User blog:Battlefan237/Minor WW2 Allies : Josip Broz Tito vs. Alexander Papagos

'''Caution : This is not a war propaganda. ''' Balkan Peninsular, aka the gun powder barrel of Europe, has always been a harsh land where the most brutal wars in our history took place. Rome, Hungry, Mongolia, Ottoman....It has witnessed the rise and fall of dozens of the greatest empires ever existed throughout thousands of years of fighting and killing. Things didn't get better in 20th century, when this particular peninsular became the cradle of the first world war, and one of the major battlefields of the second. Though tormented by killings and invasions, people on this peninsular have shown their courage and willpower to defend their dignity from any forms of marauding and suppress. From Bulgarian Rebels and Romanian Rebels in the early days to that angry young man named Gavrilo Princip, and to our warriors today : Josip Broz Tito, the Yugoslavian Communist leader who led founded the Partisan to battle against Nazis in the forests of Serbia; and Alexander Papagos, the Greek Field Marshal who led the Hellenic Army and drove Mussolini's troops in blackshirts out of their motherland. When they face each other, who will win ?

Josip Broz Tito
"We have spilt an ocean of blood for the brotherhood and unity of our peoples and we shall not allow anyone to touch or destroy it from within."

- Josip Broz Tito

Born in a low-income family in present-day Northern Croatia, Joip Broz Tito, born Josip Broz, was forced to join the Austro-Hungarian army in 1913 and received practical training in combats. In 1915 he was captured as a prisoner during a battle against Russian Troops. During this period of time, he got overwhelmed by Russian Revolution which led him to believe in the idea of Communism. In 1920 he joined the local communist party in Yugoslavia, and became a key member of it in 1934. In 1940 he was elected to be the party leader.

In 1941, the King of Yugoslavia gave in and surrendered to Nazi Germany, which suggested that Yugoslavia was no longer a nation any more. Tito, who was obviously not satisfied with the result, established his own guerrilla army called the Partisans in order to fight against German invaders. Being aware of the fact that there's no possibility for them to combat the Germans face to face, Tito used the guerrilla tactic to slow down German invasion by attacking key traffic lines and harassing German-occupied cities. Though many of the acts were proven to be successful, the guerrilla led by Tito wasn't capable of handling the Germans due to the lack of firearms and resources. However their victory was ensured by frequent Soviet assistance and Axis failures in Africa and Russia. They also lliberated Belgrade and a few other major cities on their own with supply from Soviet.

In brief, the impact on Germans made by Tito and his guerrillas is insignificant when compared with that of the Soviet Union or United States, their efforts in slowing down the Germans did made sense for their frequent activities of blowing up railways and bridges caused disorder under the German-ruled Balkan. This also helped slow down the phase of Germany's occupation of other parts of Balkan, which of course helped nations like Greece to hold on longer against Germans and Italians.

For more information about the Partisans, you can check out here if you want : https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yugoslav_Front.

Now here're Tito's weapons :
 * Melee: NR-40 Combat Knife. A weapon originated from USSR, with a 152 mm blade with a clip point, a large choil, a black wooden handle, and an S-shaped guard.
 * Pistol: Ruby Pistol.  Straightly taken from Federal Army of the Kingdom of Yugoslavia, 9 rounds, weights 850g.
 * Rifle: M24 Mauser.  Bolt-Action, effective range 500m, muzzle velocity 2493 ft/s. 5-round stripper clip with internal magazine.
 * SMG: PPSh-41. Comes from vast Soviet assistance. 900-1000 r/min with 35-round box. Effective range 120-150m. Muzzle Velocity 448m/s.
 * MG: ZB. Vz. 26. 500 rounds/min. 20 rounds detachable box magazine.  A weapon from Czechoslovakia ( Formally).
 * Grenade: Classic Model 24 Grenade.