On the 8th of November Axis Operations Grand Campaign 1944 will be released and we have the promised second Developer Diary to share with you today. As previously mentioned, we really want to give the 7th Panzer Corps 2 DLC a unique flavor, and a big part of that was divorcing the Historical Campaign from a new and totally original Ahistorical campaign.

Perhaps the largest different between the twin campaigns is the tone. This stark contrast in tone colors all aspects of the Historical Campaign, from the briefings and its character interactions to the nature of scenarios and objectives themselves.

The opening of the campaign provides a perfect example for us to show you in preview. Yup, we’re going to talk about that leading image of this Dev Diary. In doing research for the historical 1944 campaign, we found a lot historical imagery and art depicting the Battle of Korsun. Describing them as bleak, brutal, miserable, shocking, or really any other words just fails to do them justice. But these are the historical truths of what was happening, and properly recreating and demonstrating them is a huge part of building a proper ‘historical’ 1944 German campaign.

So, while the ahistorical campaign begins with well supplied and powerful German forces defending their vast Caucasian Conquests, the historical campaign picks up right where the end of 1943 left off: A new Soviet winter offensive has assaulted the German grip on the Dnieper River, leaving a large pocket of German forces still trying to hold onto the Dnieper River from their positions around Korsun.



Low on supply and exhausted from constant fighting ever since the Soviet counterattacks following the Battle of Kursk, your mission becomes one of intelligence gathering and survival, as you struggle to piece together exactly what is happening around Korsun.

And thus, this is how your campaign will begin...




In terms of gameplay, this new tone and mindset for a proper historical 1944 has a very large influence on many scenario objectives. Gone are the days of sweeping maps clear of enemy units or conquering huge collections of Victory Hexes.

We wanted to try to define what it meant for Germany to have ‘lost the initiative on the Eastern Front’, which means there are a lot of reactionary battles you will have to fight. This means that you will often find you and the forces under your command are thrust into situations not of your own making. For example, you might be called up as reinforcements for a battle already in progress. And your arrival might not be one of conquest, but of attempting to defend vital river crossings, or protecting friendly forces that are already on the edge of collapse.



One clear example of this is how the Axis Operations 1944 campaign explores Operation Bagration. Without spoiling it too much, that major operation is designed and presented in such a way that there leaves no question in the mind of players to ask: ‘I won the battle, why am I losing this war?’.



Of course, Panzer Corps 2 is still a game though, so we’re being extra careful not to just hand out campaign ending and game ending impossible scenarios to stonewall player progression, so fear not over that!

But it goes to show the heart of the Historical 1944 campaign. It’s a campaign about survival, which is exactly what the German Wehrmacht of 1944 was attempting to do in the face of ever-increasing Allied strength attacking them across multiple fronts.

Ultimately, we really wanted to tell the story of how Germany and the land it controlled went from looking like this at the start of 1944:



To looking like this by the end of 1944:




As has been tradition with the new Axis Operations DLC series, we once again have a few new units to showcase!

Flak Tower Type L and Flak Tower Type G



As German industry and cities became the target of Allied bombing, one of the defensive efforts made in response was the construction enormous Flak Towers.
These towers served many purposes, with their primary function serving as platforms for mounting multitudes of Anti-Aircraft weaponry. In addition to that though, and thanks to their very solid concrete construction, many Flak towers also functioned as fortified radar installations and air raid shelters for civilians to take refuge in.



In Panzer Corps 2, we have equipped the smaller Flak Tower L units with Quad 20mm AA guns, making them a potent defense against low flying, ground attack aircraft.
While the larger Flak Tower G units boast 88mm AA guns, giving them a large range to reach Allied strategic bombers.

Panther Pillbox



But fortification construction was not limited to within Germany itself. In an effort to defend their conquests, new defensive structures were being prepared by Germany in the hopes of stopping the Allied advances that were taking place during 1944.



One of these designs was to take a Panther turret, equipped with its high velocity, armor piercing 7.5cm main gun, and affix it to a specially designed concrete structure. It was hoped that this pillbox design would be a much cheaper alternative to building a fully functional tank or tank destroyer, while still providing much needed anti-tank firepower to German defenders that were under increasing attack from the thousands of tanks that were being produced by the Allied powers.

Soviet T-44



One of the new Allied units being added alongside Axis Operations 1944 East is the Soviet T-44 tank. The T-44 was not meant to be an incremental upgrade of the T-34, as various models such as the T-34/42 and T-34/43 were, rather it was designed as a successor to the venerable T-34, whose design actually pre-dated the start of the Second World War.

Historically, however, the T-44 saw extremely limited action on the Eastern Front. With the Soviet decision to focus on more T-34 production, especially the up gunned T-34/85 model, the T-44 did not enter mass production.



In addition to the standard T-44, which was armed with the same 85mm main gun of the T-34/85, there was also the T-44/100 variant which boasted an even more powerful 100mm main gun.

In Panzer Corps 2, the T-44/100 also comes with side skirts for extra protection in urban and close combat environments, making it both lethal against enemy vehicles and very well protected against enemy infantry assaults.

Wooden Tanks



ANY INFORMATION ON THESE UNITS IS CLASSIFIED TOP SECRET. THIS UNIT IS UNAVAILABLE BY NORMAL PURCHASING MEANS AND THEIR PURPOSE IS UNKNOWN.


The last thing we want to talk about is something there has been a lot of feedback on, ever since Panzer Corps 2 launched.

Many players have expressed a desire to see improved audio sound effects for a few of the units in Panzer Corps 2. This is especially true in regards to heavy tank movement and jet aircraft movement.

To say some official words on this long running topic... we have good news and some not so good news.

The good news is we have acquired a new library of authentic World War II SFX (sound effects) for potential use in Panzer Corps 2! This is something we’ve wanted for a long time, and have seen a lot of player feedback over, and we’re pleased to reveal that it’s finally coming!

However, and this is the bad news, converting that library of SFX into Panzer Corps 2 is a lot of work, and this means we don’t have a target date for the completion of this task. Sorry to say, but it will not be a part of the Axis Operations 1944 DLC Update.

But even so, it’s progressed enough that we are able to let our fans and players know about this
plan, because it is definitely something that has been requested extensively.


As always, we are reading and listening to your feedback. Many thousands of posts and messages have greatly improved Panzer Corps 2 for its entire player base, and we encourage you to continue to share your thoughts and wants for the game into the future!

Axis Operations 1944 is currently finishing its BETA testing phase, and we want to give another special thank you to all of our BETA testers for their hard effort to help us make each installment of Panzer Corps 2 content the best it can be!

We hope you enjoyed this sneak peek into a very different kind of Panzer Corps 2 DLC campaign that is coming up shortly. Be on the lookout for a release date to follow, and we look forward to all our players enjoying the continuing Panzer Corps 2 Axis Operations Grand Campaign!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2130950/Panzer_Corps_2_Axis_Operations__1944/

As the Axis Operations Grand Campaign approaches 1944, the end of the Second World War begins to loom. To give this 7th DLC its unique flavour, there are going to be two campaigns available in this one DLC! One campaign that explores continued German successes, and another that follows the dramatic decline and stunning defeats of the German Wehrmacht...

In this first of two Developer Diaries, we’ll take an in-depth look at one of these campaigns. Today, we will share some previews of what is in store in the totally original Ahistorical Campaign of Axis Operations 1944.

These are no mere minor or bonus scenarios though. With the fully fleshed out and methodically researched ahistorical campaign that began in 1943 and continues into 1944 and beyond, Panzer Corps 2 promises to offer the largest and most comprehensive take on an ahistorical World War II that has ever been attempted in a Panzer General type game!

Be warned, there are major spoilers ahead! That in of itself is quite amazing and offers a glimpse into the extent of changes this campaign has in store compared to the World War II we are all already familiar with.




Throughout the course of the Axis Operations, we’ve dabbled in ahistorical content. Aside from the odd bonus scenario, the first big departure into ahistory was the 1940 Sea Lion invasion. Though ultimately unsuccessful, the seeds of changing your campaign destiny were first sown way back in the 1940 DLC. Events revolving around the capture of British Jet Fighter blueprints have been showing up ever since, including the potential early arrival of the Me262 Jet Fighter in Axis Operations 1943.

Of course, we have to keep in mind where the ahistorical path of Axis Operations 1943 left us. Victory at Kursk, Rostov, and ultimately across the Caucasus has created a very different landscape of the Eastern Front from any we typically know of from history. To aid players in understanding these changes, we have a ton of character dialogue, scenarios that explore these new battles, and a large variety of maps on offer.

For example, the historical 1944 we all know and recognize has an Eastern Front that looks like this.



But this new and original ahistorical 1944 begins with a map that looks more like this:



This German conquest of the Caucasus immediately puts the frontline adjacent to British-controlled Persia. For those that do not know, this trade route into the Soviet Union was a major line of supply for Allied Lend-Lease equipment. Historically, it was known as the ‘Persian Corridor’.

So right away in the new ahistorical 1944, we will have a departure from the Soviet adversaries we have been fighting against so often on the Eastern Front.


Not only will there be new battles to fight, but new optional Elite Objectives just might give pause to even the most deeply imported and heroic stacked of player COREs. With the war approaching its end, the numerical superiority of the Allied powers offers the perfect backdrop to this new objective type. Here is just one preview of these special enemy formations that will test your mettle.



Aiding you in the ongoing struggle, a cadre of historical German figures make their return in the ahistorical Axis Operations 1944 campaign. One of them is Generalleutnant Galland, who we have seen time and again across the Axis Operations since the Spanish Civil War.



As head of German Western Fighter Command, General der Jagdflieger Galland will have a very special task for you. There is the matter of a certain invasion that takes place in 1944 that cannot be ignored before your eventual return to the Eastern Front...




There is another German character featured in the Axis Operations 1944 ahistorical campaign. In fact, he is probably the single most well-known, and respected, German General of the entire Second World War.

Even though his days as commander of the vaunted Afrika Korps are now passed, Field Marshal Erwin Rommel is now in command of Army Group B: the German forces currently guard occupied France.

But off the battlefield, Rommel is also known for being a participant in the July Plot. But when it ultimately failed, Rommel was then forced to take his life. He made this sacrifice to protect his country from the scandal of a trial, but also to protect his family from reprisal.



To honor this legendary figure from history, a new type of scenario is present in Axis Operations 1944: the narrative scenario. In it, we will attempt to give new life to this character. Aside from the brand new portraits made for him, players will get a chance to see Rommel explain his motivations and decisions firsthand.

But how and if Rommel will return in the ahistorical campaign of Axis Operations 1944... well we don’t want to spoil everything!




As always, we are reading and listening to your feedback. Many thousands of posts and messages have greatly improved Panzer Corps 2 for its entire player base, and we encourage you to continue to share your thoughts and wants for the game into the future!

Axis Operations 1944 is currently in its BETA testing phase, and we want to give a special thank you to all of our BETA testers for their hard effort to help us make each installment of Panzer Corps 2 content the best it can be!


We hope you enjoyed this sneak peek into some of the exciting content that the ahistorical 1944 campaign has on offer. Be on the lookout for our next Dev Diary, where we take a look at some of the new units being added to the game and explore the very starkly contrasted gameplay present in the Axis Operations 1944 historical campaign.

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2130950/Panzer_Corps_2_Axis_Operations__1944/

German forces are stretched to their limits and the war on the Eastern Front has reached a fever pitch…


The Axis Operations - 1944 DLC Campaign is the first DLC that offers two entire campaigns that are completely separate and independent from one another.

In the historical campaign, prepare to face the brutal realities of the decline of the German Wehrmacht as it struggles to survive the Allied onslaught battering it from all directions.

In the ahistorical campaign, continue your success that has secured the Caucasus region for Germany as you defend your extensive conquests from familiar and totally new challenges.

To properly explore the historical battles and ahistorical events in the 1944 DLC, Axis Operations 1944 has grown to provide the largest amount of content a DLC has yet to have.
The vast 20 scenarios count offers the best glimpse at exploring the historical realities of devastating battles fought on the Eastern Front during 1944, especially during Operation Bagration.

The ahistorical campaign is a fully fleshed out and realized campaign with well-researched potential successes, and setbacks, the mighty German Wehrmacht may have faced even after it emerged as the victor from the Battle of Kursk.

• Two playable campaigns
  
• New 20 huge scenarios
  
• A new set of objectives, classified as Elite Objective
  
• Import your core forces which completed the previous Axis Operations - 1943 East campaign
  
• Field Marshal Erwin Rommel returns!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2130950/Panzer_Corps_2_Axis_Operations__1944/

Hello everyone,

The World Championship 2021 of Panzer Corps 2 is over.

After 12 exciting rounds of intense battles, we have a winner, Trepko



It was a long journey and it was very exciting for us to follow it.
The 2021 World Championship has seen more than 350 players from all over the world fighting each other for the final victory.
During the tournament the players competed on multiple maps during different historical periods, giving life to the biggest and most amazing Panzer Corps tournament ever.
We really want to thank everyone of you for playing in this world championship and congratulate once again with our first world champion Trepko.

See you next

Hello everyone,

today we are releasing a small update for thegame.

Changelog:

- Added all localizations for Axis Operations 1943
- Fixed random crash at the beginning of a mission
- Fixed sync issues in Minsk and other coop MP scenarios
- Fixed crash when proceeding to the next mission with a 5-star armored train in the core
- Other small fixes

Hello everyone,

today we are releasing a small update for the game.

Changelog:

- Added Axis Operations 1943 campaign to the game
- All Axis Operations campaigns now display Commendation Points in the UI
- Reworked Fjord War scenario
- Destroyed units now remain on the map after save/reload
- New medal popup which appears during the AI turn is now delayed till the beginning of the player's turn
- When upgrading a unit, it now shows its proper current skin in Upgrade window
- Fixed some annoying rare issues in Fog of War calculation
- Fixed marker color of player 1
- Fixed occasional crashes when opening Combat Log screen
- Fixed visual artefacts around map name in the bottom-left corner of the map
- Fixed transport units sometimes having no texture in the Shop
- Fixed older messages in Multiplayer not showing after reloading the game from the server
- Fixed lua scripts sometimes not loading correctly in Multiplayer games
- Fixed custom data files not working in Multiplayer games
- Fixed a number of issues in modding support
- Various other improvements, optimizations and fixes

It is 1943. Between the brutal stalemales, brutal winter and armies of marauding tanks, the Germans find themselves pinned or retreating throughout Russia.

But, as spring of 1943 approaches, the wehrmacht perhaps has some cause for optimism. The lessons of the last few years have surely been learnt. The Russians have surely taken incalculable losses. Surely a well thought out strike now could see the end of the war.


We are delighted to announce that Panzer Corps 2: Axis Operations 1943 is out now, and with it comes the turning point in the most brutal part of the war.

Will you be able to change history and lead Germany to victory? Or will overcoming the Russian defences prove too problematic to attempt? Either way, this extensive DLC will offer hours of tactical depth and challenge to keep you engaged right up until the final moment.

As with other Axis Operations content, you’ll be able to jump right into this DLC with your existing core. If you don’t have one, don’t worry, as you can also play with our specially tuned premade core.

Panzer Corps 2: Axis Operations 1943 is available now on the Slitherine store, Steam, Epic Games and GoG.

Achtung, Panzer Generals!

Because the upcoming Axis Operations 1943 is so jam packed with goodies, we have a very special second Developer Diary for you to get another preview of even more of the upcoming additions to Panzer Corps 2!

First off, the important news! Axis Operations 1943 is releasing the 26th of May!

With no time to waste today, we're going to jump right into a general game improvement first with...

A collection of new German hero portraits



One request we have received time and again is to increase the portrait variety of heroes the game hands out, especially from those players with highly veteran and many times imported CORE forces. To you I say, we have new assets!

Panzer Corps 2 has expanded its German hero portrait variety with a number of new images, which should reduce the repetition of seeing the same hero image repeatedly. This new batch of heroes is focused very heavily on Panzer and StuG crew portraits, to complement the existing infantry and Luftwaffe portraits we already have in game. And the six images you see here are just a few of the added portraits!

This change is actually not unique to the upcoming Axis Operations 1943 campaign, but will be available to all owners of any edition of Panzer Corps 2. Everyone should be seeing these awesome new portraits begin to appear in any German campaign they play as soon as the update rolls out.



Field Marshal Erich von Manstein, new and improved



In our extensive historical research of the Eastern Front of World War II, one name seemed to come up time and time again: Erich von Manstein. Considered by some to be the most brilliant German military mind during this conflict, von Manstein's list of battles and victories is extensive as it was incredible. Even before his infamous combat career on the Eastern Front, he lent his genius to the Western Front of 1940, with the so-named 'Manstein Plan' that resulted in the collapse of France in just six weeks!

We really wanted to do this historical figure justice, so we armed him with amazing looking new portraits as you can see here. Additionally, players will get deep insight into Field Marshal von Manstein's mannerisms, thought processes, and abilities in this campaign, as we scoured many historical sources to properly represent this historical figure in the campaigns of 1943.



In fact, one of our BETA testers gave us feedback that described our depiction of him as 'the Gigachad himself'. When I inquired what this tester meant by that, they elaborated with this visual they created.



Jokes aside, this attention to historical characters definitely adds extra flavor to Axis Operations 1943, and could be an intriguing trend for future campaigns to really spotlight specific historical characters! Maybe one day we'll see the likes of Patton, Bradley, Zhukov, or Nimitz done in such detail?

New Equipment

As has been tradition with the new Axis Operations DLC series, we once again have a few new units to showcase!



Panther Prototype, Daimler-Benz VK 30 31

After the rude shock of seeing Soviet heavy tanks as early as Operation Barbarossa, German engineers were working overtime to close the gap between their Panzers and Soviet tanks. By the spring of 1942, the first designs were being prepared, and by early 1943 they were being produced for combat!

Captured Soviet tanks had a very clear influence on these designs, as this particular Prototype Panther tank shows a very close resemblance to the Soviet T-34/76 tank.



Panther IVH, Command Tank

Some astute players have found this strange tank in the game files earlier than we anticipated, and now the time has finally come to talk about it!

The strangely low Hard Attack value of this vehicle is very much intended, because it is not meant to be a combat vehicle. In fact, it is not a production model chassis at all. This particular vehicle resulted from a myriad of circumstances. Specifically, a shortage of Panther turrets combined with the need for frontline commanders to be better protected in an enclosed command vehicle.

So the gun in this tank's turret is actually completely inactive, a dummy weapon purely meant to intimidate any potential enemies from engaging the vehicle. Given a certain Oberst's previous injuries during Barbarossa, this enclosed command vehicle is meant to be his new personal command vehicle in cases where he is forced to take to the field!



He-219, Bomber Hunter

Armed with a variety of anti-aircraft cannons, including some of them orientated in a fixed vertical position to attack bombers from below, the HE-219 was an aircraft meant to take on the steadily increasing amount of Allied bombers pounding German military and industrial targets.

It has poor initiative values, making it a weak dogfighter, but air attack values even stronger than the venerable FW-190.



SU-76i, Captured Panzer III

After the debacle of Stalingrad, Allied forces actually had a significant number of captured German vehicles at their disposal. This was a first, as before this deploying captured vehicles to combat was a luxury enjoyed mainly by the Axis as they rolled across Western and Eastern Europe.

To better integrate all of their captured Panzer IIIs and StuG IIIs, the Soviets modified the captured German vehicles slightly. While the hull of these vehicles is distinctly German, the upper structure has been re-armed with the standard 76.2mm weapon seen on many Soviet tanks.



Azul Infanterie, Spanish Volunteers

Although Spain was ostensibly neutral during World War II, the Blue Division volunteers did fight for the Axis Powers on the Eastern Front.

As other infantry units upgrade to their 1943 variants to increase their firepower, especially anti-tank firepower, so too do the Spanish Volunteers get an upgrade.

Because this is not a unit available for normal purchase, however, only players who import their Azul Infanterie into the Axis Operation 1943 campaign will have the opportunity to upgrade their old Azul Infanterie into their 1943 version.

A different kind of Historical Campaigning

In the past, there has always been a lingering issue with Late War German scenario content. The question of 'Why am I winning every battle, but losing the war?'. We are going to finally attempt to settle this issue with the split Historical and Ahistorical Branches of the Axis Operations campaigns.

There has been a huge rethink on how scenario design and objectives are approached. Thanks to having the Ahistorical Branch which can explore the player desire to fight and win and continuing winning now, the Historical content is no longer obliged to grant outrageous winning conditions in its scenarios. What exactly does that mean?

Well it means by the time we get to Berlin 1945, there is probably no objective to magically defend Berlin, and miraculously suddenly turn the tide in this final hour. The Historical Branch can now focus on being purely historical.

This probably means it is going to be a very rough campaign, that is extraordinarily punishing to players who think it possible resist the tide of history. A lot of effort will be directed for the player to actually make history play out as it has.

For example, less objectives to Capture all Victory Hexes and clear the map of all enemies. More objectives to say... escort a historical figure to their historical end. Adolf Galland is preparing to surrender to the Americans, but he and his unit must not only escape the advancing Soviets, but also evade other German forces that are attempting to stop any and all surrendering of their fellow Germans!

We will only see the very first glimpses of this in the 1943 campaign, but the foundation is being set in scenarios such as Taman Peninsula where there really isn't the opportunity to win a glorious victory against the approaching Soviets, the only real path laid out in that scenario is to safely evacuate a series of very understrength German and Romanian units before they are overrun and destroyed.



Your Feedback

As always, we are reading and listening to your feedback. Many thousands of posts and messages have greatly improved Panzer Corps 2 for its entire playerbase, and we encourage you to continue to share your thoughts and wants for the game into the future!

Axis Operations 1943 is currently wrapping up its BETA testing, and we want to give a special thank you to all of our BETA testers for their hard effort to help us make each installment of Panzer Corps 2 content the best it can be!

Conclusion

We hope you enjoyed this extra look into even more of the new additions coming in the Axis Operations 1943 campaign. Even more surprises await in the campaign itself, so prepare your Panzers for its imminent release!

The time has finally come, and we can tell you more about our next Home of Wargamers, which will take place, as you already know, in beautiful Venice on May 10th.

It will be a great chance to be updated on our already announced games and discover new, exciting, upcoming releases.

In the following weeks, we will announce the official schedule of the live event, but you will also get more information on our social channels and newsletter.

Stay Tuned and activate the reminder on our Twitch channel.

Panzer Corps 2 - Axis Operations 1943 - Dev Diary 1



Opening Statement
Greetings, Panzer Generals! Before we begin with this Developer Diary, we thought it to be important to address the elephant in the room. No, not this Elephant with its 8.8cm gun...



But rather, the time gap since the last Axis Operations installment. The first five chapters in the series came out in pretty rapid succession, but then there was many months passing after the 1942 campaign released.

For that, all we can give you is our apologies. But let us assure you now, it was time well spent recuperating, planning, and continuing work on the awesome game that is Panzer Corps 2.

One of the biggest time eaters has been needed to plan, and execute, the concept of a split timeline. There's a lot of groundbreakings to take content that is usually added as a fun bonus with no reasonable connections or lingering effects, and instead integrating that in a Grand Campaign that is ongoing.

Ultimately though, this could mean even more than just a split timeline. Specifically, one of the concepts we've put a lot of thought into the classical late war problem of 'why am I losing the war if I keep winning every battle?'. In theory, we can potentially explore that winning potential, and completely recontextualize the nature of what 'winning' the late war German historical campaign means.

What if, for example, there were scenarios you couldn't lose in 1944, but instead your task during each scenario was accomplished as much as you can inside of it. Did you just survive the scenario, or did you 'win' it? Victory might only get you as far as a historical outcome, where anything less spells eventual doom.

The bottom line though, we are at a point where we want the Axis Operations Grand Campaign to be much, much more than just a machine stamping out scenarios, and a lot of extra time and energy was needed to conceptualize just how we could continue to innovate, before we could begin to produce the content. Which leads us to...


The effect on Axis Operations 1943 East
With that extra-long gap of time between 1942 and the upcoming 1943 campaign, we've had a real opportunity to take 1943 to the next level, and we want to shine a spotlight on several of the campaign highlights here today.

In this sixth chapter of the Axis Operation Grand Campaign, we're going to take a look at some of the surprises in the Axis Operation Kursk battles, returning customization options, a lot more historical goodies, and a very special ending that players have been asking us to get in the game for a long time now.


Kursk in the Axis Operations


Now we're all certainly familiar with that historical tagline for Kursk of the 'Largest Tank Battle in History'. And with our game literally having 'Panzer' as part of its title, we definitely have that aspect of the battle in play.

There's going to be lots of action for your brand-new Panthers, Tigers, and other German armor to engage in.



But more than that, we wanted to take advantage of Panzer Corps 2's unique game systems to make the various scenarios that explore the Battle of Kursk to be a lot more than just tanks clashing against each other.

Some of these battle maps are so dense, that internal testing shows progress of the player's army slowed down to a rate of advancing just 1 hex per turn! The historical Soviet defenses of Kursk have been brought to life in the Axis Operations 1943 campaign, as layers of minefields, supporting anti-tank weapons, hardened strongpoints, and Soviet air support will fight their hardest to stop your German spearheads from penetrating into the Kursk Salient!

Most dangerously, the Soviet forces have learned from the past years of conflict and the power of German air support, and now there are many squadrons of Soviet aircraft who have the very specific mission and ability to provide support fire... against ground attacks!




A returning feature


As you can see in the above image, something we've finally been able to return to the Axis Operations that players enjoyed in the Vanilla Campaign is the ability to turn off the turn limit for this campaign.

We have structured as many scenarios as possible to allow for the disabling of the turn limit, if the player so desires. We haven't quite got every single scenario to play without a turn limit, many defensive objectives require the timer to govern their conclusion, but as much as possible for this, and future DLC, we will strive to once again allow players to disable the scenario turn limits.


More History than any past DLC
One of the biggest beneficiaries of the extra time we've had with 1943, is we have had a lot more time to weave more history into the content. There is, without a doubt, more text in briefings, debriefings, and scenario messages than any DLC we have produced so far.



Extra special attention has been given to the mannerisms and speech patterns of the historical figures you will encounter in this campaign. For example, many of Erich von Manstein's appearances now directly reflect his true thoughts on the conflicts on the Eastern Front he participated in. This is thanks to us having the time to fully read and absorb some of his extensive writings on the war, to use as reference and to inject authenticity to his character.


Also, less History than any past DLC (but more history)
The other thing we have had extra time to really explore is, at long last, the ability for the players actions to actually influence not just their tactical victories, but potentially alter the course of the full war on the Eastern Front!

Be warned, consider everything you read from here on a MAJOR SPOILER!!!

In the past, even in the original Grand Campaign, we've never really been able to explore a proper historical outcome. This has always resulted in extremely truncated bits of content, more like just a bonus mission. You finish off Germany as the Allied Powers, and you get a single bonus scenario to explore Operation Unthinkable. You capture Moscow, and teleport to the East Coast of the United States. Or you manage a miraculous victory at the Battle of the Bulge, and go on to a truly fanciful series of events that leads you to Sealion 45. Fun stuff, but complete flights of fancy that act more like bonus material than a fleshed out and highly detailed campaign.

In Axis Operations 1943 though, we are able to present a major split in the timeline. We did extensive research on the idea of 'what would Germany do next after a victory at Kursk?' And we found that the answer was not 'go on to take Moscow and end the war with Soviet Russia'. After all, before the Battle of Kursk, who had even heard of Kursk? Even in planning for Operation Citadel, German leaders realized how ridiculous the amount of effort and resources being prepared to take basically nowhere that no one had previously even heard of.

What that means is the historical branch of the Panzer Corps 2 Axis Operations campaign is taking shape like no campaign before it has. We've planned and research a wealth of information to offer our take on what German victory at Kursk could result in both short and long term.



Suffice to say, the fighting on the Eastern Front is not going to magically stop, but whole new campaigns are going to be fought as your victories erase events such as the German retreat from the Dneiper River, and are replaced by new frontlines that Allied and Axis leadership will have to consider and plan for...


Your Feedback
As always, we are reading and listening to your feedback. Many thousands of posts and messages have greatly improved Panzer Corps 2 for its entire player base, and we encourage you to continue to share your thoughts and wants for the game in the future!

We especially encourage anyone who would like to participate in the DLC BETA testing to do so.

Conclusion
We hope you enjoyed this first glimpse into the upcoming 1943 Axis Operations DLC campaign, and stay tuned for at least one more of these Dev Diaries to come where we will explore some of the new units, briefing images, and true historical content being added to this latest DLC campaign.