I just finished to re-read "The Book of Five Rings"...

[KlausPrinceOfTheUndeads]

... and found out that every technique and move described by Musashi can be reproduced in GURPS with the assistance of Martial Arts.
Go SJG, go!

[zorg]

Originally Posted by KlausPrinceOfTheUndeads

... and found out that every technique and move described by Musashi can be reproduced in GURPS with the assistance of Martial Arts.
Go SJG, go!

Now you need to dig out The Art of War, and write up all the little hints as Techniques for Tactics and Strategy.

When you have done that, proceed to the Hagakure, and do the same with Savoir Faire.

I'll buy the e-book. :)

[Lonewulf]

Originally Posted by zorg

Now you need to dig out The Art of War, and write up all the little hints as Techniques for Tactics and Strategy.

Honestly... I don't get how you can really do that.

I've read some of The Art of War, and it was just a bit too... general. There was nothing really specific about it. *Shrugs*

To be able to make decent techniques, you'd have to be able to get specific. And most of the examples I can think of off the top of my head would probably involve optional specializations.

[demonsbane]

Originally Posted by KlausPrinceOfTheUndeads

... and found out that every technique and move described by Musashi can be reproduced in GURPS with the assistance of Martial Arts.
Go SJG, go!

Cool. Thanks for sharing the enthusiasm!

-

About Sun Tzu's The Art of War, I think the text provides one with ideas for better chosing actions, both in real life as while role playing a character if you want and if war or analogous situation arise. But I don't imagine how to make "rules" about that.
However is interesting to "implement" some real life sources for better gaming and a discussion about that can be interesting.

[Lonewulf]

Originally Posted by demonsbane

Cool. Thanks for sharing the enthusiasm!

-

About Sun Tzu's The Art of War, I think the text provides one with ideas for better chosing actions, both in real life as while role playing a character if you want and if war or analogous situation arise. But I don't imagine how to make "rules" about that.
However is interesting to "implement" some real life sources for better gaming and a discussion about that can be interesting.

Well, when I think of "techniques" for strategy and tactics, I think more like, "Shield Wall Tactics/Strategy", "Cavalry Tactics/Strategy", stuff like that. But then again, that could easily be Strategy with an optional specialization with a certain type of unit. Essentially, how to move that unit, use that unit, and what that unit is usually good against when it comes to other units. I imagine that many officers have a specialization with the unit they lead, but if they eventually "buy it off" by changing it from optional specialization (IQ/A) to generic skill (IQ/H) as they advance through command structure.

[demonsbane]

Your view is good for me, but I'm not able to expand further.

However I don't remember The Art of War being specific in that sense, but maybe I need a reread of it. Perhaps Sun Tzu's Taoism applied to warfare is better applied in a Mass Combat context?
.

[zorg]

I wasn't entirely serious in my first post (to no ones surprise, I guess).

Thinking about it, I guess it could be possible, frex, to allow techniques or optional specializations for some of the classifications and categories Sun Tzu is fond of.
For instance, one could consider allowing an optional specialization of Strategy on one of the five factors described at the start of the first chaper (sky, earth, the leader, etc. - re-translated from my German copy), or allow specialties for the "Nine Situations" (Chapter XI).

Whether such specializations would actually be useful, or be possible from a common sense pov, is another matter. Probably this would just be a fancy name for stuff like "Desert Warfare."

[LordHelmet]

Originally Posted by zorg

Whether such specializations would actually be useful, or be possible from a common sense pov, is another matter. Probably this would just be a fancy name for stuff like "Desert Warfare."

I think there could be some real use for it. But in my opinion this would ask for rules for combat with larger units (more than the adventurer group but less than a whole army).

[demonsbane]

Originally Posted by zorg

Now you need to dig out The Art of War, and write up all the little hints as Techniques for Tactics and Strategy.

Well, after some time we now have GURPS Fourth Edition Mass Combat ;-)