Expanded WW1 (warning may be ASB)

I know this may sound ASB (and it can be moved there if you want) the following happen:
* Germany enacts the full Schliefen Plan (including Netherlands)
* China joins Germany in order to gain Hong Kong from the UK, and Outer Manchuria, Tanu Tuva and possibly even small regions of central asia lost in the 18th-19 centuries
* Spain invades Portugal to unify Iberia, than joins Germany, due to conservative elements in the government, wishing to gain all of Morroco, Mali, Gibraltar and even 'hispanic regions' of FRance (ie French CAtalonia, Northern Basque and tiny areas with Spanish minorities).
* A major rebellion, backed up by Germans, arises in India, with the war going on for years.
* Britain coaxes Persia to join to gain against ottomans to balance things out and to challenge the Ottoman Caliphate.
I know some of these are very unrealistic, but through messing around on Darkest Hour, I wanted to know what would realistically happen if these events occured in terms of battles. It's not how they came to be I'm worried about, but hte consequences short and long term of what it would be. Good luck!
 
The full Schlieffen plan of 1906 was to involve some 300,000 men which did not exist in 1906 but whom Schlieffen just assumed would be made available when the war approached. In the event the German Army was only expanded by 135,000 men (with considerable reluctance) between 1906 and 1914. In any event the plan was logistically unviable in Schlieffen's model anyway, the much maligned Moltke converted it from a delusional pipe dream into a workable plan.

The biggest problem in the event was in higher comand, an Army Group level of command was needed on the right flank to coordinate the movements of the 3 armies there. This was done in a half-arsed fashion by putting 1 Army under the command of 2 Army on occasion, but this wasn't enough.

The second problem was with the execution, there should have been no general advance on the left wing once iit was secured, troops should have been transferred to the right. It wouldn't have captured paris but it would have won the Race to the Sea which would have been crucial in the long war that followed.
 
Is there even any desire in Spain at the time to unite the Iberian peninsula? It seems more realistic that the Central Powers would try to woo the conservative government to join in exchange for Morocco.

And, funny enough, I was just reading about the Schlieffen Plan. Invading the Netherlands seems unnecessary.

But as for how it would play out...

I'm not sure how the fighting between France and Spain would play out, as I don't know what the state of the Spanish army was at the time. You could see at least a very slight weakening on the (French) Eastern Front. I'd manage a guess that the full Schlieffen Plan would bog down German forces further, as more troops are needed to occupy the Netherlands as well as Belgium.

And speaking of which...what were those other options, in Darkest Hour? I know they have the Schlieffen Plan, the full Schlieffen Plan, some other one that involves invading Switzerland for some insane reason, and an option to cram the German army through Alsace-Lorraine, but I forget what they were called. It makes me think: how might have World War I gone if Schlieffen croaked and some less pipe dream-y person came up with a battle plan.
 
Cutbacks.

Thanks you guys, the whole thing about the Schliefen Plan and Iberian unification is Pipe-dreamy, so I'll cut it back in those areas:

*Germany does same plan as OTL
* Spain leans more to the right and joins on Germany's side in late 1914, hoping to gain Morrocco, Gibraltar, Northern Basque and French CAtalonia. As a result, Portugal is either too scared to enter the Entente, or does so but gets it's ass handed to it.
* China joins in Germany's side due to better relations, but more importantly to regain control of Mongolia and of lost teritories of Britain, Russia and Portugal (and perhaps even return Korea to vassal status, depending on if Japan gets involved-in my Darkest Hour scenario they didn't, due to Germany accepting giving the colonies to them)-entry again in 1914/1915
* similar to OTL WW2, Persia is forced into the Entente by Anglo-Russian pressure to give a kick to the Ottomans after the failed gallipoli landings.

Yeah, I remember what you're talking about. The Southern Plan was proposed by the Crown Prince of Bavaria as a way to sweep through another country (very risky but could have paid off if successful) without involving the UK. The problem is that they could get bogged down in the Alps. The problem with cramming them all through Alsace Lorraine is that it would have made the war much slower, while shortcutting through Belgium would have made the war quicker, despite the increased occupational problems.
Also, how would Italy react in this scenario? If Spain and China are also on the Central Side, could it change their mind on who is a weaker opponent? Or would they just have a little extra fighting to do?
Post War Spanish and Chinese governments would have some major differences as well to OTL.

I'll tell you what's happened on my Darkest Hour campaign by 1920 if it helps. :)
 
Yeah, I remember what you're talking about. The Southern Plan was proposed by the Crown Prince of Bavaria as a way to sweep through another country (very risky but could have paid off if successful) without involving the UK. The problem is that they could get bogged down in the Alps. The problem with cramming them all through Alsace Lorraine is that it would have made the war much slower, while shortcutting through Belgium would have made the war quicker, despite the increased occupational problems.

Yeah, that may have been the case in Darkest Hour. Of course, in real life neither would work. I'd imagine that unless Switzerland just decided to let Germany through peacefully, it would be impossible to get through the Alps with WWI technology. And good luck breaking through the Maginot Line if both sides pile up their troops there. Remember, in WWI, attacking sucks.

Also, how would Italy react in this scenario? If Spain and China are also on the Central Side, could it change their mind on who is a weaker opponent? Or would they just have a little extra fighting to do?

The reason Italy joined the Entente in OTL is because it had little to gain from its alliance with the Central Powers. Its main objective, the recovery of Trento and Venice, could not be realised while allied to A-H, which wouldn't part with the land. Dalmatia-Illyria, another territory coveted by Italy, was also Austro-Hungarian property. If Italy decides that it doesn't wish to face the Central Powers in this kind of WWI, it'll stay neutral.

(Also, people sort of tend to cringe when you make assumptions based on computer games.)
 
-Maginot Line is not yet built
-Spain might try for the departments on their border (with only the southern half of the middle one for simplicity) but otherwise not sure why or what else they would try for
-Eliminate the Schliffen plan in favor of a southern attack and keep the UK out of the war for a while just to get additional players into place
-With Spain hitting France in the Southwest, Italy would be more tempted to hit her in the Southeast, Paris would face threats from three sides
-Persia might try to hit the Ottomans but is she in the shape to do more than peripheral damage? And would the British be willing to relinquish Iraq, Afghanistan, and/or Kuwait to them?
-China would have a serious manpower advantage but I imagine Japan and India would be all over that, perhaps even being allowed to keep Manchuria or other territory captured (or sold by desperate powers) during the war. I could see China hitting Russia hard along with French Indochina but with a serious Russian winter killing *a lot* of Chinese grunts who have little food and less weaponry.
-Italy becomes more of a wild card, especially if the Spanish front looks like it is going well and Italy thinks it can gain Corsica, Nice, Savoy, and Tunisia.
-Overall it might drag the war out longer and cause more deaths of Spanish Influenza in 1919 to war-torn areas like China, Spain, southern France, and potentially India, but otherwise not sure where this would end.
 
Things went wierd in my campaign. I let the AI do it mostly.
* Spain quickly got its ass handed to it, finally capitulating shortly before Portugals OTL invervention.
* China at first made small gains against Russia, wracking up dissidence in that nation, but this was turned as British and Japanese forces started cracking in, resulting in eventualy devastating consequences for the Chinese
* Eventually Russia gets China to cede Manchuria, Mongolia and Sinkiang as a seperate Peace Treaty, but just a week or two later, the Bolsheviks sieze power and the Civil War begins 18 months early. The Soviets manage to maintain and keep hold of the newly Chinese provinces by sponsoring the socialist movements in those regions.
* Persia's entry into the Entente creates an enormous stalemate around central Iraq, almost like the trenches in Europe.
*Britain and Japan greatly expand their colonial possessions, with Japs getting most of the East Coast, and Britain getting the Guanxi and surrounding regions into its sphere of influence.
Around September 1918, the Ottomans capitulate, offering mostly OTL borders, but with Iraq and portions of Kurdistan going to Persia instead.
*America gets involved like OTL, but donates less forces for some reason.
* In October 1918, Germany defeats France and invokes a harsh peace treaty on it and Belgium while Britain and its allies get a White Peace.
So overall, the war goes quite wierdly, with both sides having signficant losses and gains, with France getting a Versailles equivalent, while Spain and China are beaten down too.

What do you guys think of this, in terms of realism? And either way, what impacts do you think would happen long term? I think the defeated nations are going to be significantly different and signficantly greater in number, so perhaps it could lead to a bigger WW2 as well?
 
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