Scorched earth

A scorched earth policy is a strategy performed by a military to destroy anything that may be useful to an enemy while advancing through or retreating from an area. All assets that can be used by a military are targeted, including but not limited to food sources, transportation, communications, and industrial areas. Sometimes, even civilians are considered one of these assets.

In the Strangereal universe, there have been at least three instances of a scorched earth policy being implemented.

Belkan War
As the Allied Forces continued to advance further into Belkan territory, the Belkans began to realize that it would not be as easy to win the war as they had thought. They became more desperate to stave off the Allies' advance and keep them out of North Belkan territory.

On June 1, 1995, the Allied Forces initiated Operation Cannibal, a bombing raid intended to render useless the industrial city of Hoffnung. While the pilots of the bombers were not being precise in their bombings, the city was not totally destroyed. It was here that Belka began performing their scorched earth strategy on their own land. While retreating from Hoffnung, the military set fire to everything that could be helpful to the Allied Forces. The operation ended in victory for the Allies, as the city's military power was destroyed, but the city itself was destroyed as well, causing many civilian casualties.

The Allied Forces continued their advance, reaching what was considered the boundary between North and South Belka in Sudentor. On June 6, 1995, fighting broke out in the city, and the Allies called on their aerial squadrons to assist. On their way to the city, a Belkan squadron of bombers carrying seven nuclear weapons showed up. They were believed to be headed for Ustio. The Allied squadrons shot down the bombers, but the Belkans detonated the nuclear weapons regardless, right on the Waldreich Mountains.

The nuclear attack had a profound effect on the world. The Allied Forces halted their advance and a peace treaty was signed between the two belligerents over the summer of 1995. As of 2010, the seven Ground Zero craters were still present and the area was still highly radioactive.