The art of survival, on a scale as major as the one we live in today, is not a simple matter. For houses, organizations and other factions, there is a constant outside threat. We live, nowadays, under threat of Das Wilde, Nomads, Corsairs, Outcasts, other houses, and more.
In the modern era of warfare, either using too many or too little ships can be fatal. Lack of caution can be fatal, but isolation from society will not save you either.
In short, there is no escape from the threats we face.
However, despite this time of war, there are ways to escape an impending doom. Trust in official instances, such as the government, is crucial in these times. The government and factions' leadership too have no wish to be usurped by hostile factions.
Unfortunately, due to poor management, trust in governments and leadership instances are at an all time low. The following is a short thesis on warfare as it should be, disregarding the bad management we have seen in the past.
One must safeguard one's space from threats. However,
The use of too few forces, will often result in a devastating defeat, leaving only planetary defences and emergency wings to fend off an enemy invasion. Should these also be defeated, or should a special tactic be used such as when Kusari invaded Leeds, an entire system may indeed lay under siege. This way, one loses...quite a bit.
The use of too many forces, however, will lead to the very same, though many instances do not realize this. Imagine this: a faction is fighting a war on multiple fronts. For convenience sakes, we'll imagine this is Kusari, but it might as well be any other house or faction.
Imagine what would happen if Kusari, for instance, were to send two cruisers and a battleship to counter three Bretonian fighters, or even a gunboat, invading Kusari space. The Bretonian forces would be crushed.
Now look at the other side of it. By bringing these forces to counter the Bretonians, the Golden Chrysanthemums and Blood Dragons have more than enough opportunity to stage a terrorist attack. At the very same time, the Wilde that have been seen in Kusari lately may also attack! And meanwhile, who knows what other organizations might do! And what if Bretonia also attacks from another location? Indeed, one also loses one, or even several systems.
Now, apply the same to Bretonia, Rheinland, Liberty, the Corsairs, the Outcasts or indeed any other faction. As is demonstrated, the use of too many forces to counter a threat leads to disaster.
The art of survival is the use of a balanced force to counter an enemy threat. Otherwise, the consequences may indeed be dire.
More and more, factions are beginning to realize this. There is no telling what the future holds, but at least this way, the safety of factions is best ensured.
Though incidents are known to happen, remember always, the art of survival lies in balance.