Attack by Stratagem

Sun Tzu said: In general, the principle of waging war consists in this: to secure the submission of the enemy's whole country without fighting is the supreme excellence; to vanquish the enemy's army without battle is next best; to take an entire division and make it surrender is better still; to capture a regiment and make it surrender is less commendable; to defeat an enemy company and make it surrender is the least commendable of these. Hence, to fight and conquer in every battle is not the highest excellence; not to fight and yet to conquer is the highest of all. Thus, the strategy in war is to subdue the enemy by stratagem before the war begins; the next best is to win by diplomacy; the third best is to conquer by force; and the worst is to besiege a fortified city. Sieges should be avoided when possible, as they are a last resort. To besiege a city requires the construction of shields, wheeled carts, and various siege engines, which takes at least three months. Building earthworks for the siege takes another three months. If the commander cannot control his......