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Anyone know how to write accurate battle plans?

blondie.k

Minstrel
I have the trouble that I am not an expert in writing in a way that makes a battle plan sound legit. I tend to make it sound corny and weak. Does anyone know how to help with that? Know what kind of questions I need to ask myself? Or what I need to look for in a battle plan? Thx :)
 

Yora

Maester
Well, this is a science and art that has been constantly refined as the rules of the game have been changing for the last 4,000 years.

The most sound, but probably not very helpful suggestion would be to study the weapons and tactics of the time period that you use as your main historic reference. But I think that amount of research probably is only worth it if you plan to write a series about generals.

To give good advice for this question, all information you have already established would be very helpful. What time period are you basing the battle on? Who is fighting? Where are they fighting? What armies do they have? What do they want to accomplish with the battle? Anything that you can share about the scenario would be useful.
 

blondie.k

Minstrel
To give good advice for this question, all information you have already established would be very helpful. What time period are you basing the battle on? Who is fighting? Where are they fighting? What armies do they have? What do they want to accomplish with the battle? Anything that you can share about the scenario would be useful.

It's a fantasy fiction book so the time period would be more renaissance like. The battle will take place on castle grounds and the town as well. The battle is one that is for defense from an ancient enemy who wants to reverse a law set in place by the country-wide council. Does that help somewhat?
 

Yora

Maester
So we have a castle defense? That means the big question here is cannons or no cannons? :D

The strategy in defending a castle is mostly in how you design the castle. Once the castle is build and garrisoned, there's not really any more planning left to the defenders. The design of the castle and the direction from which the enemy attacks more or less determines what the defenders have to do. There's not really any meaningful choices left for the defenders to make. The biggest choice that the commander of the castle has to make is whether to surrender or to keep holding out and hoping that someone comes to save you or the attackers give up.

Now attacking a castle is a complete different story because all the initiative lies with the attackers. How do you want the battle to play out? Fighting in the castle grounds sounds like you intend for the attackers to make it inside the castle. Do you want the attackers to win and take the castle, or do you want the defenders to somehow defeat the attackers even after they already made it inside the castle?
 

skip.knox

toujours gai, archie
Moderator
I suggest you first write up what you see happening. Don't worry about corny yet. Post it here and let people make suggestions. It's likely that what makes it into the story will be a subset or variation.
 
Historically many battle plans were very simple. Line up, charge and pray you have more men or better weapons/armor then your opponent. It's when generals deviate from this that we know about them. The great generals used alternative battle plans which helped them win against superior odds for instance.

So in that sense, don't overthink what is happening, especially in a first draft. Having people run at each other yelling and waving swords is a good start. If you want to refine it further, you need research. Look for descriptions of past battles and how they play out. If you're fighting in a castle, visit a couple to get a feel for the scale of a castle, the types of defenses and so on. If there have been battles around the castle then a guided tour can be very valuable. Tour guides like talking about fighting that has happened around castles, it's an easy way to make the castle interesting. Guide books can also help.

For actual battle plans, the time period matters little in terms of the broad outlines. Technology (and specifically gunpowder) of course matters, since it determines from what distance you can start killing the other person. But that's more the details then decisions like "where do we attack", which unit moves first etc, which is the broad outlines of the plan.
 

Malik

Auror
My recommendation is that you look up the OAKOC process. It's Google-able, I'm sure. OAKOC is an acronym for the key terrain analysis factors that we use in the military whenever we make a battle plan, whether it's attack or defense.

OAKOC is part of the larger METT-TC process, which takes you through the major considerations you'll need at the strategic level. The short and dirty of it is that the OAKOC factors will be the things that matter the most to the troops on the ground doing the dirty work.

Observation and Fields of Fire
Avenues of Approach
Key Terrain
Obstacles
Cover and Concealment

I hope this helps.
 

skip.knox

toujours gai, archie
Moderator
Here's a challenge for you, Malik, and for anyone else with military background: modify this list for pre-modern armies. For extra credit, somehow work in magic.

Field of fire would apply only to archers, slingers. Maybe a mangonel or such. Avenue of approach would be about the same, but what is "key terrain"? Positions one would try to gain and hold? Anyway, I've not looked at the details for OAKOC, so I'm just tossing out a few guesses. You have to do that with guesses now and then, or they never leave.
 

Malik

Auror
Key or decisive terrain in pre-industrial warfare would be the same as it is, now: any area that gives a decisive advantage to whichever side controls it. A breachable point in a castle wall, a high point on a hill, a chokepoint, and so on. Control the field, control the fight.

You can break down OAKOC factors even for a bar fight. As for your characters, anyone who fights for a living should be able to recognize terrain considerations and capitalize on them instinctively.
 

Aldarion

Archmage
Other than what Malik wrote, you may want to study actual historical battles - and not just of the time period you will be writing about - so as to better understand how tactics, terrain and technology interact (and also take note of impact of commander's mentality, military culture of the country, military tradition and so on).
 
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