raharris1973
Well-known member
Through the power of ASB mind-control,
1) Starting from the September 1931 Japanese occupation of Manchuria, Stalin and the Politburo decide that Japanese aggression and expansion further along the Soviet frontier cannot stand, even if the Chinese central government is not declaring war or resisting. The Soviets decide to send forces across the border into Chinese Manchuria, starting no later than December 1931, to fight against the Japanese, with the objective of driving back the Japanese to their status quo ante position.
What happens in combat and how does everyone in Japan, China, and the world react when the Japanese and Soviets meet in the battlefield? What escalations or deescalations occur? Does the Shanghai incident of Jan 28, 1932 still happen?
Note that ASBs keep Stalin and the Politburo committed to the 'resist Japan, aid China' objective for at least 12 months before restoring his free will and allowing any compromise of objectives or expansion of objectives based on circumstances.
What's the regional situation 5 years later in northeast Asia and the internal situations in Japan and the USSR?
Consider a variant on this: 1a) Alternatively, the ASBs may leave Stalin's mind alone in 1931 and not exert any influence on him until the outbreak of full Sino-Japanese War in July 1937. What if from that point they intervene and compel Stalin to have the Soviet Union intervene in the Sino-Japanese war by no later than October 1937?
2) After the League of Nations vote of Sanctions on Italy in November 1935 (for its October invasion of Ethiopia), the Baldwin government adopts all sanctions, supplements them with an empire wide boycott on trade with Italy including exports of oil to Italy, a freezing of all of Italy's sterling assets in British Empire banks, closure of the Suez Canal to Italian shipping, and British arming and facilitation of third party arming of the Ethiopians.
What happens next? Do the Italian persist in Horn of Africa military operations using long-route shipping via the Gibraltar straits and Cape of Good Hope and non-British, non-Iranian oil? Do they eventually prevail in a significantly more expensive war of attrition against the Ethiopians? Do they get involved in Spain later?
Do the British imposed handicaps make the Italians cut their Ethiopian campaign short and cause a humiliating back down? Or do the Italians fight and lose a long war of attrition in the horn?
Or, do the Italians get so enraged by British sanctions, obstruction, and hostile actions that they strike directly at the British in the Mediterranean and Africa, spreading war to Malta, the western desert, Alexandria, Sudan, Somaliland, Aden, and Cyprus? How long does such a war take and how does it end?
Note that ASBs keep Baldwin and his political majority in line and committed to a tough line and no softening or repudiation or "OMG, I didn't mean to do that" for at least six months before allowing British free will to start evolving naturally.
What's the regional situation in the Horn of Africa and Mediterranean and internal situation in Italy and the UK 5 years later?
3) When the Germans remilitarize the Rhineland in March 1936, the French government is compelled to condemn this move as a violation not only of the Versailles treaty but also the Locarno and four power pacts, and sends all active duty troops and combat vehicles into the Rhineland to oppose the German forces movements and throw them behind the river at a minimum. The French government breaks prior restraints/constraints to execute this mission, for example, employing troops even from the Maginot line and mobilizing more to backfill them, going into deficit spending to pay for these activities, allowing currency devaluation, etc.
How does Franco-German fighting go? What escalation or deescalation happens? How do other governments react, like Britain and Italy, but also the smaller countries to Germany's east, like Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland?
Are the 1936 Olympics cancelled outright or moved to another country/city?
What is this doing to the internal position of Hitler and the Nazis, and the ruling French government?
Note that the ASBs keep the French committed to a tough line and no softening or repudiation or "OMG, I didn't mean to do that" for at least six months before allowing French free will to start evolving naturally.
What is the regional situation in Western Europe, and Franco-German power balance 5 years after the fact? (so March 1941)
Consider a variant on this: 3a) Alternatively, the ASBs may compel the French to condemn the March 1935 announcement of the reinstatement of conscription and creation of the Luftwaffe. France threatens to invade and occupy the Rhine and Ruhr on pain of the Germans backing down from both policy changes and submitting themselves to international inspections. The ASBs compel the French to actually march in upon German noncompliance.
1) Starting from the September 1931 Japanese occupation of Manchuria, Stalin and the Politburo decide that Japanese aggression and expansion further along the Soviet frontier cannot stand, even if the Chinese central government is not declaring war or resisting. The Soviets decide to send forces across the border into Chinese Manchuria, starting no later than December 1931, to fight against the Japanese, with the objective of driving back the Japanese to their status quo ante position.
What happens in combat and how does everyone in Japan, China, and the world react when the Japanese and Soviets meet in the battlefield? What escalations or deescalations occur? Does the Shanghai incident of Jan 28, 1932 still happen?
Note that ASBs keep Stalin and the Politburo committed to the 'resist Japan, aid China' objective for at least 12 months before restoring his free will and allowing any compromise of objectives or expansion of objectives based on circumstances.
What's the regional situation 5 years later in northeast Asia and the internal situations in Japan and the USSR?
Consider a variant on this: 1a) Alternatively, the ASBs may leave Stalin's mind alone in 1931 and not exert any influence on him until the outbreak of full Sino-Japanese War in July 1937. What if from that point they intervene and compel Stalin to have the Soviet Union intervene in the Sino-Japanese war by no later than October 1937?
2) After the League of Nations vote of Sanctions on Italy in November 1935 (for its October invasion of Ethiopia), the Baldwin government adopts all sanctions, supplements them with an empire wide boycott on trade with Italy including exports of oil to Italy, a freezing of all of Italy's sterling assets in British Empire banks, closure of the Suez Canal to Italian shipping, and British arming and facilitation of third party arming of the Ethiopians.
What happens next? Do the Italian persist in Horn of Africa military operations using long-route shipping via the Gibraltar straits and Cape of Good Hope and non-British, non-Iranian oil? Do they eventually prevail in a significantly more expensive war of attrition against the Ethiopians? Do they get involved in Spain later?
Do the British imposed handicaps make the Italians cut their Ethiopian campaign short and cause a humiliating back down? Or do the Italians fight and lose a long war of attrition in the horn?
Or, do the Italians get so enraged by British sanctions, obstruction, and hostile actions that they strike directly at the British in the Mediterranean and Africa, spreading war to Malta, the western desert, Alexandria, Sudan, Somaliland, Aden, and Cyprus? How long does such a war take and how does it end?
Note that ASBs keep Baldwin and his political majority in line and committed to a tough line and no softening or repudiation or "OMG, I didn't mean to do that" for at least six months before allowing British free will to start evolving naturally.
What's the regional situation in the Horn of Africa and Mediterranean and internal situation in Italy and the UK 5 years later?
3) When the Germans remilitarize the Rhineland in March 1936, the French government is compelled to condemn this move as a violation not only of the Versailles treaty but also the Locarno and four power pacts, and sends all active duty troops and combat vehicles into the Rhineland to oppose the German forces movements and throw them behind the river at a minimum. The French government breaks prior restraints/constraints to execute this mission, for example, employing troops even from the Maginot line and mobilizing more to backfill them, going into deficit spending to pay for these activities, allowing currency devaluation, etc.
How does Franco-German fighting go? What escalation or deescalation happens? How do other governments react, like Britain and Italy, but also the smaller countries to Germany's east, like Austria, Czechoslovakia, and Poland?
Are the 1936 Olympics cancelled outright or moved to another country/city?
What is this doing to the internal position of Hitler and the Nazis, and the ruling French government?
Note that the ASBs keep the French committed to a tough line and no softening or repudiation or "OMG, I didn't mean to do that" for at least six months before allowing French free will to start evolving naturally.
What is the regional situation in Western Europe, and Franco-German power balance 5 years after the fact? (so March 1941)
Consider a variant on this: 3a) Alternatively, the ASBs may compel the French to condemn the March 1935 announcement of the reinstatement of conscription and creation of the Luftwaffe. France threatens to invade and occupy the Rhine and Ruhr on pain of the Germans backing down from both policy changes and submitting themselves to international inspections. The ASBs compel the French to actually march in upon German noncompliance.
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