Author Topic: Applying your Awesomeness  (Read 2902 times)

The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers

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Applying your Awesomeness
« on: June 04, 2003, 11:37:35 PM »
I just have a question, and perhaps I'm just being perverse, but if you have your strengths hitting the enemy's weakness, doesn't that leave your weakness open for the enemy's strengths to hit?

House of Mustard

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #1 on: June 04, 2003, 11:44:31 PM »
I was about to refer you to an article that I wrote about six months ago, in which I expounded on Jomini's nine principles of warfare (and a few little nuggets of Clausewitz), but it appears to be absent from the archive.  Perhaps Fell deleted it so that his silly little Sun Tzu stuff would look neat.

But trust me - it addresses your question.
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The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #2 on: June 04, 2003, 11:51:20 PM »
I think I actually read that, even though I became a "regular" (and was just a major contributer).

I demand Fell find it again so I can read them together. This is good stuff for writing, not just table-top.

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #3 on: June 05, 2003, 12:02:29 AM »
OK I fixed the problem with the table top section.  It was only showing reviews and not editorals.  So there's a new link that shows the 13 missing articles.

Edit: I also took the liberty to take all the previously posted editorals that were posted as reviews and switch them.
« Last Edit: June 05, 2003, 12:18:42 AM by Spriggan »
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Entsuropi

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #4 on: June 05, 2003, 07:51:20 AM »
We need more stuff like that for warhammer - it is far more tactical than heroclix, since you cannot just ferry your entire army into combat on the first turn.

Ok, yes you can, but you end up ferrying a small army, and you look like a utter tit sending your space marines into the center of a tyranid force.
If you're ever in an argument and Entropy winds up looking staid and temperate in comparison, it might be time to cut your losses and start a new thread about something else :)

Fellfrosch

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #5 on: June 05, 2003, 10:42:01 AM »
Thanks Spriggan.

The article is available now.  It's called The Art of War(Hammer).  Take a look.  Your question is discussed in the fourth topic "Economy of Force."
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Fellfrosch

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #6 on: June 05, 2003, 03:03:51 PM »
Be careful throwing around terms like "tactical," Entropy. Just because Heroclix allows for first-turn strikes doesn't mean it isn't tactical--it just means that you have to apply your tactics differently. In my experience, 40k is actually much more forgiving of player error than Heroclix is, due to the higher influence of randomness and the increased homogeny of your army. (Note: please don't interpret this as a dig at Warhammer, because I don't have the will or desire to get into an argument over which game is better.)

Like I said in the article, I wrote about Heroclix first because it is easier to think about in terms of pure theory. I do intend to write a similar article about 40k, and I will do so soon.
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Fellfrosch

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #7 on: June 05, 2003, 03:38:08 PM »
You know, once I'm done with a 40k article I'd love to do another that applies these principles of warfare directly to writing, since SaintEhlers is quite right when he points out that this is excellent source material. The first step in that direction, I think, is for Mustard to tell us about the two Jomini principles he left out of his article--even if they don't apply to wargames directly, I imagine they could be very useful in fiction.
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House of Mustard

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #8 on: June 05, 2003, 05:14:21 PM »
#6 Unity of Command:  "For every objective seek unity of command and unity of effort."  I didn't include this because, with only ultra-rare exceptions, you control every unit in your army.  That's pretty unified.

#8 Surprise:  "Strike the enemy at a time or place or in a manner for which he is unprepared."  Looking back, I could have included this.  I think that, at the time, I was looking at things from an operational level and, since you can't really strike your enemy's army when he isn't expecting it (they'd still be in your buddy's shoebox or egg carton or whatever), then it doesn't really work for Warhammer.  On a tactical level, you can still achieve surprise in many ways.

As a more in depth answer to Saint's question:  Compare your 'awesomeness hitting the enemy's weakness' to Clausewitz's 'Center of Gravity.'  There is a point that should be your main focus, around which your entire attack is based.  Apply your awesomeness to that.

At the same time, the enemy is looking for your Center of Gravity, so you need to identify that and protect it.  If both those things are in mind (attacking his CoG and protecting yours), then you don't have to worry about your enemy hitting your weakness.  He might be able to hit your weak units, but shouldn't do substantial damage to your army as a whole.

As a sidenote, it's important to remember that the CoG is not neccesarily a unit.  It can be a terrain piece.  It can be an objective.  In the War in the Pacific, the CoG was the supply lines.  In the Civil War, it was Lee's army (all the previous generals thought it was this city or that city.)  Etc...etc...
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The Holy Saint, Grand High Poobah, Master of Monkeys, Ehlers

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #9 on: June 06, 2003, 12:12:07 AM »
I kinda figured you had to split the army up. But I was just looking for guidelines on how people did that.

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #10 on: March 30, 2004, 05:49:16 AM »
Fell, did you ever get around to writing that article? The one on tactical principles of writing?
If you're ever in an argument and Entropy winds up looking staid and temperate in comparison, it might be time to cut your losses and start a new thread about something else :)

Fellfrosch

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Re: Applying your Awesomeness
« Reply #11 on: March 30, 2004, 10:18:50 PM »
No I didn't, actually. That would be fun to go back and look at.
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