# Wookie v Klingon? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 9, 2004, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665 "2004-01-09T16:01:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Survey1215](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecb155/32.png) [@Survey1215](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Survey1215)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2004, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/1 "2004-01-09T16:01:17Z")
Who would win in face-to-face combat? (note: I’m sure this has been asked before but I couldn’t find it and for some reason this question popped into my head). ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2004, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/2 "2004-01-09T16:57:49Z")
I don’t think there are any stories of a human beating a Wookie one on one without weapons, but there are many cases for humans beating Klingons mono et mono. ---
**Author:** ![Gorgon\_Heap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/f475e1/32.png) [@Gorgon\_Heap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gorgon_Heap)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2004, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/3 "2004-01-09T17:11:44Z")
Yup. No contest. Klingons are stronger than humans, but once a wookie rages, it’ll eat a klingon up. ---
**Author:** ![Survey1215](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ecb155/32.png) [@Survey1215](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Survey1215)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2004, 5:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/4 "2004-01-09T17:13:54Z")
A valid point, Bippy. Perhaps a human could take a Wookie if that Wookie had just killed the human’s son on some embryonic planet, thus enraging the human to the point that his strength was adrenaline-enhanced so as to make him invincible. Or something. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2004, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/5 "2004-01-09T17:26:15Z")
IHMO v MPSIMS. MPSIMS is ahead by a length at the final turn . . . Coming up on the outside it’s IMHO . . . Approaching the line it’s MPSIMS . . . IMHO . . . MPSIMS . . . IMHO . . . MPSIMS . . . IMHO . . . And at the wire it’s . . . _IMHO!_ IMHO pays $8.50, $3.65 & $2.78. ---
**Author:** ![Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac8455/32.png) [@Bippy\_the\_Beardless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bippy_the_Beardless)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2004, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/6 "2004-01-09T18:43:37Z")
Damn, I had my money on the 100-1 outsider GQ. ---
**Author:** ![BlackKnight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/eb8c5e/32.png) [@BlackKnight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BlackKnight)\ **Post date:** [January 9, 2004, 8:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/7 "2004-01-09T20:21:23Z")
I had $500 on About This Message Board ☹ ---
**Author:** ![Leaper](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/4bbf92/32.png) [@Leaper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Leaper)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 12:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/8 "2004-01-10T00:38:17Z")
Well, [here’s what the folks who read the WWWF Grudge Match thought](http://www.grudge-match.com/History/chew-worf.shtml). (PS: My response is the Bronze Medal winner. :)) ---
**Author:** ![Horseflesh](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/horseflesh/32/7502_2.png) [@Horseflesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Horseflesh)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 1:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/9 "2004-01-10T01:50:20Z")
Right turn, Clyde. ---
**Author:** ![sjc](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e5b9ba/32.png) [@sjc](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/sjc)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 2:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/10 "2004-01-10T02:27:37Z")
Cafe Society? ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 2:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/11 "2004-01-10T02:28:05Z")
Wookiees are known to rip people’s arms out of their sockets if they lose a game of chess. Klingons are all concerned about their honor, and the honor of their families and the honor of the Klingon Empire. The Wookiee would win. ---
**Author:** ![Call\_me\_Frank](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/90ced4/32.png) [@Call\_me\_Frank](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Call_me_Frank)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/12 "2004-01-10T06:52:52Z")
“Let the Wookiee win.” Sorry…had to say that after **Kat** ’s remark… ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 2:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/13 "2004-01-10T14:57:31Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by UncleBeer \* > \*\*IHMO v MPSIMS. > > MPSIMS is ahead by a length at the final turn . . . > Coming up on the outside it’s IMHO . . . > Approaching the line it’s MPSIMS . . . IMHO . . . MPSIMS . . . IMHO . . . MPSIMS . . . IMHO . . . > And at the wire it’s . . . _IMHO!_ > > IMHO pays $8.50, $3.65 & $2.78. \*\* It seems to me that the race was rigged-both of them have the same owner, the popular media. They are _both_ disqualified, and the prize goes to…_Cafe Society_! ---
**Author:** ![NutWrench](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nutwrench/32/20193_2.png) [@NutWrench](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/NutWrench)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 3:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/14 "2004-01-10T15:04:39Z")
The Klingon. If he was prepared. ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/15 "2004-01-10T16:30:31Z")
Klingon warriors can be defeated by pregnant Bajorans. ---
**Author:** ![Vlad\_Dracul](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/50afbb/32.png) [@Vlad\_Dracul](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Vlad_Dracul)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 4:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/16 "2004-01-10T16:55:16Z")
The Wookie, from what we have seen, is essentially a wild animal which happens to be smart enough to learn the controls of a spacecraft. No clothing, rudimentary language, readily overcome by rage under stress. Judging from the teeth, they’re probably predators… perhaps something like a smallish bear which evolved intelligence. In any case, almost certainly fairly savage by nature, even if one does learn to control himself in public. The Klingon, however, is basically just a human with a ridged forehead. I suspect the whole “Klingons are stronger than humans” bit is partly propaganda and partly the result of the Klingons’ greater emphasis on physical prowess. Klingons probably ALL lift weights and hit punching bags and such, while the typical 24th-century human apparently spends his spare time performing in amateur Shakespearan theatre. In any unarmed combat, I’m going to vote for the savage beast over a similarly-sized person who happened to grow up in a warrior culture. If the beast is also bigger, has fangs, and can rip the arms off a droid… it’ll be a short fight! ---
**Author:** ![Weirddave](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/919ad9/32.png) [@Weirddave](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Weirddave)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 6:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/17 "2004-01-10T18:46:15Z")
Ehh. The SW loons will never admit that anything is better than it’s SW counterpart, so why bother? The ST loons, OTOH, maintain that their universe is penultimate, which makes the whole thing rather pointless. My take? From all I’ve seen, Wookies have one advantage: berserker rage. I’ll take training over that any day. I’ve seen frail old men with a lifetime of training absolutely tear up huge physical specimens without breaking a sweat. MHO, that’s prolly a “realistic” preview of a Wookie/Klingon fight (or Wookie/Human, for that matter) _Untrained_ Humans or Klingons, OTOH…toast. ---
**Author:** ![vibrotronica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/a9a28c/32.png) [@vibrotronica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vibrotronica)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/18 "2004-01-10T19:03:33Z")
Wookie in five rounds. ---
**Author:** ![Achernar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/e274bd/32.png) [@Achernar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Achernar)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 7:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/19 "2004-01-10T19:25:16Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Weirddave \* > The SW loons will never admit that anything is better than it’s SW counterpart, so why bother? The ST loons, OTOH, maintain that their universe is penultimate, which makes the whole thing rather pointless. Penultimate to what? The SW universe? Ha! I think not. ---
**Author:** ![Fish](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/bc8723/32.png) [@Fish](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Fish)\ **Post date:** [January 10, 2004, 7:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665/20 "2004-01-10T19:54:34Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Weirddave \* > \*\*Ehh. The SW loons will never admit that anything is better than it’s SW counterpart, so why bother? The ST loons, OTOH, maintain that their universe is penultimate, which makes the whole thing rather pointless. > > My take? From all I’ve seen, Wookies have one advantage: berserker rage. I’ll take training over that any day. I’ve seen frail old men with a lifetime of training absolutely tear up huge physical specimens without breaking a sweat. MHO, that’s prolly a “realistic” preview of a Wookie/Klingon fight (or Wookie/Human, for that matter) > > _Untrained_ Humans or Klingons, OTOH…toast. \*\* Well, yeah, mostly realistic. This Wookiee also has a much longer reach and _much, much_ greater strength. The best example of this that I can think of is Chewbacca using one hand to pull a struggling human straight up through the narrow hatch of an AT-ST scout walker without a pause. Worf couldn’t do that, no way. It would be like an unarmed warrior with _any_ training fighting an orangutan or a mountain gorilla or a bear—heck, even a full-grown chimp can toss a full-sized adult man out of a boxing ring with little strain. Worf can only hope he doesn’t get hit right away—that he lives long enough to try a couple of moves—and that those moves work. I don’t give Worf much of a shot, given that comparison. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/wookie-v-klingon/223665.md?page=2)