Quote Originally Posted by Drewman
The problem that many people have found is that on guard mode the phalanx unit does not properly "engage" the enemy unit that hits it. There often is no animation of spear/pike thrusts and the enemy unit takes no casulaties.
I use Guard mode all the time for my phalanx units and my victories are still lopsided. I don't see what the problem is. I rarely tell a phalanx unit to actively engage the enemy by clicking on the enemy unit. I usually put them in phalanx mode and tell them to move to a spot beyond the enemy unit. Once enough of their spears come into contact with the enemy I hit Stop to keep them from 'morphing' and walking around the enemy unit. Since they're in Guard mode their formation stays nice and neat while they poke away.