The New Order: Last Days of Europe - An Axis Victory Cold War Mod for HoIIV

[Lonely Knightess]

A Cold War mod beginning in 1962
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The Second World War ended with the complete destruction of the enemies of Hitler's Germany and his fellow Axis nations. The world of 1962 is now a much different one then anyone could have imagined.

From the former lands of Russia where petty warlords battle for control of the torched steppes, to the once mighty Reich, where various factions threaten to tear the nation apart into civil war.

No matter what happens, the world is in perhaps its most turbulent phase, with the Reich and Japan on the brink of war, and the threat of nuclear destruction looming over all, will the world survive into the 70's?

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The New Order: Last Days of Europe is an ambitious mod for Hearts of Iron IV presenting a unique alternate history Cold War between Germany, Japan and the USA, starting in 1962. Will you save the world or help destroy it?

Hope it's alright that I post this here, seemed like a good place. Sorry if it isn't mods, feel free to axe the thread if it isn't. Also sorry for the multi-post, but wanted to show you guys all of our dev diaries so far.

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Dev Diary I: Victoria or Hearts of Iron? - 1/17/2017

The First Choice

Many people on this page may remember that this mod is very much building off another one, A New Order, a similar and unreleased mod for Victoria 2. The story for which is, of course, the same as the original mod. Development for which began in early 2014, and which I tinkered with for two years until the release of Hearts of Iron 4 in 2016.

The reasons for the mod's original development on Victoria 2 were two-fold.

1. Victoria 2 was the most up to date game that I felt could do the setting justice. While Europa Universalis 4 and Crusader Kings 2 had since come out, both settings were set too far back to properly represent A New Order, and other Paradox games out at the time in the Hearts of Iron series were either nigh on unmoddable (Hearts of Iron 3) or I had never touched them (Hearts of Iron 2).

There were other problems with choosing Hearts of Iron 3, most of which will still apply to Hearts of Iron 4 and will be discussed below, but the largest problem is a world war is a necessity for the game to work, while A New Order's world war should be avoidable.

2. Victoria 2 could represent the setting better than most other games. The sphere system, colonization (or, in this case, recolonization), crisis, great powers, and other systems are something very helpful for the setting, as well as its focus on narrative and flavor events. These things all come together in Victoria, and only one other Paradox game at the time had any of those features (Europa Universalis, which has colonization mechanics, and which at the time had not yet added Great Powers).

At the time, this made Victoria 2 a natural choice. While this in itself had its issues, it still made the most sense mechanically out of the other games. The big stickler is of course the combat and factions, two things which Hearts of Iron features that Victoria does not, which are very important to the setting. Being a mod closer to modern warfare, the combat system of Hearts of Iron would be preferred, and since the world of A New Order is locked in a cold war, the faction system was also something I needed.

However, when combined with the other mentioned factors, the decision was made for Victoria 2. As mentioned, the biggest point against Hearts of Iron 3 was how rigid it was, and unopen to modding. Little had I realized, of course, that Victoria 2 would be little better.

Seriously Screw Victoria 2

I'll leave this brief, modding Victoria 2 is like slamming your skull against a brick wall in order to make dinner. You can slam your head against the wall until your brains spill out and land on the plate and congrats you have food but its awful and tastes horrible and everyone is probably quite uncomfortable at best. The biggest problem with the mod was that the Mediterranean sea is filled, and Victoria despises province modding.

Of course I refused to not include Atlantropa (the filling of the Mediterranean) and managed to scratch out a form of it in the mod, but it never worked quite right, and it meant I never really wanted to show off the mod past the first few screenshots that pointedly did not include it. One of many results can be seen below:

Eventually, I became extremely fed up with making the damn thing work, which led to me only working on it every other month or so, and normally in other areas.

Hearts of Iron 4, modding, and sandboxability

Hearts of Iron 4 has met with a lot of criticism for how sandbox the game is compared to its predecessors but this was perhaps one of the biggest reasons for me to switch over. With an event system and mechanics allowing for the creations of new factions and destruction of old ones, changing of factions, and changing of government forms, the mod seemed like it could very well find a home in the new game. I wasn't the only one to think so which is why the Kaiserreich team has also found their footing in the newer game.

While I would lose some things on switching over, such as the colonization system (which was already made impossible due to how province modding in Victoria 2 works), the Great Power system and the narrative structure of many events, many benefits could be found as well. Combat was closer to what would fit the setting, dynamic factions means I can fully show the German / Japanese / American split, while giving all outcomes due representation (America siding with either, the Russian nations reforming, countries in the Reich breaking off and forming new factions, etc.)

Of course, the biggest change was that Hearts of Iron 4 is the most moddable Paradox game yet. While it has issues, each Paradox game has become more open to its modding base with successive entries and Hearts of Iron 4 was definitely not an exception. Simply put, getting A New Order working in Hearts of Iron 4 was a (RELATIVE) breeze, and only took me a bit more than a week or so of work to properly implement the map, Atlantropa at all. Of course the game has a lot of things, and I don't think the devs envisioned many people changing around landmasses so this makes the systems a bit wonky, but new features such as a built in mod tool and actual error logs really do make my life so much easier. Thanks Paradox!

So after some deliberation, I finally made the hop over.

Leaving Things Behind

Of course, we lost things on the transition too. Hearts of Iron 4 is a rather arcadey game, and Victoria 2 has a lot of very deep features that (although a pain in my ass to mod) were a joy to get working and have in the game. The full economy system could show how each side were industrial power houses, the pop system meant I could properly show the German caste system (and how horrifying it is) and really pound in how Germany is built on slavery in this mod (as well as Japan, really). The tech system of Victoria 2 encourages long term development over the quick 10 years or so of research open in the Hearts of Iron series.

We also lost the Great Power and sphere system, which is huge, really. The sphere system especially. As A New Order is in a Cold War era environment, Japan, Germany, America and others would of course be battling it out in the diplomatic arena to get smaller nations to aid them or follow their views. The sphere system meant that Western Europe could be attached at the hip to the Reich but nominally independent.

Of course the system wasn't perfect. In early versions, Reichskommissariat Moscow would have enough industry and population to hit the 8th Great Power and break away from Germany. Italy and Iberia were large and powerful enough to be unsphereable, the strict adherence to 8 Great Powers made the tri-polar world seem a bit too open.

Still, Victoria 2 had enough things going for it that it was hard for me to move on. Not least of which was the fact that it's my favorite Paradox game.

Nothing's Perfect

And of course I run in to one problem continuously. Simply put, Paradox has never released a Cold War title. A New Order is very much a world stuck in a cold war. This means Hearts of Iron 4, while the best for the setting, has many problems that I have no real way to address. The largest of which is that A New Order isn't a world war game. While World War Three is a possibility, and will most likely be seen by players in A New Order (with an explosive conclusion, of course), the game itself is centered around the three sides being locked in a stalemate.

Hearts of Iron 4 simply isn't meant to simulate this, though it's the best Hearts of Iron game to do so with its new world tension system. However, Hearts of Iron is still meant to be about a lead up to an inevitable war which takes up 90% of the game. The game simply doesn't have much in the way of a system to make peacetime enjoyable, which is why I'm going out of my way to add things to do in the meantime, like civil disorder in Germany or rising rebellion in Japan. A New Order, as a major power at least, will be just as much about fighting your fellow countrymen to keep the nation together as it will be about fighting other nations for dominance.

Still, this will be the hardest thing to model in the mod. The most difficult thing, of course, will be the threat of nuclear war. Although I'm still not sure exactly how this will be implemented, I still wanted to make World War Three an enjoyable battle, and allow the player as any of the powers (or other nations) to fight it for a time without nuclear weapons, with a lore reason for this to happen. Nukes still need to exist of course, and they do need to be able to do what they do and end the world when (and if) the time comes.

In Conclusion

Hopefully this explains why we're here at Hearts of Iron 4 instead of Victoria 2 now and some of the struggles I've been going through planning and making this mod. Future dev diaries will start to go deeper into the countries themselves and the gameplay, but let this be as a precursor in the meantime. The mod will hopefully not take too long to be released in some form now that the map is just about done.

Of course when Paradox releases either Victoria 3 or a Cold War title (if ever), then we might have some thinking to do. Again.

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Dev Diary II: On the Matter of Britain Part I - 10/11/2017

Hello and welcome to the first actual dev diary for The New Order: Last Days of Europe. A while ago I talked about the reasons we moved from Victoria 2 to Hearts of Iron IV, and with the recent announcement of a decision system coming in the latest expansion, I am happier with this choice than ever.

It’s been awhile since our last dev diary, and a lot has changed, notably, Atlantropa has been tamed a bit due to suggestions and our beautiful Reichskommissariat Mittelmeer was taken from this world at the ripe age of 3. Never forget.

Atlantropa is now much less fun much more presentable, and matches several projected images of what most people seem to think Atlantropa would look like.

I would show the new Atlantropa in detail, but we’re doing huge changes to it and the surrounding countries there that we’ll be excited to show you in the next dev diary!

Hopefully the new Atlantropa will be a middle ground between realism and fun, because I think that middle ground is what the mod is about and one of the thing that sets it out. I feel Atlantropa is one of many things that makes The New Order a bit special, as I haven’t seen any total conversion with a modified map that isn’t a full on fantasy mod, and none that are currently active or as fleshed out as The New Order is or will be.

The New Order isn’t meant to be entirely realistic, because personally, I see no real way the Axis would have won World War 2, or dammed the Mediterranean, or invaded Britain, or survived for over 5 years if they did. The mod is about being fun and interesting, and presenting the player’s with scenarios and enjoyment they can’t find in others, I think Atlantropa is a big part of that.

But enough about that, it’s time to get onto the meat of the dev diary, and the first country we will cover due to its interesting and unique position in the mod.

The Matter of Britain

England in 1962 is a fallen star, lost is the great empire that once spanned from sea to sea, and gone is her freedom and power. In the fires of the World War, the United Kingdom was brutally invaded, and despite receiving help from its old ally, the United States, was crushed under the German heel like so many others. The United Kingdom is gone, Wales and Scotland and all of her colonies are free, and even Cornwall is no longer under control from London.

Gone is the mighty Empire, this is England.

The German Reich has established the Cornwall Governorate, ruled by Military Governor Franz Halder, the mastermind behind the invasion who gained the position as a reward for his service. German soldier’s patrol the countryside and regularly sweep towns door to door, checkpoints and posts sit on every road and major strongpoint, and the Cornish people live in fear of being accused of harboring resistance members and being dragged from their homes by a German firing squad. Even worse, the people have turned on each other, and neighbors report each other to the authorities over the smallest disputes.

Cornwall is the German yoke, pressing down on the English neck. Worse still, Halder, meticulous in his planning and managing his forces day in and out, controls a garrison that sits across England, ensuring England remains firmly in the German sphere and putting down any sign of dissent, especially from the nascent resistance. A major garrison sits in London, patrolling the streets and guarding the Collaborator government, and many others dot the land, big and small, large garrison forces also occupying Manchester and Burmingham. Units regularly go on expeditions across the country to wipe out entire villages suspected of harboring resistance members, and push into Wales and Scotland to do the same there, ostenbily in the name of good law and order, and to “Protect the British peoples”.

Assisting the Germans is the Collaborator government, nominally led by King Edward VII, though mainly led by the fascist Union Movement, legally the only party allowed to hold a majority in the British government. While an opposition exists, all forms of Socialism and Communism are outlawed, and the various parties aligned against the Union are only allowed to form an Opposition at best, although many of them are forced to toe the line and are ultimately beholden to the Union in fear of German reprisals.

(Ignore the party names, still WIP!)

Against them, however, is the resistance. Made up of former army units gone underground, patriotic citizenry and a smattering of far left and far right groups all opposed to the Reich and their puppet government, the resistance hopes to free England and break German control of the isles. They do not have an easy path to take, however, as the Resistance remains decentralized without any real contact between its cells, regularly fights between each other on ideological lines or just in petty turf wars, and has little support of much of the British people.

While the Resistance represents freedom, they also represent the possibility of England’s destruction. Perhaps the English can overturn German control and save their nation, but more likely, their attempt at rebellion will simply lead to the German’s having an excuse to finally snuff out all hope of the British people. The Resistance represents risk, and danger, and anarchy, for even if they do somehow throw off the German overlords, who is to say things will get better? Already fighting even with the German’s as a common enemy, many doubt the partisans have any ability to actually unify when they throw them out.

And that is not to speak of their tactics, often cruel, and often with civilian casualties and collateral damage, the most the Resistance seems to have managed so far is constant reprisals against the people they claim to protect.

The opinion seemed to have proven correct, when the London Resistance, without proper planning or preparation, lashed out and attempted to begin the uprising. In the 2nd Battle of London.

Starting with a bombing of a pub frequented by German soldiers and the attempted assassination of Prime Minister Sir Oswald Mosley, with hopes of sparking a general uprising across all of London, the move is utterly futile. The assassination is ill prepared, and the uprising never sparks. Instead, riots break out across London, and the 2nd Battle of London leads to little more than the German garrison and the Metropolitan Police Force battling it out with rioters in the streets, leading to much of the city falling into ruin.

The 2nd Battle of London was a loss for the English, leading to little more than what little hope most of the English had being almost completely snuffed out.

But there is hope.

The Resistance

The resistance may have been beaten back but it is not out. Led by by former British Army Lieutenant General Claude Auchinleck, who had organized the Home Guard in preparation for Sea Lion and had been recalled back home after the disastrous losses in North Africa. Auchinleck led the British southern front during the German invasion, but was unable to defeat the overwhelming forces of the Reich and was forced north with his men. Outside of Carlisle, him and his staff were forced to surrender as the 3rd Infantry Division was cut off and surrounded by the Germans.

Now, Auchinleck is ostensibly a loyal member of the Collaborator government, an official card carrying member of the UM, he, and several of his followers have joined the government and now lead HMMLR, Her Majesty’s Most Loyal Resistance. A small, but organized front proclaiming loyalty to Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II and the British government in exile in Canada.

The HMMLR, however, is not what it needs to be. The resistance faced many setbacks in its opening years, and several failed uprising’s by various cells led to the German boot firmly planting down on the English. Afterwards, a steady stream of losses, both large and small has led to most of the resistance disbanding, its members simply wanting to go home, utterly demoralized. By 1962 it seemed like the resistance may have been in its final hours, when news came from Germany.

The attempt on Hitler’s life shocked the Reich to the core, and made it very clear that the German’s Empire was possibly on death’s door, or at least entering the emergency ward, and suddenly, it seemed England had a chance again.

While the 2nd Battle of London was a loss, it's true result was it taught Auchinleck a powerful lesson. The British resistance can fight, and the British people will fight, but the resistance can not be decentralized, it can not be disorganized. They needed something to unite them. They needed the HMMLR.

The resistance tree has three main branches. To properly fight Jerry, the resistance must have the support of the people of England, the support of the people of the Isles, and the support of the people of the world.

The first part of the tree is about reconnecting the various cells, the isolated people of the country, and then in the various nations on Britain. Finally, the player can use this new basis of support to attempt to woo the leftist rebels, Communist and Socialist guerillas led by veteran Bill Alexander.

To court the various nations however, the resistance may need to make promises and compromises that are against the interests as England as a whole. Wales and Scotland, while against the Germans, have little wish to return to a United Kingdom, and while the Reds would be more than happy to overthrow the Collaborators, there’s no question that the price for their assistance may be more than the resistance can bare. While an alliance with the Alexander does not need to happen, Alexander’s resistance is large, and being refused a place at the table may be equally as disastrous for the English.

The central tree involves the resistance looking for contacts outside of Britain. Things are fairly straight forward until HMMLR manage to establish a line of communications from France to the wider world, when a choice needs to be made. Italy and Iberia, both opposed to the Reich and attempting to solidify their ability to properly stand against Germany, are likely picks for assistance against the Germans. The former nations of the Commonwealth by and large represent a liberal and friendly choice, and their help would prove invaluable.

There are three more options that need to be looked at, however. America assisted England against Germany and American soldiers fought and died alongside their British counterparts during the invasion, but realpolitik rules this Cold War, and America may not want to risk conflict with Germany by supplying the English. Not to mention, American aid can be fickle, it only takes a policy change or a turn in public opinion and the resistance can be cut off from its lifeline.

Japan is also an option, and as the Reich’s biggest rival, would likely be more than happy to weaken their sphere. Japan is far off, however, and hardly proved to be a friend of the English in the past.

Finally, there is a third option. Heinrich Himmler leads the SS-Stadt Burgund and while technically a part of the Reich, is essentially independent. Himmler, with his own mysterious plans and plots, has begun working against the Reich and attempting to weaken its position in Europe. The English do not know why, exactly, the Burgundians have approached with an offer to help, and being the closest power, one of the strongest military powers on Earth, and offering seemingly massive amounts of aid while asking for nothing in return seems too good to be true. But Himmler is not to be trusted, and no doubt he has little good in mind for England, despite his honeyed words.

The third part is about winning over the people and strengthening the position of the English resistance. This will take place by establishing a secret government much like Poland did IOTL, which will allow you to begin choosing how exactly England may look after freedom, and later work to begin creating an entire society under the Collaborator’s noses.

Through the third portion of the tree, you will also infiltrate the police, the military, and begin arming the citizenry for your revolution.

The final portion of the tree is the actual revolution itself, involving trying to break the garrison and cause havoc in the government before beginning the final battle for the fate of England. The focuses, and the events that they bring, are all affected by previous decisions made through previous focuses and events. The goal being that you can have a multitude of outcomes, and multiple playthroughs, even on a branch of a focus tree, have multiple outcomes and play differently. We plan to design the majority of focus tree’s with this mentality.

Fighting for England won’t be easy, however, because there is more than one actor on the Isles…

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Dev Diary II: On the Matter of Britain Part II - 10/11/2017

Collaboration

The English government, led by Prime Minister Sir Oswald Mosley, is hanging on for survival as 1962 rolls in. While the only party allowed to hold majority in the parliament, and receiving support from the Reich, the party itself is deeply unpopular in the English people. Their main basis of support comes from the many English who fear that letting the resistance get their way can lead to a second, more disastrous invasion of England, one in which the German’s will be less content to let England retain some semblance of independence.

Like all things, however, this changes. Two series of events shake the Collaborator government and the English to their core.

(Notice, the British Union of Fascists was renamed the Union Movement by game start, the localisation is slightly dated!)

The London Terrors, leading to the 2nd Battle of London, along with the attempt on Hitler’s life, put the Collaborator’s in a precarious position. While the attacks ultimately failed, it proved the Collaborator’s couldn’t stand on their own without German support, and with the attempt on Hitler’s life, it has become abundantly more clear than ever that what support there is may quickly dry up.

It’s obvious the resistance isn’t dead, despite the failures, and even more obvious that they will be attempting to use the Reich’s slide back into anarchy as a chance to destroy the Collaborators once and for all. It’s a race to see who can cement their position the fastest.

The first portion of the Collaboration tree deals with the Collaborator’s attempts to begin building up an actual military force to handle the Resistance and then using it to begin going on the offensive against the resistance cells outside of England.

It’s a race against time however, which I’ll explain later in the diary, and the Collaborator’s can instead skip most of the steps by petitioning Germany for support directly. In doing so, and if the Germans accept and give a suitable amount of help, then the Collaborator’s will not need to build up their military to start hunting down the resistance. Asking for German support is a double edged sword, however, as it’s doubtful the German’s will be as eager to leave as they were to enter…

Germany may also take issue with remilitarization in violation of their treaties with England, but with the situation in Germany falling apart, the English can choose to ignore these complaints and go forward anyway. Surely if in the end they crush the resistance, the Reichstag won’t be able to complain?

The second part of the tree represents the propaganda campaign and attempting to attack the resistance more subtly. The resistance is quickly able to begin winning the hearts and minds of the people, but the government will be able to go into damage control and possibly counteract this by stressing the dangers the resistance represent, reminding people of the devastation caused by the 2nd Battle of London and the brutal methods of the resistance, especially Bill Alexander and his Communist partisans.

The government will also need to root out the resistance’s funding and begin trying to root sympathizers out from Westminster. This will of course put Auchinleck at risk directly, and while it’s unlikely that he will be caught by these measures, his position can be left greatly weakened. The final focus ends this portion of the tree with an attempt to begin rebuilding London and winning her people back over, and hopefully crush the London cell once and for all.

The final portion of the tree is your final attempts to solidify your hold as the resistance begins moving against you in full. To do so, one or more things must be focused on. The propaganda campaign must go into full swing and the military prepared, foreign support can be gained and the Army restored, with hopes of it being used to support friendly regimes in order for them to in turn support England.

Of course, you can also choose to reinforce the GCHQ even further than you may have done previously, and begin quietly putting the pressure on the resistance, rooting them out from the inside and working in the shadows. To do so, however, you may have to strip what little liberty’s the English have left, and may have to break a few eggs to finally squash HMMLR and Bill Alexander.

Once any of the paths are taken, it is time for the Final Battle for London. The now reinforced military, whether it just be a reformed Territorial Army, a reestablished English Army or a force of foreign regulars, must take the fight to the resistance across all of England. War in the streets will begin, and the English resistance will be stomped out once and for all.

The 3rd Battle of London

No matter which side begins the struggle, the 3rd Battle of London will begin, sparking a civil war across England as both HMMLR and the Collaborators with the German garrison duke it out over who will lead the nation. This war will not be easy, foreign powers will support both sides, and more importantly, no matter which side you chose, the other will have been working against you…

Competitive Focuses

The New Order has a unique system with the English focus tree that when you choose one side, the AI will take the other and work against you. Whether you are HMMLR or the government, as you go down your tree, the AI will be going down the opposite side in an attempt to contain you. Focuses reflect on each other and interact, the Resistance may find many of its objectives more difficult if the Collaborator’s push to infiltrate it earlier, or can lose their Welsh and Scottish connection if the Collaborator’s beat them to the areas.

Likewise, the Collaborator’s will find their control slipping out from under them even as they work to solidify it. The Resistance will be sabotaging every move, and working constantly to undo your work or stop you from doing it in the first place.

It’s a race to the bottom of the tree. It is entirely possible if you become bogged down in your tree or attempt to complete every focus that the AI will be able to reach the end first, in which case you will start the war on the backfoot, as the AI goes on the offensive against you instead of vice-versa.

The Fate of England

Once England is free of control or the power of the government is solidified, the fate of England must be decided. The focus tree will change, based on how exactly you chose to undergo your resistance or reassert control, and hard choices made in the name of victory beforehand may suddenly come back to bite you.

We will show the later English tree’s at a later date, they’re not quite ready for you all to enjoy, but I think you’ll all be excited to see what we have in store!

Culture

Finally, The New Order will have a variety of events related to culture and the news across the world, even minor. These can be disabled, much like the new’s events in Kaiserreich, but will serve to establish the lore of the world and make each country feel more fleshed out and unique.

The End

I hope you enjoyed our first real dev diary! For the past few years, The New Order has been a solo passion project, but I recently showed off some parts of it on the Kaiserreich Discord and was surprised at the reception I got. Soon after, I had a team of eager volunteers who wanted to help with the mod, and thanks to their efforts this dev diary was possible, and The New Order moved from the development hell that came from only one person taking on what should be such a massive and expansive mod.

I’d like to thank everyone who has helped so far, big or small, here:

Indyclone77, Beelzebub, Skullcrusher, Raptor_Jesus, HellHound, JakeR2000, Bobbins, Risaldar, CanadaMan7, StarGaming, Chrondite (of the Strategic View Adjustments mod, who kindly allowed us to implement it), the Kaiserreich team for all the ideas and the framework for the mod, and the /r/hoi4modding community and its leader, Miah, which helped me fix the mod in the first place and led to me gathering this amazing team.

Thank you all yet again, and if you’re not on the team and would like to join it, or just want to join our growing community, please let me know. All are welcome, and even if you don’t know how to mod but want to help, we are more than willing to teach.

Come in next time for a dev diary on the Triumvirate, the unstable alliance of Italy, Iberia, Turkey, and the Arab states.

And come join our Discord at https://discord.gg/NUmjGny, and our subreddit at https://www.reddit.com/r/TNOmod/. We’d love to hear your thoughts!

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Dev Diary III: Non Exieris Part I - 11/18/2017

Hello again and thank you for reading the third dev diary for The New Order: Last Days of Europe. Progress on the mod is moving steadily along, and we currently have dedicated devs for Mexico, the Netherlands, Kaukasia, Australia, Britain, South-east Asia, and more! The goal is for every country, no matter how small, to eventually be both playable and enjoyable.

Last week we discussed England’s position in the world, and its choice between freedom or safety. In this diary, we won’t be focusing on a single country. Instead we will focus on three. Namely Iberia, Italy, and Turkey. Separately, they are secondary powers, not strong enough to challenge the ‘big three’ of America, Germany, and Japan. Together, however, they are strong enough to be a force of their own.

While all three were at least nominally allied to the Reich during the war, relations have soured and all three now sit united in their hatred of the Germans. After the war had ended, Germany rode high on its victory, and saw little reason to care for the opinions of lesser nations. Portugese colonies were seized to expand their ambitious projects in Africa, greatly angering the Caudillos Salazar and Franco, and shortly after Germany began the ambitious Atlantropa project.

The draining of the Mediterranean may not have caused so many issues if the Germans had given a proper warning before beginning their construction. They cared little for the results of the project on the Mediterranean nations, and knowing none of them could hope to fight back, the plan went forward. Shortly after its fruition, however, with the economies of the various nations immediately falling apart, the German economy spiraled out of control. The Reich’s ‘allies’ were forced to watch as the German war economy and its rampant overspending put Europe’s ailing economy out of its misery, and destroyed what little power the Empire held.

While in Germany the situation was almost anarchy, the Mediterranean powers fared little better. Suddenly bereft of trade and attached at the hip to a dying beast, Italy, Spain, and Turkey all split from the Reich. Spain cut off its diplomatic ties and, with Portugal and Spain both equally feeling betrayed and furious with Hitler’s monstrosity, joined in union, to better stand against Germany. Mussolini did similar, and opened his borders to the many refugees and dissidents escaping the Reich.

As the Reich began to recover from its spiral out of control, Iberia, Italy and Turkey realized that separately they had little hope of standing against the Germans, but together, they could establish themselves as a force to be reckoned with. It wasn’t long until the Triumvirate, an alliance and trading pact between the three, was formed and designed to prevent Germany from truly dominating European affairs.

This was many years ago, however, and history has not been kind to the Triumvirate. Tensions have been rising steadily within the alliance, as Germany has consistently been forced to look inward and fight to keep its empire from shattering, its threat has diminished, and the reasons for the alliance faded. Border conflicts in Algeria and Cyprus keep the three members in a constant state of disagreement, and as the Iberian miracle brings its economy upward, Italy and Turkey have fallen further and further behind. Beyond that, the three countries are embroiled in their own unique political mess, whether the bastardized mix of national socialism and Kemalism in Turkey, Italy’s slow drift to leftism splitting its conservative establishment, or Iberia’s constant series of ethnic tensions and royal politicking, the Triumvirate seems to have little room left in this world.

The nations, however, have begun what may be the last round of negotiations for this alliance. The Fifth Malta Conference will soon take place, with hopes of saving the Triumvirate from complete dissolution. But first, I’ll let Raptor_Jesus, Beelzebub, and VirtualHummingbird tell you a bit more about Iberia, Italy, and Turkey respectively.

Iberia:

The Dream of a Unified Iberia had danced in the dreams of many rulers in the peninsula, however reality always finds ways to disappoint. There was no fanfare, no parades, no grand festivals, Iberia was born in midnight meetings and rushed panicked diplomatic sessions. Germany had invaded portuguese land, with their ally under attack Caudillo Franco believed Germany was beginning its plans to truly dominate Europe. Soon After Germany had finished it’s march through Angola and Mozambique the Union was announced, while Germany considered the lands in Africa annexed the Iberians never signed a treaty, and it tore a massive hole in German-Iberian relations.

However the True nail in the coffin of Teutonic Supremacy was the Dam at Gibraltar, a massive project, Franco had been promised a way to bring his colonies further into line and gain more land than he could ever Imagined. Caudillo Salazar was skeptical towards the entire project, and Soon the Two Caudillos realized their words fell on deaf ears, as the Dam was being built the Caudillos Demanded that they be able to Militarize the Dam with the Army and the Gibraltar Guardia Civil. However no split control was needed, as when the German economy died the dam was completed and abandoned as a failure. Iberian forces moved in quickly to asses the dam, and found it ready to give way on many points, panic set in anew as the Army, Navy, and Airforce, along with as many laborers as could be mustered rushed to the great Dam to keep the thing from giving way, and killing an untold millions across the entire Mediterranean.

In the wake of this, brought about the rabidly anti-German faction that clings on today, the Triumvirate, used to bolster pan-Mediterranean trade and economic cooperation as well as protect from the Teutonic menace. However in recent years, the late fifties a new force has taken power away from the falangist and autocratic old guard. That being the technocrats of Opus Dei, while still falling in line with social conservatism and managing to woo the Caudillos they had ushered in an Era of economic reforms and the end to programs centered on Autarky to make the most of the Iberian Position of trade in both the Atlantic and the Mediterranean, with these forces Iberia had entered an economic boom while the majority of Europe is dealing with a crisis, taking advantage of immigration into Iberia and cheap labor, state and mixed industry has taken advantage and brought forth the Iberian industrialization and full reconstruction from the destruction and chaos of the last 20 years.

Iberia is now dealing with two Caudillos on nearing the end of their lives, and with every day the debate over the Iberian Monarchy grows tenser. These tensions are only worsened by increased unrest from the Minority regions of Iberia, mainly Catalonia and the Basque country. With the next Triumvirate conference in Malta set, these tension in Iberia and in the entire faction have come to head, Iberia has been footing the bill for the Dam since the Germans evacuated it, and their ‘allies’ haven’t been able to provide what Iberia sees as equal economic contributions. An Iberian Exit from the Triumvirate has long been proposed, and the lands in North Africa would be awfully vulnerable should Italy find itself at blows with the Turks.

Italy:

Hello, I’m Beelzebub, and I’ll be talking about their situation in The New World Order

Italy rose to power as one of the victors of the Second World War, but its great empire crumbled as soon as it began. With Germany’s Atlantropa project wreaking havoc upon Italy’s economy, and the German economic crash only worsening things, Italy’s spot in the sun had ended long ago. Now with the Triumvirate on its side, it seems as though recovery is slowly beginning, but the problems still remain. With Ciano being more lenient towards the press with regards to censorship policies, the opposition has been more openly coalescing against his regime. Without a change, it seems as though pure Italian fascism will be at an end and may require reformation. Only time will tell, however...

Italy has possibly been hit the hardest by the Atlantropa Project, with its largest trading port Venice ending up completely blockaded bar access through a small river. The project ended up having being of no use to Italy, with them now possessing a desert as big as the northern half of Italy. The economic depression quickly enveloped Italy in an endless cycle of debt, which peaked with the complete crash of the German economy. With Germany causing all economic and political trouble for Italy, they had no choice but to leave the German alliance. However, now that the Triumvirate has been established, the situation seems to have been steadily improving, but a complete recovery is still a long ways away…

Another factor which has slowed the Italian decline has been Italy’s newest leader, Duce Galeazzo Ciano. He was foreign minister of Italy and Mussolini’s son in-law from 1936-1943 in our timeline, but was put to death once the war began to head south for the Axis. However in this timeline, the Axis had remained strong through the entirety of the war and Ciano has managed to remain alive. The new Duce of Italy has managed to found the Triumvirate which has resulted in Italy’s slow rise from economic depression. Despite his great feats, his loyalty towards fascism since his father in law’s death has been on the decline. Italy has become less and less extreme in its policies, and it seems as though Italy’s days as a fascist regime are numbered.

With the annual Malta Conference coming up within a couple months and rumours of Iberia and Turkey possibly demanding land from Italy, it is time for Ciano’s specialty as a foreign minister to come into play again, but whether or not he can succeed will be decided by fate and his best judgement to decide how to deal with the Turks. Although the Turks are the ones suspected to be behind the rumours, there are also rumours afloat that Iberia is not satisfied with the current border situation either. If we want to Triumvirate to stay together, it might require an immense sacrifice in order to ensure our survival in the long run. However, if things at the Conference don’t go as planned, this could lead to the annihilation of our already fragile trade and political system, which could add a whole new load of problems to our list.

Turkey:

Hi guys, I’m VirtualHummingbird and today I’m here to discuss Turkey and its position in The New Order.

When the British were kicked out of Africa by the Germans, İsmet İnönü and the rest of the Turkish government had realized that the defeat/surrender of Britain was imminent and had made the choice to fully commit to the Axis, joining the pact. During this time, Germany began influencing Turkish politics by introducing national socialism ideas into the country. Turkey was extremely receptive to these advances and, as a result, this lead to the coup of the old guard CHP (Republican People’s Party) and high ranking government officials (such as İnönü, Celâl Bayar, Fevzi Çakmak) were all ousted by far right politicians, with Alparslan Türkeş, a colonel in the Turkish Land Forces, as their leader. He is the primary advocate of this national socialist-Kemalist ideology.

In a nutshell, the new Kemalist ideology places an emphasis on the inherent superiority of the Turkish people, continual westernization, the advancement of the industrial and agrarian sectors of the economy, the usage of the military to defend the Turkish state, secularism, expansionism only when necessary, and the state possessing the ability to nationalize any industries it sees fit to.

As mentioned before, Turkish-German relations are extremely poor due to the damming of the Mediterranean and, in addition, the Dardanelles. Because of this, alongside high military expenditure, the Turkish economy is in an extremely dire situation, with high unemployment rates alongside dissatisfaction from the people.

On top of all this, however, tensions between Turkey and Italy are very high due to Italy owning Cyprus, Rhodes, Lebanon, and a portion of Syria, all of which Turkey considers to be rightful Turkish land.

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Dev Diary III: Non Exieris Part II - 10/17/2017

The Fifth Malta Conference:

The Conference was initially supposed to resolve the various border disputes and discuss the renegotiation of trade deals between the three nations, but sabre rattling between the three quickly began to dominate affairs. Iberia, with the best hand in the negotiations with its surprisingly successful economy, at least in comparison with its ‘allies’, began the negotiations with demands for further funding from the Triumvirate, despite their position, as well as a ‘satisfactory solution to the Algerian problem’, notably, one in which they left with the lion’s share of the region.

While Italy attempted to negotiate, they had further issues brewing around the bitterly contested issue of Cyprus…

The events for the conference have a variety of different endings depending on how they play out, but few of them have good outcomes for the Triumvirate, as Italy, seemingly the only nation with any interest in its continued survival, is forced to constantly put out fires in an attempt to save the institution. Perhaps they would have had a chance, but some things are just not meant to be.

The Triumvirate’s Future:

With a satisfactory outcome almost impossible and the attack on the proceedings shattering what remains of the member nations goodwill, keeping the Triumvirate together is now a Herculean task. With Iberia happy in its splendid isolation, and Turkey seeing Italy more as an enemy than an ally, only Italy seems to want to at least try to prevent the alliance from collapse.

This leaves the Italy player with some interesting choices. They may abandon the alliance and focus inwards, working to improve Italy instead as it now finds itself truly alone, attempt to keep the alliance together, no matter the costs, or risk letting it fall apart, with the hopes of reforming it again later, hoping to make a stronger alliance as well as a stronger Italy.

We will go into more depth with Italy’s choices later however, for now, let’s show you what the results of a few games can be:

In this screenshot, Italy was invaded by a militaristic Reich led by Göring due to their slide left. With Italy destroyed, Turkey and Iberia swept up the pieces of Italy's former colonies.

In this screenshot, Italy allied with Himmler's SS-Stadt Burgund, an unlikely and uneasy alliance, but one that proved fruitful as they managed to break the Reich without nuclear destruction and humble Iberia.

Culture:

And as always, Iberia, Italy, and Turkey have a multitude of cultural events to further expand on their lore and make them feel a bit more distinct.

Conclusion:

I hope you enjoyed the third dev diary for The New Order. As always, leave us any comments or criticisms below, and let us know how we’re doing! We are still looking for new team members, and are still willing to teach those taking their first steps into modding.

Come in next time for a place quite a bit darker than the sunny Mediterranean. Next time, me and Indyclone77 are visiting Reichskommissariat Kaukasus.

Find us at our Discord here, our Reddit here, on Moddb, or on the Paradox forums.

 

[teg]

I'm definitely liking this as it stands. Keep up the good work.

teg

 

[Malta]

Interesting

 

[Lonely Knightess]

I'm definitely liking this as it stands. Keep up the good work.

teg

Thank you!

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Here's a quick preview of Friday's dev diary

 

[Rush Tarquin]

It's looking good. The fate of southern Europe in Axis victory timelines always interests me. I like flavour events, so it was good to get a peek at some of those too.

 

[Deleted member 103950]

Really a Nuclear Apocalypse in an Axis Victory Time line would be an improvement.

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Dev Diary IV: The Black State

Hello and welcome to the fourth dev diary of The New Order: Last Days of Europe! This week we're focusing back in on a single nation, and back to the German sphere. But first...

And Then There Was Art:

Before I get started on the diary, I’d like to show off one of our new loading screen art pieces, made by Matheus Graef, of the Gibraltar Dam. I think it’s a damn impressive piece of work (I’m sorry) and I’m happy to say TNO will have many more like it! I hope you’re excited to see some of the other pieces we will be showing off

The Black State:

Today we are going to be speaking of one of several of the Reichskommissariats, ostensibly vassal states of the Reich and originally planned to eventually be incorporated into Greater Germany, the crash of the 50s did away with this authority, and now the Reichskomissars essentially rule their realms as kings, working each into their unique vision while, for the most part, attempting to keep Germany pleased enough to ensure regular aid and military shipments.

The most independent Reichskomissar in Europe, however, is Reichskomissar Josias Georg Wilhelm Adolf Erbprinz zu Waldeck und Pyrmont. The head of the Princely house of Waldeck and Pyrmont, the noble born SS officer had been given the Kaukasus to rule, and may have done so well, had he not been captured by local partisans on his arrival. Scarred and deformed, he barely escaped with his life after a rescue mission by the German garrison. His scars go far deeper than physically, however, mentally, Josias was deeply affected by the attempt on his life.

Kaukasia is a land ruled by fear. Josias has subscribed to the newly founded ideology of Ultranational-Socialism. Coined by Heinrich Himmler in response to the Reich’s slow slide back to the left and into decadence, Ultranational-Socialism calls for a return to spartanism, a complete removal of those deemed undesirable from the social ladder, and the military to be fully connected part of the state, visible in every scion of society.

The people are broken, and the German garrison, led by Josias, have terrorized the Caucasus into a hellscape. Strip mining and massive industrial development have ruined the countryside, and German Kaukasus is known as one of the most polluted nations on the planet, a constant smog filling the nation and passing into its neighbors. (We are looking into custom weather for smog, but for now, here is Kaukasia )

The smog is fitting, as Josias and his black clad ‘True Kaukasian League’, have almost entirely cut off contact with the Reich. Besides the regular oil shipment to Berlin, little word comes out of the Reichskomissariat, Josias and his men preferring to be as separated as possible from Hitler’s dying beast. So serious do they take their isolation, that the Führer himself was once humiliated, as he attempted to arrive unannounced to meet with Josias, and was forced to circle the country in his plane for several hours as the request for a landing strip was stalled.

This is a nation that has suffered great deaths in the pursuit of one man’s ideological goals that even now remain unclear to both the general populace and outside forces. What is clear is that this isolation will not be able to continue forever, but nobody knows how exactly it will be broken.

1962:

At the beginning of 1962, the nation is the most isolated from Germania of any of its fellow Reichskomissariats. With the assassination attempt on Hitler, however, what few ties remained were severed. As it is clear the Reich is on the verge of anarchy, it sparks movement in RK. Kaukasia.

There are several paths available to the Reichskomissariat, and we will go through its focus tree branch by branch (note, the focus tree is still WIP, and the military section will most likely be expanded upon when we introduce our new tech tree ):

The Black Army is a rather straightforward, due to the nation’s low manpower and stringent recruitment standards, it must make up in other ways. Special forces is a major focus, focusing on elite mountain soldiers to hold the southern front and ending with Werewolf Gruppe, an attempt to create a wholly Kaukasian-German special forces group, meant to rain hell on anyone hoping to invade the nation.

Otherwise, the Black Army will focus on improving the power of its battlefield support, and of its mechanized and tank brigades. A force focused on armor and mechanized forces, with a core of elite and fast moving infantry, makes RK. Kaukasia able to hit well above its weight in a war.

The Dread Fleet follows a similar idea. Instead of focusing the fleet towards being able to hold in a straight war, it will instead focus on lightly building up its force, holding a core of battleships, and finally working towards establishing a superior force of submarines, hoping to greatly soften any force it will need to stand against.

Finally, the Aerial Raiders tree focuses mainly on providing deadly, and elite, fighter aircraft. RK. Kaukasia gets large bonuses to ace generation and air superiority efficiency due to its pilot’s ‘do or die’ attitude.

Politically, Kaukasia has three very distinct branches once Germany begins its inevitable descent towards anarchy, which we will describe a bit more later:

Josias can fully embrace Ultranationalism, dedicating himself to Himmler, modelling his nation in Burgundy’s image and finally crushing any hope for resistance still struggling against his rule. As relations between Germany and Burgundy deteriorate further, he can use the opportunity to, with Burgundian support, attempt to invade the surrounding Reichskomissars, as well as Turkey and Iran. This isn’t to say this is easy, or even very possible except for very skilled players, but opportunity is ripe for Josias’s empire to expand.

The second portion of the political tree involves Josias moderating back towards German National-Socialism. Much of the political structure will need to be restructured, again, and support given to appropriate parties in Berlin who will be friendly towards reconciliation, notably Göring or Bormann, but Josias can use his support for the Reich to elevate Kaukasia’s position. In a Reich where the majority of its vassals seem to be attempting to tear themselves free, and the nation itself falling apart at the seams, Kaukasia’s support can greatly elevate it among its peers.

Finally, and perhaps most interesting of all, Josias can fully embrace his noble blood. A Fourth Reich, centered in the east, can form with Josias as its Kaiser. The Kingdom of Kaukasia will have to struggle to realign itself, and of course will also need to find a means to break away from the Reich without leading to its own demise, but can become a powerful force in its own right. A new and expansionist monarchy in this day and age may not be received well by all, however, but there are those in Europe who would be happy to support such a state…

The Triumvirate will happily accept Kaiser Josias and his Kingdom, desperately desiring further opportunities to erode the Reich’s position and rip apart its sphere, the Triumvirate presents an opportunity for protection for the young Kingdom. However, the Triumvirate will have issues of its own, and waiting and supporting its reform will leave Kaukasia open for conflict until then. If Germany turns itself from oblivion quickly enough, Kaukasia can find itself having greatly overplayed its hand, and in the crosshairs of Europe’s strongest military.

The final portion of the tree is the Occultic Adventures branch. With Kaukasia fully embracing Himmler’s Ultranational-Socialism, it can, inspired by the Burgundian’s own attempts, attempt to find many ancient and powerful artifacts from a bygone era. Worry not, despite the claims of Josias and his men, it is doubtful that any of these items carry any real power, and there is little way to prove their authenticity.

Each of these expeditions, however, present great opportunity for Josias and his men. Whether it can end in foreign contacts, prestige, new knowledge, cultural finds, the journey for each artifact represents a unique event chain with multiple possible outcomes and benefits… they can also lead to useless wastes of time, loss of materials, international humiliation, or worse.

And of course, Kaukasia will also have its own unique cultural and political events for the player to discover:

Kaukasia is a country of great risk and great reward. Possibly its biggest benefit is that most of its neighbors expect little from it, not seeing the massive threat that the mysterious and dark state represents on their borders. If played correctly, the Kaukasia player can be the largest thorn in the side of any of its chosen enemies… it won’t be an easy path however, and doubtless not for a player of the faint of heart.

Conclusion:

I can’t wait to spend all night typing up our next diary for you! Next week and onward we will begin exploring outside the German sphere, for now at least, and we will be revisiting the British Isles. Afterwards, we are considering taking a short break from diaries to give the team time to build up what we currently have, but we will have more word on that then.

I also apologize if this diary was a bit more 'thin' and the focus trees a bit more bare. I wanted to do a bit more this week but ended up falling very ill for the first half, and miscommunication on the team led to the release of this diary being a bit... insane.

Until next time! Thanks for reading! And as always, find us at our Discord, on Reddit, ModDB, and the Paradox Forums!

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Dev Diary V: When in Britain Part I

Hello and welcome to a delayed diary where we return to the British isles! We’ve received many questions about whether or not the other nations will also receive content and focus trees. We plan for every nation in TNO to be unique, so yes, they will all receive unique trees and flavor, eventually at least.

We have a dev for every nation in the British Isles, including Cornwall, and we’ll be showing you all of them today!

First off we have Ireland, being developed by Ahearne, who you may recognize as the Ireland dev from Kaiserreich.

Ireland:

Hello, I’m Ahearne, today I will be discussing Ireland in the The New Order.
Ireland, despite fending off a British invasion in 1943 to seize the Treaty Ports due to German intervention and retaking Northern Ireland, fell to fascist revolution in 1948 due to the combination of Éamon de Valera’s growing unpopularity, economic damage caused by the war, and the Unionist insurgency following reunification. The nail in Irish democracy’s coffin was when de Valera attempted to return to isolationism, prompting a German-backed revolution lead by the IRA and the Irish fascist party Ailtirí na hAiséirghe.

Under Ó Cuinneagáin, the main priorities became the restoration of the Irish language (incorporating modern language teaching techniques and full state promotion over the lip-service paid to the language previously, as well as stigmatization and restrictions against the English language), restricting emigration, transitioning the economy to corporatism and waging a ruthless ethnic cleansing campaign in Ulster, sending many Unionists in refuge in Scotland.

Ireland in 1962 remains a fascist dictatorship ruled by the Comhairle Náisiúnta, the Irish equivalent of Italy’s Grand Council of Fascism, and it’s Ceannaire, Gearóid Ó Cuinneagáin, while the IRA, once a rebel group until the 1948 Revolution, has become the national army of Ireland. Despite the upheavals of the early years, fascism has become stable and entrenched despite some continued insurgency from the socialist INLA, backed by the communist Connolly Association in Scotland, however Hitler’s assassination and the resulting change in the world order may change that.

The Irish Republican Army is large for Ireland’s size with mandatory three-year-conscription justified by the INLA guerrilla campaign, despite growing discontent among the people at the long conscription times, as well as the economic drawbacks of maintaining the army and conscripting many young potential workers. In the centre path the Irish government can either choose to maintain the army, embracing a Prussian-style 'Army with a State' approach to defend and fight for Ireland, or downsize the army and begin focusing on an approach involving guerrilla warfare and quality over quantity. The other army focuses involve modernising the Irish army and establishing fortifications to protect Ireland in the case of a defensive war.

Due to the costs of the army and Ó Cuinneagáin's policies, the Irish Navy and Air Force, whilst bigger than it was in the 1930s and 40s, it remains small even compared to some nations of its size, and the trees mainly involve updating naval and air technology.

Economically, while Corporatism has helped the Irish economy to develop despite the war in Ulster during the late 40s and early 50s that left it depopulated as many Unionists were killed or fled to Scotland as well as the cost of maintaining the army, it is clear that there is much room to be improved if Ireland is to be an economically successful country, such as redeveloping the industry of Ulster and encouraging migrants fleeing repressive regimes in Europe to settle and repopulate Ulster, as well as expanding the ports of Ireland to serve as a bridge for trade between North America and Europe. Other measures including improving Irish resources such as steelmaking, zinc mining and exploring the Rockall Basin for gas and oil resources (the Irish government having claimed Rockall as theirs), as well as improving the Irish educational system to encourage technological advances.

The main body of Ireland's fascist government is the Comhairle Náisiúnta, functioning similarly to the Grand Council of Fascism in Italy. The current Ceannaire of Ireland is Gearóid Ó Cuinneagáin, who has ruled Ireland for the past 14 years, and who is a strong believer in promoting culture and focusing on soft power. To this end, he believes in the creation of modern architecture, in many cases to replace old British-constructed buildings and building up Dublin, along with promoting cultural pursuits such as sports, art and literature, as well as forming youth groups to instill the youth with patriotism and loyalty. If he does begin to make mistakes though in his dealings with the INLA or foreign policy with the decline of Germany, he can be replaced by other candidates, such as Oliver J. Flanagan, a National Socialist who wishes to implement social credit policies in Ireland and decentralise the nation to appeal to the other provinces of Ireland who have long felt neglected by the government's focus on Leinster and particularly Dublin, or Seán South, the Chief of Staff of the Irish Republican Army, a devout Catholic who a rapprochement with the Church and to step away from 'atheistic' fascism in favour of a state firmly based on Catholic social teaching.

If things get out of hand, South is also willing to use the military to restore order whether that means ruling Ireland as a military dictator or turning over Ireland to the Irish government-in-exile.

Speaking of that; the fascist regime is not invincible, opposed by the Irish government-in-exile resides in Scotland, formed by a group of Fianna Fáil, Fine Gael and Labour party members who fled Ireland after the 1948 Revolution and once again united under the banner of Sinn Féin. Should they managed to restore democracy in Ireland however the political differences between the former Fianna Fáil-Fine Gael right, who want a liberal economy and free state, and the left-leaning former Labour party, who want to secularise Ireland and improve the rights of workers, might end up splitting Sinn Féin once again. Also opposing the Irish government is the Irish National Liberation Army, a socialist paramilitary group fighting a guerrilla war against Ó Cuinneagáin's regime, should they succeed in overthrowing Ó Cuinneagáin they can choose to either embrace communism or democratic socialism.

The guerrilla war against the INLA is a dangerous matter in which the Irish government must be careful if they are not to be overthrown by a revolution or military coup, especially if fascism and German power should begin to wane. To the situation, there are two main approaches they can take, the path of compromise, or the path of crackdown and force.

Next is Ireland's foreign policy. With the decline in Germany and tensions in England, combined with a growth in the idea of Pan-Celtism throughout the Celtic Fringe, Ireland can take on being the leader of Pan-Celticism and attempt to unite the Celts to form a power in its own right, either through diplomacy or force, which may prove needed due to ideological differences. We will have more on the tree for a Celtic Union at a later date, so be sure to look forward to that.

Finally, with German power declining, Ireland may need to begin to reconsider its choice of ally and protector, either choosing to remain with Germany as a steadfast ally in gratitude for its help against Britain in the past and further cement ties, or choose to leave the Unity Pakt giving the Irish the choice of going back into neutrality or aligning itself with the Triumvirate or America.

Scotland:

Hello, I am JakeR2000 and I am the Scotland developer. Let’s take a look at the lore for Scotland.

In 1945, after 3 years of invasions, the United Kingdom formally capitulated to the German Reich. Suddenly, after years of being under the British flag, Scotland found itself in a position to declare independence, with John MacCormick and his growing Scottish National Party declaring an independent Republic of Scotland with the capital at Edinburgh. The Germans, knowing the newly established Scotland and the leftovers of the British Army would fight to the last man, recognized Scotland’s independence.

On 21 May, 1947, the Constitution of Scotland was ratified, establishing full neutrality and naming MacCormick as the provisional President until elections could be arranged.
As of 1962, the rapidly aging MacCormick remains the Provisional President, not calling elections due to the possible threat to neutrality and the almost-definite destabilization in the nation. However, questions have begun to arise about his health, and about who will replace him.

Thanks to discoveries of oil in Scottish territory on the North Sea, the Scottish have remained relatively self-dependent since 1945. This oil, however, has secured the interest of the Germans, who since 1960 have been trying to peacefully secure a deal for the oil, not wishing to gain the anger of a majority of the world invading a neutral nation.

Situation in 1962:

Due to their neutrality, Scotland remains relatively safe despite the threat of worldwide nuclear war. The source of de-stability in the nation, rather, is the declining health of their nation’s founding and unifying figure, John MacCormick. They retain a moderate defence force, mostly made up of volunteers, with British soldiers from late in the war forming most of the officer corps.

Upon MacCormick’s death in late 1962, a battle between the four major political parties begins to secure the spot of President.

Scottish National Party (Market Liberals) - Established as a party endorsing Home Rule and independence from the United Kingdom, John MacCormick took control of the party in late 1941 and was a major opponent of the war. It has been the official ruling party since the nation’s independence in 1945, and is the most popular party in Scotland even without MacCormick.

Independent Labour Party (Social Democrats) - A socialist party, mostly spanning form social democracy to near-communism. Founded and still led by James Callaghan and Barbara Castle, who, while not natives, moved to Scotland as it was their only escape from Fascism. It is the second most popular party in Scotland, and Callaghan and Castle’s conflicting ideologies are sure to lead to eventual conflict.

Unionist Party (Social Conservative) - This party is all across the board. Most factions within the party advise some form of British nationalism, spanning from establishing a British Republic to inviting Queen Elizabeth II back to her rightful throne. Led by Scottish-descended British exile Harold Macmillan. It is the third most popular party in Scotland, mostly being sponsored by exiled British officers and soldiers.

British National Movement (National Socialist/Fascist) - A banned movement in Scotland that has a small underground following. It emphasizes establishing a union with the German puppet England as soon as possible, reestablishing the United Kingdom as a German puppet. Even when it was banned in 1953, it was not too popular, but some say that the Germans have been changing that.

 

[Lonely Knightess]

Dev Diary V: When in Britain Part II

Wales:

Hey everyone, it’s Mr. Goldenfold, math teacher and developer for Wales, and mop, Goldenfold’s helper on the Wales tree. Let’s catch up on the lore.

In 1962, Wales is a fully independent nation, however it’s economy is completely controlled by Germany and allows the German military to hunt down rebels that have spilled over from neighboring England. Wales is now at a crossroads, however. Earlier that year, it was exposed anonymously that the Welsh government was outsourcings thousands of tons of coal to Germany for low gouged prices. A majority of Welsh miners, members of the syndicalist-leaning “Wales Miners' Federation”, are now striking and demanding change from the government. The leading party, Plaid Cymru, has been the umbrella party of the independent Wales for quite some time, not taking much decisive action and just compromising.

Their leader, Saunders Lewis, grows old and is weary of politics. Most of the time, he retreats to the Welsh countryside to write poetry. Add this with a growing youth counter-culture for Wales, and the nation is truly stuck.

The German ambassador to Wales, Wilhelm Bohle, is a machiavellian puppetmaster. Operating out of his mysterious headquarters in Cardiff, he influences various politicians to act in favor of the German Reich. Welsh ultranationalists and other small politicians have attempted to call him out, all to failure. Lewis is aware of Bohle’s influence, but is helpless due to his political inexperience and need for German economic aid.

The player must decide between several choices. Should we just empower Bohle and his puppets, making a more efficient Wales? Should we restore faith in Lewis? Should we compromise with miners on something? Or perhaps, a more radical path. Wales might seem tiny on the outskirts, but its quickly become a hotbed for new political thought, as young men leave England to escape German hegemony/media influence.

So onto the tree:

Hey, I’m mop, I helped create the Welsh tree, which we’ll look at right now. First, we’ll look at the political sections, the largest section of the tree. The future of Wales essentially hinges on the actions that you take in response to the strikes.

[BREAK STRIKES PATH]

The first action you can take is to simply break the strikes- deploying riot police, arresting strike leaders, etc.. This is Wales’ status quo option- in this section of the tree, you can keep Lewis while remaining in good relations with the German Reich. However, down the road, the Plaid Cymru party splits into two separate parties- a nationalist party and a social democratic party. It is up to you whether you choose a future of Welsh freedom and eventually join the American bloc, or choose Welsh nationalism and make an informal ascension into the German Unity-Pakt. Or you attempt to play your cards and stay completely neutral in the Cold War.

[NEGOTIATE PATH]

This next path is about finding a middle ground with the strikers. This is the moderate way to distance yourself from the Reich- although you must make moves to calm down the strikes, how you deal with breaking away from the Reich is completely up to you. You could limit coal exports to Berlin, or restrict it completely. You can replace Bohle with a more loyal Welsh provisional supervisor, or get rid of the position altogether. You can compromise with Germany for the removal of their Garrisons, or throw them out of the country by force. The more forceful your options, the greater the risk of angering the Germans, however. From there on, you can get rid of Lewis and call a snap election, allowing you to elect the conservative Welsh Christian Party, Plaid Cymru (under new leadership), the Liberal Economic Party of Wales, or the Unionist party who retains nostalgia from their British path. The first two let you join the Celtic Union if it exists, while the last two let you join the Alliance of Free Nations. Meanwhile, the Unionist party also lets you invite the Queen herself, restore the crown, and attempt to take back the British Islands for Queen and Country!

[NAZI PATH]
This path is all about Bohle’s tricks and bringing Wales closer to the Reich. Bohle is a very smart politician and pulls many strings behind the scenes. In this path, Bohle could ensure the victory of the Reich’s preferred party, the National Welsh Coalition. Led by Raymond Davies Hughes, this party will see Wales become a German lapdog, eventually joining the Unity-Pakt.

[THE NATION BROKEN PATH]

...But what if the strikers win? Although the strikers are mostly syndicalist trade unionists, anti-German militias belonging to the ultranationalist Free Welsh Army roam the countryside. These militias are known for their brutality, hanging Germans from trees. These two ideological enemies have a common enemy, however, and have formed a unholy alliance of sort to topple the corrupt Welsh government and remove German influence from the country. They will seek support from all forms- the Triumvirate, the Alliance of Free Nations, or the British rebels in their neighboring state. However, after toppling the government, you will find yourself in a problem- both the Syndicalists and the Ultranationalists want control over the country, and a power struggle will ensue. If the Syndicalists win this power struggle, they will have a chance to export the revolution to the rest of the British Isles and create a new bloc in this Cold War for the defense of the revolution in the Isles. If the Ultranationalists win this power struggle, they will have a chance to strike the Cornish and the British in an attempt to create their own Lebensraum- the Gofodbyw- and declare a Greater Brythonic State!

[INDUSTRY, ARMY, AND NAVY]

These three trees are pretty simple. The industry tree is all about building an industry in a small country like Wales. The navy tree is centered on maximizing the capabilities of Wales’ small navy, eventually being able to obtain the HMS Vanguard from Britain. The army tree is focused on modernising the Welsh army and maximizing it’s potential.

Panzer note: The Welsh tree is still WIP! The military sections especially will receive some expansion, but we felt that what we have here was good enough to show you all in the diary.

The Cornwall Governorate:

Honor. Strength. Loyalty to the Fatherland. These are the core tenets of the Cornwall Garrison. While seemingly the smallest of the Reich’s many frontiers and the least important of them, the Garrison, thanks to Halder’s influence and a strong propaganda campaign, maintains a reputation as possibly the most prestigious and honorable posts in the Reich.

Halder, from his headquarters in Truro, rules the entire German Garrison in England. While initially relatively subdued and giving a fairly lax hand to the British, a string of failed revolts in the 50s caused the Garrison to greatly escalate its efforts to contain any possible British resistance movement. The Garrison maintains posts all throughout England, and treaties with Scotland and Wales force them to allow German soldiers to regularly enter in order to purge them of resistance fighters.

While they are the stars of the Reich, seeing themselves as the first and last line of defense of the Reich against its enemies in the west, that doesn’t mean they are equipped for this post. With the Reich ailing and on the verge of utter collapse, again, the supply shipments have slowed, and the byzantine layers of restrictions and red tape on the Garrison and its relations with the rest of the isles means the Garrison has quickly found itself unable to do anything but inspire the British towards further unrest.

Technically a part of England still, just under German martial law, Cornwall can not even claim its own industry sector, and has no real navy or air force to speak of. Treaty restrictions mean it is unable to change this without the slowly turning wheels of German bureaucracy allowing for it. Meaning that in its current state, the Garrison is effectively frozen.

Of course, like all things, this shall change. While built to simply be a place for German soldiers to hold the line as a beachhead until reinforcements can arrive, in the situation of an English uprising, the Reich is fading, and the Garrison must find new ways to protect their homeland. Whether the Reich supports this or not does not matter, this is not a time for the politicians and diplomats, the tides of war are crashing on the shores of England, it is time for action!

The Cornwall tree is split into two opposing sections, representing a massive decision for the Garrison. Will they stay with Germany, against it all, or will they be forced to find new avenues of support? The Garrison will not seek independence, but they will have to decide whether they will find ways to improve their situation within the confines of the Fatherland’s wishes, or whether they must choose to betray the Reich, in order to protect it.

We will start with the decision to stand alone, and with its leftmost focus, “Real Politik”. Cornwall must find new benefactors if it's going to maintain its existence and if the Garrison has any hope of survival. Without men, money, or supplies coming from the Fatherland, new support must be found. First, the Garrison will need to look at the other nations of the Isles. While Ireland, Wales and Scotland all have their own views on Germany and England, none can disagree with a good trade deal, and the Garrison can attempt to establish new routes of supplies through them.

There is also another thing the Garrison must do for survival, even if it goes against their virtues. Smuggling and illegal trading, unmarked cargo and packages to turn Cornwall into a black market state. With an economy effectively being pieced together from scratch at the last minute, there is no time to establish official deals everywhere, but plenty of shady figures require a port to call home.

At the end of this section, the Garrison must decide who exactly to join as its new benefactor, if anyone. The United States can agree to assist the Cornish Garrison, under the table, with enough effort from the Cornish and some luck, as well as agreement to assist in keeping American trade to Europe free and open (against the wishes of Germany). They can side fully with Ireland and help create or join their Celtic Union as an ally, or take the third option, and as always, the riskiest and possibly horrifying, and make contacts with Burgundy and attempt to arrange accord with Himmler. What could go wrong there?

Finally, there is the questions of the English. Will the Garrison continue its position as the brave protectors of England, and attempt to draw closer for the benefit of both, or will they cut the ties and focus entirely on their own survival?

The Cornish industry must also be rebuilt and revitalized. The left side of this tree involves the building of civilian industry by restoring movement throughout the area, easing some of the harsher aspects of the martial law, and attempt to turn Cornwall’s industry to entirely new levels in preparation for the coming storm.

On the other side, there is a decision to make. Will Cornwall focus on the modernization and expansion of its currently limited arsenal, leading to quickly and rapidly building up a large amount of arms and weapons, at the expense of their quality and by being forced to make use of English arms, or will they focus on building the military industrial sector, which can lead to stronger, uniquely Cornish weapon designs, but at the risk of being much slower and yielding far fewer arms?

Instead of all this, however, the Garrison can focus entirely on trade focusing on trading with its allies (or using these as inroads to make them, in the political tree), and any other nations it can, and further exploiting Cornwall as a deregulated trade center? Even allowing it to go the way of Switzerland, and attempting to begin private, deregulated banks for even the most shady characters to find investments in.

You may have noticed that some of these focuses seem like… bad ideas. And they are. The Garrison is not trying to build a stable economy, it’s trying to pump out as much money and supplies as possible to keep it alive. The goal here is for Cornwall to survive, how it does so, of course, will have consequences. But surely the future won’t matter, when the present is so dire?

And then, of course, Cornwall must decide how it develops its military forces.

The navy must be built and its path decided. Cornwall has two main avenues to a stronger navy, a strong coastguard able to protect the Cornish shores and ensure the Garrison maintains its supply lines and trade routes, and a submarine fleet able to blockade the British isles and ensure no rebellion goes unpunished. This culminates in the decision to either bolster the Cornish navy through any means possible, so that the Garrison can build a large enough force to fend off any possible attacker, or focusing entirely on high quality submariners, hoping that the smaller number can be made up with great training and tactics.

The Garrison itself will also need development, and two main opportunities present themselves. Either the Garrison can build up its, currently small, SS element, dragging in more Englishmen and locals to bolster their numbers, even if of poor quality, or will they focus on their elite German core to save their souls.

Some actions can be done in both, but only to a certain extent before one or the other must be focused on. If the SS path is continued, Cornwall will build up not only their local SS regiments, but begin a foreign legion and a people’s army and begin welcoming in mercenaries, criminals, those considered ‘degenerate’ by the Nazi regime, the old and young, prisoners, women, and anyone else able to hold a gun. Culminating in large numbers of soldiers of dubious quality at best, working for a paycheck the Garrison is leaving blank to welcome these masses.

Or will the Garrison continue forward with its elite core, and focus on making the Garrison one of the most elite, but small, military forces in the world? Spearheading new, dangerous and experimental tactics that most militaries scoff at adapting and focusing on lightning, furious warfare.

Finally, as Cornwall will have no real air force to defend itself without support from Germany, it will need to focus on developing an actual fighter fleet to keep the skies clear. Cornwall will need to either focus on uplifting those Germans who know what they’re doing to become an elite force of pilots willing to do anything for the protection of the Fatherland, or find the veterans of the RAF and try and woo them into assisting the Garrison through any ways possible, while also building up the bases and inventory needed to actually do so. The decision will then be made, will Cornwall focus on a larger air fleet, or one of well trained fliers, focusing on experience, aces, and superior training?

This ends the “Stand Alone” portion of the tree, and now we are onto the second. The Garrison must not fight simply for survival, it must maintain its vows to protect the Fatherland, no matter what difficulties that will bring. It can not flinch or falter, and it can not be rebellious and ruin the image it has built in the homeland.

The Garrison are the Fatherlands silent protectors, and they will stand vigilant.

I will leave this side relatively unexplained for now, as it will make a lot more sense when the Germany diary comes. The various successors for the Reich are deeply entrenched, and many smell conflict brewing. Who, if anyone, will the Garrison side with? If they are able to ally with one, and they are victorious, no doubt the Garrison will see a new wave of support, possibly more than before the collapse.

And then there are pressing matters, such as industry and the economy. Cornwall needs money fast, and must focus on either the the corporations and industries of the Fatherland or on the citizenry themselves. Through strong propaganda and private investments, the Garrison can encourage the German people to funnel money and support through, or they can work towards wooing German industry to help greatly build up Cornwall, convincing them that stability in Cornwall is, well, just good business.

The military tree on the loyalty side is based around dragging out whatever support you still can from the Reich. On the left side, the air force will be rebuilt, through buying whatever can be bought from the Luftwaffe and getting assistance from the Reich to either develop the newest and most interesting developments in the air sector: Helicopters. Since the Reich can be somewhat trusted to ensure the skies remain clear, the Garrison can focus on using helicopters to support the infantry forces and annihilate the enemy.

Of course they can double back onto the Reich’s oldest means of bombing the English, with a new rocketry program. Designed to ensure the Garrison can remotely destroy pockets of resistance without having to risk its small manpower, the Cornish missile program can be a serious force multiplier and ensure the Garrison can continue swinging well above its weight, but the decision will need to be made over which, specifically, to focus on.

On the army side, the focus will be in getting as many volunteers and reinforcements that the Reich is able and willing to provide, and attempting to loosen restrictions that have neutered the Garrison’s ability to readily fight the growing number of insurgents. Still with support of the Reich and with the propaganda campaign in full swing, the focus here is on ensuring the men are ready to fight to the last, and that the Garrison maintains enough soldiers to make this a daunting task for any enemy that dares strike at them.

This will lead to the Garrison being a dangerous force. Perhaps not as well trained or as massive as in the survival tree, they will nonetheless be extremely zealous in their defense, and the English resistance will most likely want to avoid fighting the Garrison until it has dealt with all other issues first, as they will find themselves bleeding for every inch of ground taken.

Finally, the Garrison must resolve the English issue. While restrictions can be laxed in the military tree, they can be utterly removed or redeveloped here. Through this portion of the tree, the Garrison will begin hunting for the resistance in full, causing serious issues for the HMMLR (that will be immediately felt by an English player) and, more importantly, deciding whether to save England by saving the regime, or by taking direct control from Truro.

On the left side of the tree, Cornwall will draw closer to the Collaborators and get the English government to assist in the running and functioning of Cornwall. Restrictions keeping the two apart will be pushed away to ensure the two can cooperate fully, leading to both armies being greatly improved and the HMMLR facing a dangerous, unified front.

Or, with much more risk, the Garrison can attempt to force the Collaborators to render them assistance. This will lead to the German Garrisons in England being reinforced and their English counterparts pushed aside, and will eventually lead to Halder petitioning, first, for the demilitarized zones to be expanded to further weaken the English government and ensure they will not be able to threaten Cornwall, and then for more land to be given to the Governorate for direct control. Leading, eventually, if the resistance is crushed, to the possibility of expansion into the rest of the Isles.

This may seem like a lucrative idea to a player, but doing so proves risky. The Collaborators may refuse these demands, leading to direct conflict between the Garrison and the English, which will greatly weaken them against the resistance and may prove to be their undoing. The HMMLR should be not overjoyed if the Garrison takes this path, however, as while it can lead to their biggest enemies killing each other, it can also lead to the superior troops of the Garrison greatly expanding and representing a massive threat to the resistance.

The AI is unlikely to choose this path, but it is possible, and should prove a very interesting game if they survive the rebellion. Of course, even if they smash the HMMLR, and the Collaborators, it’s doubtful that the already strained Garrison will be able to actually run and hold the entirety of England…

The English tree is a competition, and the Cornwall tree is affected by this. Much like the Collaborators, the Garrison must rush to be as ready as possible when the rebellion strikes. If some areas are ignored or poor choices made, the Garrison may find itself isolated, weak, and unprepared for the coming storm. And of course, the English will be working against you at every turn as well...

--

Thank you for reading another dev diary for The New Order! I would like to follow this with an announcement that may seem negative to many but I feel necessary for the team. We’ll be moving away from weekly dev diaries to weekly or bi-weekly content updates. We will be showing smaller things, such as new gameplay mechanics, art, and other such items we have on our pipeline instead of a weekly dev diary, as pumping out a diary every week is very labor heavy for our team and the lore devs themselves, and I worry about the long term sustainability of that plan.

We will still have dev diaries regularly, but they will be spaced out some more so that we have more time to develop them. Hopefully this will also mean the dev diaries will be more in depth with more to show, however, so I hope you all understand and still get as much enjoyment from the content updates.

As always, thanks to the team and the readers, and I can’t wait to see you next diary where we will be traveling to a European land still scarred by WW2, where the spirit of the fearsome horse rider has never truly died.

Thanks for reading! And remember, you can find us at our Discord, on Reddit, ModDB, and the Paradox Forums!

 

[Maponus]

This has made me rather curious about Brittany's focus tree.

 

[Lonely Knightess]

This has made me rather curious about Brittany's focus tree.

I can't wait to show it to you! Brittany will get a diary towards the end of development, soon before release.

 

[Historyman 14]

I have been enjoying thus far. I really what to see the Americans, and Asia. And more on Italy, and the Balkans.

 

[Lonely Knightess]

I have been enjoying thus far. I really what to see the Americans, and Asia. And more on Italy, and the Balkans.

Hmm, I feel like our lineup after the next two or so diaries will be perfect for you

 

[Lord Insane]

As my reddit comment might have suggested, I got a bit distracted by a non-British detail of one specific focus image, but it is still intriguing to read these.