I am looking for a GM for level 3 gestalt game centered around a group of gladiators.

Not one where players fight other players (the "Arena" style of game) but rather one where the GM NPC's the Gladiator's Master/Trainer/retired gladiator (think Antonius Proximo from the movie Gladiator) while all of the players are gladiators under his 'care/oversight'.  We don't fight each other, but instead we travel from city to city and fight against other gladiators, animals, and/or monsters (some times solo, other times as a duo or team).  In this world dead gladiators are restored back to life to fight again.

At some point early in the game, a war starts and the kingdom is threatened (and possibly the threat is even greater...global?), and the gladiators are commissioned by the king/kingdom to put an end to the threat and if successful, would gain their freedom.  The GM's NPC would oversee them during this mission and perhaps the gladiators are made to wear some sort of magical neck manacle that will kill them (or send them to another plane of existence) if they desert their mission.

Requests:

1) Looking for combatants not casters (though, maybe one of the novice clerics that tend to the wounded and assists with the resurrecting of the dead gladiators joins them).  This translates to no full caster classes for the gladiators themselves: wizard, sorcerer, cleric, druids (except perhaps a spell-less druid focused on animal companion/wildshaping), etc. Partial casters would be fine (ie: paladin, ranger, warlock, etc)

2) I'm not just looking for a combat heavy campaign, but also opportunity for character development, some mystery, politics/intrigue, and any other gaming component you may want to include.

3) Use of Monster classes (ie: Savage Species); allowing their racial HD and LA to gestalt.

4) Access to most game books, but beyond core, if too many source books is a concern, perhaps a limit of material from no more than 4-5 sources of each players choosing.

5) A generous attribute point-buy would be desired (these are peak specimens); perhaps 36-40 (but our gladiator opponents would also be 'peak specimens').

6) character's would  have magic items (as per the starting wealth for a 3rd level character); in the arena's the waiting areas are antimagic fields and are taken from them when they leave the arena, but would work upon entering the arena to use against their opponents.

7) the idea of gladiators is very Dark Sun-esque (though I don't want to be limited to Dark Sun races; so a homebrew world or possibly even Faerun/Forgotten Realms would likely work best.

I'll be playing a Kyton (so lots of muscle/melee); would be nice to see someone with some ranged capabilities, someone with some leadership skills, and a stealthy rogue/assassin type.
This message was last edited by the user at 22:57, Fri 29 Apr 2022.

I'm always up for another game with you! Count me interested.

Bump

Count me interested too.

Bump.

Am open to other story ideas that would allow me to play this character as described.

Bump

Bump

• gestalt...but I am not homebrewing the gestalt rules
  • I have seen far too many players ask for the very same homebrew variations, only to become angry at another player for doing something rules legal within that homebrew.
  • that discussion has devolved each time into request that one player be allowed to use the homebrew, and another player forbidden from it.
• level 3 start ... it is lvl 15 start
• combat heavy...Check
• starts in an arena...check
• early in the campaign, gain freedom...check
• don't want to fight each other fighting each other is only meant to happen once, the winner earns the position of party leader. If someone wishes to challenge for leadership of the party you must defeat the rest of the party.
• not just heavy combat but intrigue too part of your ongoing missions in the wide world is to not draw attention to yourself...the party...or your "employer" ...under penalty of TPK
• (dead gladiators are restored back to life)...the party has that ability team internal...so that depends on how much the party likes your character (or you as a player)
• no full casters...there are two (lvl 15) full casters, and 1 (lvl 15) partial casters
• ability to play monsters ...currently over 50% of the party are "monsters" of one type or another one of the "normals" is just 5 lvls away from becoming a monster as well
• access to a lot of books ...check
• point buy...fixed array average ability score before racial/class modification is 3 points higher then un-named NPCs
• magic items appropriate to lvl 3...you would start with items appropriate to the NET WORTH of lvl 15 character
• sort of darksun, sort of forgotten realms...set in the forgotten realms
• play a Kyton...yes...but a LE creature may have issues working for a CE king.

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link to another game

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there are still a few openings left, and the tournament to define party leader has not been completed.
This message was last edited by the user at 00:13, Wed 19 Apr 2023.

Thanks jess_car_fix! I'll have a look.

That said, I'm still looking for a GM for the original GM request.