A game like chess but with dice, monsters, and magic.
Solo or Internet multi-player.
Gladiator is a strategy board game.
Two teams of characters, East and West, start at opposite ends of the map,
engage each other in mortal combat, and win, lose (die) or run away
(escape out the Exit Door).
Winners and escapees are awarded experience based on performance,
and go up in attributes and skill.
There are six humanoid races to choose from, and sixteen creature races.
This fully operational version is completely free!
The Windows installer/uninstaller package (gladsetup.msi) includes the Windows executable "gladiator.exe",
the source file "gladiator.tcl", the various GIF images the game uses,
the various "wav" files the game uses,
and the "manual.htm" (HTML... web) format manual.
The second, smaller package, does not have the Windows executable,
and is a basic "zip" or archive of the other files.
Gladiator is best run with more than 256 color display mode, and 1024x768
screen resolution or higher.
About Gladiator...
Gladiator is a strategy board game with simulated dice. This freeware
game is written in the TCL/TK language. You can use the executable to play Gladiator
on Windows, or if you have TCL/TK on your machine, the source TCL file can be
used. The Gladiator map is a grid of squares.
 Gladiator Map Square
Basically, two teams of characters, East and West, start at opposite ends of
the map, engage each other in mortal combat, and win, lose (die) or run away
(escape out the Exit door). Winners and escapees are awarded experience based on
performance, and go up in attributes and skill.
 Gladiator Exit Square
Each game turn is made of of two phases... the Movement Phase and the Action
Phase. Sides take turns moving in the movement phase. Attacks, magic spells, and
basically everything else happens in the Action Phase. Simulated dice are used
to determine the outcome of events.
 Simulated Dice
What weapons you are weilding and how far you move during the Movement Phase
determines your options in the Action Phase. For example to shoot a bow you are
required to move one square or stand still. Hand weapon attacks can generally be
made if you move one half the character's total movement allowance or less.
Character race has an effect on what your base movement allowance is. Humans get
a movement allowance of 10 squares.
 Human Character
Only non-creature races accrue "experience" points after winning a game, or
escaping out the exit during a game. These non-creature races are Human, Elf,
Orc, Goblin, Dwarf, and Mage. There are many creature races.
 Gargoyle (creature)
Prior to beginning a game, a player will select his team (either East or
West) and create and/or load character(s). New characters created will have no
experience points. New character attributes can be adjusted for the desired mix
of strengh (ability to wield weapons and armor) and health (survivability)
versus agility (ability to succeed in attacks and spells). Characters that have
won games are saved and may be loaded. These characters may no longer
have their attribute balance adjusted. Their attributes increase however, as experience
is acquired. Equipment (weapons and armor) carried can be changed prior to
starting a game.
The user interface is menu driven, with menus displayed below the
map based on what is going on. Selections are made and the menus
change. Occasionally, a pop-up dialog will ask a simple question
such as "do you wish to evade?" as well. A flashing red box
indicates which square is currently "selected", or the focus
of the current activity.
PLATFORMS OTHER THAN WINDOWS
Platforms other than Windows that support TCL (AIX, HP-UX, Linux, Mac OS X,
Solaris) may utilize TCL/TK (the scripting
language) to
allow playing Gladiator. Once the concurrent TCL/TK
are installed and enabled, simply run gladiator.tcl to play!
Be sure your pathing points to the latest version of TCL/TK
binaries.
I recommend ActiveState TCL/TK...
FAQ
 What is the animation and
grahics like in the game?
Well, honestly, there is not any animation, period.
The graphics consist of static, non-animated pictures.
This is largely due to the language the game is written in, TCL/TK.
This language is not a typical "game engine", and does not
support the type of animation and 3D graphics of todays games.
Who plays against whom?
The game can be played solo against the computer. It can also
be played with other players (utilizing the internet) playing
together against the computer. In addition, players may take
opposite teams and play against each other in internet multiplayer.
Is there a place I can
find people to play multiplayer with?
Not really. However, I can provide my MSN address, which is
octagone@hotmail.com. Try contacting me and I'll try to set you
up with a game with me or someone else.
Why can't I do anything?
You are moving too far in the movement phase. What you can do
during actions is limited if you move too far. See the table
in Action Phase
in the manual. Also, if you are attacked and choose to evade,
this is your action for that turn... if you wish to do something
besides evade during the turn, select "cancel" when asked if
you wish to evade.
Why can't I succeed at
any attacks or spells?
Your agility is too low. The basic determination of success in the
game is a roll on three dice versus your agility or less. So if
your agility is 11, you must roll 11 on three dice or less to succeed.
I recommend an agility of 12 as a minimum. Armor and shields can
reduce your agility as well as being "dazed" due to an enemy attack.
Starting out, you should not be using any armor due to it's negative
effect on agility. Consider that the average roll on three dice
is 10 or 11, an agility of 12 should succeed in most rolls.
Why are there two map sizes?
The option of playing on a large or small map determines how much
time archers and possibly spell casters have to act before they
are face to face with the enemy. The large map is often more
desirable for higher experience characters. However, the small map is
nice because it makes the game go by quicker.
Is there a limit to the
number of people that can play internet multiplayer?
No. However due to the time it takes waiting for the other players
to take their turn, I recommend five people or less in a game.
HISTORY
What can I say about Gladiator... it has been a love affair
of mine since 1989... there have been four total versions of
the game I have written since that time, a UNIX ANSI version (in C),
a PC DOS version (in C), a Commodore Amiga version (in C), and finally, this
last version, which is the best by far, in TCL/TK script language.
THANKS TO THE TESTERS!
 Eo, aka Apollyein, a friend from Morrowind.
Master Eo says "Try not! Do!"... his approach is using the force during testing.
 Apoc, a friend from Mechwarrior4. Apoc was
instrumental in getting the game tested, he put in many, many hours,
and I still have yet to fix or improve all that he found.
 Simon, a friend from Morrowind. Simon
has been enthusiastic and always a willing player, a great tester.
 Lurlock, who Eo introduced me to, who also mods for Morrowind.
Lurlock was steadfast in his professional approach, and insisted on a number of
enhancements and improvements, making the game more fun for the casual player.
 Tolarn, a friend from Diablo II. Tolarn
says "Moooo!"... fear the secret cow level! He's had a Morrowind game mod named
after him... Tolarn Dragon Companion.
 Aisha, a friend from Guild Wars. Aisha helped
design the game to an extent, adding features in addition to fixes.
 Drakon, a friend from Diablo II. Drak helped
with a large number of games, second only to Apoc in his dedication.
 Voodoo Lou, a friend from Mechwarrior4. Lou
stumbled through the game's rough user interface with abandon, creating a record
number of bone piles in the process.
 Nekhron, a friend from Mechwarrior4, whom
I have much in common with. He was a real inspiration for me to get the
game to where it was fun to play.
MULTIPLAYER HOSTING
When you are hosting on a LAN or router you will create a problem
with the automatic host IP determination. If you are
on a LAN or router and wish to host, you will need to
determine your IP address on your own, and alert the other players
of your IP address and Gladiator's chosen port. The other players will then
need to choose the option to enter the IP and port instead
of joining a particular game using the menu.
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(Windows) gladsetup.msi (3.4MB) Version 14.2 (installer/uninstaller)
