Tannenberg News

[h3]Hello soldiers,[/h3]
Winter has arrived on the Eastern Front and with that, hunger and cold amongst the soldiers on the battlefield. But they’re not the only ones being affected by the cold season and the war. Just like a soldier, the wolf awaits his moment to attack his prey in the woods.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5X20SeHBIUk
[h2]Hunger drives the wolf out of the wood[/h2]
The Wolf Truce has returned to Tannenberg! From today until December 5, you’ll be able to participate in this unique Tannenberg experience! When you hear the wolves howl on the battlefields, the wolf pack will be coming for you. Both sides of the battlefield have the opportunity to cease fire and fight the hungry wolves together. If you and other players are able to eliminate the pack of hungry beasts without hurting anyone on the opposite team, you’ll all earn a special medal.

All your questions are answered in the FAQ!



[h3]As the wolves ran, drawing nearer to their prey...[/h3]
During the third winter of The Great War in 1917, the region between the Baltic Sea and the Black Sea was the battlefield for the German and Russian Armies. Having to fight each other often in brutal conditions and harsh environments resulted in negative effects on the soldiers’ supply lines, leading to some serious food shortages.

However, the soldiers weren’t the only ones who were hungry. The wolves who were native to the region faced an increased difficulty in hunting their normal prey. They already started feasting on the livestock in nearby villages, but it wasn’t enough to quell their hunger.

The wolf attacks might at one point have been so fearsome that the German and Russian troops called a temporary cease-fire toward each other and formed a brief alliance to jointly fight the lupine threat (although these reports do come from US newspapers, so take them with a pinch of salt).



[h3]If one runs with the wolves, one must howl with the pack[/h3]
Join the pack and fight the wolves together! You can get Tannenberg - and Verdun - now with 65% discounts in the Steam Autumn Sale! The Wolf Truce event is only available on the Eastern Front, so be sure to get it if you haven’t already and gather your (human) pack together!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/633460?snr=2_9_100015


[h3]Be careful out there![/h3]

Today is Remembrance day. A memorial day observed by Commonwealth member states – and often marked by many other countries – it grew out of Armistice Day, which was a tradition until during the Second World War, when the name was changed. The Commonwealth of Nations chose Remembrance Day, while the United States chose Veterans Day.

Armistice Day was so named for the Armistice of Compiègne which went into effect on the eleventh hour of the eleventh day of the eleventh month – November 11, 1918. For many, this marked the end of World War One.

The signing of the Armistice.

Of course, on the Eastern Front the fighting had ended earlier that year. The Treaty of Brest-Litovsk was signed by the Bolshevik government following the devastating Operation Faustschlag, where Central Powers forces captured huge swathes of territory to little or no resistance. The Russian Revolution and civil war in Russia had left the country unable to muster any serious defence.

German General Max Hoffmann wrote in his diary on 22 February: "It is the most comical war I have ever known. We put a handful of infantrymen with machine guns and one gun onto a train and rush them off to the next station; they take it, make prisoners of the Bolsheviks, pick up few more troops, and so on. This proceeding has, at any rate, the charm of novelty."

Following this, the Russians had little choice but to sign a treaty and end the fighting on the Eastern Front. In the end, the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk would be annulled by the Armistice of November 11th, and Germany's surrender.

The signing of the Treaty of Brest-Litovsk.

The Poppy is a common symbol of Remembrance Day, hence why it’s sometimes also referred to as Poppy Day. It became the symbol of the Royal British Legion, a veterans’ organization. They sell paper Poppy flowers which one can wear on their clothing, in memory of those who’ve fallen. The proceeds will go towards supporting war victims and families who’ve lost a family member during war.

In Verdun & Tannenberg, you’ll be able to commemorate the Armistice as well. There will be 2 minutes of silence when you start up the game, rewarding you with a special Remembrance medal afterwards if you choose to participate.



Furthermore, we have a special poppy emote in our Discord especially for this day. Feel free to share in our Discord if you’re remembering anyone special and how you’re planning to do so.
For the Facebook users, there’s a special Poppy filter that you can use for your profile picture. You can click here to be directed to the filter.

[h2]Lest we forget.[/h2]

[h2]Water and Blood 1914 is over[/h2]
Another campaign, another Entente victory:

Central Powers casualties: 1,933,610
Entente casualties: 1,819,664

[h3]The Entente win with a lead of 113,946.[/h3]

For our next campaign, we might just have to shake things up a bit and offer some kind of reward to see if it's possible for the Central Powers to even come close to winning...

[h2]Isonzo Intel Teaser[/h2]
We're still hard at work on Isonzo, and we have plans for a new dev blog soon. Here's a little teaser for what kind of subject you might expect.



[h2]Movember[/h2]
For those who don't know, Movember is a charity for men's health, which started out in 2003 as two Australian friends growing mustaches to see if they could bring them back into fashion. A year later, inspired by how the mustaches could start conversations, they started a website and made a drive for charity, raising $40,000. By 2006 they were raising millions for charity each year, and it's only grown since then.

Since 2003, Movember has funded more than 1,250 men’s health projects around the world, challenging the status quo, shaking up men’s health research and transforming the way health services reach and support men.

Read more on the official Movember website.

Of course, the First World War was back when moustaches were still in fashion - take a look at these four below! We're running a poll on Twitter to see who has the greatest moustache...


[h2]Vote now on Twitter![/h2]
[h2]Vote now on Facebook![/h2]

By the way, this vote isn't just for fun - the outcome will influence something with the WW1 Game Series as well, so think carefully before you click! Keep your eyes open, we have more plans for Movember and the WW1 Game Series this month...

On the Eastern Front in October, in the fortress of Przemyśl the Austro-Hungarian defenders were enjoying a temporary respite after a brutal period of siege and assault from Russian forces. Earlier in the month, troops from the Austro-Hungarian Third Army had forced the Russians to withdraw. But this would only be a brief respite.

By November 10, a second siege would begin following the withdrawal of both German and Austro-Hungarian armies. That winter would be a grim one for the Austro-Hungarians. The fortress would be bombarded ceaselessly and conditions would steadily worsen. Outside the fort, almost a million soldiers would be killed and wounded trying to force a way through the Carpathian mountains to relieve Przemyśl – many from hideous weather conditions and disease.

Part of Przemyśl today.

The last relief effort was in February, and after that failure the commander at Przemyśl was told that there would be no help coming. The garrison maintained their resistance until March 22, first destroying anything of value within the city. When there was nothing more they could do, more than 110,000 men surrendered, including nine generals. The loss of Przemyśl and the disastrous attempts to save it might have broken the back of the Austro-Hungarian army barely 8 months after the war had begun… and it would be more than three years before it ended.

[h2]The Designer and the Professor[/h2]
Last year, Tannenberg designer Jos Hoebe sat down with Professor Alexander Watson from Goldsmiths, University of London to discuss the history of Przemyśl and the operations surrounding it. You can watch the full discussion on YouTube!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]
[h2]Four days remain[/h2]
The Water and Blood 1914 campaign will be running for another three days, until October 31st. Currently the Entente have a lead of 91,000 casualties - will they manage to increase that to a lead of 100,000 by the end of the campaign?

It's in your hands!

On the Western Front, Belgian forces are putting up a stiff fight against the German Fourth Army in the Battle of the Yser. Here on the Eastern Front, the first Siege of Przemyśl has been broken by an advancing Austro-Hungarian army… but it won’t last. By November 10, 1914, a second siege will begin following the withdrawal of both German and Austro-Hungarian armies. By March 1915 the fortress will have surrendered.

The ruins of Przemyśl after the siege.

[h2]Water and Blood 1914 Campaign[/h2]
Water and Blood 1914 is our latest campaign event, and it will run until October 31, when intentional flooding by Belgian forces left the Germans with no choice but to withdraw. Which side will be able to win this battle of attrition?

All casualties in Frontlines and Maneuver game modes in Verdun and Tannenberg will be added to the total losses, and the winning side will be whoever suffers the least killed and wounded. Too many First World War battles essentially became meatgrinders (or were even conceived as such from the start) and so it is for our campaigns.

Read the Campaign FAQ here!

[h2]Isonzo Dev Blog #6[/h2]
There has been a new Isonzo Intel blog talking about rifle grenades and a few other weapons that will be in our upcoming new game. The rifle grenades used in WW1 were early ones, and each nation often came up with very different, interesting designs.

You can read the sixth Isonzo Intel here!

#1: Italian Benaglia Rifle Grenade, #2 Austro-Hungarian Zeitzünder Gewehrgranate, 1st Variant.

[h2]Good luck with the campaign soldiers![/h2]