Chapter 655: Adapting to the Terrain
"I'm here to learn about tank development and tactics," said General Brusilov bluntly and sincerely.
Veteran commanders who had faced death often shared this trait:
they knew that in the face of victory or defeat on the battlefield, pride and vanity were meaningless.
"You know," Brusilov sighed, "our army's performance on the Eastern Front has been abysmal.
Despite our geographical and numerical advantages, our casualty ratio against the enemy is 5 to 1—sometimes even worse,
and not just against the Germans, but the Austro-Hungarians as well."
Although Austria-Hungary's troops were weaker than the German army, the Imperial Russian forces still fell apart before them—utterly disorganized and collapsing at the first sign of pressure.
Brusilov looked Charles directly in the eye.
"But you—more precisely, you alone, General Charles—
you've managed to defeat the German army with fewer troops.
You broke through Antwerp and captured over 100,000 Germans in one push,
then repeated the feat in Hasselt with 200,000 more.
Sometimes I wonder—could our army ever replicate that kind of breakthrough?"
"Of course it could," Charles replied firmly. "You just need to find the enemy's weak point."
"I know," Brusilov responded with helpless eyes.
"I've studied your tactics, General Charles, for quite a long time—
ever since you first stopped the Germans at Ypres."
That had been over a year ago—so long ago that even Charles had almost forgotten it.
"We even developed our own tank," Brusilov added, turning toward his interpreter.
The interpreter understood immediately, pulling out a file and some blueprints from his briefcase, and respectfully placing them in front of Charles.
Charles glanced at the design—and immediately frowned.
It was a tank he had never seen before—perhaps because it barely qualified as one.
(Note: The blueprint shown is of the Russian "Tsar Tank." Its massive front wheels stood 9 meters tall.
The idea was to use the height to easily roll over trenches and obstacles.
But when a prototype was built in August 1915, they discovered that the rear wheels got stuck, immobilizing the vehicle. The project was eventually scrapped.)
Charles glanced once more and pointed out the obvious flaw:
"Aren't you worried that those giant front wheels would make perfect targets for enemy field artillery?"
The bigger the wheel, the bigger the target—and the easier to hit.
And these weren't just wheels—they were vital components that supported the entire tank.
A single hit could disable or even topple it.
How had this design even passed inspection?
Brusilov nodded with a sigh.
"It's clear now that your 'Charles A1' design is vastly superior. Even today, it's still not obsolete.
But… our supply routes to Europe have essentially been cut off.
We can't import your tanks even if we wanted to."
That was the fault of the War Minister.
Arrogantly, he had picked a fight with the Ottoman Empire early in the war—losing men and resources,
and more importantly, severing Russia's most vital transport route to Europe.
The alternative northern route through the North Sea and Arctic was also nearly useless:
submarines patrolled the seas, and the Arctic itself was frozen for half the year.
Even during the thaw, it was littered with icebergs and far too dangerous.
Transport capacity was minimal.
As a result, Imperial Russia had become isolated—cut off from external support.
Brusilov took a small sip of his coffee, then said with visible anxiety:
"The Eastern Front isn't looking good, General. We could collapse at any moment.
I'm wondering if you could help us design a tank—one that can be mass-produced quickly and at a low cost.
That alone could make a huge difference for us."
Only with such a tank could Brusilov build an armored force of his own,
and replicate Charles's tactics on the battlefield.
Finally, Brusilov added one more argument:
"This would benefit the Western Front too—and serve both France's and your strategic interests.
I trust you're willing to help us. Right?"
It was true—helping Russia was in France's best interest.
Germany's current strategy was "West First, East Later"—intending to crush France before turning to Russia.
(The reasoning: Russia's vast landmass and manpower made it impossible to defeat quickly, even with a 5:1 kill ratio.
No one yet foresaw that Russia would collapse from within before the war ended.)
So, if Russia could hold out longer or even win battles,
it would relieve pressure on the Western Front.
But after a short silence, Charles shook his head.
"It's not that I don't want to help, General—it's that I think tanks aren't what you need.
Even if you had them, it would be hard for your army to use them the way mine does."
"Why?" Brusilov was confused.
"Terrain. Weather. Infrastructure," Charles answered.
"Have you considered how much harsher Russian winters are compared to France's?
The snow is often half a meter deep—sometimes several meters.
Tanks can't maneuver in that."
Charles's gaze settled on Brusilov, who paused, then nodded.
Yes, deep snow was a constant in Russia's winters.
"In spring," Charles continued,
"the snow melts and the ground floods.
Much of the terrain turns to swamp.
The roads become mud pits.
And on top of that, your rail system is sparse.
There's no way to ensure proper logistics."
Even if tanks did manage to break through enemy lines,
they'd soon run out of supplies and be surrounded.
In WWII, German breakthroughs succeeded because they were timed to fall within a short "window" before winter set in.
When they failed to win by then, everything began to unravel.
At this moment in time, Imperial Russia lacked the logistical, organizational, and reconnaissance capabilities to carry out German-style mechanized warfare.
Trying to imitate it would only end in disaster.
Brusilov's expression grew grim.
"You're right, General.
You understand our terrain and conditions very well.
But… isn't there any other solution?"
Charles replied calmly:
"There's always a way, General—there's always a way."
"I believe you shouldn't focus on tanks.
Instead, focus on your own strengths."
Brusilov was puzzled.
"Our strengths?"
All he could think of were weaknesses.
At this point, the Russian army's morale and confidence were already near collapse.
But Charles was firm:
"Yes—your strengths: large manpower, and terrain familiarity."
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