Wondering Idiot
Chieftain
I am currently reading a book by Bevin Alexander entitled "How Wars Are Won, The Thirteen Rules of War, From Ancient Greece to the War on Terror" (if that ain't a mouthfull, what is?).
The author uses accounts of historical battles to illustrate the thirteen rules, both by positive and negative example. After reading and digesting the main thrust of the author's premise, I have concluded that many are applicable to Civ.
To begin, the thirteen rules identified by Mr. Alexander are:
1. Strike at the enemy's weakness
2. Defend, then attack
3. Hold the enemy in one place, and strike another
4. Feign retreat
5. Occupy the central position
6. Employ a superior weapon
7. Drive a stake into the enemy's heart
8. Block the enemy's retreat
9. Land an overwhealming blow
10. Create and exploit a weak spot
11. Surround and cut off an unprotected enemy
12. Create an uproar in the east, then attack in the west
13. Maneuver into the enemy's rear
Some of these are somewhat related, such as nos. 1 and 10, or 8, 11, and 13. But each is distinct from the others. In summary, the rules and their applications to Civ are as follows:
1. Strike at the enemy's weakness. When he is invading your territory, take an invasion force to the other side of his nation. The AI can't fight two-front wars very well, but you can. Chaos will result, and you will have won an important victory.
2. Defend, then attack. Remember that the defensive values of simple riflemen fortified on just forests or hills are impressive, so let the enemy destroy himself on your defenses. When he is weak, hit him hard with your cavalry or tanks.
3. Hold the enemy in one place, then strike in another. Related to no. 1, in that you engage the enemy here and hit him hard there. It doesn't necessarily have to be on the other side of his empire, but far enough away that his troops are not an immediate threat.
4. Feign retreat. Not too sure how to bring this into Civ. against the AI. Against a human, yes, but the AI sends troops out in a strange fashion. Perhaps one could lure a defensive unit out of a city into ambush, but most often the AI just builds a new unit to send instead of a defender. Anyone's imput would be helpful.
5. Occupy the central position. Split the enemy in two, then defeat first one, then the other, in detail. Napoleon and Stonewall Jackson used this with great success against larger forces.
6. Employ a superior weapon. Play into your strengths. Stay ahead in the tech race. The civ with the best units will win the most wars, all things being equal.
7. Drive a stake into the enemy's heart. Take his capitol or key cities. Don't focus on his army, which can be re-built, but on his cities. Take the ones that provide him with the most units, trade, science, etc. The ones at the heart of his empire. When he is in any government but Democracy or Communism, the loss of the capitol means rampant waste, corruption, and unhappiness.
8. Block the enemy's retreat. Cut him off so he can't withdraw or send reinforcements. Three or four riflemen fortified on a key hill can accomplish this, with little cost in manpower to you. Add an airbase, and you have a means of attacking from his rear (see #13).
9. Land an overwhelming blow. Build up your forces before going to war. I never attack a city without at least a transport filled with Marines, Tanks, and an Engineer or two. That force will take out up to three medium-sized cities. Any more, and I have a larger task force, with a wider selection of units. I love the carrier with a couple dozen bombers. It is a very big stick to carry indeed.
10. Create and exploit a weak spot. This has a little more application to human opponents than the AI, simply because of playing styles. My human enemies love to build long lines of border forts with mulitple units stacked several squares deep. The Magniot Line, as it were. My strategy? Go around. Well, if I have no other choice, hit one key fort hard and take it, gaining a foothold. Make him kill himself on my new fort, and then mop up. I created a weak place in his line, then sat on the defensive and allowed him to do my work for me.
11. Surround and cut off an unprotected enemy. This could be his field army, or a city, or whatever. Do not allow reinforcement or escape. Attack from all sides.
12. Create an uproar in the east, then attack in the west. Almost identical in application with #3, although perhaps on a broader scale.
13. Maneuver into the enemy's rear. Just like in #1, occupy his forces on one side, then attack him hard on the other.
I hope this is helpful, especially to beginners. Any discussion, from more experienced players or newbies, is welcome.
The author uses accounts of historical battles to illustrate the thirteen rules, both by positive and negative example. After reading and digesting the main thrust of the author's premise, I have concluded that many are applicable to Civ.
To begin, the thirteen rules identified by Mr. Alexander are:
1. Strike at the enemy's weakness
2. Defend, then attack
3. Hold the enemy in one place, and strike another
4. Feign retreat
5. Occupy the central position
6. Employ a superior weapon
7. Drive a stake into the enemy's heart
8. Block the enemy's retreat
9. Land an overwhealming blow
10. Create and exploit a weak spot
11. Surround and cut off an unprotected enemy
12. Create an uproar in the east, then attack in the west
13. Maneuver into the enemy's rear
Some of these are somewhat related, such as nos. 1 and 10, or 8, 11, and 13. But each is distinct from the others. In summary, the rules and their applications to Civ are as follows:
1. Strike at the enemy's weakness. When he is invading your territory, take an invasion force to the other side of his nation. The AI can't fight two-front wars very well, but you can. Chaos will result, and you will have won an important victory.
2. Defend, then attack. Remember that the defensive values of simple riflemen fortified on just forests or hills are impressive, so let the enemy destroy himself on your defenses. When he is weak, hit him hard with your cavalry or tanks.
3. Hold the enemy in one place, then strike in another. Related to no. 1, in that you engage the enemy here and hit him hard there. It doesn't necessarily have to be on the other side of his empire, but far enough away that his troops are not an immediate threat.
4. Feign retreat. Not too sure how to bring this into Civ. against the AI. Against a human, yes, but the AI sends troops out in a strange fashion. Perhaps one could lure a defensive unit out of a city into ambush, but most often the AI just builds a new unit to send instead of a defender. Anyone's imput would be helpful.
5. Occupy the central position. Split the enemy in two, then defeat first one, then the other, in detail. Napoleon and Stonewall Jackson used this with great success against larger forces.
6. Employ a superior weapon. Play into your strengths. Stay ahead in the tech race. The civ with the best units will win the most wars, all things being equal.
7. Drive a stake into the enemy's heart. Take his capitol or key cities. Don't focus on his army, which can be re-built, but on his cities. Take the ones that provide him with the most units, trade, science, etc. The ones at the heart of his empire. When he is in any government but Democracy or Communism, the loss of the capitol means rampant waste, corruption, and unhappiness.
8. Block the enemy's retreat. Cut him off so he can't withdraw or send reinforcements. Three or four riflemen fortified on a key hill can accomplish this, with little cost in manpower to you. Add an airbase, and you have a means of attacking from his rear (see #13).
9. Land an overwhelming blow. Build up your forces before going to war. I never attack a city without at least a transport filled with Marines, Tanks, and an Engineer or two. That force will take out up to three medium-sized cities. Any more, and I have a larger task force, with a wider selection of units. I love the carrier with a couple dozen bombers. It is a very big stick to carry indeed.
10. Create and exploit a weak spot. This has a little more application to human opponents than the AI, simply because of playing styles. My human enemies love to build long lines of border forts with mulitple units stacked several squares deep. The Magniot Line, as it were. My strategy? Go around. Well, if I have no other choice, hit one key fort hard and take it, gaining a foothold. Make him kill himself on my new fort, and then mop up. I created a weak place in his line, then sat on the defensive and allowed him to do my work for me.
11. Surround and cut off an unprotected enemy. This could be his field army, or a city, or whatever. Do not allow reinforcement or escape. Attack from all sides.
12. Create an uproar in the east, then attack in the west. Almost identical in application with #3, although perhaps on a broader scale.
13. Maneuver into the enemy's rear. Just like in #1, occupy his forces on one side, then attack him hard on the other.
I hope this is helpful, especially to beginners. Any discussion, from more experienced players or newbies, is welcome.
