Steel Division 2 - Blog Post - DLC Tribute to D-Day Reveal !
Hello commanders!
We have a surprise announcement for you today. As (we hope) you know, in a month, almost to the day from now, we will be celebrating the 76th anniversary of the Normandy landings.
We wanted to do something special with this year’s D-Day commemorations and take the opportunity to deliver upon a long-enduring community request. Without further ado…
On June 6th precisely, we will release a new DLC called “Tribute to D-Day” featuring 6 iconic divisions from the battle of Normandy, brought over from Steel Division: Normandy 44 to Steel Division 2.
Who, what, where? Want to know more? Keep on reading!
Do tell me more!
Six divisions, three per side. Which ones will be featured in this brand-spanking-new DLC you shall shrewdly ask? Let’s start with the Allies.
[h2]INDIANHEAD[/h2]
The first one to be featured in the “Tribute to D-Day” DLC is the US 2nd Infantry Division “Indianhead”. Although the division didn’t take part in the D-Day landing itself, only coming ashore on D+1, it can hardly be considered a shirker. Immediately thrown into combat in “hedgerow hell” around Saint-Lô, the 2nd ID clashed with some of the most formidable opponents the Allies faced in Normandy: the elite German paratroopers from 3. Fallschirmjäger-Division.
For two months, Indianhead soldiers fought close quarters in the Normandy bocage, forced to develop new tactics and even equipment to beat a ferocious opponent. After the fall of Saint-Lô, Indianhead was to adapt to another grueling type of warfare when the division was sent to fight street by street for the liberation of the harbor of Brest.
[h2]RED DEVILS[/h2]
The second battlegroup to be featured is the British 6th Airborne Division. Aside from small groups of Jedburghs and pathfinders, it was the first major unit to hit the ground in Normandy when Major Howard’s commando company landed by gliders near Pegasus Bridge at Bénouville.
The rest of the division touched down shortly afterward, isolated east of the river Orne where its mission was to hold a bridgehead for British and Canadian armored troops to exploit once they got off the beach. And despite counter-attacks by 21. Panzer and other German units, the Red Devils held their bridgehead for over a week.
[h2]WINGED HUSSARS[/h2]
The last (and certainly not least) Allied division featured is the 1 Dywizja Pancerna, also known as the Polish 1st Armored Division. Put ashore in early August, it had its baptism of fire only a week later in Operation Totalize. Here the Poles faced off against the best German armored division in Normandy, 12. SS-Panzer.
Nonetheless, the Winged Hussars kept up the attack in the follow-up Operation Tractable and managed to seize the city of Chambois and the Mont Ormel, therefore effectively closing the Falaise Pocket. In this position, the 1 Pancera had to bear the brunt of all the German soldiers scrambling to break out. It was a fight to the death, with few if any prisoners made during the two days of heavy combat. The Winged Hussars played a pivotal role in the capture of more than 50.000 men left in the pocket.
We are not finished yet. Let’s take a look at what the Axis bring to the table.
[h2]IRON FIST[/h2]
The first German division is the 17. SS-Panzergrenadier-Division “Götz von Berlichingen”. Named after a Swabian medieval knight equipped with a prosthetic arm, which also gave the unit its distinctive coat of arms, it was the only Wehrmacht mechanized infantry division to fight in Normandy. Counting on a sizable amount of pressed “Volksdeutsche” (ethnic Germans from Czechoslovakia, Romania and France), as well as being generally inexperienced and lacking motor transport, not much was expected from this formation.
And yet, the 17. SS-Panzergrenadier-Division proved a formidable opponent, making the most from the combination of hedgerows and its command of brand-new, low-profile StuGs. The division played a significant role in preventing the Americans from capturing Saint-Lô, but was almost wiped out when the Allies later unleashed Operation Cobra.
[h2]GREEN DEVILS[/h2]
The next division to be featured in the “Tribute to D-Day” is the 3. Fallschirmjäger-Division, without a doubt the best infantry formation facing the Allies in Normandy. The Grüne Teufel (Green Devils) were considered elite, and in the cramped Norman bocage around Saint-Lô, the German paratroopers thrived. They turned the hedgerow-ringed fields into natural fortresses. Here the Americans always found the paratroopers ready to engage them in close combat, where their large number of automatic weapons often made the Germans prevail.
Even after Operation Cobra smashed the front, the 3. Fallschirmjäger-Division held its positions for three days, before retreating under pressure. After two weeks on the run, the remains of the division and many others were trapped in the Falaise Pocket. When it came to breaking out, the 3. Fallschirmjäger-Division hadn’t lost its fangs and formed the spearhead, allowing many of their desperate comrades to escape and evade capture.
[h2]BABY DIVISION[/h2]
The final division we are going to feature is maybe the best and most powerful fighting formation fielded by the Third Reich - all fronts considered - during the summer of 1944. The 12. SS-Panzerdivision “Hitlerjugend”. Formed from teenagers from the Hitler Youth organization and led by an experienced cadre of officers and NCOs, this formidable unit combined fanaticism with proven combat experience.
The division became the scourge of the Canadian troops during the Normandy campaign. For every British-Canadian offensive, there was a 12. SS-Panzer counter-attack and no Allied victory came at an easy price. Even in the end, when trapped in the Falaise Pocket, 12. SS-Panzer’s units were still deemed combat-capable enough to lead the second, armored thrust breaking out of the pocket, alongside 3. Fallschirmjäger.
That’s all?
To recap, the upcoming “Tribute to D-Day” DLC will release on June 6th and will be made available for $16,99 / €16,99.
Mind you, this DLC is not the third and final History DLC part of our Steel Division 2 History Pass. We are still working on this expansion, and hope to reveal more of this unrelated DLC in the near future!
If you haven’t, do get your hands on the History Pass! It’s a steal and gives owners access to all the three history DLC planned for Steel Division 2. The History Pass includes The Fate of Finland expansion and The Death on the Vistula expansion.
We’d love to know what you think! Don’t hesitate to check out our Steam forums and Eugen forums, or our social channels (Facebook and Twitter). You can also join us on our Discord server or Reddit page.
See you on the battlefield, commander!
