Colosseum: Road to Freedom FAQ/Walkthrough Version 1.03 August 23, 2005 By Brian Nii (bnii at hawaii dot edu) Table of Contents ----------------- 1. Version History 2. Birth of a Gladiator 3. Daily Training 4. Basic Combat 5. Atilius Arena 6. The Colosseum 7. Weapons and Armor 8. Events 9. Frequently Asked Questions 10. Acknowledgements O--------------------O | 1. Version History | O--------------------O Version 1.03 (August 23, 2005) – Updated the active skill information in daily training. Updated named gladiator information in the colosseum and events section. Updated the weapon and armor lists. Version 1.02 (August 19, 2005) – Added more detailed information on the individual active skills in the daily training section. Added information on the second secret ending in the events section. Large update to the slave list in the events section. More questions added to the FAQ section. Version 1.01 (August 18, 2005) – Various minor updates. Updated the slave information in the events section. Version 1.0 (August 15, 2005) – First completed version of FAQ. Version 0.2 (August 13, 2005) – Reformatted the FAQ since it came out totally messed up for some reason when I submitted it. Completed the weapons and armor section. Version 0.1 (August 12, 2005) - First version of FAQ. O-------------------------O | 2. Birth of a Gladiator | O-------------------------O What we do in life echoes in eternity. - Maximus, Gladiator From the start of the game Magerius (the showman who buys you later on) appears and asks you several questions about your past. First he asks you where you came from. You'll have the following to choose from: Gallia Britannia (Type B) Hispania (Type A) Germania Numidia (Type C) Parthia Dacia Rome * Greece * Nowhere * Appears after you clear the game once. The land you choose affects the appearance of your gladiator. If you're going for a specific look choose Hispania for Type A, Britannia for Type B, and Numidia for Type C. Selecting nowhere chooses a land of origin randomly. Next you'll be asked what your previous occupation was. Slave Farmer Merchant Criminal Soldier * Nobleman * Gladiator * Nothing * Appears after you clear the game once. Your choice of occupation seems to affect the initial ability scores of your gladiator. Selecting nothing will randomly select an occupation. Magerius will then ask about which path you believe in. Path of Destiny Path of Survival The Unknown Path I'm not entirely sure how which path you select affects the game, but if you select the Path of Destiny Magerius will comment that you have faith in the gods. If you choose the Path of Survival he'll say that you must like challenging yourself. The unknown path randomly selects between the two. Next you will be asked which of the Roman gods you believe in. Hercules (strength) Amore (love) Victoria (victory) Virtus (valor) Mars (war) Jupiter (a.k.a. Zeus – the god of gods) * Non Believer * Appears after you clear the game once. Certain weapons and armor in the game are "favored" by certain gods. Finally Magerius will ask for your name. When you're done entering your name the game will begin. After several scenes in which you're brought to the slave market, you'll begin your first fight in a small arena. Use the L1 button to pick up the wooden sword on the ground in front of you. Attack the opponent with the Triangle, Square, X, and O buttons. When he's defeated press L1 + O to drop the weapon, then exit the arena via the gate. A few scenes later you'll enter the arena again. Pick up the sword as you did before and defeat your opponent. A second opponent appears after the first. If you're feeling sneaky you can pick up the sword the first opponent dropped in your other hand (press L1 and Square) for some two sword fighting action. With two swords in hand you can perform multiple attacks by repeatedly pressing the O button. Defeating the second opponent brings out a third. Defeat him in the same manner as the other two and a fourth (and final) opponent appears. Dispatch him, drop your weapon (or weapons) by pressing L1 + O (L1 + Square for the left hand), and exit the arena. A short time later you'll fight one last bout against none other than your cell buddy Memnon. This time you'll be fighting with real weapons. Memnon's a bit tougher than the previous slaves you've fought against. Once trick to use is the dodge (tap R1 before an attack hits you). Other than that keep hitting him with the sword until he keels over. If a skill tablet drops from his corpse, be sure to pick it up after the match by standing next to it and pressing L1. Drop your weapon and exit the arena. Magerius buys you for a whopping one million, um, whatever currency the Romans happen to be using at this time (referred to in the game as "s"). Your goal is to pay all of that off in 50 days. When you reach Magerius's training camp you'll have a chance to go through a brief tutorial. After that you'll fight a mock battle against Gnaeus, one of the trainers. Pick up the wooden sword and beat him silly with it. Afterwards Celadus, another trainer, takes you to the dining area and explains that after every training session you should come here to eat. Once the tour ends you'll wake up the next day in your room ready to start your destiny as a gladiator. O-------------------O | 3. Daily Training | O-------------------O So Spaniard, we shall go to Rome together and have bloody adventures. And the great whore will suckle us until we are fat and happy and can suckle no more. And then, when enough men have died, perhaps you will have your freedom. - Proximo, Gladiator As mentioned previously, your goal is to pay off Magerius one million S in 50 days so you can become a free man. The only way to do that is to win battles in the arena and colosseum. The only way to do that is to train and get stronger. The first thing you should do is access the start menu (with the start button obviously). Personally I like to turn the vibration off (unless you like to, um, vibrate) and set the camera to "far". You can check out your status and equipment as well. Since you don't have any equipment at the moment take a look at your status for now. [Status Screen] The following is a brief explanation of the status screen: Name: The name you chose for your gladiator at the beginning. Rank: Your gladiator's current rank. You begin at Low Rank and work your way upwards to Middle Rank, High Rank, and finally Highest Rank. Rank descriptions are as follows: Low Rank (Apprentice) – You start with this rank. You have little clothing and are barefoot. You share a room in the basement with several other gladiators. You can only enter bronze level battles, and cannot participate in duels or mock battles. You can equip up to 3 passive skills (see below). Middle Rank (Journeyman) – Achieved at 15 Palma (see below). You get a shoulder guard and some sandals. You get a private room on the first floor with an item box. You can enter silver level battles and certain mock battles and duels, but no duels with named gladiators. You can equip up to seven passive skills. High Rank (Veteran) – Achieved at 50 Palma. You get arm guards, chest straps, and a belt. You have a private luxury room on the second floor with a bed and item box. You can enter gold level battles and participate in all mock battles. Duels with some named gladiators are possible at this point. You can equip up to 11 passive skills. Highest Rank (Master) – Achieved at 4 Corona (see below). No appearance change from High Rank. You have a large private luxury room on the second floor with a larger bed and item box. You can participate in any battle at the arena or colosseum. You can equip up to 15 passive skills. Class: You begin as a Slave. When you pay off your debt to Magerius this changes to Free Man. Once you are a Free Man you can purchase slaves at the slave market via Magerius's room. Money: This is the money that you have on hand. You cannot use this to pay off Magerius. You can however use this to purchase weapons and armor, get yourself healed by the healer, or purchase slaves late in the game. Corona: You earn one Corona for each named gladiator you defeat at the colosseum. Since there are seven in all, you can earn a maximum of seven Corona. Palma: You earn one Palma for every battle you win at either the arena or colosseum. You can earn a maximum of 99 Palma, although for ranking purposes you only need to earn 50. STR (Strength): This stat determines your offensive power, as well as how heavy a weapon you can carry into battle without being too encumbered. DEX (Dexterity): This stat determines how likely you are to drop a weapon or lose a piece of armor in combat. The higher dexterity you have, the less likely you are to drop something when hit. AGI (Agility): This stat determines how quickly you can move and attack. VIT (Vitality): This stat determines how much damage you take from opponent's attacks on your body. Works in conjunction with the body levels. STA (Stamina): This stat determines your stamina level. The higher the stamina level, the more you can run and attack in battle. Note: Max value for STR, DEX, AGI, VIT, and STA are 255. CAP (Capacity): This is the maximum weight value of weapons and armor you can equip on yourself. The next four icons indicate the toughness of your gladiator's body parts. The higher the level, the less damage that body part receives when struck in battle. Neck (head icon): Level of resistance to attacks to the head. Body (head icon): Level of resistance to attacks to the body. Arms (head icon): Level of resistance to attacks to the arms. Legs (head icon): Level of resistance to attacks to the legs. Note: Max value for body levels is 10. These icons represent the level of proficiency with certain combat styles. Each time you attack while using a style you gain experience in that style. The higher the level, the more damage you can do using that style. Sword Style (sword and circular shield icon): Current level of sword style. Shield Style (sword and square shield icon): Current level of shield style. Two Hand Style (two sword icon): Current level of two hand style. Striker Style (fist icon): Current level of striker style. Note: Max value for style levels is 40. Now that you're familiar with the status screen it's time to look at the skill wall nearby. Here you can set your skill tablets, check your status, and check the calendar. First we'll take a look at the skills. [Skills] There are two types of skills in the game: active and passive. Active skills are special skills you can use in combat. Passive skills are bonuses, which are added to your abilities. In order to use skills they need to be set into the wall. The maximum number of active skills you can set is four, and they are mapped to the Square, Triangle, X, and O buttons on the controller. To use them in battle you need to hold down the L2 button and press the corresponding button for the skill. In addition you also need to be using the same fighting style for the particular active skill. Active skills also require stamina in order to use. The amount of passive skills you can set depends on your current rank (3, 7, 11, and 15 for Low, Middle, High, and Highest Rank respectively). Passive skills provide a bonus to certain abilities (for example a STR+1 increases strength by 1, indicated by a red +1 on the status screen), or they can increase a body level (for example a HEAD+1 increases the head level by 1, indicated by a red +1). Bonuses are cumulative, so a STR+1 and STR+2 set in the skill wall will increase strength by 3. Occasionally in battle an opponent may drop a skill tablet, or you may on rare occasions find them outside of battle. Each active skill is used for a particular style, and has a prerequisite style level to use it. A skill also has a power level, which can be increased (unless the skill description says the skill is at maximum level). Every time you gain a level in a style, you earn a skill increase tablet for that style (check the fifth column when setting an active skill for the skill increase tablets). This tablet can be used to increase a skill level for one skill. Each time an active skill goes up in level, usually the attack power increases, the stamina cost may increase or decrease, and the required level to use the skill may go up. Occasionally you may receive special tablets as a reward in your room that can raise any type of skill one level, but these are very rare. As mentioned previously, skill tablets are usually obtained by defeating opponents in battle. They have a very distinct shape and make a distinct sound when they hit the ground. You can pick one up by pressing the L1 button while near the tablet, even if your hands are full. If you're in the middle of battle however, doing so can make you very vulnerable, as you'll be wide open to attack for several seconds. As a general rule of thumb, the higher the level match, the better skill tablets opponents drop. Named gladiators usually drop active skills, and if you pick up an active skill you already have you'll receive a different skill in that same category. Sometimes spectators outside the arena will toss a skill tablet at you, but this happens randomly and is extremely rare. You may also find a skill tablet by kicking a jar (R1+X) in an infirmary, but again this is random and extremely rare. [Active Skills] ONE SWORD Bash Hilt Thrust Body Blow Uppercut Evade Thrust Splitter Power Slash Disarm Slash Glorious Glint Daisy Cutter Wild Splash Doppler Sence One sword skills are a mixed bag in terms of utility. Bash, Hilt Thrust, Body Blow, and Uppercut are pretty average in terms of power (although it is fun to watch people fly around using Uppercut). Evade Thrust can be useful as a counterattack as it hits quite low, and Splitter can be used to quickly introduce yourself to an oncoming enemy. Power Slash automatically makes you drop your shield since it requires two hands to use, which sort of nullifies the purpose of having a shield in the first place. Avoid using this one at all costs. Disarm Slash sounds cool, but it has such a long wind up time that it's impractical to use in the arena. Glorious Glint is a spinning slash that is a great follow up to an attack. Daisy Cutter has a large attack radius, but it's so slow that you can easily get hit out of it. Wild Splash fires off three quick attacks in a row. Doppler Sence combines a powerful overhead hit with a shoulder tackle, and is a personal favorite of mine since it combos so well with other attacks. SHIELD Charge Shield Ram Shield Bash Double Stinger Turn Ground Pound Piercing Thrust Cyclone Edge Duel Spirits Rumble Roll Hidden Clow Shield skills tend to be either linear charge attacks or short-range radius attacks. Charge, Shield Ram, Double Stinger, and Piercing Thrust tend to fall into the first category. Shield Bash, Cyclone, and Edge fall into the latter. There are a few attacks that don't fall into either category. Turn is strange as it actually restores stamina rather that depletes it. The downside is that you're pretty much a sitting duck while you're using it. Ground Pound actually sends any nearby weapons/armor in the vicinity flying into the air, which can be useful for keeping enemies distracted by the bouncing objects. Edge is a close range shield swing, while Rumble Roll is similar but has a longer range since you swing with the shield in a horizontal position. Duel Spirits is a much stronger version of Charge/Shield Ram. Hidden Clow is somewhat of a strange move. It's a powerful vertical swing that results in you facing the opposite direction afterwards. Cyclone is worth mentioning as it consumes a monstrous amount of stamina, especially at higher levels (over 1000+). While it has a long windup time, it's pretty much guaranteed to send an enemy flying if it hits, often sheering off a piece of armor in the process. TWO HAND Wild Dance Sting Twin Spikes Scissor Lifter Back Thrust Sweep Slash Fury Stunning Blow Double Axe Double Slice Tornado Dolphin Two hand skills tend to be all about offense. Sting and Sweep Slash are fantastic against prone opponents, while Wild Dance, Fury, Double Axe, and Double Slice can do large amounts of damage, especially with the heavier weapons. Twin Spikes and Scissor Lifter can be a bit hard to hit with since they have a narrow target range. Back Thrust automatically turns you around in the opposite direction, so it can be useful if you need to fend off an incoming attack from the rear. Tornado has to be the most spectacular looking attack here, but it's more for entertainment value rather than being practical for fighting. STRIKER White Fang Sway Double Kick Iron Knuckle Right Pistons Left Pistons Shoulder Tackle Flying Knee Lariat Head Butt Sobat Stomping Striker skills tend to look more like pro wrestling moves than anything else. Double Kick, Shoulder Tackle, and Flying Knee look more impressive than they actually perform. Iron Knuckle and Left/Right Pistons are a bit more practical. White Fang is very powerful, but has a long startup time. Lariat is also slow, but powerful, and Stomping is always good for a laugh when your opponents are down. Head Butt isn't too outstanding, but Sobat is a nice move since it's quick and combos well with other attacks. Now that you know a bit more about skills, finally take a look at the calendar. [Calendar] The calendar shows the current day underneath the day number. Remember that you have until day 50 to pay off your debt. The two squares underneath the day shows whether or not that day is scheduled for the Atilius arena or the colosseum. If both squares are blank, that means that day is free for training. If a sword icon is displayed in the top box, a bout at the Atilius arena is scheduled. If the icon is one the bottom, the bout is scheduled at the colosseum. Note that if you head outside to the training courtyard on a day scheduled for a bout, you will end up going whether you like it or not (at least until your rank improves). The only way to avoid this is to go to your bed and choose the sleep option, which sends you to the next day. Of course this is highly counterproductive and I never recommend doing so. Since the first day is a training day you might as well go out for your first training session. [Training] Since you're a low rank gladiator you start out in the basement. Head out the door and up the stairs, and follow the rest of the gladiators outside to the outer courtyard. Here you'll see the various gladiators training outside. Each day you can participate in up to two training sessions before the day ends. Depending on how well you do in them you can earn training points, which can be used to upgrade your gladiator in the dining room at the end of the day. Each type of training usually has three different difficulty levels. The higher the difficulty level, the more training points you can earn, but the greater chance of making mistakes. You may end up earning less points than if you had chosen a lower difficulty level. [Training with Gnaeus] Located to the left of the entrance is Gnaeus. He's dressed in red and is standing near what looks like a shooting gallery. He offers training in throwing swords and dodging. Sword throwing training is just that. You have ten swords to knock down the moving targets with. Pick them up with the L1 button and throw them with L1+O. Dodging practice involves dodging a swinging pole. Press the R1 button before the pole hits you to dodge it. Personally if I had to choose one over the other I'd stick with dodge practice, as this skill is a real lifesaver (especially during duels). [Training with Decimus] Decimus is the trainer standing to the right of the entrance near the other gladiators doing various exercises. This is where you can train your body levels performing simple exercises. Each exercise requires you to press a button when it enters the zone in the middle of the bar at the top of the screen. Hitting the corresponding button when it's in the yellow mark earns you an excellent rather than good response. Push-ups strengthen your arm level, squats strengthen your leg level, sit-ups strengthen your body level, and bridges strengthen your neck level. Not only do you strengthen your body levels with this training, but also you can earn training points to boot. [Training with Celadus] Standing to the right of Decimus near the training dummies is Celadus. Here you can train against wooden dummies in combo exercises, do challenges, or spar against another gladiator. Combo exercises involve pressing buttons in the order as they appear on screen as fast as you can before the time bar runs out. Challenges involve, well, certain challenges, such as striking certain dummies, knocking down an opponent, or knocking out an opponent. Sparring involves mock combat against another gladiator using wooden swords and no armor. Personally I'd stick with training with Decimus, but if you want to train with Celadus you would probably want to stick with combo exercises. [Dining Room] After doing two training exercises you will automatically be taken to the dining room (you can also head there early via the door near Decimus in the courtyard). Here you can spend the training points you earned by talking to the cook Crixus. There is a total limit to the amount of points you can spend (indicated by the limit value). Other than that, it's pretty much up to you how to spend your points. Personally I go for a relatively balanced approach to allocate my points. Strength is important, but don't overlook the rest of your abilities. Dexterity helps prevent getting disarmed frequently. Agility helps your mobility in combat. Vitality lets you absorb more damage and reduces healing costs. And stamina provides the energy to keep going in the arena. I have no idea what offerings do in terms of game play, so I tend to ignore it for the most part. Once you're done allocating your points exit the room and the day will end. At the end of each day the game will prompt you to save. Note that this is the only way to save the game during training days. O-----------------O | 4. Basic Combat | O-----------------O Listen to me. Learn from me. I was not the best because I killed quickly. I was the best because the crowd loved me. Win the crowd and you will win your freedom. - Proximo, Gladiator Before we get to combat basics, you need to make a decision as to what type of fighting style you want to adopt. Sometimes you won't really have a choice during battle, as you'll often need to fight with whatever's available, or even bare handed if necessary. Some people don't focus on a particular style. This has the advantage of being very flexible to whatever situation may arise. The downside is that skills and style levels tend to be low, as they're not focusing on any one fighting style. Focusing in a particular style has the advantage of high style levels and skill levels, making them formidable opponents when fighting in that style. The downside is that if they become disarmed or are forced to fight with improvised weapons, their fighting ability drastically decreases. The decision is yours to make. [One Sword] Pros: Well balanced attack and defense. Cons: Not as offensive as two-hand fighting, nor is it as defensive as shield fighting. The one sword fighting style doesn't necessarily mean fighting with a sword, but with one weapon, whether it is a club or a spear. Fighters in this style also use a small shield in their off hand. This allows them to fight effectively while still maintaining a defense against counter attacks. It's a very flexible style in terms of offence and defense. [Shield] Pros: Strong defense. Cons: Limited offense. Similar to the one sword fighting style, except that it uses a large shield rather than a small shield. As you might expect, this style offers excellent defense as the large shield provides a great deal of protection. The downside is that a large shield also limits mobility as well as angles of attack. This style is best suited for pole arms such as spears, but it can also be surprisingly effective with large weapons such as hammers. [Two Hand] Pros: Strong offense. Cons: Weak defense. As the name implies, this style uses a weapon in each hand. This allows for rapid attacks as the user can strike quickly whirling each weapon around like a saw, or rapidly jabbing them at his opponent's gut. The downside to this style is that the user cannot use a shield, and must rely completely on armor for defense. Users of this style must overwhelm their opponent with quick strikes and be ready at an instant to dodge attacks due to their low defense. [Striker] Pros: Fast attacks. Cons: Low offense and defense. Fighting unarmed is usually a bad idea in the arena, and is usually the result of getting your weapons knocked from your hands, rather than a conscious choice. Some gladiators are crazy (or desperate) enough to fight with their bare hands. This is the default fighting style if you fight without a weapon. While this allows for fast attacks, as you can imagine the damage is relatively poor compared to weapons. Also because this style lacks a shield or weapon, you cannot block or parry attacks (you can still dodge however). Fighting without a weapon is very challenging and requires sharp reflexes and judicious use of skills to be effective. Note: The computer controlled opponents never fight unarmed willingly. They will fight bare handed if disarmed and attacked, but will make a beeline towards the nearest weapon available as soon as they can. Now let's move on to the basic controls. [Movement] Left Analog Stick: Hold lightly to walk, hold down to run. Right Analog Stick: Moves camera. R3: Centers camera. Use the left analog stick to move your gladiator. The right analog stick controls the camera. Pressing the right analog stick in (R3) centers the camera in the direction you're facing. Note that movement depletes the stamina gauge (see below). [Attack] Triangle: Performs a high attack. Square: Performs a left to right attack. O: Performs a right to left attack. X: Performs a low attack. L2 + Attack Button: Active Skill You can attack opponents to your sides or back by pressing the left analog stick towards them (relative to the screen) and pressing an attack button. If you tap an attack button you perform a jab attack (quick but low damage). Pressing the attack button performs a turn attack (slower but normal damage). Note that you can perform special attacks by using certain attacks in a certain order (for example a horizontal cut followed by a vertical cut results in a cross cut). If you have an active skill mapped to one of the attack buttons, you can use it by pressing L2 and the respective button. [Commands] Directional Button Up: Appeals to audience. Directional Button Left: Sends teammates away from you (team battle). Directional Button Right: Calls teammates towards you (team battle). Directional Button Down Twice: Surrender. The directional buttons can be used to perform special commands in battle. Pressing up causes your gladiator to appeal to the audience. This is somewhat of a taunt and usually causes any opponents nearby to come and attack you. Pressing down twice results in your gladiator to surrender the match. This may or may not result in your gladiator being killed, depending on how well you did in the match. During a team battle pressing left will cause your teammates to disperse from your position (doesn't work all the time), while pressing right calls your teammates towards you. Note: Appealing using a one sword style has a much longer animation than appealing with the other styles. Keep this in mind otherwise you'll be a sitting duck during the match. I usually appeal after a match as a sign of victory. =) [Defense] R1 (Hold): Block. R1 (Tap before getting hit): Dodge. R1 + Attack Button: Parry R2 + Left Analog Stick: Roll Holding down the R1 button blocks an incoming attack. Note that this does not prevent your weapon/shield from being knocked away, or yourself from being knocked down from an attack. Also you cannot block an attack from behind. You can slowly move while in the blocking position using the left analog stick. You can also quickly sidestep left to right by tapping the left analog stick in the respective direction while blocking. Tapping up and down performs a short dash/back step while blocking. If you tap the R1 button before the moment of impact you dodge the attack instead. This is indicated by a blue blur effect. Pressing an attack button while holding down R1 performs a parry. If you connect with your opponent's weapon they will be momentarily caught off guard, leaving them open for an attack. Pressing the R2 button and the left analog stick causes you to perform a roll. Note that you can still get hit while rolling, but it can be useful sometimes to avoid an attack. [Pick Up/Use Items] L1: Pick up skill tablets/keys. L1 + O: Pick up/throw weapon/shield/armor with right hand (battle). Pick up/drop item with right hand (outside). L1 + Square: Pick up/throw weapon/shield/armor with left hand (battle). Pick up/drop item with left hand (outside). L1 + Triangle: Wear/throw helmet (battle). Wear/drop helmet (outside). L1 + X: Kick item (battle). Deposit into item box (after battle). The item manipulation system differs depending on whether you're in battle or outside the arena. In battle pressing the L1 button allows you to pick up skill tablets or special items such as keys, regardless of whether or not your hands are full. If your hands are empty, pressing L1+O picks up a weapon/shield/armor in your right hand, and pressing L1+Square picks it up in your left hand. If your hands are full pressing the same buttons will cause you to throw the weapon/shield/armor in the corresponding hand. Pressing L1+Triangle picks up and equips a helmet if you don't have one already. If you already have one on doing so throws the helmet you're wearing instead. Note that you cannot equip armor other than a helmet during battle. You need to use an item box outside of battle (see Item Box below). After a battle concludes (after the victory message) but before it ends you can press L1+X to pick up a weapon/armor and send it directly to your Item Box. Item manipulation is similar outside of battle. The only exceptions being that you drop items at your feet instead of throwing them. [Battle Gauge] During a battle the battle gauge will be displayed in the upper left corner of the screen. The gauge is composed of three parts. The left gauge is the stamina gauge. The stamina gauge depletes as you move, attack, or use special skills and recovers when you are at rest. Depleting the stamina gauge leaves you vulnerable to attack so keep an eye out on it during combat. The eagle icon is the damage gauge. The damage icon is divided to represent the damage level of your head, left and right arm, body, and left and right leg. As you take damage to a body part, that part of the gauge will turn from blue, to green, then yellow, then orange, and finally red. If a part is flashing red it means that part is on the verge of being destroyed, resulting in immanent death. To the right of the eagle icon is the adrenalin gauge. This gauge is an indication of how popular you are with the audience. When it fills completely it begins to flash. When this occurs you can activate adrenalin mode by pressing R1+L2. During this period time slows down, allowing you to perform combos that would normally be impossible, and your stamina gauge automatically refills. O------------------O | 5. Atilius Arena | O------------------O Are you not entertained? Are you not entertained? Is this not why you are here? - Maximus, Gladiator Your first bout will be at the Atilius Arena, the smaller of the two arenas in the game. Talking to Magerius near the wagon allows you to return to the training camp to end the day. You will automatically go home after doing so if you enter every event for the day, but that won't happen yet since there are some silver level competitions on the list and you aren't high enough in rank to enter them. To the right you can see two guards in front of a fenced off area. This leads to the arena staging area, but ignore it for now and head past them to an area with the "Arma" (armory) sign on it. [Arma] This is where you can purchase various weapons and armor from the merchant. You can also sell weapons and armor (at a drastically reduced value, you only get 10% of the value listed for the item) or upgrade weapons and armor. To purchase a weapon or armor simply pick it up and talk to merchant. Nearby is an Item Box where you can store items that you purchased. Do not under any circumstance leave the Arma while you have a weapon or piece of armor in your hand. I repeat, do not leave the area with anything equipped in your hand. Just to be safe make sure to leave everything in the box before you leave the area. The sell option sells everything that you currently have equipped. Make sure you're not equipped with anything important before selling an item. Upgrading a weapon/armor is usually ridiculously expensive, and isn't always guaranteed to work. Weapons and armor have levels of quality indicated by the letter coloring. Gray indicates poor quality, White is normal, Blue is good, and Yellow is excellent. The shop always sells white quality items, but on rare occasions blue or yellow items will appear, especially when you advance in rank. Blue and yellow items also have special qualities such as increasing your abilities or decreasing your opponent's abilities. The stock of the Arma changes after every match, and the quality of goods increases as you advance in rank. Note that the Colosseum does not have an Arma, so if you want to buy or upgrade weapons you need to do so at the Atilius arena. [Crowds] As you head back outside you may notice a crowd gathered by the gate nearby. If you move near the gate the crowd will start heckling you and occasionally start throwing objects. Most of the time they'll throw stones at you (which can actually hurt you), but sometimes they'll throw a bag of money, which you can pick up for a small amount of cash. On extremely rare occasions you might even get a skill tablet. Do not pick up any stones they throw at you. You can also find crowds at the Colosseum (see below) that react in the same way. Note that crowds will normally heckle you, but when you reach the highest rank they will actually start cheering you. When this happens the odds of getting money thrown at you increases (they will occasionally still throw rocks though). [Staging Area] Past the two guards is a staging area for the arena. You'll find various poor quality weapons and armor lying about. Quickly snatch them up and dump them in the item box before another gladiator picks them up. At this point you'll need all the help you can get. You'll notice a skill wall nearby where you can set your skill tablets. To the left of the skill wall is the healer. The healer completely heals all damage that you accrue in the arena, for a price. Note that you do not heal automatically after every match. The cost of healing is dependent on how much damage you have. The bailey near the arena entrance is the person you talk to in order to enter a match. Before doing so you'll probably want to equip yourself first. Head for the Item Box nearby to do so. [Item Box] The Item Box is where you can store your weapons and armor. You can store a maximum of 20 items regardless of type. Items are divided into weapons, shields, helmets, arm armor, leg armor, and miscellaneous. Note that this total does not include items you currently have equipped. If you try to put more than 20 items in the box you will be told you have insufficient space. You can sell items directly from the box by pressing the O button. Note that for weapons and leg armor, the X button equips the right arm/leg and the square button equips the left arm/leg. The Item Box can also be used to quickly equip and store items. If you press the Square button while next to the Item Box you can "set" the weapons and armor that you have currently equipped. If you press the O button you can equip all the weapons and armor that you "set" previously. Pressing the Triangle button stores all weapons and armor inside the box. You should always store your weapons and armor inside the box before leaving a staging area or the Arma. [Punishment] If you leave the Arma or a staging area with anything in your hands, the guards will warn you to put down your weapons (armor, or even a stone counts as a weapon as well). If this happens quickly reenter the area you just came from. If you remain in the area the guards will attack you and you enter punishment mode. The purpose of punishment mode is to, well, punish you for running around with a weapon. In this mode an unlimited number of guards attack you a whopping five at a time. You begin at punishment level one and as you kill more guards the punishment level increases. As each level increases the guards become better armed until at level five or six they have spears and heavy shields. As far as I know, there is absolutely no good reason to enter punishment mode to begin with, so avoid it at all costs. If you see an Item Box leave all your items in it before leaving the area. Note that this applies to your room as well. On a side note you can instigate a fight with a guard by kicking him (R1+X), but why you would want to do so is beyond me. UPDATE: Apparently there is a limit to the number of guards that will attack you during punishment mode. If you manage to defeat a certain amount of guards, you can get a special event to occur (see Events). [Battles] Once you've equipped yourself talk to the bailey to look at the battle list. Battle lists are made up of six bouts and follow chronological order. If you select a battle further on the list the previous battles become unavailable. For example, if you enter the third battle on a list, the first and second battle become unavailable afterwards, leaving only the fourth, fifth, and sixth battle on the list. Each battle has a description, ranking, and reward listing. Description: This is a description of the battle type. Battles include Team Battle, Battle Royal, Survival, Hunting, Duel, and Mock Battle. Mock Battles are only available at the Colosseum. Ranking: There are four rank levels, corresponding with the four gladiator ranks. These are Bronze (Low), Silver (Middle), Gold (High) and Skull (Highest). You cannot enter a battle if you do not meet the requisite rank for it. Each rank level has four difficulty levels as indicated by the number of icons. A battle with one bronze icon is ridiculously easy, while a battle with four skull icons would be ridiculously hard. Reward: This is the base amount of S that you earn by winning this battle. Note that 90% of this goes to Magerius to repay your debt. The remainder goes to your own fund. Note that this value may be higher or lower depending on how well you performed in the battle. Now let's briefly go over the different battle types. [Team Battle] Team Battles are usually the easiest match types in the arena. There are basically two types of team battles: general kill them all, and kill the general. In the general kill them all match your group of gladiators must eliminate the opposing team. Regardless of how many gladiators are on a team, only three from each team can take the field at once. In your case, you will have two allied gladiators with you. Each time a gladiator is killed a replacement appears. While having allies makes things a bit easier, the only problem is that they tend to group around your targets, and usually end up getting hit as much as your opponents. Press left on the directional button to order them to back off if you want them to clear the area around you. The second Team Battle variant involves generals. A general is the leader of a gladiator team, and eliminating him instantly wins the battle for the team that killed him. If the battle description says Kill General, your team must eliminate the enemy general. If the description says Defend General that means your team has a general and you must eliminate the opposing team while preventing your own general from dying. Obviously the former type is much easier than the latter type. Generals are quite sturdy and usually use the shield fighting style, but they can be quickly killed if ganged up on. If fighting an enemy general try to gang up on him and attack from the sides or rear. Defending a general is much harder. If your gladiator is powerful you may end up accidentally killing him if he gets too close to your target. In this case you need to fight very cautiously when your general is nearby. Try to get the opposition to follow you away from your teammates. [Battle Royal] As the name implies, in this battle it's every man for himself. There are two types of battle royal matches: elimination and survival. Elimination battle royal means you must be the last man standing out of a designated amount of gladiators. Survival means that you need to survive for a set amount of time against an unlimited amount of opponents. Regardless of type, a maximum of five gladiators (including yourself) can be fighting at once. To make things interesting some obstacles will be placed in the arena. At Atilius arena spiked poles will damage anyone that gets too close to them. Be careful not to get knocked into them. On the plus side, AI opponents often tend to walk into them. At the Colosseum you'll find rotating blades that affect a much wider area than the spiked poles. Note: The spiked poles at the Atilius arena can be cut down during the match if they take enough damage. If one falls directly on top of you it will kill you instantly, so be careful. [Survival] Survival is similar to the Battle Royal, with one major exception: this time everyone is trying to kill you. Like Battle Royal there are elimination and survival matches. In elimination you must wipe out the opposing side. In survival you must hold out against unlimited opponents for a specified period of time. [Hunting] In hunting you and two teammates fight against five wild animals in a battle to the death. In the Atilius arena you fight against bulls one at a time. In the Colosseum you fight against five tigers all at once. Bull fighting is a bit easier, as they appear one at a time and are easy to dodge when they charge. The fifth bull is always a huge monstrosity though, and can take and give a great deal of damage. Tigers are tougher to fight, as they are much faster and harder to hit. Tiger matches involve two normal tigers, two white tigers, and one large tiger. It doesn't matter if your teammates are alive at the end, but they are fantastic for distracting the animals while you hit them from behind. If you're extremely lucky the large bull/tiger may drop a special item (horn fragment for bulls, tiger skin for tigers) that you can sell for a lot of money. [Duel] The duel is a one on one match between you and a veteran gladiator. These gladiators are much stronger than the generic ones you fight in the other battles, and usually carry high quality weapons and armor. They can also do something that most gladiators you fight against don't normally do: dodge your attacks. In the Atilius arena you will always fight "No Name" gladiators. In the Colosseum you will fight famous gladiators who are ridiculously tough. Note that you need to be at least high rank to fight them, as they are gold level matches. [Mock Battle] Mock Battles recreate historical battles in the arena. These often have unusual opponents and/or winning conditions. These only occur at the Colosseum, and require either middle or high rank to enter. For more detail see the Colosseum section below. Once you select the type of battle you will participate in the gate will open. Note that you can still heal and change equipment before entering the gate. Once you do so the battle will begin after a brief introduction. Good luck! [Winning the Crowd] As mentioned earlier, 90% of your winnings go to Magerius, and 10% goes to you. This value may be higher or lower depending on how well you performed. A good indication of your performance is the adrenalin meter. If it's going up the crowd approves of your fighting. When it's full you'll start to hear the audience start the classic "Kill! Kill! Kill!" chant. How do you win the crowd? Kill your opponents: The easiest way (and most obvious) is to kill your opponents. The crowd goes wild if you kill two opponents simultaneously, and goes nuts if you kill three at the same time. Also you get bonuses for each consecutive kill you make within a short period of time. Killing two opponents quickly gets you a Double Kill bonus, three opponents gets you a Triple Kill bonus and so on all the way up to a whopping 10 opponents. If you somehow kill 10+ opponents in a row you get the coveted Rampage Kill message. Hit your opponents: Chain attacks occur when you strike an opponent, even if the attack is blocked. The higher chain count you achieve in the battle, the better your evaluation. You also get bonuses for counter hits (indicated by red damage numbers), hitting your opponent in the air (aerial hits), hits from the side, or the hits from behind (backstabs). Dodging: Skillfully dodging your opponent's attacks adds to your evaluation, not to mention saving you a whole lot of money on healing. [Evaluation] After the battle you'll see the results screen that evaluates your performance. Prize: The base reward money for winning the match. Top Hit Chain: The highest chain attack achieved in the match. Back Stabs: The number of times you attacked someone from behind. Evasion Rate: % of attacks dodged during the match. Special Messages: No attempt to defend – Did not dodge or block. One-sided Match – Received no damage during the match. Overwhelming Power – Quickly ended the match. Evaluation: A description of how well you performed during the match. Fought like a coward No Interest Disappointing What a brute! Nothing special Seen better Has potential Might be good Has a future Good skills Excellent Skills One to talk about One to watch A power fighter Amazing strength Regular barbarian Bonus: Bonus money earned based on evaluation. This can be a negative number if you performed poorly. Sometimes you can get a negative bonus even with a positive evaluation and vice versa. For the most part though the more positive evaluation the better your bonus. If the bonus is high enough you may even pay off more debt than the original reward was worth. Debt: Money paid off to Magerius. Earnings: Money paid to you. [Post Battle] At the end of each battle the announcer will tell you to leave the arena. At this point you can do so by exiting through the gate you came in, which takes you back to the staging area. Or you could stay and grab all the leftover weapons and armor scattered about the arena floor. You only have a short period of time to do so before you're automatically sent back to the staging area. As you can imagine this is a great opportunity to grab some great swank to either use in the next battle or to sell for money. Make it a habit after every battle to grab whatever isn't nailed down, and if it is try to find a crowbar to pry it out (just kidding). After the battle go and heal up, maybe check out the Arma (remember to remove your equipment) although you probably don't have enough to buy anything good yet, and get ready for the next match. You won't be able to enter all the matches the first time around though as you're still at low rank. Once you've entered all the matches possible (and I always recommend doing so whenever possible) talk to Magerius to head back home. Note that this is the only way to save the game. You can't save between matches. Congratulations on your first day at the arena! The remaining calendar days usually alternate between training and going to the arena (there are a few exceptions later on). When you increase in rank however, certain events may occur when conditions are met (see Events below). O----------------O | 6. Colosseum | O----------------O The beating heart of Rome is not the marble of the Senate; it's the sand of the Colosseum. - Gracchus, Gladiator The Colosseum is the second and largest arena in the game. It offers the same matches as the Atilius arena, in addition to historical mock battles and duels with famous (named) gladiators. The only thing the Colosseum doesn't have is an Arma, so if you want to purchase items or upgrade you're out of luck. On the plus side, you can usually get much better items at the Colosseum since the opposition is usually of a higher caliber than at Atilius. [Mock Battle] Once you reach middle rank Mock Battles become accessible at the Colosseum. As mentioned previously these recreate historical battles in Roman history. The reward for winning such battles is much greater than regular matches, but on the same token they are much harder as they often feature unusual hazards and/or winning conditions. The following are the mock battles available at the Colosseum: ZAMA Goal: Defeat 10 Romans, then one/two charioteers. Note: Chariots cannot be defended against. If you've seen the movie Gladiator, this is the same battle that was featured in that movie. In this battle it's the Carthaginians versus the Romans, and you get to play on the side of Hannibal. At first it seems like a 10 on 10 standard team battle. Once you defeat 10 Romans however, two chariots enter the arena. Like in Gladiator they have spinning blades on their wheels. And like in Gladiator getting hit with them spells instant death (there is a chance that a piece of your armor will get sheered off instead, consider yourself very lucky if that occurs). The chariots will either circle around the area or turn into the cross intersection formed by the walls. The goal here is to knock the gladiator off the chariot by throwing either a weapon or shield at it (shields are much easier). There is somewhat of a safe zone near the corner of the area where Caesar sits if you need to get out of the way. I don't think the chariots can enter the inside corners of the L shaped walls either. Once you knock a rider off you need to kill him to end the match. Sometimes you need to kill both riders, but I'm not sure why this sometimes occurs. What you need to be aware of is that the rider less chariot will still circle aimlessly around the arena, mowing down anyone in its path. On the plus side, it will also instantly kill your opponent if they get in the way as well. I've actually won this battle once without doing anything. Somehow the allied CPU knocked off one of the charioteers and he ended up getting run over by the second chariot. This is probably my least favorite mock battle due to the instant kill nature of the chariots, which will keep you on edge throughout the match to say the very least. SICILY Goal: Destroy the archer tower in the central fort. This battle involves the invasion of Sicily by the Roman army. There are five forts placed in the Colosseum: one in the center and four on the outer perimeter. The goal here is to destroy the archer tower in the center fort. To do so you will need to find the master key to open the door. The master key is hidden in one of the outer forts. Each outer fort is locked with a key, which is being held by a guard outside. Defeat a guard and he'll drop a key. Pick it up with the L1 button and open one of the outer fort gates. Each outer fort contains three guards. Defeat them all. If you picked the right fort you'll get a message telling you to pick up the master key that was dropped (it's bronze rather than silver). If you chose the wrong fort you need to go back outside and kill another guard, grab his key, and try another fort. The master key opens the central fort, which contains three guards plus the archer tower. While you can rush the tower and try to hack it to bits, it's much easier to dispatch the three guards before doing so. Note that the archer on the tower will fire at you throughout the battle (but not while you're in the outer forts). JURGURTHA Goal: Defeat 10 enemies, then Jurgurtha. This battle is similar to Zama in that you need to defeat 10 enemies before the big nasty surprise appears. The big nasty surprise in this case is one seriously pissed off elephant. Jurgurtha will be riding on the back of the elephant, and it is possible to knock him off by throwing something at him from one of the towers. You still need to watch out for the elephant though. While it doesn't instantly kill you like the chariots, getting trampled by an elephant isn't exactly pretty. The alternative method is to kill the elephant, and then take out Jurgurtha when he falls off. The only problem with this method is that the elephant can take an insane amount of damage before falling. We're talking well over 1000+ points here. The best strategy is to attack the rear of the elephant while your allies (if there are any left) distract it. The elephant will mash them into pulp rather quickly, so you'll be working against the clock. The elephant can turn around to sweep with its trunk, but the real threat is when it starts rearing up on its hind legs. When this happens quickly move behind it or get flattened. Once you dispatch the elephant, Jurgurtha shouldn't be much of a problem, but he does put up a decent fight. If you're very lucky the elephant will drop a Tusk Fragment when it dies, which is a rare item. ACTIUM Goal: Defeat Anthony. Note: Falling off the boats causes instant defeat. It has been historically suggested that the Romans once flooded the entire Colosseum to reenact a naval battle. From a technical standpoint this probably wouldn't be possible due to the trapdoors underneath. In this battle you'll be fighting a mock naval battle on ships placed in the arena. Falling off the ships means instant death (even though there's nothing at the bottom but regular sand). This means you must be very careful not to get knocked off by an opponent, or worse yet fall off yourself by overshooting a target with an attack. On the plus side, this also applies to your opponents as well. It's much easier to knock opponents over the sides of the ships than to defeat them the traditional way. Sometimes they even fall off by themselves. From the start you'll jump across to the first ship where three enemies will appear. Once you defeat them the gate to the next area will open up. This gate opens up to a long (and narrow) bridge, where it is very easy to fall off. Not to mention that three enemies are stationed on it. To top it all off, an archer will fire at you the moment you step on it. Fortunately there are wood shelters on the bridge that you can take cover behind. Be very careful when fighting on the bridge. Use jab attacks to "poke" the enemies off to their doom. You'll fight on two more ships with three enemies each before reaching the final ship. Anthony is very easy to spot due to his distinctive helmet (the Anthony Galea, which can only be obtained on this stage). Defeating him instantly wins the battle, so focus your attacks on him. It's quite easy to push him over the edge, but 50% of the time he usually ends up falling off by himself, so it's an easy victory either way. ALESIA Goal: Defeat Vercingetorix. This is another fort battle like Sicily, except you're invading one big fort. Vercingetorix is inside the fort, which has three gates you need to knock down in order to get to him. The entrance to the fort is located in the back. Once you knock down the first gate several guards appear. Beyond the second gate more guards appear along with an archer. Knocking down the last gate reveals Vercingetorix along with two guards (the archer disappears when you enter). Defeat him and you win the battle. He drops the Vercingetorix Galea upon death, which is exclusive to this battle. CIMBRI & TEUTONI Goal: Defeat 20 opponents or defend the gates for 5 minutes. Note: Losing one gate ends the battle in defeat. If you've been neglecting your Agility at the cost of your other abilities, this is the battle where it will come and bite you on the ass hard. The battlefield is one long corridor with a gate on one end and two gates on the other. You need to prevent the two gates from being destroyed. Otherwise you lose the battle. The opposition comes from barbaric hordes from Germania, who will come in three at a time. Every time a barbarian is killed a new one will enter from the opposite end. You have two allies with you on this one, but it's not going to be an easy battle. First of all the battlefield is very long, and the barbarians run very fast. If one slips by in the melee they will quickly reach the gate. The gate is very flimsy and it doesn't take long for a single barbarian to deal quite a bit of damage. The main thing you need to be aware of is that whenever a barbarian appears initially they will ignore everyone else and make a direct beeline towards the gate. If you intercept them with an attack they will direct their attention towards you. If left alone, however, they will occasionally sneak back towards the gate. When this occurs you need to quickly run towards the gate and take them out. If your gladiator is slow (i.e. low Agility) and you're far away from the gate, this becomes a serious problem if even one barbarian slips through. Make sure you account for all three barbarians at all times, and immediately intercept any new ones that appear. [Duel] While duels are available at the Atilius arena, it is only at the Colosseum that you can fight against "named" gladiators. There are seven of them in the game, and each one of them is a true terror to behold. They have powerful weapons and sturdy armor, dodge with amazing frequency, and unleash powerful skills. Unless you can match them in these categories it is unlikely that you have any chance of beating them. These high level duels become available at high rank, although some require the highest rank to participate in. Defeating a "named" gladiator earns you a Corona, some high level weapons and armor, and possibly an active skill tablet, in addition to a large amount of money. The following are the "named" gladiators you can fight at the Colosseum in the order that they appear: FLAMMA Style: Shield Skills: Rumble Roll, Duel Spirits, Cyclone, Ground Pound Equipment: Flamma Hammer Atk:27 Def:21 Wgt:48 Cost:5670 Flamma Scutum Atk:8 Def:29 Wgt:40 Cost:9610 Flamma Galea Atk:5 Def:31 Wgt:36 Cost:7760 Flamma Manica Atk:12 Def:19 Wgt:32 Cost:5310 Flamma Ocrea Atk:5 Def:20 Wgt:29 Cost:5010 Flamma wields a large hammer and large shield, making for an impressive offensive/defensive combination. While he soaks up the damage with the shield, he can counter attack using his massive hammer, which tends to strip off armor at a disturbing rate. If you can knock off his shield it will considerably increase your chances of hitting him. HORIES Style: Two hand Skills: Sweep Slash, Fury, Wild Dance, Dolphin Equipment: Anubis Sword Atk:25 Def:10 Wgt:31 Cost:11960 x2 Anubis Galea Atk:8 Def:16 Wgt:21 Cost:4280 Anubis Ocrea Atk:6 Def:17 Wgt:25 Cost:4880 Hories can catch the unwary off guard with his lightning fast twin sword attacks. While he's not the mountain that Flamma was, his attacks can swiftly tear you to shreds. While using two swords tends to reduce defense, Hories is good at dodging. The best defense here is a good offense. If you can knock even one sword of out his hand you can hamper his style and have an advantage. NEMESIS Style: One sword Skills: Splitter, Sobat, Wild Splash, Daisy Cutter Equipment: Nemesis Pike Atk:26 Def:18 Wgt:51 Cost:7250 Nemesis Palmula Atk:1 Def:21 Wgt:18 Cost:8230 Nemesis Galea Atk:12 Def:14 Wgt:18 Cost:4950 Nemesis Ocrea Atk:9 Def:13 Wgt:21 Cost:4250 The only female gladiator in the game, Nemesis is a formidable opponent nonetheless. Her pike gives her exceptional range in combat, and her shield gives her a tighter defense than Hories. Try to get in close to nullify her range advantage and disarm her ASAP. URSUS Style: Two hand Skills: Scissor Lifter, Back Thrust, Tornado, Sting Equipment: Horis Sword Atk:26 Def:19 Wgt:34 Cost:9680 x2 Horis Galea Atk:10 Def:13 Wgt:17 Cost:4690 Horis Manica L/R Atk:9 Def:16 Wgt:23 Cost:6300 Horis Ocrea Atk:4 Def:13 Wgt:21 Cost:4560 Ursus is the second Egyptian themed gladiator. Like Hories he uses a two-sword style in combat. What makes him tougher than Hories is that due to the unique design of his swords he has a much greater chance of parrying your attacks. Other than that he pretty much fights the same way as Hories, but he's much tougher to take down since he wears way more armor that Hories did. SPICULUS Style: One sword Skills: Bash, Glorious Glint, Body Blow, Evade Thrust Equipment: Spiculus Sword Atk:24 Def:14 Wgt:26 Cost:14690 Spiculus Palmula Atk:4 Def:28 Wgt:30 Cost:15720 Spiculus Galea Atk:3 Def:21 Wgt:24 Cost:8120 Spiculus Manica L/R Atk:3 Def:12 Wgt:15 Cost:6870 Spiculus Ocrea Atk:4 Def:14 Wgt:22 Cost:5160 Spiculus is completely decked out in shiny armor, making it an uphill battle to deal any significant damage to him. He uses a one sword fighting style, so there isn't any particular weaknesses you can take advantage of. Regardless of what fighting style you use it won't be an easy battle. SEXTUS Style: Shield Skills: Shield Bash, Edge, Shield Ram, Double Stinger Equipment: Sextus Sword Atk:24 Def:13 Wgt:25 Cost:12690 Sextus Scutum Atk:15 Def:33 Wgt:48 Cost:13970 Sextus Galea Atk:9 Def:27 Wgt:30 Cost:8690 Sextus Manica Atk:5 Def:16 Wgt:25 Cost:4780 (Gray) Sextus Ocrea Atk:7 Def:19 Wgt:27 Cost:5590 Like Flamma, Sextus uses a large shield to absorb a great amount of damage. Unlike Flamma, Sextus has a sword instead of a hammer, which he can swing much faster. The key to victory is getting rid of his shield somehow. Otherwise most attacks you launch at him will simply be deflected. DANNAOS Style: Two hand Skills: Stunning Blow, Double Axe, Double Slice, Sting Equipment: Dannaos Axe Atk:40 Def:19 Wgt:59 Cost:17540 x2 Dannaos Galea Atk:12 Def:29 Wgt:40 Cost:10320 Dannaos is hands down the most powerful gladiator in the game. Wielding two massive axes his strategy is to simply chop you into bloody pulp. You might think his lack of armor as being a weakness, but he's quite good at parrying your attacks with his axes, and he's good at dodging too. The only real strategy you have here is to dodge and counterattack. Going head to head with him is simply not an option. You could possibly try to overwhelm him by constantly attacking, but he's got the advantage in that department. If by some miracle you do manage to defeat him, make sure to take his weapons and helmet. While incredibly heavy, they are also among the best in the game. O------------------------O | 7. Weapons and Armor | O------------------------O Thrust this [sword] into another man's flesh, and they will applaud and love you for that. You may even begin to love them. - Proximo, Gladiator Note: Values listed are for default white quality items except where noted. [Weapons] SWORDS Swords come in two varieties: straight edge and curved. There isn't much of a difference between the two in terms of how they perform, but some swords are longer than others, and in a close fight that can make all the difference in the world. Novacula Atk:5 Def:3 Wgt:4 Cost:350 Dull Gladius Atk:5 Def:6 Wgt:12 Cost:132 Pugio Atk:5 Def:7 Wgt:7 Cost:530 Sica Atk:8 Def:7 Wgt:16 Cost:1210 Falcata Atk:8 Def:8 Wgt:12 Cost:2310 Gladius Atk:8 Def:9 Wgt:15 Cost:1020 Tracian Sword Atk:8 Def:10 Wgt:19 Cost:1420 Polished Pugio Atk:9 Def:7 Wgt:8 Cost:1820 Leaf Sword Atk:11 Def:8 Wgt:14 Cost:1350 Bronze Glaidus Atk:12 Def:6 Wgt:11 Cost:1490 Talon Atk:12 Def:11 Wgt:25 Cost:1970 Gippy Sword Atk:12 Def:15 Wgt:21 Cost:2340 Long Sica Atk:14 Def:9 Wgt:24 Cost:2980 Spata Atk:14 Def:10 Wgt:23 Cost:2060 Gippy Hook Atk:14 Def:11 Wgt:20 Cost:2590 Iron Gladius Atk:15 Def:10 Wgt:26 Cost:2310 Sticker Atk:17 Def:12 Wgt:28 Cost:4120 Celtic Blade Atk:17 Def:12 Wgt:39 Cost:3340 Sabre Atk:18 Def:10 Wgt:21 Cost:5570 Celtic Long Sword Atk:19 Def:13 Wgt:40 Cost:3890 Falx Atk:20 Def:8 Wgt:22 Cost:5460 Butcher Knife Atk:20 Def:12 Wgt:22 Cost:4870 Polished Gladius Atk:21 Def:8 Wgt:17 Cost:4870 Tracian Dagger Atk:22 Def:3 Wgt:5 Cost:11230 Martian Gladius Atk:22 Def:11 Wgt:31 Cost:5230 Gaulish Blade Atk:22 Def:15 Wgt:42 Cost:4560 Finely Sabre Atk:23 Def:7 Wgt:27 Cost:8390 Keen Blade Atk:23 Def:7 Wgt:33 Cost:3260 CHAINS Chain weapons are rather uncommon in the arena. They deliver a powerful blow with the centrifugal force they generate. Cheap Flail Atk:13 Def:5 Wgt:27 Cost:530 Flail Atk:16 Def:5 Wgt:29 Cost:980 Chain Hook Atk:16 Def:6 Wgt:32 Cost:850 Berserk Flail Atk:21 Def:6 Wgt:36 Cost:2810 POLEARMS Pole arms have long reach, but can be difficult to fight with in close quarters. They are also very heavy weapons, limiting the gladiator to light armor. Cheap Pike Atk:7 Def:3 Wgt:31 Cost:540 Carthaginian Spear Atk:10 Def:5 Wgt:32 Cost:670 Celtic Pike Atk:12 Def:6 Wgt:35 Cost:720 Trident Atk:13 Def:9 Wgt:43 Cost:1160 Needle Atk:15 Def:7 Wgt:40 Cost:1490 Long Spear Atk:16 Def:8 Wgt:41 Cost:2360 Gaulish Ensign Atk:17 Def:8 Wgt:45 Cost:1740 Snowy Pike Atk:20 Def:5 Wgt:25 Cost:7420 Hardy Trident Atk:20 Def:11 Wgt:58 Cost:2890 Gippy Ensign Atk:22 Def:9 Wgt:53 Cost:3560 Roman Pike Atk:25 Def:6 Wgt:50 Cost:4070 Incisive Pike Atk:28 Def:2 Wgt:48 Cost:5110 Commander Pike Atk:31 Def:14 Wgt:58 Cost:5770 CLUBS Clubs inflict heavy bludgeoning damage, which can often knock armor off of an opponent, or even render them unconscious. Leather Club Atk:5 Def:6 Wgt:12 Cost:112 Pickel Atk:6 Def:4 Wgt:5 Cost:74 Bludgeon Atk:11 Def:11 Wgt:19 Cost:730 Thorn Bat Atk:13 Def:11 Wgt:20 Cost:1020 Mace Atk:16 Def:13 Wgt:35 Cost:1540 Clava Atk:27 Def:18 Wgt:55 Cost:6420 AXES Axes combine the weight of a hammer with the cutting edge of a blade. While heavy, they inflict massive amounts of damage on armor and flesh alike. Francisca Atk:20 Def:8 Wgt:31 Cost:2360 Battle Axe Atk:23 Def:10 Wgt:41 Cost:2740 Berserk Axe Atk:28 Def:8 Wgt:50 Cost:7780 Great Axe Atk:35 Def:15 Wgt:50 Cost:3650 HAMMERS The hammer causes damage by its sheer weight alone. Its heavy head can quickly strip an opponent of armor with a few well-placed blows. Maul Atk:27 Def:21 Wgt:49 Cost:2780 Pole Hammer Atk:29 Def:24 Wgt:54 Cost:3980 Gate Hammer Atk:36 Def:13 Wgt:48 Cost:4980 [Shields] Shields come in two categories: small and large. Small shields are indicated by the circular shield icon, and large by the square shield icon. While small shields don't offer as much protection as large shields, they also do not inhibit mobility as much. SMALL SHIELDS Dull Leather Shield Atk:2 Def:4 Wgt:5 Cost:70 Leather Shield Atk:3 Def:5 Wgt:5 Cost:200 Thorn Palmula Atk:12 Def:7 Wgt:21 Cost:1520 Buckler Atk:2 Def:8 Wgt:15 Cost:1070 Red Small Scutum Atk:4 Def:9 Wgt:9 Cost:1370 White Small Scutum Atk:4 Def:9 Wgt:9 Cost:1610 Southern Shield Atk:4 Def:10 Wgt:8 Cost:1200 Palmula Atk:5 Def:10 Wgt:15 Cost:140 Painted Palmula Atk:6 Def:10 Wgt:16 Cost:530 Spike Shield Atk:21 Def:10 Wgt:42 Cost:5600 Onyx Small Scutum Atk:8 Def:11 Wgt:16 Cost:5100 Black Small Scutum Atk:5 Def:13 Wgt:12 Cost:3980 Black Palmula Atk:5 Def:13 Wgt:19 Cost:2100 Snowy Palmula Atk:6 Def:13 Wgt:23 Cost:7410 Brass Shield Atk:8 Def:14 Wgt:26 Cost:2100 Bronze Buckler Atk:3 Def:15 Wgt:19 Cost:3050 Northern Shield Atk:5 Def:16 Wgt:26 Cost:4650 Hardy Small Scutum Atk:8 Def:18 Wgt:23 Cost:4830 Round Shield Atk:10 Def:20 Wgt:32 Cost:6780 Iron Round Shield Atk:10 Def:20 Wgt:32 Cost:5380 Polished Palmula Atk:12 Def:29 Wgt:42 Cost:19560 LARGE SHIELDS Thebe Shield Atk:1 Def:5 Wgt:12 Cost:740 Wood Shield Atk:2 Def:5 Wgt:19 Cost:190 Painted Wood Shield Atk:3 Def:5 Wgt:19 Cost:520 Dull Scutum Atk:5 Def:8 Wgt:31 Cost:540 Leaf Shield Atk:3 Def:9 Wgt:24 Cost:1970 Myrmillo Scutum Atk:8 Def:9 Wgt:35 Cost:580 Corona Scutum Atk:6 Def:10 Wgt:34 Cost:790 Dull Gaulish Shield Atk:7 Def:12 Wgt:30 Cost:1550 Gaulish Shield Atk:9 Def:12 Wgt:31 Cost:1550 Red Battersea Atk:5 Def:16 Wgt:35 Cost:3780 Iron Thebe Shield Atk:21 Def:16 Wgt:48 Cost:5980 Blue Battersea Atk:6 Def:17 Wgt:38 Cost:4130 Hexa Scutum Atk:11 Def:18 Wgt:39 Cost:5590 White Battersea Atk:7 Def:19 Wgt:42 Cost:5980 Trad Scutum Atk:5 Def:22 Wgt:50 Cost:5680 Carthaginian Shield Atk:4 Def:23 Wgt:41 Cost:7290 Spike Tower Shield Atk:35 Def:24 Wgt:64 Cost:9230 Blazonry Scutum Atk:16 Def:31 Wgt:45 Cost:8970 Roman Scutum Atk:6 Def:35 Wgt:57 Cost:12950 [Helmets] Helmets, as the name implies, protect the head from damage. The are the only body armor type (other than shields) that can be equipped during battle (L1+Triangle). Fur Headwear Atk:1 Def:2 Wgt:1 Cost:1320 Leather Headwear Atk:2 Def:3 Wgt:5 Cost:590 Greece Galea Atk:3 Def:3 Wgt:12 Cost:20 Gippy Headwear Atk:1 Def:4 Wgt:4 Cost:1130 Rivets Galea Atk:5 Def:4 Wgt:11 Cost:40 Deer Skull Galea Atk:19 Def:4 Wgt:14 Cost:2750 Gaulish Galea Atk:5 Def:5 Wgt:14 Cost:390 Roman Bear Galea Atk:1 Def:6 Wgt:8 Cost:2530 Old Galea Atk:4 Def:6 Wgt:18 Cost:150 Roman Galea Atk:3 Def:6 Wgt:16 Cost:430 Spike Galea Atk:8 Def:6 Wgt:17 Cost:550 Boeotian Galea Atk:3 Def:7 Wgt:15 Cost:1560 Face Guard Atk:3 Def:7 Wgt:17 Cost:180 Corinthian Galea Atk:3 Def:8 Wgt:18 Cost:450 Heavy Galea Atk:4 Def:8 Wgt:21 Cost:520 Bronze Spike Galea Atk:7 Def:8 Wgt:19 Cost:900 Dacian Galea Atk:3 Def:10 Wgt:21 Cost:1950 Bull Skull Galea Atk:15 Def:10 Wgt:16 Cost:2540 Myrmillo Galea Atk:4 Def:13 Wgt:27 Cost:2100 Sector Skull Galea Atk:5 Def:13 Wgt:28 Cost:2650 Iron Sector Galea Atk:6 Def:13 Wgt:28 Cost:1740 Carthaginian Galea Atk:3 Def:14 Wgt:20 Cost:5360 Scarab Galea Atk:4 Def:14 Wgt:24 Cost:3120 Iron Crest Galea Atk:4 Def:14 Wgt:25 Cost:2910 Exy Jaggy Galea Atk:8 Def:15 Wgt:29 Cost:1860 Loutish Galea Atk:4 Def:16 Wgt:17 Cost:6740 Pirate Galea Atk:5 Def:16 Wgt:21 Cost:5170 Phrygian Galea Atk:1 Def:17 Wgt:16 Cost:9230 Porous Galea Atk:2 Def:17 Wgt:25 Cost:4650 Iberian Galea Atk:4 Def:17 Wgt:25 Cost:4010 Vercingetorix Galea Atk:3 Def:18 Wgt:24 Cost:6970 Gold Crest Galea Atk:4 Def:18 Wgt:27 Cost:3690 Tracian Galea Atk:4 Def:18 Wgt:27 Cost:4810 Exy Sector Galea Atk:3 Def:20 Wgt:25 Cost:6010 Patinated Galea Atk:3 Def:20 Wgt:26 Cost:5460 Anthony Galea Atk:2 Def:21 Wgt:26 Cost:8230 Commander Galea Atk:3 Def:21 Wgt:25 Cost:6870 Iron Myrmillo Galea Atk:9 Def:21 Wgt:28 Cost:5980 Provocator Atk:4 Def:22 Wgt:25 Cost:7050 Red Provocator Atk:4 Def:22 Wgt:25 Cost:7050 Blue Provocator Atk:4 Def:22 Wgt:25 Cost:7140 Centurion Galea Atk:3 Def:23 Wgt:26 Cost:7210 Heavy Black Galea Atk:7 Def:24 Wgt:33 Cost:2710 [Arm Armor] As you might expect, arm armor protects the arm from damage. This is important; if your arm suffers critical damage you will be unable to use it for the duration of battle. Note that manicas default to being worn on the right arm unless it specifically is made for the left arm (i.e. has a L designation). Leather Manica Atk:2 Def:4 Wgt:9 Cost:560 Hard Hobnail Manica Atk:2 Def:4 Wgt:11 Cost:210 Chain Manica Atk:3 Def:5 Wgt:12 Cost:640 Wrist Armor L/R Atk:2 Def:6 Wgt:13 Cost:740 Iron Spike Armor L/R Atk:12 Def:6 Wgt:17 Cost:990 Gold Wrist Armor L/R Atk:1 Def:7 Wgt:14 Cost:980 Gold Spike Armor L/R Atk:11 Def:7 Wgt:18 Cost:1060 Boa Wrist Armor L/R Atk:3 Def:8 Wgt:15 Cost:1130 Iron Wrist Armor L/R Atk:3 Def:9 Wgt:16 Cost:1290 Galerus Atk:2 Def:11 Wgt:18 Cost:3360 Sector Manica Atk:4 Def:11 Wgt:22 Cost:1590 Exy Sector Manica Atk:4 Def:12 Wgt:23 Cost:2030 Iron Manica L/R Atk:5 Def:12 Wgt:24 Cost:1350 Light Scale Manica Atk:3 Def:13 Wgt:22 Cost:4100 Heavy Manica Atk:4 Def:13 Wgt:27 Cost:1360 Stann Manica Atk:5 Def:13 Wgt:25 Cost:1450 Exy Stann Manica Atk:5 Def:14 Wgt:26 Cost:1890 Superior Manica Atk:4 Def:15 Wgt:25 Cost:3810 Scale Manica Atk:4 Def:16 Wgt:30 Cost:2300 Myrmillo Manica Atk:4 Def:17 Wgt:32 Cost:2780 Blazonry Galerus Atk:5 Def:20 Wgt:35 Cost:4320 Martian Manica Atk:5 Def:21 Wgt:37 Cost:4660 [Leg Armor] Leg armor, obviously, protects the legs. Each leg needs its own set of armor, and you can mix and match them without penalty. Coordinating them with your outfit looks much cooler though. Rivets Ocrea Atk:1 Def:3 Wgt:9 Cost:130 Stann Ocrea Atk:3 Def:6 Wgt:17 Cost:330 Iron Spike Ocrea Atk:14 Def:6 Wgt:15 Cost:470 Gold Spike Ocrea Atk:13 Def:7 Wgt:16 Cost:460 Dull Plain Ocrea Atk:7 Def:8 Wgt:20 Cost:470 Plain Ocrea Atk:4 Def:9 Wgt:21 Cost:780 Snowy Ocrea Atk:2 Def:10 Wgt:15 Cost:6340 Cuprum Ocrea Atk:5 Def:11 Wgt:22 Cost:1160 Dull Plate Ocrea Atk:6 Def:11 Wgt:22 Cost:1340 Boa Ocrea Atk:4 Def:12 Wgt:20 Cost:2590 Exy Cuprum Ocrea Atk:5 Def:12 Wgt:23 Cost:980 Sector Ocrea Atk:6 Def:12 Wgt:21 Cost:1890 Plate Ocrea Atk:7 Def:12 Wgt:22 Cost:1540 Steel Ocrea Atk:9 Def:17 Wgt:31 Cost:2260 Blazonry Ocrea Atk:7 Def:19 Wgt:30 Cost:4730 Martian Ocrea Atk:8 Def:20 Wgt:32 Cost:3970 Silver Ocrea Atk:10 Def:21 Wgt:36 Cost:4980 Gold Ocrea Atk:11 Def:22 Wgt:37 Cost:4980 [Miscellaneous] All items (with one exception) in the miscellaneous category are rare special items that can be obtained during hunting matches. Horn fragments are dropped by the last bull at the Atilius arena hunting matches, while tiger skins are dropped by the large tiger at the Colosseum hunting matches. The one exception is the tusk fragment that is rarely dropped by the elephant in the Jurgurtha mock battle. While they can be used in battle as impromptu weapons, their main value lies in how much money they are worth when sold. Horn Fragment Atk:8 Def:5 Wgt:11 Cost:8000 (Gray) Atk:10 Def:5 Wgt:11 Cost:16000 Atk:12 Def:5 Wgt:11 Cost:24000 (Blue) Atk:14 Def:5 Wgt:11 Cost:37000 (Yellow) Tiger Skin Atk:1 Def:1 Wgt:5 Cost:50000 (Gray) Atk:1 Def:1 Wgt:5 Cost:60000 Atk:1 Def:1 Wgt:5 Cost:70000 (Blue) Atk:1 Def:1 Wgt:5 Cost:80000 (Yellow) Tusk Fragment Atk:14 Def:6 Wgt:26 Cost:12000 (Gray) Atk:16 Def:6 Wgt:26 Cost:23000 Atk:18 Def:6 Wgt:26 Cost:35000 (Blue) Atk:20 Def:6 Wgt:26 Cost:51000 (Yellow) O----------------O | 8. Events | O----------------O Today I saw a slave become more powerful than the Emperor of Rome. - Lucilla, Gladiator Most of the events in Colosseum: Road to Freedom occur when you reach certain ranks. The decisions you make during these events can alter the storyline somewhat, although sometimes you don't really have a choice in the matter. [Duel with Narcissus] When you reach middle rank (obtained at 15 Palma), Magerius will ask you see you when you leave your room. He introduces you to the mysterious Marcia, who is the Emperor's consort, and her accomplice, the mysterious Laetus. They'll offer you the opportunity to enter a special bout at the Atilius arena. If you accept, a special duel will appear on the list the next time you arrive at Atilius (Marcia's Offer). As you enter the staging area you'll meet Narcissus, one of Marcia's gladiators, and a real jerk. He'll taunt you and walk away. It turns out that he's the gladiator that you'll be fighting against in the duel that Marcia arranged. NARCISSUS (1st Battle) Style: One sword Skills: Evade Thrust, Body Blow, Splitter, Bash Equipment: Falcata Atk:8 Def:8 Wgt:12 Cost:2310 Ablaze Palmula Atk:6 Def:9 Wgt:12 Cost:1800 Narcissus will probably be the first opponent that you face one on one in the arena. What makes him stand out from the rest of the cannon fodder is the fact that he can dodge your attacks. Otherwise, there isn't really anything special about this fight. He might pull off an active skill or two, but at this point your gladiator should be able to pull off some moves of his own. Defeat him and Marcia will congratulate you after the fight. She'll have some work for you later on, so this won't be the last time you see her. [Duel with Commodus] If you won the duel against Narcissus, Magerius will speak to you a short time later during training. Apparently the Emperor is entering the gladiatorial games at the Colosseum, and he needs an opponent for a match he's holding. For obvious reasons the match is fixed, so winning is not an option. If you agree to the match, it will be scheduled for the next Colosseum event (vs Commodus). On the day of the match Marcia will appear at the Colosseum and ask if you actually intend to win the match. I'm not sure if what you say makes a difference, but you might as well answer in the negative. Once you accept the duel, you'll meet up with Commodus himself on the elevator to the arena. He'll ask you if you think you can win against him. Again, I'm not sure what difference it makes what you say here, but it doesn't seem to matter either way. Commodus is confident that he's going to win this match one way or the other. Warning: Since you need to "lose" this match, be sure not to take any valuable weapons or armor with you, as they will be lost upon completion of the battle. Instead, grab the default weapons in the staging area and equip them instead. COMMODUS (1st Battle) Style: Two hand Skills: Sting, Stunning Blow Equipment: Hercules Mace Atk:22 Def:24 Wgt:31 Cost:17980 Hercules Galea Atk:23 Def:19 Wgt:17 Cost:13360 Hercules Manica L Atk:4 Def:22 Wgt:27 Cost:7250 (Gray) Hercules Ocrea Atk:5 Def:19 Wgt:27 Cost:9160 Commodus is a complete joke. Even though he attacks aggressively with two clubs, he's pretty much a pushover. However, if you intend to throw the match, you need to make it seem real enough. First of all you need to get his health bar into the red. Try to get it as low as possible without killing him. You can tell if it's low enough if you see him stagger around gasping for breath after a few attacks. Now you need to let him hit you a few times until one of your body parts is in the red. You can dodge his attacks a bit if you want to make things more exciting. Once you're in the red immediately surrender by pressing down on the directional buttons twice. If you're successful you'll see the mission successful message on the screen. Afterwards, Narcissus will taunt you on the way out, but Marcia will congratulate you on a job well done. If you accidentally defeat Commodus, the game will immediately go into punishment mode (at level four) as Commodus orders his guards to kill you. While this might seem like a death sentence, there is a small chance of actually surviving the onslaught of attacking guards... [Fight for your life!] (Secret Ending) To survive you will need to kill 100 guards. Yes, you heard right. 100 guards. For most gladiators this is an impossible task, as you will be nowhere strong enough to take down half that number before succumbing to their sheer numbers. However, if you have unusually strong weapons/armor and high powered active and passive skills (saved over from previous games), and some mad gladiatorial skills, it might be, just might be, possible to accomplish this Herculean task. There are a few things you might need to know before starting the battle: - Once the battle starts the entire Colosseum area becomes one gigantic battlefield. When I say the entire Colosseum, I mean that you can actually exit the arena and continue fighting in the staging area, down the hallways and stairs, all the way to the carriage where you arrived. - When punishment level hits five all the guards will be carrying spears and large shields. - If want any hope of winning, bring your best weapons and armor beforehand. You're bound to lose some of your armor during the frantic melee, so keep this in mind. - Don't get surrounded. Up to five guards will appear at a time, and if they completely surround you they'll take turns hitting you over and over again before you can recover. - Let them hit each other. The fact that they're all going after you means you can bait them into hitting each other. While this doesn't do too much damage to them with their shields, it can knock them over, giving you time to run away. - Knock them over. Remember that you can knock people over with a running start. This allows you to avoid being surrounded when they start ganging up on you. - Use the environment. Use walls, corners, and stairs to limit the avenues that the guards can approach you. Keep the guards coming in one direction instead of all directions. - Most importantly: Run like hell! Keep moving while slashing and bashing away at your foes. If you stay in one place the odds of your survival are pretty much zero. If by some miracle you manage to kill 100 guards, a special cut scene will play showing your gladiator climbing over the fence around the Colosseum and taking the road to freedom, literally. An ending will play saying that you pretty much were the only gladiator in the history of the Colosseum to have ever escaped through sheer violence. The ending makes it seem like it's a bad thing. Personally I think it's kind of cool. Note that this is the only way you can obtain Commodus's weapons and armor, as it is the only way you can save them after the battle. Doing so means you actually need to survive the battle with said items, which is something that even I wouldn't try. In fact I wouldn't bother in the first place. While his weapon and armor are unique, they aren't worth the hassle of obtaining them. [Duel with Narcissus] (Part Two) This event occurs after the battle with Commodius, and only when you reach high rank (achieved at 50 Palma). Magerius will call for you. Once again Marcia asks if would like you to duel against a certain gladiator in the next Atilius event. You can probably guess who that's going to be. If you agree, you'll get the opportunity to fight Narcissus once again at the arena. Once you arrive at Atilius Narcissus will appear at the staging area. Looks like he went up in rank too. He'll boast that Marcia has a special mission for him, and that he's not going to let you win like the last time (yeah right). NARCISSUS (2st Battle) Style: One sword Skills: Evade Thrust, Body Blow, Splitter, Bash Equipment: Narcis Sword Atk:18 Def:13 Wgt:26 Cost:4380 Narcis Palmula Atk:3 Def:21 Wgt:30 Cost:7800 Narcis Galea Atk:1 Def:13 Wgt:20 Cost:3950 Narcis Manica Atk:1 Def:11 Wgt:20 Cost:3950 (Gray) Narcis Ocrea Atk:1 Def:14 Wgt:20 Cost:5870 Surprisingly, Narcissus is much tougher this time around than he was previously. Aside from looking like a monkey, Narcissus now has a whole lot of armor, and a few new tricks up his sleeve. But by now you should be packing some weaponry of your own. After the battle, Marcia will appear and tell you that initially she was planning to use Narcissus for an important mission, but she's choosing you instead since you're the superior fighter. [Duel with Commodus] (Part Two) I'm not sure what the exact rank requirements are for this event, but you're guaranteed to get it if you're at the highest rank, are a free man (i.e. paid off your debt), and dueled with Commodus previously and Narcissus twice before. This event occurs on day 48 of the calendar. During this time you won't be able to train for the rest of the game, so make sure you spend all your training points beforehand. Marcia will appear and tell you that Commodus is training for another appearance in the games. He's pretty paranoid, and doesn't even allow his own guards in his private training area. Only Marcia is allowed entrance. Since you dueled with him previously, Commodus has taken a liking to you, and has specifically asked for you to spar with him tonight. Marcia sees this as a golden opportunity to assassinate Commodus, who's pretty much a crazy paranoid bastard at this point. Agree to help her out and she'll personally escort you to the Emperor's training ground later that night. Follow Marcia up the stairs to the door to enter the training room. Commodus (sans armor) will welcome you and tell you to pick up the practice weapons lying on the table so he can start training. There are two wooden swords along with a small and large wooden shield on the three tables in the room. This allows you to match the fighting style of your choosing before fighting Commodus. Once you're armed head back towards Commodus and the fight will begin. COMMODUS (2nd Battle) Style: Two hand Skills: Sting, Stunning Blow Equipment: Wooden Sword x2/Gladius x2 Although you're using wooden swords, that doesn't prevent you from holding back this time. This time the fighting is for real. While you don't have any armor on for this fight, neither does Commodus. When you get Commodus's health down to a certain level, he'll start complaining that you're fighting a bit too hard. Keep hitting him and eventually he'll start calling for his guards. Unfortunately, he doesn't seem to remember that he didn't allow his guards to be here in the first place. At this point he takes out two real swords from the statue and tries to kill you. Dodge his attacks and counter with your most powerful skills, and he should go down in no time at all. Once you defeat Commodus, Marcia will tell you to quickly escape. She has a plan to cover up what happened here tonight. On your way out Laetus appears, followed by your old friend Narcissus. You can probably guess who's going to end up taking the blame for this. [Duel with Narcissus] (Part Three) The day after Commodus is killed Magerius will call you into his room. It seems that last night Narcissus murdered the Emperor during a training session, apparently out of jealously for Marcia. Today at the Colosseum they are arranging his execution as a special event. Since you were close to the former Caesar they want you to personally execute Narcissus as a special match. How can you refuse such an offer? Accept and it's off to the Colosseum. There's only one match on the menu tonight, and it's the main event. NARCISSUS (3rd Battle) Style: One hand Equipment: Falcata Atk:7 Def:8 Wgt:12 Cost:980 (Gray) This isn't so much of a duel as it is an execution. Narcissus has only one sword and no armor, while you probably have everything but the kitchen sink on. On your way up the elevator, Laetus will appear and tell you that you have some nerve executing Narcissus, when it was you that made him end up getting executed in the first place. He'll tell you that you're alive only because the crowd loves you and that you're useful for the moment. When your usefulness is over so will your life. Sounds like a threat. Oh well. A guard will kick Narcissus into the arena. He'll mutter something about being framed by Marcia, but he'll accept it since that's what she wants. Whatever. Have fun totally destroying Narcissus. [Duel with Laetus] (Good Ending) If you've been following the story so far and have executed Narcissus, this event will occur on day 50. The new Caesar Septimius is holding a celebration at the Colosseum, and you're invited whether you like it or not. As you enter the Colosseum Marcia will appear and tell you in a nutshell that Rome is pretty screwed, but thanks for your help anyway in killing Commodus. Now she can go home while you fight to the death in the arena. Gee, thanks a lot Marcia. I'm so glad I could be of help to you. As you make your way to the elevator, Laetus appears fully decked out in armor. He tells you that there's one loose end he needs to take care of, and that loose end is you. If you can beat him in the arena, however, he promises a new start under Septimius. Your reply determines the outcome of the last battle. If you're going for the good ending you need to agree to his proposal. LAETUS Style: One sword Skills: Splitter, Disarm Slash, Hilt Thrust, Doppler Sence Equipment: Laetus Sword Atk:34 Def:17 Wgt:48 Cost:16920 Laetus Galea Atk:6 Def:26 Wgt:26 Cost:10890 Laetus Manica Atk:3 Def:22 Wgt:24 Cost:8960 Laetus Ocrea Atk:9 Def:23 Wgt:31 Cost:6450 As the last opponent in the game Laetus is hands down the most difficult opponent you will face in the arena. His attacks are quite vicious, and his defensive skills are quite formidable. The only saving grace is that for some reason he doesn't have a shield. There isn't any real surefire strategy for beating him other than dodging and using your most powerful skills when there's an opening. After you defeat Laetus, what happens next depends on how you answered him on the elevator. If you agreed to his proposal, Laetus will yield to you and the new Caesar Septimius will applaud your efforts. The "good" ending will occur at this point. [Alternate Secret Ending] If you refuse Laetus's offer in the elevator, things will turn out much differently when you win the duel against him. After the battle Laetus will fall dead, and Septimius will order his guards to kill you. If you manage to kill 100 guards, you get a slightly different version of the secret ending that you would have gotten if you had defeated Commodus in the Colosseum match. [30 Man Survival Match] If for some reason you don't manage to pay off your debt to Magerius by day 50, he will sell you off to the Emperor, and you end up fighting in a 30 man survival match at the Colosseum. If you win, Caesar awards your efforts by giving you your freedom. You get an ending that's not quite as good as the "good" ending that you get from defeating Laetus at the Colosseum. [Early Retirement] If you pay off your debt to Magerius before day 50, he will ask if you want to retire from being a gladiator or if you want to continue. If you choose to retire you get a retirement ending. If not the game continues as normal. [Slave Market] If you choose to continue fighting as a free gladiator, the option to purchase slaves from the slave market becomes available in Magerius's room. Note that this takes up the entire day, so you can't train or fight in the arena if you choose to go. At the slave market you can choose to purchase male or female slaves. Generally there will be two female and two male slaves available, but sometimes there may be three females and one male, or vice versa. You can purchase a maximum of two female slaves and two male slaves. I would highly recommend buying females over males. FEMALE SLAVES Female slaves are very expensive, often costing hundreds of thousands of S. But they're often well worth the price, as they add a permanent bonus to your abilities when purchased. Generally the more expensive the slave, the higher the bonuses you can get. You can purchase up to two of them for your room. Unfortunately, by the time you can actually purchase slaves, the game will be pretty much at its end stage. Female slaves do not carry over to the next game like skill tablets. Here's a price listing and possible effects: Cost:120000 STR+10 DEX+0 AGI+0 VIT+2 STA+0 Cost:125000 STR+3 DEX+3 AGI+0 VIT+5 STA+5 Cost:128000 STR+15 DEX+0 AGI+0 VIT+2 STA+0 Cost:130000 STR+0 DEX+10 AGI+0 VIT+0 STA+10 Cost:142000 STR+8 DEX+8 AGI+8 VIT+8 STA+8 Cost:156000 STR+0 DEX+0 AGI+0 VIT+13 STA+13 Cost:172000 STR+0 DEX+15 AGI+0 VIT+0 STA+15 Cost:188000 STR+2 DEX+0 AGI+15 VIT+14 STA+0 Cost:196000 STR+7 DEX+7 AGI+10 VIT+15 STA+0 Cost:200000 STR+8 DEX+8 AGI+8 VIT+8 STA+15 Cost:225000 STR+5 DEX+5 AGI+10 VIT+5 STA+15 Cost:256000 STR+10 DEX+10 AGI+10 VIT+10 STA+10 Cost:320000 STR+12 DEX+12 AGI+12 VIT+12 STA+12 Cost:345000 STR+15 DEX+15 AGI+15 VIT+15 STA+15 Cost:449000 STR+40 DEX+0 AGI+40 VIT+0 STA+20 Cost:452000 STR+0 DEX+50 AGI+0 VIT+50 STA+0 Cost:455000 STR+0 DEX+20 AGI+0 VIT+20 STA+60 Cost:461000 STR+25 DEX+40 AGI+15 VIT+0 STA+20 MALE SLAVES I highly recommend not purchasing male slaves if at all possible. Male slaves have stats like female slaves, but these are their own personal stats. The main purpose of having male slaves is that you can have them fight with you in the arena. While this sounds exciting, it really isn't. First of all, male slaves can only fight at the Colosseum. Second, they can only participate in team battles or hunting matches. Third, they have the same AI as the computer opponents, meaning that they aren't any more useful than having computer AI allies. Come to think of it, there isn't actually any benefit from having male slaves, unless you want to give them goofy names, send them against tigers with only crappy equipment, or have them stand half naked in your room *shiver*. While male slaves are much cheaper than female slaves, you're much better off buying female slaves. Cost:32000 STR:10 DEX:10 AGI:10 VIT:12 STA:10 Cost:44000 STR:18 DEX:38 AGI:20 VIT:25 STA:35 Cost:48000 STR:25 DEX:10 AGI:12 VIT:39 STA:32 Cost:56000 STR:35 DEX:15 AGI:10 VIT:45 STA:16 Cost:59200 STR:39 DEX:31 AGI:26 VIT:42 STA:35 Cost:68000 STR:40 DEX:25 AGI:30 VIT:46 STA:38 Cost:79000 STR:46 DEX:18 AGI:34 VIT:52 STA:26 Cost:82500 STR:49 DEX:30 AGI:20 VIT:66 STA:35 Cost:86800 STR:42 DEX:10 AGI:10 VIT:42 STA:30 Cost:92000 STR:55 DEX:25 AGI:35 VIT:54 STA:23 Cost:95500 STR:58 DEX:10 AGI:12 VIT:49 STA:55 Cost:99500 STR:75 DEX:42 AGI:48 VIT:35 STA:10 Cost:112000 STR:61 DEX:20 AGI:35 VIT:86 STA:42 Cost:148000 STR:85 DEX:10 AGI:20 VIT:91 STA:30 Cost:165000 STR:82 DEX:45 AGI:56 VIT:60 STA:32 Cost:188999 STR:91 DEX:22 AGI:38 VIT:60 STA:42 Cost:250000 STR:98 DEX:42 AGI:49 VIT:95 STA:45 O-------------------------------O | 9. Frequently Asked Questions | O-------------------------------O Q: What do the colors mean when damage numbers come up? A: White: Regular damage Red: Counter hit Green: Damage parried by weapon Blue: Damage deflected by armor Q: How many endings are there? A: There are five main endings in the game: Ending 1: Don't pay off your debt by day 50. Win the 30 man survival match. Ending 2: Pay off your debt before day 50. Choose to retire. Ending 3: Pay off your debt, defeat Narcissus, lose against Commodus, defeat Narcissus again, kill Commodus, execute Narcissus, agree to Laetus's offer and defeat him. Ending 4: Defeat 100 guards during punishment mode. Ending 5: Same as ending 3, except refuse Laetus's offer, defeat Laetus, then defeat 100 guards. Q: Where can I purchase weapons and armor? A: You can only purchase weapons and armor at the Arma (Armory), which is located at the Atilius arena outside where the carriage is. Q: What is the limit for _______? A: The following are the maximum values in the game: Palma: 99 Coronas: 7 Strength, Dexterity, Agility, Vitality, Stamina: 255 Capacity: 271 (? – not entirely sure about this) Neck, Body, Arm, Leg: 10 Active Skills: 16 (note some active skills cannot be increased) Passive Skills: 5 Style: 40 Q: When can I buy slaves? A: You can only purchase slaves when you pay off your debt to Magerius. Q: How do I bring slaves to the arena? A: You can only bring male slaves to the arena if you equip them beforehand, and they only appear at the Colosseum, and can be used only for team or hunting battles. Q: Can I heal during a battle? A: Normally you cannot heal during a battle. However, if you manage to raise a style level in the middle of a battle you will be miraculously healed of all damage. While it isn't a reliable source of healing, it can work wonders when it does occur. Q: How do I get Commodus's club/armor? A: First of all you need to defeat him during the special event at the Colosseum. Then you need to defeat 100 guards while you have the club/armor in your possession since there is no post victory opportunity to put them in your item box with L1+X. If you ask me it's not worth the effort you need to obtain them. Q: How do I get Laetus' sword/armor? A: You cannot use L1+X to pick up his sword/armor, because that causes you to kick (since the battle isn't over). Since there is no after battle scene after the victory message, the only way to get his sword/armor is to pick it up with an empty hand before the battle ends. Once you have it in your hand it will appear in your item box the next time you load the save. Q: How do I equip armor with the L1 button? A: You can only equip helmets with the L1 button (L1+Triangle). The only way you can equip arm/leg armor is via the item box. Q: Does selling items pay off your debt? A: No. The only money that pays off the debt is the rewards earned in battles. Q: Why can't I fight the elephant in the hunting battles? A: The elephant only appears in the mock battle of Jurgurtha. O----------------------O | 10. Acknowledgements | O----------------------O Special thanks goes to Koei (www.koeigames.com) and Ertain (www.ertain.com) for bringing out this game to the states. This document may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission by the author. Use of this guide on any other web site or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. Currently this FAQ/Walkthrough is only hosted at www.gamefaqs.com. Do not post this document on other websites without permission from the author. Copyright 2005 Brian Nii -------------------------------------------------------------------------------