So it is, again, that these Streets are littered with bodies; hundreds of dead, men of honour, associates, bodyguards, leaders of crews and of districts.  The economy has shrunk, fortunes have been lost, the marketplace unstable.

This is what happens when families fight families - then districts fight districts, then cities, and then the dead outnumber the living and a new generation has to rise.

In many, if not most, cases, the trouble is with the leadership of a crew or a district.

Could it be that that leadership is taken out and overtures made to what remains?  

After all, isn't it better to have an influx of new members rather than a group of angry, armed & dangerous individuals to fight?

By all means, take out the hitters along with the leaders.

But isn't it time to talk immediately after the first strike?

TARGETED ASSASSINATION RATHER THAN OUTRIGHT CITY/DISTRICT WIDE MASSACRES!

it makes sense.

Good-day, sir. 

You're not going to find much in the way of a debate on this one, the chaos that ensues with war and the complexities of tactics and mechanics means the easiest, and normally quickest option, is to murder everyone. 

It's not that we haven't seen tidy take downs which result in the soldatos being eliminated first and only. This was a conflict of a different nature. Spurred by leaked information, riddled with betrayal and fought by two sides desperate to remain in power. 

That, is when chaos descends and there is little to no accountability.

Madara listen's to dubstep playin the back ground then hears a feint voice climging in volume and intensity.. he realises early90stechno can be heard if you focus hard enough

Well ordinarily. You would be right, I guess. However the influx of children coming to inherit their parents position and small fortunes was by no means done by people who wernt angry, or in their own way capable of being dangerous.

Also you say that "by all means, take out the hitters along with the leaders." Again, I would agree with you but again this time. This wasn't the case. The war began with high tensions on all sides. This wasn't a well orchestrated take down planned well in advance. The leaders and well practiced killers were alert, protected and their bodyguards all keeping their eyes peeled as they had had to rebuff attempts on their employers life just moments or hours before it all kicked off.

War is hell. Short and simple. However, from this complete forrest fire of a war, the trees of old have burned away leaving ash to fertalize the ground and clearly plenty of room for the seeds to grow without choking from being too close to others and without struggling to get the sun they need to flourish.

It's not all as simple as you say, this time, early90stechno.

Interesting topic indeed.

Yes, the intricacies of this this, and the previous, war, I know not.  But war my blood has known and known well.

The dogged anger of a parent shot down whilst sleeping, that drives many capable individuals from this thing of ours.

The mass killing of dozens of men and women of honour, who would, upon their Leader's death, serve under another.

That, my friends, is what I consider the true tragedy if this thing of ours and the war that they currently conduct business.

If a decisive strike was made and then a choice given - well, that would induce the members of the struck crew to consider their positions.  And it might *just* make regime change that little bit more frequent.

There are no drawbacks to my plan.

Because, of course, the first goal of an incoming regime is to make it as easy as possible for the next regime change to happen.

No drawbacks for you perhaps, but quite a large one for the people who actually make the decisions.

There are. your plan requires there be a 'decisive strike'

again. that wasn't an option this time around.

I'm afraid you don't know what you're talking about (as you've put it yourself). Very few people died in this war "in their sleep". I'd say the victims of NY's first wave on PH were the only individuals who died with no impact on the war. The war both had numerous warning signs of it building up and it was drawn-out. If someone died in their sleep, they likely knew it was coming. How can you refer to men and women "of honor" if they're willing to just start working for the men who slaughtered their crew?

The drawbacks to your plan is that it's both incoherent and not how human beings behave, certainly not members of the mafia.

Just like Madara said, this war had no "decisive strike" it was a war that didn't go as planned, and adjustments needed to be made and they were.

There’s no right way, and definitely no wrong way of going about a war in my opinion. The end justifies the means, and if chaos ensues so be it. The victor is generally the quickest to react and has the ability to modify their actions to suit the conditions.

Plan? They’re all well and good but unfortunately you cannot factor in such things as say………..gun malfunctions, or the infamous pea-shooter that when aimed at the Achilles heel of a high ranking member, fells them like carrot being cut in two. Nor can you account for the actions of individuals who profess their allegiance to a particular city yet simply jump ship at the first opportunity. It’s the human element unfortunately which will screw up any plan given the wrong circumstances, not to mention that awful uncontrollable urge we all know as impulse. Now that can cause havoc.

A plan of attack that goes like clockwork is generally viewed as a professional take down or removal. These will result in a little bitching in the streets but hey ho, the world keeps spinning and the victors have achieved their goal.

You’ll get nowhere with imposing any such type of plan where war is concerned. The dogs of every war need to feed, it’s called survival. Wars have very few rules, we need no more than that.

This particular clash was in my opinion the epitome of war, drawn and quartered at every turn and having the battlefield ropes moved and adjusted to suit.

May God have mercy on all who fell, rest their souls.

"No battle plan survives contact with the enemy." - Helmuth von Moltke.

It is an interesting topic, to be sure. While it is much more professional to kill only the people you need to, that creates new problems.

Let me ask this; what would you do if I killed your father, and that like what your CLs are, family. Well, you'd want to kill me back, avenge them. Well, I don't want to die, and I know this, so I kill you and your father, but anyone I leave alive will come back to kill me, because they love and are loyal to their CL, Dons, and Godfathers, so I end up killing your whole family to protect myself.

The loyalty that everyone has creates the need to kill anyone accociated with whoever you need to kill for your own survival. But without loyalty, what would this be? We'd possibly have more wars, with no one listening to and obeying the orders given to them.

What is the solution to this? Maybe it's just human nature, fear and anger, and we can't do anything about it.

Sneakysnakey leans against a building, under an awning to get some shade on the hot day. He doesn't know how what he said might change things, or if it even will. "Maybe everyone already knows this and he sounds like an echo" he thinks to himself.

Akasha listens intently from the shadows.  Whispering she states "War is war and if I was winning I would have decimated the lot, none of this truce nonsense.  Wipe them out....all of them! Don't these people know that most of the killing in any war happens when the enemy is retreating, on the run"

A thug looking for stash, but so neutral as me, can beak some cookies for some SunScream if re-produced in Dutch land.

Selling salt over-dose for a bonus too.

"Yes, the intricacies of this this, and the previous, war, I know not.  But war my blood has known and known well.

The dogged anger of a parent shot down whilst sleeping, that drives many capable individuals from this thing of ours.

The mass killing of dozens of men and women of honour, who would, upon their Leader's death, serve under another.

That, my friends, is what I consider the true tragedy if this thing of ours and the war that they currently conduct business.

If a decisive strike was made and then a choice given - well, that would induce the members of the struck crew to consider their positions.  And it might *just* make regime change that little bit more frequent.

There are no drawbacks to my plan."

Those honourable men and women will have children, spouses, cousins etc. who will come help rebuild in the aftermath of war.. If people's blood lines are 'driven' from these lands because someone dies in a war, then that family was done with this way of life anyway.  (Or, they were seriously confused as to what goes on here)

The need to avenge the death of a parent, or other close family member can be the fuel needed to drive ambition and a desire to work to change something. There can be upheaval wrought by a determined and merciless child hellbent on revenge. This can keep things... interesting.

No one is immortal, family lines wanting to rank up, train up and take out their enemies are what drives this way of life..

If someone joins a family and doesn't expect they can be taken out for the actions of their leader, then what the hell are they doing there in the first place.

Additional: I'd avoid visiting Steelfree's herbalist, that's some bad smoke...