Bread & Circuses: Roman Game Games

This was a kinda-wargame, kinda-RPG that I wrote almost two years ago for some game jam on Itch. It's kind of an exploration of different Roman arena games: the munus, the venatio, and the naumachia. I had taken a seminar on the Roman area that semester, and thought that it was kind of weird that there was no gladiator ruleset (or at least one of which I was aware). I myself am not really interested in super fighty games, but it seemed like a nice way to summarize some of what I had learned in my course, and to also explore certain implications of early pre-D&D games such as Braunstein.

Introduction

This game requires a couple six-sided dice and some sheets of paper. You will probably choose someone to be the munerarius, the master of ceremonies who funds and runs the gladiatorial games. This participant will narrate combat and other situations, and they will also act on behalf of characters not played by the players. Finally, they are entrusted with making speedy decisions about the course of the game.

The players may choose to duel each other's gladiators in the arena, or the munerarius may play as the contestants which the players must duel. Either way, the munerarius serves in the capacity of an impartial referee.

1. Gladiator Creation

You have six main organs.

1. Head
2. Heart
3. Left arm
4. Right arm
5. Left leg
6. Right leg

Roll 2d3 for each organ's hit points (HP). You may swap your two arms or two legs. Then decide whether you are right-handed or left-handed.

Roll d6 to determine your gladiator type.

d6	Name	Translation	Arms	Equipment
1	Diamchaerus	Dual-Wielder	2 sicae	N/A
2	Laquerius	Snarer	Fuscina, laqueus	Galerus, manica
3	Murmillo	Fishy Guy	Gladius, scutum	Cassis crista, manica, 2 ocreae
4	Retiarius	Trident-Bearer	Rete, fuscina, pugio	Galerus, manica
5	Secutor	Pursuer	Pugio, scutum	Galea secutoria, manica, 2 ocreae
6	Thraex	Thracian	Sica, parmula	Cassis crista, manica, 2 ocreae

2. Arms & Equipment

Arms are held by hand, and they are actively used in combat. They can be dropped or rendered unusable.

• Fuscina: A typical trident, far-reaching.
• Gladius: A thrusting shortsword.
• Laqueus: A throwable noose or lasso.
• Parmula: A circular shield (1 block).
• Pugio: A dagger for stabbing.
• Rete: A weighted fishing net.
• Sica: A curved shortsword, ignoring 1 block.
• Scutum: A massive body shield (2 blocks).

Although shields can be used to protect oneself from a hit, they can also serve as arms in their own right to push around opponents or cause them to drop their own arms. Similarly, weapons can be used to block hits, but not to the same effect as a shield (see 3.2).

Equipment is worn over your body and serves to effortlessly protect your various organs. Each organ has a base armor class (AC) of 3, representing the minimum die roll necessary to land a hit.

• Cassis Crista: A plumed helmet with a grill visor to prevent face attacks (+2 AC).
• Galea Secutoria: A helmet with two small eye holes and a domed surface to dispel nets (+2 AC).
• Galerus: Shoulder and neck guard (+1 AC).
• Manica: Arm guard (+2 AC).
• Ocrea: Shin guard (+2 AC).

Assign each item to its applicable organ. For example, the galerus applies both to the arm and the head, while the manica applies only to the arm.

3. The Munus

Munera were the typical gladiator duels associated with the area. When two gladiators approach each other, the one with the most convenient range or reach of motion moves first.

The player with the first move can choose to attack a specific organ of their opponent or to block one of their own organs from being hit. The player with their second move must roll for a random organ either way.

3.1 Attacking

The attacker declares or rolls for which organ they will attempt to hit. Since an attacker may have two or more hit dice (HD), they may choose to direct each of their hits at different organs.

For each HD ≥ AC of the targeted organ, that organ loses 1 HP. For example, if an arm protected by a galerus and manica is targeted, the attacker must roll versus AC 6 in order to land a hit.

3.2 Blocking & Parrying

The defender declares or rolls for which organ they will block from a hit. Each block only prevents 1 hit, meaning that if one shielded organ takes 2 hits, only 1 hit is really blocked. The scutum can thus block two organs, or one organ twice.

A weapon can be used to parry an attack, but only one-half of the time. The Diamchaerus, skillfully armed with 2 sicae, can freely block 1 hit.

3.3 Hits & Death

When an organ's HP reaches 0, that organ becomes mangled.

• Mangled legs can't walk.
• Mangled arms can't hold things.
• Mangled heads can't breathe (DEAD).
• Mangled hearts can't beat (DEAD).

A gladiator can surrender at any point in battle.

By the second century CE, most fights were non-lethal. A defeated gladiator would simply raise their finger or arm to surrender. The munerarius had the final say as to whether the gladiator should be executed, but duels ad digitum (to the finger) were more common than sine missionem (without mercy).

You could, however, incorporate some audience involvement for fun! Everyone flips a coin and decides whether to give thumbs up (live) or thumbs down (die). The munerarius breaks ties.

4. Other Maneuvers

The munerarius can treat non-offensive moves as attacks against a well-armored foe, where the player rolls HD and each die should be above or equal to 5. An even more difficult task might call for a virtual AC of 6.

You might also consider degrees of success, depending on whether one or more HD succeed at the roll! For example, when tossing a net, total success might mean that the target is trapped until they escape, while a partial success might mean they are only caught until the next turn!

Other maneuvers might include shoving, feinting, and so on. Such moves might result in the opponent falling prone for a turn or revealing a weak spot that can be attacked with +1 HD on the next turn.

4.1 Chases & Other Contests

When one gladiator chases another, compare the total HP for their legs. The gladiator with the highest overall HP for their legs is able to outrun or catch up to the other gladiator, depending on who is being chased.

For example, a gladiator with 2 + 4 = 6 legs HP can outrun one with 3 + 2 = 5 legs HP.

You may add d6 to both sums as a random factor, while still ensuring that the gladiator with the worst legs will most likely lose. A gladiator with 2 legs HP has just a 1-in-36 chance of outrunning one with 6 legs HP!

You can use head + heart for perception or charisma contests, or arms for strength contests. So long as you're comparing two numbers in the same domain, you don't have to be super picky.

5. The Ludus

Gladiators of the same class lived together in a ludus or gladiator school. This establishment was owned and operated by the lanista, who owned the gladiators themselves as cartel. Like the pater familias of the household, the lanista held the power of life or death over each of his gladiators. Perhaps you are playing a gladiator under the dominion of a lanista, or you might be playing a lanista who owns and leases multiple such gladiators under your control.

The price of a gladiator's lease depends on their experience. A novice (tiro) is much cheaper than a first-rank (palus primus) gladiator. Nevertheless, the more skilled the gladiator, the better the show. The lanistae were in the entertainment industry, after all!

The lanista is interested in keeping the gladiators alive enough to fight. It takes 1 month to heal 1 HP (and gladiators only fought 3-5 times a year, about once a season). To have a gladiator killed is to lose a considerable source of income, so this expense would be compensated by up to 50 times the gladiator's lease. Prices are listed in denarii below.

Rank	Lease	Cost	Prize
Tiro (Novice)	15	750	3
Palus quartus	30	1,500	6
Palus tertius	60	3,000	9
Palus secundus	120	6,000	12
Palus primus	240	12,000	15

Some gladiators were citizens of the lower class who sought out fame and fortune in the arena. They would still have to pledge their life to the lanista in order to learn proper technique. Besides, only lanistae have the right connections to get you into the arena!

Victorious gladiators receive prize money indicated above. One denarius equals 4 sesterii or 16 asses — or eight loaves of bread or 2 jugs of wine! Anyone can eventually buy out their contract, or else earn their freedom after three years of games.

6. Pali Ludi

A gladiator's rank is determined by how many games they have won through skillful victory (ad digitum) or pure survival (sine missionem). Decide the conditions of victory and failure before you rank gladiators, because whether or not a gladiator is expected to die upon failure impacts the ranking of gladiators in general.

A gladiator earns 1 experience point (XP) per victory. By comparing ranks one can also compare the relative strengths of two or more gladiators. Gladiators are never pitted against opponents below or beyond their rank.

Rank	XP	HD	Fame	Fortune	Organs
Tiro (Novice)	—	1	2	3	—
Palus quartus	2	2	4	4	+1 HP to 2
Palus tertius	4	2	6	5	+1 HP to 2
Palus secundus	8	3	8	6	+1 HP to 2
Palus primus	16	4	10	7	+1 HP to 2

There cannot be more than one palus primus at a ludus! This rank does not just belong to the most capable gladiators, but in particular to the valedictorians of each school.

For the sake of the game, you may start your gladiator at palus quartus to skip training and go straight to the games. Alternatively, to experience your gladiator's lifepath, you might start off as a tiro. Novices only participate in practice games at the ludus, where they are at no risk of death and often only fight against wooden poles (a.k.a. pali)!

New lanistae start off with an initial investment of 6,000 denarii. The lanista could thus purchase 8 tirones, or 4 gladiators of the palus quartus, or 2 gladiators of the palus tertius, and so on.

Roll 2d6 ≤ Fame to rely on your renown as a famous performer, or 2d6 ≤ Fortune to test your luck when you face danger. These are useful when it doesn't make sense to roll your HD.

7. Mass Combat

Most gladiatorial battles were duels to emulate the Homeric ideal of the epic showdown. Nevertheless, some arenas indulged the audience with spectacles of mass bloodshed.

Let 1 hit die (HD) represent n individuals, depending on the scale of the spectacle. Let each such unit have 1 HP and an average AC of 4 (2d3).

The value n might equal 1 for small-scale battles, 4 for medium-scale battles, or 15 for large-scale battles. Feel free to get into the tens or hundreds if you want something bigger!

In order to attack, the player rolls HD (d6) ≥ AC of their attacker. As it were, each regular unit has 1 HP. Therefore their piece is removed from the table upon being defeated.

HD can be used for other tasks. For example, when a ship is boarded, the units assigned to removing the grapnel must roll their HD versus some virtual AC representing the task's difficulty (e.g. AC 4).

Particularly naked units might have an AC of 2, and particularly well-protected units might have an AC of 6. However, the average unit has an AC of 4 due to their standard issue equipment. Think about a soldier in mail.

"Heroic" units might have 4 HP and fight with 4 HD. In other words, a heroic unit fights as 4 normal units on a small scale or as 1 normal unit on a medium scale. Their AC remains the same, unless they are (again) exceptionally armored or unarmored.

8. The Venatio

Venationes are games where human contestants are pitted against wild animals, often imported from the wildest reaches of the Empire. Thousands of wild animals might be slaughtered each day in the arena.

A venator is a professional beast-hunter armed with a spear, proficient in slaying beasts (2 HD). A bestiarius is a criminal condemned to the mercy of the beasts. Any unit's HP equals their number of HD. Venatores are likely to have armor equipped, but bestiarii are typically naked. Both are likely to have a movement (MV) of 4.

Technically, gladiators are distinct from venatores in that gladiators only fight other gladiators, whereas venatores might fight both wild animals and other humans in the arena.

An animal's ferocity is measured in HD just as it is in humans. Their base AC is 4, although some animals have especially thick (or thin) skin! Like humans, their HP equals their number of HD.

• Bear (HD 4, AC 4, MV 16)
• Crocodile (HD 3, AC 5, MV 8)
• Elephant (HD 6, AC 5, MV 12)
• Dog (HD 2, AC 4, MV 16)
• Goat (HD 1, AC 4, MV 8)
• Hippopotamus (HD 6, AC 6, MV 8)
• Leopard (HD 4, AC 4, MV 18)
• Lion (HD 4, AC 6, MV 18)
• Swine (HD 2, AC 4, MV 6)
• Tiger (HD 4, AC 4, MV 16)

When an animal attacks, they can divide their HD between multiple targets! Venatores can do this too, but their mileage may vary. See also my friend Ty's blog post about nesting monster hit points.

9. The Naumachia

Naumachiae were massive mock naval battles, featuring condemned criminals fighting to the death on military vessels. Some common types of ships are below:

Ship Class	HD	AC	MV	Rowers	Sailors	Fighters
Bireme	1	3	6	120	30	15-30
Quardrireme	2	4	6	240	30	60-90
Quinquereme	2	5	6	300	30	90-120
Triconter	—	2	6	30	15	15
Trireme	3	3	8	180	30	30-60

Ships have distinct measures of HD and HP, unlike other units. Each ship has two halves each with HP equal to the number of rowers divided by 30, i.e. the number of rower units (15 : 1) on each side. For example, one trireme has two halves of 6 HP each, and a quadrireme has two halves of 8 HP each.

Naval combat consisted of vessels ramming up against each other, to cause the other vessel to sink and its passengers to drown. A boat simply has to be far away and fast enough to avoid being rammed! Both ships must roll d6 + MV, and whoever rolls highest succeeds.

Nota Bene: Augustus Caesar's naumachia featured 3,000 fighters on 30 ships, or about 100 fighters per vessel. These ships would have been so encumbered that they could barely move! The big event more likely revolved around the novelty of hand-to-hand warfare on big ships, rather than actual nautical warfare. Regardless, Augustus' naumachia was an incredible undertaking, requiring an artifical lake the size of 1800 by 1200 Roman feet!

When a ship is successfully rammed, the attacker rolls HD against the defender's AC. The defending ship loses HP on the impacted half. The attacker also has a 1-in-6 chance of losing its rostrum, the bronze plow that enables ramming.

10. Boarding Vessels

Ships that are next to each other have the option to board the other. There is a 3-in-6 chance of success if the ships are moving in roughly the same direction, or a 1-in-6 chance otherwise. Rammed or grappled ships are stuck together!

Any unit has a 2-in-6 chance of success when they attempt to burn down the ship.

10.1 Hand-to-Hand Combat

Let 1 HD represent 15 fighters. Thus a bireme can carry 1-2 HD, a trireme 2-4 HD, and a quinquereme 6-8 HD. The lower limit represents the most 'units' a vessel can carry without being unencumbered. Each extra unit onboard results in -2 to the ship's maximum speed. Fighters have an AC of 4.

Sailors are also units (15 sailors : 1 unit), but with a meagre AC of 2 and without a fighting spirit. They can perform tasks onboard, especially to remove boarding devices from other ships. One sailor unit is required to steer the vessel.

Rowers are slaves who cannot be convinced to fight for the ship, and are unarmed anyway. The ship's HP on each side corresponds to the number of rowers (15 : 1) on each side.

10.2 Boarding Devices

Ships were often equipped with a corvus: a thin bridge (10 meters long and 1 meter wide) with a spike to attach itself to another vessel. A corvus takes up the same amount of space that would be taken by 1 fighter unit, on account of its massive weight. Any unit has a 3-in-6 chance of cutting off the corvus from a boarded ship.

By 36 BCE, the corvus was replaced by the harpax, a grappling hook launched via ballista. This catapult was much lighter to carry onboard than the corvus, and the harpax itself was much more difficult to remove. Any unit has only a 1-in-6 chance of cutting off the harpax from the boarding ship.