The book is divided into twelve smaller books, each dealing with an important aspect of war, from the thinking about waging war, to the actual execution of a strategy, and also the victory that comes along with the successful implementation of a plan.
Book One explains the nature of war, and also stresses the importance of the decision to go to war in the first place. It is not a decision that should be rushed; when war is considered, plans should be made first to ensure that a campaign can be successful. Only when these plans have been made can war be declared. A successful war is not planned in retrospect. There must also be a reason for the war. What is the objective? What is hoped to be gained? More territory? More power? The neutralization of the enemy? There should be defined goals that enable a strategy to develop which in turn will ensure a victory.
Book Two looks at the more logistical aspects of conflict. Are there enough supplies to sustain troops through to the end of the campaign and are there specific protocols in place for getting those supplies to them? Are there enough troops? Troops must each be assigned a well-defined task, and a good Warlord makes sure that each man is content with the task that he is given. He is not going to be concentrating on the job that he has if he is constantly focusing on the promotion that he wants. Make sure everyone is content in their given role before contemplating going to war.
Book Three is all about the nature of an attack. It is not desirable to use force in order to invade an enemy's land unless it is absolutely unavoidable. It is better to infiltrate the enemy with one's own forces. That way they will be inwardly frightened but maintain an outward appearance of calm, which will trickle down to the people; calm, rational people are far easier to govern, and this will be to the advantage of the incoming Warlord. It is also possible that a show of force will result in a lot of deaths, and the soldiers of the defeated army may feel humiliated, and look for revenge. It is far better to gradually and peacefully subsume the enemy's army into your own so that they are ultimately part of the new force that has quietly invaded.
Book Four deals with the thinking and the theory behind a war. In ancient times, warlords devoted their entire lives to practicing war. However, they also made themselves appear to be unprepared so that their enemy would act in an over-confident manner, and likely underestimate the opponent. They are then more likely to be surprised by the well-thought out strategy that the Warlord employs.
The power of Heaven is the subject of Book Five. The good Warlord would never do anything that would go against the Heavens. He knows that when he puts his heart and soul into the art and the act of war he is harnessing the power of Heaven within himself and carries out his strategy to the best of his ability with Heaven behind him. This Warlord seems to have the help of the Heavens because every move that he makes appears easy and ensures victory.
Book Six is all about fortitude and frailty, and deals with the necessity of harnessing what is going to happen anyway to one's own advantage. It is important to use all of these advantages, and to observe the enemy for the way in which they are doing the same thing. This is how their strengths and weaknesses will emerge. The good Warlord takes little chips against the strength of an army that outnumbers his own so that it is eventually small enough for him to undertake a successful campaign.
Book Seven is a continuation of Book Six in that it explores how to manipulate existing circumstances. In the present day this would be considered putting a spin on everything. For example, if an army is moving slowly and progress is labored, effort should be made to carry insignia and exaggerate the slowness of the pace to make it appear that a procession is happening rather than a movement that is hampered in some way. This is is theme that is carried on into Book Eight where the importance of using a smoke and mirrors approach to battle is emphasized; make it appear that your strategy is one thing when it is really the opposite.
Book Nine address Variation of Circumstances; this means that the way in which things are done should be constantly changed for the safety of the troops. An example that is given is changing the resting places regularly from those designated in the pre-war plans to those that are better suited to the terrain and the territory. This is really another way of saying that a good Warlord is flexible and able to strategize under pressure and as circumstances dictate along the way.
Book Ten deals with the managing of territory in times of peace which is as important as managing a territory during a war. Territories must be clearly marked and defined and ownership clearly adhered to.
Books Eleven and Twelve are about the managing of an actual campaign from beginning to end, and the way in which individual battles must be viewed and considered. Each battle is not an end in itself, but a stepping stone to a greater victory and a successful campaign. Each battle must have a specific purpose in achieving the greater goal and each campaign should achieve the larger purpose that was set out before embarking on any action at all.
