True20/Gladiator
From The unofficial Dark Sun wiki
- "I might be a slave, but I am famous, I dine well, and my company is that of the finest noble women. Tell me, what do you have that I do not, slave trader – except the freedom to feel miserable?"
- -- Jarek, arena champion
The arena is the battlefield of the gladiator. From hand-to-hand combat in the mud pits of small forts to the grand games of the city-states, the gladiator is a warrior who fights to the sounds of people cheering his name or cursing his presence. A master of crowd control and the art of prolonged combat, gladiators are trained to fight. They train to best wild beasts in deadly games for the amusement of the masses. They fight for glory, wealth, prestige and power. They fight to survive. Some are merely slaves, having to fight and perhaps hoping to win a chance to obtain freedom, while some fight willingly for the thrill of combat or the promise of riches and fame.
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[edit] Game rule information
- Combat 4
- Skill 0.5 (2)
- Saving throw 0.25 Good fort and reflex, normal will
- Power 0
- Feats +1 bonus feat ever 4th level
- Core Ability:
- Key Ability Score: Strength
- Recommended starting skills: Acrobatics, Climb, Intimidate, Jump, Survival
- Recommended starting feats: Canny Dodge, Exotic Weapon Training (choose one), Improved Feint, Shield Training, Toughness
[edit] Adventures
Most gladiators adventure rarely, since the biggest crowds and highest payoffs are in the citystates. Many gladiators are owned by nobles or templars, and must obey their masters or face the deadly sting of the lash. Gladiators that are owned by a master are usually not allowed to adventure; they are worth too much to be simply let loose. Freed gladiators may join bands of adventurers to search for treasure or riches, or perhaps simply for a place to lie down after a long, bloody career. Some freed gladiators may simply travel from city-state to city-state, hoping to join great games in return for rich pay or social status. Escaped gladiators adventure to escape their master, punishment or death.
[edit] Characteristics
Gladiators are among the best one-on-one fighters in all the Tablelands. They are trained in hand-to-hand combat before moving on to the use of exotic weapons of the arena. They learn to improvise weapons, wielding broken bones or wooden shafts with deadly precision. They learn how to taunt and tease opponents, driving them to reckless acts and taking advantage of the situation to strike down or maim a foe. After all, a long, drawn-out combat is more a crowd pleaser than a ten second bout. Alignment: Gladiators are of all alignments. Some gladiators will obey all arena rules, being lawful individuals, though these often do not last long in the arena. Many gladiators tend toward a chaotic alignment. Evil gladiators use dirty tricks to gain an advantage over an opponent. Gladiators of all alignments can become crowd favorites, increasing their chances of winning their matches, since often times these matches are prearranged. The intrigues of the city-states can reach deep into the arena.
[edit] Religion
Gladiators have no special religion of their own. Some may worship the sorcerer-king of the citystate they are in, while some few may worship the elemental forces. Often, the hard life of training and combat leaves the gladiator with little to think of except survival.
[edit] Background
Most gladiators are slaves, owned by nobles or templars, or even merchant houses. They are either born into slavery and trained as gladiators, or captured by slavers and sold to nobles or templars for the public’s amusement. Some rare individuals join the gladiatorial ranks willingly, seeking fame or fortune. Gladiators do not assemble in guilds or unions of any sort. They may have one or two fighting partners, or matched pairs, but this group of trusted individuals is very small. Gladiators that are owned by others often become unwillingly involved in the intrigues of the city-states. Their master may have made a new enemy, and the gladiator becomes a pawn in struggles of power. Often used to send a message to his owner, the gladiator’s life may be at stake for fault of his master.
[edit] Races
All races of Athas can be found in the arenas of the Tablelands. Muls, with their mixed dwarven and human parentage, are highly prized in the arenas. They are often bought for a high price and treated well in return for victory on the combat floor. Elves are often used for their swiftness and natural flair for taunting their opponent. Humans are the most common of gladiators, since humans are the most common race in the Tablelands. Halflings make poor gladiators, since they abhor slavery and will usually starve themselves to death rather than being used as commodities by anyone. The savage races of the wastes are often used as gladiators, usually as fodder for the most successful gladiators, though those demonstrating excellent combat prowess receive formal training.
[edit] Other Classes
Gladiators tend to think of themselves as the superior warriors of the Tablelands, sometimes to the point of arrogance. In a sense, though, they are right. Gladiators receive training in one-on-one combat, and the use of anything they can find as a weapon. However, a group of trained fighters fighting in concert is certainly a match for a bunch of gladiators, who are unused to fighting in groups. Like most people of Athas, gladiators have a deep distrust of magic, and tend to shun wizards. They view clerics as nothing more than healers, people who put their faith in abstract things rather than a sharp blade.
