Hello commander!
We already shared the first historical tidbits of our new Army General the Battle of Turda. Today we’ll lift the tip of the veil even further - on all the gameplay content you can expect in this new Steel Division 2 DLC, including a highlight on two new Aces.
Keep reading to find out more.
A brief summary
The Battle of Turda pits two nations at a cross-roads: Axis Hungary and Allied Romania. By the time of the events depicted in our Army General campaign, the two had been reluctant allies on the side of Nazi Germany for the duration of World War II. During the massive Red Army offensive into Romania proper, in August 1944, Romania under King Michael I switched teams. This created a period of chaos, with retreating Axis troops, Romanians fighting against former allies, and Soviets hurriedly gaining as much territory as possible.
Hungary and Romania had a complex relationship stemming from grievances over territory exchanges after World War I. In September 1944, Axis Hungary saw an opportunity to deliver a decisive blow, enter northwest Romania, gain valuable land, and establish a forward defensive line away from Hungary’s frontiers. When the armed forces of these two frenemies clashed near Turda, they were supported by their “big brothers,” Germany and the Soviet Union, but most of the fighting was done by the minor nations themselves.
What to expect?
At Eugen, we love to shine a spotlight on the battles, armies, events, and campaigns easily overlooked in the history books. The Battle of Turda is one of those. So what can you expect of our new DLC?
- One new Army General campaign centered on the Battle of Turda.
- A whopping 6 new divisions (more details in the future).
- Of which, 3 will be Romanian.
- And 2 will be Hungarian, while 1 will be German.
- Note that some of the above divisions will be mixed, with units from various nations, such as Romanian-Soviet or Hungarian-German.
- One new map.
- 2 Aces (read more about them below).
As you know, Romania is already in the game (listed under the Axis). With the Battle of Turda, we will “double” the Romanians as an Allied nation as well.
The Aces
One thing we can do, is to provide more details on the two new Aces to be featured in the Battle of Turda DLC. Let’s welcome to the stage Hungarian tank commander Lieutenant Ervin Tarczay, and Romanian fighter ace, Captain Dan Vizanti.
Ervin Tarczay
Our Hungarian tank commander was part of the Hungarian 2nd Armored Division, becoming the nation’s most prolific tank ace. During World War II, Ervin Tarczay gained plentiful experience in a Turan II tank, fighting the Red Army in Ukraine and on the frontier of the Carpathian Mountains. After transitioning to Tiger 1 E heavy tanks, his company ended up being equipped with Panter tanks. Using these, Tarczay overcame the first Romanian resistance when advancing from the Hungarian border towards Turda in early September.
During the course of the Battle of Turda, our Ace was fighting against ever-stiffening resistance, including reinforcing Red Army armored formations. Tarczay’s unit claimed a host of tanks and other vehicles before being surrounded at the end of October. Pushing through, he continued to fight in Hungary and near Vienna until being mortally wounded in the middle of March, 1945.
In Steel Division 2, he will be featured in his "231" Panther A command tank (see screenshot above).
Dan Vizanti
The Romanian Dan Vizanti was the nation’s fourth top-scoring ace during World War II. He first distinguished himself on the Eastern Front, with multiple combat missions flown and kills confirmed from the very beginning of Operation Barbarossa. Having completed over 50 missions over the Soviet Union, Vizanti later defended Bucharest and the Ploesti oil fields against Allied strategic bombing attacks.
After the country’s switch, he continued flying, but this time against his former comrades-in-arms. At the end of World War II, he had accumulated 43 personal victories against Soviet, American & German pilots! Mostly ignored by his Romanian compatriots after the war, it took various decades before Vizanti was honored more prominently, including several French awards.
In Steel Division 2, we will feature him in a Romanian-made, Bambi-adorned IAR-81C fighter plane (see screenshot above).
Au revoir and until next week!
That’s it for this week.
Keep a close watch on our Steam forums and Instagram to keep up to date with the latest Steel Division 2 talk. Looking for an online game? Visit the kick-ass Discord server or Reddit page and get involved with the lively Steel Division 2 community!
See you on the battlefield, commander!