Chapter 1 - Class - Character Kits - Warrior Kits
Gladiator
The gladiator is a showman-warrior from a society where public combat
competitions are a popular sport. The gladiator is a professional warrior in this highprofile arena; for the delight (and bloodlust) of the crowds, for his own personal wealth
and aggrandizement (or, if he is a slave, for the profits of his owner), he fights organized
matches against human, demihuman, and even monstrous opponents.
There are no special ability-score requirements to be a Gladiator.
Role: - For the Gladiator to appear in a campaign, the DM must establish that at least
one culture has gladiatorial combats, and the Gladiator character must come from such a
culture. (He need not have been born there . . . but he will either have been a slave there
or, if he was a freeman, will feel like a naturalized citizen there.) A Gladiator player character can be an active gladiator in the arena, one who adventures in his free time (or
within some other context of the current adventure), or can have formerly been a
gladiator now living the life of the adventurer.
In the campaign, the Gladiator is going to be a showy, high-profile warrior. He
performs dangerous stunts in combat. He attracts the attention of crowds of admirers. He
receives a lot of credit for brave deeds whether he deserves the credit or not. A Gladiator
can be a callous brute, a dirty arena fighter with no interests other than killing his enemy
as quickly as possible and making off with his prize; or he can be a clean-limbed, heroic
figure, a hero who always fights honorably in the arena and never kills when he does not
have to.
DMs take note: a Gladiator character is not likely to be a Ranger. You can permit it if
you wish, but Rangers are very wilderness-oriented characters, and Gladiators are very
urban. A Ranger could have been captured, enslaved, trained as a Gladiator, and then
escaped—but still, the Ranger and Gladiator personalities don't seem to work together
very well. Allow this only if you really wish to.
It's up to the DM to decide whether there are female gladiators on his world. Unless his campaign is already rigidly set up to prevent it, he might as well allow it; a shegladiator character could be a very interesting one.
Secondary Skills: - The Gladiator character receives his secondary skill through
whatever means is usual for the campaign—by choice or random die-roll. This skill
probably represents the trade he learned before becoming a Gladiator.
Weapon Proficiencies: - Required: short sword (gladius), trident, net. Gladiators
should learn an even mix of normal and unusual weapons; the DM is within his rights to
insist that the Gladiator learn one strange weapon proficiency (such as whip) for every
"normal" proficiency (like sword, spear, etc.). (Also, see the Equipment chapter, under
"New Arms" and "New Armor," for weapons and armor especially appropriate to
Gladiator characters.)
Nonweapon Proficiencies: - Bonus Proficiencies: (Warrior) Charioteering, (Rogue)
Tumbling (for the combat showmanship that characterizes arena fighting).
Recommended: (General) Animal Handling, Animal Training, Etiquette, Riding (LandBased), (Warrior) Armorer, Blind-Fighting, Endurance, Gaming, Weapon-smithing,
(Priest) Healing (double slots unless Paladin).
Equipment: - The Gladiator may buy any sort of non-magical weapon or combination
of weapons before beginning play. However, he must choose his armor from the listing of
Gladiator Armor in the Equipment chapter, under "New Armors."
Special Benefits: - Gladiators, because of their intensive training, get a free Weapon
Specialization (see under "Weapon Specialization" in the 2nd Edition Player's
Handbook). This doesn't cost any of their beginning weapon proficiencies: They still get
all four of those, and get this Specialization free. It must be chosen from one of the
following weapons: bow (choice), cestus*, dagger, drusus*, lasso*, net*, scimitar, short
sword, spear, trident, and whip. (The "*" indicates a new weapon found in the Equipment
chapter.)
Special Hindrances: - Gladiators tend to be recognized—as Gladiators, at least, if not
by their own names—wherever they go. This makes it more difficult for them to do
things in secret; some troublesome NPC is always remembering "the tall, fair-haired
gladiator" who was at the scene of the action, which makes it very easy for the authorities
to follow the heroes' trail. (This is something the DM will have to enforce scrupulously if
the Gladiator is to have hindrances offsetting his benefits.)
Also, and this is strictly a role-playing consideration, promoters and managers are
always interfering in the Gladiator's life: Trying to hire him to participate in certain-death
events, to fight people the Gladiator doesn't want to fight, to force him to participate in
events taking place at the exact time the Gladiator needs to be somewhere else, etc. These
promoters will go to any length to get their way; they may blackmail the character,
kidnap his followers, use the time-honored bait of a gorgeous romantic interest (whom
the Gladiator doesn't immediately realize is an employee of the promoter), and so forth.
To make sure this is regarded as a hindrance, the DM should make it clear that these
promoters are mostly of the sleazy variety who will cheat, rob and betray him at the drop
of a hat.
Wealth Options: - The Gladiator gets the standard 5d4x10 gp to spend, and may spend
it any way he chooses (subject to the restrictions listed in "Equipment," immediately
above) or have it all unspent at the beginning of play.
Races: - Any demihuman warrior can be a Gladiator. Operators of the arenas try to acquire as many different, unusual fighters as they can, by hiring or enslaving them, and demihumans (when they can be acquired) are major attractions.
