Me too. Hoplites I call hoplites. ;)
Putting guard mode off makes the phalanxes less impenetrable and they get fatigued and thus take more casualties afaik. I do this to actually "simulate" a more realistic battle between pike phalanxes. Since in the long term I'll probably lose against the AI phalanx (being in guard mode by default) I'll have to win on the flanks to decide the battle, which afaik is the usual strategy in Successor warfare. Kind of my own personal Successor warfare battle house rule.