Sarissa The sarissa or sarisa ( ) was a 4 to 7 meter ( 13 – 21 feet ) long spear used in the ancient Greek and Hellenistic warfare . It was introduced by Philip II of Macedon and was used in the traditional phalanxes of Philip II of Macedon as a replacement for the earlier dory , which was considerably shorter . The phalanxes of Philip II of Macedon were known as Macedonian phalanx es . The word remained in use throughout the Byzantine years to sometimes describe the long spears of the Byzantine infantry . Composition and utility . The sarissa , made of tough and resilient cornel wood , was very heavy for a spear , weighing approximately for a sarissa and approximately for an sarissa . It had a sharp iron head shaped like a leaf and a bronze butt - spike that would allow it to be anchored to the ground to stop charges by enemy soldiers . The butt - spike served to balance out the spear , making it easier for soldiers to wield . The butt - spike could be used as a back - up point should the main one break . The sheer bulk and size of the spear required the soldiers to wield the spear with both hands , allowing them to carry only a 24 inch shield ( pelta ) suspended from the neck to cover the left shoulder . Its great length — up to eighteen feet in two lengths joined by a central bronze tube — was an asset against hoplite s and other soldiers bearing shorter weapons , because they had to get past the sarissas to engage the phalangites . However , outside the tight formation of the Phalanx the sarissa was useless as a weapon and a hindrance on the march . Tactics . Complicated training ensured that the phalanx wielded their sarissas in unison , swinging them vertically to wheel about , then lowering them to the horizontal . The uniform swish of the sarissas daunted the Illyrian hill tribesmen against whom the young Alexander fought in an expedition early in his reign . The sarissa - bearing phalanx would usually march to battle in open formation to facilitate movement . Before the charge , it would tighten its files to close formation or even compact formation ( synaspismos ) . The tight formation of the phalanx created a " wall of pikes " , and the pike was so long that there were fully five rows of them projecting in front of the front rank of men — even if an enemy got past the first row , there were still four more to stop him . The back rows bore their pikes angled upwards in readiness , which served the additional purpose of deflecting incoming arrow s . The Macedonian phalanx was considered invulnerable from the front , except against another such phalanx ; the only way it was ever generally defeated was by breaking its formation or outflanking it . History of use . The invention of the sarissa is credited to Philip II , father of Alexander the Great . Philip drilled his soldiers , whose morale was at first low , to use these formidable pikes with two hands . The new tactic was unstoppable , and by the end of Philip ' s reign the previously fragile kingdom of Macedon , once of the Hellenised periphery , controlled the whole of Greece , and Thrace . His son , Alexander , used the new tactic across Asia , conquering Egypt , Persia and the Pauravas ( northwest India ) , victorious all the way . The sarissa - wielding phalanxes were vital in every early battle , including the pivotal battle of Gaugamela where the Persian king ' s scythe chariots were utterly destroyed by the phalanx , supported by the combined use of companion cavalry and peltast s ( javelineers ) . During his later campaigning , Alexander gradually reduced the importance of the phalanx and the sarissa , as he modified his combined use of arms to incorporate ' Asian ' weapons and troops , not specifically trained in Hellenistic battle tactics . The sarissa , however , remained the backbone for every subsequent Hellenistic , and especially Diadochi army . The Battle of Raphia between the Seleucids and Ptolemy IV may represent the pinnacle of sarissa tactics , when only an elephant charge seemed able to disrupt the opposing phalanx . The Successor Kingdoms of Macedon ' s empire tried expanding upon the design , creating pikes as long as , but all of these ideas were eventually abandoned in favor of the battle - tried Philipine - Alexandrian sarissa . Battles often ended up stalemated in what Oliver Cromwell later described as " the terrible business of push of pike " . Subsequently , a lack of training and too great a reliance on the Phalanx instead of the combined use of arms ( Alexander ' s and Philip ' s great contributions ) led to the final defeat of Macedon by the Romans at the Battle of Pydna . Part of the reason for the rapid deterioration of the sarissa ' s ability was that , after Alexander , generals ceased to protect phalanxes with cavalry and light - armed troops , and phalanxes were destroyed too easily by flank attacks owing to the sarissa ' s tactical unwieldiness . The sarissa was gradually replaced by variations of the gladius as the weapon of choice . Only Pyrrhus of Epirus was able to maintain a high standard of tactical handling with armies based around the sarissa , but with the dawn of the manipular system , even he struggled for his victories .