More effective, rather than "better". I think that your average Lunar soldier may or may not be as dangerous as your average Orlanthi in one on one, but is certainly a lot better trained at being a soldier - an orderly chain of command and rigid battle tactics is hardly the Orlanthi style, but it does help a lot with winning wars.
When Orlanthi do get themselves organised, they can be just as formidable or even more so (i.e. the Sartar Free Army is smaller than the Lunar army it opposes, but does pretty well), but it is rare and unusual for this to happen - it generally takes leaders like Argrath or Harrek.
>Also, the very best Lunar units are doubtless better than the very
>best Orlanthi.
Actually, the very best on both sides are barely human anymore, and really outside the realm of discussion (i.e. Full Moon Corps, Stormwalkers). But when comparing the elite, but generally mundane, troops, the Lunars do indeed have the edge. I believe the best Dragon Pass units (excluding magical ones) are the elite of the Imperial Bodyguard, such as the Bloodspillers. And the units that come closest to them on the Sartarite side are not even Sartarite - they are Argraths units of Praxians (Twin Spears, Bullocks, etc.).
> All that said, the quality of the Lunar army does NOT
>explain their persistent victories over almost all opponents, because
>not all (or even most) opponents are _not_ Orlanthi.
I tend to think that it is their magic that is the real key. Magic alone does not win battles, but it can be very decisive if used intelligently, and the Lunars use their magical superiority to its greatest advantage.
Note that only opponents able to compete with them for magical organisation, power, and innovation (Argrath, Sheng) really give them trouble.
Cheers
David
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