Why does Wraith tech seem to suck?

[Pasankoon]

They may not be the most optimal military force but with their level of tech they didn't have to be. They could be the worst military tacticians in the galaxy but with Atlantis and its offensive and defensive capabilities they had all they needed to wipe out the wraith since they had the knowledge of how to make more drones and power sources. One ZPM powered ship should have been able to eliminate the Wraith given the time it would take to fire and destroy each one in relation to the time taken to breach the defences. The ZPM powered shield would hold out for days under fire and given their weapons tech it wouldn't take days to wipe out any and all wraith ships.

I agree. Even if they were the worst milatary tacticians (wich i doubt it given that they built alot of weapons during their time unlike the nox and the guys on Aurora weren't exactly a bunch of nerds) they would have easilly won against 60 hives very quickly.

[FNH USA P90]

While Wraith tech isn't groundbreaking in any respect, I think that the Ancients were never willing to fight the Wraith in a total war. The Ancients have a tendency to run from challenges. Rather than confronting the schism between themselves and the Ori, the Ancients left the now Ori home galaxy. Rather than unascend Anubis, the Ancients allow Anubis to rampage the Milky Way just to punish Oma. How could a race smart enough to build the stargate allow the Iratus bug evolve into the Wraith. The Ancients may be brilliant but they have some problems.

Plus the sixty hive ships line McKay says was only referring to Hive ships in one particular part of the Pegasus Galaxy. It is still unknown how many hive ships are in all of Pegasus.

Bottom line, we still do not know enough about the Wraith and the Ancients are overrated.

[Magic_Pumpkin]

<--SPECULATION OR OPINION BELOW, WITH POSSIBLE SPOILERS -->

It's likely that the 'great darkness' which was awakend by the Ancients were not the Wraith - but rather the progenitors of the wraith. The culture behind the virus that attacks humans. Think about it.
...

PAX

TechJunkie

I once thought something very similar. The Wraith simply "evolved" when human (Atlantian) DNA mixed with some bug's? I think not. The Wraith having been engineered seems far more plausible.

The one thing lacking in Stargate are the Ancients' ancients. Where are the races that have been ascended for billions of years? The ascended Ancients have the opinion, "The universe is an egg. Don't handle it, because it might break." But maybe there are some older, more powerful ascended races who believe, "it's OK to break some eggs, when you're making an ommlette, just don't drop them on the floor."

So Wraith tech sucks, because that's what they have, maybe because that's what they were given.

[Gate Master]

On the subject of this thread they were able to weaken the deady's shields in seconds when thirty odd goauld ships plus Anubis's flag ship were firing on the less advanced promy's shields for some time with out much damage being done. So their weapons are obviously a lot more powerful than ancient enhanced goauld weapons.

[TsukuYomi]

You have to remember that the wraith evolved seperately, and add to it the fact that the ancients for all their tech are pretty much pacifists. For being solely nonlethal they seem to do a pretty good job. the writers have basically just changed the fact that the ancients were beaten by the wraith the the ancients simply leaving.

[Gate Master]

A little off topic but I hope its appropriate for this thread. Aside from wraith tech what about wraith tactics.
Why in all this time haven't they just dialled Atlantis to see if its still there. I mean straight after they cloaked the city and the gate started to dial I assumed thats what they were doing. Even when the distress beacon went off, why send ships when you can just dial the gate and see if its active.

[AcidSquid]

Because it's organic.

[titan_hq]

Wraith tech dosn't suck, its just different to the ancients.
Drones are 'sophisticated' weapons, they are advanced and technologicaly superior to the wraith. The wraith weapons are just big blobs of blue energy. There weapons are 'raw' and IMO, much more human.

There were a number of factors that led to the ancients defeat.

Wraith had more ships, possibly around 500. Lost in the war or Civil war and lack of food killed off many wraith.
Also 60 ships is the number of hives in within atlantis's sensor range, we don't know how far that is?

Ancients are weak! They have amazing technology but they are arrogent. They assume that there technology is all-powerful and that no-one no matter how many ships they have can beat them.

Ancients are pacifists. They would rather run than fight and take a risk

Wraith have been in hibernation for 10,000 years? They are just getting re-ajusted to their own tech. ( Basiclly what Exiled Master said )

Thats just my opinion anyways

[Ouroboros]

The Wraith you're seeing now are the product of 10,000 years of uncontested dominion over the galaxy and a prolonged situation that required them to hibernate for vast stretches of time or collectively starve to death.

The whole species has been in a backslide for millenia. The Wraith you see now are far removed from the glory days when they beat up on the ancients.

As a species they're barely just holding on.

[thekillman]

they dont see us as a real threat. if they did we had over 60 hives knocking on our door. plus, they have a food shortage. and they dont have as much hives as they had. in a war they woulodve had way over 60, maybe a few hundred hives. comparing to goauld motehrships is bad, these ships are way bigger

[from_orion]

What I wonder is why the wraith believed that atlantis had been destroyed 10,000 years ago. That has been stated. Before I Sleep suggests that the wraith do know that atlantis still exists after it sunk. Perhaps they think it is destroyed because, since Janus closed incoming connections to everywhere but earth, they could no longer open a wormhole to atlantis.