A question has been roaming in my mind for pretty long: how to show better that professional troops are a better choice and worth the price?
After some thinking I got a possible answer: Upgrades.
Very few kingdoms of the era had vast armouries from where to draw for the whole army in case of need, most armies of the era had to provide for their own gear at their own expense.
Weapons and armour in most case were supplied only to the elites and this means that the average grunt didn't really have the opportunity to upgrade his own weaponry even when better choices could be available (after all, would you shave off a year of salary for a slightly better armour or sword?) and also they were not supposed to serve all year around...
What I propose is: Let's restrict upgrades mostly to professional/elite troops (cavalry and few infantry with maybe the exception of carthage) and if possible let's also have an experience cap on militias (no more gold chevron sparabara that can repel full stacks of elites).
This way the player won't abuse some cheap tactics and instead starts shoveling real money for armies and border garrisons, limiting the strong surplus cash effect once you got over 10 territories.
What do you think?