"A man's greatest moment in life is when his enemy lays vanquished, his village aflame, his herds driven before you and his weeping wives and daughters are clasped to your breast."

Gengis Kahn, "Battle-E" winner

"Nuts!"

General Anthony McAuliffe, surrounded in Bastogne

"You may earn salvation under my command, but hardly riches."

Gustavus II Adolphus , King of Sweden

"Sometimes it is entirely appropriate to kill a fly with a sledge hammer."

Major Holdridge, 1994

"When a decision is taken belatedly, its execution inevitably leads to haste."

Vasili Chuikov, Marshal of the Soviet Union

"The art of using troops is this:
When ten to the enemy's one, surround him;
When five times his strength, attack him;
If double his strength, divide him;
If equally matched you may engage him;
If weaker numerically, be capable of withdrawing;
And if in all respects unequal, be capable of eluding him, for a small force is but booty for one more powerful."

Sun Tzu, On The Art Of War

"Battles are won by slaughter and maneuver. The greater the general, the more he contributes in maneuver, the less he demands in slaughter."

Winston Churchill

"The best armor is staying out of gun-shot."

Italian proverb

"A good plan executed violently today is better than a perfect plan executed at some indefinite point in the future."

George Patton

"I do not fear an army of lions, if they are led by a lamb.
"I do fear an army of sheep, if they are led by a lion."

Alexander the Great

"Another such victory over the Romans, and we are undone."

Pyrrhus, King of Epirus

"It is better to live one day as a lion than a hundred years as a sheep."

Italian proverb

"Hard pressed on my right. My center is yielding. Impossible to maneuver. Situation excellent. I am attacking."

Ferdinand Foch at the Battle of the Marne

Excerpts from the infamous "Murphys Laws of Combat" that relate to TacOps. There are more than thirty, but these especially will ring familiar to TacOps players. I have seen the list in many places, with some variations, attributed to many people.

1. No plan survives first contact with the enemy.
2. The enemy diversion you are ignoring is actually the main attack.
3. If you are forward of your position, the artillery will fall short.
4. The important things are always simple.
5. The simple things are always hard.
6. The easy way is always mined.
7. If the enemy is in range, so are you.
8. Suppressive fires don't.
9. Your vehicles are bullet magnets; a moving foxhole attracts attention.
10. If you attack is going well, it's an ambush.
11. If you make it tough for the enemy to get at you, you make it more difficult for yourself to get out.
12. When you've secured an area, don't forget to tell the enemy.

"Hard pounding, gentlemen. Let's see who pounds the longest."

A. Wellesley, Duke of Wellington

January 22, 1995 - Robert Lentz (ralentz@ralentz.com)