Dory

The dory was the primary thrusting spear carried by Greek hoplites and phalanx infantry from the Archaic period through the Hellenistic era, typically two to three meters long with a wooden shaft, an iron leaf-shaped spearhead, and a bronze or iron buttspike called a sauroter that could be planted in the ground or used as a secondary weapon if the shaft broke. Hoplites carried the dory in an overhand or underhand grip while locked into the tight phalanx formation, presenting a wall of spearpoints that made frontal cavalry charges difficult and gave Greek infantry its characteristic fighting style. The weapon remained standard Greek infantry equipment for centuries, eventually giving way to the much longer Macedonian sarissa under Philip II and Alexander the Great, whose armies adopted the longer pike for its greater reach in pike-phalanx warfare.