Berlin (Air Forces)

Size: 65km x 65km

Location: Berlin, Germany

Game Modes

Arcade Battles

Realistic Battles

Simulator Battles

Overview

Berlin is an air forces map available in Arcade and Realistic battles. A slightly modified version of the map is used as an air battle area for the Berlin Ground Forces map. The Map is (as the name suggests) based around Berlin, the capital city of Germany. Although the details of the map are not completely accurate in some areas, dimensionally the map is a 1:1 scale recreation of the area surrounding Berlin.

The City of Berlin itself is located in the centre north of map. The biggest landmark in the City is Tempelhof Airport, with its three runways, each nearly 2km long. The Reichstag (German Parliament) building, and Brandenburg Gate are both modelled in their correct locations in the city. To the south of the City there is a more open area, with a few towns and airfields.

Historical Background

Being the capital of Germany, Berlin was a target of Allied bombing from early on in the war. At the start of the war Berlin, being 950km (590 miles) from London, was at the very limit of the maximum range of Britain's bombers at the time, meaning it could only be reached in ideal conditions. The first RAF raid on Berlin occurred on the night of 25 August 1940; when 95 aircraft were dispatched to bomb Tempelhof Airport, in retaliation after a group of German Bombers dropped bombs on London (reportedly by mistake). The bombing raid on Berlin prompted Hitler to order the shift of the Luftwaffe's target from British airfields and air defences to British cities, ordering the bombing of London on the 5th September starting the Blitz.

Small Raids continued on berlin throughout 1940 - 1943, with new bombers such as the Avro Lancaster becoming available. On the 18th November 1943 the Battle of Berlin, a British bombing campaign on Berlin, started with 440 Avro Lancaster’s carrying out a raid on the city. The regular bombing of Berlin as part of the operation continued until 31st March 1944. On the 4th March 1944, the US Air Force started bombing Berlin, launching the first of several large bombing attacks, with B-17s escorted by fighters, 69 B-17s were lost on March 6 but the Luftwaffe lost 160 aircraft. The biggest raid came on the 3rd February 1945, when nearly 1,000 B-17s, escorted by 575 P-51s attacked the Berlin railway system. The intense bombing caused a city fire spreading eastwards, driven by the wind. The fire lasted for four days until it had burnt everything combustible in its range to ashes. Due to the exhaustion of German supplies the German anti-aircraft defence was under-equipped and weaker than it had previously been; of the 1,600 US aircraft involved in the raid, only 36 were shot down.

From the start of the war, until the end of March 1945 there were a total of 314 air raids on Berlin. Half of all houses in the city were damaged and around a third uninhabitable, as much as 16 km² of the city was reduced to rubble. In total over 68,000 tons of bombs were dropped on Berlin, by the RAF and USAF.

Layouts

Ground Forces Map Air Location

A slightly modified version of this map is used as the Air Forces location of the Berlin Ground Forces map. The ground forces location replaces the area around the Reichstag with the more detailed tank area. The Allied team spawn to the south of the area, over Tempelhof Airport (which acts as their airfield). The Axis team spawns in the north, slightly further away from the tank battle area than the Allies. The axis have a fictional airfield, located just outside the built up city area.

The Ground Forces layout

Arcade Battles

[Domination] Berlin

Overview The battle area for this configuration is in the south of the map of the map, near the town of Rangsdorf. The Allies spawn in the south, and the Axis team spawn in the north. There are two airfields, one in the east and one in the west of the map. Each Team has 26 ground targets which will move in to capture the airfield. Destroying an enemy ground target will lower the enemy team's score by 100 tickets. Targets To Destroy Allies Axis Medium Tank 14 14 AAA Truck 12 12 Game Description In Airfields Domination, the main goal is to capture and hold the ground zone. When one of the teams captures the zone, the opposite team starts to lose its points. The team will lose when it runs out of points. Historical Background N/A

The Domination layout

[Ground Strike] Berlin Suburbs (light vehicles)

Overview The battle area for this configuration is in the west of the map, near Kladow. The Allies spawn in the north and the Axis in the south. Each team has a mixture of 62 static and moving ground targets, destroying an enemy ground target will lower the enemy team's score by 100 tickets. Victory is achieved by destroying all 62 ground targets. Each team also has an airfield surrounded by AA, killing these does not count towards the mission objective. It is also worth noting that only the central artillery in each group of trenches counts towards the objective, killing the AA and artillery surrounding the central one will still award RP / SL, but will not progress the mission objective. Targets To Destroy Allies Axis Armored Car 36 36 AAA 18 18 Artillery 8 8 Game Description Berlin is a tough nut to crack, but its suburbs are much simpler targets, and their capturing can ease assault on the capital city of Germany. Historical Background N/A

The Berlin Suburbs light vehicles layout

[Ground Strike] Berlin Suburbs

Overview The battle area for this configuration is in the west of the map, near Kladow. The Allies spawn in the north and the Axis in the south. Each team has a mixture of 62 static and moving ground targets, destroying an enemy ground target will lower the enemy team's score by 100 tickets. Victory is achieved by destroying all 62 ground targets. Each team has 24 ground targets and three bases, destroying an enemy ground target will lower the enemy team's score by 100 tickets and a base by 120 tickets. Once all three of the bases are destroyed the team's main airfield can be destroyed, ending the game. Each team also has a number of light vehicles and AAA, the destruction of which does not count towards the mission objective. Targets To Destroy Allies Axis Medium Tank 18 18 Pillbox 6 6 Game Description Berlin is a tough nut to crack, but its suburbs are much simpler targets, and their capturing can ease assault on the capital city of Germany. Historical Background N/A

The Berlin Suburbs layout

Realistic Battles

[Operation] Berlin

Overview The battle area for this configuration is a large area in the middle of the map containing Berlin in the north and a large section of the more open area in the south. The Allies spawn on a (fictional) airfield in the southeast of the map, while ther Axis spawn in the north at Tempelhof Airport. Allied ground targets spawn in the south and move north to capture three capture points; an airfield, and the towns of Blankenfelde and Grunau. Axis ground forces consist of light pillboxes protecting these points. Destroying an enemy ground target will lower the enemy team's score by 140 tickets and a base by 145 tickets. Each team also has a number of light vehicles and AAA, the destruction of which does not count towards the mission objective. Game Description The Soviet 3rd Guards Tank Army is breaking to Berlin from the south. They've overpassed the Notte canal and reached German army defensive positions. Historical Background The Soviet 3rd Guards Tank Army broke through German positions at the Seelow Heights on the 19th April 1945, and began their advance towards Berlin. On the 26th of April they were involved in an assault through the suburbs of Berlin, to attack Tempelhof Airport. For more info on the ground battle in Berlin, see the Berlin Ground Forces map article.

The Operations layout

[Alternate History] Berlin. Summer 1945

Overview The battle area for this configuration is a large area in the middle of the map containing Berlin in the north and a large section of the more open area in the south. The "Allies" (Soviet Union) spawn on a fictional airfield north of Berlin, but also have the option to land and repair at Tempelhof. The "Axis" team (Western Allies) spawn in the southwest of the map, on a fictional airfield. "Axis" ground targets spawn in the south and move north to capture a single capture point in the south of Berlin. "Allied" ground forces consist of light pillboxes protecting the point. Destroying an enemy ground target will lower the enemy team's score by 140 tickets and a base by 145 tickets. Each team also has a number of light vehicles and AAA, the destruction of which does not count towards the mission objective. Game Description Summer 1945. Germany was defeated, but the war wasn't over. The conflict flared up between the Soviet Union on the one side, and combined armies of the USA and Great Britain on the other. Historical Background In this scenario Germany has been defeated, but the Western Allies have entered a new conflict against the Soviet Union, presumably over who got to control what parts of Germany, after the war; or due to the distrust between the two parties, which lead to the real life Cold War. In the last days of the War there was a race between the Western Allies and the Soviet Union to capture German technology and scientists, there were cases of each army advancing into areas officially designated for the other; it is possible one of these encounters sparked the battles in this alternate history setting.

The Alternate History layout

Simulator Battles

N/A

Events

[Airfield Capture] Berlin

Overview This is a special Arcade game mode, only available during special events on the Berlin map. It is similar to Airfield Domination, but the mechanics are slightly different. The battles area is a small area, just south of Berlin, in the middle of the map. One team spawns in the north of the area, and the other in the south. There are three airfields; each team owns the airfield closest to them and the one in the middle is neutral. At the start of the game only the middle airfield can be captured, once a team captures the middle airfield they unlock the ability to capture the enemy's home airfield winning the game. Once the middle airfield is captured the defending team must balance defending their airfield with trying to capture the middle airfield; blocking the enemy from capturing their airfield, and allow themselves to capture the enemy airfield. Game Description In order to win in ""Airfield Capture"" mode, the team has to capture the central airfield and then the airfield of the enemy. Historical Background N/A

The Airfield Capture layout

[Tournament] Gladiators 1x1 "Berlin"

Overview Game Description The teams fight each other in tournament mode. Historical Background N/A

The Gladiators 1x1 layout

[Tournament] Gladiators 2x2 "Berlin"

Overview Game Description The teams fight each other in tournament mode. Historical Background N/A

The Gladiators 2x2 layout

[Tournament] Gladiators 4x4 "Berlin"

Overview Game Description The teams fight each other in tournament mode. Historical Background N/A

The Gladiators 4x4 layout

Media

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Sources

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