Merely two decades have passed since the Paris Peace Conference, whose decisions established the new world order after the catastrophic Great War, and yet the treaties it has produced have already been turned to scrap paper.
The schizophrenia of the Treaty of Versailles, both too harsh and too lenient, coupled with the instability of the Interwar period and the Great Depression, have pushed Germany to a revanchist, National Socialist dictatorship, which has joined Fascist-led Italy in becoming the axis around which the growing tension in Europe turns. With Austria, Czechoslovakia and Albania already fallen to the Western attempt to prevent conflict by appeasing the aggressors, the British Empire and France have drawn a red line in the form of Poland.
In the far east, the Second Sino-Japanese War counts its second year, the conflict hsving turned into one of attrition for both sides. Still, the this is far from enough for the resource-hungry Japanese nation, and with each passing day, the colonies of the Western powers in the southeast become more and more enciting...
And as this happens, the United States and Soviet Union await in the shadows, their innumerable power bound to shape the history of the planet just like that of the three aggresors...
Blueprint for Armageddon
A World War II Nation Wargame
IC Thread | Starting Map
OP Board:
OP - Finland SSR
Co-OP team:
- Europe/Africa:
- Asia:
- Americas:
(Open to accepting people as co-OPs, just hit me up either in this thread or through TGs. You will be tasked with dealing with warplans, tech plans and espionage plans from your specific region, alongside the OP, i.e. me. Co-OP team members can have a nation claimed, but it must not belong to the region they are managing as a Co-OP.)
Welcome to Blueprint for Armageddon, a World War II nation wargame! In this game, you will be tasked with playing as one of the many nations of the world starting from July 1st, 1939, and lead your chosen country, manage its diplomacy, economy and military alike to lead to either to glory or to a glorious defeat in one of the largest wars in human history.
Why is this thread called a wargame, though, and not a nation RP? Well, to put it simply, this game is going to work differently than your average nation game - while, yes, this is still a roleplay in its core, as your goal here is still to take on the role of a nation and lead it, the crux of the game - war, technology, espionage - will not be freeform. Conflict in Blueprint for Armageddon will work solely through a warplan-based system, simple, but already tried and tested in the distant realm of AH.com nation games, from which I have returned to reclaim my birthright. Nor will this be a purely mechanics-driven or stat-based RP, however, as seem to be popular around these parts - consider this as a sort of hybrid between a freeform nation RP, where anything realistic goes, and a purely mechanical RP.
Alright, did you get all that? Let's get a little bit more into what this means.
Playing in Blueprint for Armageddon
Turns
This game is turn based, much like many other nation RPs. Each turn takes six months of RP time or one week of RL time. During each turn, you are free to do diplomacy machinations or other types of RP such as character introspectives, internal developments, etc. as much as you want to, though within limits. It is also the time during which you are required to submit warplans, tech submissions and espionage plans to be processed for next turn.
Turn transitions will take place with a World Update, where the results of each of the players' submitted initiatives will be described and the world map updated to make way for the adjustments.
As the game starts on July 1st, 1939, Turn 1 will take place from that day up to January 1st, 1940. From them on, the turns will be distributed as expected:
- Turn 2 - Jan-Jul 1940
- Turn 3 - Jul 1940-Jan 1941
- Turn 4 - Jan 1941-Jul 1941
As you might note, Turn 1 is going to include a lot of things which happened during that point in time in our timeline - the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact, the invasion of Poland, the Winter War, and continued operations in the Second Sino-Japanese War. Whether all of these events take place in this game is up to the players themselves, but I strongly advise for someone to consider starting a conflict within the first three turns, because otherwise it might get a little... boring.
Diplomacy
Wars can be won with pen and paper just as much as it can be won with bullets. Diplomacy played a crucial role in the development and events of World War II and so will it here.
However, despite the fact that the next six years are going to be some of the most brutal in world history, far from all nations across the globe had the will or ability to begin immediate aggressive expansion and thus position themselves as sources of world tension. Belgium couldn't invade the Netherlands in 1939 and neither could Persia do the same to Iraq. To simulate these differences in diplomatic outlook as well as ability to commit to war, all of the nations in the planet have been separated into four different categories - "diplomatic alignment":
Aggressive Powers
This alignment includes aggressive, mobilized regimes, either imperialist or revanchist, which have spent the last years preparing their nations for expansion and aggressive wars. Their propaganda machines and totalitarian establishment are ready to justify almost any conflict they partake in.
Includes: Germany, Italy and Japan.
- Aggressive Powers have no limits on war declaration aside for realism (Germany can attack Poland or Denmark, but not Venezuela)
- Aggressive Powers have no limits on alliance formation aside for realism and:
- Aggressive Powers may not form military alliances with Defensive Powers.
Protecting Powers
This alignment includes the world's "old guard" - powers which have gained the most from the Versailles system, were the victors of the Great War, and their interest is to defend the status quo against the aggressors and their desire to reshape the world order. Their societies won't buy offensive wars easily, however.
Includes: United Kingdom and France.
- Protecting Powers have no limits on alliance formation aside for realism and Aggressive Powers, which they may not ally.
- Protecting Powers may not declare offensive wars themselves - however, they can intervene for a side in a conflict, even if neither one of the combatants are officially their ally. Protecting Powers may not intervene on the side of an Aggressive Power, however.
Interventionist Neutrals
This alignment includes nations which are not a part of the established alliance blocs, but are nevertheless a force to be reckoned on the world stage due to their sheer military or economic might. However, because of one reason or another (be it a recently purged military or an isolationist society), they are currently neutral and may only fully intervene once that had been solved.
Includes: Soviet Union and United States.
- Interventionist Neutrals may not form military alliances.
- Interventionist Neutrals may declare war on Isolationist Neutrals, within realism (Soviets can attack Finland. USA can't attack Mexico.). They cannot declare war on nations in other alignments unless attacked first.
- Starting with 1942 (Turn 6), Interventionist Neutrals lose both of these limits.
Isolationist Neutrals
This alignment includes nations either living in the Versailles rhythm of peace or countries distant from the cores of contention in Europe and Asia and thus not really affected by events transpiring there. This is the most limited category of countries.
Includes: everyone else.
- Isolationist Neutrals may not declare offensive war. They can only either be pulled into war by being attacked or by being in an alliance which has entered war.
- Isolationist Neutrals may join alliances, but cannot offer them.
- If the defeat of either the Axis or the Allies seems near, these limits may be temporarily removed to simulate the mass declarations of war against the Axis which took place in 1944-1945.
In specific circumstances or with very great justification from the player, these rules may be played more loosely in specific cases. There were cases of "Isolationist Neutrals" attacking each other in this time period, after all (the Peru-Ecuador War, for example). However, these would be once-in-a-lifetime opportunities. For all intents and purposes, these rules of diplomacy are immovable.
Any diplomatic actions not listed above - guarantees, trade, economic treaties, etc. - do not have limits aside for, again, realism.
Warplans
As this is a World War II wargame, it should come as no surprise that war will play a central part of the game. It's usually the reason why people play nation games, anyway. In Blueprint for Armageddon, wars will be run through a wargame-based system. Should a war be declared (and one war is already taking place, the Second Sino-Japanese War), all of the combatants in the conflict will be required to submit a warplan where they will detail their plans for the operation, including the forces involved and tactics employed, by sending it to the OP (me) and the co-OPs of their region (if there are any) through TGs.
Once all of the warplans have been submitted (and they have to be submitted through the turn - failure to send a warplan during the specified time will be equated to having no plan), the OP and his team will analyze the plans deployed and put up their verdict for the results of that specific conflict or specific front in the World Update turn.
There will be only one random factor at play - and that will be a Weather Condition roll, separate for each front of the war, put up at the top of the World Update post for all players to see. A roll of 1 means completely shitty weather, be it a typhoon or the greatest snowstorm of the century, while a roll of 100 means perfect weather. Generally, poor weather benefits defenders and good weather benefits attackers.
Oh, and one more thing - if you are fighting against an NPC, you still have to make warplans, even if the other side cannot. In this situation, your plan will be put up against the historical strength and strategies of the country you are fighting.
The template for war plans is here:
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[b]War Plan[/b]
(Delete all brackets, including this one.)
[b]YOUR NATION[/b]: (The name of your nation)
[b]ALLIES[/b]: (Allies which are helping your forces this turn.)
[b]DEPLOYED FORCES[/b]: (The total forces you are deploying to battle, including land, sea and air. Include allied forces, if applicable. Detail into order of battle, composition, equipment, etc. is good, but not mandatory.)
[b]OPPOSING NATION(S)[/b]: (Countries you are fighting.)
[b]THEATRE(S)[/b]: (Where you are fighting.)
[b]MILITARY GOALS[/b]: (What is the ultimate objective of your operations. If operating in multiple theatres, give goals for each one.)
[b]DURATION[/b]: (The start date of the operation and the time given for your forces to complete it. Should be some time during the turn. Timing is important for measuring the effect of the weather (higher in winter than summer, of course) as well as the preparedness of your troops.)
[b]STRATEGY[/b]: (How you will fight on a strategic level – listing detailed battlefield tactics is unnecessary, this should just be a few hundred words on how your forces (land, sea and air) will conduct the campaign. Maps are good, but not mandatory.)
Tech Submissions
World War II is sometimes called the greatest leap in technology in human history, and for good reason. Dozens of technological advancements from radar to nuclear power first found their practical use during the war, and both of the sides of the war constantly sought the weapon or tool which would turn the tide in their favor.
The same takes place here - however, technology is not freeform. Instead, it is acquired through sending tech submissions through TG to the OP (again, me) and your regional co-OPs. The staff will analyze your request and reply to your TG with an answer - usually, unless you are submitting something dumb or too futuristic, you will receive a turn in which this technology will be available for wartime use. Once you reach that turn, you are be able to put it in your warplans.
NOTE 1: Do not use tech submissions to request everything your country researched in our timeline. If your country developed something, say, a tank, in 1941, you will also develop that tank and are able to field it once we reach 1941. Tech submissions are for technology which your country either never developed in our timeline (but you think they should be able to in this timeline), or for technology which they did develop, but you believe they could develop earlier if they put focus on it.
NOTE 2: Nuclear bombs are a bitch. They employ a field of science which has barely existed for a few decades at this point, they require a massive amount of funding which would best be spent elsewhere, they require facilities like heavy water plants and uranium enrichment plants, not to mention years of development. Safe to say, you're not going to be developing nukes from 1939. At best, nuclear research can start in 1941, and even then by only a few specific countries. You know which ones.
Tech submission template:
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[b]Tech Application[/b]
(Delete all brackets, including this one.)
[b]YOUR NATION[/b]: (The name of your nation)
[b]TECHNOLOGY[/b]: (The thing you're researching or developing)
[b]APPLICATION[/b]: (What the thing you're researching or developing will be used for in war.)
[b]JUSTIFICATION[/b]: (Why you think your country should be able to develop it despite not having it in our timeline, or develop it earlier. Doesn't have to be long. Can be based on experiences during the RP, or historical examples.)
[b]FURTHER READING[/b]: (Links to Wikipedia or other sites where the team can read up more on your tech and justification.)
Espionage
World War II was a war of espionage and shady activity just as much as it was a war of soldiers and tanks. Operatives hiding in the shadows would incite or support uprisings in enemy territory, sabotage enemy production, overthrow governments of neutral countries or try to learn about their battle plans. The same will take place in this game as well.
Much like war plans and tech applications, espionage will be conducted through submitting espionage plans to the OP and your region's co-OPs. And, as with other plans, the staff will determine the feasibility of your operation and the likely results (the smaller of a country you are, the weaker your secret services are, so the more likely you are to fail, especially if you are trying to infiltrate a great power). The results you'll receive, if successful, obviously depend on the operation. If you are trying to learn about the enemy warplan, you will receive some information about their plans (if they submitted any). If you are inciting rebellions, they will play a part in the next World Update. So on and so forth.
Espionage plans can also be used to conduct counterespionage in your own country to try to root out any spies conducting operations.
Finally, espionage plans, unlike others, have a limit. Espionage is, as we know, is far from an easy trick to pull off, major operations oten take months to pull through and require the efforts of the entire intelligence agency. As such, any given country is limited to a single espionage initiative per turn. This is also in place to prevent people going too wild with the mechanic.
Espionage plan template:
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[b]Espionage Plan[/b]
[b]YOUR NATION[/b]: (The name of your nation.)
[b]TARGET[/b]: (Who your espionage is aimed at.)
[b]MISSION[/b]: (What you are trying to do.)
[b]METHOD[/b]: (How you are trying to do it. A paragraph or two will suffice.)
[b]MOTIVE[/b]: (What is the reasoning behind your operation. If it's rebel support, for example, then the answer is whether there is any significant resistance aligned with you out there.)
[b]OTHER[/b]: (Anything else relevant to the mission.)
Claims
The setting of this wargame is not ahistorical. Each of the countries at the start of the game is exactly the same as it was in our timeline on July 1st, 1939. Divergences can build up after the start of the game, of course - however, major shifts in country's policy or ideology have to be justified one way or another, and seriously justified. Germany can't fall to a communist revolution in 1939 and America can't elect a fascist Lindbergh in the 1940 election.
The choice in alliances is a bit more malleable. Even Italy was not 100% sure on whether they would fall to the Axis side of the curtain at this point (though it was highly likely). However, you still have to consider what your country was like during the war and whether they could realistic make this or that choice. Joining the Axis as Belgium is going to be hard to sell, both to your people and to the OP and his team.
As I am the OP and the main man behind the framework of this game, I will not be claiming any country. However, I will be the go-to choice for NPC responses to your diplomacy offers. Yes, this means you cannot just say that you make an alliance with an NPC, you will need to receive the NPC player's response to your offers, which will, obviously, be evaluated in the interests of the NPC country. You can, however, freely control NPC country armies in your warplans.
Country claim template is here (don't send it to TG! Post it here!)
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[b]Country Claim[/b]
[b]COUNTRY NAME:[/b] (Full country name in English.)
[b]DIPLOMATIC ALIGNMENT:[/b] (Check the Diplomacy section to find where your country falls.)
[b]WIKIPEDIA PAGE:[/b] (This is here to show that you are able to open up Wikipedia and know where to find basic info about your country. Trust me, it helps.)
[b]THREE THINGS YOU KNOW ABOUT THIS COUNTRY IN WW2:[/b] (This is here to let you show your knowledge about WW2 and the country you are claiming as a whole - because trust me, it will be necessary. Feel free to go as in depth as possible with your knowledge and surprise everyone around you, or even add more than three things.)
I recommend you to start by claiming all the important powers first. A game where a bunch of players are sitting on Belgium and Switzerland while France and Japan are unattended is a boring game.
