Elder Scrolls V: "Soon"

[ReluctantSamurai]

And great swords also have the range bonus.

I don't believe they do. According to the weapon stats I've seen, all swords, short or long, have a reach of 1.0. Spears and staffs have a reach of 1.8 which means either get the first strike if you are not surprised. For a short list (I had a complete list somewhere but cannot find it at the moment), look here:

http://www.uesp.net/morrow/hints/mwartifacts.shtml

In addition, spears can reach over obstacles like rocks, so I can hit something that in all likelihood, cannot hit back (a tactic I use quite frequently early in the game when my character is not fully developed), and can reach up and "touch" those PITA cliff racers before they can hit me, if they mange to close in past my archery.

And switching weapons in combat being such a pain in Morrowind, best to have the weapon you intend on using the whole slugfest equipped from the start.

I agree, but I have a six-button mouse...and it's a simple thing to assign a button to weapon-switch. I've learned to do all my looting after I've killed all the baddies, so I'm not carrying excess weapons.

So beyond that first strike they are useless.

As I stated earlier, with a Spear skill at 100, and a Strength rating around 175, that first strike is often all I need. At least 50% of the time my opponent is lying helpless on the ground;-)

Hence polearms in an ES game are useless. Too dificult to use and completely redundant.

Obviously, I disagree, but hey, to each their own. I love them, make them one of my mainstays, and make it a point to get to Ghostgate as early as I can survive the journey to get my first Glass Halberd.