John,
My experience of wasps around beehives is likely rather more limited than yours, but my experience thus far is that the wasps will attack and destroy any colony which is not strong enough to repel them.
I am lucky, or sensible enough, to sort out my developing colonies such that they are strong when the wasps become a problem. If any are attacked and unable to defend, they are simply absorbed into other colonies or seriusly strengthened.
I have lost colonies to wasps; only the one (I think, completely) but several by having to unite before the ultimate destruction of the colony. I learned early on that wasp attack, once they have unfettered access to the hive, will continue unless some appropriate action is taken.
The one I remember losing was closed down entrance-wise, moved to another site and it still succumbed. I was told by an experienced beek exactly what would happen , and it did. Since then, action is taken at the earliest opportunity if I see wasps entering and not being carried out. Not yet had my strongest colony savaged by wasps; that would worry me! Yes, I have had wasp traps out in force previously; this year they have not been needed. I am sorry if my post did make it clear to you that it was this year I was recounting. Nor did I say it was the sure fire cure for wasp attack - I used the term 'less likely to bee predated'.
Let's keep it all in context; the stronger the colony the less likely the problem with wasps, all other things like sensible entrances, no access through gaps between ill-fitting boxes, etc being equal.
The group this does not help are those with only one or a couple of not-too-strong colonies. But that is experience for the new beeks with late nucs with lots of stores but fewer than ideal extra bees.
RAB