 The entire episode yields a rare insight into one aspect of war in the 18th century : the ( Coorg ) forces , lacking cavalry , with a minimum of firearms , lost every major battle , but won the war by dint of two factors . First , the terrain , and the possibility of retreating periodically into the wooded hillside , favoured them , in contrast to their relatively clumsy opponents . Second , the Mysore army could never maintain a permanent presence in the region , given the fact that the Wodeyar kingdom had several open frontiers . 
