.

Cessez-cible

Nicolle was already targeting the second tank as he spoke, the FCS calculating range, windage, humidity, and barrel distortion before feeding the firing solution to the gunner.

Tireur, char, sabot

The whine of hydraulics filled the turret as the next round was chambered by the autoloader.

-Identifié
Feu

The second tank ignited terribly, its hatches thrown open by pillars of fire. A single human seemed to slump from the driver’s position. The 10 seconds were up:

Cessez-cible
Conducteur, de retour

Prenzlau City Center
April 29, 2015

Capitaine Dizou flinched as the VBCI ahead of him rammed the shoulder height wall across the road. Beyond the mossy brick wall was a parking lot and behind that a burnt out office building. Sniper and anti-tank fire from the building had pinned down Dizou’s company for the better part of the hour. The outer façade was blasted and smoldering, the results of a near constant barrage of 25mm cannon fire, rifle grenades, and disposable rockets.
The IFV blurted out thick exhaust smoke as it reversed and hooked left into the alleyway. Dizou signaled across the street and the first squad ran through the breach, the rest of the platoon dumping automatic fire and grenades into every visible window.

Dizou looked down and gently gripped Giroie on the shoulder for reassurance. The lieutenant had been hit in the first ambush and was turning sickly pale. The company medics had stabilized him as best they could, which was more than could be said for the two dead Korvans whose bodies still lay strewn alongside the sidewalk. He looked back up and motioned to the second squad.
Once again the streets filled with the sounds of rifle fire as the men sprint across the parking lot, slumped over from the weight of their equipment. A surge of adrenaline shot though Dizou as he watched the squad grenadier trip and collapse against the asphalt. Luckily the man’s squadmate was there to grab his arm and haul him up, within seconds they were safely pressed against the building exterior.
The two squads smashed what little glass remained ringing the exterior windows and then tossed in grenades. A series of muffled krumps shook the street as they detonated. Then there was silence, each man’s eyes darting around, their nerves on edge. Suddenly hoarse voices began shouting in German.

Nicht schießen!
Wir kapitulieren!

Four dirty and pale Staaten soldiers slumped out of the building, their hands held weakly over their heads.

Quelqu'un d'autre !?
Qui d'autre est là? Dans le bâtiment !?

The Staaten soldiers shook their heads, their eyes wide with fear. One held a Korvan propaganda leaflet, one of the tens of thousands that had been dropped over Staaten cities during the invasion. Each man was pressed against the wall, their pockets searched, and their hands ziptied behind their backs. Korvan soldiers stormed the remains of the building, clearing each room methodically while the POW’s were marched to Dizou’s VAB. Dizou looked up as a squad leader approached him:

Combien de morts ?
-Sept wurst et le deux de nôtre

The NCO nodded over to the two dead Korvans, fatigue etched across his face.

Gransee, Outskirts of Neurippen
May 1, 2015

-Przepraszam?
-Sergent Nicolle?

Sgt. Nicolle grunted as he rolled out from underneath his tank, sleep still clouding his eyes. Before him was an impossibly fair Elektrogradian NCO, wearing pristine BDU’s and a confused look on her face.

-Dzień dobry! I am Sergeant Anna Sznajder, here to liaise with your platoon for the Neuruppin push.
Matin

Nicolle coughed and then walked over to the Elektrogradian who offered him a map. It was hastily photocopied and marked in a hundred places with pen ink and grease pencils. His platoon was to be attached as ad hoc support for an Elektrogradian probing attack which had managed to outrun its own armored support.
The two NCO’s sat on the track guards as they worked over the finer points of the operations, which was scheduled to begin in mere hours. Air support would be unavailable as per usual, 24/7 sorties had left many airframes in critical need of maintenance and all available aircraft were still be tasked with securing air superiority. Artillery would also be limited, primarily to whatever mortars were organic to Elektrogradian infantry companies. Even so, Nicolle was too tired to be worried. The Staaten soldiers seemed to be getting the worst of every engagement so far and he doubted that they would offer any greater resistance than what had been shown at Pasewalk.

[Bjornoerne]

Northern Slesvig/Slesvig-Holsten Border
April 27th

The advance from Northern Slesvig into Germanischen was a slow but steady one. Despite the dwindling number of engagements the armored divisions encountered, they maintained their wary state of mind in case a large force was awaiting them further down the road. To accomplish this goal of wariness, they spread the divisions so that not all of their men and vehicles would be lost from a single round of bombing from the enemy's air force. That is if they were able to overcome the large quantity of air superiority fighters Bjornoerne had fielded to protect their invasion force. The men of the ground invasion force had heard rumors that an Infantry Division had been retasked from the Norway war to begin an Amphibious assault on Rostock. They had little time to dwell on those stories however, as their movement left little time to do more than eat MREs in the back of the AMV XLs.

Slesvig-Holsten
April 28th

The ambush had come out of nowhere. They barely had time to dismount out of the AMVs before RPG fire came in towards them. The first few strikes proved ineffective at first but the sustained fire from small arms, RPGs, and mortars resulted in a few Patrias becoming burning wrecks. Sunda Mikkelson was shouting orders through his radio in the hopes some of his platoons or squads could hear him. His voice was barely audible over the sound of gunfire and explosions. Then he heard it. Barely recognizable but it was clearly the callsign of their Ground Pounders. They had heard the emergency call and were coming in fast. The Bjornoese forces, taking cover over the side of the road as the Germanischen forces fired at them from the forested hillside. A quick grid reference from the map and an order for a danger-close fire support mission was all it took before the 30mm cannons of the SU-39s began their devastation of the hillside. The explosive rounds of the cannon preceded the roaring of the cannon that proved it was indeed the Su-39 that had destroyed the Germanischen forces. Several more passes from the squadron of Su-39s resulted in trees being toppled and the hillside becoming full of death. Sunda Mikkelson called off the Su-39s as he spotted a bloody white scrap of cloth being held into the air through his binocs. He wasn't sure if it was a trap or not but they had called a ceasefire.

Mikkelson order the remaining AMVs to turn their own 30mm guns towards the hillside as the tanks focused providing cover using their 120mm cannons and fifty caliber guns. Opening the hatch to his AMV, Mikkelson grabbed the microphone for the audio system that had been placed on his AMV. He began speaking into it using the best english he could manage.

"Germanischen soldier. Come now. We accept you surrender. You will be care for. Come now Germanischen soldier. Bring no thing but clothing."

He repeated the message several times until the first of the POWs started coming down the hill towards them. Hands were placed on their head as best as they could as they stumbled over the ruined trees that had been destroyed. Out of the estimated company size, there was barely half a platoon remaining that trudged down the hill. Some soldiers carried wounded ones that were missing limbs, others barely had a scratch on them. By the time the POWs reached the bottom of the hill, Mikkelson had managed to get several covered trucks and a unit to volunteer for the escort to the rear. Those soldiers that needed medical assistance would receive it on the way to the rear by Bjornoese Combat Medics. They sported no red cross but were trained to treat battlefield injuries. Two hours since the end of the ambush, the Bjornoese force was mobile again. This time they would be better prepared. They would remain vigilant so another ambush wouldn't happen. They couldn't afford to replace anymore vehicles this early in the campaign.

Baltic Sea
April 29th

The push towards Rostock had taken longer than expected due to the unexpected sea defenses the Germanischen Navy had left behind during the retreat. No ships were lost however. A corvette had taken some damage but it had been able to retreat towards a Bjornoese controlled port on it's own power. As they neared Rostock, however, they found the remaining navy to be getting more difficult to push back without firing a shot until finally they found themselves in Bjornoerne's first official Naval Engagement of the war. A combination of ship-to-ship missiles, air craft, and guns firing from both sides resulted in losses. One corvette had to return and one frigate was lost to the depths with half of its crew gone. They couldn't tell the Germanischen losses but from the smoke that flowed from their side of the engagement they could only hope it was more than they took.

Late at night on the 29th, the Task Force, while stopped, was met with an interesting surprise. Half of the Bjornoese fleet tasked to the Norwegian War effort had arrived to reinforce them. Nothing was known other than they had been ordered by the Admiralty to provide assistance to the Germanischen Invasion Force. They had heard reports that several veteran divisions would be put on standby to assist the ground forces in case, as they neared Hamburg, they were stalled. More specifically, there were rumors that the Draugr regiment was aboard one of the newly arrived LHDs and would join them for the invasion of Rostock.

Slesvig-Holsten
April 30th

Cheers erupted throughout the divisions as news reached them of the end of the Norway War and the possibility of support once those soldiers who had participated in the war had time to rest from the grueling two months in Norway. They were ecstatic and could only hope to one day meet the Draugr Regiment who had survived both battles for Strömstad as well as the actual invasion of Norway.