Warfare (CBGH)

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Though they abhor war, halflings nevertheless have proven to be tenacious fighters in defense of their homes or in the service of an alliance. The following letter, written by General Krastarian of Keltar upon the event of his defeat at the hands of an outnumbered halfling militia, perhaps best describes their tactics:
: The little devils stayed out of the open country—undoubtably they knew that our horsemen would have trampled them like rabbits! They gave us their towns and farms in the plain, while they fell back to the accursed wood. And there I, the conqueror, would follow with my footmen—though in truth I knew there to be ten of them to every one of my own men.
: My companies vanished in the tangle, breaking ranks and thrashing blindly ahead. And then, across the length of the front, came a murderous shower—a thousand deadly arrows piercing the flesh of my men, while the vermin archers remained invisible.
: I swear, Your Majesty, they swarmed through the brush like mosquitoes! Thousands of them, on all sides! Everywhere we turned, little figures skulked—arrows flew with uncanny accuracy, piercing eyes and necks, dropping even armored men in their tracks! We charged and they scattered, vanishing into the thicket as if they had never been—only the bodies of my men told otherwise.
: At last I determined to fire the wood—the wind favored our advance—and gave orders to do so. The blazes took hold with great effect, but again that hellish place betrayed the logic of war. The brush exploded like tinder, and the blaze swept not only with the wind—but back into our faces!
: Many fine men perished in that inferno—a blaze I believe to have been sorcerously altered by the enemy. Minutes after my own very narrow escape, my scouts reported the bulk of the enemy force slipping from the brush while we fled the blaze.
: I request, Excellency, that we return to Lurien with sufficient forces to deal with this pestilent threat—perhaps two legions, and a full column of horse. I realize that this will stretch the defense of your borders in a tenuous manner, but I believe there to be no other way for the forces of Keltar to prevail against this pervasive foe. 
It makes an interesting historical footnote to add that the general commanded some eighteen hundred men, including companies of elite guards, longbowmen, and light lancers. Never did the halfling force opposing him number even a thousand! He was subsequently removed from command through the simple expedient of removing his head from his shoulders; the halflings of Lurien were left alone for many decades to follow.
Though this is an heroic incident in the annals of halfling military history (and admittedly, a more patient and imaginative commander may well have found the human force sufficient for the conquest), it is illustrative of the tactical finesse and courage displayed by the small folk when they are motivated for battle.
Another feature has also contributed to the halflings' fine reputation as allies: the small folk traditionally have demonstrated a willingness to honor the terms of a longstanding alliance. They will provide the troops they promised, when and where they are required—and those troops display almost as much determination in supporting an alliance as they would in defense of their own burrows. However, they must have some strong motivation before resorting to violence to solve a dispute. Almost always this motivation is defensive in nature—either the halflings or their friends are attacked by some aggressor. Occasionally the small folk might participate in an offensive campaign, but only when it is a preemptory strike against a foe who has already committed enough bloody acts to warrant retribution and is currently gathering forces for an attack on the halflings or their allies.
However, when the need is clear, halflings are speedy and resolute to answer the call to arms. Indeed, this trait is one that makes halfling/human treaties attractive to the rulers of the latter. Also, the deadly accuracy of halfling bowmen and slingers is known to all who have faced them—and few of those desire to do so again!
==Tactics==
As already noted, halflings prefer to avoid war if at all possible. A community of the small folk will be willing to negotiate extensively, and even yield to a certain amount of extortion, in order to avoid bloodshed.
However, when pressed to the point of no return, halfling troops make determined fighters with a number of effective tactics at their command. In most cases, only about half the adults will fight, the remainder remaining behind to protect the elderly and children. In cases of dire need—where the very survival of the community is at stake—every able-bodied adult may well be drafted into the cause.
Halflings have a reputation for being easy-going and somewhat lazy, but this does not mean they cannot fight effectively if they need to—the legends of the Bad Old Days remind every halfling of what life was like before they had villages and lands of their own, and they will fight with surprising tenacity, even ferocity, to keep from slipping back into that fugitive existence. Thus each halfling has something that can be used as a weapon in his or her burrow, no matter how peaceful the area. If the village has had to fight in the recent past, then each resident might have a short sword and shield as well as a bow and arrows or a sling and bullets. Even if battle is rare or virtually nonexistant, villagers will be able to arm themselves with a missile weapon apiece (bow, sling, or perhaps darts) and at least a long knife or spear for melee combat—a fact invaders expecting to find them easy prey have discovered time and again, to their surprise and regret.
Halfling companies are almost always irregular—i.e., they don't fight in neat ranks and lines. They will be quite capable of firing volleys of missile fire upon command, and they will advance and withdraw on the orders of their captains—but they would have a hard time facing, for example, a tight rank of armored human infantry or orcish swords.
Instead, the halflings favor battles in wooded or otherwise obstructed terrain. Their scattered formation is ideal for each fighter finding his or her own source of cover, though they are far more adept than humans at holding their company's unity even in thickets where visibility and mobility are severely limited. The fabled ability of halflings to virtually disappear in underbrush is never more useful than at moments like this.
A favored tactic of a halfling force, when fighting in this type of concealing terrain, is to create a loud diversion. A few veteran warriors will thrash through the brush, firing many arrows, giving the impression that they number scores of times more than they actually do. Then, if the opponent's force turns to face this imaginary onslaught, the real halfling company screened by the woods attacks the enemy's flank.
If a halfling force is attacked in unfavorable (i.e., open) terrain by a force of large creatures, the small folk might try to stand off the attack if they feel they have a chance of success. If they are attacked by horsemen or are out-numbered by well-armored infantry, however, the entire formation will usually scatter, joining up again at a place offering more concealment and protection.
Halflings rarely fight mounted, though Tallfellows are a notable exception, occasionally riding into battle on small ponies or, very rarely, beasts such as dire wolves. When halflings fight as members of an alliance, they are often used as missile troops. Well-screened behind formations of human or dwarven foot-soldiers, halfling archers and slingers can shower the enemy with a deadly rain of arrows and bullets.
Another common specialty of halfling troops is tunneling and underground operations. They are not particularly adept at digging such passages—that task is better left to dwarves—but halfling troops can negotiate much smaller passages than can most of their allies. Thus, if combat is expected in close quarters or beneath a low ceiling, halfling troops are often selected to lead the way.