Have played as warspear hoplite (27-12) for 1 gen.
Here is how I see this:
Ashwood Pike:Benefits:
- good reach. Not too long, you can still duel (I mean hoplite dueling) a bit in battle, and not too short - you easily outreach lancers and you're also good in a clusterfuck (if I understand this word right
)
- high damage. Well, it's pretty obvious.
Drawbacks:
- no side swings, which makes duelling (even without shield) harder for you.
- can't sheath. If it's not your main weapon and you have a sidearm, you will automatically drop your weapon on the ground until you pick it up again when switching to your sidearm.
War spearBenefits:
- good reach. You're far better in duel, because with lower reach you don't have to backpeddle and backjump too much (I mean duelling with shield), you can still kill lancers with a bit footwork and timing, though it becomes a bit risky anyway with only 150. Also you might feel a lack of reach when you support your teammates in fight if you have low athletics.
- side swings. When in battle you happen to fight 1 vs 1, sideswings are priceless.
- can sheath. Though i think you don't need it much, I believe warspear is the best spear for hoplite without sidearm, in that case you won't need to sheath it.
- a bit more speed comparing with Ashwood Pike
Drawbacks:
- Probably a bit low reach for most effective support in battle.
- A bit less damage comparing with Ashwood Pike.
After all, as a conclusion, I vote for str builds (24-15, 27-12) and War Spear
