A short (will be expanded) guide to that bloodiest of activities in NESing.
"The acme of skill is to win a war without fighting" --Sun Tzu
This particular piece will focus on story NESes, this is mainly because war is fairly easy to perform in a board "NES", and also that I have little taste for board "NESes"; if anyone wishes to add a section on board "NESes", then go ahead.
Now, onto war.
When to War
"He who knows his enemy and himself will be victorious all the time." --Sun Tzu
War can happen in many instances; you might be attacked, you might attack. Judging when to attack and how to attack is a thing that requires often more instinct than skill, but a few factors can be evaluated.
The idea is mostly to make sure that you are capable of beating your opponent. This doesn't
always require numerical strength, of course, but usually that is helpful. The main things to consider (in my humble opinion) are:
I. Why are you fighting?
Asess your opponent and their strengths. Determine your long term goals: what you want to gain from a war.
II. How best can you gain this?
Figure out, usually through intuition, how to fight them best. If you're aiming to gain an opponent's industries, then, by all means, you shouldn't really be bombing them. Likewise, in a land war versus the Netherlands, blowing up the dykes is not advisable.
Another thing to do is determine where best to attack. Obvious things should come into play here. If your opponent is fighting a war on the other side of the empire, then you might be able to get away with a frontal attack; however, it is much preferable to attempt to attack them where they won't expect, defend, or be able to reinforce.
III. This is definately included in I. (see above), but it is important enough to merit its own section. Determine who might help your opponent, and plan for their entry. While you can try to get allies, don't trust them to do your fighting for them. That usually spells distaster.
How to attack
"It is best to attack his alliances. --Sun Tzu"
As Sun Tzu would tell you, attacking the enemy himself involves attack all of his assets, beginning with his alliances.
Before going to war, do your best to divide all your opponent's allies. Plant incidents between them, make them suspect each other. If some of them look like they are on the edge, perhaps approach them secretly, preferably via PM or an IM service, to try and get them onto your side (but be VERY careful here).
Once you are on the eve of war, formulate your war plans. Most of the time, like when you've started this war yourself, you should already have a plan in mind. Other times, you may be attacked, and will have to get one on the spot.
Basically, when you send the moderator your orders, try your best to outmanuever the enemy into a position which is disadvantageous to them. This can be done by secret marches, by drawing them into your territory by being passive, or by luring them with what seems a bigger prize than the risk.
That's the bare basics. You will learn as you gain experience, and you will have to use instincts. But one last lesson...
Realize when you're beaten, when you have no hope of winning. Then, not before or after, try to work out the best peace you can.
Oh, also, in the style of erik's:
North King
Generation: Fourth
NESes run: 8
Favored type: Fresh Start
Disfavored type: Board Games
Animosity to: No one. I don't hold many grudges.
Approves of: Xen, das, Insane Panda, Capulet, RealGoober, Jason the King, Cuivenien, Kal'thazar, erez, Gelion, alex994, BananaLee, Contempt, and everyone else to a slightly lesser extent.
