I honestly don't get the DRK hype at all, but I sure understand it's hot because of its perception... even though it doesn't get me much excited.
This however is about the merits of the coin I guess so I suppose I understand something.
Are there currently any DRK clones?, or clones in the works?
Why do you expect there should be clones in the first place?
The only thing DRK seems to add to the mix would be DarkSend. I'm not entirely sure of how it is supposed to work, but it seems to be obsoleted by private transactions as they are going to be implemented by VTC and possibly others.
Even calling X11 an "algorithm" is a strong word. It's just a mix and match of various well-known algos, none of which are suitable to the proposed goal. If you would take a look at - say - scrypt, you would figure out you could invent an "algorithm" such as X11 yourself!
