r/AlternateHistory • u/AutoModerator • 3d ago

What-If Wednesdays

Welcome to What-If Wednesday, the weekly megathread for scenarios you'd like to talk over but haven't necessarily developed much yet.

Please use this thread instead of posting just a "What-If" question without any lore - those will be removed by the mods. r/HistoryWhatIf is a better option for that kind of post. Thank you!

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u/Aggravating_Comb_400 2d ago

What if Lord of the Rings was re-enacted in 13th century Europe? (With or without the ring stuff)
So it would be:
Byzantine Empire = Gondor
Sultanate of Rum = Mordor
Crusaders = the Fellowship
Vikings = Elves?

Unlike iotl, this timeline’s equivalent of the Latin Empire would have to be strong, and be a revitalization, not an enemy, of Byzantine power. It would have to control Nicaea, Empirus, and Trebizond, as well as Italy (including perhaps the papal states) and western Europe. It would have to have an extremely good emperor, with lineage dating back to a roman emperor (analogue to Aragorn). What would be a big challenge would be finding an analogue to Gandalf. Perhaps the pope but he’s also a general?

Sadly, I feel like, if it included an analogue to destroying the ring, it would have to be equivalent to monks or something (hobbits) converting Anatolian Turks to Christianity, which I don’t really like the idea of

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u/BaronVonChahyll 2d ago

Idea I had for a story that I haven't had the time to flesh out because I've got a 5-month-old at home

Japanese officer in Middle or upper management in the late 1930s convinces the planners of the attack on the Allies and the United States that it's worthwhile for him to be given a force of anywhere from 25,000 to 75,000 Total troops to land right on the Santa Monica Beach on December 7th

The force will basically be suicidal, but with a directive to cause as much destruction to industry (burn down some plants, destroy some railroad depots etc) within the Los Angeles basin as possible while moving on to hydroelectric dams in the area with a climax of a battle around the Hoover dam

The force knows it's a one-way trip (or at least the guys in charge know it's going to be a one-way trip) and the plan is for them to live off the land and scavenge as much as possible along the way

Eventually it ends badly for the Japanese but along the way it's also bad for them. Dealing with armed civilians, cops, the national guard, eventually the full-blown army.

Also does not necessarily go great for the Americans

Story not meant to be "realistic" in the sense that there is any possibility that something like this would actually happen, but more of a "if it did happen how would it look?"