Japan

Japan, or the Japanese Empire, is an island nation located within the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Asia.

Overview
Dishonor and disgrace. The Japanese expedition into Manchuria was a short-lived victory. The establishment of Manchukuo in the North marked an important step in Japan’s dream of an Asian Co-Prosperity Sphere — or in other words, their dreams of an Empire. But the retreat of Mao Ze Dong’s Communists from the mountains of Shaanxi set the stage for a new obstacle in their empire-building campaigns. The Communist guerrillas in the mostly unknown hills of Manchuria made the territory increasingly expensive as time went on. The civic factions in Japan demanded that the conflict is resolved immediately and the Kwantung army was raised to handle the issue. The fighting went on for years, wherein the Manchu people grew tired of this occupation and their minds became more open to those who offered a solution. In 1935, tensions reached an all-time high and the guerrilla operations became full-out revolt. The Japanese army was humiliated by the Maoist revolutionaries and were forced to abandon Manchuria for the sake of fortifying their Korean stronghold. Now, Japan has a choice to make. The Navy has grown much stronger in Japan with their promises of grandeur in the Pacific seeming more and more favorable after the army’s humiliation in the mainland. Naval leaders such as Isoroku Yamamoto have entered Japanese politics as they rally the people for a war against the United States. Will Japan side with Yamamoto’s naval supremacy doctrine of the South or does the Japanese Empire still have unfinished business in the North? Japan must choose carefully, as the fate of Asia hangs in the balance.