Retro Game Walkthroughs For
"Gladius"
(Xbox)

Creating a school of gladiators that mix power, defence and speed well is a hard task. With so many different combinations of the classes, it can be confusing to establish whether or not you need something like two different support classes in your school.

As such, in order to help you create an elite school of warriors, here is a list of details of all classes available in Gladius as well as the list of equipment available to them. I wrote this to help others build a school that mixes all classes well, to help you distinguish a Scarab from a Secutor even!

As such, lets get on with it:

-- Amazon, Support --
Amazons are best used against male units in the arena as they have a bonus to damage. Firing arrows like their counterparts, the Archers, Amazons have the added ability to fire at units standing adjacent to them. Even so, don't let heavy units get too close as they'll soon kill your Amazon. Although slightly easier to kill than an Archer, Amazons make up for this by being more accurate with a bow. When levelling an Amazon for your school, spend her job points on the status changing effects like poison and venom arrow to make her more potent.

Weapons: Plain Bow, Amazon
Shields: None
Armour: Amazon
Helmets: Diadem, Amazon
Accessory: Bracelet
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Archer, Support --
Arguably having the best abilities out of all the Support units in the game, the Archer is both a worthy unit for your school and a dangerous unit to fight against. Having several abilities that allow the Archer to fire over long distances, they are best kept out of the fray. Attacks like Spray and Deluge allow your Archer to attack several units at once, a very useful ability for handicap games.

Weapons: Plain Bow, Archer Bow
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: Archer, Hat, Helm
Accessory: Belt
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Bandit, Light --
A very useful unit, the bandits high movement rate means it can travel across the arena quickly to fight off any support that the opponent might be using against you. Not only does this mean you can take out these units quickly, it also puts the bandit behind the opponents units (provided they don't all turn to gang up on the bandit) which means he/she can use one of his/her most potent attacks, the backstab.

Weapons: Light Axe, Sword, Secutor/Bandit Spear
Shields: Light, Sector, Bandit
Armour: Light, Sector, Bandit
Helmets: Bandit, Sector, Hat, Gladiatorial
Accessory: Armband
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Barbarian, Medium --
Other than your own characters, the Barbarian is the best medium unit available. Being relatively quick and strong, the Barbarian can transverse the arena to deliver hefty blows quickly. Like all medium units however, they are susceptible to attacks from heavy units. If you are fighting a heavy unit with a barbarian, use his/her faster speed to reach the high ground to give an advantage.

Weapons: Two Handed Sword, Axe, & Hammer; Barbarian
Shields: None
Armour: Barbarian
Helmets: Barbarian, Hat, Helm
Accessory: Runestone
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Bear, Heavy Beast --
As a heavy unit, Bears have plenty of hit points and so can take a fair beating before having to retreat. Their bite, swipe and slash attacks can become very powerful later. Unfortunately, they are inaccurate moves so avoid using them if your desperate to do some damage. One ability in particular, Pull Down, is very useful for dealing plenty of damage whilst rendering the opponent unconscious for a round or two.

Weapons: None
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: None
Accessory: Collar
Affinities: Earth


-- Berserker, Light --
A very useful unit to have in your school, the Berserker has many abilities that can put you at an instant advantage. Roar, for example, confuses the enemy meaning they'll wander off aimlessly or start attacking each other. It also has a fairly big range so that many units can be affected at once. Use this, along with Howl, to waylay the opponent in a rival nations match. Not only this, the Berserker can become enraged which makes him/her much more faster and powerful. The only downside to this is that you lose control of the Berserker so only use it if the unit's energy is low or your finishing up a battle.

Weapons: Light Axe & Sword, Berserker
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: Archer, Hat, Helm
Accessory: Runestone
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Centurion, Heavy --
The first human heavy units you encounter, the Centurions are powerful units with potent attacks and abilities. Overhead cleave, for example, can instantly floor a low level medium unit whilst their ability to give close allies another attack makes them deadly when all units are packed together.
Weapons: Heavy Sword, Hammer, & Spear; Centurion
Shields: Heavy, Centurion
Armour: Heavy, Centurion
Helmets: Military, Centurion
Accessory: Medal
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Channeler, Arcane --
Using their affinity skill to cast spells, the channeler has many tricks up it's sleeve. They can increase movement rate and health for fellow units as well as being able to teleport across the arena to make quick, albeit weak, attacks. Being weak, it's not wise to rely on a channeler to do any real damage in the arena.

Weapons: Plain Staff, Channeler
Shields: None
Armour: Arcane, Channeler
Helmets: Diadem, Arcane, Channeler
Accessory: Charm
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Cyclops, Heavy --
Like the Archer, the Cyclops can attack several units at once with his eye beam attack. However, this can be inaccurate so it might be a better idea to get your Cyclops involved in the fight where you can then use powerful attacks like target head or heavy strike to deal lots of damage.

Weapons: Plain Hammer, Medium Hammer & Axe, Cyclops
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: Cyclops
Accessory: Eye
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Dervish, Light --
Again, like the bandit, Dervish are light and agile allowing for them to quickly engage distant enemy. Handy attacks like bone spray do a fair amount of damage to adjacent enemies as well as having the added bonus of making the opponent bleed which works in the same way as the poison effect - additional damage after the original blow. Being immune to air affinity attacks, Dervish are handy against Plains Cat units.

Weapons: Dervish Axe & Sword
Shields: None
Armour: Dervish
Helmets: Dervish
Accessory: Anklet
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Gungnir, Support --
Powerful support units, the Gungnir are very potent against slow moving units as they can deal several powerful attacks before the unit even reaches them. Even when it does, the Gungnir's quick speed allows for a retreat before he/she can attack again. As well as this, handy abilities like pin down can stop an enemy dead for prolonged attacks. You'll tend to see computer controlled Gungnir use their bear form ability when you get close enough, this is a useful tactic and should be copied if you get in a tight spot.

Weapons: Plain Javelin, Light Spear, Gungnir
Shields: Light, Peltast, Gungnir
Armour: Barbarian, Gungnir
Helmets: Gungnir, Hat, Helm
Accessory: Necklace
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Legionnaire, Medium --
Not the best unit in the game, you should only have a legionnaire in your school to make up numbers in any battles that require medium units, in which case overhead cleave proves to be a powerful attack. Not being particularly fast or powerful, its hard to find a good use for the legionnaire.

Weapons: Medium Axe, Hammer, & Sword; Legionnaire
Shields: Medium, Legionnaire
Armour: Medium, Legionnaire
Helmets: Military, Legionnaire
Accessory: Medal
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Minotaur, Heavy --
You won't come across a minotaur that easy but if you do, snap him up. Being powerful, the minotaur can deal serious damage to all unit types in an arena and handy abilities like stampede, trample and skewer will really knock other units around. The only downside is a rather low defence but plenty of hit points make up for this.

Weapons: Two Handed Sword, Hammer, & Axe; Minotaur
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: Minotaur
Accessory: Bullring
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Mongrel, Light --
Probably the most useless light unit, Mongrels are both slower and less powerful than their bandit counterparts. Mediocre abilities like knuckle buster, which causes bleeding, may appeal to some but there's no real need for a Mongrel in your school. Shame, really.

Weapons: Mongrel Club, Medium Hammer & Axe; Mongrel
Shields: None
Armour: Mongrel
Helmets: Mongrel
Accessory: Scalp
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Mongrel Shamen, Arcane --
Again, not the best of its type in Gladius, the Mongrel Shaman need to attack other units to charge their affinity much like, say, a barbarian. The only confusing part is that the Mongrel Shaman are nowhere near as powerful or fast as a barbarian making them difficult units to manage on the field. Definitely not a must for your school.

Weapons: Plain Club & Staff; Mongrel, Mongrel Shaman
Shields: None
Armour: Arcane, Mongrel
Helmets: Archer, Diadem, Mongrel Shaman
Accessory: Scalp
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Murmillo, Medium --
Using their shields to deal any real damage, Murmillo's can be put at an instant disadvantage if a unit like an Amazon lands a shield break attack. As such, improve this units abilities with a shield ensuring that you also buy a decent shield for him/her to use. Once you do this, useful attacks like bull rush and shield ram can be handy in any battle.

Weapons: Medium Sword, Hammer, & Axe; Murmillo
Shields: Medium, Murmillo
Armour: Medium, Murmillo
Helmets: Murmillo
Accessory: Ring
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Ogre, Heavy --
Like the minotaur, the Ogre is a very useful heavy unit that can deal plenty of damage. Charging attack is useful to use in the first round when the opponents is moving towards you whilst broad swing can knock opponents down for a good stomping.

Weapons: Heavy Sword, Heavy Hammer, Two Handed Axe, Ogre
Shields: Heavy, Ogre
Armour: None
Helmets: Ogre, Gladiatorial
Accessory: Scalp
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Peltast, Support --
Much like Gungnir, Peltast are ranged attacks with plenty of useful abilities. Being decent all-rounder units, they can quickly gain the highland where they can proceed to do some damage to other units. Unfortunately, unlike Gungnir, Peltast cannot morph into a bear or wolf which means if they get into a melee fight, they won't tend to last long.

Weapons: Plain Javelin, Light Spear, Peltast
Shields: Light, Peltast
Armour: Light, Peltast
Helmets: Military, Helm, Peltast
Accessory: Necklace
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Plains Cat, Light Beast --
The plains cat shares most of its attacks and abilities with the bear whilst sharing its stats with the wolf creating a useful hybrid unit. Skills like slicing attack do plenty of damage whilst abilities like Growl will stop nearby units in their tracks. Since they rely on air affinity attacks, never fight one with a Dervish.

Weapons: None
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: None
Accessory: Collar
Affinities: Air


-- Samnite, Heavy --
Similar to the Cyclops, Samnites are slow movers but make up for this with powerful attacks. Abilities like bulldoze and befoul area push other units around the arena breaking up any lines of defence that might exist. If you can't get your greasy mitts on a minotaur, samnites are a worthy substitute.

Weapons: Two Handed Axe, Heavy Spear & Sword; Samnite
Shields: Heavy, Samnite
Armour: Heavy, Samnite
Helmets: Samnite, Gladiatorial
Accessory: Ring
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Satyr, Light --
Not a unit to be used in heavy hitter fights, the Satyr mainly has features that focus around increasing crowd favour in the arena. Other abilities like Jug Bonk can be useful for knocking an opponent down but don't expect to do any real damage with these units. If the handicap is in your favour or if you feel you can easily win a battle without filling all spaces before a fight, take a Satyr along just to improve team abilities through crowd favour.

Weapons: Satyr
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: None
Accessory: Poem
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Scarab, Heavy Beast --
A useful beast unit that can damage multiple units per turn. Attacks like Contamination will deal damage to all units caught in it whilst poison spittle works not too dissimilar from the poison arrow attack of other support units. The scarab can also deal fire damage has well as being able to stun opponents.


Weapons: None
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: None
Accessory: Jewel
Affinities: Fire


-- Scorpion, Light Beast --
An agile beast that specialises in poison attacks, the scorpion is a useful addition to your school. Having plenty of hit points, the scorpion should last in the arena, even with it's low defence. Even still, abilities like fortified defence can be bought to solve this problem.

Weapons: None
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: None
Accessory: Jewel
Affinities: Water


-- Secutor, Light --
Mixing the abilities of the Bandit with the Satyr, the Secutor can deal damage on the field whilst being able to raise crowd favour for allied units. Having plenty of defence, the Secutor will last out on the field long enough to use nice skills like shield bypass and target head.

Weapons: Light Axe, Sword, & Spear; Secutor
Shields: Light
Armour: Light, Secutor
Helmets: Sector, Gladiatorial
Accessory: Ring
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Summoner, Arcane --
Having the ability to summon either scorpions or undead legionnaires, the Summoner is useful for battles with uneven numbers. As a bonus, you don't need to attack with this unit to increase it's affinity so it can remain out of the fray whilst supplying additional units. Being weak, you shouldn't attack with a summoner unless you have to.

Weapons: Plain Staff, Summoner
Shields: None
Armour: Arcane, Summoner
Helmets: Arcane, Diadem, Summoner
Accessory: Charm
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air


-- Undead Legionnaire, Medium --
Good all rounder medium units, undead legionnaire's have some nice abilities to deter the enemy from battle. Scare attack and fear of death will both send units caught in its range running allowing you to attack with ranged units as they make for an escape. Handy.

Weapons: Medium Axe, Hammer, & Sword; Legionnaire, Undead
Shields: Medium, Legionnaire, Undead
Armour: Medium, Legionnaire, Undead
Helmets: Military, Legionnaire, Undead
Accessory: Medal
Affinities: Dark


-- Undead Summoner, Arcane --
Using the units energy, the undead summoner can channel some affinity power allowing you to cast decent spells early on. The only disadvantage with this is that the units low energy means, if engaged after doing this, it won't last long at all.

Weapons: Plain Staff, Undead Summoner
Shields: None
Armour: Arcane, Undead Summoner
Helmets: Arcane, Diadem, Summoner, Undead Summoner
Accessory: Charm
Affinities: Dark


-- Wolf, Light Beast --
Agile beasts with a fair amount of hit points, wolves can prove to be both worthy opponents and additions to your school. You'll have to level your wolf if you want the decent abilities like shred throat or alternatively, you can buy a high level wolf later in the game, either way, the wolf proves to be a useful unit in battle.

Weapons: None
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: None
Accessory: Collar
Affinities: Earth


-- Yeti, Heavy --
The most powerful unit in the game, the Yeti has some nice abilities to match its power on the field. Both heavy claw and heavy strike deal plenty of damage whilst numbing blows will reduce enemy movement. In addition, they can increase their strength further using cry of anger to really make themselves a tour de force in battle. A must for any school.

Weapons: Two Handed Hammer, Yeti
Shields: None
Armour: None
Helmets: None
Accessory: Teeth
Affinities: Fire, water, earth and air



So that concludes the lesson in creating a crack team of gladiators. Hope you enjoy building a school as much as I did!

mikelar.