"I stand upon the mountain
and gaze upon the sea
And as the sun sets I see the world
as it truly is;
One whole thing."
I am Hakim abd al-Salib ibn Khaldun min Immol min Alzzalam. I pen these words to give guidance to those who would write the poetry of war.
I have fought in war and observed war and made war, and I share this so others may wage war with proficiency.
I was not a warrior born; I was born to a miner, the son of miners, and miners we had been since the time of Christ, or perhaps longer. I was not taught the art of war formally; instead I was taught the ways of the mine, and they have served me in my life of war since.
"The sea laps upon the shore and the birds cry overhead,
and here I yet remain, my gaze forever
staring at a clear blue sky,
my armor remaining long after I"
All war is divisible into the personal, the military, and the grand. Just as two soldiers on the battlefield clash arms and exchange blows, so does the general trade blows with his opposites, with his army as his body. But a general must serve a prince, and it is the prince who makes the grand strategy, which the general works to execute in favor for his prince.
The first shall speak of the grand, for it is in this that the general must ultimately dedicate all his strategy and acumen to; without the guiding hand of his prince, he becomes little more then a bandit of opportunity. The princes goals legitimize the generals strategy, and his troops combat.
So the general must understand these principles;
Why does the prince wage war?
Who does the prince feel loyalty to?
Where does the princes influence end?
How much can the princes lands sustain?
What is the makeup of his lands?
The first is the hardest to answer, for no man may know another mans heart so truly. However it is important to understand; if a prince seeks war for personal gain, then the generals strategy must reflect this.
The second reflects the first; is the princes loyalty to his people, his land, his coffers? What drives him forward to send the general into war? The generals strategy must reflect his princes loyalty.
The third is most easily discovered, for if you venture into a land and never hear the princes name, then his influence is not great, and your strategy must reflect this.
The fourth is the matter many generals fail to understand, for it is the land itself, the earth, that sustains us with its plants and animals. A general who has a prince with much wheat will often win a war, while he with better soldiers but no bread will lose. The generals strategy must reflect his ability to sustain his army.
The fifth is most practical, for knowledge of the land you will fight for is key. If you fight for a land where the men run swiftly, why would you set them in heavy armor and slow them? If you fight for a land where the men are strong, why would you give them weapons of finesse? I saw this strategy used by my own general and prince, and saw that it was good; for he understood the strengths of his men, and made his army to reflect them.
Upon assessing these questions, the general is then prepared to begin his planning of strategy for the campaign.