In nonexpanding or nondeclining populations in which the reproductive value of all recruits is assumed equal, life-history tactics may be compared by comparing the expected number of recruits arising from each tactic. The problem of determining the superior tactic can then be posed as a dynamic programming problem. The example of abandonment as a useful reproductive tactic in brown bears demonstrates the use of a finite state description in generating the expected number of recruits arising from a nontrivial reproductive pattern. The procedure is easily applied and is a powerful tool for exploring alternative life-history tactics of specific individual organisms. [A model is described.].