Chapter 1 - The Conquest of China ( July 1, '37 - January 15, '38)
Hawk - July 7, '37: Our naval forces engaged the chinese fleet. Unfortunately none of my commanders retained the exact time of the attack, nor do they recall the exact numbers of the enemy force. It is estimated that close to 11 Chinese vessels engaged our 1st Carrier group of the coast of Hangzhou in no doubt an effort to force our navy from the coast and its ability to support TASS and his continued push from the beach head inland. The battle lasted approximately three hours. I am ashamed to say that our forces suffered a loss. The Light Cruiser Abukuma was lost when her powder stores were hit. Unfortunately the entirety of the crew were lost, but their death would be avenged. Two Chinese light cruisers would be sunk before the end of the battle. With these losses the Chinese managed to use a fog bank, and escape any further losses. I ordered those damaged vessels to return to port for repairs, and redirected the 1st Battleship fleet from the south to take up position with the 1st carrier while reinforcements were on the way. It is clear from this engagement, that our forces were too eager to fight, and better care needs to be taken in the form of record keeping. They will be so informed…
TASS - July 10, '37: The fighting was tough, but it seems we indeed managed to catch the Chinese off-guard, with most of their local force stationed in Shanghai and the port of Hangzhou being an easy target. After the II. Imperial Home Defense Corps landed in the periphery, they quickly managed to capture the port together with the mountaineer elements of the I. Imperial Special Forces Corps that were assaulting from the beaches. I now gave order to the I. ISFC's motorised division to launch an amphibious assault on Shanghai. Their commander rightfully complained that his motorised force was likely to the worst equipped unit under my command for such an endeavour, but clearly he missed the point. It’s but a decoy! Shanghai would have been incredibly hard to take from the sea either way, with at least two full infantry divisions and another two militia divisions guarding the city - and reinforcements reportedly on the way. It was of paramount importance to me to have the Shanghai garrison tied up and a threat on their shores was merely the quickest way to achieve that.
Hawk - July 31, '37: It is nearing one month since the start of this war. Our warships reign supreme along the Chinese coast, with not a move by the Chinese to leave their ports. They seem to know what will happen if they venture past the breakers. Meanwhile the air force has maintained air supremacy on all fronts. Save for some minor battles with the outdated Chinese planes, there has been almost no resistance to our bombings. I have shifted most of our airpower to the south in support of Tass. With few troops he has managed to occupy Shanghai.. But his forces have suffered casualties, and to push further would severely weaken his line. Reinforcements are being trained as I write in the home islands, but to ensure the strength of our lines I have ordered all but two interceptor squadrons south to support him. Taz is facing little resistance in the north, and needs only minor air cover so that the pittance of the Chinese air force cannot gain any momentum. What a wonderful experience for our pilots to gain so much experience of war, with little fear of death.
TASS - August 7, '37: Capturing Changshu had proven to be more difficult than I hoped. While the attack on Shanghai worked the intended way and enabled me to seize Suzhou without any resistance worth mentioning, the Chinese managed to reinforce Changshu in time. Reports indicated that it is mainly troops redirected from the North border to deal with this second threat that I pose. Taz was very delighted to hear that our little manoeuvre here developed the intended effect. But intelligence reports about Chinese reserves were vague and until I managed to take the key locations around Shanghai my beachhead would be in constant danger. Still limited to two corps for now (the former I. IHDC, now renamed to I. Imperial Expeditionary Corps and a consistent part of Special Forces in honour of their continued loyal service and bravery, and the I. ISFC), I decided to risk a flanking push around Taihu Lake and attack the defenders at Changshu from two directions. In a matter of days both Shanghai and Changshu fell, giving me control of the area and a well fortified position to work form. With new resistance on my South flank my focus for the next days will be to both stabilise and carefully expand my frontline. In anticipation of the new troops that I am hopefully receiving soon, I’ve begun to put the I. IEC on the Southern flank, putting the I. ISFC in position for the push on Nanjing.
Taz - August 14, '37: Shanxi has surrendered to the might of the Imperial Army. VI, VII and VIII Corps’ have pushed south through the Taihang Mountains to the convergence of the Wei and Yellow Rivers. In the East, the 1st Motorised has encircled the Chinese troops south of the Yongding River with III, IV and V Corps’ forming the Beiping Pocket. After one successful breakout the pocket was collapsed destroying several Nationalist divisions.
Hawk - August 26, '37: In the late morning the Chinese navy had finally come out to face us. The ships emerged from the port of Nantong numbering eight strong. Unlike before where our forces were too easily excited over their first engagement, they were calm and operated their machinery seamlessly. They were facing not only the 1st Carrier, but also the 1st Battleship fleet bristling with cannon. By 14:00 the battle had ended quickly with no losses of our own but the chinese forces smashed. Out of the eight vessels engaged, six were destroyed and sunk to the bottom. Thus ending any sufficient opposition on the seas. Meanwhile our submarines had been busy, reporting nearly 15 convoys sunk over the last two months. With it’s losses both on land and sea, it was clearly being felt by the chinese military. Success was still the norm in the sky, with few changes made in orders. We rule the skies, unopposed!
TASS - September 11, '37: With the new motorised ‘Nanjing’ division arriving in Shanghai I was able to use them and the I. ISFC to push North-West and pocket Nanjing. The move isn’t without risk as it is stretching my frontlines horribly thin, but luckily enough for me the Chinese are even worse off and sincerely struggle to guard both my (and from what I hear also Taz’) front. With the collapse of the Shanghai and Beiping area pockets they had lost some of their best-equipped divisions and Hawk’s non-stop air and shore bombardments took a heavy toll on what forces they had left.
TASS - September 24, '37: At 6:00 am this morning I received word that the last defenders at Nanjing have been overcome. Within a few hours now the city should be fully under our control. Without doubt the fall of Nanjing will be a blow for their morale and a glorious victory for our own forces! With Taz pushing further and further South I am now working on a plan to link up the two frontlines and cut off the now-capital of Qingdao and its peninsula from the rest of China. Taz and I agree that I’ll be using fresh infantry bound to arrive on the front soon to free up the I. ISFC , which will then attempt to push North-West, while Taz’ motorised corps pushes South-East. If everything goes well the two will meet half way, separating a large part of the remaining Chinese military from the larger part of the country.
Hawk - October 2, '37: At 21:00 China evacuated one of her ships out of Nantong once it was realised it was to be lost. However the 2nd Carrier fleet was off the coast in wait, and the battle commenced. It was a short battle, and the Chinese destroyer was sunk. China had very little left in the way of ships. All that remained were two light Cruisers. It would only be a matter of time before they joined the rest of their fleet on the bottom of the sea. Aside from open sea combat, our subs were also hard at work, sinking close to 22 Convoys, our intelligence reports suggested that they were trying to replace these convoys, but their Industrial might was diminished, and they could not hope to recuperate their losses.
Hawk- October 8, '37: At 09:00 the Chinese navy ceased to exist off the Bay of Hangzhou. The final two light cruisers came out to face us from their remaining southern ports. It had engaged the 1st Carrier fleet, where our planes and cruisers made quick work of those war weary vessels. The Imperial Japanese Navy ruled the waves of the Pacific, and our reinforcement and supply lines were now secured. My attention now turned from the waves to the sky, to figure out the most effective means of deploying our air forces for the remaining push into china. The carriers decks could only reach so far, and even those few captured air bases in Shanghai in the South and Beiping in the North, air cover could only reach so far. Eventually, our forces would move out of range, unless other fields were taken.
Taz - November 16, '37: The Western flank of the North China Army Group now extends to the Yangtze; the Eastern runs along the length of the Yellow River. In the Centre, elements of the 1st Mortorised have linked up with the Shanghai beachhead creating a pocket on the coast. Most of the major industrial centres have fallen to our might and it’s looking more and more like the war will be over by the New Year.
Hawk - November 19, '37: China is not well suited to the command of aircraft. Distances are so vast, and once leaving the cost there is little to be done. Right now we enjoy clear skies, and many targets. But once Tass and Taz close the pocket of Chinese troops in the north, the air force will be reduced to rearguard duty. I am sure the pilots would appreciate the break, as they have been worked hard with missions on a daily basis since the start of this war, with very little R&R. But they are loyal soldiers, and strong, they will not fail to uphold an order. I sit here at my desk in Shanghai, which I have made my base of operations in china. I stare at this map showing our coverage, frontline, and potential air bases. The urban centers of Nanchang and Chengde to the south would certainly extend my aircrafts range…
Hawk - December 1, '37: With Taz and Tass occupied in the northern pocket, there was an opening in the southern front that could be taken advantage of. Tass and Taz agreed to allow me to take command of 8,7,6 corps in the south west. I boarded one of my transport aircraft in Shanghai and flew westward to the front to take command. There were no proper airfields of course, but we were in a light aircraft and were able to land in dried up rice paddy field. I quickly took charge of the situation. Chinese opposition was limited, with their divisions in disarray after being cut off from their main forces in the north. With so little opposition I ordered an attack across the whole front with all divisions committed. It was time for the final push…
Hawk - January 5, '38: It had been a long month of fighting, but we had pushed the front deep into the south. Supply lines were holding, but were starting to weaken over such distances. The troops were still in high spirits and believed the war would be over soon. Indeed we all believed it would be over soon. We were at the gates of Nanchang, and quickly pushing into Chengde in only a matter of days. I also ordered a push to the west on the city of Chengdu. Chinese resistance had collapsed. Engagements were sporadic, and often times the chinese were fighting with pitchforks as much of their ammunition had run out. Their supply lines had been all but severed on the coast. Our subs had managed to sink by this time 40 convoys. With most urban centers taken, or about to be taken, China had no legs to stand on to rebuild. Her back was broken, the taking of these last three cities should end this war.
TASS - January 5, '38: I’ve withdrawn most of my forces from the Qingdao pocket. Taz is quickly advancing and capable of handling that by himself. Already he has given command over large parts of his forces to Hawk who’s now pushing south rapidly. I’ve decided to support Hawk’s push by launching an assault at the virtually unguarded coastal area south of Shanghai. Perhaps taking one or two more ports will help make the Chinese see that their position is nothing but futile, that is in the unlikely event that Hawk’s not breaking their last will before my forces get anywhere near these ports.
Taz - January 11, '38: Despite our massive gains the war has not yet ended. The Qingdao Pocket has been reduced to the peninsula and the frontline now runs along the full length of the Yangtze. But Victory is close at hand.
Hawk - January 15, '38: With the final cities taken, the Chinese have thrown down what has remained of their weapons and surrendered. China now falls completely under our control. But how to deal with such a large area of varying geography. There are many parts of this country well suited for partisan uprisings. There is little the Navy can offer, but perhaps the air force can provide some support, but the garrison forces shall be the responsibility of Taz. I wish him luck, and hope he can safeguard what we have won.
[HOI3] An Empire under the Sun - Chapter 2 (Updated: 3/3/15 UTC)
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I'm intrigued to discover whether the generals will ever disagree (about priorities, for instance), and looking forward to the extra depth provided by the three different perspectives.
ing idea.. 
Originally Posted by ccllnply
