Hermann Goering

## Hermann Göring

### Role

Reichsmarschall, Commander of the Luftwaffe, potential leader of the Greater German Reich

### Ideology

 National Socialism
X Reformed National Socialism (possible)

**Hermann Goering** is a German military commander and politician who is a possible leader for Germany after Adolf Hitler's death. He is one of six candidates who has the possibility of succeeding Hitler without a civil war.

## Background

Goering had long been one of the strongest members of the Nazi Party excluding Adolf Hitler himself. After Germany rearmed and reestablished the Luftwaffe, Goering was appointed as its commander, and shortly after the invasion of Poland, he was designated Hitler's successor.

After the Eurasian War, Goering found himself competing increasingly with Martin Bormann for influence over Hitler. His standing was not helped by the 1948 Crisis, where Goering had a severe heart attack less than three days into serving as Acting Chancellor, and a standoff between Rudolf Hess, Heinrich Himmler, and Martin Bormann unraveled during Hitler's two-week long coma. After Hitler recovered, he admonished all of them for their incompetence, which threw Goering's standing as Hitler's successor into question.

## Gameplay

### Peaceful successor

Hitler can designate Goering as his successor, or Goering can be elected by the Council after Martin Bormann is removed as Acting Chancellor. He will represent the "moderate" wing of the Nazi Party, supporting economic and some social reforms, as well as pursue detente with the Toronto Accord. However, his leadership will be hindered by the "coalition" he formed to avoid a civil war, which includes former rivals Heinrich Himmler, Joseph Goebbels, and Albert Speer as leading members of his cabinet. Nevertheless, Goering can work to sideline and replace all of them, with Ernst Kaltenbrunner, Baldur von Schirach, and Ludwig Erhard respectively.

After completing the political section of the focus tree, Goering will flip from National Socialism to the Fascist sub-ideology "Reformed National Socialism."

If his drug addiction is not addressed by 20 July 1956, Goering will suffer a catastrophic stroke and die after a week, triggering a second succession crisis. The player will have the option to choose between Baldur von Schirach, Karl Doenitz, and Alfred Rosenberg, who will represent the reform, status quo, and hardline wings of the party respectively.

### Civil war succession

If Heinrich Himmler rejects Goering's promise of giving him a cabinet position and leaving him in charge of domestic security, the SS will rebel and trigger the German Civil War. If Goering successfully defeats Himmler's Ordenstaat, the army's Wehrstaat, and Goebbels' Volksbewegung, he will take a more hardline approach than he would in the peaceful or Wehrstaat trees, seeking revenge against so-called "traitors of National Socialism." Despite this shift, he will still reform the German economy and move it towards a free market, and will have the option to improve relations with the Toronto Accord. However, unlike the non-civil war tree, the player can choose to bypass detente entirely and conquer the remnants of Russia and forcefully expand German influence in the Balkans.

### Wehrstaat defector

If either Joseph Goebbels, Albert Speer, or Martin Bormann becomes head of state and the civil war breaks out, Goering will become dissatisfied with playing second-fiddle to the new leader in only a few months. Seeing Manstein struggle to keep the Wehrstaat united, Goering will decide to secretly cross enemy lines to offer assistance in exchange for leadership. If the Wehrstaat accepts Goering's offer, he will immediately take control of the Wehrstaat, and bring some Luftwaffe commanders and planes with him. If they do not accept, Goering will be taken prisoner for the rest of the war.

If Goering wins the civil war as the Wehrstaat, his reign will be much different from the legitimate government options. He will try to play a balancing act between the reformist Wehrmacht, led by Henning von Tresckow, and the hardline militarists, led by Franz Halder. He will restore the Nazi Party after reuniting Germany, and nominally transition to civilian leadership under his name.

### Drug addiction

Just like in our timeline, Goering will struggle with his many drug addictions, however the player can choose to ween him off his substances at the expense of political power. If the player chooses not to or fails to resolve his addiction, he will die in July of 1956, opening up a second succession crisis in Germany.