Epirus

[DecimusCaesar]

I think the Velites were a real nuisance to Pyrrhus and his men (to any Phalanx based army as well) because the pila would stick to the shields rendering them too heavy, which meant that the Pezhetairoi had to drop them, becoming more vulnerable. They also broke up the Phalanx leaving gaps for the Hastati to leak through and therefore destroy the formation.

 

If the Romans had plenty of missile troops they could have destroyed the Phalanx. Seeing as Velites were the poorest warriors of the Maniplular army, the Romans could have probably fielded a lot of them, causing massive damage to any Hellenistic army that attempted to invade Roman soil.

[Kosmo]

Pyrrhus had a serious problem when tring to control Southern Italy and Sicilly. He was welcomed by the greeks when the enemy was strong and hated after he defeated the enemy.

The citizens of Tarent realized they had to choose between being the subjects of Pyrhus or Rome. In this case no wonder that many disliked him. They opposed Rome to defend their freedom and they lost it to the one that helped them (before WW2 Poland refused soviet "help" against Germany for the same reason)

So, he could create his western hellenistic empire only if he was strong enough to do it without and against the local greeks. He also had to face the roman army that had a crushing superiority in numbers. Not to mention carthaginians and their strong navy. He came to Tarent with less then 30.000 men and was faced by 80.000 romans divided in several armies.

His chances were slim and he did a great job against overwhelming odds.

[Antiochus of Seleucia]

Pyrrhus won most of his battles because of his elephants and lost the war because of the awesome determination of the Roman people.

 

Hannible holds him in high regard because he was said to be the first to utilize night camps/fortlets. He wrote a book on military strategy but it has been lost to the ages.