137. Italy - Neutral/Monarchist
FasterThanRaito
Kicked
It's been forever since I tried paratroopers, and with the DLC revamping special forces I decided to go for a paratroop-only challenge run.
Of course, special forces can only be recruited as a fraction of your real army, so I trained home guard infantry to pad out my army, as well as some tank divisions with all the extra tank equipment I had from building airborne armor divisions.
Italy starts at war with Ethiopia. After some initial setbacks, the army criticizes Mussolini's incompetent leadership, and eventually a coup deposes the fascist government. At first, the new republic looks like it might transition into democracy, but instead it goes back to being a kingdom. The church is granted many privileges to buy political support for the unstable new regime. However, the church takes advantage and presses another coup, deposing the king and instating the Pope as the ultimate sovereign.
The Italian army, recovering from the costly victory in Africa, sends some volunteer forces to help the nationalists fight in Spain, but the nationalists fragment into civil war between the fascists and carlists, so the volunteers return home resulting in communist victory in Spain.
With the army reorganized, Italy presses demands on Yugoslavia, which cedes Dalmatia without a fight. Albania also submits. However, Italy presses more demands and this time the Yugoslavs hold firm. Italy invades swiftly, but Yugoslavia is protected by Romania and Czechoslovakia, who still have relatively strong armies at this early stage. After some struggle due to low numbers, the Italian air industry is able to produce enough fighter planes to secure air superiority over the skies of the Balkans, and the paradrops being to rain down...
Wave after wave of airborne delivered light infantry are placed in strategic locations right behind the front lines, on railroads, supply centers, and anchor point terrain such as rivers and mountains. This creates and instant encirclement effect on the Romanians on the front lines, who are forced to break formation to retreat to safety. In the chaos, a few Italian divisions manage to capture Bucharest, and Romania capitulates.
Czechoslovakia could only send half its army to defend against the Italian incursion from the south due to having to guard its long border with Germany. Another airdrop and Prague was seized, resulting in another swift capitulation.
Italian spies notice that Austria and Hungary are looking to join the German Empire, so Italian diplomats rush to pretend to be Germany's ally and friend, even offering them no objection to the annexation of Austria, but Italy sabotages Hungary's introduction into the alliance and invades before their army could recover from the effects of the treaty of Trianon.
Sweden, fancying itself a great democratic power set on protecting European nations from Italian-German aggression had declared war back during the invasion of Czechoslovakia, but they couldn't reach us so we ignored them until now. Germany is also entering conflict against Lithuania over control of Polish territories.
So having defeated all its eastern enemies, Italy pivots north. Poland in invaded, while the entire airforce sets itself up in German bases on the Baltic, ready to send another wave of paratrooper armies across the water into the north. After the initial shock and awe capture of Swedish ports and major cities, the rest of Scandinavia easily falls under the domain of Germany.
Italy pivots back south, since events progressing in the Middle East and Africa. France and Britain went communist and the new governments are granting independence to the colonies. Italy demands the subjugation of the Holy Land, and Palestine submits without a fight. Egypt rejects, but has no army so is quickly overrun.
The rest of the Middle East has fallen under the guidance of the Ottoman Federation, a democratic coalition to oppose western influence. Italy invades Turkey easily accepts the surrender of Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan.
Now, the only remaining territory in the Mediterranean that is not Italian is Greece, which as become guaranteed by the western communists in Britain and France. It is time for the ultimate showdown.
Italian armies place themselves on the Pyrenees and Rhine lines to attack from the south and the north through the low countries. The paratroopers will secure the entire length of the Rhone river, cutting off southern France and decimating its army in a massive encirclement.
In a matter of weeks, France falls. Next, the airforce sends fighters wings with a total strength of 2,000 fighter craft to seize control over the skies of Britain. Despite the propaganda, the British air forces have nothing against the modern deadly Italian manufacture designs. Three entire paratrooper armies completely blanket south England, and London falls in days, the rest of Britain with it.
Suddenly Italy controls a vast global colonial empire and almost the entirety of the Mediterranean coast . The only piece missing for the completion of Mare Nostrum is Spain. However Spain is a puppet of the Moscow communists, and taking down the soviets would de another massive war. However, spies reveal that the Soviets are about to be distracted in the far East against the Japanese, who have just finishes taking over China. Also, their airforce, while large, is not as powerful as the Italians and is spread out over their vast territory while the Italians can concentrate their air control over their target drop zones.
So the invasion plan moves forward. When the Soviets are at war with Japan, the skies of Russia suddenly fill with Italian transport planes. Although the campaign is costly and sees many losses to attrition, the Soviets are never able to field a solid front line and are eventually totally occupied west of the Urals.
Their ally communist sinkiang takes leadership of the central asian republics, only to capitulate in the face of Japanese threats.
In a stroke of great luck that the Pope would declare holy providence and proof of divine favor, Portugal unities the crowns of Brazil and submits its suzerainty to the Papal State, completing the re-unification of the Roman Empire.
Many Latin American countries agree to join the Roman alliance, though some do not accept and are invaded. The USA, recovering from civil war is not able to intervene to enforce the Monroe Doctrine. Instead, the USA and Canada look towards the last remaining democracies in the world, mostly former commonwealth to ensure collective security.
Of course, special forces can only be recruited as a fraction of your real army, so I trained home guard infantry to pad out my army, as well as some tank divisions with all the extra tank equipment I had from building airborne armor divisions.
Italy starts at war with Ethiopia. After some initial setbacks, the army criticizes Mussolini's incompetent leadership, and eventually a coup deposes the fascist government. At first, the new republic looks like it might transition into democracy, but instead it goes back to being a kingdom. The church is granted many privileges to buy political support for the unstable new regime. However, the church takes advantage and presses another coup, deposing the king and instating the Pope as the ultimate sovereign.
The Italian army, recovering from the costly victory in Africa, sends some volunteer forces to help the nationalists fight in Spain, but the nationalists fragment into civil war between the fascists and carlists, so the volunteers return home resulting in communist victory in Spain.
With the army reorganized, Italy presses demands on Yugoslavia, which cedes Dalmatia without a fight. Albania also submits. However, Italy presses more demands and this time the Yugoslavs hold firm. Italy invades swiftly, but Yugoslavia is protected by Romania and Czechoslovakia, who still have relatively strong armies at this early stage. After some struggle due to low numbers, the Italian air industry is able to produce enough fighter planes to secure air superiority over the skies of the Balkans, and the paradrops being to rain down...
Wave after wave of airborne delivered light infantry are placed in strategic locations right behind the front lines, on railroads, supply centers, and anchor point terrain such as rivers and mountains. This creates and instant encirclement effect on the Romanians on the front lines, who are forced to break formation to retreat to safety. In the chaos, a few Italian divisions manage to capture Bucharest, and Romania capitulates.
Czechoslovakia could only send half its army to defend against the Italian incursion from the south due to having to guard its long border with Germany. Another airdrop and Prague was seized, resulting in another swift capitulation.
Italian spies notice that Austria and Hungary are looking to join the German Empire, so Italian diplomats rush to pretend to be Germany's ally and friend, even offering them no objection to the annexation of Austria, but Italy sabotages Hungary's introduction into the alliance and invades before their army could recover from the effects of the treaty of Trianon.
Sweden, fancying itself a great democratic power set on protecting European nations from Italian-German aggression had declared war back during the invasion of Czechoslovakia, but they couldn't reach us so we ignored them until now. Germany is also entering conflict against Lithuania over control of Polish territories.
So having defeated all its eastern enemies, Italy pivots north. Poland in invaded, while the entire airforce sets itself up in German bases on the Baltic, ready to send another wave of paratrooper armies across the water into the north. After the initial shock and awe capture of Swedish ports and major cities, the rest of Scandinavia easily falls under the domain of Germany.
Italy pivots back south, since events progressing in the Middle East and Africa. France and Britain went communist and the new governments are granting independence to the colonies. Italy demands the subjugation of the Holy Land, and Palestine submits without a fight. Egypt rejects, but has no army so is quickly overrun.
The rest of the Middle East has fallen under the guidance of the Ottoman Federation, a democratic coalition to oppose western influence. Italy invades Turkey easily accepts the surrender of Syria, Iraq, Iran, and Afghanistan.
Now, the only remaining territory in the Mediterranean that is not Italian is Greece, which as become guaranteed by the western communists in Britain and France. It is time for the ultimate showdown.
Italian armies place themselves on the Pyrenees and Rhine lines to attack from the south and the north through the low countries. The paratroopers will secure the entire length of the Rhone river, cutting off southern France and decimating its army in a massive encirclement.
In a matter of weeks, France falls. Next, the airforce sends fighters wings with a total strength of 2,000 fighter craft to seize control over the skies of Britain. Despite the propaganda, the British air forces have nothing against the modern deadly Italian manufacture designs. Three entire paratrooper armies completely blanket south England, and London falls in days, the rest of Britain with it.
Suddenly Italy controls a vast global colonial empire and almost the entirety of the Mediterranean coast . The only piece missing for the completion of Mare Nostrum is Spain. However Spain is a puppet of the Moscow communists, and taking down the soviets would de another massive war. However, spies reveal that the Soviets are about to be distracted in the far East against the Japanese, who have just finishes taking over China. Also, their airforce, while large, is not as powerful as the Italians and is spread out over their vast territory while the Italians can concentrate their air control over their target drop zones.
So the invasion plan moves forward. When the Soviets are at war with Japan, the skies of Russia suddenly fill with Italian transport planes. Although the campaign is costly and sees many losses to attrition, the Soviets are never able to field a solid front line and are eventually totally occupied west of the Urals.
Their ally communist sinkiang takes leadership of the central asian republics, only to capitulate in the face of Japanese threats.
In a stroke of great luck that the Pope would declare holy providence and proof of divine favor, Portugal unities the crowns of Brazil and submits its suzerainty to the Papal State, completing the re-unification of the Roman Empire.
Many Latin American countries agree to join the Roman alliance, though some do not accept and are invaded. The USA, recovering from civil war is not able to intervene to enforce the Monroe Doctrine. Instead, the USA and Canada look towards the last remaining democracies in the world, mostly former commonwealth to ensure collective security.
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