User blog comment:ShawnCognitionCP/The Empire vs Stormcloaks, the most likely answer/@comment-24728100-20140613040954

In responce to: ShawnHowellsCP

(Hammerfell succeeded. It is common military tactic to attack one enemy at a time. This is one idea why the Thalmor is benifiting from the civil war. If a full scale war emerged, bigger than the great war, the diminon would launch a force large enough to crush the Empire with ease. In terms of war and size Thalmor>Empire>Stormcloaks. Also, you forget the Diminion is as large as the Empire, yes? They both have 3 Provininces. Diminion's provininces are more diverse in typing, and would be more effective more then, being elves.

Tullius does clue toward the fight of the Thalmor.)

Hammerfell was kicked out of the empire by Emperor Titus Mede II after the Redguards of Hammerfell refused to surrender their country to the Dominion... the redguards won that fight anyway, the full force of the dominion failled to take the country despite the redguards being in the midst of a bloody civil was prior to the Aldmeri invasion and then having most of that war ravage their nation... how well would they do against two or three nations allied against them... i'm thinking bye bye dominion xD

As for the Strength of the dominion compared to the empire, just because they have territory doesn't mean they have forces. Take Valenwood for instance, the thalmor have already started purging the Bosmer populationm, all we ever see of the bosmer are a disposable servant caste to the thalmor... hardly a great allie on the battle feild. And don't think the dominion can count on the Khajiit, the thalmor caused massive strife in Elsweyr that divided the country into the two opposing nations, they are both tributaries to the dominion, but not members of it. then there is the situation in Summerset with the disidents and the Psijic order, both opposed to the Thalmor. in all likelyness they don't have much left, they lost to much in the great war, any forces they commit to war will mean the rival forces in their own nation will go that much more unchecked. they don't have limitless soldiers, the ones they do have are among the best but they were a minority at their height.