• Whether or not you will win depends on your prospects.
• Those who do not carefully examine their chances of winning will not win.
• If your prospects are excellent, you will win.
• When conditions are right, you will win; when conditions are not right, you will lose.
• When conditions are unfavorable, you cannot expect to win.
• Avoid fighting when your prospects are poor.
Tactics
When devising military tactics, plan for a quick war with meticulous preparations, which can achieve full effects with minimal sacrifice.
Short war
Since the cost of war can be enormous, you should strive to end the war quickly. Why do you need to end it quickly?
In a prolonged battle, troops must be mobilized on a large scale to provide logistic support for weapons and soldiers, and long-distance transportation of supplies will be needed.
An all-out war requires massive military spending domestically and internationally. Entertaining diplomatic envoys and supplying military goods, vehicles, and weapons will cost an enormous amount of money each day. A protracted war will not only exhaust troops and undermine their morale, but also make them prone to mistakes. Furthermore, such a war may ruin the national finances.
Depletion of national wealth will give other nations an opportunity to take advantage of the situation. When national wealth is depleted, no wise men will be able to fix the problem. There are successful examples of short war, but there are no such examples of prolonged war. Lengthy military campaigns will not bring any benefits to the nation.
Procurement
War can ruin national power because it requires long-distance transportation of military goods. This can place a heavy burden on people, cause inflation, and impoverish the nation. People will suffer from heavy taxation, leading to exhaustion of national power. Seventy percent of national income will go toward military spending, and sixty percent of the national budget will be lost due to military losses. A wise monarch avoids repeated transportation of additional weapons, troops, and goods long distances. He procures equipment in his home country and other goods locally in the enemy territory. Food procured locally in the hostile territory is worth as much as twenty times the food imported from the home country, saving transportation costs.
Compensation gained as a result of war is acceptable, but looting of the houses of local people to procure goods is unacceptable. Goods must be purchased at a fair price. When in the enemy territory, do not lay even a finger on the belongings of local people. Speak to them politely and calmly; do not strike or intimidate them.
Selling and buying should be done fairly. Return borrowed items. Pay for any damage done to people’s property. Do not damage agricultural crops. Do not terrorize women. Do not abuse prisoners of war. The act of looting in the enemy territory will result in the loss of support of local people. Strict discipline among troops will earn the trust of local people.
Victory enhances your power
• Provoke the feeling of antagonism toward the enemy among your troops.
• What drives soldiers to take up arms is the will to fight.
• The will to fight can be heightened by reward.
• Soldiers need to be assured that they will be recompensed for their achievements.
• Soldiers who render distinguished service should be the first to be rewarded.
• When you seize the enemy’s equipment, switch the banners to yours and have your soldiers utilize the equipment. Prisoners of war should be treated kindly and incorporated into your military force so that winning a battle makes you even stronger.
• A war must be won. A protracted conflict should be avoided and a battle should be finished swiftly. Only a commander who understands this reality is qualified to be entrusted with the nation’s security and people’s lives.
Boko (Strategic Off ense)
War is not an end in itself; the means is the end. The best victory is to win without fighting.
The best victory
• The best victory is to force your opponent to surrender without harming him.
• The best strategy is to force your opponent to surrender without fighting him.
• Forcing your adversary to surrender by defeating him is the second best strategy.
• Even if you win 100 out of 100 battles, it is not the best strategy.
• The best tactic is to contain your adversary by seeing through his intentions in advance.
• The second best tactic is to break up the enemy’s alliance to isolate them.
• The third best tactic is to engage in battle.
• The fourth best tactic is to attack the enemy’s castle. This should be the last resort, when everything else fails.
• Attacking the castle entails elaborate preparations and sacrifice of soldiers. Your efforts may prove futile. A capable military commander can make the enemy surrender without resorting to force. He can capture their castle without attacking it.
• Secondly, the commander can defeat the enemy by fighting a short battle.
• Thirdly, the commander can prevail by gaining the support of the enemy without harming them.
• Fourthly, the commander can pull off a perfect victory while preserving the strength of armed forces.
Military tactics
• When your military strength is ten times as powerful as the enemy’s, encircle the enemy.
• When your military strength is five times as powerful as the enemy’s, attack the enemy.
• When your military strength is twice as powerful as the enemy’s, split up the enemy.
• When your military strength is the same as the enemy’s, make an all-out effort.
• When your military strength is inferior to the enemy’s, withdraw your troops.
• Do not fight a losing battle.
Those who fight without any regard to the above principles will become easy prey for the enemy. Retreat should be a means to prepare for counter-attack.
The Meddlesome Sovereign
When the military commander and the sovereign are on good terms, the country will be powerful; when they are on bad terms, the country will weaken. Unnecessary
