This is a follow-up post to my previous post Faction Subtree Mechanic Proposal to expand on it and clarify potential functions.
In my previous post, I outlined the benefit that subtrees would provide to the game, in this post I want to more thoroughly investigate what subtrees might be possible. Below I also incorporated the matchmaking “soft rule” commented by @VoyoMayPL.
Note: Each “main tree” shows an example of what the overall subtree system would look like for that faction, the visuals in the other subtrees are not updated to show the subtree system. Many of the subtrees have equipment that is currently present in the main tree, please disregard that equipment as duplicates would be removed.
Example: MP-28 in Finnish tree, which is already in the German tree and is a German gun.
USA (main tree)
This an example of what the subtree system would look like while having the USA selected in the “Western Allies” faction. The subtrees show on the subtree bar are from left to right are USA, British Commonwealth, France, Australia, Benelux, and Greece.
British Commonwealth
The British Commonwealth, able to draw on the innovations of Britain itself and of its colonies, has a large pool of potential equipment to create a very interesting subtree. The subtree itself would represent the forces of Britain, Canada, India, and South Africa. The British took part in every allied campaign, so their inclusion is a given.
Australia
For this suggestion I have separated Australia from the British Commonwealth subtree, but it is also an option for them to be included with the British. They participated in engagements in North Africa and in the Pacific.
France/Free France
Though France fell to Germany very early in the war, French forces participated still contributed to the recapture of France and the advance into Italy and Germany. The french also had limited participation in the battle against Japan in the pacific. France had an expansive list of weapons it was developing to modernize its army.
Benelux(Netherlands/Belgium)
The Netherlands and Belgium capitulated quickly after the German invasion, but the forces from the Netherlands and Belgium continued fighting in Allied armies throughout the war. Notably the Dutch colonies in the pacific fought Japan.
Greece
Greece was supported by the British following an Italian/Germany invasion in 1940. Greece doesn’t have much in terms of unique equipment it could provide, but it would be an interesting subtree in conjunction with a “Battle of Greece” update, focusing on Italy and Greece. Greek forces helped allied forces in North Africa, after the fall of Greece.
Rifles -
- Rigopulos 1941 - never made, could not find a good picture
- Philippidis M1925 - greek modified rifle
- Lelakis M1923 - greek modified rifle
- Gras M1874 - greek modified rifle
- FN model 30
SMGS -
- Makrykano M1943
LMGS -
- EPK Pyrkal M1939
- EYP Hotchkiss greek modified machine gun
Planes -
- PAZL P.24F/G
- Dornier DO 22
- Raab-AEKKEA R-29
USSR (main tree)
This an example of what the subtree system would look like while having the USSR selected in the “Eastern Allies” faction. The subtrees show on the subtree bar are from left to right are USSR, Poland, and Republican Spain.
Poland
It is controversial to include Poland as a subtree for the Soviet Union, as they were initially invaded by Soviet Union and Germany. However, Polish volunteers joined the red army by the tens of thousands to help the defeat the Germans in the eastern front, fighting all the way to Berlin. It may make more sense to have Poland as a subtree for the Western allies, but from a gameplay perspective the allies already have a lot of subtree options and from what I can tell the Soviet Union doesn’t. It could be argued that both the Western Allies and Eastern Allies could have Polish subtrees, but I think that would rob both factions of having a unique subtree.
Spanish Volunteers / Republican Spain
In the event that a “Spanish Civil War” update is considered, a Spanish subtree could be available for the Soviet Union. The example tech tree below was originally intended for the Spanish axis volunteers forces, but a large portion of it was originally created by Republican Spanish Forces during the civil war. There were also a relatively small number of volunteers that joined the red army to fight Germany on the eastern front.
Germany (main tree)
This an example of what the subtree system would look like while having Germany selected in the “European Axis” faction. The subtrees show on the subtree bar are from left to right are Germany, Italy, Hungary, Finland, Slovakia, and Nationalist Spain.
Italy
Already introduced in the battle of Tunisia campaign, Italy is nation that deserves to be expanded on. Italian forces also participated in the battle of Stalingrad and Moscow. Italy could be introduced in a “battle of Italy” campaign, centered on the Italian peninsula.
Separate Italian tech tree
Hungary/Romania/Bulgaria
This is primarily a Hungarian subtree supplemented by Romania and Bulgaria due to the small amount of unique weaponry developed by each. Both Hungary and Romania saw extensive fighting on the eastern front, while Bulgaria only contributed a small volunteer force.
Interesting Bulgarian Weapons
New Weapon Suggestions - Hungary
Finland
Finland battled the Soviet Union extensively during the winter war (1939-1940) and with the support of Germany in the continuation war (1941-1944). Finland could be introduced with a “Continuation War” or “Battle of Leningrad” update.
I think it would be possible to supplement the Finnish tree with the Norway/Danish tree as Finland recieved guns and volunteers from its nordic neighbors during the winter war.
Slovakia
Slovakia sent an expeditionary force to the eastern front from 1941-1944. The Slovakian forces were armed with some of the Czechoslovak equipment in Slovakia after the capitulation of Czechoslovakia. Slovakia represents a good option for including more Czechoslovak equipment in the game.
Spanish Volunteers / Nationalist Spain
Nationalist Spain sent approximately 40,000 volunteers to aid Germany on the eastern front. The Nationalist troops captured many interesting and unique weapons from the Republican forces following the conclusion of the Spanish Civil War. The inclusion of a Spanish volunteer subtree could be a good way to include some of these unique weapons, in the event that a “Spanish Civil War” update is not considered. If a Republican Spain tree was included with the Soviet Union, a large chunk of the content in this subtree would have to be removed.
Japan (main tree)
This an example of what the subtree system would look like while having Japan selected in the “Asian Axis” faction. The subtrees show on the subtree bar are from left to right are Japan and Thailand.
Thailand
Though Japan had a number of puppet governments in China, I doubt we will ever see them for the same reason we won’t see a Chinese faction (already heavily discussed). Thailand has a small number of unique equipment that could complement low-mid BR Japan in the pacific.
Rifles -
- Type 46 Mauser
- Type 46/66 Mauser
- Type 47 Mauser
- Type 47/66 Mauser
- Type 66 rifle
LMGS -
- Madsen
Planes -
- Avro 504
- Martin 10B (exported by USA)
- Vought 02U Corsair (Type A-1)
- Curtiss BF2C Goshawk
Tanks -
- Type 76 SPAAG
- Vickers 6ton
Shared Progression:
Progression is shared across the main tree and subtrees, so if you play USA you can still research Australian equipment, and vice versa.
Application of a matchmaking “Soft Rule”
If possible, if you have one or more subtree equipped it would be nice to be more likely to be put in maps where those subtree were present historically.
Example: If I have German, Italian, and Hungarian squads equipped I would be more likely to find matches in the battle of Stalingrad.
Necessary Decisions:
There is some debate on which subtrees belong in which faction. This is a compiled list I made when I was trying to decide what should go where:
Who gets the Spanish subtree?
The Republican Spanish subtree for the Eastern Allies is there out a necessity to give that faction more variety when compared to the other factions. I think it would be possible to give both the European Axis and Eastern Allies a Spanish subtree. However, I find it somewhat hard to justify a Republican Spain subtree without a “Spanish Civil War” update, as they were much fewer in number in comparison to Axis Spanish volunteers and I am unsure if they would have any unique cosmetics. In the case of two Spanish subtrees, the spanish equipment would need to be divided between the two so that minimal overlap exists.
Czechoslovakia or Slovakia?
The Slovakia subtree could be moved to the Soviet Union and renamed to “Czechoslovakia”. The main argument would be the lack of subtrees for the Soviet Union in comparison to other nations, and this tree could be justified by the Czechoslovakian volunteers who fought for the Soviets. However, I don’t think this justification is sufficient, as all Czech equipment was captured and integrated into the German or Slovakian armies after the fall of Czechoslovakia. Germany already has a lot of Czechoslovak equipment for this reason, so it would make sense that all Czechoslovak stays within the “European Axis” faction within the German and Slovak tech trees.
Poland?
Like mentioned earlier, it is somewhat strange to include Poland in the “Eastern Allies” faction as it was invaded by the Soviet Union. It may make sense to have Poland as a subtree for the Western allies, but from a gameplay perspective the allies already have a lot of subtree options in comparison to the Soviet Union. It could be argued that both the Western Allies and Eastern Allies could have Polish subtrees, but I think that would rob both factions of having a unique subtree.
Vichy France?
I did not include Vichy France as a subtree for the European Axis faction as they would share a lot of equipment with the France subtree in the Western Allies faction. That is not to say that there isn’t a historical justification for a Vichy France subtree, as they battled the allies in some areas of North Africa and sent volunteers to the eastern front. In the interest of maintaining unique factions and unlocks for each faction, I think Vichy France should be restricted to event and premium squads.
Brazil/South America/Mexico?
Latin American nations did contribute to the allied war effort in ww2, but only Brazil and Mexico sent any troops for combat roles. These troops had very little in the way of unique equipment, so I think it would be best to reserve them for event/premium squads.
Are there any other potential factions/subtrees I missed (other than China)? There were a few that were considered but not included due to lack of equipment, such as the Philippines, which would best be included in event/premium squads.