-Rome-
30-10-2003, 18:53
.:War Assistance:.
Select a nation that will go to war and find out what they are fighting over. . .
Determining the causes of war, and what each side's goals are, is often difficult. It is essential to find out why this war is happening so you can calculate how far each nation will go in supporting the conflict. A minor border squabble is less likely to escalate than attempt by one nation to take over a neighbor completely. More important issues encourage a nation to keep at it longer and to resist efforts to settle the matter peacefully.
Determine the mode of combat. . .
Will it be land, naval, or both? Which side will initially be attacking? A large army will be no help to a nation fighting a naval war. The attacker, as we have already learned, must be significantly stronger than the defender in order to succeed.
How much of a nation’s forces will be committed to this war, and why?. . .
Nations at war generally do not, and often cannot, commit the whole of their armed strength against one enemy. There are often other threats, internal as well as external. It is also prudent to retain substantial forces as a reserve to reinforce some unanticipated success, or to recover from an unexpected disaster. Moreover, a nation’s armed forces are not normally concentrated together as they would be for combat. In peacetime, combat units are scattered throughout the nation. This is done for political and economic reasons. Going to war means gathering a substantial portion of these forces on another nation’s border. This is usually considered an unfriendly act. The other guy will start mobilizing his forces. Therefore, this “mobilization on the frontiers” must be done as quickly as possible lest you end up facing a defender larger than yourself. When waging an offensive war, you cannot expect to be capable of gathering more than 40-70 percent of your forces for the initial attack. A defender will often gather an even larger portion of his forces. After all, he is basically going to stand still and resist you advance. Another problem with marshaling forces for an attack is the need to occupy enemy territory. Unfriendly civilians can be troublesome unless sufficiently cowed by armed force. Occupation forces, such as your own police or locals acting as collaborators, often can be used instead of troops. In the best circumstances, 200 troops per million enemy civilians will be needed to keep the conquered population under control. In a worst-case scenario, 2’000 troops per million will be needed.
Look at the combat values for each nation. . .
The objective of an attacker is to obtain better than 1:1 ratio of his strength to the defenders. A ratio of over 6:1 assures an almost instant victory. Anything below 1:1 means almost certain failure. But doing this simple calculation requires the armchair strategist to take into account the probable effect of geography, surprise, and human factors.
Calculate the effect of combined operations. . .
Most nations have separate ground, air, and naval forces. Each of these forces fights a separate war while simultaneously cooperating with one another. If one nation can obtain air superiority, it can more than double the effectiveness of its ground and naval forces. The degree of increased effectiveness depends on the terrain. It’s lower if the war is being fought over “busy” terrain (forests, urban areas, jungle) and higher if the terrain is more open (plains, unforested mountains, and especially deserts). Air superiority also guarantees naval superiority. Control of the air goes to the force with more and higher-quality aircraft.
Account for the effect of climate and geography. . .
Some terrain favors defense; other terrain makes it easier for the attacker. Severe terrain conditions can double the effectiveness of the defending troops. Add severe climactic conditions and the defender’s combat value can be tripled. An attacker would be handicapped by invading Switzerland or Afghanistan (RL) in the winter. Other environments that favor the defender are the urban sprawl that covers most of Germany. Jungles or other thick forests also make defense more effective. An attacker coming across open terrain in dry weather has an advantage. Deserts are particularly difficult to defend.
Estimate the effect of surprise, if any. . .
Surprise can benefit anyone, but the attacker normally has it. A maximum degree of surprise can multiply the attacker’s combat capability by five times. This is rarely attained. The Japanese came close in 1941. A more likely degree of surprise will multiply the attacker’s strength two or three times. At the start of a war, the side that opens hostilities will usually obtain some surprise advantage, at lease 10-50 percent. Basically, surprise means attacking enemy forces before they are prepared to resist. Examples are air attacks that catch enemy aircraft still on the ground. At sea, submarines are the preeminent surprise weapon. Ground combat finds surprise more difficult, but not impossible, to achieve. At the start of a war the defender first has to determine that there is a war going on. After that, there are problems of:
ºAlerting the combat units,
ºGetting them on the road,
ºGetting them to the border, and
ºEstablishing defensive positions.
More to come!!
BTW--This is property of James Dunnigan from a book called "How to make War Fourth Edition"
Select a nation that will go to war and find out what they are fighting over. . .
Determining the causes of war, and what each side's goals are, is often difficult. It is essential to find out why this war is happening so you can calculate how far each nation will go in supporting the conflict. A minor border squabble is less likely to escalate than attempt by one nation to take over a neighbor completely. More important issues encourage a nation to keep at it longer and to resist efforts to settle the matter peacefully.
Determine the mode of combat. . .
Will it be land, naval, or both? Which side will initially be attacking? A large army will be no help to a nation fighting a naval war. The attacker, as we have already learned, must be significantly stronger than the defender in order to succeed.
How much of a nation’s forces will be committed to this war, and why?. . .
Nations at war generally do not, and often cannot, commit the whole of their armed strength against one enemy. There are often other threats, internal as well as external. It is also prudent to retain substantial forces as a reserve to reinforce some unanticipated success, or to recover from an unexpected disaster. Moreover, a nation’s armed forces are not normally concentrated together as they would be for combat. In peacetime, combat units are scattered throughout the nation. This is done for political and economic reasons. Going to war means gathering a substantial portion of these forces on another nation’s border. This is usually considered an unfriendly act. The other guy will start mobilizing his forces. Therefore, this “mobilization on the frontiers” must be done as quickly as possible lest you end up facing a defender larger than yourself. When waging an offensive war, you cannot expect to be capable of gathering more than 40-70 percent of your forces for the initial attack. A defender will often gather an even larger portion of his forces. After all, he is basically going to stand still and resist you advance. Another problem with marshaling forces for an attack is the need to occupy enemy territory. Unfriendly civilians can be troublesome unless sufficiently cowed by armed force. Occupation forces, such as your own police or locals acting as collaborators, often can be used instead of troops. In the best circumstances, 200 troops per million enemy civilians will be needed to keep the conquered population under control. In a worst-case scenario, 2’000 troops per million will be needed.
Look at the combat values for each nation. . .
The objective of an attacker is to obtain better than 1:1 ratio of his strength to the defenders. A ratio of over 6:1 assures an almost instant victory. Anything below 1:1 means almost certain failure. But doing this simple calculation requires the armchair strategist to take into account the probable effect of geography, surprise, and human factors.
Calculate the effect of combined operations. . .
Most nations have separate ground, air, and naval forces. Each of these forces fights a separate war while simultaneously cooperating with one another. If one nation can obtain air superiority, it can more than double the effectiveness of its ground and naval forces. The degree of increased effectiveness depends on the terrain. It’s lower if the war is being fought over “busy” terrain (forests, urban areas, jungle) and higher if the terrain is more open (plains, unforested mountains, and especially deserts). Air superiority also guarantees naval superiority. Control of the air goes to the force with more and higher-quality aircraft.
Account for the effect of climate and geography. . .
Some terrain favors defense; other terrain makes it easier for the attacker. Severe terrain conditions can double the effectiveness of the defending troops. Add severe climactic conditions and the defender’s combat value can be tripled. An attacker would be handicapped by invading Switzerland or Afghanistan (RL) in the winter. Other environments that favor the defender are the urban sprawl that covers most of Germany. Jungles or other thick forests also make defense more effective. An attacker coming across open terrain in dry weather has an advantage. Deserts are particularly difficult to defend.
Estimate the effect of surprise, if any. . .
Surprise can benefit anyone, but the attacker normally has it. A maximum degree of surprise can multiply the attacker’s combat capability by five times. This is rarely attained. The Japanese came close in 1941. A more likely degree of surprise will multiply the attacker’s strength two or three times. At the start of a war, the side that opens hostilities will usually obtain some surprise advantage, at lease 10-50 percent. Basically, surprise means attacking enemy forces before they are prepared to resist. Examples are air attacks that catch enemy aircraft still on the ground. At sea, submarines are the preeminent surprise weapon. Ground combat finds surprise more difficult, but not impossible, to achieve. At the start of a war the defender first has to determine that there is a war going on. After that, there are problems of:
ºAlerting the combat units,
ºGetting them on the road,
ºGetting them to the border, and
ºEstablishing defensive positions.
More to come!!
BTW--This is property of James Dunnigan from a book called "How to make War Fourth Edition"