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Do castles make sense in a world of dragons & spells?
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<blockquote data-quote="Jack7" data-source="post: 5115555" data-attributes="member: 54707"><p>PS, that's an interesting idea for a number of reasons, and could be employed in a number of different ways. Both tactically and strategically.</p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p></p><p>It's an interesting set of observations. I'm assuming that area defense is considered so much more problematic because of the idea of equating magic with technological and scientific power/physics. For instance in order to safely secure an area the defensive measure must either be in effect at all times (to protect against ambush and sneak attacks), have a corresponding or parallel system of Early Detection and Warning, or be able to anticipate and thwart attacks ad hoc, or at least moments before such an attack is successfully executed. It is useless to raise even a perfect defense too late to be truly effective, no matter how grandiose in nature, or impressive in theory. All of these strategies would require enormous energy and manpower reserves (as do real word defensive measures), whereas offensive attacks are of relatively brief duration, if successful (nor requiring protracted siege or battering), and can be concentrated into a relatively small area for maximum destructive effect. (Defense is often as much a matter of dispersing force, which requires huge amounts of energy and/or materiel, as it is of avoiding force, which is generally much easier to accomplish, but effective offense is almost always a matter of the concentration of force.) Defense eyes a much more energy intense (in the long run, defense is a slow burn of energy, offense an acute and violent one) and problematic function than is offense. (Though depending on circumstance and the forces and weapons involved an effective defense may be much easier to execute than an effective offense, once the actual circumstances of the engagement are known.)</p><p></p><p>But that set of analyses is naturally dependent upon equating magic with science and technology and physics, of which I personally am not a huge fan. Still, just as a pragmatic matter, there are many inherent problems associated with effective and long term area defense and I can see how many would naturally equate high cost and restrictive energy consumption rates with such a set of problems.</p><p></p><p></p><p>As for the Castle idea itself I agree with those who have said the actual situation would be circumstantial, and dependent upon "conditions upon the ground."</p><p></p><p>And I agree with those who state that castle, and defensive design parameters would naturally adapt to any change in conditions of offensive strategy and tactics. Then again, to take the analogy a bit further, one could easily adapt the castle (the nature of a fixed, tough, concentrated fortification) into a trap (tricking the offensive force into attacking an area or fixed target which is designed only to slow or attrit the enemy while the real counter-attack is then delivered external to the presumed target - as Caesar did in Gaul), and into a facade. For instance underneath the castle could easily be an underground system of countermining, reserve forces, supplies, a transpiration and communications system, etc. </p><p></p><p>Then again with sufficient magic, or with cooperative magic, need castles be fixed emplacements as we normally think of them? Could they not become mobile command centers, perhaps even a type of FOB able to be transported or teleported into and out of the areas of an engagement as necessary? One could even imagine, with enough power expenditure, or trasnformative magic, a walking castle, or one that transforms into other things.</p><p></p><p>Castles could be adapted as to design and function to serve any number of new and necessary roles as regards both defense and counterattack/countermeasures. How effective these countermeasures might be and for how long they would function effectively against offensive forces would depend a great deal on espionage and communications and security. But I suspect castles could be redesigned, or modified in design, or altered in function to where they become less instruments of fixed emplacement and fortification, and more a sort of multi-purpose operating base from which could be launched both effective defensive measures and effective counterattacks/countermeasures. (Of course such castles might be very rare and the exception to the rule, most castles may remain more or less traditional in design and function, but some castles could become an entirely new kind of thing.)</p><p></p><p>You'd just have to think of Castles not as what they appear to be traditionally, and more of what they could become out of necessity or new use.</p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Jack7, post: 5115555, member: 54707"] PS, that's an interesting idea for a number of reasons, and could be employed in a number of different ways. Both tactically and strategically. It's an interesting set of observations. I'm assuming that area defense is considered so much more problematic because of the idea of equating magic with technological and scientific power/physics. For instance in order to safely secure an area the defensive measure must either be in effect at all times (to protect against ambush and sneak attacks), have a corresponding or parallel system of Early Detection and Warning, or be able to anticipate and thwart attacks ad hoc, or at least moments before such an attack is successfully executed. It is useless to raise even a perfect defense too late to be truly effective, no matter how grandiose in nature, or impressive in theory. All of these strategies would require enormous energy and manpower reserves (as do real word defensive measures), whereas offensive attacks are of relatively brief duration, if successful (nor requiring protracted siege or battering), and can be concentrated into a relatively small area for maximum destructive effect. (Defense is often as much a matter of dispersing force, which requires huge amounts of energy and/or materiel, as it is of avoiding force, which is generally much easier to accomplish, but effective offense is almost always a matter of the concentration of force.) Defense eyes a much more energy intense (in the long run, defense is a slow burn of energy, offense an acute and violent one) and problematic function than is offense. (Though depending on circumstance and the forces and weapons involved an effective defense may be much easier to execute than an effective offense, once the actual circumstances of the engagement are known.) But that set of analyses is naturally dependent upon equating magic with science and technology and physics, of which I personally am not a huge fan. Still, just as a pragmatic matter, there are many inherent problems associated with effective and long term area defense and I can see how many would naturally equate high cost and restrictive energy consumption rates with such a set of problems. As for the Castle idea itself I agree with those who have said the actual situation would be circumstantial, and dependent upon "conditions upon the ground." And I agree with those who state that castle, and defensive design parameters would naturally adapt to any change in conditions of offensive strategy and tactics. Then again, to take the analogy a bit further, one could easily adapt the castle (the nature of a fixed, tough, concentrated fortification) into a trap (tricking the offensive force into attacking an area or fixed target which is designed only to slow or attrit the enemy while the real counter-attack is then delivered external to the presumed target - as Caesar did in Gaul), and into a facade. For instance underneath the castle could easily be an underground system of countermining, reserve forces, supplies, a transpiration and communications system, etc. Then again with sufficient magic, or with cooperative magic, need castles be fixed emplacements as we normally think of them? Could they not become mobile command centers, perhaps even a type of FOB able to be transported or teleported into and out of the areas of an engagement as necessary? One could even imagine, with enough power expenditure, or trasnformative magic, a walking castle, or one that transforms into other things. Castles could be adapted as to design and function to serve any number of new and necessary roles as regards both defense and counterattack/countermeasures. How effective these countermeasures might be and for how long they would function effectively against offensive forces would depend a great deal on espionage and communications and security. But I suspect castles could be redesigned, or modified in design, or altered in function to where they become less instruments of fixed emplacement and fortification, and more a sort of multi-purpose operating base from which could be launched both effective defensive measures and effective counterattacks/countermeasures. (Of course such castles might be very rare and the exception to the rule, most castles may remain more or less traditional in design and function, but some castles could become an entirely new kind of thing.) You'd just have to think of Castles not as what they appear to be traditionally, and more of what they could become out of necessity or new use. [/QUOTE]
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