--- product_id: 214623498 title: "The New Rules of War: Victory in the Age of Durable Disorder – An Economist Book of the Year on Terrorism, Mercenaries, and the Future of Modern Warfare" price: "₨505" currency: SCR in_stock: true reviews_count: 13 url: https://www.desertcart.sc/products/214623498-the-new-rules-of-war-victory-in-the-age-durable store_origin: SC region: Seychelles --- # The New Rules of War: Victory in the Age of Durable Disorder – An Economist Book of the Year on Terrorism, Mercenaries, and the Future of Modern Warfare **Price:** ₨505 **Availability:** ✅ In Stock ## Quick Answers - **What is this?** The New Rules of War: Victory in the Age of Durable Disorder – An Economist Book of the Year on Terrorism, Mercenaries, and the Future of Modern Warfare - **How much does it cost?** ₨505 with free shipping - **Is it available?** Yes, in stock and ready to ship - **Where can I buy it?** [www.desertcart.sc](https://www.desertcart.sc/products/214623498-the-new-rules-of-war-victory-in-the-age-durable) ## Best For - Customers looking for quality international products ## Why This Product - Free international shipping included - Worldwide delivery with tracking - 15-day hassle-free returns ## Description "Stunning. Sean McFate is a new Sun Tzu." -Admiral James Stavridis (retired), former Supreme Allied Commander at NATO An Economist Book of the Year 2019 Some of the principles of warfare are ancient, others are new, but all described in The New Rules of War will permanently shape conflict now and in the future. By following them Sean McFate argues, we can prevail in this era of unconventional warfare. But if we do not, terrorists, rogue states, and others who do not fight conventionally will succeed—and rule the world. The New Rules of War is an urgent, fascinating exploration of war—past, present and future—and what we must do if we want to win today from an 82nd Airborne veteran, former private military contractor, and professor of war studies at the National Defense University. War is timeless. Some things change—weapons, tactics, technology, leadership, objectives—but our desire to go into battle does not. We are living in the age of Durable Disorder—a period of unrest created by numerous factors: China’s rise, Russia’s resurgence, America’s retreat, global terrorism, international criminal empires, climate change, dwindling natural resources, and bloody civil wars. A master of military strategy, Sean McFate has been on the front lines of deep state conflicts and has studied and taught the history and practice of war. He’s seen firsthand the horrors of battle and understands the depth and complexity of the current global military situation. This devastating turmoil has given rise to difficult questions. What is the future of war? How can we survive? If Americans are drawn into major armed conflict, can we win? McFate calls upon the legends of military study Carl von Clausewitz, Sun Tzu, and others, as well as his own experience, and carefully constructs the new rules for the future of military engagement, the ways we can fight and win in an age of entropy: one where corporations, mercenaries, and rogue states have more power and ‘nation states’ have less. With examples from military history including the Roman conquest, World War II, Vietnam, and Afghanistan, he tackles the differences between conventional and future war, the danger in believing that technology will save us, the genuine leverage of psychological and ‘shadow’ warfare, and much more. McFate’s new rules distill the essence of war today, describing what it is in the real world, not what we believe or wish it to be. The New Rules of War deconstructs the strategic atrophyplaguing Western armies and provides a playbook for victory in this new era of global threats: Conventional War is Dead: Learn why World War II-style warfare is obsolete and how clinging to it guarantees defeat against today’s unconventional enemies, from rogue states to terrorist organizations. The Return of Mercenaries: Explore the rise of private military contractors and for-profit warriors, a booming industry that is changing the business of war and creating new kinds of superpowers. Shadow Warfare: Understand how modern conflicts are won not with firepower, but with plausible deniability, weaponized information, and strategic subversion designed to manipulate an enemy’s perception of reality. A New Grand Strategy: Move beyond battlefield tactics to grasp the new political nature of war, where victory is fungible and the most effective weapons may not fire bullets at all. Review: Well done - I recommend the book. I agree with the other reviewers. There is some overreaching at times, but overreach is part of being passionate about changes. I have four disagreements or perhaps added perspectives as disagreement is too strong a word: 1) The problem is not only an over reliance on technology vs human wits, but lacking the understanding of what is truly threatening from a technological perspective. A good example is an EMP. The author rightly so pointed out that the use of air carriers and the attack on Pearl Harbor were predicted, but these predictions dismissed by the establishment. The money spent on the F35 would have been enough not only to better protect the grid and having spare parts available, but also to protect nuclear reactors, military bases dependent on electricity and, as battery technology evolves, to provide large household batteries and renewables to most households in the US. The F35 is the battleship of yesterday. But again, this is technology vs. technology + imagination. 2) Borrowing from Kissinger, it is possible to divide the world in three historical moments: places where war as a political tool is unthinkable (e.g. between West European states), places where national interests and alliances resemble the 1st World War (e.g. the Asia of China, Japan, etc.) and places where the 30-year war did not take place as yet (e.g. the islamic world). Of course this is a simplification, but the increased complexity of warfare is not only be due to the rise of non-state actors but also to the multidimensional interaction of different historical moments. 3) The author stresses that the rise of non-state agents, the use of subterfuge and weaponization of information and the impact of mercenaries will change how war is waged. In fact, it has already changed. He stresses that the laws of war will not or may not be followed if one is to be victorious. However, the doctrine of jus in bello and jus ad bellum precedes nation states. My understanding is that the Catholic Church developed these ideas to assist Christian Princes to wage war in moral way in a world characterized by disorder. Of course this is not a book about the moral of warfare, but I am sure that the author gave some thought to the issue. A new understanding of jus in bello and ad bellum will be necessary for democratic societies to succeed, not a utilitarian dismissal of the subject. 4) I am a civilian and by no means know how military education is delivered. However, I suspect that the necessary changes of education must go much deeper than the early introduction to strategy studies. The ability to think differently depends in part on the ability to not believe one's opinions too strongly. There is benefit of having doubts. I suspect that the strength of certainty is a preferred quality in the military career. This is surely difficult to change. To a degree, these are straw man arguments. The author's positions are fluid enough to accommodate all four points. I enjoyed the book very much. I am sure his classes are not only informative, but truly formative of officers and others lucky enough to meet him in person. Review: Outstanding Strategic Vision of the Future - The author, Sean McFate, provides a truly insightful and thought provoking look at the future. He draws on his experience both in the US Army and as a contract security officer to present a strategic vision that involves all elements of government, not just the Defense Department. Influence through information warfare and the use of mercenaries are becoming the way of the future. His analysis is supported by numerous historical events. For example, an interesting comparison is made to the nature of warfare prior to The Thirty Years War and the Treaty of Westphalia. The book is an easy read at about 250 pages on my Kindle edition. The author’s writing style is clear and the narrative moves quickly. He frequently uses historical events to make specific points. He hypothesizes that the US is essentially trying to re-fight the last war. An illuminating comparison is made to Billy Mitchell. Prior to World War II, Mitchell was ridiculed for advocating that air power would supersede battleships in naval power. History has now proven him correct and his contemporaries wrong. The book highlights ten “rules” or chapters. The author proposes that conventional war is dead and that future conflict will likely adhere to the principles of Sun Tzu, not Clausewitz. The real gem of this book is that the author effectively ties together historical events and strategic vision in a manner that makes these ideas obvious. Bottom line: This is one of the best books I have read on this topic. The clarity of Mr. McFate’s strategic analysis is excellent and anyone involved in national security should get something out of this book. ## Technical Specifications | Specification | Value | |---------------|-------| | Best Sellers Rank | #439,257 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #187 in Russian & Soviet Politics #194 in Espionage True Accounts #282 in United States Military Veterans History | | Customer Reviews | 4.5 out of 5 stars 638 Reviews | ## Images ![The New Rules of War: Victory in the Age of Durable Disorder – An Economist Book of the Year on Terrorism, Mercenaries, and the Future of Modern Warfare - Image 1](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/71ImxYpaeTL.jpg) ## Available Options This product comes in different **Media Format** options. ## Customer Reviews ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Well done *by P***N on January 29, 2019* I recommend the book. I agree with the other reviewers. There is some overreaching at times, but overreach is part of being passionate about changes. I have four disagreements or perhaps added perspectives as disagreement is too strong a word: 1) The problem is not only an over reliance on technology vs human wits, but lacking the understanding of what is truly threatening from a technological perspective. A good example is an EMP. The author rightly so pointed out that the use of air carriers and the attack on Pearl Harbor were predicted, but these predictions dismissed by the establishment. The money spent on the F35 would have been enough not only to better protect the grid and having spare parts available, but also to protect nuclear reactors, military bases dependent on electricity and, as battery technology evolves, to provide large household batteries and renewables to most households in the US. The F35 is the battleship of yesterday. But again, this is technology vs. technology + imagination. 2) Borrowing from Kissinger, it is possible to divide the world in three historical moments: places where war as a political tool is unthinkable (e.g. between West European states), places where national interests and alliances resemble the 1st World War (e.g. the Asia of China, Japan, etc.) and places where the 30-year war did not take place as yet (e.g. the islamic world). Of course this is a simplification, but the increased complexity of warfare is not only be due to the rise of non-state actors but also to the multidimensional interaction of different historical moments. 3) The author stresses that the rise of non-state agents, the use of subterfuge and weaponization of information and the impact of mercenaries will change how war is waged. In fact, it has already changed. He stresses that the laws of war will not or may not be followed if one is to be victorious. However, the doctrine of jus in bello and jus ad bellum precedes nation states. My understanding is that the Catholic Church developed these ideas to assist Christian Princes to wage war in moral way in a world characterized by disorder. Of course this is not a book about the moral of warfare, but I am sure that the author gave some thought to the issue. A new understanding of jus in bello and ad bellum will be necessary for democratic societies to succeed, not a utilitarian dismissal of the subject. 4) I am a civilian and by no means know how military education is delivered. However, I suspect that the necessary changes of education must go much deeper than the early introduction to strategy studies. The ability to think differently depends in part on the ability to not believe one's opinions too strongly. There is benefit of having doubts. I suspect that the strength of certainty is a preferred quality in the military career. This is surely difficult to change. To a degree, these are straw man arguments. The author's positions are fluid enough to accommodate all four points. I enjoyed the book very much. I am sure his classes are not only informative, but truly formative of officers and others lucky enough to meet him in person. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐ Outstanding Strategic Vision of the Future *by M***H on April 27, 2020* The author, Sean McFate, provides a truly insightful and thought provoking look at the future. He draws on his experience both in the US Army and as a contract security officer to present a strategic vision that involves all elements of government, not just the Defense Department. Influence through information warfare and the use of mercenaries are becoming the way of the future. His analysis is supported by numerous historical events. For example, an interesting comparison is made to the nature of warfare prior to The Thirty Years War and the Treaty of Westphalia. The book is an easy read at about 250 pages on my Kindle edition. The author’s writing style is clear and the narrative moves quickly. He frequently uses historical events to make specific points. He hypothesizes that the US is essentially trying to re-fight the last war. An illuminating comparison is made to Billy Mitchell. Prior to World War II, Mitchell was ridiculed for advocating that air power would supersede battleships in naval power. History has now proven him correct and his contemporaries wrong. The book highlights ten “rules” or chapters. The author proposes that conventional war is dead and that future conflict will likely adhere to the principles of Sun Tzu, not Clausewitz. The real gem of this book is that the author effectively ties together historical events and strategic vision in a manner that makes these ideas obvious. Bottom line: This is one of the best books I have read on this topic. The clarity of Mr. McFate’s strategic analysis is excellent and anyone involved in national security should get something out of this book. ### ⭐⭐⭐⭐ Enjoyed the Read *by R***R on April 22, 2022* Enjoyed the read, very informative from our current situation to a military history context. Only reason why I didn't give it 5 stars, is because the author has recently written an Op Ed in WSJ, and in it states, "If Mr. Putin’s mercenaries do something worthy of disapproval, he can simply disavow them, as he did after the Wagner Group got shellacked by U.S. troops at the Battle of Kasham in 2018 in eastern Syria." Yet in this book he states that our forces weren't able to take out the Wagner Group in this same battle -- so which is it? The lack of uniformity in this certain situation somewhat bothered me, but besides that I'd recommend the read. --- ## Why Shop on Desertcart? - 🛒 **Trusted by 1.3+ Million Shoppers** — Serving international shoppers since 2016 - 🌍 **Shop Globally** — Access 737+ million products across 21 categories - 💰 **No Hidden Fees** — All customs, duties, and taxes included in the price - 🔄 **15-Day Free Returns** — Hassle-free returns (30 days for PRO members) - 🔒 **Secure Payments** — Trusted payment options with buyer protection - ⭐ **TrustPilot Rated 4.5/5** — Based on 8,000+ happy customer reviews **Shop now:** [https://www.desertcart.sc/products/214623498-the-new-rules-of-war-victory-in-the-age-durable](https://www.desertcart.sc/products/214623498-the-new-rules-of-war-victory-in-the-age-durable) --- *Product available on Desertcart Seychelles* *Store origin: SC* *Last updated: 2026-10-22*