Question about the Roman \'wedge formation\'

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Well, I'm not sure I would go that far myself. If the centuries were all formed up as individual wedges, they would penetrate
th mass of unorganized and demoralised Britons quite rapidly...and remember, its only the following troops who have to negotiatre a pile of bodies, the leading edges will be cutting virgin flesh, mostly. I wouldn't rule it out....a saw of steel against soft wood with only the odd hard knot of armoured opposition.

I think we're getting into a circular discussion here. If the "saw tooth" is possibly the staggered line as mentioned above, it must be a different formation to a wedge as a wedge has a distinct "point" as discussed earlier in the thread. A wedge is clearly offensive as a means of battering through a line of the enemny. Whether each century formed a wedge and then, added together made a "saw tooth" is perhaps where we started this discussion. It would require very clear orders and practice to do this manoeuvre in the heat of battle.

And I think if the "saw tooth" was based on anything, it would be based on the century as a cohort wedge would require a formation as the point (the "point " century in modern terms), with the remainder of the cohort fanning out behind it.

The wedge is found in classical references, I do not believe "saw tooth" is but it has become an enforcement of modern command and control techniques of troops on the battle field the Romans just would not have.