User blog comment:Thedoucheinthenorth/The Civil War - Why it is great/@comment-1600847-20121105205454/@comment-1600847-20121107222830

In theory, both the Empire and Hammerfell "defeated" the Dominion. The Empire defeated its armies, while Hammerfell, as you and I have already discussed many times, did not. It just caused so much grief for the Thalmor that they withdrew.

Example: Afghanistan did not defeat the Soviet Union, it just caused so much trouble that they withdrew.

If you really think that Skyrim could defeat the Thalmor alone, imagine the US invading Mexico, or Russia invading Thailand, or China invading Japan. They would fail. Sure, they would fight valiantly and nobly and all that jazz, but they'd lose. They stand a much better chance if they fight with the Empire.