Recaps

The German Navy devastated the Island Nation's 18th Area Army with an hour-long bombardment, collapsing its command and sending its survivors into rout. Lieutenant General Wilhelm Adam then launched the German 23rd Army Corps' armored divisions to pursue and annihilate the fleeing force.

• The German Navy's warships bombarded the 18th Area Army's positions, killing large numbers of soldiers and destroying its command structure.
• Lieutenant General Akito Nakamura ordered a retreat, but the troops had already scattered and could not follow orders.
• Lieutenant General Wilhelm Adam and German commanders at the 226th Infantry Division watched the bombardment end and recognized how narrowly their division had escaped the same fate.
• Lieutenant General Wilhelm Adam ordered the 23rd Armored Division, 221st Mechanized Infantry Division, and 222nd Mechanized Infantry Division to attack the retreating 18th Area Army.
• The German armored forces broke through the Island Nation troops' resistance and began annihilating the fleeing area army.

The German fleet and armored forces annihilated the Island Nation's 18th Area Army as it retreated eastward. After three days of pursuit, only two or three thousand soldiers escaped across the Crocker Range, leaving the army destroyed.

• Lieutenant General Akito Nakamura ordered the 18th Area Army to retreat eastward and then directed Lieutenant General Du Zuojin to form a defensive line against the German armored forces.
• German tanks overwhelmed the 15th Division's scattered defenders, and the division's defensive line collapsed under the assault.
• The 23rd Armored Division, the 221st Mechanized Infantry Division, and the 222nd Mechanized Infantry Division pursued and encircled fleeing Island Nation troops alongside the German fleet's coastal bombardment.
• The 18th Area Army abandoned the coastal highway and attempted to escape through the Crocker Range as the German pursuit continued for three days.
• The German military annihilated the 18th Area Army, while only two or three thousand Island Nation soldiers crossed the range and escaped through the forest.

After the 18th Area Army was destroyed by German attacks in Borneo, General Hitoshi Anami chose to intensify the Southern Army’s offensive despite lacking naval support. He ordered additional armies to Borneo, staking his command on defeating the Germans.

• General Hitoshi Anami learned that German warships were bombarding the 18th Area Army and ordered it to withdraw and preserve its strength.
• A communications officer reported that German armored forces had attacked the 18th Area Army, leaving Anami and Tadaichi Tsukada expecting its defeat.
• Three days later, the 18th Area Army was wiped out, with only a small number of its troops escaping.
• Anami told Tsukada that the Southern Army had to seize the South Seas quickly to secure resources and sustain the war effort.
• Anami ordered the 14th and 7th Area Armies to continue their offensive and sent the 2nd Army, 18th Army, 37th Army, and 38th Army to Borneo.

After the 18th Area Army was destroyed, the 14th and 7th Area Armies halted their offensives while reinforcements headed for Borneo. Lieutenant General William Adam sought a way to lure the Japanese forces toward Brunei City and inflict further losses before the 23rd Army Group withdrew.

• Lieutenant General Masaharu Honma and Lieutenant General Seiichi Tanaka stopped their attacks after learning that the German 23rd Army Group had destroyed the 18th Area Army.
• Lieutenant General Masami Maeda delivered Southern Army Headquarters' order to suspend the offensive and await the 2nd, 18th, 37th, and 38th Armies.
• Major General Erwin Vilo told Lieutenant General William Adam that four Japanese armies totaling about four hundred thousand men were being sent to Borneo.
• Lieutenant General William Adam decided the 23rd Army Group needed to severely damage the 14th and 7th Area Armies before the reinforcements arrived and before withdrawing from Borneo.
• Major General Erwin Vilo proposed luring the Japanese forces to the outskirts of Brunei City, where German armor and naval fire support could strike them.

Lieutenant General Wilhelm Adam staged a German withdrawal from Borneo to tempt the Island Nation's armies into attacking. Lieutenant General Masaharu Honma believed the Germans were evacuating and led the 14th Area Army and 7th Area Army toward Brunei City.

• Lieutenant General Wilhelm Adam ordered German divisions to withdraw toward the ports and Brunei City to make the German 23rd Army Corps appear ready to evacuate Borneo.
• German troops abandoned their positions in western Borneo and the Crocker Range, while scouts from the Island Nation's armies monitored the withdrawals.
• Lieutenant General Masaharu Honma learned that the German lines opposite his forces were empty and ordered Lieutenant General Masami Maeda to investigate.
• After receiving intelligence that the German main forces had withdrawn, Lieutenant General Masaharu Honma saw a chance to seize Brunei City and urged Lieutenant General Seiichi Tanaka to join him.
• The 14th Area Army and 7th Area Army began crossing the Crocker Range and marching toward Brunei City.

Masaharu Honma persuaded Seiichi Tanaka to attack Brunei City, believing the Germans were withdrawing and leaving a weakened force behind. William Adam prepared to lure the Island Nation's Army into a defensive trap, with armored units ready to counterattack, and chose to remain with his troops as the battle approached.

• Masaharu Honma argued that German forces around Brunei City were weak and that attacking them offered a chance for victory, while Seiichi Tanaka warned that the withdrawal might be a trap.
• Seiichi Tanaka was persuaded to join Honma's attack, and the remaining forces of the 14th Area Army and 7th Area Army prepared to commit fully.
• Erwin Villo told William Adam that the Island Nation's Army had crossed the Crocker Range and was advancing toward Lawas, while German infantry divisions had formed a defensive line outside Brunei City.
• William Adam ordered the 23rd Armored Division and the 221st and 222nd Mechanized Infantry Divisions to prepare a counterattack once the enemy assault began.
• Erwin Villo urged William Adam to leave Brunei City for safety, but Adam refused and chose to stay with his soldiers.

The Island Nation's 14th and 7th Area Armies began their assault on Brunei City, confident that their overwhelming numbers would crush the German defenders. German artillery and air power inflicted devastating casualties on the first wave, leaving Masaharu Honma and Seiichi Tanaka to recognize that victory would be far harder than expected.

• Masaharu Honma ordered the Island Nation's 14th and 7th Area Armies to attack Brunei City with 300,000 men.
• The Island Nation's Army artillery bombarded German positions, but German guns outmatched it in caliber and destroyed many Japanese artillery positions.
• Honma dismissed Tanaka's suspicion that the assault was a trap and insisted that the German artillery strength was understandable.
• The Island Nation's Army sent more than 38,000 men from ten infantry regiments against the German line, where concentrated fire caused mounting casualties.
• German aircraft bombed and strafed the advancing troops, further increasing losses and making Honma and Tanaka doubt that Brunei City could be taken easily.

The Island Nation's Army launched a costly daytime assault on the German line outside Brunei City, then prepared a massive night attack. The Germans planned to use naval fire support and returning mechanized forces to trap the attackers, and the chapter ended as their warships prepared to fire.

• The Island Nation's Army failed to break through the German defenses on April 24, suffering more than thirty thousand casualties.
• Lieutenant General Masaharu Honma and Lieutenant General Seiichi Tanaka committed over fifty thousand troops to a night assault on Brunei City.
• Lieutenant General William Adam learned that German mechanized divisions and the 23rd Heavy Artillery Brigade would return by morning, while naval observers prepared to direct warship fire.
• The Island Nation's Army began its assault at eight that evening under artillery bombardment, and Masaharu Honma and Lieutenant General Seiichi Tanaka confidently predicted victory.
• German naval observers reported bombardment coordinates as warships loaded their guns and prepared to fire.

The Island Nation's Army launched a nighttime assault, but German Army artillery and naval guns devastated the attacking forces and stopped them before they reached the defensive line. William Adam learned that German armored and mechanized divisions were returning and could begin the planned counterattack at dawn.

• Masaharu Honma and Seiichi Tanaka ordered the Island Nation's Army to attack German positions.
• Otto Schwinert ordered the German warships to bombard the attackers, while German Army artillery also opened fire.
• Masaharu Honma ordered the 4th Tank Division, 1st Division, and 10th Division to establish a defensive line to the west in case German forces returned.
• German flares exposed the attacking troops, and German machine guns, mortars, and grenade launchers halted their advance as casualties mounted.
• Erwin Vilo told William Adam that the attack posed little pressure after the bombardment and that the 23rd Armored Division, 221st Mechanized Infantry Division, and 222nd Mechanized Infantry Division would return in time for the dawn counterattack.

The Island Nation's Army reinforced its defenses around Brunei City while German artillery battered its assaults. At daybreak, German armored divisions attacked, and the Island Nation's tanks charged out to meet them, beginning a large-scale tank battle.

• Masaharu Honma learned that the 2nd Tank Division, 1st Division, and 10th Division had reached their positions and were building defensive lines.
• William Adam's German forces continued to inflict heavy losses on the Island Nation's Army as the German 23rd Armored Division and two mechanized divisions approached Brunei City.
• William Adam ordered the German divisions to counterattack after scouts found the Island Nation's defensive line.
• Paul ordered more than five hundred German tanks and numerous armored vehicles to attack the Island Nation's positions at daybreak.
• Yoshiharu Iwanaka ordered the 2nd Tank Division to counterattack, and its tanks charged out to fight the German armored forces.

The German 23rd Armored Division destroyed the Island Nation's Army's 2nd Tank Division, while two German mechanized infantry divisions broke through and routed the 1st and 10th Divisions. The surviving Island Nation soldiers fled east along the coast as German armored forces pursued them.

• German Tiger and Panther tanks destroyed the Island Nation's Army's tanks from long range, inflicting heavy losses on the 2nd Tank Division.
• Lieutenant General Yoshiharu Iwanaka ordered the 2nd Tank Division to fight to the bitter end and warned Lieutenant General Masaharu Honma by telegram that the division might not hold much longer.
• The German 23rd Armored Division wiped out the 2nd Tank Division and destroyed or captured its vehicles.
• The German 221st and 222nd Mechanized Infantry Divisions broke through the Island Nation's Army's 1st and 10th Division defenses and routed both divisions.
• Defeated Island Nation soldiers retreated east along the coastal highway as German tanks and armored vehicles pursued them.

Masaharu Honma and Seiichi Tanaka renewed their assault on Brunei City while German armored forces attacked the Island Nation’s Army’s positions. After their defenses were breached and their troops routed, they ordered a retreat, but German forces pursued and inflicted a devastating defeat.

• Masaharu Honma ordered another assault on Brunei City, and Seiichi Tanaka committed the 7th Area Army to the attack.
• After learning that German armored forces were attacking the 2nd Tank Division, Honma ordered it and the 1st and 10th Divisions to hold their positions.
• German defenses repelled the renewed assault as German armor broke through the 2nd Tank Division’s position and forced the 1st and 10th Divisions to retreat.
• Seiichi Tanaka urged a retreat, and Masaharu Honma ordered the Island Nation’s Army to withdraw toward the Crocker Range.
• William Adam sent the German 23rd Army Corps after the retreating troops, while German warships and armored forces pursued and destroyed many of them before they reached the Crocker Range.

After the German 23rd Army Group defeated the Island Nation's forces in Borneo, Lieutenant General Wilhelm Adam halted the pursuit and began withdrawing. Lieutenant General Masaharu Honma committed seppuku, while General Hitoshi Anami requested permission to resign as Southern Army Commander.

• Lieutenant General Wilhelm Adam stopped the German pursuit at the Crocker Range and organized the 23rd Army Group's withdrawal from Borneo.
• Lieutenant General Masaharu Honma signed the battle report, then plunged his katana into his abdomen and died.
• General Hitoshi Anami ordered the 2nd Army, 18th Army, 37th Army, and 38th Army to land in Borneo and hold eastern Borneo until reinforcements arrived.
• General Hitoshi Anami spent the night considering the defeat and drafted a Telegram requesting permission to resign as Southern Army Commander.

After the Southern Army’s disastrous losses on Borneo, General Hitoshi Anami resigned as commander, convinced that the Island Nation could not overcome Germany. In Tokyo, the Army Ministry accepted his resignation and began considering a successor, with General Umezu Yoshijirō proposed for the post.

• General Hitoshi Anami told Lieutenant General Tadaichi Tsukada he had requested resignation and warned him that the war against Germany looked unwinnable.
• General Shunroku Hata and General Yoshizō Yamada reported that the 14th Area Army and 7th Area Army had been devastated at Brunei City, leaving only a little over one hundred thousand troops.
• Prince Kan'in Kotohito acknowledged that the German military’s strength had contributed to the Southern Army’s defeat, while General Shunroku Hata said the losses made Anami’s position untenable.
• General Shunroku Hata read Anami’s resignation telegram, and Prince Kan'in Kotohito accepted his decision.
• General Yoshizō Yamada recommended General Umezu Yoshijirō as the new Southern Army Commander.

The Island Nation’s military leaders appointed General Terauchi Juichi to replace General Hitoshi Anami as Southern Army Commander and planned a massive buildup against the Germans. The chapter left the Southern Army set to receive more than seven hundred thousand additional troops and extensive artillery support.

• Prince Kan'in Kotohito proposed General Ueda Nobuyoshi for Southern Army Commander, but General Shunroku Hata backed General Terauchi Juichi, and General Yoshizō Yamada and Prince Kan'in Kotohito agreed to the appointment.
• The leaders decided that General Hitoshi Anami would return home to an idle post after his removal.
• General Shunroku Hata argued that the weakened Southern Army needed immediate reinforcements rather than relying on newly mobilized troops to regain combat strength.
• Over two days, General Shunroku Hata and Prince Kan'in Kotohito approved sending new troops to the Philippine Islands and transferring six formations from the Island Nation to the Southern Army.
• General Shunroku Hata also ordered additional artillery units, bringing planned reinforcements to more than seven hundred thousand men and aiming to raise the Southern Army’s total strength above two million once its damaged units recovered.

General Shunroku Hata entrusted General Terauchi Juichi with leading the reinforced Southern Army to secure the South Seas and Australia. As Island Nation's Army hesitated to attack, the German 23rd Army Corps evacuated Borneo, which Island Nation's Army then occupied.

• General Shunroku Hata warned General Terauchi Juichi that the Southern Army faced German forces across the South Seas and Australia, and stressed the need to seize resources before American aid dwindled.
• General Terauchi Juichi accepted command of the Southern Army and pledged to reverse its fortunes with the arriving reinforcements.
• Island Nation's Army sent reinforcements to Borneo but avoided launching another offensive, leaving the front temporarily calm.
• Lieutenant General William Adam ordered the German 23rd Army Corps to withdraw from Borneo to limit its losses, while its armored and mechanized troops covered the retreat.
• By the end of April, the German 23rd Army Corps had evacuated Borneo, and Island Nation's Army occupied Borneo and the Dutch East Indies.

Emperor Qin Tian and German commanders prepared for a decisive 1940 campaign against Buru, aiming to destroy the Russian Army’s main forces before Russia’s growing manpower and improved weapons could threaten Germany. The chapter ended with Oscar warning that Buru’s new tanks and fighters posed a real danger and that Germany had to act before its enemies advanced further.

• The German military rested its main forces through winter while vassal-state armies held the frontline and the Russian Army suffered heavy losses in failed offensives.
• Joseph ordered Russian marshals and generals to stop Germany’s expected spring offensive, knowing defeat could destroy Russia and cost him his life.
• At the end of March, Emperor Qin Tian met with the Army and Air Force leadership in Berlin to review plans for the campaign against Buru.
• Oscar warned that Russia had mobilized ten million troops and might raise another five million by arming elderly people, children, and women.
• Field Marshal Manstein promised that the Empire would meet its operational objectives, while Oscar cautioned that Buru’s T-34 and KV tanks and Yak-1 fighters could threaten German forces.

Oscar reviewed the Empire’s preparations for Buru’s growing tank forces and the re-equipment and development of German fighters. The meeting ended with the FW-190 rollout progressing, the TA-152 in testing, and the jet fighter’s engine nearing a breakthrough.

• Marshal Guderian said Buru’s T-34 and KV tanks posed different threats, and Oscar warned that mass production of T-34s would raise German casualties.
• Field Marshal Kesselring reported that half of the Imperial Air Force’s fighter wings had switched to FW-190s, with the Eastern Front nearly fully re-equipped.
• Oscar asked about the TA-152, and Field Marshal Kesselring said test flights had begun, with mass production expected in the second half of the year and combat readiness next year.
• Field Marshal Kesselring reported that development of the Imperial Air Force’s jet fighter had accelerated and that its engine was expected to succeed next year.

Oscar warned his commanders that the Empire had to keep fighting in the Pacific while prioritizing a decisive victory over Buru and preparing for the United States to enter the war. He left the naval leaders focused on defending the Pacific and preparing for a major Atlantic confrontation.

• Oscar told Field Marshal Manstein that the Empire would hold territory in the South Seas and Australia until it could reinforce the Pacific and defeat the Island Nation.
• Field Marshal Manstein reported that the Island Nation had suffered heavy naval and army losses in the Pacific and at Borneo.
• Oscar warned that the United States might declare war that year and urged the Army and Air Force to crush Buru before the American threat grew.
• That afternoon, Oscar summoned Marshal Raeder, Marshal Dönitz, Marshal Lütjens, Admiral Rolf Kars, and Admiral Hermann Böhm to discuss the Navy’s missions.
• Oscar ordered the Pacific and Indian Ocean fleets to withstand the Island Nation’s attacks and stressed that the Atlantic fleets would face the crucial fight if the United States entered the war.

Oscar strengthened the Imperial Navy’s fleets with new Sovereign-class carriers and approved the Army’s preparations for a major offensive against Russia. The chapter left the German forces set to begin their eastern campaign in half a month, targeting Moscow and Yuzefgrad while continuing strategic bombing.

• Marshal Lütjens told Oscar that the Home Fleet and Atlantic Fleet could combine to challenge the American Navy.
• Marshal Raeder said the second batch of four Sovereign-class carriers would enter service over the next three months, and Oscar assigned them to the Atlantic Fleet while sending the first batch to the Home Fleet.
• Oscar urged the naval officers to defeat the American Navy, and they pledged victory for the Empire.
• Field Marshal Manstein reported that the Imperial Army and Air Force would be ready to launch an offensive in half a month.
• Field Marshal Manstein presented plans for Army Groups A, B, and C to attack Moscow and Army Groups D and E to attack Yuzefgrad, and Oscar approved the plan.
• Oscar ordered Field Marshal Kesselring to secure air superiority, support the Army, and continue strategic bombing of Buru.

Joseph met with Shaposhnikov as Germany prepared a major offensive against Buru and neared Moscow. Shaposhnikov warned that Buru was unlikely to defeat Germany without help, leaving Joseph to hope that Island Nation and the United States would tie down German forces.

• Shaposhnikov told Joseph that Germany was moving supplies and troops to the front and gathering forces from its vassal states for another large offensive.
• Joseph asked whether Buru's army could withstand the attack, and Shaposhnikov described Germany's advantages in armor, firepower, and aircraft.
• Shaposhnikov said Buru's chances depended on Island Nation and the United States drawing German forces away from the front.
• Joseph said he would press the Americans to enter the war soon and hoped Island Nation could weaken Germany.

Joseph and Shaposhnikov assessed the looming German offensive, Russia’s shortages of weapons and fuel, and the search for new oil supplies. Joseph ordered Moscow and Yuzefgrad defended and insisted that Russia had to win the war.

• Shaposhnikov warned Joseph that Germany intended to destroy Russia’s main forces that year and that hastily formed Russian units lacked weapons and combat strength.
• Joseph said Russia would accelerate weapons production and seek more American supplies, while Shaposhnikov explained that transport limits meant aid was focused on aircraft engines and fuel.
• Shaposhnikov reported that oil had been found in West Siberia and near the Caspian Sea, but only Caspian extraction could begin, and large-scale production would take time.
• Shaposhnikov said the Germans would likely target Moscow and Yuzefgrad, and Joseph ordered both cities held.
• Joseph told Shaposhnikov that Russia had nowhere left to retreat and that they had to win the war.

On April 8, Oscar reviewed preparations for the German military’s third phase of Operation Barbarossa, an all-out offensive against Moscow and Yuzefgrad. Manstein outlined the forces and air support committed to the campaign, and Oscar left satisfied that Germany had assembled enough strength to improve its chances of victory.

• Oscar summoned the Eastern Front’s senior commanders and asked Manstein whether preparations were complete.
• Manstein reported that most war materiel was assembled and presented the plan to destroy Buru’s forces in a two-direction offensive.
• Manstein assigned Army Groups A, B, and C, totaling 8.2 million men, to attack Moscow.
• Manstein assigned Army Groups D and E, totaling 3.8 million men, to attack Yuzefgrad.
• The German military committed more than 4,800 tactical aircraft and bombers from four strategic air groups to support the offensive and strike Russian cities and industry.
• Oscar approved of the preparations and believed Germany’s combined forces gave it a greater chance of victory.

As Germany prepared to attack Russia, Oscar and his commanders expected the German Air Force to overwhelm the Russian defenses. On April 15, German aircraft began taking off for the offensive, leaving the battle about to begin.

• Oscar announced that the offensive would begin in one week, and Field Marshal Kesselring assured him that the Air Force was ready.
• Germany continued moving troops and supplies to the front as Marshal Voroshilov feared Army Groups A and B would encircle his Western Front.
• Joseph refused Voroshilov's request for more troops but sent Zhukov's Reserve Front Army to block Army Group A.
• On April 15, all eight German aviation groups prepared to strike Russian airfields and support the offensive.
• Just after six in the morning, the first FW-190 took off, followed by a vast formation of German aircraft.

The German Air Force launched a major offensive toward Moscow and Yuzefgrad, aiming to destroy the Russian Air Force and seize air superiority. Russian radar detected the German formations and prompted a scramble, while both sides tracked each other’s aircraft as the battle began.

• Field Marshal Albert Kesselring ordered the German Air Force operation to proceed despite Field Marshal Edward Milch’s warning that Russian radar would prevent a surprise attack.
• Russian radar detected the German formations before they crossed the line of control, and the Russian Air Force scrambled aircraft from its airfields.
• Marshal Voroshilov ordered frontline army groups to prepare for battle after learning of the German mobilization.
• German radar detected the Russian aircraft taking off, and German headquarters directed FW-190 fighters to engage them ahead of the bombers and ground-attack aircraft.