World Building Pulp Interwar

8/11/2019 World Building Pulp Interwar

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World Building WWII 1936

History

Pre WWI

1900-1914 the first zeppelins built in germany, technology refined rapidly

WWI

Zeppelins used for maritime patrol throughout the war by Germany and UK (who used

mostly blimps, and some R class airships)

1914, first zeppelin raids against England and france

1915 first super zeppelin (650 ft 6 engine M class, L31) bombs England

September 1915 largest zeppelin raid launched 12 German Navy airships and 4 German

Army airships bomb London, devastating attack, one hundred killed, many more wounded,

parliament building heavily damaged.* (IRL, the attack, with 16 zeppelins no less, was

scattered by a storm, only two ships actually bomb London)

1916 mounting losses, especially against aircraft, and the promising development of the

Gotha bombers gives high command doubt about the continued viability of zeppelin raids

March 1916, first German experiment with parasite fighters conducted. M class L33 carries 2

Halberstadt fighters on a raid, and is attacked by 4 Be.12s, the albatross make short work of

the enemy planes, but are forced to land in enemy territory due to lack of range to make it

back. High command immediately seeks a way to either refuel or reattach to a zeppelin, as

pilots are too valuable to lose at this stage in the war

July 1916, Hugo Eckener and Anthony Fokker design docking system, and Manfred VonRichtofen and Werner Voss are the first pilots to dock with a zeppelin in flight, new trapeze

system is applied to all M and S class airships, which can now carry two Albatross fighters

August 1916 Zeppelin raids begin anew, losses plummet, while the losses on daytime Gotha

raids continue to rise due to increase in allied fighter technology

December 1916 L35 M class forced down south of London in a rainstorm with the new

trapeze technology, crew unable to set fire to the ship before they are captured. The storm

heavily damages the zeppelin but the british are able to copy the aircraft launch and retrievel

system and immediately put it into use on the experimental HMA9 airship, which was also

outfitted with 5 machine guns and one spotlight. The rest of the german airship is studied

thouroghly and the British begin designing their first modern zeppelins, R33 and R34

1917 the Russian civil war breaks out, Czar Nicholas II abdicates. He is captured along with

his wife and executed while trying to leave to exile, while his children. Without a figure

head, the loyalist Russians follow the royal family into exile.

March 1917, HMA9, with two of the new SE5 scout planes attached, encounters L35 south

of London, a dogfight between the british and the german parasite fighters ensues, as the

HMA9 slowly overtakes the L35 and catches it in its spotlight. Amidst the british flak, the


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two airships exchange machine gun fire. The HMA 9 has the upper hand, having been loaded

with incendiary bullets and the L35 is shot down in flames over High Wycombe.

June 1917, R33 and R34 Launched at cardington

July 1917 R33 catches a german U-boat on the surface, and with the assistance of its parasite

fighters, it manages to sink the submarine.

1918 R36 and R37 Launched

1919 the growing anti-kaiser sentiment in germany comes to conflict, the German

Communist Party takes control in a series of riots, the Kaiser is executed and the

Communists take power. They continue the war in an attempt to spread the communist cause.

Germans against communism or loyal to the Kaiser desert and surrender en-masse. Ferdinand

von Zeppelin, along with Hugo Eckener and the best scientists and engineers of the Zeppelin

company escape on the LZ-67 and surrender to the british

The 20s

July 1920 R80 launched, most streamlined British airship produced.

December 1920 WWI ends in Allied Victory, France gains the Ruhr valley in germany,

USSR captures Germany east of the Ruhr Valley Italy gets German East Africa, East

Prussia becomes Free Poland.

1920 Soviets capture the german zeppelin facilities in Friedrichshafen on Lake

Constance. A team of soviet scientists lead by Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, the leading

airship scientist in Russia, begins research into german zeppelin technology.

1920 The Peoples Republic of Germany is formed.

1920 the Goodyear-Vickers-Zeppelin company is formed.

1920, an uprising in Somalia threatens the british holdings in that country, the Britishdecide to send the R-33 and the R-34 along with a squadron of DH9s to aid the local

levies in reestablishing peace. The air contingent crushes the rebellion in two weeks,

making it one of the least expensive military actions in British history.

1921- Billy Mitchell sinks the ex-german battleship Ostfriesland with only 6 bombs and

demonstrates the vulnerability of surface ships to attack by air

1922 the Roma, an Italian built training airship used by the US Army explodes after

hitting powerlines in Norfolk Virginia with the loss of most of her crew. No more

American airships are filled with Hydrogen, the expensive and rare Helium is used

instead.

1923 USS Shenandoah launched. The airship has the capacity to carry three Vought VE-7

Bluebird fighters.

1923 the R 100 series Transoceanic Airships begin passenger flights on the Cardington-

New York, Cardington-Cairo and Cardington-New Dehli routes.

1924 Lenin dies, and Stalin seizes power


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spreading concern amongst the western military leaders. Even more alarming is the fact

that the great ship is able to launch and retrieve 10 Polikarpov I-5 fighters.

1935 the Russians again shock the world when a fleet of 10 TB-3 bombers and three

massive ANT-20 bombers, along with 29 parasite fighters make a trip around the world.

As they fly over cities, they drop soviet propaganda, and the loudspeakers on the ANT-

20s blast out Soviet anthems as the huge procession lumbers across the sky.

1935 Fascist Italy invades Ethiopia, claiming that they are freeing the people from the

oppression of the upper class land owners

1936 Ethiopia falls.

1936 Soviets and Germans invade Free Poland, WWII begins.

Mercenary band (the Liberators, alternate name suggestions welcomed)

300 men

4 65/17 pack howitzers

6 Ft-17 Renault 37mm guns

20 ford trucks

1 Freighter Hog Islander class ship (St. Mihiel)

1 ex Royal Navy HMS Argus Carrier

1 Macon class Airship

One sikorsky S-38 for use as a rescue craft, carried on the Argus

One Curtiss P-6 Hawk (leader of air contingent and head of Liberators), 7 curtiss

Sparrowhawks (4 on airship, 3 on carrier), 2 Curtis F6C Hawks, 3 Curtis F8C helldivers.

Two Nieuport-Delage NID 42 (French Guys) and one Hawker Fury, one Bristol Bulldog

(British Guys) also carried in Crates (assembled and operated from land) all aircraftmodified for airship hookup.

Airship has one trapeze which retracts into a hangar with room for 5 aircraft, and 4

perches along the belly of the ship that aircraft can hook onto to refuel.

Pirates of the Mediterranean (Greece, Crete, many small Islands)

Free Greek Hellenic Air Force: Hawker Horsley, Armstrong Whitworth Atlas, Fairey IIIF,

Gloster Mars VI Nighthawk, Blackburn Velos, Breguet XIX

Italian backed Pirates: 3 Savoia Marchetti S.67, 5 Savoia Marchetti S.55, 12 Machi M.41, 2 Ford

Trimotor floatplanes, several Armed trawlers, motor boats, 1 Freighter converted to disguised

seaplane tender, 600 men including sailors and pilots. Several bases, including a passenger liner

run aground on an island.


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Soviet Backed Pirates: 12 Polikarpov I-3, 4 TB-1, 2 TB-3, Armed freighter, armed trawlers,

motor boats, Semi-rigid airship (Norge Class), 800 men including pilots and sailors. Operate

from the peoples republic of Greece.

The Liberators (mercs): Argus, the Airship (Swan, Falcon, Cygnet, Eagle, suggestions) , 50 men

and weapons (MGs, rifles, SMGs)

Story

Pirates Raiding merchant shipping, and passenger/cargo airships, stealing cargo and sinking

ships to take over crete. The Free Greek military is very small, with antiquated/slow aircraft

compared to the pirates. Italy and Russia have both backed the two dominant groups of pirates in

the hopes of overthrowing Crete and gaining an important naval base.

League of Nations not willing to intercede for fear of conflict with Russia. Crete calls in the

Mercenaries, only the Argus, the Airship, and 50 armsmen are sent, as it will be an air campaign

with limited ground operations.

Story begins with the Italian Pirates staging an airship heist, and the Russians arriving in the

middle of it, dogfight ensues, airship is destroyed, Greek Government decides enough is enough

and seeks external help outside the league of nations (who have done nothing despite the

constant raids and dire state of crete due to the prolonged siege).

Pay is low, only the mercenary crew is interested, as they do not only fight for profit, but seek to

help those who are otherwise helpless (many of the crew are refugees from Fascist Italy,

Communist Germany, Communist Russia and the Baltic states, but mostly American, French and

British Veterans of WWI who are not exactly best of friends with oppressive regimes andcorporations)

The Airship and the Argus arrive, and begin searching for the pirate bases, as well as providing

escort for various shipments and airships moving into and out of the region. Minor encounters,

false leads and much goose chasing occurs without much getting done. One night, the Airship is

boarded by the Italians and a firefight ensues onboard the ship as aircraft are launched and the

dogfighting begins outside. Boarders are repelled, and the opposing aircraft shot down or driven

off. One Sparrowhawk tails a wounded trimotor back to the secret Italian base. Unfortunately the

Airship is seriously damaged by the fighting, with many helium leaks and damaged engines.

Limps back to crete, gas bags are patched up and then flies to Egypt for engine repairs.

Attack on Italians is staged. Mercs and Hellenic airforce attack from the air, while the Greek

Army lands on the island. Italian forces surrender and are defeated, several aircraft are captured

intact, including two Savoia s.55 and a few fighters. much loot is discovered, and sent back to

crete.


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Soviets step up their game and stage several all out attacks on Crete. Repelled with heavy losses

on both sides. One pilot notes that they attack from the same vector. It is decided to fly along that

vector. They come to the greek coastline, and follow it, just as they are about to give up due to

lack of fuel, they spot an airfield, with pirate aircraft, note the position and head back to base.

The Airship returns, and the attack, formed with the last surviving greek and merc planes heads

out to bomb the Russian field into submission. A fierce air battle ensues. In the panic, a pirate

airship slips past the defenders (who are busy attacking the pirate aircraft) and heads straight for

the merc ship, which hastily mounts machine guns, and the two begin firing at eachother.

Sensing their hopeless situation, the pirate airship moves to ram the merc ship. The merc ship

turns about, but with engines still undergoing repair, the pirate ship gains on them. As it closes,

one of the damaged Helldivers is launched from the airship against orders. The pilot shoots flares

at the airship, most bounce off, but one burns through the rear covering, sinks into the gasbag

and sets off the hydrogen (pirates are cheap, only military and high end commercial ships use

helium) the pirate base is heavily damaged.

The attacks on crete serve to awaken the League of Nations, and the British send a few

squadrons and an airship (new R200 Peregrine) to crete for anti-piracy patrols (too late, Pirates

are destroyed mostly) The Liberators receive payment, but having been mauled badly must

return to the states for new aircraft to replace losses. Interesting job turns up, involves Africa.

World Building Pulp Interwar

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