FriarBob wrote:Charles83 wrote:I think we can forget about Kontovar, my reason is simple RFC doesn't write offensively, all the novels always end with the good guys playing defense, [...]
I hope he makes an offensive series, but so far, every book RFC write is always put on the defense side of things, he never write about a good honest offense, well so far this books look good on that side, he hasn't put his typical good guys=300 people bad guys=infinite number.
Well first off it's kinda hard for the good guys to have a REASON to go on the offense. Usually you have to be the bad guy, going for unjustified conquest or greed or some other malevolent purpose to be going on offense. About the only way there could be a difference would be for the good guys to be some faction of good guys within an evil and corrupt empire (or perhaps outside of it) who build up their forces specifically to bring down the bad guys and install good rulers in their place. (Of course, pretty much every bad guy actually thinks that too...)
But even then, he still has plenty of books with the good guys going on offense in some fashion or another. Either you have a faulty memory or you haven't read every single book he's written. Let's see:
This whole series -- every book in this series ends with Bahzell on the offense in some fashion or another, attacking AND defeating some vile plot by the dark gods.
Armageddon Inheritance -- pure offense, at least on Pardur. They couldn't just defend the "heretics" they had to attack and defeat the Temple to get access to the command computer (so they could go home).
Excalibur Alternative -- had a mix, though at first the good guys were forced to fight FOR the bad guys, and only got the opportunity to fight against them (both defensively AND with preemptive offensive strikes) later in the book.
Apocalypse Troll -- pretty much pure offense. Only exception would be the initial defense of Earth by trying to intercept the enemy fleet. After that, there was plenty of time when they were preparing to fight, but it was always offensive in nature with only the secrecy being defensive in nature. Oh and it ended with complete victory over the immediate enemy and strong indications of strongly-expected butt-whooping of the bad guys later.
The Honor of the Queen -- pretty heavy on defense, yes, but it did end with some (off-camera) offense to conquer Masada.
War of Honor -- pretty heavy on offense, though it did end with the bad guys temporarily "winning".
The Shadow of Saganami -- pretty heavy on defense, yes, but it ends with a preemptive offensive attack on an enemy that wasn't yet prepared for its own attack on them. That's self-defense, yes, but it's still an offensive attack.
At All Costs -- plenty of attacks by the good guys, and though it did end with a massive defensive battle the rest of the book was VERY heavy on attacks by Honor against Haven.
Pretty much the entire Prince Rodger series -- this was almost exactly the situation I describe above, in which some good guys have no choice but to go on the offensive, initially just to survive and move through territory they had to cross, but also later to bring down a corrupt and evil government that had illegally seized power in their homeland.
By Heresies Distressed -- this entire book is almost nothing BUT Charis on the offense against Corisande. And they don't end on defense... they end with wrap-up after a mostly-successful offensive campaign.
How Firm a Foundation -- Not a huge amount of military action in this book, true, but there isn't a single LICK of defense (outside of some very small, basically individual actions) on the part of the "main" good guys (Charis). Everything they do is either preparation for future conflict or outright attack. Now the book does end with some defensive actions for Siddarmark and a narrow escape of the good guys from an assassination attempt. But up to this point Siddarmark wasn't really the "good guys", they were merely "neutral in our favor". For that matter, Princess Irys and Daivyn were at least technically still "bad guys" until very nearly the end of the book.
Now I always love watching the good guys attack the bad guys (especially when they win) but you can't claim it never happens in Weber's books, nor can you claim that the books "always end with the good guys playing defense".
Check really what you are saying 1 offensive action don't mean that the series is made with an offensive mindset, the armaggedon inheritance is 1 of the few i havent read yet, now this whole series is set from the perspective of defense, bahzell and company are always responding or reacting to what the dark gods do, yes he attack but after the dark god has made his plans, in little his personal attacks are just a way of defending the good, he doesnt have an offensive mindset like lets conquer kontovar who is a nest of the dark gods is more like let me defend this territory by attacking those plots of the dark gods that i discover, if he doesnt discover a dark god plot then no history, that means is a defensive mindset, the bad guys need to do or plan something so bahzell can attack them.
Excalibur alternative, the Honorverse and safehold are series where the mindset is defensive, there are some offensive actions but in the end is more like the bad guys will self destroy while we hold, yes in the honorverse there was some offense but the focus was always little guy vs big guy, first manticore (little guy) vs haven(big guy) now is GA [manticore and company(little guy)] vs SLN and alignment (big guy), in the safehold series 5 to 10% of the planet against the other 90% and all of what they talk is how they will prevent the church from invading charis, rthey never talk about a real honest good for all offense, and you can say its because of how the world is made but surprise the one that made the world think in defensive terms, so he made the world in specific to make the war on safehold a little guy vs big guy thing again, the excalibur alternative ends in exactly the same position they have infiltrated the big guy and they are ready to cause the big guy to implode while they defend themselves with superior technology, not a good honest offensive.
While there are some offensive action on some of the books the entire mindset and creation of every other universe is defensive, in this specific universe is still unknown, I mean here on the war god universe, you could say that the good guys have been recovering for the last 1200 years after the fall, and at 1 point when they recover enough they will start offensive actions against the dark god who claimed Kontovar because the Gods on the good side want this universe to belong to the good side.
You can say and point the books where offensive action has been taken, but look at the mindset and how the universe is created, in the end the good guys are always in the defensive, the only moment when that rule was going to be broken, when really the good guys could take a really good offensive action against the bad guys was in the honorverse and what did RFC made at that point, Oyster Bay the surprise attack who made manticore again play defense and make only very restricted attacks against the SLN so again good guys playing defense.
You can point to me single books and single actions but in reality RFC never has made manticore launch a war againts haven to break them, they were on the defensive and haven started the war, in safehold yes merlin wants to break the control of the church but he is doing it by making charis an extremely tough nut to crack, in the dahak series the first 2 books the protagonist discover new technology and do all the stuff to defend earth from the misterious attackers, in the excalibur alternative they dont attack openly they leave the enemy to attack them then they will do covert attacks to break the empire and while that happens they will hold, in little the worlds are made with a defensive mindset.