the task. Because of the difficult terrain and circumstances, Liang removed their tank corps and added assault and Special Infantry divisions.
The PAA and SAF formations had taken substantial losses throughout the summer and autumn battles. Even after adding replacements, they were at seventy-five percent of the start-date strengths.
The Third Front’s objectives were now twofold: Denver with the accompanying capture of the Front Range Urban Corridor and a continuation of the northern assault. The Rocky Mountains would continue to be their western wall as they surged north. The SAF First Front would drive north in tandem with the two Chinese forces on either side of them. The PAA Fourth Front would mask St. Louis as it continued for the distant Canadian border, with the Mississippi River on its eastern side. The offense’s directives would take it through Iowa and Minnesota.
The Chinese and Brazilian strategists believed the drive, together with well-placed garrison troops, would divide the continental United States into two distinct halves. From such a position, they believed two more campaigns would complete the conquest of the United States.
Despite their victorious armies and the success of the earlier drives, the Aggressor powers had several critical problems. The first was the incredible wear on their vehicles. Too many had broken down and keeping the rest in operational condition took millions of precious man-hours.
The second problem was the constant human toll of war. Formations were depleted due to battle losses and extreme fatigue.
The third was the need for garrison formations along the Mississippi River and the even greater need for security troops in the vast American hinterland. In the growing Occupation Territory, the U.S. partisan and guerilla attacks were now beginning to intensify. Taken altogether, the cutting edge of the Aggressor armies had diminished considerably.
The Chinese strategists in particular understood the danger. They added a fourth problem. The plan to push their forces to the utmost would cause a substantial weakening everywhere else in a short span of time. The reason was obvious. A man couldn’t operate at his highest capacity for any extended length of time; neither could an army. Both a man and an army needed rest to recoup from exhaustion. The strategists believed several critical factors would offset the combined problems or risks.
One, the American Army had taken staggering losses, meaning it was much weaker in comparison to its beginning strength. The Chinese strategists understood the Americans mobilized new formations, but they didn’t appreciate the vast quantity about to be unleashed upon them. They believed these hastily-trained and equipped formations would lack the high standards as the veteran units. They also assured themselves these new formations would be composed of second and third-grade quality soldiers.
Two, the Chinese strategists assumed that American morale had been and would continue to be sapped by constant defeat and retreat. There would naturally come a point when the enemy folded.
Three, the loss of the American heartland meant less food production and industrial power for the United States. They believed this would slow the appearance of the new formations.
Finally, the Chinese strategists supposed that the waning strategic strength of the United States meant that any American offensive would lack power. In essence, that likely meant the U.S. could not inflict strategic-level defeats on either the PAA or the SAF armies.
The key ingredients on the American side were threefold. First, there was Chancellor Kleist’s offer and acceptance of neutrality. It gave the American’s more regular Army formations to put into the Midwest. Two, the Canadians were coming. The Americans would have allies again. Finally, the volume of the newly-raised Militia battalions together with the transfer of the bulk of the East Coast Militia surprised everyone. Most of these battalions lacked armored vehicles of any kind and also lacked artillery. The new Militia levies relied on heavy mortar teams for indirect support. Still, the majority of these battalions were brave and committed defenders of their homeland.
The historical campaign now entered Phase II of the assault. As an icy Alaskan cold descended over the land, the Chinese continued their original plan, with several seemingly minor alterations, the largest of which was the Denver assault.
The Americans, meanwhile, gathered strength in the north. The rains had given them time and now they were beginning to regain numbers.
The brutal contest was nearing the critical clutch. The powers involved were like giant wrestlers exhausted by their previous efforts. A short breathing spell meant they would now throw everything into the final grapple.
2039, November 7-18. Renewed Offensive. As the fierce American winter descended on