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As the war has raged for nearly three months, the New World has seen its share of memorable battles filled with impressive rallies, innovative planning, exhilarating wins and crushing losses for all sides involved. Amazingly, over 1000 battles have been fought since this phase of the war had its effective start with the eUS attack on Kyushu. I hope to look at 1% of those, and create a top 10 list; I hope that while reading, if you disagree, you may remain respectful and tactful in your opinions and feedback-- remember that mentioning 1% means I left 99% of battles off the list, even though some were probably important and included in my "Notable Battles" section. This took a large amount of effort, even in comparison to The Week That Was and my other publications, so I hope you appreciate this thought-provoking trip down eRep memory lane, or can consider this a little history lesson.

When I was creating my list, I considered four things: the size and intensity of the battle, the outcome’s significance, any long-term impact from the battle, and lessons learned from it. There have been many good battles (some of which I mention after the Top 10), but did not make it for reasons I also included below. Without further ado, my Top 10.
10. Sofia
9. Saarland
8. Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, and Free State
7. Kyushu
6. Upper Normandy
5. Karnataka
4. London
3. North of Brazil
2. Heilongjiang
1. Liaoning

10. Sofia
Combatants: eRomania and eBulgaria in initial conquest; eSerbia and eRomania in Phoenix counterattack
Outcomes: eRomanian victory in Day 781; eSerbian victory in Day 795
Impact: eRomanian victory wiped eBulgaria from the map; eSerbian victory prevented eRomanian “bait and bleed” strategy, strained relations between eRomania and EDEN

Behind EDEN backing, particularly from eCroatia, the eRomanians were able to wipe eBulgaria from the map and remove its open war on the same day of ePoland’s victory in Saarland with their own victory in Sofia. As a result, EDEN was able to celebrate the collapse of two Phoenix states in one day. The move cut eSerbia from their land bridge to Asia, but it also signaled the beginning of a painful resistance campaign for eBulgaria. However, eSerbia’s victory two weeks later provides the lasting impact of this front; by winning in Sofia, eSerbia thwarted an eRomanian plan to sap gold from Phoenix, as each new attack on the region cost nearly one thousand gold and several attempts on Sofia had been beaten back. The eRomanians also viewed the battle as the final straw in how EDEN had been working with them, neglecting eRomania in their defense but welcoming eRomanian troops to fight overseas. A current of diplomatic strife threatened to undermine EDEN at the time and lead to the withdrawal of one of its most important members because of the outcome of this battle.

Saarland's flag is pretty trippy...

9. Saarland
Combatants: ePoland vs. eGermany in initial conquest; Resistance Force vs. ePoland in Resistance War (RW)
Outcome: ePolish victory in Day 781; Resistance Force victory in Day 794
Impact: ePolish victory removed eGermany from the map and occupation sapped its mutual protection pacts (MPPs); Phoenix success in RW returned eGermany in time for Congressional elections

The fate of eGermany was a heavily-invested endeavor by both EDEN and Phoenix, as ePoland hoped to finally defeat its neighbor while Phoenix had been keeping its small partner on life support for nearly a week. When ePoland conquered Saarland, it needed over 5 million damage points to overcome Phoenix’s massive damage output, including the need to reverse a wall of 700,000 in the final 20 minutes; both sides invested 1,900 gold or more in non-conventional fighting fees (tanking, berserking, higher quality weapons) and each side offered over 80,000 fights to this battle. eGermany’s complete occupation had begun, and it was quickly approaching Congressional elections when a furious onslaught of RWs began on Day 793 to keep eGermany from being without a Congress and enabling citizenship to be granted automatically. Phoenix used the 13 RWs to keep ePoland and EDEN defenses spread out and successfully targeted Saarland’s liberation along with that of Bavaria, giving eGermany two regions ahead of its Congressional elections and some resources to have a fighting chance at surviving economically. eGermany has since survived as EDEN has seemed unwilling to activate the country’s new MPPs with Phoenix’s main members.

8. Northern Cape, Eastern Cape, and Free State
Combatants: eIndonesia vs. eSouth Africa and EDEN backers
Outcome: eIndonesian advance in Africa halted on Day 795, its overseas empire erased on Day 796
Impact: eSouth Africa’s relations with EDEN improved; eIndonesia was unable to swap into South America as widely expected, and lost the last remnants of its overseas empire

In Day 793, eIndonesia attacked eThailand and quickly retreated, having used the chance to open a war with eArgentina with the intention of possibly swapping to South America for resources. The following day, eIndonesia opened attacks on Eastern Cape and Free State from its former colony in Free State. From there, the statistics tell the tale, as eIndonesia footed 75% of the attackers’ damage in Eastern Cape while the defenders received 75% of its support from non-South Africans; and in Free State, the eIndonesians outspent its defenders but still fell short. Enjoying allied support, eSouth Africa attacked and conquered eIndonesia’s final foothold in Africa, the Northern Cape. In so doing, eSouth Africa and its backers eliminated the final remnant of a once mighty eIndonesian overseas empire, took away the Phoenix member’s high diamonds, and prevented any chance on their part of crossing into South America for the foreseeable future. This outcome and impact is only number 8 because eIndonesia had been in a state of decline and its gradual status was well-known to the world.

eJapan, and Kyushu in particular, are so important for its quick transit point from
North America to Asia and vice versa-- an easier alternative than using the eRussia-eUSA border

7. Kyushu
Combatants: eUSA vs. eJapan and Phoenix
Outcome: Kyushu withstood EDEN attack on Day 749
Impact: Started increased diplomatic effort and media debate which allowed EDEN into Asia; sparked domestic controversy about eUS foreign policy in eUS media

Real life (RL) occasionally features events which make everyone who lived through them remember where they were or what they were doing-- I was not alive for all of these, but a few such events would be when Neil Armstrong stepped onto the Moon, the Berlin Wall fell, or the attacks of September 11th took place. While obviously on a much smaller extent, eRep gamers remember the day the eUS attacked Kyushu and all the tanking, the nail-biting finish, and the propaganda storm which dominated international and domestic media across the globe. As with Saarland, this battle also saw over 5 million damage points inflicted on both sides, and a staggering total of 12,284 gold in non-conventional funding spent by both sides. Although the battle fell in favor of the Phoenix defenders, it also set into motion the chain of events which led to eJapanese President Dokomo’s ultimatum to Phoenix which, when rejected, signaled the beginning of the war in Asia later in the week. It is only number 7 on my list because the events this battle enabled were even more remarkable.

6. Upper Normandy
Combatants: eUSA and allies vs. eFrance and Phoenix allies
Outcome: Heavy tanking helped the attackers prevail on Day 810
Impact: eFrance was removed from the map for the time being; activated MPPs on eUS and eSpanish borders were eliminated; enabled chance for EDEN focus on London

As eFrance’s MPPs grew to 11 and the eUS initiated its invasion of Britain, it became a concern of eSpain and EDEN that the eFrench could break out. Intervening to help the eSpanish, the eUS entered France and began to fight the eFrench, exposing its own borders to the MPP threat. Day 810 brought the chance for EDEN to remove eFrance from the map, close its active wars, and occupy it long enough for its MPPs to expire, with an attack on the final region of Upper Normandy. The international participants in the battle showed for EDEN and Phoenix how important the outcome was; EDEN preoccupations with the eFrench would have helped Phoenix to siphon EDEN damage away from Britain and other campaigns, while removing eFrance’s conventional war component would free up one front of the war and erase the list of activated MPPs assembled against the eUS and eSpain. And until events from Day 824, eFrance looked destined to be without a Congress and fair game to new citizenships for EDEN and Phoenix citizens.

Similar to this sign, eIndonesia's loss of Karnataka to the eUS
was every bit as much an "insult to injury" as the $ 200 fine

5. Karnataka
Combatants: eUSA vs. eIndonesia
Outcome: eIndonesian retreat 18 hours into battle on Day 771
Impact: eIndonesia lost its high iron region, and the eUSA gained its first high iron resource
Lessons Learned: Although not the first time and certainly not the last, this instance demonstrated one side’s ability to do complex region swapping to move an ally within striking distance of a key region

The eUSA snuck into India behind the eChinese, and in so doing, managed to keep Phoenix off guard as eChina maneuvered through eIndia and positioned EDEN alongside two Phoenix fortress regions of wood-rich Jharkhand (controlled by eIran at the time) and iron haven Karnataka which was under eIndonesia’s control. Jharkhand fell easily but an attack on Karnataka had been delayed for a couple of days; when it finally came, the eUS made a concerted effort to dominate this battle in the hopes of gaining its own high iron region. The wall was driven very deep very fast, and eIndonesia retreated rather than staging a fruitless Custer’s last stand in order to secure Madhya-Pradesh, which was under fire by eChina and in danger of also being lost. The economic impact of Karnataka should have been huge for the eUS, but an eRepublik travesty has neutralized prosperity for all economies worldwide-- regardless, the absence of high iron for eIndonesia substantially crippled its war waging capabilities and could have played an indirect impact in their losses in Africa, mentioned previously.

4. London
Combatants: eUSA and 5 allies vs. eUK and 17 allies
Outcome: London easily secured on Day 818
Impact: EDEN and Phoenix leaders, along with those of the direct aggressors, desired peace and used diplomacy to end the Battle of Britain
Lessons Learned: Attacking a plethora of MPPs without significant strategic purpose makes the war more costly than desired, while defending against 6 attackers is easier said than done

It is no secret in eRepublik that the eUS and eUK have their differences and do not like each other. Animosity and mutual hostility fueled the calls for war and were the only great justification for the war’s continuation, although eUS President Josh Frost and other attacking EDEN nations had reason to fear the 17 MPPs which they had activated. The eUS had successfully approached London on Day 810, but mayhem on Day 812 frustrated any plans EDEN had to assault the eUK capital for several days and led to heavy losses for EDEN in Asia. When the attack on London came on Day 817, Phoenix dealt an astounding 7.1 million damage points with a mind-blowing 127,000+ fights, and kept the wall secured by nearly 2 million points-- the largest margin this author can recall. Taken all together, EDEN and Phoenix ultimately agreed that the limited strategic value of the eUK was not worth the gold to attack and defend, tank and arm, berserk and buy wellness packs, anymore. The peace reached by both sides allowed, essentially, a status quo ante bellum peace agreement which returned all eUK regions (albeit without their infrastructure) in exchange for closed wars which removed the MPPs from being able to affect EDEN in a counterattack.

You've seen this illustration before if you read my paper. ePoland could not cross the Atlantic from Europe and cross into South America when ePeru lost its hold on North of Brazil

3. North of Brazil
Combatants: ePeru vs. eBrazil; Resistance Force vs. ePeru
Outcome: ePeru conquered North of Brazil on Day 813; lost it in RW on Day 814
Impact: For the first time in three tries, ePeru took North of Brazil (No😎, but the RW kept ePoland from region swapping into the region on time and kept NoB’s resources in Phoenix hands
Lessons Learned: A well-timed RW can thwart any region swapping campaign if the occupied region cannot be held for 24 hours

Since becoming a New World superpower and its most populous nation by far, ePoland has long craved the resources to support its population and military. North of Brazil (No😎, with its high iron, high wood, medium diamonds, and medium grain is a prize possession for anyone and the jewel ePoland had wanted to hold. Its ePeruvian proxy state successfully overtook NoB after an extremely intense battle which took 70,000 fights on both sides, nearly 9,000 gold spent, attracted fighters from the entire New World, and lasted for an hour of overtime. ePoland quickly began a region swapping campaign through Spain to reach the Canary Islands and approach NoB, although Phoenix started an RW before ePoland was able to start their region swapping. Consequently, the fate of ePoland’s inheritance of NoB rested on the outcome of that RW; ePeru was unable to preserve its hold on the region and by virtue of the RW starting first, NoB returned to eBrazil and ePoland’s battle closed. ePoland remains crouched in eSpanish Extremadura, hoping to swap back towards South America in the near future-- although its best chance in recent history for a high resource region disappeared with ePeru’s hold of NoB on Day 814.

This little kitty definitely stole the show for a few days

2. Heilongjiang
Combatants: Two battles, eUSA vs. eHungary; eChina and allies vs. eHungary
Outcome: eHungary repelled both attacks on its iron fortress on Day 774
Impact: EDEN lost its best chance to remove eHungary from its iron lifeline; eHungary and eRussia made moves afterwards to secure their foothold
Lessons Learned: Phoenix understood EDEN attack tactics and used it against them; eUS elements claimed the attack was a block

Remember what I said earlier about memorable battles? Everyone in eRepublik on Day 773-774 knew they were taking part in an epic fight which would reverberate for the eRepublik ages. Riding high off their victories in Liaoning and Karnataka, EDEN felt poised to finish “The Three Pillars” campaign and remove eHungary from their bastion of Heilongjiang (Hello Kitty), the naturally eChinese region which has provided eHungary its iron since July 2009. Day 773 signaled the beginning of what many considered would be the most contested battle in the history of eRepublik, for Asian supremacy and the sustainability of eHungary’s formidable military. Combined, the attack launched by eChina along with the eUSA offensive rank in the eRep history books as the most heavily fought campaign in eRepublik history. Combined, the two battles for the same region started within 2 hours of each other cost both sides just under 15,000 gold, saw over 100,000 fights, and the most spirited military effort in recent history. The outcome of both battles fell decidedly on the eHungarian side, as they knew the eUS and EDEN military playbook of mass attacks in the closing minutes, and and used it against EDEN, raising their walls to such a level that they could not be reversed. With the victory came the closing of the best window of opportunity EDEN had at toppling eHungary from Hello Kitty to this point. In the coming days, eHungary quickly conquered and fortified Inner Mongolia, creating a buffer zone leading to HK from which eHungary could counterattack, and eRussia became reactivated and seized Jillin to cut off the other possible route to Hello Kitty.

The Lion King was the king of all eRep battles in this war

1. Liaoning
Combatants: eUS vs. eIran
Outcome: Last-minute attack gives victory to eUSA, Day 761
Impact: First Phoenix pillar toppled; eIranian economy crippled; demonstrated eUSA power in numbers and organization
Lessons Learned: Concept of mass attacks had its greatest success; Phoenix realized its vulnerabilities to last-minute attacks

Putting Liaoning (Lion King) ahead of Heilongjiang in significance is a difficult choice and both could go 1-2 in most top 10s. Although it may seem illogical at first, I believe eHungary’s successes in defending Hello Kitty would not have been possible if the New World had not seen a massive wall in a major fortress fall in the final minutes, behind an offensive built less by tanks than by average soldiers attacking together-- which is exactly what Liaoning showcased. Liaoning showed that a well-organized offensive could reverse a 730,000 wall in 10 minutes, and EDEN outhit the Phoenix defenders by 1 million damage points in that same time span. Over 14,000 gold was spent and nearly 11 million damage points inflicted on the enemy in the course of the battle; in anticipation of the battle, the population of Liaoning tripled as more Phoenix fighters raced to raise its walls. Both sides expected a major battle to take place, the first major battle of the war since Kyushu, but neither side could have fathomed beforehand how stunning the battle would be and what an impact the aftermath of Liaoning would continue to have. After all, only now has Liaoning been retaken by Phoenix, but only subtly as the rest of the world was not watching-- the New World may not have been able to handle another battle like the First Battle of Liaoning, but Liaoning has undoubtedly left its mark on how both sides approach battles, plan for battles, and wage battle for months since. A number of people wonder why eSerbia taking the region from their land swap is not mentioned here. That is because they got it by a Phoenix land swap and not by a battle, and that has been written below-- but no one read that, apparently.

Time for the honorable mentions

Notable Battles, and Explanation
Certainly, other memorable battles were omitted, as the New World has seen over 1000 conflicts since Kyushu. Immediately coming to mind are South East of England, which would have been more significant if the eUS had conquered the eUK; eSerbia’s own entry into Liaoning, which I did not consider given that it was not a contested battle of both sides, and was instead a region swapping strategy pursued by Phoenix; Jharkhand, which was partially associated with Karnataka but not overwhelmingly significant on its own-- and occurred during a DDoS attack; the battles in eAustralia early in the war as eBrazil controlled the Southern Hemisphere; Prekmurje, which eliminated eSlovenia under the eCroat invasion on Day 772; eSpain’s early conquests of Paris and Aquitaine, which all crippled eFrance but did not eliminate them; Upper Austria could have some impact, but does not outrank any of the Top 10 or many of its peers here; or any of the battles in Asia Minor which do not single-handedly stand out. With very limited exceptions, I tried avoiding the mention of RWs, although some (such as the NoB RW) were simply unavoidable. I also neglected the training war in Sabah because I cannot take the intensity emanating from that battle (sarcasm).

All and all, I believe the 10 major battle theaters listed above-- actually comprising 16 battles when considering multiple attacks or subsequent RWs-- are the events which have most captivated and shaken the war since its start nearly three months ago. Liaoning, Heilongjiang, and NoB are all, to me, of utmost significance in this war; Karnataka and the eSouth African series are notable for the reversal given to eIndonesia, while Kyushu and London both showed the later potential of diplomacy. Upper Normandy, Sofia, and Saarland could have had lasting impact if any of these countries would have missed a Congressional cycle, as less attention would be given to eBelgium and Phoenix and EDEN sympathizers could jockey for influence in countries where citizenship is just a button click away. More battles will most likely come, and hopefully more will be epic enough and significant enough to be considered amongst the tops of this war and the tops in New World history.

God Bless America,

Lt. Scheisskopf


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