Next War: Korea with No US Involvement

 Next War Korea

This play through of Next War: Korea is part 2 of my attempt to play some of the next war games without US intervention. The US has a massive impact on any game, even without sending in land forces, due to its air and sea power, so what happens when that is taken away. In this scenario the US has withdrawn from Korea and the DRPK sees its chance to reunite Korea. Distracted by its own troubles China only offers very limited support. Japan provides air/naval support and the commonwealth limited support to Korea.

I planned to write a more narrative style account, such as I did with Next War: Poland. However this play-through proved to be a brutal war of attrition with few breakthroughs or maneuvers. As such, I will just provide a brief description.

I used the special rules for refugees, and the realism rules for North Korea (which weaken their massive army significantly.) and some others

Early Game

The North pushed over the borders and slowly pushed the south back. The losses were about 2-1 in favour of the South, but that is fine for the North because they have a much larger army. When an area looked difficult to defend the south would withdraw 1 or 2 hexes to another defensible position.

Northern SOF were able to damage some southern airbases but the southern air force was able to win the air war after about 4 turns, however much of it was damaged so it could only provide limited support. Northern missile strikes almost all failed/were shot down.

Mid game

As the southern reinforcements started to arrive the north threw in its most elite units and chemical weapons to try and breakthrough bridges or difficult areas. The losses were now at a rate of about 3 to one. On the East coast the Northern attack failed completely and the middle was running out of steam, but 2 hexes of Seoul had been taken. The elite commonwealth SoF started to target northern supply systems and depots having destroyed the air defence system.

Late Game

The Northern push ran out of supply and then front line units. The south pushed up through the middle around the flank of the Northern push on Seoul and started to roll them up. By turn 15 almost all the Northern units had been destroyed, but the South losses had been massive. The south won by about 90 victory points.

 

He are some images as the game progressed.

 

Next War: Poland End Game Summary

 

Turns 11 and 12

NATO forces advance towards the north east edge of Poland and also into Lithuania from Kaliningrad. Russia uses a nuclear strike on the remnants of the RRC as they push up, but they are swiftly replaced by French forces, which are also struck with nuclear weapons. In response NATO destroys a nuclear weapon facility inside Russia.

Spanish forces rapidly advance liberating the major Lithuanian cities and eliminating the Russian general command. The Russians are also pushed completely out of Poland and have very few combat units left.

Final VPS

Russa 249

NATO 333

Overview

The Russian attack started relatively well, clearing and attacking without major losses and on schedule. The southern attack with Belarus was slower, and the Polish airborne and airmobile units were able to delay any push on Warsaw.

The biggest early failure were the constant disappointing results of the Russian SoF, though they mostly survived, and the early naval disaster. The NATO air defence level also survived which reduced the effectiveness of Russian strikes.

The turning point came when the Russian attack on the newly arrived RRC in the south was stopped and then pushed back with heavy losses. Along with this, the 3 turns that Augustow, a city on a key road, took to be cleared slowed the Russian advance.

As more NATO forces arrived the situation started to change. As Russian losses mounted and NATO land forces increased it became a question of if Russia could hold on to its seized territory to force a draw, but even the use of nuclear weapons could not stop the NATO advance in the end.

This concludes this play through of Next War: Poland.

March 27th New York Times “Ceasefire announced in Europe”

After short negotiations, a ceasefire has been declared for Europe. Russian forces are expected to withdraw from the Baltics, followed by a withdrawal of NATO forces from Kaliningrad. The fate of this agreement is still in flux as reports of fighting between different Russian forces in and around Moscow. The fighting began shortly after the ceasefire negotiations ended and appears to be a preemptive arrest of military leadership by the Kremlin to prevent a coup. Already the Hague as issued arrest warrants for much of the Russian leadership.
 

March 25th, BBC News

“The Polish government has confirmed that the last occupied city in Poland, Swalski, has been liberated by British forces. This follows the rapid advance of Spanish forces into Lithuania and the liberation of Kaunas and the Lithuanian capital, Vilnus. NATO forces also confirmed that there is no plan to advance into Russia, and no further strikes against Russian nuclear forces will be carried out as long as there are no more nuclear attacks.”

 

March 22nd, China Daily “More Nuclear strikes as NATO pushes world towards the abyss”

 

Russia has carried out further nuclear strikes as NATO's brutal attacks threaten not just the Russian people, but the whole of the world. The Chinese premier has called once again for a ceasefire and negotiations on the future of....

Next War: Poland Turn 10 Summary

 

Clear, contested

Russia makes one last push in the skies to keep NATO aircraft occupied and not striking, but the cost is almost all the Russian air force.

Russian support units, which escaped across the river into West Lithuania inflict losses on NATO units in Kaliningrad via strikes.

NATO catches some Russian units fleeting east from Kaliningrad. Germain and French attacks west are not effective at 1-1 and 0-1, but the Spanish inflict a massive 3-0 and clear the way into Lithuania.

Russian units fall back to river crossings in Lithuania. Many of the trapped units in Kaliningrad start to surrender.

The end is near.

March 19th, Guardian Newspaper “Mass surrenders reported as Russian lines collapse, but nuclear threat remains.”

 

 

 

Russian forces, cut off in Kaliningrad appear to be surrendering to NATO forces in a series of videos released yesterday. At the same time NATO forces are advancing in all directions. While NATO leadership has made it clear they do not plan to cross into any other Russian territory, the spectre of another nuclear strike by Russia looms large.