Zhuge Liang. I won't go into a lot of specific things he did, just two really wicked ones that prove that he truly was unmatched as a strategical genius.

1: Zhuge Liang was once isolated at a garrison that was being encroached upon by overwhelming enemy forces lead by Simi Yi, another brilliant strategist. Zhuge Liang faced impossible odds and a battle that could in no way be won. His strategy? Zhuge Liang had the gates to the garrison left open and ordered music to be played from the rooftops, as if welcoming the approaching enemy army. Simi Yi knew that Zhuge Liang was isolated from reinforcements and also knew that he had an overwhelming advantage in terms of numbers, yet at the sight of Zhuge's garrison wide open with music coming, he sensed a trap, and ordered a full retreat. In truth, it was just a bluff...but Simi Yi was so terrified of Zhuge Liang's strategic genius, that he ran away when he clearly had his nemesis completely cornered.

2: Zhuge Liang's plans were so feared amongst the enemy, that he even used his death as a strategy to buy time for the Shu army to retreat. In Zhuge Liang passed away while overseeing the lines of battle against Wei (specifically a force lead by Simi Yi). The Wei forces were gradually pushing back the Shu army when Zhuge Liang passed away. At this point the Shu army began a silent/gradual retreat. Word soon reached Simi Yi that Zhuge Liang was dead, so he ordered an all out attack in pursuit of the Shu army. Zhuge Liang foresaw this prior to his death, and left instructions that when the Wei army pursues the retreating Shu army that they should dress up a wooden statue in his clothes and wheel it up to the front and make a tremendous stand. Following his instructions, they brought a statue dressed in his clothes to the front and turned around to make their stand. Thinking that Zhuge Liang had faked his death to lure them into an ambush, Simi Yi once again ordered a massive retreat.


This jaeger bomb induced rant brought to you by...ummm...Jaeger.

yay for him... to bad u arent

Lol, you've play Dynasty Warriors haven't you?

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i know i have

I'm currently playing DW 6: Empires...the pinnacle of the DW franchise. But there are two main reasons as to why I've remained hooked on the Romance of the Three Kingdoms games. 1: I love the story line and the characters. 2: The shit actually happened.

And come on, how many generals were so feared that the very thought that they might have faked their death would cause an overwhelming enemy force to retreat?

Hmmm, might be more convincing if you used situations where he used brilliant strategy/ tricks against DIFFERENT generals.

Sun Tzu I would say still has the upper hand from all that. Very practical though brilliant strategist. And able to teach masses general principals of strategy and warfare, including politics of war.

Alexander The Great also had some rather amazing battle strategies. Known for his favored 40,000 men against increasingly outnumbering opposition from what was previous to him the most powerful nations and empires.

Cicero and Caesar also report some pretty amazing battle strategies against the Gauls, and some pretty badass displays.
For instance, when the Gauls had the Romans with Cicero at the head surrounded and under siege for a long time, and knew they outnumbered the enemy and that the enemy was low on supplies, food and everything else and could be overtaken, the gauls sent envoys to Cicero to request he surrender and offer him terms of surrender, before they destroy the fort. Ciciero decided to have them brought to a somewhat nice throne like room, as he dressed in his finest clothes, and have them essentially plead before him in a seat of power. At which time he told them not only would he not surrender, but he would offer to accept their surrender and plead for them to Caesar when he got there that they should not be utterly annihilated.
This actually just got the Gauls angry, but cocky, and in that time they were able, through spies and other things already in motion, to enact various desperate measures and tricks to kill off large numbers of the enemy and for Caesar with several forces to sweep in and destroy most the enemy. I'm missing parts of the brilliance here, I know, but thats because its been a while since I translated this stuff, and I wasn't very good at Latin translations at that point (most of this I have to remember from my teachers translations).

I must confess I don't know much about the specific details of Zhuge Liang's strategies, and the reason both my examples of his brilliance involve Simi Yi is because Simi Yi was truly the only person who rivaled Zhuge Liang in strategical genius. Also, for the most part/to the best of my knowledge, the vast majority of Zhuge Liang's strategies/battles were against forces commanded by Simi Yi. I'm pretty sure that Cao Cao assigned Simi Yi the task of leading the campaign against Shu while the rest of his officers held the line against Wu.

Unfortunately, while it does not refute his ability, it does kinda limit the scope of assessing his brilliance if most of his fighting was against the same generals forces, or if most of his notable fighting anyway. Obviously chances are he made his name originally on smaller scales against different forces, but I don't know that from info provided either.

Pshht, Napoleon, niggers.

Couldn't even win a land battle against the English.

When he was ill, had little sleep, had Marshal Ney take over becuase he was in too much pain from his internal organs, attacked by Prussians etc

Napoleon launched a land war in Asia. Such a blunder renders him unworthy of the title of greatest general.

Any care to comment on Oda Nobunaga.

And Hitler wasn't doing to bad of a job until Japan went and fucked with us, and got us involved.

Lol wut, the only French involvement in Asia at the time was French backing of certain Indian princley states agianst British rule.


If that was trolling well played

Hitler was not a general. Credit should go to Guderian, Von Bock, Dietrich, Rommel, and the various other actual generals.