A Simple Gladiator Campaign - Weights

In the previous post I looked at the rules for a simple gladiator campaign. This relies on there being a distinction (unhistorical, it has to be said) between Light, Medium and Heavy gladiators. So how is gladiator's weight determined? In earlier versions of MSM the weight was part of the gladiator's definition. This is not the case in v2.0 onwards.

Weight is best determined, initially, on the gladiator's starting Action Point modifier, as this is based on how much they are carrying in the way of protection.

Heavy gladiators are easy to determine - any figure with an AP modifier of 0 or less is Heavy. This will cover gladiators with light armour and a large shield, and those with heavy armour, with or without a shield of any size.

This one's Heavy for sure.

Some gladiators are obviously Light - any figure with an AP modifier of +2 is such. This covers figures with no armour, with or without a small shield.

You can't get much more Light than this.

In between are those gladiators with a +1 AP modifier, a group which covers a number of popular and common types. They will have light armour, maybe with a small shield, or no armour and a large shield. Some of these will be classed as Light, and some as Medium. As a rule of thumb I would say that any figure that has an enclosed helmet is automatically classed as Medium. I can't think of any figures that I own that have an enclosed helmet and no other armour, so this will either be gladiators with light armour and a small shield, or light armour and a weapon in each hand. Figures without an enclosed helmet are generally Light, but I would say that if they have a large shield they are treated as Medium instead.

Example: I have a number of Dimacherius figures, wielding two swords. One of these has light armour and an enclosed helmet. This gives her a save of +2 and an AP modifier of +1, but the helmet affects her ability to maneuver. She would be a Medium gladiator. Another also has light armour, but is bare-headed. His save is +1, but he also has an AP modifier of +1. He maneuvers more easily, though. He is classed as a Light gladiator.

With the ability to quickly determine weight, and the simple rules in the previous post, you should be able to play a fun series of linked games in the course of an evening. Will your stable of gladiators earn you the prestige you deserve. Or will history forget you?