fandomhigh | Macro-tactics, Monday

"Strategies," Kerrigan began, "are succesful, or, more often, unsuccesful based on a whole host of variables. Not just on your enemy's end, although most wars are won based on the opposing force's mistakes, not your own brilliance. Before beginning any battle, or indeed, campaign, you have to ask yourself a few questions before you even bother to engage. How many men do I have? How well-equipped are they? How long can I sustain this army? What is the terrain like? Have my men fought on terrain like this before? All of these questions inform the strategy you'll choose in the long run."

They were once again in that metallic Danger Shop construction, the large table at the back lighting up now with a dozen or so simulation screens. "We're going to tackle a few of these questions at a time," she drawled, "If you can keep up. My TAs will now be distributing handouts. On one of them, you'll find five schematics of potential areas. The blue spots, before you ask, are important resources that could be used to reinforce an army."

She leaned back. "The second handout isn't going to be your Bible this term, don't worry, but I'm going to try to ram some takes on theory into your minds before our time's up. Read that. Think about it. Use it. I'm not interested in your regurgitating some guy's theories about war, I'm interested in your application. Don't be stupid."

The look on her face made it clear that she expected them to be anyway. "Done? Fine. Terrain. It can win you a war even when your own numbers are down, by finding higher ground, making the enemy believe you've got more people than you do, or less. That you're somewhere else than you actually are, so they'll leave some part of their camp undefended. Likewise, it can be your best friend when you do have a huge-ass army, provided you don't get overconfident and spread yourself too thin. Like I said, small forces have a lot to gain by terrain."

And so on. She may have talked for quite a bit. "...but the only way any of you are going to do anything with terrain beyond suck at it, is practice," she finished. "Team up, and pour over one of those schematics. Then plan out individually where you'd make your camp, what strategy you'd use based on your environment, compare and contrast, try to take each other's lights out, whatever. If these maps aren't enough of a challenge, use the terrain generator." A beat. "That's your homework, too. I want to see you analyse at least two swathes of terrain like that. Now get the hell to it before I get bored."

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On higher ground.

Emma Frost

Blackagar Boltagon

Faramir

Lion-o

Karla

Cally

Leia Organa

Cloud Strife

Shane Gooseman

Prince Alexander of Daventry

James of Krondor

K-Mart

Triela

She goes on a bit. Listen, take notes (if you dare), talk (doubly so) or just go over the second handout (http://www.clausewitz.com/readings/Principles/) in peace.

Since there really wasn't a way for him to gab with his fellow students, Blackagar stuck with taking a few careful notes on the second hand out.

Faramir had been listening intently, but when screens started projecting, he was sitting up in his chair. His eyes were wide as he'd never seen such a thing before.

When he received the handout, he glanced at the letters briefly, before turning the pages around so they'd not distract him. He, at least, knew what he'd be working on for the rest of the ~~year~~ week.

Lion-o was jotting down notes in the margin of his handout. Hopefully he was getting the important points.

Cally, to be honest, was straining her considerable multi-tasking abilities right now, trying to listen to the lecture, tap notes into her datapad, and be utterly fascinated by the second handout.

Half the fascination was simply how much sense it made; the other was how much sense it made given the -- to her -- antiquity of the thing.

Edited 2010-09-06 19:29 (UTC)

Notes, notes, notes. He felt like going to a war.

It didn't really feel half bad.

Karla jotted down a few notes in her, listening intently to what Kerrigan was saying. Glacia was filled with mountain, forests, and deep lochs, which could all be advantageous to her, except that everyone she'd be fighting would also be used to the terrain. Boo.

That just meant she'd need to know how to use it better.

James scrawled some notes down a sheet of paper (so plentiful here!), mostly to remind himself how to figure out how to use this device to apply it towards places in the Kingdom.

Analyse one of the maps (http://leiden365.nl/blog/?page_id=304) together, then come up with strategies individually. Compare and contrast your takes on it. Optionally, use the terrain generator (http://www.lighthouse3d.com/opengl/appstools/tg/) to repeat the exercise with different kinds of areas.

After fighting with the realization he still preferred to be on the terrain rather than over it, Cloud took a look at the maps.

Surely he could work something out.

Once she figured out how to use the terrain generator, Karla did her best to come up with a map that looked a lot like Glacia. Might as well get the most out of this assignment.

James made some notes on each one of the five sample terrain locations, detailing how he would attack and defend the positions based on three different troop sizes.

He would welcome discussion.

When they ping in.

Emma was there, after the distribution of handouts ~~although on extreme SP as it is the last day of con~~.

K-Mart was also there, working on the assignment.

Who's looking somewhat disinterested, as always.

Can it be weekend yet?

Macro-tactics, Monday

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OOC