# Dorsai vs. Draka **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 4, 2006, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dorsai-vs-draka/347008 "2006-03-04T03:48:15Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2006, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dorsai-vs-draka/347008/1 "2006-03-04T03:48:15Z")
S.M. Stirling’s Draka ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draka](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draka)) vs. Gordon R. Dickson’s Dorsai ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childe\_Cycle](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childe_Cycle)): Both groups products of a martial culture, both trained for war from their youth. Assuming unmodified human Draka, and roughly equal numbers and equipment, if a Draka army fought a Dorsai army, who would win? ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2006, 6:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dorsai-vs-draka/347008/2 "2006-03-04T18:10:40Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > S.M. Stirling’s Draka ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draka](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Draka)) vs. Gordon R. Dickson’s Dorsai ([http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childe\_Cycle](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Childe_Cycle)): Both groups products of a martial culture, both trained for war from their youth. Assuming unmodified human Draka, and roughly equal numbers and equipment, if a Draka army fought a Dorsai army, who would win? Well, this is easy - the Dorsai are the Good Guys ™, whereas the Draka are poorly written racist ubermensch caricatures. Dorsai for the win, unless Stirling’s doing the writing. ---
**Author:** ![Evil\_Captor](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@Evil\_Captor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Evil_Captor)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2006, 7:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dorsai-vs-draka/347008/3 "2006-03-04T19:09:58Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Well, this is easy - the Dorsai are the Good Guys ™, whereas the Draka are poorly written racist ubermensch caricatures. Dorsai for the win, unless Stirling’s doing the writing. The Nazis were racist ubermensch scumbags, but were generally acknowledged to be very good at fighting. So I don’t know that your objection to the Draka holds. I don’t diddly about the Dorsai, so I can’t say who would win. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2006, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dorsai-vs-draka/347008/4 "2006-03-04T19:55:29Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Well, this is easy - the Dorsai are the Good Guys ™, whereas the Draka are poorly written racist ubermensch caricatures. “Poorly written”?! Stirling is a **much** better writer than Dickson! ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [March 4, 2006, 8:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dorsai-vs-draka/347008/5 "2006-03-04T20:25:30Z")
> [@BrainGlutton](#): > > “Poorly written”?! Stirling is a **much** better writer than Dickson! Follow the criticism link from the Draka Wiki page and tell me that. The Draka are whatever the AH version of mary-sue-ism is, they are written as unstoppable and therefore dull. Plus the sheer wrongness of them gets my goat - check my location, and it should be no wonder why I wouldn’t be rooting for the Draka of all possible fictional races. All I know is I read the Childe cycle up to _Chantry Guild_, I would have thrown Domination at the wall if it wasn’t a library book. **Evil Captor** , the Nazis weren’t victorious. Enough said. ---
**Author:** ![BrainGlutton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/82dd89/32.png) [@BrainGlutton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrainGlutton)\ **Post date:** [March 5, 2006, 2:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/dorsai-vs-draka/347008/6 "2006-03-05T02:55:09Z")
> [@MrDibble](#): > > Draka are whatever the AH version of mary-sue-ism is, they are written as unstoppable and therefore dull. Not compared to Donal Graeme. Now **there’s** a Mary Sue! > [@MrDibble](#): > > All I know is I read the Childe cycle up to _Chantry Guild_, I would have thrown Domination at the wall if it wasn’t a library book. I read _Dorsai!_ and _Soldier, Ask Not,_ and after that I couldn’t get down another spoonful.