This is a rather interesting debate, because I have been an exclusive Romani player since I started playing EB and in the countless campaigns I have played, I have honestly reached the Marian Reforms less than five times and have never reached the Imperial Reforms.

It's simple, most die-hard Roman players have never legitimately reached that stage, so why miss something you've never seen. The real question is why have so few been able to reach the Imperial reforms without cheating, losing their minds, or having Ptolemy be the only enemy left on the map by the time they reach it.

Why? Because although the mod is designed to be played out for hundreds of years, the AI's bloodlust against you forces many reasonable players to either win the game, or quit out of frustration, far before even the Marian (nevertheless the Imperial) reforms. This makes the Imperial reforms useless, because not only are there no real enemies left to attack, but the imperial units are just different looking Marian units. When the AI forces you to be at war on so many fronts, nonstop, without the possibility of a ceasefire, it is easy to see why so many dedicated Roman players get burned out or frustrated before they reach the Imperial Reforms.

With all of this, I would say keep it for now. Since the AI can be programmed in EBII let's wait and see what happens. Although I totally understand not having imperial reforms in EB I.