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Praetorium Honoris

Thursday, February 17, 2022

Hold Fire!

Treriksrøysa on the boundary between Finland, Norway and Russia
(Source)
Okay, this isn't a "book" post, I need to step back for a day or so and consider the direction I'm going. While the Winter War isn't quite over yet (in the book, in reality it ended 82 years ago this month), I think my telling of it is finished. The reasoning behind that decision is simple.

I like writing about warfare at its lowest levels, telling the tale of those who actually have to fight it, not those who fight from a map or attend staff meetings. While those folks are important (seriously, some of them serve a useful purpose, especially those who do logistical stuff) I've always had a love for the grunts, the gravel agitators, the ones on the sharp end of the stick.

Frankly, the fighting in the Winter War continues on but in reality the politicians in Finland have realized by this point that they're screwed, they should have taken the "deal" the Soviets offered before the attack. They would have lost less land than they did.

While I could press on and describe the suffering from combat and the climate but really, what's the point? I've introduced a number of characters, both Russian and Finnish, who we will meet again later on in the book. Did you know that when Hitler invaded the Soviet Union on the 22nd of June 1941 that the Finns joined in? They hoped to regain the territory they lost during the Winter War.

No, that didn't really work out they way they thought it would. Or rather, hoped it would.

I need to get back to France because the Germans are heading that way. I need to get Billy, Guillaume, Jan, and Jürgen ready for that event. I'll probably visit the Allied participation  in the Norwegian campaign. Like the Winter War it didn't last long, but it was pretty intense and really should have coincided with the Winter War, the idea had been originally to support the Finns by going through Norway and Sweden. Didn't happen that way.

So that's where I'm at right now. A short pause, maybe a day, maybe two, while I change the barrel on my mental machine gun, and let the Muse catch her breath, she's been very busy as of late.

I also need to catch up on my sleep. This was on sale the other day (half price on Steam) ...

(Source)

So ...

I've stayed up rather late too many nights in a row playing this, so my brain is just a bit worn out. You know what they say, "All work and no play makes Sarge a dull boy." But too much play makes Sarge a tired boy.

So you all get to suffer as I stoke the fires of my gaming addiction.

Sorry.

Not. 😲



32 comments:

  1. Sarge, this is my fear - well, really my self knowledge - of finding a game like that: I will become so entranced I will basically enter "cave" mode. But super nice find!

    I did not know the Finns had joined in the invasion, although I suppose it made a fair amount of sense given the time and the situation. Loss of territory to another power has always proven to be a bitter pill to swallow.

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  2. When I saw the picture showing the 3 way boundary marker and the cleared border area I remembered hearing that our border with Canada has a cleared area cut in it, I went to google maps and took a look. Yep, there is it is!

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    1. Dang! I did not know that! I did the same as you and yup, there it was!

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    2. I wonder if the big rocks strewn across the clearing, and extending down all the way to the river, are there to break possible tracked vehicle tracks?

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    3. Unlikely, they look far too random to have been placed intentionally.

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    4. There was a time it was mostly uncleared along Idaho- Montana- North Dakota. Roads and marked trails were cleared for a couple of hundred yards, then Nature rules. I had more than one conversation with unformed officers from each side as to where the boundary was. And who was on the wrong side. There were times I had to point out if I was correct, they were both on the wrong side.

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    5. Things have changed, not for the better I'd wager.

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    6. They have, supposedly, cleared a 100m / 300' borden from sea-to-sea. I'd think if it had actually been done, there would be airborne footage from drones showing that. Maybe it's classified.

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    7. It shows on Google Maps satellite view between Vermont and Quebec.

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  3. Operational pauses are necessary, Sarge. Some ( many? Wish it were so) never really lost our appreciation, nay affection for the snuffies, grunts et al. Your writing is worth the wait.
    Boat Guy

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    Replies
    1. Yes, I need to consolidate, bring up reinforcements and replacements. Then we shall set out once more!

      (And thanks!)

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  4. We'll still be here. Have E. justify her existence, and write a post.

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    1. I think it's safe to say that that's not going to happen. Her existence is more than justified, as to her name remaining on the masthead? That might change.

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    2. You are a lucky fellow, to have her as your daughter. She created Alex and Belle, two wonderful girls!

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    3. That she did, that she did.

      Which keeps her very busy!

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    4. Belle seems to have personality of 12 little girls!

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    5. Lush's name can stay since nepotism is perfectly acceptable. She's the heir to massive Chant du Départ fortune anyway.

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    6. Not to mention the vast tracts of land ...

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  5. Joining with Nazi Germany made sense to them. Their previous allies threw them under the Soviet bus and then backed out completely, and left Finland swinging in the wind.

    Having a shared enemy, and being able to get resupply from the Nazis, contributed immensely in the Finn's decision.

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  6. Do your Panthers break down if you move them more than two hexes?

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    Replies
    1. No, but in real life that wasn't always the case either.

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  7. I used to really be into computer games back 35 years ago. Anymore I'll stay up way too late reading ebooks.

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  8. Sarge, I hope you don't feel pressure from the readership to feed us daily. Your muse rarely gets a day off anyway, and she should submit a complaint to HR! Enjoy your sleep.

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  9. Many great artists have a touch of insanity!

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Just be polite... that's all I ask. (For Buck)
Can't be nice, go somewhere else...

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