9/17/2010

Sic transit gloria mundi.

Time passes and Spartacus is fit to fight once again. The crowd has been demanding his come back to the arena for a long time, and now he is ready a great expectation has raised.

Spartacus is still Rep 6 and this time is confronted against a Provocator Rep 7, especially brought from Rome to fight with him. Bets are high in favour of Spartacus, the hero of Capua.
The gates are opened and the gladiators jump into the arena, receiving a roaring welcome from the mob that has waited and waited for this event for so much time.

Spartacus is the first to attack and tries to outflank the visitor, but the Provocator is an old dog and blocks him without effort and scratches Spartacus on his chest with a gesture, like saying there is going to land his next blow.

Now the Provocator tries to hit Spartacus with his big scutum, but fails and must fall back to avoid the counter attack. Spartacus tries again to outflank the Provocator on his unshielded side but again is blocked, and before he can recover, his
opponent thrusts his chest, inflicting him a serious and painful wound. The crowd cries in disbelief, seeing his hero in trouble and his bets in danger.
Spartacus insists on flanking his enemy as his big shield is a barrier almost impossible to go through, but the Provocator proves to be very skilled and continuously blocks all his attempts. Fortunately for him, he wins the round this time and manages to place his sword on the Provocator's cardiophylax, and although the strike came too weak that couldn't penetrate it, it was enough to knock him to the ground. Regretfully, Spartacus misses this opportunity and the Provocator stands on his feet very quickly.

Spartacus keeps trying to flank his opponent with that tenacity so typical from barbarians, but he is only spending more and more dice from his pool. He fails this time miserably and the Provocator punishes him with a new scratch on his left leg. Immediately after that, the Provocator attacks him, severely slashing the same leg again.
A murmur from the crowd starts to rise with this new
wound on Spartacus. It seems he cannot surpass the Provocator's defence and that he is loosing a lot of blood now; he is running out of time and of tricks. New bets quickly come and go among the spectators.

Sensing a change of mood in the fight, the Provocator leaves his defensive stance and starts to behave more aggressively. He strikes repeatedly Spartacus' head, who is saved by his helmet but knocked to the ground. The crowd is changing sides and starts to boo his former hero.
Spartacus desperately manages to strike his enemy on his leg, forcing him to fall back and giving him time to stand on his feet; he catches some breath then, but he has already lost so many dice from his pool that it does not make any difference.

The Provocator keeps the pressure and attacks Spartacus right away, knocking him to the ground again. By the gods this is looking really ugly for Spartacus! Nonetheless, he manages to fence the Provocator off and rises ready to counter strike with what it seems to be his last chance. But he is fighting now with a minus one to his Rep due to the fall and passes 0d10! He then falls to the ground with the Provocator's gladius deeply buried in his chest.

There is a silence in the arena. Spartacus is dead, dead! A riot commences as the audience wants to recover their bets, as the
corpse of Spartacus is retired from the arena.

Spartacus is disposed of all his armour, his blood sold to some patrician women, and his corpse piled up together with other dead from the day. Nobody remembers him anymore. Who will pronounce his name once again?

Well, that is the end of a great campaign. I was about to ask for mercy right after Spartacus' last attack but then it was too late.
I hope you all have enjoyed this campaign of gladiatorial fights as much as I did.

7 comments:

  1. Outstanding games Javier!
    I've enjoyed following Spartacus' exploits, slightly sad to see him fall (ridiculous I know)

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  2. Gloria Mundi? I used to go to school with her brother Rex. ;-)

    All I can say to the demise of Spartacus is "Nooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo!"

    Great series of games, Javier, and I hope you find a new gladiator for your school soon.

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  3. Thanks both for the compliments. I also felt sorry about Spartacus after so many victorious encounters.

    I'm a bit tired of gladiators at the moment but not of the system. Actually, I'm planning to use it in a fantasy setting.
    Cheers,

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  4. Oooooh... :-(

    Teniendo en cuenta la precuela que van a estrenar de la serie quizás sea el momento de empezar una campaña con Crixus!

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  5. Hehehe, pues no sería mala idea. Seguro que la precuela es más sanguinaria aún :)

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  6. Dados amañados
    Exijo la autopsia del cadaver, seguro que le habían metido drojas.....

    Fue bonito mientas duró

    ¿Para cuándo la de WHAA? :D

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  7. Jajaja!
    Lo WHAA va para largo. Lo tengo todo preparado para jugar el siguiente escenario pero es que no me apetece porque ahora tengo en la cabeza un projecto nuevo muy parecido a WHAA. Pronto lo verás :)

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