Reinhard Heydrich is a major antagonist in the Hearts of Iron 4 mod The New Order: Last Days of Europe, after Heinrich Himmler's failed attempt on the Führer's life, he serves as the leader of the German SS while Himmler is the leader of the Burgundian SS. He can also be the villainous protagonist in the German campaign if he succesfully wins the German Civil War and becomes the Führer of Nazi Germany succeeding Adolf Hitler upon his death.
Background[]
Reinhard Heydrich was born in 1904 and would join a right-wing paramilitary group in 1919 at the age of 15. He would then join the navy, advancing to the rank of Sub-Lieutenant before being discharged in 1931. After being inducted to the Nazi party by his wife Lina, he would join the SS in 1933, quickly advancing through its ranks to become head of the Sicherheitsdienst (SD) and one of Himmler's most trusted lieutenants. As head of the SD, Heydrich would hunt down and purge opponents to the Nazi regime through arrests, deportations, and murders.
During the Second World War, Heydrich would play a role in implementing the Final Solution of the Jewish question as well as the destruction of much of Czech culture as head of the Protectorate of Bohemia and Moravia. Following an attempted assassination by Czech partisians Jozef Gabčík and Jan Kubiš, Heydrich would respond with a massive purge resulting in mass executions and arrests across the whole territory.
Following the conclusion of the war in Germany's favor, Heydrich would continue his ascent to power in the SS, being second only to Himmler himself. When the economy collapsed, Heydrich blamed it on the decadence of the German people and sought to implement the Esoteric Nazi ideology of Spartanism on Germany. Under the ideology of Spartanism, Heydrich would seek to get rid of all luxuries and make Germany into the ideal Spartan state, where the people will be made to live with only basic needs. This is because he believes that all of Germany's current problems are caused by the German people becoming ungrateful and decadent and that through the imposition of Spartanism, Germany will be strong once again.
The split of the SS following the attempted 1950s coup would see Heydrich lead the German branch of the SS, while Himmler leads the Burgundian branch. At the mod's start date, as Hitler's health worsens, Heydrich is seen to be a potential sucessor for Hitler as the next Führer, albeit one that faces opposition from all aspects of society with the exception of the SS.
In-game[]
Heydrich could be selected by the player as a potential sucessor for Adolf Hitler upon the latter's death. This is in large part to his brutality. In contrast to the other three contenders, who have genine popular support within each of their respective factions (Speer for the reformists, Goering for the military hardliners, and Bormann for the conservatives), Heydrich's support from the SS largely comes from fear of Heinrich Himmler - should Himmler decide Heydrich was of no use to him, no one in the SS would object to killing him. In the leadup to the German Civil War, Heydrich will empower the SS, crack down on all resistance and reestablishing ties with Burgundy as well as praise their nuclear bomb test.
When the German Civil War begins, Heydrich would appear as the faction thats' the least likely to win. This is because he not only starts with the smallest amount of territory of the four contenders, but if he starts doing too well, the remaining contenders will form an anti-Heydrich alliance until either he is defeated or defeats the various contenders. In addition, after eliminating the three contenders, Hans Speidel will declare war on him and Heydrich must thus conquer Germania by force. During the Civil War itself, Heydrich would use extremely brutal tactics such as forcing civilians to be suicide bombers and siccing them on the other factions, as well as excecuting anyone captured from the other factions right down to their families, with both the Gang of Four from Speer's faction and Goering's daughter Edda Goering being noteworthy victims.
Upon taking over Germany, Heydrich will be notified of Himmler's plans to destroy the entire world, which would in turn horrify him. Breaking away from Burgundy, Heydrich would inform Philipp Bouhler of Himmler's plans in an effort to covertly gain allies in the SS to form a front to oppose Himmler. While Bouhler would share Heydrich's opposition to Himmler's mad ideas, Heydrich's existing unpopularity, as well as the loyalty of certain SS figures to Himmler, he finds Germany embroiled in yet another civil war as the Himmler loyalists attempt to remove him from power. During this second civil war, Heydrich will have to either diplomatically deal with the various warlords that break out, or outright conquer them, due in part to some of them having nuclear weapons that could land in Himmler's hands. After securing the nukes, he will be able to declare war on Burgundy, or have the option of waiting three more months and consolidating his power further.
If Heydrich defeats Himmler, he will confront and excecute Himmler. Then, he will realize that, on top of his ideology being a lie due to the fact that those he saw as subhuman proved to be strong fighters in war, his dedication to Nazism has alienated him from his family, possibly resulting in the death of his son Klaus, as well as his son and two daughters not wanting anything to do with him with the implication that they know full well the type of monster he is. He will eventually commit suicide in despair, an act that plunges Germany into perpertual chaos .
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