It began with armoured assaults using tanks, and ended with lone soldiers sneaking around under skies teeming with drones.

For two years, the Russian and Ukrainian armies fought over the city of Pokrovsk, in the eastern Donbas region – a key logistical hub for Kyiv’s troops.

What played out was a battle of innovation and counter-innovation that changed the logic of warfare in the process.

For decades, commanders have been taught that the key to victory is concentrating their forces in one spot before smashing through enemy lines.

Now, survival depends on breaking units up as small as possible so they have a chance of sneaking past the ever-watchful eye of drones circling above.

In unprecedented detail, the Daily Mail’s Battle Board series shows exactly how this fight played out, and analyses the effects it will have on the way all battles are fought in the future.