RedHunter2296
Competitive Professional In Being Ignored
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Hello everyone
The class this time is about how to write large-scale battles, two large armies battling against each other.
But I emphasize that this is just my way of working on it, and it is only advice, not rules or laws, after all, there is nothing written in stone when it comes to writing. Well maybe grammar.
All right, first let's start with the beginning to get the introduction
The biggest problem in writing about a large-scale battle is the magnitude of the battle. They are so big with so many things going on at the same time that you can easily lose track of what is going on and make a mess and chaos. A real headache to keep the consistency or even the order of events, lots of details to write, while at the same time there is no time to develop the characters.
So the secret to overcoming this kind of challenge is simple, but at the same time complicated, to keep everything organized and easy to understand.
Before bullets fly and swords are raised, something even more important than the battle must first be established.
1-The place of battle.
Two large armies will never fight over a wasteland in the middle of the desert, far from anything or any life.
No one in their right mind would move a million soldiers with all the heavy logistical work to get nothing or defend themselves. That doesn't happen in the real world and it shouldn't happen even in fantasy. Whenever a conflict breaks out there must be a valid reason behind it, you don't want your story or battle to be studied as nonsense that no one understands, like a certain bad attempt at a modern czar.
Now, once there is a motive, the next thing to do is to make the list of steps to follow, what is the plan to achieve victory in the long run? To win the war you have to capture the capital, well that is valid, so obviously the first step is to get there. How does this exercise plan to get there? because that is almost half the battle. Walking? well yes, but if you were a general, wouldn't you want your troops to get there as fast as possible? well your characters should also be interested in that.
First, establish the place for which both armies will fight.
If both armies fight for the same place, it is because both have an interest in having that place for their side.
Are there significant resources in the area? Unique materials capable of making weapons capable of changing the war? that sounds important enough to mobilize a lot of people.
The target is a city?
I'll let you in on a secret, almost every city on earth was created for a reason. There is no place where humans live that has been created by chance, there has always been a reason, and in the case of a war that may determine why they will fight to capture it in the first place.
The capital city is obviously where the government is located; its capture almost always signals the end of the war.
A city near the sea means that it has access to transportation means for both material and troops. Ports are important places to resupply all armies, as well as to move more men to the next battle. These are important reasons that could determine the course of a war.
A city in the mountains is much more difficult to reach and live in. You wouldn't create one for any reason, no one goes to a mountain just to live near a boring rock. You have to give importance to that place, normally cities near mountains or in high places are created because of the minerals that are in them. Materials to create weapons and tools. But they are not so important for the immediate state of a war, if they are an objective to take into account in the medium and long term. An army will try to obtain a city, but it will never use its main force and go out of its way to capture a lost city in the mountains. In the best of cases they will use only what they think is necessary or what they can lose without jeopardizing their campaign.
A city in the middle of nowhere? even that has a reason. Some places or cities were created because of a specific need, the most probable one being a road junction. The roads were there first, so people met there frequently, soon after a trader noticed this and set up a small store, then another one set up his own, then a friend set up an inn and now a food store is located, gradually more people arrived and started to organize, after years a few became many. And the city was already there before everyone noticed it. And the axis of this city, its roads are still its most important point. An army might be interested in a city with a high traffic of travelers and traders to reestablish supplies or mobilize its troops, they also make an excellent place from which to give orders and direct the rest of the army, so once again, the city has value.
Ok, I already have a city, now what do I do with it?
The next thing is to give it a shape, something that will help readers remember how it's laid out, but keep it simple, kind of ridiculously simple.
It is the most important point of the city, which is the place that without it there would be no city. The castle in the center where the leaders live, the ports near the sea, the mines or the place where they store them.Well, that is what both armies are fighting to have under their control, so focus on how they will both try to have it for themselves.
Don't fall into the trap of writing something like: the red army invaded the coastal city and started killing civilians until the city was cleansed. That is actually silly and counterproductive, why would a group of soldiers give priority to killing innocent people instead of those who have weapons and could try to launch a counter-offensive? not really, well that's the way it should be. But I'm not saying not to write something like that, I'm just saying that that shouldn't be the whole purpose of an army in the story, there had to be something more important that brought them in in the first place.
But dear unknown internet author who made this guide as an advertisement for your own novel that I will not read, I already have the city, now what?
2- The plan to victory
Now that you know why to fight over a piece of land, here comes the next part:
Set clear victory conditions
As someone said, before you jump into battle, you have to first win it. But how to achieve that? Very easy, with a plan with the steps to follow to obtain the victory.
It shows one of the two sides discussing before the battle the challenge they face. But remember! Keep it Simple! easy to follow and measure progress.
Let's take an example; a port city, the simple objective? the port obviously. In fact it is so obvious that the red army also knows it and has set up barriers, places where the blue army will have to pass if they want to get to the port. Places where there will be a lot of red soldiers ready and waiting for the battle.
In this simple way you have already established most of what is really important. Now the readers know that the important thing to win or lose is the port, and that the barriers are the way to measure progress,
Fewer Red barriers = Blue closer to winning.
Incidentally, something important! Mention the plan to your readers before the battle!
As I said before, the most important thing to write a full-scale battle is to keep everything tidy and simple. Why? so that the reader can find out everything that happens, and for that it is important that they have information beforehand. Whether you know it or not, readers love to think that they too are the protagonist and what they would do in his shoes, but for that they need to know what he knows.
The important thing is that the readers are on the same page as the protagonist, do not hide anything that the protagonist would know, they will love to try to solve the puzzle first and then see if the reading will give them the reason, if they are right they will like it, and if not, they will also like to know what the protagonsite (in this case the author) did different with the same resources to solve the problem.
Maps, The big cheating!
The mind remembers more things if it has different things that indicate the same conclusion.
The maps are excellent tools, as they help to give much more information in a simple way without having to write anything.
By having a visual aid, readers will be able to remember things for longer, as well as simplify the follow-up by not having to imagine what happened completely.
Yes, it's all very nice, but what about the battle?
Ok fine, I'll go with that,
3- The battle and organizing the chaos
I've said it enough and I'll say it again, keep the conflict simple, don't put too many feet to move or at the same time it will become difficult to follow. It is difficult for a trained general to keep track of dozens of units, now imagine what it is to try to explain to a normal person.
And the answer to this dilemma?
Turn-based combat
Okay, here's what we'll do, we'll take each army, and we'll make each one take a turn, first one moves its feet or its plan, and then the other one reacts and moves its feet to try to win. This way we keep it simple without overwhelming,
That it's boring? Unrealistic? So, sure, that dragon knight is different.
No one said that either army would stand still and do nothing. It is that at different times one team has the lead and then the other. In those moments when they have the advantage, the offense, is where the important attacks happen. Where the protagonists move the conflict with their actions.
Maybe the blue army managed to overcome the first barrier easily (blue turn), then the red army in response released a secret weapon, unleashed a dragon, detonated a bomb, their elite troops appeared by surprise where no one expected (red turn) the blue army has to defend, the protagonist has to take the lead and with his group of friends overcome the challenge (blue turn). The red group retreats from their second barrier to double their third barrier(red turn). But the blue army manages to overcome them anyway and reach the port (blue turn and blue victory)
Faking a a larger battle than it is.
Now you might say, that's too simple, how the hell can I write about a big battle if it only seems like I'm doing a simple one?
Well, that's where the author's skill comes in and you're willing to dedicate it to your work. So far the only thing we've done is make things simple and easy for readers to follow. But for what? well to put several things on top of it.
How to give an impression that it is bigger?
Well, that's what the characters are for, they will be the ones in charge of giving the dimensions to the battle. The secret is that an army as such is bigger than a single person. The terrifying thing about a soldier is not the equipment or the weapon he uses, it is that they are never alone.
I do not recommend that you write something between the lines of: a thousand blue men faced a thousand men dressed in red, anyone can write that and it looks flatter than the screen you are reading this on. Instead it changes the focus, instead showing large numbers hitting each other. It shows several small groups fighting small battles that add up to a big one.
A big battle must be several smaller conflicts
Show the reader a small group, four soldiers, perhaps the protagonist's group, they will be the main ones, they will see and narrate SOME important points of the battle, they will see it from start to finish. They will be the ones with which readers will measure the general progress of the battle, they will be our eyes on the battlefield.
Now I will tell you a little personal secret that is quite effective. Don't tell the entire battle from a single point of view. The protagonist will see a good part of the battle, but not ALL of the battle, he cannot be Obnisient, something has to give, something has to be overlooked.
Tell the same conflict, the same progress, but from the point of view of another character, or several, that depends on you. You can show the Red general seeing the progress and how the battle is getting closer and closer to him. Show how the blue general directs using only a map and the news that comes to him and how he has difficulty getting recent information.
You can show the Red general seeing the progress and how the battle is getting closer and closer to him. Show how the Blue general directs using only a map and the news that he receives.
You can tell a short adventure about how a second group of blue soldiers inadvertently helped the protagonist and contributed to the victory in the battle. As a group of 4 brave blue soldiers they ran first to barrier number 3 to open the doors for their comrades and facilitate victory. Like the same group discovering a plot and protecting the protagonist from the murderer or traitor without him finding out in the first place.
Not everyone in a war are soldiers. You can also show the story of how an innocent family tries to survive the conflict, protecting each other, or how they protect their property.
Of course, when you tell one of these sections you commit to writing them until their completion, do not leave any in the middle to go for something else, because you suffer the risk of losing the readers, present your story and condense and finish them before moving on to another stuff.
3-EVERY ACTION HAS REPERCUSSIONS
There is nothing more boring than a battle in which nothing happens.
But how do we know that something happened? well that's by looking at what the battle left behind.
At least someone had to lose, maybe no one won, but without a doubt, at least someone did lose.
And if someone lost, how will this affect them? it has to, it's inescapable.
Every battle must have left something behind, a repercussion that will affect history for better or worse.
The protagonist may have won, but maybe he lost something, a loved one, a part of his body, his mind. The place where it all happened may have been damaged in the process. The country has suffered somewhere, its population, its government,
It is the duty of the author to show the repercussions of what happened, a battle does not just end and that's it, it will have consequences over time. So take the time to say it.
You can also use this part here to take a break and take the situation calmly, you can show the world, how the borders, the relationships, the characters will change.
You can't pretend that nothing ever happened, because then all you will have done is waste time, and what readers hate most is wasting time. They are giving you their time to pay attention to you and your story, so they also want a gesture that you are reciprocating the time invested in something.
And so we conclude this brief exploration of how to approach writing large-scale battles in narrative. Remember, these are not unbreakable rules, but rather tips for you to find your own way on the literary battlefield. Creativity and imagination are your best allies, and there is always room for innovation in storytelling.
The class this time is about how to write large-scale battles, two large armies battling against each other.
But I emphasize that this is just my way of working on it, and it is only advice, not rules or laws, after all, there is nothing written in stone when it comes to writing. Well maybe grammar.
All right, first let's start with the beginning to get the introduction
The biggest problem in writing about a large-scale battle is the magnitude of the battle. They are so big with so many things going on at the same time that you can easily lose track of what is going on and make a mess and chaos. A real headache to keep the consistency or even the order of events, lots of details to write, while at the same time there is no time to develop the characters.
So the secret to overcoming this kind of challenge is simple, but at the same time complicated, to keep everything organized and easy to understand.
Before bullets fly and swords are raised, something even more important than the battle must first be established.
1-The place of battle.
Two large armies will never fight over a wasteland in the middle of the desert, far from anything or any life.
No one in their right mind would move a million soldiers with all the heavy logistical work to get nothing or defend themselves. That doesn't happen in the real world and it shouldn't happen even in fantasy. Whenever a conflict breaks out there must be a valid reason behind it, you don't want your story or battle to be studied as nonsense that no one understands, like a certain bad attempt at a modern czar.
Now, once there is a motive, the next thing to do is to make the list of steps to follow, what is the plan to achieve victory in the long run? To win the war you have to capture the capital, well that is valid, so obviously the first step is to get there. How does this exercise plan to get there? because that is almost half the battle. Walking? well yes, but if you were a general, wouldn't you want your troops to get there as fast as possible? well your characters should also be interested in that.
First, establish the place for which both armies will fight.
If both armies fight for the same place, it is because both have an interest in having that place for their side.
Are there significant resources in the area? Unique materials capable of making weapons capable of changing the war? that sounds important enough to mobilize a lot of people.
The target is a city?
I'll let you in on a secret, almost every city on earth was created for a reason. There is no place where humans live that has been created by chance, there has always been a reason, and in the case of a war that may determine why they will fight to capture it in the first place.
The capital city is obviously where the government is located; its capture almost always signals the end of the war.
A city near the sea means that it has access to transportation means for both material and troops. Ports are important places to resupply all armies, as well as to move more men to the next battle. These are important reasons that could determine the course of a war.
A city in the mountains is much more difficult to reach and live in. You wouldn't create one for any reason, no one goes to a mountain just to live near a boring rock. You have to give importance to that place, normally cities near mountains or in high places are created because of the minerals that are in them. Materials to create weapons and tools. But they are not so important for the immediate state of a war, if they are an objective to take into account in the medium and long term. An army will try to obtain a city, but it will never use its main force and go out of its way to capture a lost city in the mountains. In the best of cases they will use only what they think is necessary or what they can lose without jeopardizing their campaign.
A city in the middle of nowhere? even that has a reason. Some places or cities were created because of a specific need, the most probable one being a road junction. The roads were there first, so people met there frequently, soon after a trader noticed this and set up a small store, then another one set up his own, then a friend set up an inn and now a food store is located, gradually more people arrived and started to organize, after years a few became many. And the city was already there before everyone noticed it. And the axis of this city, its roads are still its most important point. An army might be interested in a city with a high traffic of travelers and traders to reestablish supplies or mobilize its troops, they also make an excellent place from which to give orders and direct the rest of the army, so once again, the city has value.
Ok, I already have a city, now what do I do with it?
The next thing is to give it a shape, something that will help readers remember how it's laid out, but keep it simple, kind of ridiculously simple.
It is the most important point of the city, which is the place that without it there would be no city. The castle in the center where the leaders live, the ports near the sea, the mines or the place where they store them.Well, that is what both armies are fighting to have under their control, so focus on how they will both try to have it for themselves.
Don't fall into the trap of writing something like: the red army invaded the coastal city and started killing civilians until the city was cleansed. That is actually silly and counterproductive, why would a group of soldiers give priority to killing innocent people instead of those who have weapons and could try to launch a counter-offensive? not really, well that's the way it should be. But I'm not saying not to write something like that, I'm just saying that that shouldn't be the whole purpose of an army in the story, there had to be something more important that brought them in in the first place.
But dear unknown internet author who made this guide as an advertisement for your own novel that I will not read, I already have the city, now what?
2- The plan to victory
Now that you know why to fight over a piece of land, here comes the next part:
Set clear victory conditions
As someone said, before you jump into battle, you have to first win it. But how to achieve that? Very easy, with a plan with the steps to follow to obtain the victory.
It shows one of the two sides discussing before the battle the challenge they face. But remember! Keep it Simple! easy to follow and measure progress.
Let's take an example; a port city, the simple objective? the port obviously. In fact it is so obvious that the red army also knows it and has set up barriers, places where the blue army will have to pass if they want to get to the port. Places where there will be a lot of red soldiers ready and waiting for the battle.
In this simple way you have already established most of what is really important. Now the readers know that the important thing to win or lose is the port, and that the barriers are the way to measure progress,
Fewer Red barriers = Blue closer to winning.
Incidentally, something important! Mention the plan to your readers before the battle!
As I said before, the most important thing to write a full-scale battle is to keep everything tidy and simple. Why? so that the reader can find out everything that happens, and for that it is important that they have information beforehand. Whether you know it or not, readers love to think that they too are the protagonist and what they would do in his shoes, but for that they need to know what he knows.
The important thing is that the readers are on the same page as the protagonist, do not hide anything that the protagonist would know, they will love to try to solve the puzzle first and then see if the reading will give them the reason, if they are right they will like it, and if not, they will also like to know what the protagonsite (in this case the author) did different with the same resources to solve the problem.
Maps, The big cheating!
The mind remembers more things if it has different things that indicate the same conclusion.
The maps are excellent tools, as they help to give much more information in a simple way without having to write anything.
By having a visual aid, readers will be able to remember things for longer, as well as simplify the follow-up by not having to imagine what happened completely.
Yes, it's all very nice, but what about the battle?
Ok fine, I'll go with that,
3- The battle and organizing the chaos
I've said it enough and I'll say it again, keep the conflict simple, don't put too many feet to move or at the same time it will become difficult to follow. It is difficult for a trained general to keep track of dozens of units, now imagine what it is to try to explain to a normal person.
And the answer to this dilemma?
Turn-based combat
Okay, here's what we'll do, we'll take each army, and we'll make each one take a turn, first one moves its feet or its plan, and then the other one reacts and moves its feet to try to win. This way we keep it simple without overwhelming,
That it's boring? Unrealistic? So, sure, that dragon knight is different.
No one said that either army would stand still and do nothing. It is that at different times one team has the lead and then the other. In those moments when they have the advantage, the offense, is where the important attacks happen. Where the protagonists move the conflict with their actions.
Maybe the blue army managed to overcome the first barrier easily (blue turn), then the red army in response released a secret weapon, unleashed a dragon, detonated a bomb, their elite troops appeared by surprise where no one expected (red turn) the blue army has to defend, the protagonist has to take the lead and with his group of friends overcome the challenge (blue turn). The red group retreats from their second barrier to double their third barrier(red turn). But the blue army manages to overcome them anyway and reach the port (blue turn and blue victory)
Faking a a larger battle than it is.
Now you might say, that's too simple, how the hell can I write about a big battle if it only seems like I'm doing a simple one?
Well, that's where the author's skill comes in and you're willing to dedicate it to your work. So far the only thing we've done is make things simple and easy for readers to follow. But for what? well to put several things on top of it.
How to give an impression that it is bigger?
Well, that's what the characters are for, they will be the ones in charge of giving the dimensions to the battle. The secret is that an army as such is bigger than a single person. The terrifying thing about a soldier is not the equipment or the weapon he uses, it is that they are never alone.
I do not recommend that you write something between the lines of: a thousand blue men faced a thousand men dressed in red, anyone can write that and it looks flatter than the screen you are reading this on. Instead it changes the focus, instead showing large numbers hitting each other. It shows several small groups fighting small battles that add up to a big one.
A big battle must be several smaller conflicts
Show the reader a small group, four soldiers, perhaps the protagonist's group, they will be the main ones, they will see and narrate SOME important points of the battle, they will see it from start to finish. They will be the ones with which readers will measure the general progress of the battle, they will be our eyes on the battlefield.
Now I will tell you a little personal secret that is quite effective. Don't tell the entire battle from a single point of view. The protagonist will see a good part of the battle, but not ALL of the battle, he cannot be Obnisient, something has to give, something has to be overlooked.
Tell the same conflict, the same progress, but from the point of view of another character, or several, that depends on you. You can show the Red general seeing the progress and how the battle is getting closer and closer to him. Show how the blue general directs using only a map and the news that comes to him and how he has difficulty getting recent information.
You can show the Red general seeing the progress and how the battle is getting closer and closer to him. Show how the Blue general directs using only a map and the news that he receives.
You can tell a short adventure about how a second group of blue soldiers inadvertently helped the protagonist and contributed to the victory in the battle. As a group of 4 brave blue soldiers they ran first to barrier number 3 to open the doors for their comrades and facilitate victory. Like the same group discovering a plot and protecting the protagonist from the murderer or traitor without him finding out in the first place.
Not everyone in a war are soldiers. You can also show the story of how an innocent family tries to survive the conflict, protecting each other, or how they protect their property.
Of course, when you tell one of these sections you commit to writing them until their completion, do not leave any in the middle to go for something else, because you suffer the risk of losing the readers, present your story and condense and finish them before moving on to another stuff.
3-EVERY ACTION HAS REPERCUSSIONS
There is nothing more boring than a battle in which nothing happens.
But how do we know that something happened? well that's by looking at what the battle left behind.
At least someone had to lose, maybe no one won, but without a doubt, at least someone did lose.
And if someone lost, how will this affect them? it has to, it's inescapable.
Every battle must have left something behind, a repercussion that will affect history for better or worse.
The protagonist may have won, but maybe he lost something, a loved one, a part of his body, his mind. The place where it all happened may have been damaged in the process. The country has suffered somewhere, its population, its government,
It is the duty of the author to show the repercussions of what happened, a battle does not just end and that's it, it will have consequences over time. So take the time to say it.
You can also use this part here to take a break and take the situation calmly, you can show the world, how the borders, the relationships, the characters will change.
You can't pretend that nothing ever happened, because then all you will have done is waste time, and what readers hate most is wasting time. They are giving you their time to pay attention to you and your story, so they also want a gesture that you are reciprocating the time invested in something.
And so we conclude this brief exploration of how to approach writing large-scale battles in narrative. Remember, these are not unbreakable rules, but rather tips for you to find your own way on the literary battlefield. Creativity and imagination are your best allies, and there is always room for innovation in storytelling.
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