The rule is, not to besiege walled cities if it can possibly be avoided. The preparation of mantlets, movable shelters, and various implements of war, will take up three whole months; and the piling up of mounds over against the walls will take three months more.
The general, unable to control his irritation, will launch his men to the assault like swarming ants, with the result that one-third of his men are slain, while the town still remains untaken. Such are the disastrous effects of a siege.
— Sun Tzu, The Art of War
"Take a look at a castle. Any castle. Now break down the key elements that make it a castle. They haven't changed in a thousand years. 1: Location. A site on high ground that commands the territory as far as the eye can see. 2: Protection. Big walls, walls strong enough to withstand a frontal attack. 3: A garrison. Men who are trained and willing to kill. 4: A flag. You tell your men you are soldiers and that's your flag. You tell them nobody takes our flag. And you raise that flag so it flies high where everyone can see it. Now you've got yourself a castle."
— Lt. Gen. Eugene Irwin, The Last Castle
Mick: I hear tell that yours is the coolest gang in New York.
Rat: That's the word.
Mick: What did you do last night?
Punk: We didn't do nothing. We was here all night.
Mick: And...that's what you call cool, is it?
(silence as Rat mulls this over)
Mick: Tomorrow, when someone asks you the same question, you can say: "We didn't do nothing." Or you can say: "We went out to Long Island...helped this lunatic storm a fortress." Least you can do is come and see me get my head blown off.
Rat: That's the word.
Mick: What did you do last night?
Punk: We didn't do nothing. We was here all night.
Mick: And...that's what you call cool, is it?
(silence as Rat mulls this over)
Mick: Tomorrow, when someone asks you the same question, you can say: "We didn't do nothing." Or you can say: "We went out to Long Island...helped this lunatic storm a fortress." Least you can do is come and see me get my head blown off.
Miracle Max: [waving goodbye to the heroes] Have fun stormin' da castle.
Valerie: [to Max] Think it'll work?
Miracle Max: It would take a miracle.
Valerie: [to Max] Think it'll work?
Miracle Max: It would take a miracle.
Takeshi Kovacs: I'm done running. The sky is literally about to fall, and I've got nothing left to lose.
Quellcrist Falconer: Alright, Tak. What's your play?
Kovacs: ...We go in the front door.
Quellcrist Falconer: Alright, Tak. What's your play?
Kovacs: ...We go in the front door.
— Altered Carbon, "Broken Angels"
