The Most Horrendous Combat Theaters in WWII

[KG Erwin]

Combining the opponents, the weather, and the racial hatred which resulted in no-holds- barred viciousness, I'd have to give the Eastern Front (Germans vs Russians) and the Pacific (Allies vs Japanese) equal billing as the worst theaters to actually fight in. A close second might be the Southern Theater (Italy/the Balkans), due to the terrain.

[AndrewC]

Cetniks vs. Ustashe in Yugoslavia

[KG Erwin]

ORIGINAL: AndrewC

Cetniks vs. Ustashe in Yugoslavia

It is an irony that so-called "low intensity" warfare can be medieval in its barbarity. The one thing that keeps wargames from being obscene is the absence of civilian massacres. The sound of women & children being executed is something that none of us could bear. [:(]

[Terminus]

Yeah, "low-intensity conflict" is a phrase invented by someone who's never been in one...[8|]

[Goblin]

The Ardenne. Especially for the Allied troops at the beggining, and the Germans at the end. Brutal conditions and no supplies.


Goblin

[rich12545]

I'd have to pick the Pacific. After reading "The Jungle is Neutral" some years ago (can't remember the author), I think it's a no-brainer. The bugs alone are enough to give this theater the nod. Not to mention the heat/humidity. Or the vicious never quit attitude of the Japanese.

[Korpraali V]

Have to give it to Winter war. Not Finnish but Russian soldiers.

For example imagine that you are from somewhere southern part of Soviet Union... You have barely seen any snow, never more than five trees... You are trained to do what officer or politruk tells you to do.

You are taken to the middle of the forest. One small road, three meters wide... then just trees... everywhere. Temperature is below -40C (= below -40F) and you don't have winter clothes. There are lots of snow and moving is slow even in the roads. You can't go off the road cause if you do you get lost. No maps, no compass. Officer have one 1:1 000 000 scale map... this road is not in the map...

Suddenly from somewhere in the forest shooting starts... politruks and officers fall... many of your friends fall too... you can't shoot back, your rifle is frozen. You didn't know how to keep it working under this temperature. Then everything is quiet... nothing. Belaja smert (White death). Just wounded begging for help. Soon they are dead because of the temperature. You can't feel your fingers... even if you'd survive, they are lost, as are your toes.

What to do? Making fire makes those ghosts to come back. If you don't make it many now healthy will die, again because of the temperature. You are lost in desert... this time the desert just means endless forest... If there are officers alive, they command you to go forward. If they are dead, you can just wait... the road behind you is broken. You can't surrender because the politruk told that Finns torture every captured Soviet soldier to death.



This is not to praise Finnish army (situation was same to us, but we were more familiar with it - and forest was the Friend, not the enemy) but to [X(][X(] the horrible situation those Soviet soldiers were taken to.


(Another one was definately that Cetniks vs. Ustashe in Yugoslavia.)

[FlashfyreSP]

Any theater where brave men fought and died was a horrendous theater. They were all horrendous theaters, especially to the men who were in them.

[KG Erwin]

ORIGINAL: FlashfyreSP

Any theater where brave men fought and died was a horrendous theater. They were all horrendous theaters, especially to the men who were in them.

I fully realize that, Flashfyre. I start these sort of threads to remind the players of what they are representing while having fun with this peculiar hobby. This is also why I strongly encourage newbies to watch authentic footage and study the history. One of my prime motives is not to glorify war, but to help illustrate the mechanics behind the conduct of war. You know exactly what I'm talking about, but it is difficult to explain to the folks outside of the hobby, or even to some of the casual gamers.

PS Having said that, once in a while it's still fun to let loose a can of whupp-ass on the bad guys. [:D]

[Puukkoo]

I'll have to go with the Eastern Front. It was not just another military conflict, which even alone was the most horrible one, but the ideological warfare made it even more horrible.

For Hitler there was three fronts in the war: East, West and Jewish.

[Kevin E. Duguay]

Stalingrad.

[Alby]

My house when I piss off the wife!!
[X(]

[:D]

[omegaall]

Kokoda Track July – Nov 1942

Some comments re one of the Bn fighting at the time.

When the 39th were finally withdrawn from the fighting, they were feverish, suffering from scrub typhus, hookworm and malaria; boots and uniforms had rotted through. They had suffered: 54 men were killed in action, four died of wounds and 125 were wounded during their fight along the Kokoda Track. LTCOL Ralph Honner assembled the remains of the 39th Battalion – by now only 50 men, wearing what was left of their uniforms and kit. Honner commended them for their remarkable efforts and passed on Brigadier Pott’s commendations.
Victorian 39th Militia Battalion, poorly-trained and ill-equipped troops, average age was 18yrs 6 months.

[Sturmpionier]

The Volkhov. Russians and Germans alike called it the "green Hell." I first read about it in Kurowski's Infantry Aces and it creeped me out then. Having reenacted WWII (not the same I know) in pretty much all environments from snow to mountains to urban, get me out of the swamp.

[Kevin E. Duguay]

[font="Arial"][/font] Stalingrad![center][/center]

[Adamo]

Just finished watching 'Stalingrad'. I know movies tend to exaggerate but the Germans had it pretty bad during that campaign---especially after the encirclement and surrender.

[EricDerKönig (HMB)]

Burma. Nasty terrain, plenty of diseases to go around, extremely hot (during the summer, dehydration was a major issue), followed by drenching rains.
And bugs. Lots of bugs.

Oh, and let's not forget enemy soldiers there as well!

[elcidce]

Id vote for New Ginuea. It has heat, disease, and a brutal enemy at close quarters in the jungle.

[panda124c]

It's a matter of perspective, any place someone is shooting at YOU! [:(]

[DoubleDeuce]

ORIGINAL: pbear

It's a matter of perspective, any place someone is shooting at YOU! [:(]

Pbear beat me to it. I was going to say "The one you are/were in!"

Honestly though I would have to go with someplace in the Pacific but afraid I can't pick one as there were more then a couple "horrendous" battles in that theater.