The need for science to improve the application of prescribed fire has never been greater. Increasing complexity, be it from altered land use patterns, changing climate, or invasive species is challenging Rx fire managers ability to maintain, let alone increase fire treatments across the south. Realizing that there are mature but underexploited technologies such as LiDAR and new coupled fire-atmosphere models such as QUIC-Fire, we are building a network of expertise to develop a modular and unified approach to improving prescribed fire through better predictions of both fire behavior and fire effects. The strategy has led to new techniques being adopted in the southern region for fuels and vegetation inventory and monitoring and has initiated other spinoffs such as the detection of new archaeological features across the landscape. I will present results of the approach from a demonstration conducted at the Hitchiti Experimental Forest and Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge.