Could Hogwarts likely win in a war against the U.S. military or an alien invasion?

[OwenBurton]

Could Hogwarts (or the Wizarding World as a whole) theoretically win in a full-scale war against the U.S. military, or an alien invasion from a technologically advanced extraterrestrial race? If both sides used all their resources against each other, in a real conflict, holding nothing back? What do you personally think? What would the outcome of such a clash ultimately be, most likely?

[Val the Moofia Boss]

You should visit Spacebattles or the Sietch. They do indepth versus debates all the time.

OT: Wasn't it said in the books that the wizarding world would lose a war with the muggles? Hence why they try to remain hidden away? It's also why they maintain good relations with the muggle government of Britain.

For all of the powers of the wizards, they are overwhelmingly, hugely, ludicrously, outnumbered. The difference is so large it's not even funny. Even if Hogwarts was able to kill 20 US soldiers per wizard, they'd still lose. Not only are they ridiculously outnumbered, they are at an overwhelming logistical disadvantage and an insurmountable technological disadvantage.

Modern military doctrine is to have infantry forces pin down enemy forces with suppressing fire while your air units are on the way, and then obliterate your enemy with overwhelming aerial firepower. Infantry forces need not actually be able to win against the muggles, just gotta keep the muggles tied up and then bomb them. Sure, the muggles might be able to blow up a few incoming missiles, but with the US' overwhelming advantage in numbers, they're just going to keep hurling bombs and all it takes is for just one of them to get through. And that's not counting the plethora of other ways to kill the wizards, such as with gas or biological weapons.

I doubt a war would happen between muggle governments and wizards, though. Wizards are to useful to wipe out. I think that the status quo of the Harry Potter world would be perpetuated: muggle governments are aware of the wizards, but let them be because fighting them is too much of a hassle for little to no gain, and the government can always call upon the wizards within their domain to help out with whatever. So there is no war.


As for aliens, I don't know. There are many different variations in aliens. If aliens reached Earth, they might be far more powerful than the US. It is also possible that the alien(s) could also be extremely vulnerable. It's just too vague.

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To go further, we have to define what "winning" is.

Is winning the occupation and conquest of enemy territory? In which case, the US will "win". It will eventually find Hogwarts and other wizard structures and either destroy or capture them. The wizards, ofcourse, would never be able to conquer and occupy all of America.

Is "winning" the destruction of the enemy state in it's totality? Then no, then neither side will "win". Ofcourse, the wizards have no hope of destroying the US as a state. As for the US, it will turn into guerilla warfare, where the US can ostensibly capture and hold major settlements like Hawker's Alley or Hogwarts, but there will be an insurgency and there will be guerillas running a government in exile that the US will never be able to stamp out.

[Blueobelisk]

I have to imagine the wizards would be able to hide somewhere using magic and then develop some magic charms to keep themselves safe from air strikes and bullets and being able to not be found. I think they'd survive.

If they had initiative then I think the wizards could make their way into human society and destroy it from the inside. It's not like wizards look different from muggles.

[callipygoustp]

Never read any of the books or seen any of the movies but I still know enough, definitively, that Hogwarts would destroy the U.S. military and/or an alien invasion.

[Shadowferal]

The wizarding world has force fields, and teleportation. They can also transmogrify matter and energy with a wave of a wand. Controlling world leaders from the shadows would be appallingly easy.

[OwenBurton]

The wizarding world has force fields, and teleportation. They can also transmogrify matter and energy with a wave of a wand. Controlling world leaders from the shadows would be appallingly easy.

Perhaps, but their powers have limits -- for example, wizards seem to rely on reflexes and instincts for their battles, which arguably cannot compare with for example the rapid-fire technology of America's military and an alien superweapon. Remember, they were forced into hiding by the intense persecutions in the first place, and apparently some lost their lives even in ancient times.

[Shadowferal]

Perhaps, but their powers have limits -- for example, wizards seem to rely on reflexes and instincts for their battles...

And muggles don't?
Or don't shootouts exist in your paradigm?