Challenge: How thickly can the webs of alliance cover the world prior to WW1?

In other words, what are the maximum amount of participants that can be involved within say the first six months of WW1? The idea is that the war is so global that there should be almost no neutral nations, and preferably most end up bordering an enemy power such that there are fronts everywhere, so Spain should be against either France or Portugal preferably for example.

With POD(s) limited say fifty years before WW1.

Probable no goes: Luxembourg, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Andorra, Monaco, Vatican City
s

Could go to either side: Italy, Romania, USA

Possible (quicker) additions to Central Powers: Ottomans, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Sweden

Possible additions to Entente: Belgium, Greece, Portugal

Presumably it would be easy to rope in foreign nations across the world that have issues with the colonial empires. If they will ever strike the time is now.

Could we split South and Central America into Central vs Entente?
 
In other words, what are the maximum amount of participants that can be involved within say the first six months of WW1? The idea is that the war is so global that there should be almost no neutral nations, and preferably most end up bordering an enemy power such that there are fronts everywhere, so Spain should be against either France or Portugal preferably for example.

With POD(s) limited say fifty years before WW1.

Probable no goes: Luxembourg, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Andorra, Monaco, Vatican City
s

Could go to either side: Italy, Romania, USA

Possible (quicker) additions to Central Powers: Ottomans, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Sweden

Possible additions to Entente: Belgium, Greece, Portugal

Presumably it would be easy to rope in foreign nations across the world that have issues with the colonial empires. If they will ever strike the time is now.

Could we split South and Central America into Central vs Entente?
You duplicated the thread.
 
In other words, what are the maximum amount of participants that can be involved within say the first six months of WW1? The idea is that the war is so global that there should be almost no neutral nations, and preferably most end up bordering an enemy power such that there are fronts everywhere, so Spain should be against either France or Portugal preferably for example.

With POD(s) limited say fifty years before WW1.

Probable no goes: Luxembourg, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Andorra, Monaco, Vatican City
s

Could go to either side: Italy, Romania, USA

Possible (quicker) additions to Central Powers: Ottomans, Bulgaria, Netherlands, Sweden

Possible additions to Entente: Belgium, Greece, Portugal

Presumably it would be easy to rope in foreign nations across the world that have issues with the colonial empires. If they will ever strike the time is now.

Could we split South and Central America into Central vs Entente?

The 7 Years War was pretty expansive. I think all continents were involved besides Australia (and Antarctica obviously). Maybe make European colonization somehow even more extensive and contact with even more native tribes as well as British colonization of Australia could bring in Australia and much more of North America. There's not much else that can be done to expand it as it was truly the first global war except for getting penguins to side with the French as revenge against the British for putting their flag on rightful Penguin clay
 
It's not particularly the point to make sure every continent is in, it's more the point that I would like every country in the world to be on side A or side B preferably prior to the war beginning.

This should at least mean that the sides are reasonably balanced, and preferably that most countries are not surprised by the entry of someone on its border.

So sure there was war in Asia in WW1 but it isn't enough, get China into the central powers for example. Have Brazil invade Guyana while Argentina invades the Falklands and Chile invades Argentina

Apologies for double post don't know how to delete.
 
It's not particularly the point to make sure every continent is in, it's more the point that I would like every country in the world to be on side A or side B preferably prior to the war beginning..

I see, well obviously have the French convince Belgium that Germany is a threat and to begin to mobilize. Have Germany convince Spain and China that would be able to restore their former glory if Spain attacked France and China seized the European ports in, well, China as well as French Indochina. Spain would get Gibaraltar, Malta and parts of Africa while China would get all those old ports back as well as Korea if they could beat the Japanese and be able to set up Vietnamese puppet.

Germany brings in Argentina so they can tie down the Royal Navy in the Atlantic and promise them the Falklands as well as several other South Atlantic Islands (maybe even St Helena?). Have Argentina's enemies, Brazil for example, band together and join the Entente to kick Argentina's ass.

Obviously, it'd possible for Germany to convince Ethiopia, as well as the conquered natives of the many colonies the British own, to rise up to kick them out of Africa. Get the Scandinavian counties to split, with Norway and Denmark joining the Entente to get revenge against Germany and take back Schleswig-Holstein while Sweden and Finland join to contain Russian aggression and fight the Norwegians.

Have Siam and Persia join the Central Powers and team up to carve up the Raj, with Nepal, Bhutan and Tibet all joining in to help. Have the Caucasus split between fighting Russia for the Central Powers and fighting the Ottomans for the Entente. Have Britain bring in Greece to fuck up Bulgaria and help out Serbia against Austria while Ireland declares full independence and then have the U.K declare war on them, forcing them to join the Central Powers.

After this, there's not much more I can think of but I feel that's pretty expansive as you now have the entire Middle East, India, China, South East Asia, South America, North Africa and South Western France as battle grounds
 
Last edited:
That's pretty much exactly what I was looking for, next time I'm on a computer I'll have to paint out each country on a map to compare the globe's split.

Basically perfect thanks mate
 
Top