Nomads became expert raiders because these were the tactics that suited life on the steppes. Without fixed cities to defend or attack, it was mobility that won battles and the fast raid that proved profitable in terms of plunder. These tactics were ideal for attacks on settled, so-called civilised neighbours too. The tribe, then, that mastered mobility and the correct use of horses in battle was the tribe that flourished. Equally importantly, it was vital to be able to move the whole people as one with the minimum of fuss. Everyone, from the youngest child to the oldest grandmother, understood their part in moving the tribe and everything that it possessed. Without such skills, the best grazing would be taken by others and the herds would starve.
