1946 has moved out of its suspended state, and violence has blossomed once again.
In the Pacific, the war reaches a peak of horror previously undreamt of in the history of man.
The severe European winter is a fading memory, but its after effects still resonate, particularly with the Red Army, deprived of the chattels of war. The fighting drags on, with little to show for the plans and devices of the politicians and generals.
Each side has its new efforts; each side experiences new disappointments.
Germany is strengthening and starts to shoulder more of the Allied burden, filling gaps left by the weakening of Britain and the United States.
Logistically bankrupt, the Red Army strives for one more struggle, one focussed effort against one of the Allies, in an effort to knock that nation out of the war, knowing that failure could spell the end, but that success could pluck victory from the jaws of defeat.