What ifs based on What if WWI Really Had Ended By Christmas? pt. 2 video

[Strategos' Risk]

A few miscellaneous thoughts I had while watching Cody's second What if WWI had ended by Christmas video:

1. What if Italy still goes fascist in a Central Powers victory victory? If anything, they might have even more reason to. I'm just amused by the idea of in Kaiserreich or TL-191 or wherever that Mussolini still rises to power as a right-winger despite everything else in Europe being flipped.

2. What if a Central Powers post-victory Germany ends up being intensely involved with the A-H, in a modern 20th century War of Austrian Succession, as that empire falls apart? Rather than the stereotypical "they march into Russia to stomp out the Bolsheviks." After all, the Austrians are kin or at least co-linguists.

3. I think the bit about German technical emigrants to Turkey and building a Black Sea to Persian Gulf railway is really fascinating and am curious if it shows up in any timelines... or mods.

4. So with a short not-so Great War that ends up by Christmas, does that mean the subsequent war get fought with OTL WWI weapons? Or some sort of halfway 1930s weapons with Tommy guns and armored cars? Or could we somehow skip WWI static warfare entirely and get to Great War II with WWII tech? Or is the horror of trench warfare necessary to incentivize the invention of tanks and the like. (While the video presupposes it would be fought with slightly WWI+ weapons.)

5. What if WWII ends with Prussian dissolution?

 

[Strategos' Risk]

I'm going to bump this even though it was mostly the product of scattered thoughts I had after taking an edible on a flight.

2. Is interesting to me because most CPV timelines have Germany having the capacity to help the White Russians win- never mind maybe they'd want to support the Bolshevik government, who was so instrumental in weakening the tsar and maybe they think it'll weaken Russia in the long run. Why march all of the way to Moscow anyway when you can fight brushfire wars involving Slavs right next door?

3. This deserves a thread of its own. Arabesk because of Imperial German aid would be a real banger of a setting.

Okay fine, ignore the other points.

 

[Catspoke]

I'm going to bump this even though it was mostly the product of scattered thoughts I had after taking an edible on a flight.

2. Is interesting to me because most CPV timelines have Germany having the capacity to help the White Russians win- never mind maybe they'd want to support the Bolshevik government, who was so instrumental in weakening the tsar and maybe they think it'll weaken Russia in the long run. Why march all of the way to Moscow anyway when you can fight brushfire wars involving Slavs right next door?

3. This deserves a thread of its own. Arabesk because of Imperial German aid would be a real banger of a setting.

Okay fine, ignore the other points.

On #2, In any Austrian breakup attempt scenario, Germany would want to keep German Austrian separate because the rulers of Germany want it to be a Prussian/Protestant dominant state and adding the Austrian Germans changes that. Any 1914central powers victory mean the Austrians get to at least change the Serbian government, so what Slavs are we talking about that really can and want to revolt against Austria? (The Poles have no reason to want to join Russia or Germany so probably are just fine staying in a tolerant Austria.)

If an Austrian breakup really happened, I would suspect Germany would make sure, Austria+Bohemia+parts of Slovenia are part of a German dependent rump Austrian state, Bohemia and the Skoda works is just too important for Germany's defense needs. I am not sure the rest of it is worth any long term bitter occupation and the costs therein.

On #3, Any 1914 central powers victory probably means Russia has to keep their hands of the Balkans and Turkey so yes, there would eventually be railways in the eastern part of Turkey which the Russians resisted Turkey doing pre-war. The Ottomans may not have been brought in if the Germans were winning in 1914, so might still retain decent relations with Britain and France and might resist over dependence on Germany if possible.