Caucasus aflame.

[tanelorn]

I was reading about Sochi hosting the 2014 winter Olympics and wondered about all things that go wrong down there.
I mean, that's a big powder keg.

What kept me from meddling with the subject of a Caucasus conflict before, was how to delay an intervention by Russia and/or Turkey/NATO on the side of the locals that should get a free hand more or less, for mutual bashing up to that point.

What if intervention by non combatant powers was researched and built as a WoW by the combatants (breaking a previously locked alliance?)
Delay & randomizer in one package.

So I got down to it today and that's what I've got so far.

The sides, alphabetical order:

ARMENIA
Advantages: Defensive bonus, defensible terrain, random donations from the diaspora, possible Russian support, stable morale.
Disadvantages: Financial deficit, small population, difficult development.Might get caught in a crossfire.

AZERBAIJAN
Advantages: Good & regular oil revenue, profit from random peak oil prices, possible Turkish support and/or Islamic funds.
Disadvantages: Unemployment, population crisis, access to Ucrainian stock materiel mostly, lower morale. Possible Russian oil blockade. Mostly infertile undefensible terrrain.

CHECHENS
Advantages: Excelent irregular units, offensive bonus, high morale, training camps beyond reach.
Disadvantages: Hopeless odds, conventionaly untenable position.

GEORGIA
Advantages: Might avert Russian intervention if it consolidates quickly and stay out of the big game (unlikely)
Disadvantages: Shrinking population, failed economy, devastated morale, disorganised army, civil war. Might be dragged into the general conflict anyway.

RUSSIA
Advantages: Technological/ production advantage. Large (but sluggish) army. Time to build up.
Disadvantages: Inferior morale, struggling economy, drinking problems, population in decline. Long lines of support/communication. Might end up in a nuke duel.

SECESSIONISTS (ABKHAZIA, AJARIA & S.OSSETIA)
Advantages: Possible Russian support. Defensible terrain.
Disadvantages: Hopeless odds.

TURKEY
Advantages: Booming population, balanced army, defensible terrain, Possible NATO support.
Disadvantages: Unstable economy. Deployment elsewhere limits theatre commitment levels.

[curtsibling]

This looks very cool!
The map seems pretty epic also.
I think you should go ahead with this.
And if you need any help, just ask, tanelorn!

What would the terrain properties be, and would the mineral wealth be represented?

[tanelorn]

The first unit. Based on a recent drawing in a Czech site, including the camo. Blow-out ammo racks on both sides of the autoloader. I have a hunch we will see a half-dome armor pack in the front of the real thing, as in the rival experimental tank.

[Gagliaudo]

nice, original idea
pretty, pretty map

[tanelorn]

TY, C.!
Yeah, the other thing got derailed because it was a common concept, in the end, and I lost interest. Actually, I do need help with this. This time I'll ask for it.

Patches of oilfield terrain, nothing fancy. There are significant ore deposits in the area, but most of the actual heavy industry is off the map. Ore in most cases will be a little extra cash, not shields.

[curtsibling]

When you need this, just say the word!

If you need it now, I will look up some oil-well terrain.

[Cyrion]

Re: Caucasus aflame.

Originally posted by tanelorn
RUSSIA
Advantages: Technological/ production advantage. Large (but sluggish) army. Time to build up.
Disadvantages: Inferior morale, struggling economy, drinking problems , population in decline. Long lines of support/communication. Might end up in a nuke duel.

Now I wonder how you would implement that!

Idea: house rule forcing the player to use the "goto" command to represent the drunken decisions+behaviour !

PS: nice map and idea, BTW!

[McMonkey]

Excellent idea. Love the map. I watched an excellent documentary about the war between Armenia and Azerbaijan in the 90's. The documentary maker was one of the Armenian soldiers on the front line with a camcorder. He was finding all his old comrades years later to see what had happened with their lives. Powerful stuff!

I have also seen a documentary where a journalist visits the trenches on both sides that is still the front line to this day although the fighting has stopped. They are high up in the mountains and it looks like a scene from the Italian-Austrian front in WW1!

I look forward to this already. Any help you need just shout

[Patine]

This does sound like a cool idea! I think it's largey virgin territory, too. I'd like to see more about this.

[tanelorn]

Thanks! Clarification: The scenario is set in the present, which means that e.g. the Chechens will be divided between Kadyrov's people (in the pro-Russian faction side) and the Islamists. Which means that even if Georgia and Russia don't declare direct war, both Chechen factions will be conducting attacks on both sides of the border (and across the entire N.Caucasus).

[fairline]

Sounds like a good subject for simulation Tim. Need anything?

[tanelorn]

Yes! Actually a ZSU 23-4 shilka would do just fine, whenever get your crafty hands on it cause mine looks like the result of a head-on collision. No hurry whatsoever, this will take some time.

You know, the shilkas were used primarily as an anti-infantry weapon during the Russian sieges of Grozny, to pick off Rpg teams and snipers on rooftops.
The US used the m42 like that in Vietnam, not sure about the m19 in Korea.

Btw everytime Russia recaptures Grozhny, it will pay a money penalty, so a nice Chechen strategy would be classic guerilla strategy: get in- get out.
Unless Putin gets Chechens to do the job for him. Which is what he does, and what effective CI is all about. Eventually.

[our_man]

Sounds like a great original idea for a scenario in a rather forgotten, but very volatile region of the world. Duking it out with out-of-date but irreplaceable Soviet equipment sound like a lot of fun. How are you planning to represent Nagorno-Karabakh?

[tanelorn]

As part of Armenia , and Nakhichevan in a similar role as part of Azerbaijan. Honestly, finding out OOB's about active battle zones is near impossible. Forget about large formations and standard equipment. That's what I'm looking into now. You see, these countries are signatories to the revised CFE, so to pay lip-service to the treaty, they "transfer" troops and equipment to such "hot-spots". There must be 3 times more Armenian tanks in Karabakh than in Armenia proper, for example.
Georgian forces are not even 1/4 of what they once were on paper. The US have a program of re-training and re-equipping them but there is no money...
Lots of reading.

[our_man]

Wikipedia is your friend. I randomly looked up topics concerning the disintegration of the USSR one day and got sucked into reading about the situation there for the past 15 years for an entire week.