Can sound tactics still end in defeat?

Can a force do everything right in a battle and still lose, especially when it cannot choose whether to fight?

Yes; inadequate force structure can still cause defeat, making reinforcement, withdrawal, and the circumstances that compelled battle relevant to the explanation.

The exchange challenges the maxim that victory goes to the side making fewer mistakes. Sound conduct during a battle can still end in defeat if the force lacks the structure needed to win. A participant objects that commanders do not always have a choice about fighting. The reply accepts that constraint and asks why withdrawal, reinforcement, or a change in the situation was unavailable. Studying defeat therefore includes the decisions and conditions that preceded the fighting.