SIA 33rd Division

The SIA 33rd Tank Division (33. SIA Panzertruppe in German) is an German-speaking tank division of the SIA Army. It is also one of the SIA's largest divisions, following closely behind the 9001st Legion and the 48th Legion. The 33rd Division hosts some of Shops Island's greatest tank aces, as well as special tanks and equipment not found in any other army division.

The 33rd Division is largely made up of immigrants and defectors from the German States.

History
The 33rd Tank Division found its roots in the Great Yowien War, where Shopper troops fought not only amongst their conventional allies such as Castilla and the Culldrome Isles, but also an ally made purely by common interest: Snowzerland. Snoss Army divisions fought alongside the Shoppers in multiple cases, most notably during the siege of F Island and during the Battle of Golden City. Many Snoss soldiers and other Snoss civilians took the narrow opportunity of an alliance between the two countries as a chance to defect. Many Snoss, Osterreachan and Alemanian soldiers defected to Shops Island during the Great Yowien War, many of them tank experts. To deal with the influx of German-speaking troops who would prove problematic in English-speaking divisions, the Army founded the 33rd Tank Division specifically for these defectors.

Once again during the Great Snowzerland War VI, a few Snoss troops, although nowhere near as many as before, defected to the Shoppers and joined the 33rd Division, bringing with them valuable intelligence and knowledge. Ever since then, the influx of troops into the 33rd Division has slowed considerably; only a few German-speaking penguins with military skill come to Shops Island and join the 33rd Division nowadays.

Aside from the Great Yowien War and the Great Snowzerland War VI, the 33rd Division also saw combat during the Fall of Nexon as a defensive unit on the beaches and as an offensive tank unit during the Frosian War. During the Liberation of Planet 1984, the 33rd division spent its time efficiently dealing with enemy Verpommian army units.

Operation
The 33rd Division only sees combat against other armored units and large infantry battalions. Like any other Shopper tank division, the 33rd's purpose is tank-to-tank combat, artillery support and infantry support. The 33rd Division employs some of the best tank equipment of the SIA, including many specially modified Tank Destroyers and Heavy Tanks. The 33rd Division also owns many exotic tank models, including those from Snowzerland, Rusca, the USA and Ed Island. There are even some custom-built tanks in the division.

The 33rd Division is stationed in Bro Town, a Shopper city with a large German-speaking population. The 33rd Division also often find itself sent on patrol missions to the Marmalade Islands due to its local Alemanian population.

Often during war against German-speaking nations, the 33rd Division will team up with the intelligence and espionage branches of the SIA to spy on enemy armies, and gather and translate important military information.