Training (CGH)

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Gladiators are not simply born with their skills, although they are usually more inclined towards physical exertion. Races such as the mul are often expressly bred for qualities that may provide entertainment in the arena. Yet their potential must be honed, their reflexes sharpened, so that they might become the most perfect single combatants of Athas. The training schools and the private trainers of the city-states fill this need.
When would-be gladiators enter the schools, whether they are nobles or slaves, they must swear an oath. This vow requires them to endure through everything, whether they are bound, beaten, burned, or slain. In a land where honor has no meaning, this oath takes on a special significance, for it binds the gladiators lives with their word; their success and ability in the arena becomes a measure of how well they keep that vow.
The schools only offer a certain amount of Training Points." When they enter into combat with other students bearing these weapons, they take damage only to their Training Points. If any gladiator takes more than his Training Points in damage, he falls unconscious, and must pay a visit to the medics to regain his points. Training Points heal far more quickly than ordinary hit points, and the PC can be back in action half a day after being knocked out.
If the damage inflicted takes the gladiator below —10 Training Points, he is killed by the force of the blow. Unruly gladiators are often dealt with in this fashion; the "accidental" deaths can neither be traced nor blamed on any one person. The death can be written off as an excess of enthusiasm in training.
The advantage of this system is that the PCs can gain a sense of accomplishment when they deliver a blow that knocks their opponent unconscious. They know that their prowess is such that they can kill their enemies, without actually shedding blood.
Training Points are applicable only to the wooden weapons. All other forms of damage the PCs receive in this course is real damage. The fire burns them as it would ordinarily, the spike are just as sharp. It is essential that the players know this, so they do not take foolish and unnecessary risks because they assume their characters are invulnerable for the duration of the course.
The exercises of the two-week course are as follows:
* Basic Weapon Training: Each morning before dawn, every student is awakened by the trainers, who issue the gladiators weapons and assign them to partners for the early morning drills. For four hours, the gladiators are made to spar with a variety of weapons, after which they are fed their breakfast. After breakfast, they must spar for an additional three hours, using different weapons than the ones they used earlier.There are heavy posts and wooden dummies upon which the students practice their skills without the element of an opponent. The benefit of these is that the student has a chance to strike and hone his technique without having to worry about being struck in return.A more advanced version, called the gauntlet, consists of a dummy set upon a rotating post. When the pupil strikes one part of the mannequin, it spins around, swinging its weapon at the student. This teaches the student the basics of movement combined with attacking, and the possible consequences of not being fast enough to evade the enemy's weapon.
* Basic Calisthenics: After the intensive weapons workout, the gladiators spend two hours with a calisthenic exercise of their choice: running, weight-lifting, some sort of sport, or other exercises to build heart strength and increase endurance. Whatever they choose, they can be sure none of the other activities provide less of a workout. After the calisthenic period is over, the gladiators eat a heavy lunch, and then proceed to the areas described hereafter. They work on only one of these all through the afternoon, proceeding to one of the others only after they have demonstrated ability in that exercise.
* Tightrope Walking: Initially, to teach them to improve their balance, the gladiators are taught to walk a tightrope suspended 2 feet above the ground. They can do this by making a successful check against Dex —1. After they learn the basics, the rope is raised to 1 5 feet above the ground, high enough to cause 1d6 points of damage when the PC falls from it. To successfully walk the higher rope, they must check at Dex —2.After they succeed in this endeavor, they must master the truly hard walk. The rope remains 15 feet above the ground, but the landing is not nearly as pleasant. Instead of hard, stony ground, the landing is now a pit of fire, whose tendrils reach anxiously toward those who brave the tough rope above it. To avoid falling into the smoldering pit, the character must make three Ability checks. The first is a Con —2, to see if the PC can advance into the choking smoke rising from the pit. The second is a Wis —2, to see if the PC can maintain enough concentration to ignore the distraction of the flames crackling beneath him. The third is a check against Dex —4, to see if the PC can cross the rope despite its bouncing and weaving in the heat-induced breeze.Those who fail in any of these checks fall into the flame pit, though they can try to grab the rope to avoid damage. This requires a check against Dex —2. In addition to the 1d6 points of damage for the fall, they; take another 3d6 for flame damage. Each round spent in the fire pit causes another 2d6 points.PCs with the Tightrope Walking proficiency may use their ability in place of the Dex checks. They have trained long enough that such distractions are no longer a problem for them, and are in fact rather easy to ignore.
* Beast-Fighting: In this exercise, the trainees are lowered singly into a 1 5-foot-deep pit to fight against a creature of the trainer's choice. The trainer makes this decision based on what he has observed of the PC's ability. He will not force a gladiator into the pit if the creature will obviously kill him, but neither will he choose a creature that is ridiculously easy for the PC to defeat. Both the gladiator and the creature are hampered hy the giant-hair ropes that are tied to them to pull one away from the other. Attack rolls are made at —1 because of these ropes.The PC is issued only a wooden practice blade, to ensure that he does not slaughter the creature. No lethal weapons are permitted; after all, it is quite difficult procuring creatures from the desert, and no new gladiator is worth enough effort to capture a separate creature for each of them. When one or the other is on the verge of defeat, the handlers at the edge of the pit pull the two apart.
* Sparring Training: Sparring practice takes three forms. The first and most simple kind of sparring takes place inside a chalk circle drawn on the ground. The object of the exercise is to drive one's opponent, who is usually another gladiator from the same class, from the circle without allowing one s own feet to leave the area.Any tactic for doing so is allowed, from trickery to brute force, from momentum to mass. The DM should make the PCs role-play this encounter, judging for himself whether the various tactics work.The second form of sparring takes place on raised platforms surrounded by large stone spikes. Again, the two on the platforms are students from the same class. The object is to knock the opponent from his platform onto the spikes waiting below, or to spar for 5 minutes with neither opponent falling. The exercise purportedly develops balance and positioning skills, as well as the ability to dodge without moving far from the intended target; after a few falls onto the spikes, most warriors are anxious to develop the skills necessary to avoid such a fate.For this exercise, each attacker has a —1 penalty to hit, because neither can maneuver as is necessary for true fighting. When one of the attackers is struck, he must immediately check at Dex —3 or lose his balance and fall into the spikes. The fall inflicts 1 d6 points, and the spikes inflict another 2d6. They leave permanent scars, unless they are tended to immediately and magically.The third sparring practice takes place in the Fire Pit. The two opponents, once again from the same class, ascend 10 feet onto the open platform, which consists merely of a stage surrounded by ditches filled with flammable material which has been set ablaze. The heat in the Pit is nearly intolerable. The two students fight with their wooden weapons here until one of them is knocked senseless or into the flaming ditch. The true winner manages both. This exercise develops endurance, teaching the gladiator to endure and win despite adverse physical surroundings.Any gladiator who falls into the ditch takes an initial 3d6 points of damage, with an additional 2d6 for each round thereafter. Those who are knocked unconscious into the ditch lie there for at least two rounds before the guards and trainers can pull them from the flames.
* Dodging Practice: This is one of the most brutal of the practices of the entire course, for one simple reason: the PCs have a chance of avoiding the pain in the other exercises. Dodging practice offers only a slim chance of that.The PC stands in front of a soft clay wall, while 20 feet away, an archer lets 6 arrows fly at him. These are not practice arrows, and though the archer is not actively trying to kill the PC, the arrows can still be deadly. The 3rd-level archer must roll to hit the unarmored PC. If the archer's attack roll suceeds, the PC must make a Dex —5 roll in order to avoid the arrows. The person who makes their roll with the greater difference determines the outcome.
:Example: Mylorac the gladiator stands in the archer range. Larech the archer fires an arrow at her. Since Mylorac has a Dex of 17, she has an AC of 7. Larech need 11 to hit her, and rolls a 16. Mylorac needs a 12 or less avoid the arrow, and rolls a 6. Since the  difference between 12 and 6 is 16, while the difference between 11 and 5, Mylorac avoids the arrow
:: The more easily the PC avoids the arrows, the more arrows are fired at him. Up to three archers can fire at the PC at a time. Each archer decreases the chance of avoidance by an additional —2 each, to a minimum of Dex —9. Please note that this practice does not carry over into the ordinary combat life of the PC, unless he faces only archers, with no melee prospects. Even then, the DM should use discretion as to how well this skill translate to the world beyond the training course. When the PC goes down, he is immediately tended to by healers.
* Balance Training: Like the final Tightrope exercise, this drill is held over a fire pit. Stones scattered about the pit make up the course, the object of which is to cross from one side to the other, jumping from stone to stone without falling into the flame. It sounds easy, but there is a catch: some of the stones fall over into the pit when stepped upon. The arrangement of the stones varies from day to day, as does the number of those that fall into the flame. This exercise is designed to teach quick action and judgment in unfamiliar and hostile territory.Before beginning this exercise, the DM should make a quick sketch of the pit, and roll 2d20 for the number of stones in the 40' X 40' course. After this, roll 3d6 to deter mine how many of these are breakaway stone that will spill the character into the flame. There will always be a minimum of 20 stones, and a minimum of 6 breaking stones. After placing the stones in the arena, the course is ready for the gladiator to cross it. The DM should draw a map of the placement of stones, keeping the knowledge of the breakaways secret, so that the player can announce to which stones his PC leaps.The PC starts on one edge of the course, and must jump from one scalding rock to another across the flam-ing pit amid the billowing smoke. Each round on the stones causes 1d4 points of damage simply for being in the searing heat. The PC can advance 10 feet a round, or an average of 5 stones a round, though this figure may vary depending on the placement of the stones.As with the Tightrope Walking, the PC must make several Ability checks. The first is a Con —2 to pass into the boiling smoke. The second is a Wis — 1, to gain the necessary courage to enter into the flames. The third check every time the PC leaps to a stone. This check, Dex —2, is to determine if the PC maintains his footing on the sooty rocks.If the PC lands on a breaking stone, he must check vs. Dex at —6 to avoid falling into the flames before he can leap to another rock. If the PC makes his roll by less than 5, the next jump from that rock is made at Dex —4; this assumes that the PC is still off-balance from the sudden leap from the falling stone. If the PC makes his roll by more than 5, he is assumed to have maintained his balance even as he leapt to the next island of safety.If a gladiator falls into the flames, he suffers 3d6 points of damage, and 2d6 each round thereafter in which he remains directly in the flames. He may climb back onto a nearby stone, suffering 1 d6 points of damage in the process, or he may attempt to slog his way out the fire pit. A character may move 10 feet per round through the burning material, suffering 2d6 points of damage per round of this movement. The best course is generally to climb back onto the stones. Unless the edge of the firepit is less than 10 feet away, the character will most likely suffer far more by wading through the burning material.
* Obstacle Courses: Though these vary from course to course, they all have the same aim: develop the endurance and agility necessary to survive in the arena. They combine aspects of the other exercises, testing how well the PCs have learned their lessons.Most of these rely, in large part, on the endurance of the gladiator. Since he must sprint through the entire course, this is a true test of the gladiator's mental reserves.The course is generally over one mile in total length, containing numerous switchbacks in the trail. Along the way are numerous boobytraps, pitfalls, and of course obstacles and barricades. Some of these are annoying, some are painful, and some are deadly.For example, a course might contain 10-foot-deep pits lined with spikes over which the gladiator must jump or swing over by means of a frayed rope. Later, there might be a 15-foot-high wall which the gladiator must climb while carrying his practice weapon. He will have to jump over mounds studded with short, sharp spikes; some of these mounds will have concealed pits just after them into which the unaware will fall.The PC will have to avoid the arrows fired at him in a certain section, dodging for cover until he can retaliate against the archer. He will have to run through a tunnel where vines studded with obsidian shards hang from the ceiling. He will have to avoid the tripwires which will bring the whole structure crashing down upon his head.These are but samples of the barriers to completing an obstacle course. The gladiator must be alert at all times or suffer drastic consequences. The obstacle course is one of the most unforgiving of the exercises, for the trainers actively seek to damage and hurt those who pass into its confines.Some of the gladiators who run the course never emerge, either because of a personal bias on the part of the trainer, or on the orders of a templar or similarly-placed potentate. There are few better places for a gladiator to have an "accident," for none can produce evidence of murder or intentional maiming, though their suspicions may run rampant. Best of all, the obstacle course is a requirement to leave the environs of the gladiatorial school.The DM is encouraged to be creative with the obstacle courses. Any traps that will grievously harm the character are permitted, as are those that kill if improperly dealt with. However, the DM should not use the obstacle course as a certain-death device to get rid of characters he finds offensive. The PC must make his own mistakes to die here. He should at least be allowed a chance to survive the course.
Although sponsored by the city, the basic course does provide healers to the wounded gladiators. Since the gladiators or their owners pay such a large amount to the city for the privilege of having their slaves train there, the city magnanimously provides healers for those wounded in the brutal training sessions. They even provide cremation for those who die on school grounds.
The gladiators are required to stay at the miserable barracks provided by the city for the intensive, two-week course. Guards patrol the perimeter of the camp to ensure that there are no nightly forays into the city for entertainment or better food. Bribing the guards is frowned upon, but is not unheard of. The fee, however, is quite large, as is the punishment for those caught giving and accepting bribes. Death for the guards is immediate, while the gladiator takes a severe beating (10-20 lashes with the barbed whip, each stroke causing ld2 points of damage).
Disobeying any of the rules set within the school is also grounds for a lashing. The school will never expel any of its students; they are in for the duration, no matter how bloody it gets. If they cannot live by the rules set inside, they will pay for it with a bloody and tattered back.
Of course, slave gladiators receive their training free of charge; it is in the best interests of their owners to ensure that their gladiators receive the best possible training, and slaves do not receive payment for their work. The city gladiators receive a more specialized training than is available to most who take the city s courses, provided they survive their first battle and the initial training course.
Free gladiators and owners, on the other hand, must pay a flat rate of 10 gp to the city if they want to have the advantage of training in the city s course. Although this is a large sum of money, it is the only way a gladiator will be allowed into the arena, unless he is being admitted as a criminal. In this case, he becomes the property of the state, and must endure through the course anyway.
Anyone entering one of these courses, whether free or not, becomes a ward of the state for the duration of that time. They are not allowed to break with the regimen prescribed or they suffer. Many a freeman has felt the lash on his back when he thought himself above the rules that apply to everyone in the course. The templars claim this is for the good of the gladiator; privation teaches endurance, a lesson everyone, whether noble or base-born, needs to learn.