03-12-2014, 02:28 PM
Regarding the issue of tactics alone - since I do not hold myself knowledgeable enough to constructively participate in the discussion about the changes themselves in the Roman army in the said period (I am currently studying relevant sources in depth but there is still much to read before I can voice opinions) -, it is my belief that tactics in the ancient world did change, were very varied and adjusted to a multitude of situations BUT I also support, that the basic, underlying mechanisms that determined them remained more or less unchanged for thousands of years. The argument about the sword being a sword and a spear a spear is valid and, to my opinion, can be used as a basis for speculation and theories. However, it is only a brick in the wall of tactics. The way these basic elements were used according to circumstances were complex and should not be oversimplified as this argument seems to suggest.
