Balanced Units - A minimal balance mod for units

Buffing an ability doesn't fit the concept of minimal changes; it's not the kind of thing where, to balance two creatures, you have to make edits in ten different places. And it's strange to buff an ability of a unit that is being weakened. Currently, the choice is between the following options:
1) remove the armor penetration, leaving only the knockback effect
2) reduce the damage from 8-9 to 5-7
Simultaneously increase the initiative of archmages to 11 (in both options).