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If they had to go in, which according to Roman tactics they wouldn't, they would just move to the sides, throw the spears, then reform. The flaming mass of FSA would a) not unite because lootz yo, b) barely hold a GED never mind understand tactics, c) would run after the first person is skewered. Yea you could sit around in the imaginary dump truck trying to run over people but Romans weren't stupid. If I transported you into Star Trek you would be awed but you wouldn't get retarded and forget that you can run into the ally to escape a hovercar.

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I still don't know how you figure a large unit in a box formation suddenly moves to the sides to avoid a speeding dump truck when there are buildings on either side of the street.  Or that the dump truck has this thing called a steering wheel, and can quickly adjust to crush a shit ton of those soldiers hemmed on either side.



Also, underestimating your enemy is the ultimate folly.  A lot of those hippy douchebags protesting out there were educated, and I guarantee you, some were veterans (because some just swig that way.)  Don't assume for a second that they would be nothing but a mindless rabble incapable of any level of organization or tactics.



And that rabble holds a significant technology advantage both in communications and improvisable weapons.

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Let's recap what I'm stating. A cohort of Roman legionaires marches into a intersection of Ferguson to confront rioters. They are in a line formation, with all the small unit leaders and best fighters in the front ranks. Their entire system revolves are maintained unit integrity, IE. Not running away as a group. Panic turns cohesive units into a massive group of individuals, running away.    

Now the 1st time the Romans encountered elephants against Pyrhhus the Epirote, they routed. Natural, since an elephant is a pretty formidable opponent, though not too hard to turn away using trained and disciplined troops who know how to stop it. However, a dump truck has a few things over a war elephant. One, it has no mind of its own, so wont panic. Two, it doesn't bleed and is made of metal, so javelins and sling stones probably aren't going to do jack shit to it. More so, it is far heavier and can move much faster, meaning it can slam into the front rank of a Roman formation (or better yet, at an oblique angle), taking out all the ranks of a century, push right through the front battle line and then slam through the second or third ranks in the echelon. Lastly, since the Romans never encountered anything like a massive metal motorized chariot, I seriously doubt they would already have a preplanned method for fighting them. Besides which, the openning files techniques only worked with horses and elephants but animals will only choose an opening to run through versus a wall of spears, javelins, swords and shields. Trucks don't get scared and the driver isn't going to veer off, instead, he's going to purposely aim his 50,000 lb truck into the section of the line that has the most people, the most standards, and the most important looking people.

Now even the biggest Roman army fanboi (and I'm one of them) has to admit that this is going to be pretty effective. When the Roman formation of 80ish soldiers, fighting in a 10x8 or 20x4 rank and file formation, whose best defense is a plywood shield and thin metal helmet and curaiss, gets a dump truck to run through it, killing or mangling everyone its hits, without even really slowing down, followed by hordes of screaming barbarians throwing magic fireballs (molotov cocktails) and using thunder sticks (pistols and rifles) that make centurions and tribunes fall down dead, that force would end up killing half its numbers when they trample one another to run away.

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The hood rats would run after first volley of spears. Stand their ground----no.

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It isn't like the Roman legions never broke ranks and ran.  I think it is very reasonable to think that when faced with a completely foreign technology, one that seems to magically kill you from a distance and is fucking loud to boot, would cause them to do so.  Especially when only a few can wield such weapons and quickly mow down the first rank.  And again, no Roman ever saw a one and a half ton truck plow into the line at a speed they couldn't even comprehend.  That'll likely make even the most hardened legion break rank and GTFO.

And again, the rioters weren't just the opportunistic looters looking for free shit.  There were some definite agitators present.  If set upon not by riot police with just non-lethal weapons, but a legion sent in to kill, I suspect they'd fight back with more than just throwing rocks and breaking windows.

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That would give the rioters an undeniable force multiplier but you'd be naive if you think that men who had fought and marched and killed and watched people die appallingly all their lives would just break formation and run away with the first casualty. As if they never faced war elephants, war dogs, incendiary pigs, scythed chariots, horse archers and cataphracts, balista and onagers, blue celts fighting naked and high on druid potions, northern berserkers in uncontrollable bloodlust trance and battle-axes that cleave man and horse in two. War, killing and dying was their business and they were its professionals.

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Point is though, it only take s a few to turn the advantage to the protesters.  One guy decides to hop in a truck and plow into the Romans, and the entire tide of battle shifts.  A few more protesters quickly see how their technological advantage is insurmountable, and pretty soon you have a potential rout on.

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Or, because of their habit of rapine they would introduce a formerly unknown gonorrhea and the pro Michael crowd would be dead after a few years anyway.

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If a Roman broke formation, they most likely would die anyway. The Romans were not a forgiving bunch. You have nothing to gain by breaking formation.

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Most people don't realize this.  Rome failed a lot.  One of the their strong suits was persistence and resources.  Raise more legions, go try again.



ETA, let us not forget, they had to take several cracks at quelling a slave rebellion (Spartacus).  And none of those slaves had access to dump trucks and guns.

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Actually, it would go the opposite. All current living human ancestors were exposed to whatever veneral diseases the Romans would have. Meanwhile, we got a whole shitload of stuff they've never had. The first time a protester sneezes on one of them would see half their camp dead.  

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Hell, they'd just drink another quart of grape vinegar and keep  on fighting.

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It would take 15 minutes to teach the legionaires not to rob, rape, and murder the instructor that's supposed to teach them how to use a rifle. Then it would take them about 2 weeks for them to come to terms with concepts such as guns, gun powder, electricity, etc. Lots of suicides. You'd go through about four instructors during that period, as the pissed off barbarians would lose control and kill the people that say things that counter what they believe about the world. The first person who plays Richard Dawkins/Its Cool to Shit on People's Beliefs and poopoos their pantheon of religions is going to get crucified.


Meanwhile, the officers will be having drinking binge parties every night and during the day will be in the surrounding National Wildlife Areas around Missouri hunting white tail.

The worst modern African warlord scum would still do better learning new methods of warfare than a typical Roman soldier.
 

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That video is more choreographed than dancing with the stars. Let's see how the South Koreans do against an actual group of people who aren't fucking around, not OPFOR.    

This is more of how a Roman fight would go:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=bgcwkNLY814#!

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If you want to play this game, imagining a fully armed Roman Legion is going to quell a riot, then it goes both ways. Rioters don't mean unarmed people. As it is in real life, they have molotov cocktails, guns, and other stuff. Most have things like cars. The only reason they didn't drive them into the cops, or shoot at the cops with more guns, is because of the issues of the modern police and Nat'l Guard going Kent State on their asses.

It seems the point of this thread is to jerk off to ideas of rioters getting pinned with pilum and gutted with swords. But that's bullshit. First, modern police are far deadlier than a Roman legion and are only held back by ROEs. Second, the Legion itself would likely get their asses handed up on a platter when they encounter weapons and field expedient tactics that would to them seem like magic and be far deadlier than a spear, javelin, stone, or sword.

Lastly, if you think a 50 mph truck is going to stop instantly because a lucky javelin hit one of its tires, it might be you who is retarded. Momentum would carry it though the entire battle line. Followed up with two or three others, battles fucking over right there. Luckily, modern rioters wouldn't have a means of chasing down and killing the fleeing soldiers (who'd toss their weapons and armor), at least not too many. The surviving Romans would run back to their camp which would then be bombarded with molotov cocktails launched by bungee cords, which would light all their tents on fire. Freezing and without shelter or weapons, with lots of their leadership being splattered messes on the highways, they'd surrender and the rioters would turn them into slaves...
 

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Are you referring to posca? If so, it had some mild antiseptic and antibacterial properties from the acidic vinegar, but its not going to stop their dicks from falling off. Or the various cold, flus, and other shit from killing them in large numbers.  

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No organzied group did anything except steal wigs and burn buildings. They didn't firebomb the police, because they knew the consequences. They didn't shoot. They didn't ambush. They didn't find trucks to drive through the lines. They didn't make molotov slingshots.



They ran. They ran away quickly, they scattered like cockroaches, and the few people who caused problems got dealt with quickly. The only difference is that the Romans aren't going to sit and bash away stones and bottles being thrown without throwing some javelins in return, if not outright charging the group.



There's more chances of a Roman Legion coming through a time warp then organized FSA resistance.