THE PHILOSOPHIES OF
OLANIGAN
ta
Krasarxech
Karatzkraxechaller
ty jashat ridoth
ta xorsarat
OLANIGAN
ja battox kaximxler ja kaximaler
"May the great warrior
OLANIGAN
grant our generals copious quantities
of the five holy virtues;
may He also grant our Revered Ones
mastery over the five holy factors of warfare.
May our Great God of War
grant our generals also
proficiency in the Art of Using Troops
and may He also grant us victory.";
-Common Prayer
These words of wisdom have been handed down to us from the Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech. Heed them well, for these are the Strategies of War from the Great Warrior himself, Olanigan the Mighty, Olanigan the Wise, Olanigan the War God!
And lo, when the heavens grew red over the battlefield, Olanigan the Warrior spoke to Khasmanen the High Priest, who had asked for the key to warfare. The Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said:
Appraise War in terms of the five holy factors of warfare:
1. Moral Influence - That which causes the soldiers and people to follow their leaders to such degree that they would give their lives to see their leaders’ goals accomplished.
2. Weather - Equip and conduct the battle as appropriate for the weather conditions. If possible, use the men of Ghaddar as tools to change the weather to your favor. The men of Ghaddar have foolish ideas of War, but their power over weather is not to be ignored. Use them, as well as other priests of less enlightened gods, as you would any other weapon.
3. Terrain - Be sure that your forces and tactics and other preparations match the terrain. In other words, do not bring chariots and cavalry into battle within a forest.
4. Command - Judge the generals’ quantities of the five holy virtues.
5. Doctrine - The organization, control, and assignment of appropriate ranks to officers, as well as the regulation of supply routes, and equipment and supplies used by the army.
Those who master these five holy factors of warfare win; Those who do not are defeated. Therefore, when you make your plans, compare those five holy factors to the situation at hand.
And after the Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said these things, Khasmanen the High Priest took down His words, and as the red skies tumbled and swirled like a ocean of blood, Khasmanen asked what the five holy virtues were. Olanigan the Terrible said:
Each worshipper of mine shall display to some amount these five virtues that I call holy:
1. Wisdom - So he can recognize changing circumstances and act quickly and without hesitation.
2. Sincerity - His men and all who follow him should have no doubt of the certainty of rewards and punishments.
3. Humanity - Love mankind, sympathize with others, and appreciate the work they do for you.
4. Courage - The courageous man gains victory by seizing opportunity with both hands and without hesitation wring from it what you need.
5. Strictness - Discipline your troops and followers.
If a general or priest has these five holy virtues, then call him "Revered One".
After the Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said these things, and after Khasmanen the Revered One took down His words, Khasmanen prayed to know more about the Art of War. The Great God Olanigan the Bloody heard the cries of the Revered One and said:
Know that all warfare is based on deception. Knowing this, when you are capable, feign incapacity. When you are active, pretend that you are inactive. Also, when you are near to your enemy, make it appear that you are far away; by the same token, when you are far away, make it seem as though you are near. Offer the enemy bait to lure him; feign disorder and chaos and strike him down. Anger his general and confuse him. Avoid an enemy's strengths. Strike at his weaknesses when he does not expect it. Pretend inferiority and encourage an enemy's arrogance. He will make a mistake. Keep him under strain and wear him down. When your enemy is united, divide him. Attack when your enemies are not prepared; rush forth and attack when they do not expect you.
The Art of Using Troops is this: When you number ten to your enemy's one, surround him; When you are five times his strength, attack him. If you are only double his fighting power, divide him; If equally matched, you may engage him, but only the most able general can win; If weaker, then be able to execute a general advance to the rear (but always withdraw with courage), eluding the enemy as you do so.
After the Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said these things, and after Khasmanen the Revered One took down His words, Khasmanen asked if it is better to have speed or a great long-term plan in War. The Great God Olanigan the Killer said:
Victory is the main goal of War. If this takes too long to achieve, weapons are blunted and morale depressed. All warriors have heard of blundering swiftness in War, yet none have been heard seen yet a clever operation succeed that was prolonged. An attack may lack ingenuity or imagination, but it must be delivered with supernatural speed. I say to you now that there has never been a protracted War from which a country has benefited.
After the Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said these things, and after Khasmanen the Revered One took down His words, Khasmanen asked about the best way to conduct a War, and what to do about prisoners of War. Olanigan the Courageous said:
It is better to capture the enemy's army than to destroy it. What is important is to attack an opponent’s strategy. Next best is to disrupt your enemy's alliances. next best after that is to attack his army. The worst thing you can do is to attack cities. Attack cities only when there is no alternative. It takes too long to attack cities and it will leave you weak. Treat captives well, and care for them, so that we may use them. This is called "winning a battle and becoming stronger". He who knows when to fight and when he cannot will be victorious. See to it that your troops and followers feed on the enemy, for I tell you now, one bushel of the enemy’s provisions is equal to twenty of yours; One hundredweight to enemy fodder is equal to twenty hundredweight of yours. Invincibility lies in the defense; The possibility of victory lies in the attack.
After the Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said these things, and after Khasmanen the Revered One took down His words, Khasmanen asked to know more about the Art of Using Troops. Olanigan the Wise said:
March by an indirect route and divert the enemy by enticing him with bait. By doing this, you may set out after he does and yet arrive before he does. Make it appear you are far off. He who wishes to take an advantage takes a devious and distant route and makes of it a short way. He deceives his enemy to make him lax, and then marches on speedily. But, be warned, one who sets his entire army in motion to chase after an advantage will not attain it and the stores will be lost.
Remember the third Holy Factor of War! Those who do not know the conditions of mountains and forests, marshes and swamps, cannot conduct the march of troops. Those who do not use local guides are unable to take advantages of the ground. When campaigning, be swift as the wind; when in leisurely march, be as majestic as a grand forest; when you are raiding and plundering, be like a fire; when you are just standing, be as firm as the mountains. When you conquer territory divide the profits. I tell you now, he who understands the art of direct and indirect approach will be victorious.
The voice cannot be heard in battle, so use drums and bells. Also, troops cannot see each other clearly in battle, so use flags and banners. In night fighting use torches and drums or, if possible, infravision, and in day fighting use many banners and flags to influence the sight and hearing of troops.
Use troops when morale is high. During the early morning spirits are high, during the day they lower, and in the evening, the thoughts of the troops turn toward home.
The art of employing troops is that when the enemy occupies high ground, do not fight him. When his back is to the hills, do not fight him, unless you have a mightier magic than the opponent has. When the enemy pretends to flee, do not pursue him. Do not attack his elite troops. Do not gobble pro-offered bait like a fish, for I say to you, under every succulent bait, there is certain to be a hooked fish. Do not oppose an enemy that is heading home, for he will fight all the harder.
When you have surrounded an enemy, leave a way of escape. All War is based on deceit, so show him a false way to safety, and create in his mind the idea that there is an alternative to death or capture. Then strike like torrential waters. Do not press an enemy that is at bay.
He who occupies the battlefield first and awaits his enemy will be at ease; He who comes later and rushes into the melee will be weary. Therefore, those who are skilled in battle bring the enemy to the field of battle and are not brought there by the enemy. One who is able to make the enemy come to him of their own accord does so by offering him some advantage, real or illusionary.
When the enemy is at ease, weary him; When the enemy is well fed, then starve him; When the enemy is at rest, make him move.
Appear at places where he must hasten; move swiftly where he does not expect you. Go into emptiness, strike voids, bypass what he defends, hit him where he does not expect you. To travel without wearying your troops is to travel where there is no enemy. To be certain to take what you attack is to attack what the enemy does not protect. To be certain to hold what you defend is to defend what an enemy does not attack. Therefore, against those skilled in attack, an enemy does not know where to defend; Against the experts in defense, the enemy does not know where to attack. Subtle and insubstantial, the expert leaves no trace; he is mysterious; he is inaudible; thus he is the master of his enemy's fate. When you wish to battle, you enemy, even though protected by high walls and moats, cannot help but to engage the master, for he attacks a position the enemy must succor. When the expert wishes to avoid a battle, the enemy will be unable to attack him because the expert diverts the enemy from going where he wishes to go.
I am Olanigan. I tell you now not to let the enemy know where you intend to battle. If he does not know, then he must prepare in a great many places. And when he prepares in a great many places, those in the one place where you attack will be few. Also, know that if one has few, he must prepare against the enemy. he who has many makes the enemy prepare against him.
As a last note, when you have won a victory, do not repeat your tactics.
I am Olanigan, and these things I have said are the Art of Using Troops.
After the Dread God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said these things, and after Khasmanen the Revered One took down His words, Khasmanen asked what qualities are dangerous in the character of a general. The Great God Olanigan the Terrifying said:
There are Five Dangerous Characteristics of a General.
1. If he is reckless, he can be killed. A general who is stupid and courageous is a calamity.
2. If he is cowardly, he can be captured. One who esteems life above all will be overcome with hesitancy. Hesitancy in a general is a calamity.
3. If he is quick tempered, you can make a fool of him and provoke him to a rage and bring him to death. What is requires of a general is steadiness.
4. If his sense of honor is too delicate, you can destroy him. One who is too anxious to defend his reputation pays no regard to anything else.
5. If he has a compassionate nature, you can harass him. He who is compassionate and humanitarian fears casualties.
The ruin of the army and the death of the general are the inevitable results of these characteristics.
After the Dread God Olanigan said these things, and after Khasmanen took down His words, Khasmanen asked the Great God how to best defend a fortress. The Great God Olanigan the Fearsome said:
1. To defend your castle against any who would attack a castle, you must be able to defend against mundane and magical attacks.
2. Do not keep the outer walls clean, this is to defend against the invisible wall-crawller. Discourage all wall-climbers.
3. Keep the moat low and, if possible, stock it with something dangerous to foes.
4. Lock the doors and windows with multiple locks and bars.
5. Find strength in numbers, even if you do not have them. Use dead or illusionary troops to deceive the enemy. Even defense is an exercise in deception.
6. Spread out the troops so that area effecting spells have minimal effect.
7. Know the area around the castle.
8. Try to confuse them.
9. Use spells cleverly. Brute force will not defend your castle.
After the Great God Olanigan said these things, and after Khasmanen took down His words, Khasmanen prayed for more knowledge and wisdom. The Great God Olanigan the Unconquered heard the prayers of Khasmanen and said:
I am Olanigan. In future times and in past times and in the times that are now, I shall be Ares; I shall be Sif; I shall be Athena; I shall be Innanna; I shall be Hachiman; I shall be Karttikeya; I shall be Anhur; I shall be Huitzilopochtli; I shall be Morrigan and Nuada; I shall be Ishtar and I shall be Tobadzistsini. Fear me, for I am War. Love me for I grant all men the will to live. Do not be mistaken; I am not Hate. Hate blinds. Hate brings on the mistakes that get one killed. Respect your enemies and learn who they are. I an not Hate. I am War. I did not create War to destroy the races, but to insure their survival. Peace promotes decay and decadence. Peace creates complacency. War drives innovation. War creates change. War promotes creativity. I am the God of these things. I am the God of War. I am Olanigan.
Do not War for no reason. That is chaos. Victory should be the goal. War should be done to achieve something. War does not have to be an act of violence pushed to its utmost limits, for if that was always the case, the means would lose all relation to the end. The supreme Art of War is to subdue the enemy without fighting, to take the enemy's cities without laying siege to them, and to overthrow the enemy’s country without bloodying weapons. War should be used such that victory is gained in the shortest amount of time, at the least possible cost of lives and effort, and with infliction of the fewest possible enemy casualties.
I am Olanigan. Those who would worship Me must recognize that red is My color. I demand from my followers the souls of the slain. Dedicate their souls to Me as they die. Do not send Me the souls of monsters and dragons. I require the souls of humanoids. Or, if you worship Me and you are not a warrior, sacrifice to me by fire the weapons of captives, bars of silver cast into form of weapons. Also, you may burn the hearts of living sacrifices to me.
I am Olanigan. My priests shall learn the Art of Swordplay. There shall be two types of priests. The first type shall be the front line warrior-priests. I shall grant them spells of combat, War, and of charming. I shall grant then spells of conjuration and spells of protection. I shall grant them strength of champions or chaos’ combat. The second type of priest shall be the helpers of the former type. They shall not take the front lines, they shall heal the wounded, but they shall not be able to remove scars or regenerate lost limbs, and they will be guardians of the temples. They shall be granted spells of guardianship, wardings, protections, and divinations. They shall also be able to create food and drink.
I am Olanigan and your faith in Me shall turn the dead-who-are-not-dead.
Preach My message of War. Serve as advisors and preach the lessons I have caused to be written for you. Be wise in all of your actions. Be brave as well. Master the Five Holy Factors of Warfare and be sure to display great amounts of the Five Holy Virtues.
After the Great God Olanigan said these things, and after Khasmanen took down His words, Khasmanen the Revered One asked the Great Krasarxech about the positioning of troops. The Dread Olanigan ta Krasarxech said:
Fight downhill; do not ascend to attack. After crossing a river, move some distance away from it. When an advancing enemy crosses water, do not meet him at the water’s edge. Allow him to cross half of his force and then strike. Do not confront your enemy close to the water. Do not take position downstream. Cross marshes and swamps speedily. Do not linger in them. If you encounter the enemy in the middle of a swamp, take position close to the grass and water, with trees to your rear. If black dragons infest the swamp, bring a bribe so that he will let your troops pass quickly. On level ground, put any heights to the rear so that they may be safe. Always take position on the sunny side of any hill or mountain or valley. There are six places that you must always keep your distance from, yet cause the enemy to draw toward them:
1. Raging waters in deep mountains.
2. A place surrounded by heights with low-lying ground in the center.
3. Mountain terrain that resembles a cage.
4. Places where troops can be entrapped and cut off.
5. Where the land is sunken.
6. Where mountain gorges are narrow and where the road is sunken.
Face these areas and cause your enemy to put his back to them. When there are dangerous defiles or ponds with aquatic grasses, reeds, or rushes grow, or forests with dense, tangled underbrush on your flanks, search them out carefully, for these are the places where ambushes are laid and spies are hidden.
When the enemy challenges you to battle from afar, he wishes to lure you into advancing. When the trees move, the enemy is advancing. Dust that spurts upwards in high straight columns indicates the approach of chariots. When the dust hangs low, and is widespread, then infantry is on its way. When there is numerous small patches of dust which seem to come and go, the enemy is encamping. When chariots go out and take positions on the flanks, the enemy is preparing to battle. When his troops lean on their weapons, they are famished. When the enemy sees an advantage and does not seize it, they are tired and fatigued. When the enemy’s camp is loud at night, they are fearful. If the enemy’s officers are in a foul mood, they are tired.
In War, numbers alone confer no advantage. Do not advance relying only on sheer numbers to carry you through.
After the Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said these things, and after Khasmanen took down His words, Khasmanen prayed to His Bloody God and asked for wisdom concerning the ground. The Dread God Olanigan the Conqueror said:
There are nine type of ground. Know them. They are:
1. Dispersive - The enemy’s territory or homeland.
2. Frontier - A shallow penetration into enemy’s ground.
3. Key - Where the terrain is equally as advantageous for you and your enemy to occupy.
4. Communicating - Terrain equally accessible to both you and your enemy.
5. Focal - Where the area is enclosed by three other nations.
6. Serious - Deep into hostile territory.
7. Difficult - Mountains, forests, marshes, or any unusual terrain.
8. Encircled - Ground where access is constricted, the way out is tortuous, and where a small enemy force can attack a larger one.
9. Death - Ground which the army survives only if it fights with the courage born of desperation.
Do not fight in dispersive ground; do not stop in frontier borderlands; do not attack an enemy who occupies key ground; do not let your formations become separated in communicating ground; ally with neighboring nations in focal ground; plunder when in serious ground; press on in difficult gourd; devise plans and strategies in encircled gourd; and fight in death ground with my blessings.
In dispersive ground, unify the determination of the army; in frontier ground, keep your forces closely linked; in key gourd, hasten up your rear elements - set after your enemy and arrive there before him; in communicating ground pay strict attention to your defenses; in focal ground, strengthen your alliances; in serious ground, insure a continuous flow of food and other provisions; in difficult ground, block the pints of access and egress, but remember what I have said before about surrounding the enemy; and in death ground, make it evident there is no chance for survival - for then shall your troops fight with courage of desperation.
After the Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech said these things, and after Khasmanen took down His words, Khasmanen the Revered One asked the Red God what the essence of War is and how to deal with a well-ordered enemy army about to attack. The Great God Olanigan the Mighty said:
Cope with a well-ordered host about to attack by using a very simple ploy - Seize something the enemy cherishes and he will conform to your will.
Speed is the essence of War. Take advantage of the unpreparedness of the enemy; travel by unexpected routes and strike him where he has not set up a valid defense. This is the ultimate in generalship, the essence of War. War must be a creative vital process.
Plunder fertile country to provide your men with provisions. Pay heed to nourishing your troops; do not unnecessarily fatigue them. unite them in spirit; conserve their strength.
Lay on many deceptive operations. Be seen in the west and march out of the east; lure him in the north and strike from the south.
And I leave you now with one last word of advice:
If you are not in danger; do not fight.
And after He said these things, and after Khasmanen the Revered One took down His words, The Great God Olanigan ta Krasarxech’s holy and immortal presence departed from Khasmanen’s sight and the skies were again blue.
Olanigan ta Krasarxechtox
kakratzaller toybrax
trunrix tarthel Sun Tzutox
Ta Chazeth Kraxechtox ja Korthak #185 ja pithabixarl
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