Morturi Te Salutant: Main Page

Synopsis

This is a skirmish system for miniatures-based gladiatorial combats, designed to be quick to learn, flexible and adaptable to your own miniatures collection.

Morturi Te Salutant (trans.: "we who are about to die, salute you") is by default a game designed to allow for simulation of the gladiatorial contests of ancient Rome. However tools are also included to represent arena combat in different eras, or in fantasy worlds.

The players of this game are called "Lanistae", and for Campaign Games, the GM is called the "Imperator". The game uses six sided dice for action resolution, though it may be useful to have other dice sizes to track in game variables (e.g. D10s for Life Points). The Morturi Te Salutant rules assume you are playing on a grid of 1-inch squares using 28mm miniatures. Gladiators generally take up a single square, though the game does include special rules for larger combatants.

There are two modes of play:

In a Pick Up Game, two or more Lanistae generate a School of Gladiators each, and collaborate to design a Battle. In this type of game, the Gladiators in each school are designed from scratch by the Lanistae They then play off against each other, to see who can win! This sort of game is GMless, and works in the same way as a normal miniatures skirmish game, in that adjudication is reached by consensus, and everyone at the table plays for the shared enjoyment of everyone present, even while they are trying to attain victory!

In a Campaign Game, a gamesmaster - called the Imperator, oversees the gaming experience. Each Lanista starts with a school budget, and purchases their Gladiators at an Auction, with spare money used to buy improvements to their Schools or just set aside for future months. Each Battle is part of a group of Ludi (trans.: "The Games"), and the goal is to not just win individual battles for their prize money, but also to grow your school with that money, attain fame as a Lanista and to ultimately win the campaign itself. The Campaign Game is Morturi Te Salutant played in its most complete form, and explores many aspects of the game that Pick Up Games cannot.

Players Section: We who are about to die...

This section provides all the information you need to create your Lanista and a School of Gladiators.

• The Lanista and the School - Generating your Lanista and your School.
• Gladiators - How to generate individual gladiators.
• Rules of Conflict - Game systems for resolving Gladiatorial Battles.
• Light Roles - A core list of Light Gladiators.
• Medium Roles - A core list of Medium Gladiators.
• Heavy Roles - A core list of Heavy Gladiators.

GM Section: Mundi et Ludi

This section provides optional rules for Campaign-based play, and the role of a GM in Morturi Te Salutant.

• Campaign Rules - Running extended campaigns.
• School Resources - School Resources for your consideration.
• Battle Design - Designing individual battles.
• Beyond the Arena - Battles and stories outside of the Ludi.
• Factions - Adding Faction Gladiators to your game.

Premades: Ready to die!

This section provides premade gladiators and battles for your consideration

• Premade Gladiators - Premade gladiators, for Imperators to add to their Campaign Auctions.
• Premade Battles - Premade battles, that can be played in pick-up games, or used by the Imperator to pad out a season's Ludi.

Tools and References

This section provides additional tools for your in-game use.

• Tricks Reference Sheet - One line summaries of what each Trick does, on a single page. This page covers the Core Classes only.

Credits

This is a complete roleplaying game / skirmish wargame, originally created on the rpg.net wiki by Asklepios.

More by Asklepios:

• Kingdoms
• Age of Dragons
• Do Not Go Gentle
• Legends
• Texas
• Xia

Contributions invited and encouraged! Please add your names below as well!