How to Write Interesting Wars: Start of the War - Worldbuilding 101 

Not from a game, but one of my favorite instigations to war came in ancient Athens. After the navy was so vital to the defeat of the Persians at Salamis, the landless free men (who rowed the triremes) were given the right to vote. Since few would face the highly skilled and rightfully feared Athenian navy on the sea, any fighting would be done by the land-owning hoplites, a minority voting block in Athens. So the landless free had a nearly risk-free chance of filling their pockets with plunder, and the only ones likely to die were the rich. Thus, Athens ended up with a sprawling empire as the landless free voted for war after war at the slightest provocation.

It is important to underline that since war is nothing more than a system to continue politics, in all wars, there must be a final political objective. For example: During the first Gulf War, the political objective was to kick Saddam out of Kuwait and to beat the shit out of him so hard he would never ever try again to invade a neighboring country. So all the war afford, and logistics were shaped to accomplish that only objective, and it was extremely successful. On the opposite, during the Second Gulf War, there was not a clear war objective (except to destroy the WMD Saddam), and the result was getting jammed in a decade-long high-casualty police operation.

War comes in all shapes and sizes, from the world wars to ancient icelandic feuds that slowly mutated into small civil wars over the course of decades. Ive always had the morbid curiosity towards weapons, battle tactics and logistics aswell as the personal stories that arise. But in DnD i let it happen in the background, it makes for easy worldbuilding

In my current stage of writing, I have a low intensity border war going on. It'll ramp up as I iron out certain plot events, but it's currently all about small raids, counter raids, and localized defense. Neither side is acknowledging their attacks, because it would sabotage their attempt at a moral high ground. Thus, the ongoing diplomatic talks boil down to finger pointing quite often.

In my world (currently writing) the main war is a result of a previous engagement of the two empires(A and B) into a third neighboring country (C) during a war of succession of Country C. The first conflict started by the death of the current king without apparent heirs (these had died in a disease a couple of years prior, while the king had also had it he survived but became sterile of it) in the small but geographically important country C. It held a part of land that contains the only major ports for Empire B to be able to trade with a lot of countries close by. Empire B has never been able to annex these ports through military means since the country has an defensive alliance with Empire A for just this thing. In the same time Country C defends stoutly their right to tax the harbors according to benefial agreements with Empire B which allows Empire B's merchant to go through them almost tax-free. Something Empire A looks unfavorably upon. Empire B has other ports but those are on the other side of the Empire and usually for trade with faraway countries from another continent. Using these for trade with close countries would means wast stretches to travel. This would make their goods extremely expensive for the markets in the close countries. Neither empire was directly involved in the war of succession which was between an uncle to the former king and a niece to the same. Both had by birthright and tradition the same amount of right to the throne. But after the death of the uncle at one of the battles leaving the niece seemingly victorious, to the surprise of all her the younger sister raised her banner for herself as a contender. The younger sister had formerly been fully supporting her older sister. Apparently the younger sister got hold on some papers declaring a secret meeting between the older sister and her advisors declaring the younger sister a treat towards the older sister once she became ruler. Especially since the younger sister was married with children and much adored in the kingdom, while the older sisters husband died in the war and her own two children had succumbed to a disease a couple of years earlier, the very same that took out the heirs of the throne. The older sister survived the disease, but it left her almost sterile. She had a couple of miscarriages afterwards. The last two parts was kept a secret towards everyone, even the younger sister. Thus making the older sisters situation, widow and having problem conceiving, somewhat perilous for internal strife once she would ascend the throne. Neither did she want to declare her sister as heir apparent because she had a greater hold on the more populous southern parts of the country. The younger sister, through married blood, manage to engage Empire A to support her, first by funds and weapons. Later with armies. Once the armies came into play, which where supported by the Empire A's elit guard of powerful mages, empire B could no longer be sitting on the sidelines. Empire B sided with the older sister. Their armies and own mages marched over the border and joined forces with the older sister. My main character is one of the elite mages of Empire A. In one of the largest battles of the succession war the forces of Empire A manages to defeat in full the combined forces of Empire B and the older sister. During the battle the older sister, though surrounded by her own guard, was suddenly in peril during the routing of her own forces and was mortally wounded. She succumbed to her injuries but days later, thereby ensuring the victory and throne to the younger sister. The younger sister after her ascension to the throne was convinced, in no small number by the massive amount of Empire A's troops in her capital, to give to Empire A a boon. They got to the right of the southern part of the country that had borders with both Empire A and Empire B as a protectorate to Empire A for 99 years. During which time they would be given the tax-right of the harbors as compensation for their participation in the succession war. Obviously they taxed the merchants of Empire B through the roof to directly amass wealth from Empire B to the state coffers and making sure their own merchants was able to procure better deals with higher prices while still being cheaper than Empire B's merchants. This threw Empire B in somewhat of a economical depression. The neighboring countries wasn't too keen on this either. Luckily for Empire B, they might never have the same high elite guard of mages, but in comparison to Empire A, they where never an independent entity with power within the Empire as the elite guard of mages are in Empire A. This made the mages of Empire A somewhat conservative against any change seemingly threatening their position. While the mages of Empire B did what their emperor told them. A survivor from the succession war with a soul full of revenge manage to make magical items not requiring the aid of mages in it's manufacturing which Empire B sought to use to it's fullest potential. The new emperor of Empire B, longing for payback and a restitution of its coffers after the loss of the succession war, threw his full fortune behind the inventor to the full economical benefit of the Empire. Those inventions and their consequent use (Especially against Empire A) is what triggers the mighty war between Empire A and Empire B later on. This is where the main part of my story begins. Still writing but has the trilogy already planned out.

I LOVE YOU. I started working on a story of a civil war in an HRE-based story, and never really found a video to help much. luckily ive been trying to think of how to not make it "just a plot point" as you said that i haven't wasted any time to write the war yet lmao

Most people, for whatever reason, do not want acknowledge that war is ultimately a (supposedly) calculated move by those in power to maintain and/or expand their power, usually under the guise of ideology mixed with resource exploitation. In fairness, a war against an existential force, one that does not ascribe at all to politicking, can make for potentially interesting storytelling. We all know or can figure out those who would side with the existential force, usually under the deluded belief that doing so would yield more benefits than problems. Is it frustrating to see such politicking shown to happen? As an outsider observer, absolutely, but I suspect that a large part of it is because of how uncomfortably likely it would happen if it were taking place among us instead. All those details about how war is fought in your world, those can certainly be exhausting to flesh out while actually being ultimately unnecessary in many ways, though it can be entertaining to see play out. Speaking solely for what I would like to see, we have gotten several close-enough examples, but I am waiting for one where wars are fought and won/lost/settled by an M:TG match.

Very interesting video. 😊

Though I have walked away from my 30+ year fantasy epic, I still like to learn from my mistakes with it. One of those mistakes was having several wars that had no purpose/no reason that they started, they just appeared in a vacuum. If I was to re write it ( which I won't, it needs to stay locked away ), I would think about using the political and economic power vacuum left behind when the Magic failed and never fully returned. Old tensions could arise, opportunistic greed, pride and worry in surviving better than other countries, etc could all lead to raising armies for self protection and resource grabs. Wars breaking out would be more understandable story wise. Eventually there would be new groups rising to power, wars called to a halt, and new treaties enforced. Not everyone would be happy but things would settle into a new normal for the every day citizen. I would not have written a second sudden full blown war, but a cold war instead slowly building tension.

Ah, yes, war... war never changes

1:25 asrm German guy quotes Von Clousewitz in German to prove his point

One of the things I do in worldbuilding that helps with thsi topic is to have a backstory that puts former civilisations on the same land. Like building built in a German style in France, to ruins of some long lost civilisation like at Cusco\Machu Picchu where the later\current civilisation is essentially built on 'someone elses land' as it gives a great way to introduce an unsolvable dynamic. Do you kick out the new comers who were born there or the 'original people'? Everyones claim sounds legitimate the way they would put it. Good examples might be Albania or Israel. (Check out History Legends for the Albanian one, it's pretty hectic.

Fanatsy!

Oh woww only 10 days old!!! Uploaded at the perfect time for me... My story is more sci-fi lol but it focuses on a war between a post-terraformed Mars vs those left behind on a post-Global Warming Earth. Im good at writing conflicts and motives, or at least I hope my war is interesting lol, but i suck at writing the battle itself. Im no war tactic pro. Eep!

i have three major ones (the sultanate), Ashiron and Derigar The sultanate is a traditional monarchy but isnt really much special just an ally of Ashiron Ashiron is a Constitutional Monarchy led by Entreprenurial councils their Emperor/Empress are hereditary but are out of a corporate family its on paper and absolute monarchy but in practice a constitutional one Derigar is on paper the most free most democratic society in the entire history of the galaxy but in practice its a totalitarian regime ruled by a psychotic lich who has been the singular ruler of the nation from the time it was founded in the equivalent of roman times to the sci fi space opera of the current story there is a single ruler, on paper there were multiple different "chairmen" but they have alwas taken orders from their eternal chairman

Witcher 3 music omg

fun fact rome never fought an aggressive war they only defended themselves always have a casus belum they just accidently happen to have the biggest empire in their time

When a chinese guy claim to be brother of Jesus and started a bloody rebellion

dont say R? all i hear is WAH, WAH, WAH, lol xD pretty funny