Steel Soviet Union

"218 Battalion? Why are these bastards not going to Warsaw? And shouldn't this be a company? How did it become a battalion?"

Malachenko, who still clearly remembered the memories he brought from the future, had a very clear impression of the 218 assault gun battalion, which was the impression of this unit in the existing history rather than the current timeline of change. Read

However, the reason why Malachenko was impressed by this German unit was not because of how good these bastards were at fighting and what brilliant achievements they had made. It was because these bastards went directly to the Polish capital Warsaw to suppress the uprising not long after they were established in the existing history, and participated in the battle with many well-known German big guns such as the Sturmtiger and Karl mortar.

The poor and hateful big Bobo uprising army was directly blocked in the city of Warsaw and let the grizzly bear blow up the shit out of it.

The 150mm big gun and the 8kg projectile warhead charge can instantly destroy a residential building with one shot, which is no exaggeration.

The Big Popo rebels, who only had light weapons available, could not withstand this situation. They were directly bombed by a bunch of Grizzlies in the city.

Although the power of the Sturmtiger and the Karl mortar far exceeded that of the Grizzlies, after all, the number of these two things was too small. The newly formed Grizzlies assault artillery unit was the main task of "building demolition device" in the street fighting.

It can be said that the reason why the Big Popo rebels suffered so many casualties was that the Grizzlies made great efforts in this process. For the Germans, it can be said to be a great contribution. Of course, it also further confirmed that this kind of heavy armor and powerful thing is really a first-class street fighting weapon.

The only thing is that Malashenko remembered that the Grizzlies assault artillery unit with the number 218 was only a company in the existing history. And in terms of time, it should not have appeared in the Belarusian battlefield so early, but should have been in Poland. In short, all kinds of key information did not match, which made Comrade Lao Ma a little confused for a while.

What Malashenko didn't know was that the mismatch of these key information could actually be attributed to the "butterfly effect" caused by him.

In the existing history, the 218 assault gun company was constrained by the low production of the Grizzlies, and it could not get enough equipment. Before going to the battlefield, it was always in a state of "people waiting for equipment". In addition, the German army was in a tight battle and urgently needed heavy siege weapons support in the first period after the Warsaw Uprising. There was no choice but to let the "youth version" of the 218th Battalion, which was still organized at the company level, go to the battlefield.

But this time, in this timeline of the other world that has become unrecognizable because of the existence and tampering of the "travelers".

The weakness of the No. 4 tank and the serious weakness and rudeness of the Soviet tanks made it almost impossible to effectively deal with any Soviet medium tank, let alone heavy tanks. The current situation forced the German army to invest more production resources that should have been used for the No. 4 tank in the research and development and production of new tanks.

Moreover, most of the new vehicles produced did not achieve the expected quality crushing effect. The German front-line troops who got the new vehicles had not had time to be happy for two days, but they always found in despair that the Russians on the opposite side had already used newer and more powerful things. The rear military industry could only be forced to develop and produce stronger new vehicles, falling into an extremely bad vicious circle.

When limited research and development and production resources were concentrated more on new tanks, the production of the Panzer IV, which was not as important as in the existing history, or at least there was a real gap, would produce some corresponding changes, such as more pre-production chassis that were vacant and not included in the tank production process became idle.

The front-line German armored forces clamored for a new vehicle that could at least beat the Russian T3485 medium tank. This was already the minimum requirement. If you gave me the Panzer IV, I would also want it, but I really didn't need too much. With these resources, you might as well make me some Black Panthers, or at least new things that could deal with the T3485.

In order to meet the needs of the front line, the German military industry began to invest more resources in the production of new medium tanks. The pre-produced Panzer IV chassis no longer had so much actual demand, at least not as great as the demand in the existing history. This can be confirmed.

Based on the truth that once it is made, it cannot be wasted, some derivative and improved models based on the Panzer IV chassis have gradually been vigorously developed far more than the existing history, and the number of chassis that can be used for transformation and production has been guaranteed. The Grizzli assault gun, as the "strongest Panzer IV modification", is a product that benefits from this.

The 218th Battalion, which should have waited until the eve of the Warsaw Uprising but did not gather enough equipment and was forced to fight in a company-level organization, received a full battalion of 45 Grizzli assault guns on the eve of Operation Bagration and went to the battlefield. They were all the latest batches produced based on the new Panzer IV G tank chassis, which was extremely powerful.

One thing is the same as in the existing history. The 218th Battalion still completed the equipment reception and formal formation in Poland, and caught up with the outbreak of Operation Bagration as soon as it was established.

The war was urgent and no one was waiting. The newly formed 218th Battalion was ordered to be dispatched without even having time to conduct personnel and equipment running-in training. It was transported directly from Poland to the front line by rail and went to the Belarusian front to participate in the war.

While still on the railway train the day before yesterday, the officers and soldiers of the 218th Battalion heard the bad news from the front line: part of the frontline troops of Army Group Center were detoured by the Soviet heavy armored troops and completed the encirclement. The less than 100,000 troops It was too late to evacuate, and it was put into the pocket. If it was not rescued, it would be a disaster.

Wait until the next day, that is, when the officers and soldiers of the 218th Battalion, who did not know "the dangers of the front line", were laughing and annoyed that they could not join the rescue force in time, and were unloading trucks on the platform and making noises. The Grossdeutschland Division and several other troops were once again reported on the front line. They fell into an ambush circle set by the Soviet army in advance and were surrounded by powerful Soviet heavy armor groups. The friendly forces failed to rescue them and instead trapped themselves in them.

By this time, some smart people in the 218th Battalion could already sense that something was seriously wrong.

The battlefield we are about to go to is not a place for children to play, but a "hell's arena" where hundreds of thousands of German troops were besieged and annihilated in just a few days. The main vanguard of the Russians who charged in this gladiatorial arena full of the smell of blood must be difficult to deal with. The sword in his hand is already stained with the blood of the German army and has a strong smell. It doesn't matter if the blood of the 218th Battalion is stained on the sword.

Unable to disobey the overwhelming military orders, the 218th Battalion, which had just arrived as a new force and had finished unloading its trucks, had not had time to take a breath and was immediately sent non-stop to the direction of the battle where the Grossdeutschland Division had the incident yesterday. It was also the deepest advance of the Soviet assault group and the battle situation. The worst breaking point, go put out the fire.

After arriving at the front line, the officers and soldiers of the 218th Battalion saw a considerable number of remnants of the Armored Division that had successfully broken through and withdrawn, but they were not from the Grossdeutschland Division.

According to these remnants of the German army, who all had their heads drooped and wilted like eggplants struck by frost, the Russians knew which troops they were surrounding and whose designation was the Grossdeutschland Division.

The butcher knife in the Russian's hand was for this purpose. Killing the Grossdeutschland Division was the priority. As for the troops that cooperated with the Grossdeutschland Division, it didn't seem to matter if they let some go.

That night, many officers and soldiers of the 218th Battalion lost sleep after seeing how dangerous the frontline battle situation was, and they were worried about the battle that was about to start tomorrow.

"Did you hear that? The group of Russians who rampaged in front of us and ate up the Grossdeutschland Division seemed to be the "Iron Butcher" unit that was blown to the sky before. Among the people of the armored division who retreated, Someone saw the Russian heavy tank that defeated them had the team emblem of a bear head biting an iron cross, and as far as I know, there is only one Russian unit with this team emblem.”

Sitting in the tent holding a cup of freshly brewed coffee, Captain Bockman, the battalion deputy of the 218th Battalion, was speaking to his partner and superior: Major Schennauer.

The heat slowly evaporating from the cup looked as ominous as the smoke on the battlefield. Major Schennauer, who was also feeling uneasy, couldn't help but think of some bad situations. Even if it hadn't happened yet, it was already so difficult to stand. install.

"Although I don't want to admit it, I really pray that this Russian guy has been transferred to fight in another direction. I really don't want to meet these monsters on the frontal battlefield."

"Hey, we are just a group of assault artillery units responsible for fire support. Anti-tank should be done by specialized armored units and anti-tank units. I don't understand why we know that such a powerful Russian heavy-armed assault group is deployed in the front, but we still We have moved to such a forward position, and even the defense lines and field fortifications here need to be built overnight and rushed. "

"Is the situation really that bad? Do we have to resist the Russians here instead of building a more solid defense line further back? Obviously this way we have a better chance of winning, but why does it have to be?"

The words suddenly stopped before he finished speaking. Major Schennauer, who looked really unhappy, stopped his hand in mid-air in embarrassment, and then waved it casually as if to relieve his embarrassment. The next words were purely because he could no longer say anything. Find a step by yourself.

"Forget it, let's not talk about these useless things. I don't want to comment on the orders from my superiors. I just need to execute them."

I have to admit that by 1944, almost all the front-line German troops on the Eastern Front were familiar with the name of the "notorious" and "bloodthirsty" "Iron Butcher" unit.

After many elite German troops were lost one after another, and after Prokhorovka's frenzied siege by the three giants of the Waffen-SS came to naught, this terrifying "myth of hell" became even more popular among front-line German officers and soldiers. They are becoming more and more evil and even miraculous. Almost none of the new recruits are not afraid of this special group of Russians.

Even if you don't want to admit it, this is reality.

For the newly formed 218th Battalion, which has a few veterans and a majority of new recruits, this is especially an annoying problem. You can get an idea of ​​it just by looking at Major Schennauer's worried look on his hair.

"We just have to do what we have to do, you know what I've always said, old man. We were in the army together for six years. We enlisted in the same year and served together for six years. You know every thought I have." . I have long felt that there may be no hope for this war. Of course, this does not mean that I want to give up. My thoughts and my actual actions are two different things that do not interfere with each other."

The right hand holding the metal coffee cup couldn't help but tremble. Captain Bockman never thought that what he said casually, almost half-jokingly, would actually happen less than 24 hours later. Tomorrow will become a reality, and he needs to face it personally under unexpected circumstances and make a choice.

"If the situation really reaches an irreversible point, we and many people should also think about it. Should we be buried with the current Germany, or should we insist on living into the future to rebuild a better Germany tomorrow? "

If this had been said in the past, even just last year in 1943, Major Schennauer would have rushed up to grab Bockman's collar without hesitation and asked loudly, "Are you crazy, bastard!?" What nonsense are you talking about?"

But, it’s different now. It’s not just the difference between 1944 and 1943, there are too many things that are different.

At the end, before falling asleep tonight.

There was no substantive answer left for Captain Bockman. All that was left was Major Schennauer's long sigh, his departing back that stretched longer and longer under the light, and the two cups that were cooked at the same time. But the ice-cold coffee was not drunk at all.