Sylvania

Victor and i have identified quite a few changes and additions to 'Munera Sine Missione', so I thought I'd start a single gladiator campaign, and run it in the few (very few) spare moments I'm expecting to get this weekend.

It didn't work out quite the way I'd hoped.

I ran Sylvania, who is the lightest of light gladiators; no armour, a long spear and a lasso. She started with no skills, of course.

Under my campaign rules she could only face medium or heavy gladiators, so I selected a pool of six of each to draw from. They would get a random number of skills.

Her first opponent was the spear-wielding Spicula. Spicula had one skill - Agile. This enables her to reroll a AP roll of '1', and is a nasty one for a gladiator who relies on speed to face since your opponent is never going to be completely wrong-footed.

Sylvania started well, dodging around Spicula and hitting her with the lasso twice. Once it simply knocked Spicula's spear away, although she recovered it, but the second hit saw her entangled. However Sylvania couldn't finish off her opponent, who blocked follow-up attacks with her armour. Eventually she escaped the lasso and went on the offensive, wearing down her lighter foe, wounding her and leaving her so exhausted that she quit and appealed to the crowd. They were merciful, but only barely.

Her second opponent was the thraex Lucius. He not only had the agile skill, but also had defence, so Sylvania was going to be really up against it.

Lucius outfought her from the word go. She couldn't catch him with her lasso, and eventually he got in close and gave her a nasty wound, slowing her and leaving her vulnerable to a run of attacks which pushed her against the arena wall. At that point Lucius ran her through, killing her outright.

So, a couple of quick fights, but a short career for Sylvania. I'm tempted to try a heavier gladiator in a campaign setting next.