According to a quote by the illustrious German Field Marshal Erwin Rommel, the fight is fought and determined by the quartermasters before the gunfire starts. The value of logistics is often only acknowledged in passing by students of military history, who would rather read about artillery and tanks, mass movement, and attacks and counterattacks. The causes of that bias are simple to comprehend. It is getting easier and easier to think that wars are always fought on the battlefield because there is no obvious drama when looking at supply lines. For instance, several books have been published about the tactics and plans of World War II, but very little about how practically every significant choice made during that fight was influenced by the requirement for a single item that no modern army can function without—oil.