The "Magic" Triangle of:
Mobility - Security - Firepower
Ferrill (1985: 44) describes "the three
indispensable ingredients of warfare":
mobility - security -
firepower
These can be arranged in a "magic" triangle:
The positioning of mobility in the
apex of the triangle - above security and firepower - serves to indicate its
vital importance and the necessity for emphasis. Probably more battles were lost
due to neglect of the mobility factor than for any other cause. Its paramount
influence is evidenced by the two greatest defeats that almost stopped European
civilization in its tracks: The Arab and the Mongol conquests, both of which
were due to neglect of the mobility factor. The heavily armored, cumbersome, and
immobile European knight cavalry proved ineffective against their swift-moving
enemies. If mobility is retained intact, then evasive action even after a lost
battle can ensure survival and ordered retreat of the main body of
forces.
The three factors stand in a
tri-polar tradeoff relation, and finding the optimal balance between them is the
acme of weapons systems design, today as well as 5000 years ago.
