Mass Combat: Militray Tactics Old and New!
- Thread starter Leopold
- Start date
Re: Re: Primer on Strategy and Tactics
Sekunda's Caesar's Legions, by the way, was published by Osprey, and I didn't find it "packed with good info in easy to read format" -- but it was pretty. Hmm...
Osprey books don't look like much? But they're the ones full of beautiful color plates! Maybe there are other Osprey books that are just text...
Sekunda's Caesar's Legions, by the way, was published by Osprey, and I didn't find it "packed with good info in easy to read format" -- but it was pretty. Hmm...
SableWyvern
Cruel Despot
Re: Re: Re: Primer on Strategy and Tactics
Oh well. The one's I've read/picked up were pretty handy. I guess with their volume and range of authors, they're bound to have some good stuff and some crap.
As for appearance, they do look quite small, especially for the price; and while sitting on a shelf give me the impression of kids books - although they certainly are not. Hence, "don't look like much".
mmadsen said:
Oh well. The one's I've read/picked up were pretty handy. I guess with their volume and range of authors, they're bound to have some good stuff and some crap.
As for appearance, they do look quite small, especially for the price; and while sitting on a shelf give me the impression of kids books - although they certainly are not. Hence, "don't look like much".
Re: Re: Re: Re: Primer on Strategy and Tactics
Actually, the fellow who wrote The Art of Warfare on Land, David G. Chandler, has written (or co-written) quite a few Osprey books, so I can see why you liked themOh well. The one's I've read/picked up were pretty handy. I guess with their volume and range of authors, they're bound to have some good stuff and some crap.
Ah, gotcha! Agreed. If they'd just compile them into larger volumes at a reasonable price, I'd scoop them right up.
Leopold
NKL4LYFE
Re: Primer on Strategy and Tactics
still best is sun tzu's Art of War. That and watch the History channel when it comes on with world war 2 conflicts. You can pick up an awful lot by the visuals that come across the screen and the maps and detail that the History channel uses. I learned allot from just sitting in front of the boob tube watching a marathon on world war I and II...
mmadsen said:
still best is sun tzu's Art of War. That and watch the History channel when it comes on with world war 2 conflicts. You can pick up an awful lot by the visuals that come across the screen and the maps and detail that the History channel uses. I learned allot from just sitting in front of the boob tube watching a marathon on world war I and II...
Re: Primer on Strategy and Tactics
I think that most people who know anything about strategy and tactics learn it that way, by osmosis. If you read about various wars and watch documentaries from time to time, you just pick it up. It sure would be nice to have a succinct primer though, the kind of book you can hand to your nephew or little brother to get him up to speed.
SHARK
First Post
Greetings!
Well, I'm afraid that most any book covering strategy isn't meant for children! It is just that children are not the target audience of books on strategy. Members of the military, scholars, veterans, history buffs, and a few other intellectuals are the target audience. That means that the general public is excluded. Most of the books on strategy deal with an aspect of warfare that the average reader isn't even aware of, let alone seriously interested in.
However, I might add the following books to a list to learn about strategy in warfare:
(1) Caesar's Commentaries
(2) The Persian Wars
(3) "War As I Knew It" by General George S. Patton Jr.
(4) "The Wars of America" by Robert Leckie
(5) "There's A War To Be Won" by Geoffrey Perrett
(6) "First To Fight" by General Victor H. Krulak
(7) "Panzer Battles" by General F.W. von Mallenthin
(8) "Lost Victories" by Field Marshal Erich von Manstein
(9) "Panzer Leader" by General Heinz Guderian
(10) "When Titans Clashed" by Colonel David M. Glantz & Lt. Colonel Jonathan House (Note: This exhaustive book covers World War II on the Eastern Front from the Soviet perspective. Colonel Glantz is an American soldier, and an expert in Soviet history and warfare. He also uses never before seen Soviet documentation.)
(11) "Eagle Against The Sun" by Ronald Spector
(12) "At War At Sea" by Ronald Spector
(13) "Downfall" by Richard B. Frank
(14) "Infantry Attacks!" by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
This list should prove invaluable to anyone interested in strategy. Even where such books delve into the tactical, strategic concepts can also be seen at work. In general, these books provide an excellent framework in which to learn how to think "strategically." They cover sytrategy as they dealt with it, and the lessons to be learned are plain to see. I recommend all of these excellent books!
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
Well, I'm afraid that most any book covering strategy isn't meant for children!
It is just that children are not the target audience of books on strategy. Members of the military, scholars, veterans, history buffs, and a few other intellectuals are the target audience. That means that the general public is excluded. Most of the books on strategy deal with an aspect of warfare that the average reader isn't even aware of, let alone seriously interested in.However, I might add the following books to a list to learn about strategy in warfare:
(1) Caesar's Commentaries
(2) The Persian Wars
(3) "War As I Knew It" by General George S. Patton Jr.
(4) "The Wars of America" by Robert Leckie
(5) "There's A War To Be Won" by Geoffrey Perrett
(6) "First To Fight" by General Victor H. Krulak
(7) "Panzer Battles" by General F.W. von Mallenthin
(8) "Lost Victories" by Field Marshal Erich von Manstein
(9) "Panzer Leader" by General Heinz Guderian
(10) "When Titans Clashed" by Colonel David M. Glantz & Lt. Colonel Jonathan House (Note: This exhaustive book covers World War II on the Eastern Front from the Soviet perspective. Colonel Glantz is an American soldier, and an expert in Soviet history and warfare. He also uses never before seen Soviet documentation.)
(11) "Eagle Against The Sun" by Ronald Spector
(12) "At War At Sea" by Ronald Spector
(13) "Downfall" by Richard B. Frank
(14) "Infantry Attacks!" by Field Marshal Erwin Rommel
This list should prove invaluable to anyone interested in strategy. Even where such books delve into the tactical, strategic concepts can also be seen at work. In general, these books provide an excellent framework in which to learn how to think "strategically." They cover sytrategy as they dealt with it, and the lessons to be learned are plain to see. I recommend all of these excellent books!
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
We may have to rectify that! Seriously though, I don't pretend to be normal, but I would've loved a book like that (a strategy primer) in junior high.Well, I'm afraid that most any book covering strategy isn't meant for children!
What might you recommend for the typical 18-year-old recruit? (Not that they're making any strategic decisions...)
Last edited:
SHARK
First Post
Greetings!
Well, mmadsen, to be honest, I started reading many of the books I listed when I was in Junior High School. I just kept on reading and reading and reading! I personally believe that kids should be challenged, and force themselves to master more articulate, demanding reading. In the long run, it pays off quite well. About when I was in Junior High, I used to dig into a dictionary every week, making a list of about ten words per week or so, that I committed to mastering. I would read it, and re-read it, practicing pronouncing the word, and memorizing its definition, and usage. I would practice writing several sentences with the new word in it to get familiar with using it in writing, then I would consciously include it in my thinking and speech throughout the weeks, adding it to my knowledge as a vocabulary builder.
Thus, I say, hit the books for the big dogs!
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
Well, mmadsen, to be honest, I started reading many of the books I listed when I was in Junior High School. I just kept on reading and reading and reading! I personally believe that kids should be challenged, and force themselves to master more articulate, demanding reading. In the long run, it pays off quite well.
About when I was in Junior High, I used to dig into a dictionary every week, making a list of about ten words per week or so, that I committed to mastering. I would read it, and re-read it, practicing pronouncing the word, and memorizing its definition, and usage. I would practice writing several sentences with the new word in it to get familiar with using it in writing, then I would consciously include it in my thinking and speech throughout the weeks, adding it to my knowledge as a vocabulary builder.Thus, I say, hit the books for the big dogs!
Semper Fidelis,
SHARK
