TACTICS SERIES: POST 3 | Gaining the Advantage

Gaining the Advantage

Before a decision can be forced, an advantage must be gained. We strive to gain an advantage over our adversary by exploiting every aspect of a situation to secure victory. We win not by overpowering him with our own strength, but by punishing mistakes and never letting go of the initiative. This post will discuss several ways to generate leverage and gain an advantage over the enemy.

A unit may be smaller, less equipped, or outnumbered, yet still hold the advantage if it can act faster, think clearer, or exploit weaknesses better than its opponent. Take, for example, the American Indian ambush technique. A small number of warriors would draw a superior force into close terrain, where a larger force would quickly surround and ambush the soldiers. The enemy went from pursuing to being defeated.

Combined Arms

The use of combined arms is a key means of gaining advantage. It is based on the idea of presenting the enemy not merely with a problem, but with a dilemma—a no-win situation. We combine supporting arms, organic fires, and maneuver in such a way that any action the enemy takes to avoid one threat makes him more vulnerable to another. For example, an entrenched enemy should discover that if he stays hunkered down in fighting holes, indirect fire and close air support will blast him out. If he comes to attack, the infantry will cut him down. If he tries to retreat, mechanized infantry and airpower will pursue him to his destruction. That is combined arms.

Modern tactics are combined arms tactics. That is, it combines the effects of various arms—infantry, armor, indirect, aviation, and now drones—to achieve the greatest possible effect against the enemy. Artillery and infantry, for example, are often employed together because their capabilities complement each other. At the same time, the weaknesses and vulnerabilities of each arm are protected by the other arm's capabilities.

There is still a tendency in each separate unit... to be a one-handed puncher. By that I mean that the rifleman wants to shoot, the tanker to charge, the artilleryman to fire... That is not the way to win battles. If the band played a piece first with the piccolo, then with the brass horn, then with the clarinet, and then with the trumpet, there would be a hell of a lot of noise but no music. To get harmony in music, each instrument must support the others. To get harmony in battle, each weapon must support the other. Team play wins. - General Patton, 1941

Maneuver

Maneuver provides us a means to gain an advantage over the enemy. In too many battles, one or both sides have sought to gain an advantage in combat through firepower and attrition. In World War 1, one side would rush across no-mans-land under murderous fire and attempt to push an opponent off the desired terrain. If the attack succeeded—and few did—the enemy counterattacked, reoccupying the same terrain they had before. The cost in casualties and equipment was high and often produced no decisive results. We want to avoid this type of engagement.

Traditionally, maneuver has meant moving in a way that gains positional advantage. For example, we may maneuver by enveloping an exposed enemy flank, by denying the enemy terrain critical to his goals, or by seizing a position that allows us to fire at the enemy while protecting us against their fire. We may maneuver in other dimensions as well. For instance, we may also maneuver in time by increasing relative speed and operating at a faster tempo than the enemy. Normally, we maneuver both in time and space to gain advantage and, ultimately, victory at the least possible cost.

Exploiting the Environment 

The environment offers tremendous opportunities to gain an advantage over the enemy. We must understand the characteristics of any environment where we may have to operate. More importantly, we must understand how terrain, weather, and darkness or reduced visibility affect our own and our adversary’s ability to fight.

Terrain

Our objective is to employ tactics that turn the terrain to our advantage and disadvantage our opponent. Terrain impacts our maneuver and influences our dispositions. We must understand terrain and comprehend its effects, as it may limit our movement, reduce our visibility, or restrict our fires. We must be aware that the enemy also seeks advantage from terrain, and is shaping their maneuver and dispositions just as it is shaping ours.

Weather

Since the weather affects Roblox minimally, I will skim over it. However, understanding weather, and specifically (for Roblox especially), the effects it has on visibility is vital. Weather that limits your visibility also limits the enemy's, and you can use it to outmaneuver them without being spotted.

Darkness or Reduced Visibility

Similarly to weather, units that can operate effectively in the hours of darkness or during periods of reduced visibility often gain a significant advantage over their opponents. Reduced visibility can make the simplest of tasks difficult to accomplish. This obvious disadvantage can be turned to our advantage by forces trained, equipped, and able to operate at night. Night operations can produce great gains against a force that cannot operate at night.

Complementary Forces

Complementary forces are the idea of fix-and-flank and are an important way to gain an advantage. The idea behind complementary forces is to use our forces as a hammer and anvil by crushing the enemy between two or more powerful actions. For example, consider an enemy squad hiding behind the military crest of a hill. From the front, it is protected, and if we attempt to maneuver, the enemy can simply maneuver as well to remain behind the hill. However, if we keep one fireteam there and maneuver another fireteam to the enemy’s flank, then the enemy is now vulnerable, as they can no longer use the hill for protection against both.

Sun Tzu described this concept as the cheng and the ch'i. The cheng is the more direct, obvious action. It fixes the enemy. The ch'i is the unexpected or extraordinary action. It is the bid for a decision, or, as we call it today, the main effort. These two actions work together against the enemy. The concept is basic, but it can be implemented in a variety of combinations limited only by our imagination.

Surprise

Achieving surprise can greatly increase leverage. In fact, surprise can often prove decisive. We try to gain surprise through deception, stealth, and ambiguity. Sun Tzu stated that “War is based on deception,”. We use deception to mislead our opponents about our real intentions and capabilities.
Surprise can be generated through stealth. Stealth is advantageous when maneuvering against an enemy. It reduces the chance of detection, leaving the enemy vulnerable to surprise attacks for which he may be unprepared. We may also employ stealth through ambush, which is perhaps the most effective means of surprise, especially at the lower tactical level, where surprise is easiest to achieve.

Asymmetry

Fighting asymmetrically means gaining an advantage through imbalance, applying strength against an enemy's weakness. Fighting asymmetrically means using dissimilar techniques and capabilities to maximize our strengths while exploiting the enemy's weaknesses. Fighting asymmetrically means fighting the enemy on our terms rather than on his. By fighting asymmetrically, we do not have to be numerically superior to defeat the enemy. We only need to exploit his vulnerabilities. For example, using infantry to fight enemy infantry is symmetrical. Using attack helicopters to engage enemy infantry is fighting asymmetrically.

From Advantage to Decision

Gaining the advantage is not the end state. It is the pathway to decision. Once an advantage is established, it must be exploited. Failing to act allows the enemy time to recover and rebalance the fight.

Advantage creates opportunity. Decisive action converts opportunity into victory.

Conclusion

Modern warfare still rewards those who gain the advantage early and maintain it relentlessly. Technology may change, but the fundamentals remain the same. Combined arms, maneuver, surprise, complementary forces, the environment, and asymmetric warfare all shape outcomes long before the final blow is struck.
This is what Sun Tzu meant when he wrote: "Therefore, a skilled commander seeks victory from the situation and does not demand it of his subordinates."