- Location
- Not the asylum anymore
- Pronouns
- She/Her
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are not ready for action
East Africa 1930: An ORBAT Quest
- Thread starter 4WheelSword
- Start date
- Original Alt. History
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are not ready for action
In fact Ethiopia is theoretically our ally against the colonial nations or at least our meatshield it seem il conceived to weaken it particularly as it might cause Ethiopia to dissolve a very very bad thing for us.
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are not ready for action
- Location
- New York
- Pronouns
- He/Him
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are ready for deployment North
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are ready for deployment North
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are not ready for action
- Location
- Somewhere
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are ready for deployment North
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are not ready for action
I am honestly wondering if we can send some volunteers in some of the various conflicts that will happen in the future or would that be hard to do because of La Racisme.
I am honestly wondering if we can send some volunteers in some of the various conflicts that will happen in the future or would that be hard to do because of La Racisme.
Any conflicts that'd be a good candidate? Outside of fighting alongside/against Japan (an obviously questionable choice), Spain, and WWII, not a whole lot I know of. I suppose there's the Sino-Tibetan war and the Chaco war?
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are not ready for action
Splitting this vote has a mechanical effect. Showing a united front is important now and the vote will close within ~9 hours (and I likely won't remember to vote in the morning). Saying no is in the lead, so I'm voting for the leader.
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4WheelSword
The original N-body Problem
- Pronouns
- It/She/They
The Council answers that the Military is not prepared.
Thank you for your votes. We're working on the next update.
Vote closed
4WheelSword
The original N-body Problem
- Pronouns
- It/She/They
Please roll 1d100 to determine the government's course of action:
≥101: War! The army and carabinieri march on Addis Ababa!
71-100: War! The army and carabinieri deploys to seize South Omo, Borena, and Liben to the Dawa.
≤70: Cooler heads prevail.
Modifiers:
Council assessed army as unready: -15
≥101: War! The army and carabinieri march on Addis Ababa!
71-100: War! The army and carabinieri deploys to seize South Omo, Borena, and Liben to the Dawa.
≤70: Cooler heads prevail.
Modifiers:
Council assessed army as unready: -15
Let's see how it goes
Edit: Crying
Edit: Crying
Gold adorned man
Stay true to your belief, and act for it.
- Location
- Floor of Religion
- Pronouns
- Nonsencioul
[X] The Army and the Carabinieri are ready for deployment North
Turn 2 Vote: April 1930
Hakazin
Serpent Admirer
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Current Events
Rebels On The March: Ras Mulugeta Yeggazu, Minister of War for Ethiopia, led twenty thousand well-equipped and well-trained soldiers North to face the rebel forces. He had machine guns, cannon, and even a handful of aircraft that Ethiopia maintained. While many of these troops were untested, they could surely put down a poorly organised rabble under the command of a disgraced noble.
He expected to meet thirty-five thousand rebels under Ras Gugsa Welle at Debre Tabor. He did not expect another ten thousand each to have joined his enemy from Gojji and Tigray, nor reports of another twenty thousand Yejju Oromo rebels less than a day's march away. Did he still have superiority in equipment? In training? There was only one way to be sure.
In the two days leading up to the Battle of Anchem, two Potez 25 biplanes dropped thousands of leaflets on the advancing rebels. These detailed both Gugsa Welle's excommunication by the Ethiopian Orthodox church and the Empress' official labelling of her husband as a rebel. Though some of the seventy-five thousand fled, most did not.
The two armies met on the 31st of March on open plains. Planes dropped bombs, artillery fired great salvoes, and machine guns chattered. Gugsa Welle, mounted atop a white charger, rallied his flagging army to hold and, inevitably, push back.
Shortly after midday, the army of Ethiopia was in flight. Ras Mulugeta Yeggazu was shot dead by rebel snipers as he attempted to maintain cohesion from a shattered redoubt. Fitawrari Wondosson Kassa took command, and the survivors of the disastrous engagement fled South to regroup and hold. Barely ten thousand survived the terrible battle.
Ras Gugsa Welle, jubilant in victory, followed them two days later with forty-thousand rebels at his back.
South Of The Border: News of the rebel victory doesn't reach Bur Gaabo until the 3rd of April, and it comes as a footnote in a packet detailing the passing of Negiste Negest Zewditu. While rumours suggest the Empress' death has something to do with her husband's rebellion, the statement merely suggests a long illness and peaceful death. Negus Tafari is already planning his accession despite the ongoing uprising in the North.
The government's response to this sudden flurry of news has been muted. With advice from both High Command and the civilian Defence Council, the elected leaders of Reewiin have erred on the side of caution and quelled any talk of operations in Northern Reewiin.
The military, for their part, has found the whole discussion frustrating. With freshly appointed senior command and an insouciant junior officer corps, operations in Borana were supposed to be their blooding. With news now reaching them that Ethiopia has failed to crush Ras Gugsa Welle's rebellion, there is murmuring of cowardice and intransigence amongst the civilian government. After all, when will Ethiopia ever show itself vulnerable again?
Internal Tension:
Government Tension: -10
Military Tension: 30
Ongoing Projects:
[X] Rail Expansion: Kismayo to Turkana - Improve the train line from Kismayo to the mining regions and extend it to Lake Turkana. The Japanese will likely invest in this project. (3 Months Remain) ☑◻
[X] Establish the Ordnance Office - Developing an arms industry from scratch will take time and effort. An Ordnance Office will allow us to delegate some of that work to specialists.. (Constant Investment.)
[X] Establish the Analytical Research Team - This group will be tasked with drafting reports on external threats, internal dynamic shifts, and other non-standard areas of intelligence. (9 Months Remain) ☑◻◻◻
[X] Establish the Carabinieri Oversight Office - No one really keeps an eye on the paramilitary police force that keeps watch over the nation. If the force is to be reformed and re-established in a new role, then oversight is needed at the very least. (Constant Investment.)
The Defence Council currently has one investment point available to be spent anywhere. In addition, they have two dedicated points available; one they may spend on Armaments, and one on Reforming the Carabinieri.
Industry and Logistics
[ ] Weapon Testing: Rifles - The Ordnance Office will buy a handful of rifles from around the world and test them until they break. Afterwards, they will make recommendations to the Defence Council on the topic of rifle licensing. (6-Month Investment. Recommendations will be made at the end of this process.)
[ ] Weapon Testing: Machine Guns - The Ordnance Office will buy a handful of machine guns from around the world and test them until they break. Afterwards, they will make recommendations to the Defence Council on the topic of machine gun licensing. (6-Month Investment. Recommendations will be made at the end of this process.)
[ ] Production Licencing: Ammunition - Buy the tooling for one calibre of ammunition currently in service or soon to be in service. Expanding the .43 Egyptian factory will not be cheap, but it will be worthwhile. (6-Month Investment. Initial production will be low-rate, and improve over time.)
- [ ] 6.5 mm Arisaka
- [ ] 6.5 mm Carcano
- [ ] .303 British
- [ ] Write-In
[ ] Production Licensing: Rifles - Attempt to buy the rights to produce a rifle design. Include a weapon available in 1930 as a Write-In. Some will be easily acquired, others will be immediately refused. (12-Month Investment. Initial production will be low-rate, and improve over time.)
[ ] Production Licensing: Machine Guns - Attempt to buy the rights to produce a machine gun design. Include a weapon available in 1930 as a Write-In. Some will be easily acquired, others will be immediately refused. (12-Month Investment. Initial production will be low-rate, and improve over time.)
[ ] Equine Acquisition: Purchase Arabians - Buy Arabian horses for service en masse from Egypt. They will be monogender, and we will not be able to maintain the line if they're used for breeding stock. They also may not be resistant to AHS/ASS. (3-Month Investment. Sufficient mass of horses should be available in as little as one year.)
[ ] Equine Acquisition: Donkeys & Mules - Buy partially resistant donkeys and mules for service en masse from South Africa. This sturdy stock will immediately enable us to improve our logistical and supply services while being somewhat resistant to AHS/ASS. (3-Month Investment. Sufficient mass of donkeys and mules should be available in as little as one year.)
[ ] Equine Acquisition: Stud Farms - Buy a small number of Arabian studs from the United States. These will make good breeding stock for future programmes. (3-Month Investment. A breeding programme can begin within the year.)
[ ] Equine Acquisition: Requisition Locally - Requisition local Borana horses from the cavalry and agriculture for breeding stock. (3-Month Investment. A breeding programme can begin within the year.)
[ ] Government Action: Push for Equine Conscription - While pastoralism is not exactly a major industry in Reewiin, there are a large number of animals that could be put to wartime use, were they assessed in a proper census. (6-Month Investment. Implementation will occur at the government's pace.)
[ ] Road Expansion: Inland Networks - Improve the unimproved road network to be more extensive and less vulnerable to flooding in the wet season. (6-Month Investment. Construction will begin during this time.)
Doctrine and Organisation
[ ] Information Review: Army - Determine the state, readiness and mood of the Army. (3-Month Investment.)
[ ] Information Review: Carabinieri - Determine the state, readiness and mood of the Carabinieri. (3-Month Investment.)
[ ] Information Review: Government - Determine what the civilian government wants out of their armed forces. (3-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: Immediate Improvements - Develop and implement 'quick win' organisational changes to improve the Armed Forces. (3-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: Ethiopia - Long-term analysis of the optimal army to defend Reewiin against our eternal enemy, Ethiopia. (6-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: Britain - Long-term analysis of the optimal army to defend Reewiin against our eternal enemy, Britain. (6-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: Italy - Long-term analysis of the optimal army to defend Reewiin against our eternal enemy, Italy. (6-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: The Foreigners Have Some Good Ideas - Form overseas observation teams to take the best ideas from foreign nations. (12-Month Investment.)
[ ] Reforms from the Bottom up - Define a new tactical organisation for the Carabinieri, but leave the brigade structure alone. (3-Month Investment. Please write-in the new structure at the Company and Platoon level.)
[ ] Reforms from the Top down - Define a new strategic organisation for the Carabinieri, but leave the company and platoon structure alone. (3-Month Investment. Please write-in the new structure at the Brigade level, including basing.)
There will be a 6-hour moratorium on voting to encourage discussion. The vote will close in three days.
Rebels On The March: Ras Mulugeta Yeggazu, Minister of War for Ethiopia, led twenty thousand well-equipped and well-trained soldiers North to face the rebel forces. He had machine guns, cannon, and even a handful of aircraft that Ethiopia maintained. While many of these troops were untested, they could surely put down a poorly organised rabble under the command of a disgraced noble.
He expected to meet thirty-five thousand rebels under Ras Gugsa Welle at Debre Tabor. He did not expect another ten thousand each to have joined his enemy from Gojji and Tigray, nor reports of another twenty thousand Yejju Oromo rebels less than a day's march away. Did he still have superiority in equipment? In training? There was only one way to be sure.
In the two days leading up to the Battle of Anchem, two Potez 25 biplanes dropped thousands of leaflets on the advancing rebels. These detailed both Gugsa Welle's excommunication by the Ethiopian Orthodox church and the Empress' official labelling of her husband as a rebel. Though some of the seventy-five thousand fled, most did not.
The two armies met on the 31st of March on open plains. Planes dropped bombs, artillery fired great salvoes, and machine guns chattered. Gugsa Welle, mounted atop a white charger, rallied his flagging army to hold and, inevitably, push back.
Shortly after midday, the army of Ethiopia was in flight. Ras Mulugeta Yeggazu was shot dead by rebel snipers as he attempted to maintain cohesion from a shattered redoubt. Fitawrari Wondosson Kassa took command, and the survivors of the disastrous engagement fled South to regroup and hold. Barely ten thousand survived the terrible battle.
Ras Gugsa Welle, jubilant in victory, followed them two days later with forty-thousand rebels at his back.
South Of The Border: News of the rebel victory doesn't reach Bur Gaabo until the 3rd of April, and it comes as a footnote in a packet detailing the passing of Negiste Negest Zewditu. While rumours suggest the Empress' death has something to do with her husband's rebellion, the statement merely suggests a long illness and peaceful death. Negus Tafari is already planning his accession despite the ongoing uprising in the North.
The government's response to this sudden flurry of news has been muted. With advice from both High Command and the civilian Defence Council, the elected leaders of Reewiin have erred on the side of caution and quelled any talk of operations in Northern Reewiin.
The military, for their part, has found the whole discussion frustrating. With freshly appointed senior command and an insouciant junior officer corps, operations in Borana were supposed to be their blooding. With news now reaching them that Ethiopia has failed to crush Ras Gugsa Welle's rebellion, there is murmuring of cowardice and intransigence amongst the civilian government. After all, when will Ethiopia ever show itself vulnerable again?
Internal Tension:
Government Tension: -10
Military Tension: 30
Ongoing Projects:
[X] Rail Expansion: Kismayo to Turkana - Improve the train line from Kismayo to the mining regions and extend it to Lake Turkana. The Japanese will likely invest in this project. (3 Months Remain) ☑◻
[X] Establish the Ordnance Office - Developing an arms industry from scratch will take time and effort. An Ordnance Office will allow us to delegate some of that work to specialists.. (Constant Investment.)
[X] Establish the Analytical Research Team - This group will be tasked with drafting reports on external threats, internal dynamic shifts, and other non-standard areas of intelligence. (9 Months Remain) ☑◻◻◻
[X] Establish the Carabinieri Oversight Office - No one really keeps an eye on the paramilitary police force that keeps watch over the nation. If the force is to be reformed and re-established in a new role, then oversight is needed at the very least. (Constant Investment.)
The Defence Council currently has one investment point available to be spent anywhere. In addition, they have two dedicated points available; one they may spend on Armaments, and one on Reforming the Carabinieri.
Industry and Logistics
- Armaments
[ ] Weapon Testing: Rifles - The Ordnance Office will buy a handful of rifles from around the world and test them until they break. Afterwards, they will make recommendations to the Defence Council on the topic of rifle licensing. (6-Month Investment. Recommendations will be made at the end of this process.)
[ ] Weapon Testing: Machine Guns - The Ordnance Office will buy a handful of machine guns from around the world and test them until they break. Afterwards, they will make recommendations to the Defence Council on the topic of machine gun licensing. (6-Month Investment. Recommendations will be made at the end of this process.)
[ ] Production Licencing: Ammunition - Buy the tooling for one calibre of ammunition currently in service or soon to be in service. Expanding the .43 Egyptian factory will not be cheap, but it will be worthwhile. (6-Month Investment. Initial production will be low-rate, and improve over time.)
- [ ] 6.5 mm Arisaka
- [ ] 6.5 mm Carcano
- [ ] .303 British
- [ ] Write-In
[ ] Production Licensing: Rifles - Attempt to buy the rights to produce a rifle design. Include a weapon available in 1930 as a Write-In. Some will be easily acquired, others will be immediately refused. (12-Month Investment. Initial production will be low-rate, and improve over time.)
[ ] Production Licensing: Machine Guns - Attempt to buy the rights to produce a machine gun design. Include a weapon available in 1930 as a Write-In. Some will be easily acquired, others will be immediately refused. (12-Month Investment. Initial production will be low-rate, and improve over time.)
- Breeding and Working
[ ] Equine Acquisition: Purchase Arabians - Buy Arabian horses for service en masse from Egypt. They will be monogender, and we will not be able to maintain the line if they're used for breeding stock. They also may not be resistant to AHS/ASS. (3-Month Investment. Sufficient mass of horses should be available in as little as one year.)
[ ] Equine Acquisition: Donkeys & Mules - Buy partially resistant donkeys and mules for service en masse from South Africa. This sturdy stock will immediately enable us to improve our logistical and supply services while being somewhat resistant to AHS/ASS. (3-Month Investment. Sufficient mass of donkeys and mules should be available in as little as one year.)
[ ] Equine Acquisition: Stud Farms - Buy a small number of Arabian studs from the United States. These will make good breeding stock for future programmes. (3-Month Investment. A breeding programme can begin within the year.)
[ ] Equine Acquisition: Requisition Locally - Requisition local Borana horses from the cavalry and agriculture for breeding stock. (3-Month Investment. A breeding programme can begin within the year.)
[ ] Government Action: Push for Equine Conscription - While pastoralism is not exactly a major industry in Reewiin, there are a large number of animals that could be put to wartime use, were they assessed in a proper census. (6-Month Investment. Implementation will occur at the government's pace.)
- Lanes, Trains, and Automobiles
[ ] Road Expansion: Inland Networks - Improve the unimproved road network to be more extensive and less vulnerable to flooding in the wet season. (6-Month Investment. Construction will begin during this time.)
Doctrine and Organisation
- DCIRRO
[ ] Information Review: Army - Determine the state, readiness and mood of the Army. (3-Month Investment.)
[ ] Information Review: Carabinieri - Determine the state, readiness and mood of the Carabinieri. (3-Month Investment.)
[ ] Information Review: Government - Determine what the civilian government wants out of their armed forces. (3-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: Immediate Improvements - Develop and implement 'quick win' organisational changes to improve the Armed Forces. (3-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: Ethiopia - Long-term analysis of the optimal army to defend Reewiin against our eternal enemy, Ethiopia. (6-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: Britain - Long-term analysis of the optimal army to defend Reewiin against our eternal enemy, Britain. (6-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: Italy - Long-term analysis of the optimal army to defend Reewiin against our eternal enemy, Italy. (6-Month Investment.)
[ ] Analysis: The Foreigners Have Some Good Ideas - Form overseas observation teams to take the best ideas from foreign nations. (12-Month Investment.)
- Reforming the Carabinieri
[ ] Reforms from the Bottom up - Define a new tactical organisation for the Carabinieri, but leave the brigade structure alone. (3-Month Investment. Please write-in the new structure at the Company and Platoon level.)
[ ] Reforms from the Top down - Define a new strategic organisation for the Carabinieri, but leave the company and platoon structure alone. (3-Month Investment. Please write-in the new structure at the Brigade level, including basing.)
There will be a 6-hour moratorium on voting to encourage discussion. The vote will close in three days.
- Location
- an unseen void
- Pronouns
- Any
This seems like the most important use for our carabinieri-focused point.
I think we should use our free point on this, in addition to ideally spending our arnaments point on a three-month project. We've gotten political pushback on setting up a bunch of offices and long-term plans but not actually improving enough right now. We should put food on the table, and this is a good way to do it.
With regard to the options:
- For the love of god, let's not waste time on the .43 Egyptian. It's not like we even have large stocks of the guns.
- We probably want to do this sooner rather than later, especially so that we can start the licensed (or not) production of rifles locally. We'll need tens of thousands of them for our standing army, and hundreds of thousands if we expect to be at war with Ethiopia, Italy, or Britain. This is such a long lead time item that it's, IMO, high priority.
- Also, this is likely going to inform our Carabinieri reforms - I imagine a big part of that will be specifying standard equipment, and having an idea of "which of these guns can your average Carabinieri member operate in the field without it falling apart" is good to get started on now.
- Do we need to do this? Is it wrong to just say "get the ZB vz. 26 in whatever rifle calibre we choose" because OOC I know the Czech are licensing it to everyone and it's a good gun? Regardless, IMO lower priority than rifles, even if they're more effective weapons - we don't need as many and can buy them from abroad if need be.
- We considered this last turn. I'm not huge on it (because I don't think horse cavalry is that useful, especially for a metal-rich, agriculture-poor country like Reewin), but it's an immediate win and I think there may be some government/military desire for horses?
- Let's reform the entire thing! Writing doctrine and TO&E is what we're doing here, and the more doctrine we write and TO&E we specify, the better it is. The civilian government also wanted reforms, so this seems to be an easy win!
My concern with this is that these changes might just be plastering over holes without addressing the systemic underlying issue. We probably want to do some pretty deep reforms in order to be a "modern" fighting force in the second half of the decade, and that might make these quick wins wasted effort. Meanwhile, the only 3-month options worth taking are for horses; do we think that they're a higher priority than getting a non-black powder rifle into the hands of our soldiers?
Also, Reform means Reform is 3-month and will immediately show the government that we're working on our mandate.
- Location
- an unseen void
- Pronouns
- Any
The last turn is a clear warning sign that we can't count on the world to slow down and stop sending us its toughest battles just because we're trying to be long-term efficient. Reform means reform is also more focus on the Carabinieri, which I don't think the Army leadership values the same way we do.
Rifle testing + reform means reform both seem like good wins for the committed efforts we made! You've talked me out of a short term dip into the .43 Egyptian. But I really think that Immediate Improvements is a short term gain we need to prove our worth to stakeholders, and I don't think it's at all guaranteed that it will all be wiped out in the long term. Some of it is probably just good best practices to implement sooner rather than later.
I'd still like to put off the borana horses stuff for another turn or two so that we have breathing room to do the horses stuff well when we do it, since it is in our long-term plan.
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- Location
- California
Well yes, but there's an 'obvious,' opportunity and the army is discontent that we didn't take it. We need a little meat on the table to get them to chill even if sticking our business into the rebel army would have been a bad idea.
- Location
- Somewhere in the area
- Pronouns
- He/She/They
[ ] Information Review: Carabinieri - Determine the state, readiness and mood of the Carabinieri. (3-Month Investment.)
Does this count as an action for Reforming the Carabinieri? Because it would not look good for us if we try an instate a change and we end up asking them to do what they're already doing.
Does this count as an action for Reforming the Carabinieri? Because it would not look good for us if we try an instate a change and we end up asking them to do what they're already doing.