[Twilight Struggle] Game 3 - Tear Down This Wall or We Will Bury You

Iron Weasel

Headline Phase 1
America's Headline has the higher Ops value and resolves first:

A term coined by diplomat and Sovietologist George Kennan, it came to form the cornerstone of US policy toward the Soviet Union during the early Cold War. It found early application in the Truman Doctrine and sought to “contain” Communism to those areas where it already existed.

All cards played by the USA have their Ops value increased by 1 (to a maximum of 4) until the end of the Turn.

The USSR Headlines:

Sparked by a North Korean invasion across the 38th parallel, the Korean War would be the first war sanctioned by the United Nations. There were 15 nations beyond the US and South Korea with combat forces attempting to defend South Korean independence. MacArthur’s campaign to the Yalu River provoked a Chinese response that reset the war to its starting positions on the 38th parallel.

The North Korean Invasion will be resolved later.

Iron Weasel

Korean War

Soviet Military Ops increased to 2.
Soviet Die = [6] Success!
North wins Korean War.
Soviets gain 2 VPs.
1 U.S. Influence removed from S. Korea.
1 Soviet Influence added in S. Korea.

Current Map:


@Capfalcon @Korsakovia Soviet Action Round 1 - Go!

stever777

You call that a war win?!

Cayrus

Iron Weasel's first post remind me of this song:
http://youtu.be/wvs_qTnUHMI

Capfalcon

Let's get this apocolypse train going.

I predict that the Middle East will be unstable this year, due to there being no support for Iran during an attempted Coup.

Play NATO for 4 ops and Coup Iran.

Iron Weasel

The second part of the US strategy to rebuild Europe, the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) became synonymous with the West’s opposition to the Soviet Union. An oft repeated maxim for NATO’s purpose captures it nicely: “NATO was created to keep the Soviets out, the Americans in, and the Germans down.”

Prerequisites not met; event does not take place. NATO card goes into discard pile.

Soviet Coup Attempt in Iran:
Soviet Die = [5] Success!
1 American Influence removed from Iran
4 Soviet Influence added in Iran

DEFCON degrades to 4.
No coups or realignments in Europe.
Soviet Military Ops advances to 5.

@stever777 @Cayrus American Action Round 1

Cayrus

The East Europeans are yearning to be free from Soviet oppression.

Eastern European Unrest for event, targeting East Germany, Poland, and Yugoslavia.

Iron Weasel

Soviet influence reduced by 1 in E. Germany (now 3), Poland (3) and Yugoslavia (0).

Map update later.

Soviet Action Round 2.

Farangu

Small nitpick: Players advance on the military Ops track the amount of Ops on their card, not by how much they rolled. U.S.S.R should be at 4, not 5.

Capfalcon

But we got 2 advances on the track for the Korean war.

Farangu

...DERP

Iron Weasel

Illuminati are penalized 5 Ops and must abandon one of the following:
Global Control VIA the World Bank
Global Control VIA WHO mind control 'innoculation'
Project Icarus

Capfalcon

While the American Pig Dogs are wasting their time with pointless bomb drills, Mother Russia is spreading the truth of Communistic superiority.

Use Duck and Cover for Ops.
2 in Pakistan and 1 in South Korea
Activate Event Afterwards.

Cayrus

America extends its protective arms over Europe, much to the relief of the huddled masses, yearning to be free

NORAD for Ops
3 influence in France, 1 in Greece

Iron Weasel

The US Congress passed into law the Federal Civil Defense Act, in reaction to the first Soviet tests of nuclear weapons in 1949. Duck and Cover is perhaps the most memorable of a variety of civil defense efforts to raise awareness of nuclear attack. Ironically, such films may have assisted in increasing the possibility of nuclear war by making the possibility of such a conflict “thinkable” by the general public.

Soviet Influence placed.
DEFCON degrades to 3
USA gains 2VP
Score is now 0.

The North American Aerospace Defense Command is a joint military organization sponsored by the governments of Canada and the United States. Its mission is to jointly monitor and control the air space over North America from unfriendly incursion. It was founded initially to protect against the threat of low flying Soviet bombers attacking from the Arctic region. During the Cold War, the Command was famously housed in the Cheyenne Mountain facility depicted in the film Wargames. At its height, NORAD commanded 250,000 military personnel. The command illustrates the full integration and cooperation of US allies into the US nuclear umbrella and alliance structure.

USA Influence placed.

Current Map:


Soviet Action Round 3

Farangu

Some good moves made by both sides.

Also, a note: I'll be out of town starting tomorrow for business. I'll try to offer advice if requested, but expect it to be quite sporadic until Thursday.

Iron Weasel

The Revolution Will Not Be Televised
(until @capfalcon and @korsakovia post their next move)

Capfalcon

Turns out Olympics are a great cover for Black Ops in Panama!

Olympic Games for Ops for a Coup in Panama

Iron Weasel

You probably posted that five minutes after I went to bed, didn't you?

Sport often served as an outlet for the intense competition between the Superpowers, and that competition was never so intense as at the Olympics. The Olympics served as a test bed to see which society could make the greatest strides in human physical achievement. It fit neatly into Communist ideology of “the New Man.” The games frequently reflected the global political situation, as with the terrorist attacks in Munich, and became overt political tools with the US boycott of the Moscow games in 1980, and the Soviet boycott of the LA games in 1984.

Coup will be resolved tonight, when I have access to VASSAL.

USA may wait or take their Action Round #3

stever777

America feels the love from a grateful portion of a continent, keeping them safe from one room apartments and lack of color in their grocery aisles.

Europe Scoring

Iron Weasel

Some Cold War historians view the entire struggle, costing millions of lives, untold trillions of dollars, and conflict around the globe, as a struggle for the future of Germany. While that view may be too myopic, it is clear that Europe always remained in the forefront of strategy and emphasis. Defeat in Europe ultimately meant defeat in the Cold War.

Europe will be scored this evening after the Soviet Olympic Deniable Operations Team competes in the 100-meter Regime Change against Panama.

Iron Weasel

Soviet Coup attempt in Panama:
Soviet Die = [6] Success!
1 American Influence removed from Panama.
3 Soviet Influence added in Panama.

DEFCON degrades to 2.
No coups or realignments in MiddleEast.

Europe Scoring:
U.S.S.R. has Presence in Europe for 3 VPs +2 VPs for controlled Battleground countries in Europe = 5VP
U.S. has Domination in Europe for 7 VPs +3 VPs for controlledBattleground countries in Europe = 10 VP
U.S. gains 5 VPs.

Current Score: USA 5

Current Map:


@Capfalcon @Korsakovia Soviet Action Round 4 is go

Iron Weasel

@Capfalcon @Korsakovia are probably hosting the annual Kegger at the Kremlin.

stever777

Sumpin wrong wid your maps, IW.

Iron Weasel

It looks fine to me?

Is anyone else having trouble seeing the map(s)?

jakobagger

Well, I can't zoom in as far on yours as I could on Farangu's. Which is problematic on my ridiculously small netbook screen. Other than that it works fine.

Iron Weasel

Sorry about that, dudes. I'm just taking screenshots in VASSAL and hosting them on imgur.

Capfalcon

Nuclear Test Ban for Ops, putting 1 in India, 2 in Afghanistan, and 1 in South Korea.

Leading talks on nuclear disarmament is very popular with the nuclear have not's of the world.

stever777

Hmm.
Maybe my works blocking them cuz I can see them now @ home.

VASSAL!!!

Iron Weasel

The first Nuclear Test Ban treaty owes its origins to the de-escalation process that followed the Cuban Missile Crisis. It prohibited further nuclear tests in the air, underwater or in space. International pressure for such a ban mounted in the 1950s as scientific evidence began to document severe environmental damage caused by earlier atmospheric testing by the nuclear powers. Underground testing remained an allowable methodology, but all forms of “peaceful nuclear explosions” were also banned, tightening the non-proliferation regime.

Soviet Influence placed.

Current Map:


@stever777 and @Cayrus are up American Action Round 4.

stever777

Dammit! Where's Kissinger?!

Playin with Jill St. John again.

Iron Weasel

At your service.

stever777

Island folk would rather be oppressed by cash than tanks.

Formosan Resolution for Ops - 1 in Philippines, 2 in Malaysia

Iron Weasel

Reacting to the “loss of China” the United States Congress extended to President Eisenhower open ended authority to defend Taiwan—technically known as the Republic of China on Taiwan—with military force. The resolution came at a time when the United States faced challenges from the People’s Republic in Indochina as well as the Korean peninsula. Effectively, Taiwan sat under the US nuclear umbrella, and the balance of power within the Taiwan Straits would now remain a question of strategic importance to the United States.

US Influence placed.

Current Map:


@Korsakovia @Capfalcon: Soviet Action Round 5 awaits!

Capfalcon

Warsaw Pact for Ops

2 in Burma, 1 in India

Iron Weasel

A reaction to perceived Western aggression by the creation of NATO, the Warsaw Pact was a Russian-dominated military alliance that included all of the states of Eastern Europe except Yugoslavia. It integrated both tactics and equipment throughout the alliance along Soviet models. Albania withdrew from the Pact in 1968.

Soviet influence placed.

@stever777 @Cayrus are up for American Action Round 5.

Cayrus

COMECON for ops, 1 in Indonesia, 3 in Thailand

Capfalcon

Influence in Poland, East Germany, Yugoslavia, and Czechoslovakia.

Captured Nazi Scientists for Event

Iron Weasel

The Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (COMECON) was founded in reaction to the allure of the Marshall Plan to the Soviet satellites in Eastern Europe. While very loosely organized and dominated by the Soviets in its early years, COMECON would ultimately fulfill the role of trade liberalization and industrial rationalization for Eastern Europe.

US and Soviet Influence placed.

Soviet Action Round 6:

Code named “Project Paperclip” in the United States, the victors of World War II scrambled to “recruit” former Nazi scientists into their own research establishments. In the West, such efforts involved shielding scientists from war crime investigations. Perhaps the most famous case is Wernher von Braun who is thought of as the father of America’s rocketry program. Stalin was reportedly confounded by Soviet failure to grab this knowledge base first.

USSR launches Sputnik and gains 2VP. New score USA 3.

Americans to play their final Action Round.

Iron Weasel

I've been phone posting, so I'll clean up my posts and provide a new map later tonight.