# Adversaries
*Rome DCCIV AUC, The Edge of the Republic, Rome and the provinces in 50 BC. Source: https://exodusnds.com/era-books/rome/adversaries*
Use these people and beasts as opposition in 50 BC. Each uses the Core Rules, Adversaries format and one of its three tiers: **Minion**, **Elite** or **Nemesis**. For weapons, armor, mounts and poisons, use the owning sourcebook as limited by Gear and Prices. Papirius is the one member of the Era Cast here. Use the other entries for anonymous people of the period. Historical figures have no stat blocks.
## Using Adversaries in 50 BC
Start with what stands in the party's way, such as a patron, a debt, a crowd or a law. Reach for a stat block if the opposition turns physical.
| Who opposes the party | What it wants | Entries | Where to read more |
|:--|:--|:--|:--|
| **The street** | A quarter's protection money, a crowd for hire, a patron's favor | Subura Tough, Gang Enforcer, Papirius, Mobs | Rome, Streets and Gangs; Powers of the Republic, The Streets |
| **The magistrates' men** | Order with little means; a price for looking away | Night-Watch Slave, Lictor | Rome, Who Rules the Streets; Era Rules, Law and Courts |
| **Hidden hands** | A death that looks like illness; a word sold | Street Diviner, Poisoner, Sicarius | Gods and Religion; Era Rules, Law and Courts |
| **Money** | The tithe, the bond, the debt called in | Publicanus's Agent | Powers of the Republic, The Equestrians and the Tax Companies |
| **The arena** | A good show, and a price for the dead | Thraex, Murmillo or Gaul, Samnite, Lanista | The Arena and the Games |
| **Armies** | Ground, grain and captives | Legionary, Centurion, Auxiliary Slinger, Gallic Warrior, Gallic Noble, German Warrior, Mounted Raider, Parthian Horse Archer | Legion Battles; Gaul and the Provinces |
| **The road and the sea** | A purse, a cargo, a way out | Bandit or Runaway, Sailor or Pirate | Era Rules, Travel; Era Rules, Slavery |
| **Alexandria's court** | The king's peace, and his debts unpaid | Royal Guard of the Ptolemies, Gabinianus | Alexandria, Rome in Egypt |
| **Beasts** | Nothing | Wolf, Boar, Bear, Lion | Beasts |
## Reading a Stat Block
**Scopes** the Core Rules, Adversaries, to this book. Read Might, Agility, Intellect, Savvy, Willpower and Charisma in that order. Next come Resistance, Wound Points, Strain Points for Nemeses, Melee Defense and Ranged Defense. Use the printed Resistance and Defenses as final values. The lines below each block follow this order.
| Line | What it gives |
|:--|:--|
| **Group Size** | Minions only: the number in the group; Wound Points are pooled (Core Rules, Adversaries, Minions) |
| **Skills** | Only the ranks that matter. With no listed rank, use the characteristic alone |
| **Attacks** | The Roman name, then the sourcebook entry, then Skill, Damage, Crit, Range and qualities, copied from the owning sourcebook. A melee weapon's Damage is the wielder's Might plus the number; a thrown or shot weapon's Damage is flat. Each net Success after the first adds 1 damage (Core Rules, Structured Play) |
| **Gear** | Armor, shield and kit, by Roman name and sourcebook entry. Resistance and the Defenses in the block already count them |
| **Mount** or **Poisons** | The sourcebook line of a horse or a poison the figure uses, echoed unchanged |
| **Abilities** | Talents and special rules. A talent in italics is printed in Skills and Talents or the Core Rules, and the entry does not restate it |
| **Dignitas** | Where social checks matter: the figure's Ordo and Dignitas. It adds Boon Dice to his own social checks as a character's does (Era Rules, Patronage and Rank, Dignitas III) |
| **Unit** or **Crowd Favor** | How the figure fights in a Legion Battle (Armies as Units) or where his Crowd Favor track starts in a bout (The Arena) |
| **Tactics** | What the figure does in the first rounds |
| **Use** | How a GM puts the figure in a scene |
| **Hook** | One situation that brings the figure to the party |
##### TERMS: THE TIERS
| Tier | Wound Points | Strain Points | Skill ranks | Resistance |
|:--|:--|:--|:--|:--|
| Minion | 8 (a wolf 6; Beasts) | None | 1 to 2 | Half Might, rounded up, plus armor |
| Elite | 11 + Might; a gladiator 10 + Might (The Arena); a large beast adds its size (Beasts) | None; Strain becomes Wounds, 1 for 1 | Main skills 2 to 3, at most three at 3 | As Minion |
| Nemesis | 13 + Might | 13 + Willpower | Main skills 3 to 4 | As Minion |
The formulas here come from the worked stat blocks in Core Rules, Adversaries.
I **Defense.** Melee Defense counts the readied shield's Defensive and the Defensive of the first weapon in the Attacks line; Ranged Defense counts the shield's Deflection (*The Fantasy Armory*, Weapon Qualities). The Core cap of 3 applies (Core Rules, Adversaries, Defense). A legionary's scutum gives Melee Defense 1 and Ranged Defense 2.
II **A Minion from an Elite.** Keep characteristics, Resistance, Defenses and Gear. Set Wound Points to 8 and lower every skill rank by 1, to a minimum of 1.
III **A Nemesis from an Elite.** Add 2 Wound Points, give Strain Points of 13 + Willpower, and raise the main skills by 1, to at most 4. Only a Nemesis spends Peril Points (Core Rules, Adversaries, Nemeses).
##### EXAMPLE: SEPTIMIUS AND A GALLIC WAR BAND
On a forage in Gaul, Septimius meets a group of four Gallic Warriors (Minion): 32 pooled Wound Points, Resistance 2, Melee Defense 1 for their oval shields. He attacks with his gladius: Might 3 and Melee 2 give 2 Mastery Dice and 1 Ability Die , and the gladius's Accurate 1 adds 1 Boon Die , against an Average attack, with 1 Bane Die for the shields: 62.7 chances in 100. He hits with 2 net Successes : 6 damage less Resistance 2 is 4 Wounds. The group has 28 left, and a warrior falls each time it loses 8.
The group answers as one, on its own initiative slot: Might 3 and Melee 2 with the winged spear, with 1 Bane Die for Septimius's scutum and 1 for the spear's Reach at Engaged range: 47.4 chances in 100. A hit deals 6 damage, which his Resistance 4 turns into 2 Wounds.
## Sizing an Encounter
**Adds** encounter sizes to the Core Rules. Use these as fair encounters for four player characters.
| Encounter | Opposition |
|:--|:--|
| Easy | One Minion group of the party's size, surprised or on bad ground |
| Standard | One Minion group of 4 to 6, or one Elite alone |
| Hard | One Elite with a Minion group of 4, or two Elites |
| Deadly | A Nemesis with a Minion group and an Elite |
Add one opponent per player above four. Remove one per player below four. A street fight can mean a charge of violence, an angry patron and the friends of the dead (Era Rules, Law and Courts). The army sells men taken in battle (Gear and Prices, Purchased People).
## Mobs
**Adds** to the Core Rules, Adversaries, Minions: a crowd that turns violent. **Modifies** the Core Rules, Structured Play (the default unarmed profile), for thrown stones only.
##### TERMS: THE MOB
I **Groups.** Run a mob as Minion groups of 4 to 8, each on its own initiative slot. Use the Subura Tough entry; a crowd with no gang in it carries no knives and keeps the clubs, fists and stones.
II **Stones and tiles.** A mob at Short range throws stones and roof tiles: a Ranged attack with the Core default unarmed profile, Damage equal to Might, Crit 5.
III **Turning a mob.** Before the first blow a mob is an audience (Era Rules, Patronage and Rank, Attitude). One character it can hear makes a **Hard Charm** check to win it over or a **Hard Intimidation** check to cow it, with Dignitas and Attitude dice as for any social check. If the mob's leader is in sight he may answer: the check becomes an Opposed Check against his Charisma + Leadership (Core Rules, Types of Checks, Opposed Checks); the Hard difficulty no longer applies, and a tie goes to the leader. Success: every group that heard the speaker disperses. Failure: the mob attacks. With 3 or more net Banes it attacks the speaker first.
IV **Breaking.** A mob led by an Elite or a Nemesis in its sight breaks when he falls or flees. A mob with no leader in sight breaks when it has lost half the people it started with. A broken mob scatters into the lanes.
##### EXAMPLE: PAPIRIUS TAKES BACK THE SHRINE
A rival college holds the crossroads shrine of Papirius's quarter a week before the Compitalia: two groups of six men, their own boss away. Papirius walks into the street with his men behind him and tells them to leave. He makes a Hard Intimidation check with Willpower 3 and Intimidation 3: 3 Mastery Dice against 3 Trial Dice . His Dignitas 1 adds nothing, and the GM names no marker. The check succeeds 53.6 times in 100.
Papirius fails and both rival groups attack. His two Gang Enforcers and the Subura Toughs meet them. Once the rivals lose six of their twelve men with no leader in sight, both groups break.
**Failure states.** A mob that attacks; a speaker it attacks first; a charge of violence for anyone seen leading it (Era Rules, Law and Courts).
## The Streets of Rome
##### Subura Tough (Minion)
*A crossroads college or street boss puts a freedman, slave or porter out of work in charge of a lane.*
3
2
1
2
2
2
2
8
0
0
- **Group Size:** 3 to 8
- **Skills:** Melee 1, Unarmed 1, Intimidation 1, Streetwise 1
- **Attacks:** Fustis, as the Cudgel (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged; Disorient 1); culter, as the Knife (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged); Fists (Unarmed; Damage Might; Crit 5; Engaged)
- **Gear:** a tunic and a dark cloak; no armor
- **Abilities:** None
- **Tactics:** Seal off the lane, shout and come in with clubs. Draw knives after the first tough falls
- **Use:** Put these men behind a boss, crossroads college, landlord or candidate. Run them as a mob on voting day (Mobs)
- **Hook:** The party is in a shop when the toughs come for the protection money its owner stopped paying
##### Gang Enforcer (Elite)
*A veteran of the gladiator bands of the 50s BC. He now guards a street boss.*
3
3
2
2
3
2
2
14
0
0
- **Skills:** Melee 3, Unarmed 2, Intimidation 2, Perception 2, Streetwise 2
- **Attacks:** Gladius, as the Shortsword (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Accurate 1); fustis, as the Cudgel (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged; Disorient 1)
- **Gear:** the gladius under a cloak; no armor
- **Abilities:** *Danger Sense*
- **Tactics:** Stay beside the boss and hit whoever first reaches for a blade
- **Use:** Guard the boss or break a debtor's arm. Use this entry for Milo's idle gladiators (Powers of the Republic, The Streets)
- **Hook:** He trained at the same school as a gladiator the party knows. Pay off his debt to the lanista and he'll sell the boss's plans
##### Decimus Papirius Rufus (Nemesis)
*For the Subura boss and the people he serves, see Rome, Streets and Gangs.*
3
2
2
3
3
3
2
16
16
0
0
- **Skills:** Streetwise 4, Intimidation 3, Leadership 3, Melee 3, Negotiation 2, Perception 2, Deception 2
- **Attacks:** Fustis, as the Cudgel (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged; Disorient 1); pugio, as the Dagger (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged; Pierce 1, Concealable 1)
- **Gear:** the dark green cloak with the club under it; a purse for his men's pay
- **Abilities:** *Client's Due. Crossroads Hand* (the Subura). *Cool Head*
- **Dignitas:** Citizen, Dignitas 1; the client of Fabia's father (Skills and Talents, Papirius Calls on His Patron)
- **Tactics:** Name his price before a fight. Join in once his men have the upper hand, then go before the watch arrives
- **Use:** Run him as a patron, fixer or enemy. He can put two Gang Enforcers and three to five groups of Subura Toughs in the street. Hire his men to hold the voting enclosures (Gear and Prices, Bribes by Office)
- **Hook:** Someone talked in a wine shop about the praetorship canvass (Era Rules, Patronage and Rank, A Praetorship with a Gang in It). Papirius wants that man found ahead of the prosecution
##### Night-Watch Slave (Minion)
*With a torch and club, a public slave of the tresviri capitales walks the only patrol after dark.*
2
2
2
2
2
2
1
8
0
0
- **Group Size:** 2 to 4
- **Skills:** Melee 1, Perception 1, Athletics 1
- **Attacks:** Fustis, as the Cudgel (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged; Disorient 1)
- **Gear:** a torch, a tunic; no armor
- **Abilities:** None
- **Dignitas:** Enslaved, Dignitas 0
- **Tactics:** Call out to rouse the street. Seize a man on his own and back off from a gang
- **Use:** See Rome, Who Rules the Streets for the watch. To run a rich man's enslaved builders, give them a Hatchet (securis) in place of the club. Plutarch says Crassus kept more than five hundred builders and bought burning houses cheap. The tale of his men charging to put out fires came later
- **Hook:** The watch comes on the party at the second hour of the night. There is a body, and the officer needs a name for the praetor by morning
##### Lictor (Elite)
*A magistrate's attendant. He carries rods, clears the way and seizes anyone the magistrate names.*
3
2
2
3
3
2
2
14
0
0
- **Skills:** Intimidation 3, Melee 2, Perception 2, Athletics 2, Readiness 2, Streetwise 2
- **Attacks:** Fustis, as the Cudgel (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged; Disorient 1)
- **Gear:** the fasces, which have no stat line (Character Creation and Roles, A Lictor for the Table); a toga
- **Abilities:** *Cool Head. Keen Eye*
- **Dignitas:** Citizen, Dignitas 1
- **Tactics:** Clear the crowd in the magistrate's name and take the man by the arm. Use the rods if he resists
- **Use:** For each magistrate's escort, see Powers of the Republic, How the Republic Runs. A corrupt magistrate's lictor can take a fee to arrive late, mislay a summons or find a particular man
- **Hook:** A praetor's lictor offers to mislay the summons against the party's patron. He wants payment and the praetor knows nothing
##### Street Diviner (Elite)
*A Chaldaean reads the stars, a haruspex reads the entrails, or a man preaches a foreign god at a crossroads.*
1
2
3
4
3
3
1
12
0
0
- **Skills:** Deception 3, Charm 3, Lore 3 (Rites), Perception 2, Streetwise 2
- **Attacks:** Culter, as the Knife (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged)
- **Gear:** a bronze model liver or a star table, a cloak; no armor
- **Abilities:** *Temple Rite. Convincing*
- **Dignitas:** Peregrine, Dignitas 1 among Romans
- **Tactics:** Gather a crowd, interpret a sign and name someone. Leave before he arrives
- **Use:** See Gods and Religion, Divination and Magic for the law. Have a faction pay for a prodigy before a vote or a patron pay for words a frightened client will heed
- **Hook:** The diviner gives the party's patron less than a month to live. Someone has already offered to buy the house
##### LEGEND: THE CONSUL AND THE AXE
Valerius Maximus tells that when the Senate ordered the shrines of Isis and Serapis pulled down, no workman dared touch them, so the consul Lucius Aemilius Paullus took off his toga, picked up an axe and struck the doors himself. The story comes through a later epitome, and scholars argue whether it belongs to this Paullus, consul in 50 BC, or another.
##### Poisoner (Elite)
*A woman who has access to the food, from the household, the herb stall or a physician's freedwomen.*
2
2
3
3
3
3
1
13
0
0
- **Skills:** Medicine 3, Deception 3, Perception 2, Streetwise 2, Charm 2, Lore 2
- **Attacks:** Culter, as the Knife (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged)
- **Poisons:** Hemlock (cicuta; Potency 3; Ingested; Onset 30 minutes; Interval Hour; Course 6; 3 Wounds; creeping paralysis; Lethal); Wolfsbane (aconitum; Potency 3; Ingested, Injury; Onset 10 minutes; Interval 10 minutes; Course 6; 3 Wounds; Lethal, Subtle 1); Sleeping Draught (mandrake or poppy; Potency 2; Ingested; Onset 10 minutes; Interval Minute; Course 5; 4 Strain; sleep 4 hours; Subtle 1) (*The Apothecary*)
- **Gear:** a box of simples, wine to carry the dose
- **Abilities:** *Household Keys*
- **Tactics:** Dose the cup, then leave before the Onset ends. Have a story ready about the fever. Avoid a fight
- **Use:** All poisons are Restricted, and poisoning is a capital crime (Gear and Prices, The Source Book Map). It was the charge at the heart of the Cluentius case of 66 BC. Use Era Rules, Law and Courts for a trial. Save the Imperial court poisoners for a later century
- **Hook:** A client's house asks Chryseis to certify death by fever. The color of the dead man's lips gives her reason to refuse
##### Sicarius (Elite)
*A hired knife for a crowded street, a doorway or a dark road.*
2
3
2
3
3
2
1
13
0
0
- **Skills:** Stealth 3, Melee 3, Streetwise 2, Deception 2, Perception 2, Subterfuge 2
- **Attacks:** Pugio, as the Dagger (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged; Pierce 1, Concealable 1); laqueus, as the Garrote (Melee; Damage Might; Crit 2; Engaged; Concealable 3, Ensnare 2, Awkward 3)
- **Poisons:** Blade Venom (Potency 2; Injury; Onset 1 round; Interval Round; Course 5; 2 Wounds; ends on the first success) (*The Apothecary*)
- **Gear:** a hooded cloak; no armor
- **Abilities:** *Low Profile. Fast Hands*
- **Tactics:** Get close in a crowd and strike once. Disappear before the victim falls. Run if the blow fails
- **Use:** The lex Cornelia of 81 BC puts murderers and poisoners together (Gear and Prices, The Source Book Map). A boss such as Papirius takes the commission for someone who wants the victim dead
- **Hook:** The witness is due in court tomorrow. A man in a hooded cloak is asking which insula the witness sleeps in
##### Publicanus's Agent (Elite)
*A tax company's freedman brings hired men when he collects tithes, tolls and debts in the province.*
2
2
3
3
3
3
1
13
0
0
- **Skills:** Negotiation 3, Lore 3 (Trade), Intimidation 2, Perception 2, Deception 2, Streetwise 2
- **Attacks:** Pugio, as the Dagger (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged; Pierce 1, Concealable 1)
- **Gear:** account rolls, the company's letters and seal (Gear and Prices, Role Kit with No Stat Line)
- **Abilities:** *Abacus Hand. Debt Ledger*
- **Dignitas:** Freedman, Dignitas 1
- **Tactics:** Produce the contract and demand payment. Send a group of Subura Toughs for goods or people in lieu of coin
- **Use:** See Powers of the Republic, The Equestrians and the Tax Companies for their standing in court. Put the party between a city that cannot pay and a governor who backs the company
- **Hook:** Even after selling its temple plate, the city owes the agent. Its envoys want someone to find a clause that voids the bond
##### EXAMPLE: BANONA AND THE TAX COMPANY'S AGENT
Aeduan merchants owe a tax company's agent in Rome, and Banona (Charisma 3, Negotiation 2, Dignitas 1 among Romans) asks him for a month's grace: an Average Negotiation check. The agent's audience holds the marker Peregrine at Hostile 2, which adds 2 Bane Dice ; her Dignitas 1 among Romans adds nothing. The check succeeds 47.4 times in 100, the figure Skills and Talents prints for this pool. She succeeds, and the month is granted. When it ends the merchants still owe, and the agent's Debt Ledger adds 1 Boon Die to his checks against them.
## The Arena
**Scopes** the Core Rules, Adversaries, Elites, to a gladiator in a bout.
##### TERMS: GLADIATORS AS FIGHTERS
I **Wound Points.** A gladiator's Wound Points are 10 + Might, as a character's are (Core Rules, Character Creation), because the bout odds in The Arena and the Games are built on that figure. He has no Strain Points: Strain becomes Wounds, 1 for 1, as for any Elite.
II **Kit and Crowd Favor.** Each entry echoes its type's kit from The Arena and the Games, Gladiators and Their Kit, with the matched arena kit or the Samnite's mail counted in Resistance. The Crowd Favor line gives where his track starts (The Arena and the Games, The Bout).
III **The four types.** The thraex, the murmillo or Gaul, and the Samnite fight in this book. No gladiator fights with a net or a trident (The Arena and the Games, Gladiators and Their Kit).
##### EXAMPLE: BITHYS'S OPPONENTS
The murmillo Bithys meets at the Forum munus (The Arena and the Games, Crowd Favor) is the Murmillo or Gaul entry below. Might 3 and Melee 2 give him 2 Mastery Dice and 1 Ability Die , with 1 Boon Die for the gladius's Accurate 1; he has Resistance 3 and Wound Points 13. As an ordinary Elite he would have 14 Wound Points, and the odds of that bout (Bithys wins 52 in 100) would not hold. The Samnite champion of the Puteoli example (Skills and Talents, Bithys at Puteoli) is the Samnite entry: Melee 3 and Resistance 4, so Bithys's 5 damage becomes 1 Wound.
##### LEGEND: THE SNAKE ON SPARTACUS'S FACE
Plutarch tells that when Spartacus was first brought to Rome for sale, a serpent was seen coiled about his face as he slept. His wife, a Thracian prophetess given to the frenzy of Dionysus, said it was the sign of a great and terrible power that would end in good fortune. She fled with him from Capua. Only Plutarch tells it.
##### Thraex (Elite)
*A light fighter carrying a curved sica and small parma. A helmet and two greaves complete his kit.*
3
3
2
2
3
2
3
13
1
0
- **Skills:** Melee 2, Athletics 2, Readiness 2, Fortitude 2, Charm 1
- **Attacks:** Sica, as the Shortsword (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Accurate 1)
- **Gear:** parma (Buckler: Defensive 1, Disarming 1) (*The Fantasy Armory*); helmet (Open Helm, Helm 1) (*The Armourer*) and two greaves: the matched arena kit, Resistance +1
- **Abilities:** None
- **Dignitas:** Enslaved, Dignitas 0; *infamis*
- **Crowd Favor:** 2, or 3 where he is Known
- **Tactics:** Circle away from the shield and use Boons for flourishes
- **Use:** Hire him for a munus. For Bithys's match against a thraex from another school, use this entry for his opponent
- **Hook:** A thraex from another school has beaten Bithys's friend twice. The next editor wants the two schools in the ring again
##### Murmillo or Gaul (Elite)
*A heavy fighter with gladius, tall scutum, helmet and one greave.*
3
2
2
2
3
2
3
13
1
2
- **Skills:** Melee 2, Athletics 2, Fortitude 2, Readiness 2
- **Attacks:** Gladius, as the Shortsword (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Accurate 1)
- **Gear:** scutum (Kite Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 2, Cumbersome 3) (*The Fantasy Armory*); helmet (Open Helm, Helm 1) (*The Armourer*) and one greave: the matched arena kit, Resistance +1
- **Abilities:** None
- **Dignitas:** Enslaved, Dignitas 0; *infamis*
- **Crowd Favor:** 2, or 3 where he is Known
- **Tactics:** Cover the advance with the scutum, then thrust over its rim
- **Use:** Pair him with a thraex. Murmillo may be a later name for the Gaul (The Arena and the Games, Gladiators and Their Kit)
- **Hook:** A lanista wants to sell the murmillo cheaply. The party saw him take the wound the lanista claims has healed
##### Samnite (Elite)
*The Republic's principal type wears a plumed helmet, a greave and mail and carries gladius and scutum.*
3
2
2
2
3
2
4
13
1
2
- **Skills:** Melee 3, Athletics 2, Fortitude 2, Readiness 2
- **Attacks:** Gladius, as the Shortsword (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Accurate 1)
- **Gear:** scutum (Kite Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 2, Cumbersome 3) (*The Fantasy Armory*); helmet (Open Helm, Helm 1), a greave and mail (Mail Shirt, Resistance +2, Deflecting 1 (Cutting), Vulnerable 1 (Crushing)) (*The Armourer*)
- **Abilities:** None
- **Dignitas:** Enslaved, Dignitas 0; *infamis*
- **Crowd Favor:** 3 for a champion Known in the city; 2 elsewhere
- **Tactics:** Let the mail and helmet take the hits while he strikes back
- **Use:** For an ordinary Samnite, use Melee 2. The school's champion uses this entry as printed. With skill equal to a thraex, the heavier armor wins 60 in 100 (The Arena and the Games, Bets)
- **Hook:** The Capuan champion has a bout at a funeral munus in Rome. His lanista will pay for the name of the man the editor has matched with him
##### Lanista (Elite)
*He owns and trains a school, buys the men, fixes their prices and hires them out.*
2
2
3
3
3
3
1
13
0
0
- **Skills:** Negotiation 3, Streetwise 2, Intimidation 2, Melee 2, Perception 2, Leadership 2
- **Attacks:** Fustis, as the Cudgel (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged; Disorient 1)
- **Gear:** the school's accounts; a guard of two Gang Enforcers when he travels
- **Abilities:** *Vine Stick* (with the recruits he trains). *Market Eye*
- **Dignitas:** Citizen or Freedman, Dignitas 1 at most; *infamis* (Era Rules, Patronage and Rank, Dignitas II)
- **Tactics:** Stay out of the fight. If the hire pays enough, send out a man who is hurt. Ask for missio when a death would cost the price
- **Use:** Put him on his enslaved gladiators' ledger as their patron. For prices, purses and the rudis, see The Arena and the Games (The Editor and The Ludus and the Lanista). Use him for Bithys's lanista in Capua
- **Hook:** Two editors in different towns have hired Bithys for the same day. Only one knows
##### LEGEND: CLEAVERS AND SPITS
Plutarch says the gladiators who broke out of Lentulus Batiatus's school at Capua in 73 BC armed themselves first with cleavers and spits from a kitchen, then seized a wagon of gladiators' arms on the road. Every lanista in Campania knows the story, true or not.
## Armies as Units
**Scopes** Legion Battles, Units, to these forces. Use Quality, Strength and Discipline when they fight as a unit. Use the entry for one man met in the press, on a scouting ride or alone.
| Force | Entry for one man | Quality | Discipline at the start |
|:--|:--|:--|:-:|
| A legionary century or cohort of the Gallic War | Legionary, led by a Centurion | Veteran or Trained | 4 or 3 |
| A newly levied legion | Legionary | Trained | 2 |
| A Gallic or German tribal levy | Gallic Warrior; German Warrior | Raw | 2 |
| A Gallic noble's mailed following | Gallic Noble and his clients | Trained | 3 |
| A screen of Parthian horse archers | Parthian Horse Archer | Trained, with The Screen | 3 |
Each unit's leader makes its Discipline tests with his own Charisma and Leadership (Legion Battles, The Clash). The Centurion entry is the chief centurion of Legion Battles, Battle Odds; the Gallic Noble has the Charisma 3 and Leadership 2 of its baseline leader.
##### EXAMPLE: SEPTIMIUS AND THE NOBLE'S FOLLOWING
Septimius's Trained century fights a Gallic noble's mailed following at two to one (Legion Battles, Septimius against the Mailed Nobles). The noble who leads it is the Gallic Noble entry: his Charisma 3 and Leadership 2 make the following's Discipline tests, the same pool as Septimius's. The century wins that fight 54.3 times in 100. If Septimius reaches the noble himself in the press, the fight between the two men is Core combat with the entry's ratings: Resistance 4, Wound Points 14, Melee Defense 2 and Ranged Defense 2.
##### Legionary (Minion)
*A citizen soldier in Caesar's Gallic legions, with mail, bronze helmet, oval scutum and two pila.*
3
2
2
2
2
1
4
8
1
2
- **Group Size:** 4 to 8 (a tent party is 8)
- **Skills:** Melee 2, Ranged 1, Athletics 1, Fortitude 1
- **Attacks:** Gladius Hispaniensis, as the Shortsword (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Accurate 1); pilum, as the Javelin (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 3; Medium; Pierce 1, Limited Ammo 1), two; pugio, as the Dagger (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged; Pierce 1, Concealable 1)
- **Gear:** lorica hamata (Mail Shirt, Resistance +2, Deflecting 1 (Cutting), Vulnerable 1 (Crushing)) and a Montefortino or Coolus helmet (Open Helm, Helm 1) (*The Armourer*); scutum (Kite Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 2, Cumbersome 3) (*The Fantasy Armory*); caligae, a palisade stake
- **Abilities:** *Shield Wall*. The pilum binds a shield (Legion Battles, The Pilum)
- **Unit:** Veteran or Trained (Armies as Units)
- **Tactics:** Throw pila at close range, then draw swords and close behind shields
- **Use:** Put him at the camp gate, on patrol or on a convoy of captives. Give him *Oarsman* for a marine on a warship
- **Hook:** The patrol sees free men on the road out of a burned oppidum. It wants to know why they are walking away from the sale
##### Centurion (Elite)
*He rose from the ranks to command a century. Look for the crest, greaves and vine stick.*
3
2
2
2
3
3
4
14
1
2
- **Skills:** Melee 3, Leadership 3, Intimidation 2, Readiness 2, Athletics 2, Fortitude 2
- **Attacks:** Gladius Hispaniensis, as the Shortsword (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Accurate 1); pilum, as the Javelin (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 3; Medium; Pierce 1, Limited Ammo 1); vitis, as the Cudgel (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged; Disorient 1)
- **Gear:** lorica hamata (Mail Shirt, Resistance +2, Deflecting 1 (Cutting), Vulnerable 1 (Crushing)) and a crested helmet (Open Helm, Helm 1) (*The Armourer*); greaves; scutum (Kite Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 2, Cumbersome 3) (*The Fantasy Armory*)
- **Abilities:** *Vine Stick. Front Rank. Shield Wall*
- **Dignitas:** Citizen, Dignitas 1, or 2 with decorations
- **Unit:** Leads a century; a chief centurion in Legion Battles, Battle Odds
- **Tactics:** Fight in the front rank, call the men by name and hold until ordered back
- **Use:** Put him above or against Septimius, in another legion or in Pompey's army. The Empire records the vine stick as a centurion's mark. Its use in the Republic is likely but unconfirmed
- **Hook:** An officer from the legion Caesar returned to Pompey in 50 BC wants Septimius to name Caesar's winter quarters
##### Auxiliary Slinger (Minion)
*A hired slinger from the Balearic Islands carries lead shot in a bag.*
2
3
2
3
2
1
1
8
0
0
- **Group Size:** 4 to 8
- **Skills:** Ranged 2, Athletics 1, Perception 1
- **Attacks:** Funda, as the Shepherd's Sling (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 4; Medium; Knockdown, Concealable 2, Scavenged, Inaccurate 1, Prepare 1); culter, as the Knife (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged)
- **Gear:** lead glandes (*The Ranged Armory*, Ammunition); no armor
- **Abilities:** None
- **Tactics:** Shoot at Medium range from the legion's flank and retreat from horsemen
- **Use:** Caesar hires Balearic slingers and archers from Numidia and Crete (Character Creation and Roles, Auxiliary). Give a Cretan archer Might 3 and the Composite Bow (*The Ranged Armory*)
- **Hook:** Someone scratched a name in the lead of a glans found in a dead man's skull. Nobody in the legion answers to it
##### Gallic Warrior (Minion)
*A free man called to his people's levy. He comes with spear, javelins and oval shield.*
3
2
2
2
2
2
2
8
1
2
- **Group Size:** 4 to 8
- **Skills:** Melee 2, Ranged 1, Athletics 1, Fortitude 1
- **Attacks:** Lancea, as the Winged Spear (Melee; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged, Short; Reach, Brace 2, Sweep 1); iaculum, as the Javelin (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 3; Medium; Pierce 1, Limited Ammo 1); Gallic long sword, as the Arming Sword (Melee; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged; Defensive 1), with Melee Defense 2 while it is readied
- **Gear:** oval shield (Kite Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 2, Cumbersome 3) (*The Fantasy Armory*); no armor
- **Abilities:** None
- **Unit:** Raw levy (Armies as Units)
- **Tactics:** Throw javelins, then rush together. Break if the rush fails
- **Use:** Put the levy on an oppidum wall, in a war band in burned country or in a chief's escort. For its people, see Gaul and the Provinces
- **Hook:** Their chief surrendered in 51 BC. His men still collect a toll from Roman traders at the ford
##### Gallic Noble (Elite)
*A Gallic noble wears mail and helmet on horseback. His clients ride behind.*
3
3
2
3
3
3
4
14
2
2
- **Skills:** Melee 3, Riding 3, Leadership 2, Negotiation 2, Athletics 2, Perception 2
- **Attacks:** Gallic long sword, as the Arming Sword (Melee; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged; Defensive 1); lancea, as the Winged Spear (Melee; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged, Short; Reach, Brace 2, Sweep 1)
- **Gear:** mail (Mail Shirt, Resistance +2, Deflecting 1 (Cutting), Vulnerable 1 (Crushing)) and helmet (Open Helm, Helm 1) (*The Armourer*); oval shield (Kite Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 2, Cumbersome 3) (*The Fantasy Armory*); a gold torc
- **Mount:** Riding Horse (*The Stable*: Scale 2, Speed 2, Wounds 11, Resistance 2, Defense 0 / 0, Carry 16, Travel 30; Equine, Medium; Swift, Temper 1), with a horned war saddle (its date is uncertain; this book allows it to Gauls in 50 BC) and a bridle
- **Abilities:** *Horseman's Seat. Shield Wall*
- **Dignitas:** Peregrine, Dignitas 1 among Romans and 3 among his own people
- **Unit:** Leads a mailed following, Trained (Armies as Units)
- **Tactics:** Lead the clients in, fight mounted and challenge the bravest Roman in sight
- **Use:** Play him as an ally who might turn or an enemy who takes a price. He has no stirrups and gets no charge bonus (Gear and Prices, Riding without Stirrups or Shoes)
- **Hook:** An Aeduan who rode with Caesar now courts the Arverni. Banona's family needs proof to name him to the general
##### German Warrior (Minion)
*A light footman from across the Rhine keeps pace with the horsemen.*
3
3
1
3
2
1
2
8
1
1
- **Group Size:** 4 to 8
- **Skills:** Melee 2, Athletics 2, Stealth 1, Survival 1
- **Attacks:** Hasta, as the Short Spear (Melee; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged, Short; Reach, Brace 2); iaculum, as the Javelin (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 3; Medium; Pierce 1, Limited Ammo 1)
- **Gear:** a round shield (Round Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 1) (*The Fantasy Armory*); no armor
- **Abilities:** None
- **Unit:** Raw levy (Armies as Units)
- **Tactics:** Go in with the horses, finish the riders they unseat and leave when they do
- **Use:** Caesar hires Germans to fight in pairs of horse and light foot (Gaul and the Provinces, The Germans). For the horseman, use Mounted Raider with hasta, Round Shield and a bareback Riding Horse. Caesar says the Germans scorn the saddle cloth
- **Hook:** An Aeduan village lost cattle to German horsemen in the legion's hire. The villagers want names
##### Mounted Raider (Minion)
*A fast Numidian horseman throws his javelins on the move and keeps going.*
2
3
2
3
2
1
1
8
1
0
- **Group Size:** 3 to 6
- **Skills:** Riding 2, Ranged 1, Melee 1, Survival 1
- **Attacks:** Iaculum, as the Javelin (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 3; Medium; Pierce 1, Limited Ammo 1); culter, as the Knife (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged)
- **Gear:** parma (Buckler: Defensive 1, Disarming 1) (*The Fantasy Armory*); no armor
- **Mount:** Courser, a Numidian horse (*The Stable*: Scale 2, Speed 2, Wounds 10, Resistance 1, Defense 0 / 1, Carry 12, Travel 35; Equine, Light; Swift, Sprinter, Temper 2), ridden without a saddle
- **Abilities:** *Horse Archer. Horseman's Seat*
- **Tactics:** Close to Medium, throw and wheel away. Come round again on the other side
- **Use:** Send him against foragers or convoys, or after men who have broken. Give Gallic and German horsemen their own kit (Character Creation and Roles, Auxiliary)
- **Hook:** A landowner in the province of Africa spots riders in the Numidian king's service. Find out whose men they are
##### Parthian Horse Archer (Minion)
*A mounted archer of the Parthian host carries a horse bow and full quiver and can shoot on the retreat.*
2
3
2
3
2
1
1
8
0
0
- **Group Size:** 4 to 8
- **Skills:** Ranged 2, Riding 2, Survival 1, Perception 1
- **Attacks:** Parthian bow, as the Horse Bow (Ranged; Damage 7; Crit 3; Medium; Accurate 1, Fragile 1, Cumbersome 2, Point Blank 1); pugio, as the Dagger (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged; Pierce 1, Concealable 1)
- **Gear:** a bow case and quiver; no armor
- **Mount:** Desert Horse (*The Stable*: Scale 2, Speed 2, Wounds 10, Resistance 1, Defense 0 / 0, Carry 12, Travel 35; Equine, Light; Swift, Enduring, Desert-Bred, Temper 1)
- **Abilities:** *Horse Archer. Horseman's Seat*
- **Unit:** A screen, Trained (Legion Battles, Horse Archers and Locked Shields)
- **Tactics:** Shoot at Medium range and turn in the saddle to shoot on the way out. Close when the enemy breaks
- **Use:** A raid into Syria, the screen of a Parthian army, a patrol on the Euphrates. An armored lancer (cataphract) uses this entry as an Elite with Might 3, Lamellar, the Lance (kontos) and a Heavy Warhorse; without stirrups the Lance's Momentum gives nothing from horseback (Gear and Prices, Riding without Stirrups or Shoes)
- **Hook:** A captive from Carrhae walked out of Parthia. Riders pursue him on the Syrian bank
##### Bandit or Runaway (Minion)
*The hill roads give work to brigands. He may have tended flocks, lost his living after service or run from slavery.*
2
2
2
3
2
1
1
8
0
0
- **Group Size:** 3 to 8
- **Skills:** Stealth 2, Melee 1, Ranged 1, Survival 1
- **Attacks:** Funda, as the Shepherd's Sling (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 4; Medium; Knockdown, Concealable 2, Scavenged, Inaccurate 1, Prepare 1); fustis, as the Cudgel (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged; Disorient 1)
- **Gear:** a cloak and a herdsman's bag; no armor
- **Abilities:** *Wayfarer*
- **Tactics:** Wait at a narrow stretch. Sling stones down the slope, then take the baggage animals while travelers shelter
- **Use:** Put brigands on the hills after Pompey clears the sea (The Era, Travel at a Glance). For runaways, see Era Rules, Slavery, The Owner's Power and Flight
- **Hook:** Runaways block the party's pass. An enslaved member of the household has a brother among them
##### Sailor or Pirate (Minion)
*A hand on a merchant ship or in one of the crews that hid along the coast after Pompey's war.*
2
3
2
2
2
2
1
8
0
0
- **Group Size:** 4 to 8
- **Skills:** Athletics 2, Operate 1, Melee 1, Ranged 1
- **Attacks:** Securis, as the Hatchet (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Vicious 1, Sunder); culter, as the Knife (Melee; Damage Might + 1; Crit 3; Engaged); iaculum, as the Javelin (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 3; Medium; Pierce 1, Limited Ammo 1)
- **Gear:** a sea chest; no armor
- **Abilities:** *Oarsman*
- **Tactics:** Cast javelins while the ships close, then take hatchets aboard
- **Use:** Pompey's pirate war of 67 BC is in The Era, The Timeline. In 50 BC the sea is far safer, but a small crew on a lonely coast still takes a merchant ship and sells its people. A pirate chief uses the Gang Enforcer entry with Operate 3 and Leadership 2
- **Hook:** At Puteoli a master offers a low fare to Alexandria. His grain ship carries a surprising number of weapons
##### Royal Guard of the Ptolemies (Minion)
*An Egyptian or Greek at the palace gate wears linen corslet and bronze helmet in the king's service.*
3
2
2
2
2
1
3
8
1
1
- **Group Size:** 4 to 8
- **Skills:** Melee 2, Perception 1, Readiness 1, Athletics 1
- **Attacks:** Hasta, as the Short Spear (Melee; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged, Short; Reach, Brace 2); kopis, as the Sabre (Melee; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged; Momentum 2, Balanced 1)
- **Gear:** linothorax (Padded Jack, Resistance +1, Deflecting 1 (Crushing), Vulnerable 1 (Thrusting)) and helmet (Open Helm, Helm 1) (*The Armourer*); aspis (Round Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 1) (*The Fantasy Armory*)
- **Abilities:** None
- **Tactics:** Form a shield line across the gate and call the officer. Take orders from the court
- **Use:** The boy king's ministers command the guard. A Roman creditor's letter carries no authority (Alexandria, Who Rules and Rome in Egypt)
- **Hook:** Kallias needs a sealed letter slipped into the palace at night. The captain at the gate backs the queen
##### Gabinianus (Elite)
*Gabinius left him in Egypt in 55 BC. He now has an Egyptian household and the king pays him.*
3
2
2
2
3
2
4
14
1
2
- **Skills:** Melee 3, Ranged 2, Athletics 2, Intimidation 2, Streetwise 2
- **Attacks:** Gladius, as the Shortsword (Melee; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Accurate 1); pilum, as the Javelin (Ranged; Damage 4; Crit 3; Medium; Pierce 1, Limited Ammo 1)
- **Gear:** lorica hamata (Mail Shirt, Resistance +2, Deflecting 1 (Cutting), Vulnerable 1 (Crushing)) and helmet (Open Helm, Helm 1) (*The Armourer*); scutum (Kite Shield: Defensive 1, Deflection 2, Cumbersome 3) (*The Fantasy Armory*)
- **Abilities:** *Shield Wall. Cool Head*
- **Dignitas:** Citizen by birth, Dignitas 1
- **Tactics:** Speak Latin to Romans first. If it comes to blows, fight as a legionary
- **Use:** Hire him as guard or guide, or send him to arrest a creditor's agent. The Roman-born Gabiniani answer to the Ptolemies (Alexandria, Rome in Egypt)
- **Hook:** A Gabinianus offers a banker the names of men in his company who would change sides for their back pay
## Beasts
**Adds** beasts on the Core pattern. **Replaces** the Core Rules, Structured Play (the default unarmed profile), for a beast's natural weapons, as Core allows a Universe to do.
##### TERMS: BEASTS
I **Size.** A beast bigger than a man is an Elite whose Wound Points are 11 + Might plus the size bonus its entry gives. A wolf, smaller than a man, is a Minion with 6 Wound Points.
II **Natural weapons.** A bite, claw or tusk is rolled with Might + Unarmed and deals Damage Might plus the number its entry prints.
III **Horses and elephants.** A horse in a fight uses its line in *The Stable* (Gear and Prices, Animals). An elephant uses the Elephant or War Elephant of *The Stable* (Gear and Prices, The Source Book Map).
##### EXAMPLE: SEPTIMIUS AND THE WOLVES
On the march in winter, a group of three wolves comes at the mules where Septimius walks with his scutum slung on his back: Melee Defense 0, but his mail still gives Resistance 4. The pack attacks as one: Might 2 and Unarmed 2 give 2 Mastery Dice against an Average attack, 48.5 chances in 100. A hit with 1 net Success deals 4 damage, which his Resistance 4 turns to nothing; it takes 2 net Successes to wound him. He strikes back at 70.6 in 100 (Might 3 and Melee 2, with 1 Boon Die for the gladius's Accurate 1, Average, against Melee Defense 0). His gladius deals 5 damage, less the wolves' Resistance 1: 4 Wounds from the pack's 18, and a wolf falls at every 6. The pack turns from the man in mail to the mules.
##### Wolf (Minion)
*A pack hunter of the Apennines, Alps and Gallic forests, bold in winter.*
2
3
1
3
2
1
1
6
0
0
- **Group Size:** 3 to 6
- **Skills:** Unarmed 2, Athletics 2, Perception 2, Stealth 2
- **Attacks:** Bite (Unarmed; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged)
- **Abilities:** **Pack:** add 1 Boon Die
to attacks against a target already Engaged with another wolf group
- **Tactics:** Circle camp and take a straggler or a mule. Keep clear of an armed group
- **Use:** Send it after flocks, mules or a lone winter traveler. A body of soldiers keeps it away
- **Hook:** Wolves took sheep in the hills. The estate's bailiff holds the enslaved shepherds to blame
##### Boar (Elite)
*Hunters take the venabulum after this boar in the oak forests of Italy and Gaul.*
4
2
1
3
3
0
2
15
0
0
- **Skills:** Unarmed 3, Fortitude 3, Athletics 2, Perception 2
- **Attacks:** Tusks (Unarmed; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Vicious 1)
- **Size:** none
- **Abilities:** **Charge:** from Short range it moves to Engaged and attacks in the same turn. **Hard to Stop:** its first Critical Injury in an encounter has no effect until the encounter ends
- **Tactics:** Rush the nearest hunter and keep on him until the boar dies or makes cover
- **Use:** Hunt it in Gaul or on a great estate. Set the venabulum (Boar Spear, Brace 3) against its charge (Gear and Prices, Arms)
- **Hook:** A guest took a tusk at a Campanian hunt. The host's freedman says the beaters drove the boar straight at the man
##### Bear (Elite)
*A mountain brown bear trapped for the games.*
4
2
1
3
3
0
2
20
0
0
- **Skills:** Unarmed 3, Athletics 3, Fortitude 3, Perception 2
- **Attacks:** Swipe (Unarmed; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged; Knockdown); Bite (Unarmed; Damage Might + 2; Crit 4; Engaged)
- **Size:** +5 Wound Points
- **Abilities:** **Maul:** on a Swipe hit, spend 2 Boons
to hit with the Bite as well
- **Tactics:** Rise, strike the nearest man down and stay on him
- **Use:** Put it in a mountain den a party stumbles into, or against hunters with spears at the games. Rome had bears at the games of 169 BC (Beasts at the Games)
- **Hook:** A bear broke out of its cage on the road from the Alps. An aedile waits for it and the contractor loses his fee if it dies
##### Lion (Elite)
*Contractors bring this African lion by ship for the beast hunts.*
4
3
1
3
3
0
2
18
0
0
- **Skills:** Unarmed 3, Athletics 3, Stealth 2, Perception 2
- **Attacks:** Claws (Unarmed; Damage Might + 2; Crit 3; Engaged; Vicious 1); Bite (Unarmed; Damage Might + 3; Crit 3; Engaged)
- **Size:** +3 Wound Points
- **Abilities:** **Pounce:** from Short range it moves to Engaged and attacks with 1 Boon Die
in the same turn
- **Tactics:** Pick the weakest man on the sand, stalk him, then pounce and pull him down
- **Use:** The hunters who meet it at the games carry the venabulum and javelins (Character Creation and Roles, Scout and Huntsman). A panther, the beast Caelius wanted for his games (The Arena and the Games, Games in 50 BC), uses this entry with Might 3, Stealth 3 and no size bonus: Wound Points 14
- **Hook:** An editor's hunters have yet to be paid. The lions he hired them to face have gone three days without food