Reworking the mercenary and factional status...

[Arjos]

Yeah, kopis at best has 10 attack...
In the end an elite kopis is like a kardaka longsword: awful :D

[Brave Brave Sir Robin]

True, I don't think the kopis attack ratings were changed once AP was taken away. If we were going to keep them without ap, perhaps 0.2 with an attack bonus of +2 would be better?

Though I have to say I was never disappointed in the performance of Samnites or Pedites Extraordinarii. Perhaps the Thorakitai Hoplitai problem is rather one of spear/sword units. I've always found Mori Gaesum to be under performing as well. And Kardaka longsword deserves its own tier of awfulness along with the Babylonian mace. 8 attack? Gross.

[Arjos]

Gaesum are fine imo, and I'd prefer the kopis with AP instead...

[The Celtic Viking]

I don't know that I prefer kopis with ap, or at least not as they were before as they did use to be a little OP.

In any case, I doubt it's anything to do with spear/sword and I think GG2 was more likely correct when he said it was an animation issue. I did make another quick test though, which I will equally quickly grant as imperfect since it was vs AI and with general units, however, what I did was to give Samnitici Milites the stats and formation of Thorakitai Hoplitai. The only difference was the javelins, though I changed to 1 volley and 1 attack (since they shouldn't get that advantage, and the result was they killed none with javs). The Samnitici Milites got their asses kicked, killed 20 and lost 71. Went slightly better for the Milites when I controlled them, though that was because the stupid AI kept disengaging and recharging (something it didn't do with the Milites), which is when the Milites did their extra kills (amongst them the Milnaht general... sigh...). Until they started doing that, however, the Milnaht were doing just the same as they had when I controlled them, and they still won in the end.