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Regions of Germany

Central Germany

Central Germany consists of the states of Hesse and Thuringia which beyond the Frankfurt metropolitan region are largely rural and forested. The state of Hesse is mainly lowlands straddled by rivers, while the topography of Thuringia is more mixed with lowlands and plains flanked by the Harz Mountains in the north and west. The strategically important Fulda Gap land corridor is also in this region, a strategic bottleneck which must be passed from the east to invade southern Germany. From July 1997 parts of Thuringia were briefly occupied by Czech forces during the Warsaw Pact offensive into southern Germany, but the region hasn’t been badly damaged by the war with the exception of Frankfurt which was the target of a Soviet nuclear strike. Today Central Germany has survived the war in good shape by Twilight War standards and most of the towns in the region are under the control of the German Second Army, but many rural areas such as the Thuringian Forest are lawless or under the influence of the Friebroderbund.

The state of Hesse is fairly stable by Twilight War standards, due in large part to the German military presence in the state. Its largest surviving town is Kassel (pop: 40,000) with has many museums and castles and is home to the 35th Jaeger Division who are garrisoned in the Wilhelmshohe Palace above the city. The defence company Rheinmetall also had an arms factory in Kassel producing military vehicles which escaped damage, and the Army plan to reactivate it in the future if power services can be restored to the city. To the south of Kassel the city of Wetzlar (pop: 12,000) was a centre of optics and camera industry. Although Wetzlar has no power supply some of its factories remain intact and the city is garrisoned by the 11th Border Guard Battalion. Other surviving towns in Hesse under lawful control include Friedberg (pop: 3,000), Giessen (pop: 2,000), Hanau (pop: 8,000), Limburg (pop: 3,000) and Marburg (pop: 7,000). Each of the towns have local governments supported by a small local militia force, and can rely on the 12th Panzer Division in Frankfurt or the border guards at Wetzlar for support if needed. The city of Fulda (pop: 8,000) which lays on the western edge of the Rhon mountains is occupied by the US Army 11th Armoured Cavalry Regiment, who withdrew themselves from the authority of its chain of command during Operations Order Omega and returned to Fulda were many of the soldiers had families. The regiment has accepted some local German recruits into its ranks, and has now become the defence force for the Fulda region including the 10,000 people of the rural communities of the Fulda Valley beyond the city. Although the regiment remains on good terms with local German forces in the area the commanding officers refuse to cooperate with the US Fourth Army in Munich, and the CIA has sent some agents to persuade them to join up with Civgov forces in the Balkans.

Frankfurt: Before the war Frankfurt was the largest urban area in the region, with the city and suburbs having a population of 2.5 million people and as many 5 million living in the larger metropolitan area. Frankfurt was Germany’s banking centre and host to many large German and multinational banking and financial companies. From late 1996 the city was subject to Soviet Frontal Aviation air raids which were largely curtailed by NATO air defences. But a few raids did successfully penetrate the air defence network and heavily damaged parts of the city, including the downtown Frankfurt Stock Exchange and the American military garrison in Darmstadt. In 1997 the city was subject to a Soviet nuclear missile strike against Frankfurt International Airport and the US Army installation at nearby Wiesbaden. Although Wiesbaden was destroyed the missile aimed at the airport missed by a few kilometres and impacted closer to the city, leading to huge loss of life and the abandonment of the city. Despite some damage both Frankfurt Airport and the adjacent USAF Rhein Main Air Base have survived, although the EMP blasts knocked out the nuclear power stations at Darmstadt and Karlstein am Main. In 2001 the city of Frankfurt is inhabited by criminal gangs and a few thousand refugees. Many refugees are of immigrant background that were forced out of the surrounding area by the activities of the Friebroderbund and the general xenophobia that swept across Germany in the aftermath of the nuclear attack. The suburbs of Frankfurt and less damaged outlying towns such as Darmstadt, Mainz, Offenbach and Russelsheim host a population of about 200,000 people as well as a considerable number of intact factories and higher educational facilities. The large General Motors/Opel automobile plant in Russelsheim remains still largely undamaged, while Darmstadt hosts a number of intact high technology laboratories at the Technical University of Darmstadt, the Helmoltz Centre for Heavy Ion Research and the Darmstadt University of Applied Sciences that have survived the war. Darmstadt was also the mission control centre for European Space Agency commercial satellites and space probes, and was a development site for spacecraft software and support infrastructure. The mission control centre has survived but its role and facilities are now redundant. Rhein-Main Air Base houses units of the USAF 38th Tactical Missile Wing and the 435th Tactical Airlift Wing, with the base guarded by USAF security police and some US Army personnel. For a period the USAF forces were the only organised military forces in the Frankfurt area, but some USAF elements transferred to Bavaria during the American evacuation period. In the winter of 2000 the German Army moved the powerful 12th Panzer Division to the outskirts of Frankfurt to reclaim the area and deter any French Army movement from across the Rhine.

Thuringia has been heavily exposed to the deprivations of the war although some towns and communities have survived. Many areas of the state are under the influence of the Friebroderbund or other unlawful groups, and the few military units in the state are restricted to controlling the region around the former state capital of Erfurt. The city of Erfurt (pop: 11,000) was an important educational centre before the war and is garrisoned by the 4th Border Guard Battalion. The neighbouring city of Weimar (pop: 16,000); the former capitol of Germany between the First and Second World Wars, and Jena (pop: 5,000) are also protected by the 4th Border Guard Battalion along with some pro-government militia units. Beyond this area of the state there is no lawful authority in Thuringia. The town of Eisenach (pop: 6,000) located on the northern foothills of the Thuringian Forest is under the control of the Friebroderbund who have established a well defended citadel in Wartburg Castle which overlooks the town. Other small towns in the state such as Meiningen (pop: 2,000), Nordhausen (pop: 4,000) and Suhl (pop: 2,000) are also under Friebroderbund influence, with Suhl being home to the firearms company Thalmann Suhl who still produce civilian rifles and shotguns on a limited basis. The city of Gera (pop: 4,000) who’s industries were the subject of Soviet bombing raids during the war, is now host to a number of criminal gangs who inhabit the ruins of the factories and make life miserable for the survivors of the city. The small town of Altenburg (pop: 4,000) was the location of a Soviet Air Force base at Altenburg-Nobitz Airport before the war. The airbase was overrun by German troops in 1996 after Soviet personnel refused to evacuate during the Reunification of Germany. Muhlhausen (pop: 13,000) to the south of Nordhausen is ruled by a local warlord who’s gang consists of a few hundred marauders and deserters from the German, Soviet, Czech and Polish armies. The authorities in the town of Gotha (pop: 4,000) have established a Soviet style agricultural commune in the town and surrounding communities, and have put the population to work in the fields in the surrounding countryside and eschew all contact with the German government.


The East

Eastern Germany includes most the territory of the former German Democratic Republic excluding the state of Thuringia. The terrain of the four eastern states, Brandenburg, Mecklenburg Western Pomerania, Saxony and Saxony Anhalt, is mostly lowlands of the North European Plain traversed by rivers. The East has been directly exposed to warfare since German Reunification in 1996, and the borderland with Poland has been a continual battleground for over four years leaving many areas heavily damaged, while some regions were also occupied by Soviet troops. Major cities such as Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig, Karl Marx Stadt and the uranium processing centre of Zwickau were also targeted by nuclear weapons in 1997 and conventional bombing beforehand, and are now very badly damaged and largely depopulated. Surviving cities in the East now resemble towns of the Middle Ages, and on the outskirts of Berlin, Leipzig and Karl Marx Stadt are large ramshackle refugee camps for desperate survivors of the war supported by the central government in the west. Since early 2001 all Warsaw Pact forces have been cleared from the East by resurgent Third German Army forces excluding Rugen Island, and the German Army remains the only meaningful authority across the East. However despite the destruction of Berlin, Dresden, Leipzig and Karl Marx Stadt many other cities and towns in the East have survived, although those near the borders were more heavily exposed to marauding bandits and Soviet incursions from Poland.

The state of Brandenburg surrounds the city of Berlin and was the core of the Kingdom of Prussia until it was dissolved at the end of the Second World War. The region received an influx of refugees from Berlin after the nuclear detonations, although the surviving towns quickly fortified themselves against the hordes of refugees and marauders to protect their population. Today some of the cities and towns have survived the war including Brandenburg (pop: 7,000), Eberswalde (pop: 4,000), Neuruppin (pop: 3,000), Oranieburg (pop: 8,000), Potsdam (pop: 14,000), Prenzlau (pop: 2,000), Rathenow (pop: 3,000), Strausberg (pop: 6,000) and Zossen (pop: 5,000), with Potsdam being the centre of the remaining civil administration in the East with the provisional government in Kiel providing some aid to support the large refugee camp near Potsdam. Brandenburg also shares a border with Poland with the Oder River forming much of the border. The east of the state has been heavily damaged due to the ongoing warfare across the German-Polish border since 1996, and towns such as Frankfurt-an-der-Oder and the former oil refining town of Schwedt are now depopulated burnt out shells. The most significant surviving population centre is eastern Brandenburg is the city of Cottbus (pop: 8,000) on the River Spree which is the cultural centre of Germany’s Sorbian minority. Cottbus was a university city before the war and a centre of industry and technology in the former East Germany, although its factories were bombed by Soviet and Polish air attacks in 1997 and the city was briefly occupied by Soviet forces in 1998. The city is garrisoned by the 26th Panzergrenadier Division who are trying to reactivate several damaged coal fired power stations in the area to restore electricity services to the region. To the north of Cottbus is the village of Beeskow which is host to the former 94th Soviet Cavalry Division who defected to NATO in 2000. Their continued presence and demands on local food supplies has caused a lot bad feeling among the civilian population of the area.

Berlin: The city of Berlin is the former capitol of Germany and was divided after the Second World War and garrisoned by American, British, French and Soviet troops. Although the government of East Germany considered East Berlin to be its capital, the Western powers only recognised Soviet authority in the eastern part of the city as the Soviets refused to allow West Berlin to be the capital of West Germany. However the Soviet garrison allowed East German NVA troops within the city, and during German Reunification East Berlin became one of a few redoubts for the Group of Soviet Forces Germany with the Soviet 5th Shock Army quickly taking control of the state of Brandenburg surrounding Berlin and isolating the NATO garrisons in West Berlin. The French garrison was allowed to evacuate Berlin following the French withdrawal from the Atlantic Alliance in the weeks after German Reunification, but the US and British Army garrisons in West Berlin with some armed police were isolated from other NATO and Federal German forces until the New Year of 1997. Although Berlin was never actually besieged during the war it was blockaded and several large fire fights were fought in and around it during the see-saw fighting of 1996-98 with several of the industrial sectors and the airports being exposed to severe bombardment. In November 1997 Templehof Airport in the American sector of the city was the target of several small nuclear bombs which destroyed much of central Berlin, and today most of the city is even more badly damaged than it was in 1945. Before the war Berlin had a population of 3.5 million people and some of the surviving population fled to surrounding towns during the nuclear attack. Today a few thousand people try to eke out a bare living in the parks and open areas remaining in the city as large sections of the city lie in ruins, and the buildings that remain standing are largely empty. The 28th Panzergrenadier Division is based south of the remains of Tegal Airport in the grounds of the Charlottenburg Palace, the largest of Berlin’s historic palaces which dates to Hohenzollern times and has survived the war. The 28th Panzergrenadier Division conducts salvage and security sweeps through the ruined boroughs of Berlin and has troops billeted in the periphery of the city keeping away most gangs.

The state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern consists of most of Germany’s Baltic coast up to the border with Poland. The region has been heavily affected by the constant warfare with Soviet and Polish forces, but a number of significant population centres remain. The port city of Rostock (pop: 23,000) was subjected to numerous Soviet air and naval raids during the war and was briefly cut off from the rest of Germany during the Pact offensives from 1996 to 1999. However most of the city and its docks have survived the war and are now a base for the 6th Panzergrenadier Division and the Bundesmarine 3rd Naval Flotilla, with elements of the 2nd Luftwaffe Division stationed at nearby Laage Air Base. Other major populated areas include Gustrow (pop: 3,000), Wismar (pop: 4,000) and Schwerin (pop: 6,000) which was damaged in rioting in 1997 and the Pact offensive of 1998. The city authorities were aided by local German forces in restoring order to the area and have established a citadel in the Schweriner Schloss castle to rebuild the city. The city of Neubrandenburg (pop: 8,000) located close to the Polish border is now the headquarters of the VI German Corps. After the nuclear exchanges the surviving authorities fortified the Medieval city walls with brick and timber palisades ringed with barbed wire to stop marauder or hostile forces from entering the city and held out until relieved by German troops in late 1997. During the Warsaw Pact offensives in the spring of 1998 and late 1999 Neubrandenburg was once again isolated as NATO units in Northern Germany were pushed westwards. The city militia successfully resisted hostile incursions due to stocks of captured heavy weapons and mines provided by the German Army which forced Warsaw Pact troops to bypass the city. In 2000 Neubrandenburg was relieved by the German VI Corps who took up residence in the city and established heavy defensive positions around it. Today Neubrandenburg has become the principle martialing ground for operations in Northern Poland and a functional rail link with Kiel has been established. A large POW camp is also located in the outskirts of the city with Warsaw Pact prisoners put to work in the farmlands or on reconstruction work. Other NATO troops as well as now allied former Warsaw Pact units are also a common site in the city and are supervised by the 152nd Military Police Battalion. South of Neubrandenburg is the town of Neustrelitz (pop: 2,000) which has been heavily damaged by the see-saw fighting in the border regions. On the Baltic coast the town of Stralsund (pop: 2,000) was overrun during the last Soviet offensive into Germany which also captured nearby Rugen Island. The German counteroffensive of early 2000 saw heavy fighting around Stralsund leading to the Rugendamm Bridge which linked the mainland with Rugen Island being destroyed. NVA troops on Rugen have been isolated ever since and are currently watched by the 34th Jaeger Division who are is cantonment in Stralsund and Griefswald (pop: 4,000) and a number of small communities facing the island along the Strelasund. South of Stralsund is the remains of Tutow Air Base were elements of the Soviet 16th Air Army were based before the war. The air base was overrun by West German troops in October 1996 and the locality is littered with the remains of wrecked Soviet aircraft.

The south-eastern state of Saxony borders Czechoslovakia and Poland, and before the war was an economically important part of East Germany. Since the Reunification of Germany Saxony has been subject to bombing raids and Pact invasions from Czechoslovakia and Poland, while the nuclear destruction of Dresden, Leipzig, Karl-Marx Stadt and Zwickau caused widespread destruction and carnage. Before the Second World War the city of Dresden was a major cultural and financial centre and an important communications and manufacturing hub, but it was levelled by British bombers during the infamous bombing raid in 1945. The city was rebuilt in the post-war period and regained some of its former glory by becoming a major industrial and technological centre in East Germany with a population over 500,000. Following the Reunification of Germany the city was the site of major fighting between NATO and Warsaw Pact forces, and its industrial sectors were heavily bombed by Soviet Frontal Aviation before the nuclear strikes. Two Soviet nuclear missiles targeted the downtown area and Dresden Airport which devastated the city and caused huge casualties. Firestorms and fear of radiation led to the mass abandonment of the city and today only a few hundred scavengers inhabit the city environs, leaving the rest of the area to various gangs of salvagers and criminals. The city of Karl-Marx Stadt located near the Czech border was formerly known as Chemnitz before the division of Germany. It was renamed by the communist government in 1953 in honour of the German author or the ‘Communist Manifesto’ Karl Marx. Before the war Karl-Marx Stadt had a population of 250,000 but its factories were repeatedly bombed and the city was destroyed during the nuclear attack on Germany. Today it lies in ruins with very few buildings remaining intact and the population has long since abandoned it. However it is located in one of Germany’s largest coal mining regions and the government is keen to restart mining in the area. The 8th Border Guard Battalion has been sent to the area and is based at the remains of a small airport outside the city guarding against marauders, and providing some security for the refugees in the large holding camp on the outskirts of the city. The city of Leipzig was also once a major cultural and economic centre, but it declined in importance after the division of Germany. However it remained an important industrial centre of East Germany with a population of 500,000. Leipzig was targeted by Soviet nuclear strikes in 1997 but was less heavily damaged than Dresden or Karl-Marx Stadt. Although many parts of the city are damaged a few buildings and landmarks have survived and about 12,000 people inhabit the outer suburbs of the city. Leipzig is also located in the centre of one of Germany’s largest coal mining regions, and troops from the 36th Jaeger Division based in nearby Halle in Saxony-Anhalt provide some security for the city and are conducting salvaging operations in the area. Beyond the ruined cities there are very few remaining population centres. The town of Gorlitz (pop: 2,000) which is the easternmost town in Germany is located along the Oder-Neisse River border with Poland. The German town neighbours Zgorzelec in Poland across the Neisse River and has been severely damaged in fighting since German Reunification. Control of the town has changing hands a dozen times between German and Polish troops and militias, and it is currently garrisoned by the 22nd Panzergrenadier Division who now control territory 10 kilometres east into Poland. To the south-east near the Czech border is the small town of Plauen (pop: 5,000) which is guarded by the 11th Panzergrenadier Division from the Second German Army. The garrison at Plauen is guarding against any Czech military or marauder incursions on the region from the south. To the north bordering the state of Brandenburg is Holzdorf Air Base with surviving elements of the 2nd Luftwaffe Division. The continual presence of Luftwaffe personnel at the base has allowed a number of small communities in the area to survive in relative safety.

To the west of Saxony is the largely rural state of Saxony-Anhalt. The state has survived in relatively good shape despite bombing raids and the affects of the war, and its major city of Magdeburg escaped nuclear attack. Magdeburg (pop: 58,000) was the first major city in East Germany to be occupied by West German troops during German Reunification. Although Magdeburg escaped nuclear destruction its industrial district were subject to heavy Soviet air raids, but most of the city landmarks have survived unscathed including the impressive Lutheran Cathedral. The Magdeburg area is home to the II British Corps and the 4th British Armoured Division who have pacified the city and its hinterland. Beyond Magdeburg most towns in the state are small by German standards, but many communities have survived and are involved in food production. After Magdeburg the largest population centre is the small city of Halle (pop: 30,000), an important pre-war educational and technology centre that has benefited from the decline of nearby Leipzig in Saxony. Halle is the headquarters for the VII German Corp whose corps assets and the 36th Jaeger Division and 251st Military Police Battalion are headquartered in Moritzburg Castle, the former barracks of the Soviet 27th Guards Motor Rifle Division. Further inland the fortified town of Dessau (pop: 6,000) has survived relatively intact with a number of surviving castles, palaces, churches and fine examples of Bauhaus architecture. The town militia was armed by retreating German forces during the Warsaw Pact offensive of 1998 who constructed a series of defensive earthworks on the perimeter of the town with ramparts ringed with barbed wire, mortars and machine guns, and also laid minefields on the approaching to the town. The militia soundly repulsed a number of assaults by marauders who plagued the area after the nuclear exchanges but has refused to cooperate with any German military forces in the area since. It is suspected that the town is under the influence of the Friebroderbund who are known to be active in the region, and the German Army is considering sending the 212th Jaeger Division against them. To the north of Magdeburg the small town of Stendal (pop: 2,000) which was garrisoned by the Soviet 207th Guards Motor Rifle Division was severely damaged during the war, as the Soviet troops refused to leave the area during German Reunification leading to a major battle with West German forces which destroyed the division.

The North

Northern Germany consists of the states of Lower Saxony, Schleswig-Holstein, North Rhine Westphalia north and west of the Rhine River, the Frisian Islands and the independent cities of Bremen and Hamburg. The reformed German government has also established its provisional capital in the city of Kiel and Northern Germany has become one of the most stable parts of Twilight War Germany. However many parts of this region have also been affected by the war.

Bremen/Bremerhaven: Bremen was Germany’s second largest port before the war, but it was destroyed by sustained conventional bombing and a nuclear detonation in the industrial Vegesack district in 1997. The city was abandoned after the nuclear attack with survivors making their way to less damaged suburbs such as Delmenhorst and surrounding villages which today host a population of about 20,000. Until 2000 German troops were based in Bremen and cleared the area of most unlawful elements, but they were transferred to other fronts after the American withdrawal from Europe leaving the remains of the city under civilian government. Bremerhaven (pop: 25,000) on the mouth of the Weiser River was historically Germany’s largest harbour and the point from were all overseas passenger ships left Germany. After the Second World War the city grew into a major port as West Germany’s economy expanded and some ships became too large to dock downstream in Bremen. In November 1997 the Soviet nuclear missile aimed at Bremerhaven landed 12 kilometres away in the sea which caused some minor damage but spared the city. Today Bremerhaven is the largest surviving port along the North Sea coast of Europe with its docks and ship handling facilities still fully functional. The port was used by the US Navy Task Force 34 to evacuate American forces from Europe, with the departing Americans leaving behind many of their vehicles and heavy weapons for the German Army. Although some of the armoured vehicles have been distributed to German forces many are still stored in Bremerhaven. The Bundesmarine’s 2nd Naval Flotilla is also based at the city docks and occasional freighters and warships arrive from Britain and Scandinavia. Bremerhaven is guarded by the 21st Panzergrenadier Division and the 2nd Border Guard Battalion and engineers have reactivated a rail link with Kiel.

Hamburg: The city of Hamburg on the upper reaches of the Elbe River was the centre of a metropolitan region that was home to 4 million people before the war. It was also Germany’s largest port and a major media and transportation hub with an extensive manufacturing industry. As such the city’s ship building, metal fabrication, aerospace and oil refining facilities were a major target for Soviet bombing raids from late 1996, which damaged its extensive dock yards and industrial sectors, as well as much of the city’s significant architecture. Following the successful and destructive NATO offensive into Poland in April 1997, vengeful Soviet bombers destroyed and heavily damaged the large Blohm & Voss shipyard, the two oil refineries and the nuclear power plants at Brokdorf, Brunsbuttel and Stade. Firestorms from the burning oil refineries and fear of nuclear radiation led to most of the population evacuating the city to surrounding areas, and because of the level of destruction inflicted on Hamburg’s infrastructure the city was spared nuclear destruction. However large parts of the city and many buildings remain intact, including most of the many bridges and canals and the two Elbe Road Tunnels. A lot of salvageable material also survives in the city and its environs which were never looted due to the rapid evacuation of the city. About 100,000 people remain in the outer suburbs and the 33rd Jaeger Division is overseeing reconstruction and salvaging projects in Hamburg and controls all entry routes to the city. The division is stationed on the northern outskirts of the city with a smaller cantonment at Finkenwerder Airport salvaging the remains of the Airbus aircraft plant located on the south bank of the Elbe a few kilometers west of the inner city.

The southern districts of North Rhine-Westphalia north and west of the Rhine River are part of the Ruhr conurbation which was decimated in the nuclear attack on Germany. From September 1997 military bases in the area were subject to Soviet missile strikes including the British RAF base at Gutersloh. By November the industrial cities of the Ruhr came under direct nuclear attack which devastated cities east of the Rhine and north of the Ruhr River such as Bochum, Bottrop, Dortmund and Gelsenkirchen, leading to huge loss of life and mass abandonment of the area by survivors. Today the ruined urban sprawl north of the Ruhr is an irradiated wasteland avoided by all but the most determined refugees and salvagers. The exodus of people from the Ruhr also led to an increase in the populations of surviving cities and towns in the rural districts in the north such as Arnsberg (pop: 8,000), Bielefeld (pop: 12,000), Detmold (pop: 7,000), Hilden (pop: 4,000), Hoxter (pop: 3,000), Ludenscheid (pop: 7,000), Minden (pop: 8,000), Munster (pop: 19,000), Siegen (pop: 10,000) and Paderborn. However the region is more anarchic than other parts of Northern Germany and areas beyond the sway of local militias have been affected by bandit gangs formed from hordes of desperate refugees from the Ruhr. The region was largely abandoned by the authorities at the end of 1997, except for a small British garrison at Bielefeld. The most significant power in North Rhine Westphalia since 1998 has been the Friebroderbund, who dominate rural communities and smaller towns in the area and effectively controls the city of Paderborn.

Paderborn: Before the war Paderborn (pop: 25,000) was a university city and an important technology and industrial centre, with many German and multinational companies producing computers, software, machine tools, electronics, automobile parts, agricultural machinery and beer. Paderborn survived the war largely unscathed despite some air raids on its factories, and absorbed some refugees from the Rhineland after the nuclear attacks on the Ruhr. Most of its pre-war infrastructure and buildings have survived including the Renaissance town hall and the University of Paderborn. Like many smaller urban and rural areas in pre-war Germany Paderborn was not exposed to major immigration from poorer European countries or the Third World, and German nationalism was a prominent part of its political landscape. The war and later mass exodus of refugees from the larger cities including many of non-German origins caused a great deal of resentment and fear among the local population. With the collapse of local authorities nationalists groups such as the Friebroderbund quickly took control of the city and expelled outsiders by force from the Paderborn area. With over a thousand armed members and many more sympathisers in the area the Freibroderbund has also deterred marauders or criminal gangs from approaching the city and its hinterland, which has given them some popularity among the surviving inhabitants of the city. The influence of the Friebroderbund in North Rhine Westphalia and across the Rhine in the French occupied Rhineland forced the German Army to move the newly raised 31st Jaeger Division to Paderborn towards the end of 2000 to try and regain control of the area. However sabotage, ambushes and Freibroderbund infiltrations has undermined the effectiveness of the 31st Jaeger Division, who after losing a number of fire-fights in the surrounding countryside has retreated to their main base at Paderborn-Lippstadt Airport. With resources tied up elsewhere the Germans have considered asking the British for assistance, as their garrison in Bielefeld has successfully resisted Friebroderbund encroachment on the city and remains in regular contact with the much larger British forces in neighbouring Lower Saxony.

The state of Lower Saxony economy was centred on the cities of Hannover and Brunswick and the North Sea ports before the war. Lower Saxony was an economically important region of Germany and was repeatedly targeted by Soviet air raids from the end of 1996. During the nuclear attacks on Germany Hannover was damaged and the naval base of Wilhelmshaven was destroyed, and the EMP blasts from the attacks on Bremen, Hamburg and the Ruhr ousted the regional power grid. The city of Hannover (pop: 6,000) is the capital of Lower Saxony and targeted by a Soviet nuclear missile strike that damaged its industrial district. Although the rest of the city was not badly damaged most of the population fled to surrounding areas after the nuclear attack leaving a lot of salvageable machinery and equipment behind. The city is garrisoned by the 6th Border Guards Battalion and a contingent of engineers who are trying to restore electrical power to less damaged industrial facilities in the city. The British 6th Airmobile Brigade and the 4th Air Corps Regiment is also based in the area and assist the Germans in pacifying the area. Brunswick (pop: 33,000) known as Bruanschweig in German, was once the capital of Lower Saxony and has endured the war despite its industrial district being the target of air raids. The city is famous for the huge bronze lion in the Burgplatz, commemorative of Henry the Lion, who built the city's Romanesque cathedral which houses his tomb. The Burgplatz, the cathedral and the bronze lion have survived the war as have some local factories once run by Volkswagen, Siemens and Bosch. The city is under the control of the British Army with the I British Corps, the British 1st Armoured Division, the 9th Air Corps Regiment and other units based in the area. Brunswick is also at the southern edge of Germany's largest inland oil producing region which runs northwest past Hannover. None of the oil wells are now functional and all useful petroleum products on the surface have long ago been used up, but units of the German and British Armies are attempting to reopen a few oil wells. The town of Celle (pop: 7,000) to the north of Brunswick is garrisoned by the British 3rd Mechanised Division and Royal Scots Dragoon Guards who are billeted in the grounds of Celle Castle. Many of Celle’s factories remain intact, including those producing engineered parts for drilling, processing, flow control and compression systems for the pre-war oil and gas industry. The German government is very interested in reactivating these facilities and British Army engineers are trying to reactivate the Oldau hydroelectric station downstream from Celle on the Aller River. Further south the British 19th Infantry Brigade is based in Hildesheim (pop: 10,000) while the city of Osnabruck (pop: 15,000) on the northern end of the Teutoburg Forest is garrisoned by the 29th Panzergrenadier Division, with nearby Fassberg Air Base hosting an active Luftwaffe and USAF contingent. Although industrial cities like Salzgitter (pop: 12,000) and Wolfsburg (pop: 14,000) were targeted by Soviet bombing raids, both towns along with Gottingen (pop: 17,000), Goslar (pop: 6,000), Hamelin (pop: 8,000) and Oldenburg (pop: 11,000) have survived relatively intact. With regular power supply many factories could be reactivated and the government has made progress in reactivating a number of coal fired power stations near Brunswick and Wolfsburg, and it is possible that the nuclear powered station at Lingen near the Dutch border could also be reactivated sometime in the future. On the North Sea coast the ports of Cuxhaven (pop: 3,000) with the naval air base at nearby Nordholz, and Emden (pop: 8,000) support a large fishing fleet. A number of large commercial vessels are still anchored in Emden which was one of the largest shipping points for the export of German cars before the war. Jever Air Base located 12 kilometres from Wilhelmshaven survived the nuclear attack on the nearby naval base and is home to elements of the USAF.

Off the coast of Lower Saxony are the North Sea Frisian Islands, an archipelago of small islands stretching from the Northern Netherlands, through Germany and the southern North Sea coast of Denmark. The Frisians historically dominated the North Sea coasts of what is now Germany and the Netherlands, and today the inhabitants of all the Frisian Islands share a similar culture. But the German East Frisian Islands are considered to have a more distinct Frisian ethnicity and widely speak the Frisian language, a language which is historically more closely related to English than to modern German or Dutch and which is still spoken in some communities on the German and Dutch mainland. The offshore islands have a maximum elevation of less than thirty-five meters and shorelines subject to eroding tides were stabilized during the 19th and early 20th centuries. But since the war lack of maintenance has led to erosion with whole sections washed away during severe storms. The islands were almost untouched by the war as they were of no strategic significance, and since the nuclear exchanges the inhabitants have reverted to a pre-industrial age society with a number of refugees from the mainland integrated into the local communities. In 2001 the islands are largely self-sufficient and have little contact with the outside world.

The northernmost German state of Schleswig-Holstein located on the base of the Jutland Peninsula shares a border and culture with Denmark. The strong maritime culture and physical isolation from the rest of Germany has preserved its pre-war society better than most other regions of the country. There are many surviving communities in the state include Kiel the provisional capital of Germany, the Medieval port of Lubeck (pop: 18,000) guarded by the 7th Border Guard Battalion, Neumunster (pop: 7,000), Rendsburg on the Kiel Canal (pop: 3,000) and the town of Flensburg (pop: 11,000). Flensburg is the centre Germany’s Danish minority whose militia now includes elements of the Danish Jutland Division and some naval personnel and cadets from the Bundesmarine academy at nearby Murwik. The military presence in Schleswig Holstein has allowed the government make considerable progress in restoring pre-war services to the region. Fishing fleets in Kiel and Lubeck and farms across the state are now producing a food surplus for both the army and for the government to distribute to populations under its control. Engineers have also reactivated a high powered radio transmitter near Neumunster and two coal fired power stations at Flensburg and Lubeck, enabling radio broadcast services and limited power supply to the region. Engineers are trying to salvage machinery at the Krummel pumped storage hydroelectricity plant near the small city of Geesthacht (pop: 2,000). The adjacent nuclear power plant was destroyed by a Polish airstrike in 1997 but the hydroelectricity plant could be brought back online and provide regular power services to Kiel.

Kiel: The port city of Kiel (pop: 60,000) is home of the reformed provisional government of Germany which has established a parliament in the former Schleswig-Holstein Landtag building in the city. Before the war Kiel was a major commercial and ferry port and a centre of the nation’s transport and ship building industry. Although Kiel was subject to intensive Soviet bombing raids during the war, NATO air defences dented the worst effects of these raids. Since before the Second World War Kiel has also been a major centre in marine science and shipbuilding technology, and research and design data from a number of research institutions and the University of Kiel has been preserved. The cargo handling and ferry terminal facilities of the port are also intact and a number of large ferries and cargo ships remain anchored in the Bay of Kiel. The Howaldtswerke-Deutsche Werft shipyard which built diesel-electric submarines for the German Navy and many other navies has also survived, although it received some damage from a Soviet air launched missile attack in 1997. However power supply remains a major problem and the city and hospitals rely on Army run generators until local power stations are reactivated. Kiel is also host to many command sections of the German armed forces, with the staffs of the Bundesheer, the Bundesmarine and Luftwaffe all located in the city along with surviving elements of the nation’s intelligence agencies. Two functional Luftwaffe bases are located at nearby Hohn and Schleswig Air Base, while garrisons across the city include the headquarters of the Third German Army, units of the III German Corp, Wachbataillon beim BMVg, the 151st and 900th Military Police Battalions, the 3rd Border Guard Battalion, the 1st Naval Flotilla and the special forces troops of GSG-9 and Verwendungsgruppe 3402. The concentration of military force in the Kiel area make it one of the safest and most formidably defended places in Twilight War Europe. Army engineers have also reactivated a rail line linking Kiel with Bremerhaven and Neubrandenburg in East Germany.


The Rhineland

The German Rhineland traditionally comprises both banks of the middle and lower Rhine River. In Twilight 2000 it covers territory from the Rhine stretching to the border with Belgium, France, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, and comprises the states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland and the districts of North Rhine-Westphalia south and west of the Rhine. The southern and eastern regions of the Rhineland are predominantly uplands and rural country cut by valleys such as the Rhine and Moselle Rivers, while the north takes in the Ruhr valley which largely comprises the heavily urbanised and industrial Ruhr district.

Before the war the Ruhr was the industrial heartland of Germany and one of the world’s leading industrial complexes. Its many cities and towns on the Rhine and Ruhr rivers encompassed an enormous urban conglomeration of 12 million people. Earlier heavy industries founded on coal mining, iron and steel, chemicals and heavy engineering were supplemented or replaced by vehicle manufacturing, precision engineering, oil refining, electronics, computers, research and information technology and the service and logistics sectors. As such it was a major target for Soviet Frontal Aviation who repeatedly targeted the infrastructure and factories of the region. A series of daring Soviet air raids on the Ruhr at the end October 1996 successfully damaged an oil refinery in Cologne and the headquarters of the industrial conglomerate ThyssenKrupp in Essen. The shock of Soviet bomber aircraft successfully penetrating German air defences so far west of the frontline in East Germany quickly led to a decision by other NATO powers to actively defend German airspace as far as the inner German border. With powerful USAF and other NATO fighter assets assisting German air defences, NATO managed to blunt the worst effects of these air raids until the nuclear exchanges. From September 1997 Soviet low yield tactical nuclear weapons struck NATO bases in Germany, with the NATO command bunker at Linnich in the Rhineland being the first military target in Germany to be destroyed. By the end of the month the German Army command centre at Koblenz and the nearby nuclear power station were destroyed, along with the USAF bases at Geilsenkirchen, Ramstein, Sembach and Spangdahlem, and the British bases at Bruggen, Laarbruch, Wildenrath and the Rheindahlen military complex in Monchengladbach. Cologne-Bonn Airport was the first civilian target to be hit by nuclear weapons, which destabilised the Ruhr and damaged the Bundeshaus in Bonn, the seat of the German government. This was soon followed by a nuclear strike against Gelsenkirchen's oil refinery and another strike on Cologne which destroyed both of the cities oil refineries. Two days later four other missiles were launched against the other major cities of the Ruhr, with the cumulative effect of so many nuclear air bursts almost levelling the cities of Dortmund, Duisburg, Dusseldorf and Essen, and laying waste to other nearby cities such as Bochum, Bottrop, Hagen, Leverkusen, Krefeld, Monchengladbach, Mulheim, Oberhausen, Ratingen, Remscheid, Solingen and Wuppertal. The city of Mainz further south along the Rhine was also damaged in the nuclear strike against nearby Frankfurt. The loss of life in the nuclear attack on the Ruhr was catastrophic with nearly two million dying as a direct result of the nuclear blasts and firestorms, and twice that number from the effects of radiation sickness, anarchy and starvation. Although panicked civilians had started to leave the urban centres of the Rhineland as early as September towards the interior of Germany and the border with neutral Belgium and France, by November the exodus had become a flood as desperate survivors swamped the French border.

In January 1998, the French government ordered the French Army to occupy all territory south and west of the Rhine River in Germany to secure a solid geographic barrier and guarantee the frontiers against hordes of refugees and renegade military personnel which were swarming across the border. The surviving German government ordered the German Army to defend against the French invasion. But with the destruction and disruption caused by the nuclear attack and ongoing operations against Warsaw Pact forces in the east, there was little the lightly equipped German defenders in the region could do other than conduct sporadic rear guard actions. The speed of the French invasion backed by airpower quickly overran all remaining German garrisons west of the Rhine. By March the French had established a defensive corridor within 5-10 kilometers east of the Rhine River in a depopulated sector that quickly became known as the Dead Zone. Any large armed body moving into this area is subject to attack by the roving patrols of French troops who can draw upon air power if necessary. Unarmed bodies are turned away to keep large groups of refugees and marauders away from the French border. The Dead Zone has no permanent population and is filled with the deserted shells of cities, towns and villages. However despite the nuclear destruction of the Ruhr and the enforcement of the Dead Zone some parts of the Rhineland are still inhabited. Aachen (pop: 32,000) which is the westernmost city of Germany located on the borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, was largely untouched by the war until the end of 1997 when it was flooded by refugees escaping the nuclear destruction of the Ruhr. In January 1998 French troops occupied Aachen rapidly brushing aside surviving German military and police forces and the French II Corps established its headquarters in the city. Historically Aachen was a place of coronation for the Kings of Germany and was the favoured residence of Charlemagne. Before the war Aachen was also noted for the quality of its spa waters and for having the hottest springs in Central Europe. Most of the city landmarks such as Aachen Cathedral and the many churches, monasteries and medieval houses have also survived and the French have restored many pre-war amenities including power services and hospitals to serve French troops who frequently pass through the city. Aachen faces the remains of the Ruhr directly to its west and French forces in the city are an active garrison, with II Corps assets and the 3rd Armoured Division supporting French units deployed along the Rhine. Currently the 5th Armoured Division is deployed in the heavily damaged city of Worms (pop: 2,000) who's Nibelungen road bridge over the Rhine is still standing. The French 15th Infantry Division is based in Koblenz guarding the two standing railway bridges. The 73rd Regiment d'Infanterie and the 2nd Regiment d'Artillerie are stationed in the ruins of Cologne, and the 16th Groupement de Chasseur and the 3rd Regiment d'Artillerie Regiment are based in war torn town of Wittlich (pop: 5,000). Other surviving cities in the Rhineland include Saarbrucken (pop: 9,000), Saarlouis (pop: 5,000) and Trier (pop: 16,000). Trier on the banks of the Moselle River is the oldest city in Germany and serves as a base for the French 46th Regiment d'Infanterie, the 2nd Regiment d’Helicopteres de Combat and the 12th Groupement d’Helicopteres, whose attack and transport helicopters support French forces across the Rhineland zone. Despite the ring of steel imposed along the Rhine frontier by the French and the devastation of the Ruhr, conditions in the Rhineland west of the Dead Zone are a lot better than many other parts of Germany and Europe. German civilians who were resident of the area and refugees who managed to reach the region before the enforcement of the Dead Zone are protected by French troops. The French aid agency Médecins Sans Frontières also has a heavy presence in the area, and under the watchful eye of the French media makes sure that the surviving population is well looked after. However German nationalist elements within the population such as those who support the Freibroderbund are opposed to the French occupation of German territory. Assassinations of French officers or local administrators, and sabotage and ambushes of isolated French military outposts are supported by German forces east of the Rhine. The French garrison on the Rhine are rotated every three months as their tour is not an easy one, due to the dangers of radiation in many of the decimated urban districts and the persistent attack from German and Dutch partisan.

The South

Southern Germany consists of the states of Bavaria and Baden-Wurttemberg who are culturally and linguistically closer to Austria and German speaking Switzerland than they are to the rest of Germany. Before the war both states had large populations with diverse economies based on high technology manufacturing and productive agricultural sectors. Their relative distance from the frontline in Central Europe led to the war largely bi-passing the region until the Italian invasion of Austria in the summer of 1997, which saw parts of Bavaria attacked and invaded by Warsaw Pact forces. Following NATO's routing of Italian and Czech forces in Bavaria and the drive into Austria by American and German mechanised forces, the industrial districts of Southern German cities became the focus of increased Soviet air attacks. From September military bases in Southern Germany came under direct nuclear attack which by November was followed by nuclear strikes on the cities of Mannheim, Munich and Stuttgart.

The state of Baden-Wurttemberg shares a border with France and Switzerland with the Rhine River forming much of that frontier. Beyond Stuttgart the state has suffered far less damage except for Mannheim which hosted many US Army facilities and was devastated by nuclear attack. What remained of Mannheim was destroyed by the French during their occupation of the Rhineland and the city is now largely abandoned. The city of Ulm (pop: 22,000) on the Danube River was an important pre-war high technology centre and is garrisoned by the 2nd Panzergrenadier Division. Many pre-war factories that built heavy vehicles and high technology products have remained largely untouched by the war, including the Daimler-Chrysler Aerospace plants that built guidance systems for missiles and the firearms maker Carl Walther who still makes some guns. To the east of Ulm is the small town of Oberndorf am Necker (pop: 1,000) which was home to the firearms companies Heckler & Koch and Mauser. Many of the engineers and workers remained in the area after the nuclear attacks and continue to make guns and ammunition on a limited basis for the German military. Laupheim (pop: 13,000) located on the main road and rail line between Ulm and Lake Constance on the Swiss border is garrisoned by the 25th Army Aviation Regiment who occupies Laupheim Air Base. Before the war Laupheim had a considerable manufacturing base ranging from aircraft parts and snow mobiles, to pharmaceuticals, cosmetics and cheese making. Many factories have sat idle for years but could be reopened with power supply. The university city of Heidelberg (pop: 18,000) was US Army Europe's headquarters before the war and hosted a considerable American population at Campbell Barracks. As the war progressed the US commands centres were dispersed but some Americans remained during the US evacuation and have formed the nucleus of a well armed militia. Other surviving cities include Freiburg (pop: 12,000), Goppingen (pop: 6,000), Sigmaringen (pop: 2,000), Uberlingen (pop: 4,000) and Ravensburg (pop: 6,000). Some of Ravensburg’s pre-war pharmaceutical and food processing factories have survived and could be reactivated with power supply. The Swiss Red Cross also runs a few refugee camps near the towns of Lorrach (pop: 3,000) and Waldshut-Tiengen (pop: 2,000) dispensing meals and aid to displaced German civilians. Beyond the main cities the influence of the Freibroderbund is strong and many areas close to the Rhine are subject to roving French Army patrols. The city of Karlsruhe (pop: 2,000) on the French border with its now destroyed nuclear power stations and oil refinery was the site of a major battle between invading French troops and remnant German forces in 1998. The city was heavily damaged in the fighting and it prompted the French to seize the remaining bridges on the Upper Rhine. The French 110th Regiment d'Infanterie, the 73rd Regiment d'Artillerie and the 10th Regiment du Genie garrison the town of Kehl (pop: 2,000) on the banks of the Rhine, with the 3rd Regiment de Hussars and the 24th Groupement de Chasseur stationed in the city of Baden-Baden (pop: 5,000) 12 kilometres east of the French border. The French have deliberately based military forces across the border to suppress Friebroderbund activity, and to discourage the German Army from approaching too close to the French border.

Stuttgart: The city of Stuttgart with a metropolitan population of 2.5 million was one of Germany's most prominent industrial cities. Stuttgart is also considered the birthplace of the automobile, and many German and multi-national companies were located here including the headquarters of Daimler-Benz, Porsche and Bosch. In November 1997 Soviet missiles targeted the US Army barracks and communications instillations in the Vaihingen District and Stuttgart International Airport, causing huge casualties and throwing the city into chaos. Following weeks of anarchy and looting the authorities abandoned the city followed by most of the surviving population. By 2001 about 10,000 people still live in the violent inner city inhabiting abandoned buildings and cultivating parks and green spaces to grow food. However another 100,000 people live in more secure suburbs of the city and in nearby towns such as Helibronn, Ludwigsburg, Pforzeim, Reutlingen and Tubingen protected by militia groups often allied with the Friebroderbund. Salvaging is also a major business in the Stuttgart area with organised gangs pillaging the many abandoned factories and businesses. The German Army has sent the 10th Border Guard Battalion to Reutlingen to reassert some control over the area and prevent the Friebroderbund from gaining a major foothold in the city.

Bavaria is the largest state in Germany by area and before the war was the second most populous. Although affected by the war many parts of Bavaria have persevered through the war years in reasonably good condition and the state is one of the most organised parts of the country. Bavaria shares a border with Austria and Czechoslovakia and across Lake Constance with Switzerland, and both the Rhine and Danube rivers run through the state. The Bavarian Alps define the border with Austria, while the extensive Bavarian and Bohemian forests in the east of the state form the majority of the frontier with Czechoslovakia. Southern Bavaria is under the control of the First German Army whose forces garrison a number of surviving cities and towns. The university city of Augsburg (pop: 26,000) was a very important high technology centre before the war, with many companies having design centres and factories in the city making everything from paper and light bulbs, to computers, diesel engines, industrial robots, airline fuselages and space rocket components. Despite some damage from Soviet air raids and Czech Army incursions Augsburg has survived the war relatively intact and the city is garrisoned by the 1st Panzer Division. The oil refining city of Ingolstadt (pop: 12,000) on the Danube River was a prominent target for Soviet Frontal Aviation which successfully knocked out the cities oil refineries before the start of the nuclear war. Ingolstadt was also the headquarters of car maker Audi and some of its manufacturing infrastructure survives. The Ingolstadt hydroelectric power station on the Danube and one of the oil refineries are believed to be salvageable, and engineers has been dispatched to bring them back online under the protection of the 5th Border Guards Battalion and troops from the US 70th Infantry Division who patrol the countryside between Ingolstadt and Regensburg. Regensburg (pop: 12,000) to the south of the Bavarian Forest has suffered from Czech Army incursions who briefly occupied the city on two occasions. The city is garrisoned by American troops and a Luftwaffe flak detachment. To the south of Regensburg lies Landshut (pop: 6,000) which is garrisoned by the 27th Panzer Division who guard the double Isar nuclear reactors near the city which were rendered inoperable by EMP blasts from the nuclear detonations in Munich but are otherwise undamaged. To the south is Russelheim (pop: 6,000) garrisoned by two brigades of the US 1st Cavalry Division, and to the south-east lies Passau (pop: 3,000) near the Austrian border which was damaged by Italian forces in 1998 and is garrisoned by the 211th Panzergrenadier Division. Other communities along the Austrian border include Oberammergau (pop: 1,000) which is garrisoned by the 3rd Panzer Division, and the small cities of Rosenheim (pop: 4,000) and Friedrichshafen (pop: 8,000). Friedrichshafen was the headquarters of aircraft engine manufacturer MTU who's engine plant survived the war and is of interest to the Luftwaffe. The 1st Luftwaffe Division operates a number of functional air bases in southern Bavaria at Lechfeld, the aircraft testing centre at Manching near Ingolstadt, and Neuburg which houses elements of the USAF 10th Tactical Fighter Wing and the 435th Tactical Airlift Wing.

The northern half of Bavaria is under the command of the Second German Army which is headquartered in Nurnberg (pop: 30,000). The Second Army's command staff is billeted in one of the three castles that tower over the city which has escaped the worst of the Soviet bombing campaign against Germany. Most of Nurnberg's landmarks and the factories that produced vehicles, power systems and medical equipment are undamaged, and the 351st Military Police Battalion is also based in the city while I Corps assets and the 24th Panzergrenadier Division are stationed in the surrounding villages and the remains of Nurnberg airport. To the east of Nurnberg are Amberg (pop: 3,000) and Hof (pop: 5,000) near the Czech border. Amberg is close to the unstable border region and has suffered from marauder raids and is out of contact with German forces, but Hof is garrisoned by 352nd Military Police Battalion and assets of the V Corps. To the south of Hof the 7th Panzer Division garrisons Bayreuth (pop: 7,000) which holds the remains of the composer Richard Wagner as well as some noted buildings and a few idle factories which have survived the war. Schweinfurt (pop: 9,000) has a sizeable American population due to its pre-war US Army garrison, but was subject to Soviet bombing raid in the summer of 1997 which destroyed the nearby nuclear power plant and damaged most of its industrial facilities. The medieval city of Bamberg (pop: 9,000) is the headquarters of the 1st Fallschirmjager Division, whose paratroops are based around the communities of the area and have been used as a light motorised strike force across Germany on many occasions. It is unknown why the Army has consolidated the Fallschirmjager brigades into a divisional command in this part of Bavaria, but the region has seen a noticeable decline in all criminal activity. One of the Fallschirmjager brigades is based in the neighbouring city of Wurzburg (pop: 13,000) and is billeted in the Fortress Marienberg overlooking the city. Wurzburg was levelled by British bombers in the Second World War but has survived the Third World War in far better shape and many of the restored museums, palaces and churches survive intact. Also in this region is the Kahl VAK nuclear power station near the village of Kahl-am-Main about 30 km east of Frankfurt. Kahl was the location of Germany's first nuclear power plant and the original reactor was replaced in the late 1980's by a much larger 1.7 Mw nuclear power station. The station was the target of a bombing raid early in the war but it did only minor damage. Surviving personnel faked extensive damage to the plant and managed to shut it down before evacuating, and the fear of radiation has kept outsiders from investigating. While travelling to Bremerhaven during Operations Order Omega in October 2000, the commander of the 30th Brigade of the US 44th Armored Division encountered former member of the stations staff who told him about the power station. The nuclear reactor has one year's supply of fuel and can operate at one fifth power for another 5 years or at lower rates for another 10 years. In 2001 this is a great deal of electricity that could reactivate industry in the entire Main River Valley area and other regions of Bavaria. The 30th Brigade is currently in cantonment in Kahl-am-Main and the status of the VAK power station is unknown to all outside the members of the 30th Brigade, who have ambitions to rule the entire south of Germany.

Munich: Before the war Munich was the capital of Bavaria and one of Germany's largest cities with a population of 2.5 million people. Munich was also a major cultural and tourist centre with many museums, theatres and art galleries, with a diverse economy centred on banking, publishing and industries such as automobiles, engineering, aerospace and computer software. Munich was also the headquarters of BMW, Siemens, MAN and the defence company Krauss-Maffei who built many of the armoured vehicles for the German Army. Before July 1997 Munich was shielded from the worst effects of Soviet bombing raids. But following the Italian invasion of Bavaria, Munich was subject to intense aerial bombardment which damaged its industrial districts, while its eastern suburbs were briefly invaded by Czech land forces. In November 1997 two Soviet nuclear missiles struck the industrial northern suburbs and Munich International Airport, which damaged but did not completely destroy the city. In early 1998 the German Army moved back into the less damaged suburbs and the First German Army established its headquarters in the city along with the 252nd Military Police Battalion. Currently the II Corps, the 32nd Jaeger Division and the command of the First Luftwaffe Division are also based in the city. Since the American evacuation the remnant US Fourth Army and also the US III, XIII and XV Corps have combined with the First German Army in Munich, with the 10th Special Forces Group acting as a security and reserve raiding force. Because of the heavy military presence the city is probably the most stable of all of Germany's pre-war major cities. 25,000 people inhabit the inner city and another 150,000 living in the 25 boroughs and nearby communities. Army engineers have also brought some power services back online in the Munich area, with the Zolling coal and biomass power station to the north of Munich running on limited capacity and providing some power to some hospitals in the area. Also to the north of Munich are the remains of the Gundremmingen nuclear power plant, whose twin reactors were the highest-output nuclear station in Germany before the war. The station was disabled by EMP during the nuclear attack on Munich and shut down by its staff and abandoned, and although reactivating the plant is well beyond the capabilities of German forces it is possible that it could be reactivated at some point in the future.