The (German) Weapons of Battlefield Gallia (Chapter 1-38)

Armor

German Design:

Panzer I: A light tank built in the early years of the modern Wehrmacht, it was armed only with a pair of MG-34 7.92mm machine guns. It saw considerable usage during the invasion of Gallia, though it was soon traded for the Panzer 38(t)/LT-38 from Czechoslovakia used on both sides of the invasion. Ironically, it was a joint development between Germany and Gallia that produced the Panzer I, along with its Gallian counterpart, the GPz.-1, which would never enter service.

Panzer II: An interim tank designed to be a stopgap between the Panzer I and what would later be the Panzers III and IV, the tank was the main vehicle used during the invasion of Gallia (along with its older, lighter brother, the I). As result, most fights between the German Pz. II and Gallian GPz.-2 were often decided by which side was more tactful in use of armor. While the 20mm aircraft cannon was inferior penetration wise to the 75mm cannons of the GPz.-2 ("Gallischer Panzerkampfwagen"), as a whole, the Panzer II outclassed its Gallian counterpart.

Panzer III: The heaviest tank to see use in the German-Gallian war (aside from the Matilda tanks on lend-lease from Britain), the Panzer III mounted a 50mm cannon in these variants, along with one or two MG-34 machine guns. It was the first German-built tank (aside from the A7V of the First World War) to be built and designed without direct input from Gallian designers, mainly being developed after the Nazis took power in 1933. It was intended to be a designated anti-tank tank (the anti-personnel roll to be filled by the Panzer IV), though the roles were quickly switched in France.

Panzer IV: Entering service one week too late to take part in the invasion of Gallia, the Panzer IV would see considerable use in the war against France and Britain. Originally mounting a stubby 75mm gun not unlike that of the GPz.-2, it was eventually given a longer gun of the same bore, granting a better antitank ability – an irony, considering that the tank was intended to be used against infantry and lighter vehicles (combat against enemy tanks would have been done with the Panzer III's high-velocity 50mm gun). Like the III, and like the GPz-2, it mounted 7.92mm machine guns in the turret, and hull.

Panzer V(D) "Panther": An experimental vehicle developed as a simpler version of the Pz. V(G)
"Edelweiss", the D in the designation indicates that it was designed in Germany (thus, the tank is "Deutsch" as opposed to "Gallisch"). While lighter overall than the Edelweiss, the Panther was eventually considered the superior vehicle between the two, being cheaper to produce (due to a reduced amount of parts required for production, and requiring less time), in spite of being less reliable, thanks to rushed development. Like the later models of Panzer IV seen in 1943-46, the Panther often had "Schuetze" attached, preventing antitank weapons from striking the hull directly.

Panzer VI "Bengal/King Tiger": Originally a direct Germanization of the Edelweiss, the King Tiger (sometimes also referred to as the "Bengal Tiger" or "Royal Tiger") mounted an 88mm cannon over the Pz.-V(G)'s 82mm. It was also eventually decided by the vehicle's manufacturer, Henschel, to move it squarely into the Heavy Tank category by also providing it heavier armor than the Edelweiss. While this required a Ragnite engine be used to provide sufficient power to give the tank, it wasn't enough to allow the 68.5 tonne vehicle to travel any faster than 45 km/h – five kilometers slower than German-produced Edelweisses.

Foreign Design:

Panzer 35(t): Originally from Czechoslovakia, the Panzer 35(t) began life as the Skoda LT-35. It was often noted to come into combat with the GPz.-2, using a 37mm gun to great effect against the light Gallian tanks. Many were built for export to various eastern European nations – including Gallia, which received a shipment of 14 tanks mere months before Germany's annexation of the Sudetenland – and all were seized for use in the German Military.

Panzer 38(t): Used more commonly than the 35(t), the Pz. 38(t) was also a Skoda-designed tank, with exports headed for various nations. Between it and the 35, it was selected by the Gallian arsenal to be produced under license to supplement the GPz.-2. When the majority of the tanks to be shipped to Gallia where seized by the Wehrmacht, Gallia had only acquired three of the one-hundred tanks promised (the other 97 were later produced alongside the GPz-2).

Panzer II(G): The GPz-2, as used by the Wehrmacht. It saw limited service, being found not worthy of production for the German military. Many were used in tandem with the Renault FT-17, and schematics for a version with a modular weapons system were acquired, but later scrapped. It left service shortly before the invasion of Britain, all of the German military's 137 captured models being sold to Italy under Mussolini.

Panzer V(G) "Edelweiss": Captured during the invasion of Gallia, it became the staple of many German divisions, supplementing the Panzer IV, and eventually replacing it during 1941. While it was costly to produce (and Hitler demanded that no corners be cut in reproduction), the Edelweiss was exactly replicated for Wehrmacht use, production beginning in early March of 1940 (though the tank didn't officially enter service until June). Soon after the tank entered service, the tank was used as the base of a variant – the Jagdpanzer V(G) "Edeljaeger" ("Noble Hunter"), mounting Germany's locally built 88mm Pak 43. The 82mm gun was more than enough to trouble its British counterparts, though the King Tiger was better in combating designated antitank guns, such as the 17-pounder, and direct-fire 25-pounders.

-Panzerjaeger V(G) Edeljaeger: A designated anti-tank variant of the Edelweiss, it traded the turret-mounted 82mm gun for a heavier, longer 88mm gun mounted in the hull. It bore a heavy resemblance to the later Jagdpanther.

-Flakpanzer V(G): A variant of Edelweiss for anti-aircraft warfare. It mounted a 20mm Flakvierling, and had its armor reduced so to keep up with the main force. It was also effective against infantry, though it often didn't come into combat with them.

Panzer-1923-D: Imperial light tank purchased for German use in Gallia, and later France. The Krimm 85mm mortar in the hull was removed and replaced with twin-mounted MG-34 machine guns. Service in the Wehrmacht was short-lived, as the tank proved too light – all German models were destroyed or damaged beyond repair, and no orders were given for new ones.

Panzer-1936-D: Imperial medium tank purchased for German use in Gallia. Intended as interim models until medium tanks could be built in Germany itself, it was used alongside Panzer IIs as a meat shield. All the Imperial weapons were stripped before service, to create the 1936-D. The 76.2mm gun was replaced with a German-produced 75mm, and the 85mm – like on the 1923 – was replaced with twin MG-34s. The rear gun was also replaced with an MG-34.

Panzer-1939-D: Imperial heavy tank purchased for German use. Once again as a stopgap weapon, this massive vehicle was used in small numbers to combat the British "Sturm-Matildas" and Char B1 bis tanks encountered. The stubby 122mm hull gun was replaced with a full-length 88mm, firing a solid anti-armor round. This radically changed the tank's profile. The 76.2mm turret gun was also replaced with a 75mm, though it was hardly used, as the tank was often used as a self-propelled artillery piece. German use concluded in October 1941, as the tank had become far too large and easy for Soviet vehicles to hit.

Infantry Weapons (Rifles, Machine Guns, etc.)

German-designed:

Karbiner 98 kurz: The "short" version of Hitler's favorite rifle, the Karbiner 98. It was bolt action, making it unforgiving should the user miss, particularly when the person being fired upon often held a semi-automatic weapon, such as the Gallian or SVT-40. However, the reduced rate-of-fire encouraged marksmanship, thus allowing the Kar 98k to simply have a scope mounted, turning it into a potent sniper rifle.

Gewehr 40: Jokingly referred to as the "German" by Gallian troops in Wehrmacht service, the G40 was produced using design notes on the Gallian series of rifles. While it was longer than the carbine it drew from, the Mauser-produced weapon was little more than a Gallian made of different wood from the Black Forest than from Kloden, giving the rifle a darker finish.

MG-34: Germany's main machine gun, and the direct developmental precursor to "Hitler's Buzzsaw," the MG-42. Firing the same full-size 7.92x57mm Mauser round as the G40, K98 and Gallian series, the machine gun saw use as an infantry weapon, defensive measure, and also as a tank machine gun.

MP-38/40: The weapon of Nazi Germany as depicted by popular culture. Firing the common 9mm Parabellum round also used by the Mags series and ZM MP, the MP-40 was developed by Heinrich Vollmer in competition with the ZM MP series. While it lost out on the international market, the MP-38 was used to great effect in Gallia and later France and Britain. Service continues in the Soviet Union.

StG-41: Designed using the Gallian T-MAG 1 as a base, designers at Erma Werke produced a potent assault rifle firing a shortened version of the 7.92x57mm round. It was accurate enough to be used as a DMR, and had a fast enough rate of fire to be issued to assault troops. By 1943, most German troops had one of the rifles at some point in time, though Snipers generally retained G40s or K98s.

Panzerbuechse 39: While the Empire and Gallia were reliant upon the massive pointed lances for anti-tank combat, requiring to close to sometimes near-suicidal ranges in order to engage the target, Germany showed little interest until the Faustpatrone. The main anti-tank infantry weapon before the light grenade launcher was an antitank rifle, which was initially laughed at by Gallian analysts. When the high-velocity round tore into the GPz.-2, it became no laughing matter. It fired a 7.92x94mm round that could easily pose a massive threat to light armor.

Panzerfaust: While the VB PL and Lancaar were far too large and bulky for use in the highly-mobile Wehrmacht, they did serve as the basis of a smaller, more easily used weapon, called the "Panzerfaust" (lit. "Armor Fist"). While vastly smaller, for issue to Germany's assault troops ("Sturmtruppen"), it was also open on both ends, negating any and all recoil. The distinct shape of its forefathers was still present, though, but the Panzerfaust was small enough to also be stored in the packs of an assault trooper simply by stashing the tube – the stubby warheads were attached to the tube as needed, with three shots per trooper.

Handgrenatewerfer: Jokingly called the "Berliner", the Hgw was developed from the Randgrizer grenade launcher (the name translates literally as "hand grenade thrower"), and lobbed a Stielhandgrenate – Germany's famous Stick Grenade – up to 350 meters, often causing the grenade's seven-second fuse to cause it to detonate in mid-air, causing explosive force and fragments to become fair more deadly. It was often fired in a mortar-like arc by Gallian troops in Wehrmacht service, though the proper use was to use it mainly direct-fire (close range was expected to use a common stick grenade thrown by hand).

Walther P38: The standard issue pistol for German servicemen and -women, the P38 fires Germany's common 9mm round used also in the MP38/40. It is hard to find a German soldier without a P38.

Walther PPK: The weapon famously used by James Bond, the PPK was also used by Hitler's military – in fact, it was the weapon Hitler used to kill himself deep in the Fuehrerbuenker at the end of WWII in Europe.

Foreign Designs:

ZM Kar: To fill a gap created by Germany's initial lack of a semiautomatic rifle, ZM corp sold approx. 1,300 ZM Kar weapons to the Wehrmacht, all of which were used from 1939 in Gallia, to early 1941, before the invasion of the Soviet Union. They continued service until war's end, issued, due to their short length and semi-decent accuracy, to the Fallschirmsjaeger, where they remained. Many of them were destroyed, and as result, they are a commodity among collectors, with working models being rarer.

ZM MP: Seeing little use in the Wehrmacht, ZM Corp's most well-known weapon saw negligible German service. It is, however, rumored Hitler keeps a MP2 over his shoulder.

Gallian: Named because it was the first rifle developed in Gallia, the Gallian series was used in conjunction with the Karbiner 98k and ZM Kar in France and Britain. The Wehrmacht expressed preference for the "S" series, and the later Gewehr 40 used the Gallian S-1 as its base. The vanilla model by 1939 – the Gallian 4 – were mainly converted into their Mauser-produced counterparts. Walther arms also produced an anti-tank rifle version of the most advanced of the S-series, though the design was unsuccessful.

Lancaar/VB PL: Neither of these weapons saw major front-line use – however, they were used directly in the development of the Panzerfaust.

FN Browning High Power: Designed by John Browning and built by FN (who would later design the FN FAL and other weapons), the High Power was issued to the Wehrmacht elite (it is also Alicia's unused sidearm), and is also the pistol of choice for the Fallschirmsjaeger.

---End Entry---

I know, I know. Encyclopedia Expositoria isn't a chapter, but it should help tide you over until I finish the actual Ch. 39. I've actually been planning one of these for quite a while (back in France, actually), but never got around to finishing it. I'll probably do a second one of these sometime near the end of the fic.