Best Warfare Attacks Strategy
Updated 2026-08-10
INTRODUCTION
English translation pending.
CORE DEFINITION
A principle from The Art of War ranking the methods of competition: the highest is to thwart the opponent's strategy, next to disrupt their alliances, then to engage their forces, and the worst to besiege fortified cities. Its core proposition is that intervention higher up the causal chain produces larger results at lower cost, since defeating an opponent's intention prevents the conflict from ever being fought. The qualifier is that operating at the strategic level depends on superior information, and acting without it exposes the actor.
SCAFFOLDING EFFECT
Reduce cognitive load
- Level sort: classify the contest as strategy, alliance, product or price, or direct attrition. - Higher search: look first for a move that dissolves the opponent's intent rather than outspending them. - Attrition check: ask whether you are already fighting at the lowest level, which signals late positioning.
Anchor fast decisions
Effects propagate from intention to alliance to forces to fortifications, so a change introduced early in that chain multiplies as it travels. Blocking an opponent's plan leaves their resources uncommitted and unproductive, whereas defeating their army requires matching that army's strength, which is why the same victory costs far less when achieved upstream.
MINIMUM ACTION
In progress 0/1Practice this model in one real situation:
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- zdic.nethttps://zdic.net/hans/%E4%B8%8A%E5%85%B5%E4%BC%90%E8%B0%8Bverified
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