In 1991, Yugoslav National Army (JNA) grouped masses of tanks, aircraft and men for a great offensive on Croatia from the east. The first target was a large city of Vukovar, which they expected to fall quickly. They were wrong.

If no primary objective is achieved, cease-fire will most likely be agreed upon in January 1991. In this case, score ending will happen. Note, however, that if Croatia is winning at this time, the cease-fire will not be signed and that Croatia will attempt a counteroffensive after bringing up more troops.

SCORE ENDING: Cease-fire signed in January 1992

If JNA fails to take Vukovar by October 22nd (T. 12), their morale will suffer. As a result, a mutiny will erupt in reservist units once it is taken which will lower fighting efficiency by 10% until the end of the year.

Vukovar hospital: the centre of the city houses "Hospital" unit (HQ mark). Destroying this unit carries 10 VP penalty to Yugo/Serb side. When the Serb player captures a hex next to Vukovar centre, a theatre option will appear to accept evacuation with a 2 VP penalty (to avoid destroying it). From that turn onwards, increasing chances will exist of foreign diplomats arranging evacuation at no VP cost. This has the effect of either stalling the advance (from 2 to 5 turns) or being costly in terms of VP. Historically, the hospital was not evacuated.

Capture of Vukovar will give Yugoslav player a one-time bonus of 10 VPs and cause minor shock to Croat units.

Almost all units are under 'listed' strength. This is because such state is realistic and, in fact, 'normal'. Only conscript, volunteer and "R" (reserve) units start out below 40 % strength. Most others are 50 % or above. This state will be rectified by replacements.

Since Yugoslav army was multinational; desertion crippled its manpower when the war started. All JNA units are weakened in manpower, but equipment is unaffected.

In mid-1991, Yugoslav National Army (JNA) started to support Croatian Serbs in their rebellion against Croatia, which wanted to secede from Yugoslavia. By September 1991, JNA has grouped almost all of their Armoured and Mechanized Brigades (nearly 1200 tanks, or 60% of total tank force), as well as majority of its best aircraft, to attack the Croat-Serbian Danube border. Their first objective was the river city of Vukovar, which had vital strategic importance as a forward base for further offensives west. The city was attacked by a pincer movement from two JNA corps' formations from the north and south.

However, their attack force met with surprisingly fierce resistance. Barely armed defenders, a motley group of volunteers and policemen, pulled the JNA assault to a halt by conducting an active guerrilla defence: setting up ambushes and maximizing on the JNA's command and coordination deficiencies. Frustrated in their attempts, the attackers shelled and attacked the city constantly for three months. Among the targets was the Hospital (marked by a huge red cross across the roof which did not affect the attacks), crammed with civilians and wounded soldiers.

The defenders finally surrendered after literally running out of ammunition. The Serb units rounded hundreds of civilians, wounded and POWs and executed them making the worst atrocity of the war in Croatia. Countless more were killed on the streets during the barbaric rampage through the city. World journalists recorded these events, but again the world leaders turned a blind eye. The rest of the population (what little remained in the city at this point) was driven out. The city that once had a population of about 40,000 was devastated; almost no house remained intact. Over 1,000 Croatian defenders were killed (majority of them executed). JNA never published official records of losses; but estimates say over 8,000 soldiers were killed and 300 tanks and 10 aircraft were destroyed during the attack on the city.

Despite the loss of the city, Croatia was saved. These three vital months gave Croatia the time it needed to mobilize it's forces to make sure Vukovar would remain the only large Croatian town to be occupied. The significance of this, the most vital battle of the war, led to Vukovar being dubbed the "Croatian Stalingrad". Realizing they could advance no further and facing serious morale problems after such a costly battle, Serb leaders agreed to peace with Croatia in January 1992: putting the war on hold.

In 1995, Croatia launched two major offensive operations that saw Serb resistance eliminated. The only occupied patch of land in Croatia remained Vukovar and it's surrounding area and local Serb leaders agreed to hand over authority to Croatia peacefully, which was finally achieved in 1998, when the rebuilding of the city finally begun.

TThis scenario was originally made in 2004. Despite great effort, the ending result was inaccurate. Since that scenario was made in TOAW 2 - Modern Battles, a devilish bug prevented me from making further unit changes. As a result, I had to remake the scenario from scratch in TOAW-CW version. This didn't prove as much of a problem as I recycled the old map and just took the units from my "Brotherhood and Unity" scenario from the Yugoslavia Trilogy, and spend some time tweaking the balance to make it work…