А вот эти представления Вашего друга, несмотря на которые Вы пытались убедить
в обратном. Короче, с самого начала надо было на Вегеция и Аммиана с Коннолли ссылаться.
Ниже цитата с Вашей ссылки. (Умора)
Last, arms; Main sidearm of the infantryman was the Contus (lance, spear), which could be between 1.9 and 2.7 metres long. Most battles were fought with this weapon. The spatha (longsword) was the sidearm for the infantry as well as the cavalry. Contrary to convention I wore mine at the time on the right hip, because when marching it constantly banged into the scutum (shield). This was very bothersome, and I had still to find out why it apparently did not hinder the ancient infantryman. But see below.
New in the armoury were the plumbatae (lead-weighted throwing darts). These were not hurled horizontally like modern darts, but rather hurled underarm with great speed in a wide arch. That way, they were intended to land vertically on top of the enemy, who stood little chance due to the speed, weight and penetration power of these things. I have attempted a reconstruction of how these darts could have been carried, which can be seen above.