i'd cut off their hands and send 'em home. that way the other side has to deal with taking care of a casualty instead of simply losing a man. some ancient king blinded 9 out of 10 captives (10th gets to keep one eye) after a war and sent them packing to their home country. having to take care of thousands of blind veterans who couldn't contribute anything kept the neighboring state from fielding an army again later on.
United States