Of the official units, there are 3 Gladiator Heroes. So many people give massive credit to the staying power of Crixus, and they are not without reason. But, similar to Rudolph, there is a Gladiator who is mostly shunned. And he goes by the name, Retiarius (and yes, I had to look at the card to make sure I spelled that right).
There is a huge reason why the designers talked so well about Steamroller (the army that consists of Spartacus, Crixus and 3 squads of Capuans). It is brutal! But, it has been pondered...and pondered...and pondered...if Retiarius could actually make a decent sub for Crixus. Having done this myself, I'd say it works to a degree. Against low attack enemies, Retiarius' boosted defense (a wimpy 3 to a manly 4) as well as his very high attack power, can easily crush many enemies. But, against foes with 3 or more attack power, Crixus is usually the better choice. Because the "metagame" doesn't quite encourage 2 attack melee units, Crixus quickly comes into play as the superior Gladiator.
But, when your not playing in the metagame, if your using 600 or so points, you could even have all 3 Gladiators and as many squads of Capuans you can add!
There are a few units that Crixus isn't quite suited to fight. Of course, most of these units could be manhandled by the Capuan Gladiators, but sometimes the extra attack power will be of use. And in 600+ point games, these types of enemies tend to pop up more often.
To start, I'll look at HeroScape's very own Dracula: Cyprien! When it comes to that nasty Chilling Touch power, neither Spartacus nor Crixus want to see what happens on a 20. Even worse, Cyprien can actually be a real pain in the ass if you just charge in your Capuans. That's where Retiarius comes into play. The Net Trip power works very well with Retiarius' 5 attack (which should be getting a boost thanks to Spartacus). In fact, because the chance to inflict a near-kill versus Cyprien, if the Capuans can make it to the vampire, you've just made a serious dent in your enemy with a single turn!
Einar Imperium backed with Empress Kiova and possibly Raelin: Well, the fact that Crixus really hates Double Attack, and the fact that they are a squad of 3, Crixus shouldn't charge them. That trident-wielding guy, Ret-whataver, should do nicely. Yes, the Einar Imperium will likely filet Retiarius, but if Retiarius can engage Kiova...and then the Capuans can engage her...well the rest is Fish-story.
The Undead Queen, Sudema, is a nasty threat to the life of Spartacus and Crixus. Just wipe her up with 1 part Retiarius, 2 parts Capuans (as in 2 figures, not 2 squads), and 1 part Skulls-on-dice. Feel free to top this treat with whipped cream.
Vakrill's Death Knights are really nasty towards Gladiators with their Soul Weapons and the opportunity to bond with the Air Elementals. Any D&D lover should have a ball if they faced the Steamroller. Crixus can be used to great effect if he's receiving the +1 defense boost from Spartacus. Although his defense rate will only be 2, his One Shield Defense power can protect Spartacus from those Soul Weapons. The real issue is when Crixus and Capuans just can't break through the walls of wind and some defense boosted Death Knights (Raelin, for example). That's when your going to need an expendable hit-man. Retiarius works well in this setting. When you send in Crixus, as per the usual Steamroller Strategy of also moving up the gladiator heroes who get left behind, also send up Retiarius. If the enemy targets Retiarius, just rush him in to do some sort of damage. If your opponent attacks Crixus, have crixus go after the Air Elementals while Retiarius cuts away Death Knights and deals heavy damage to a key hero. Either way, your opponent will have a high attack hero and numerous Capuan Gladiators breathing down their necks.
Rats! Okay, the Deathreavers, but Rats! is a much more appropriate term for these annoyances. When your gladiator based army sees these soulborgs and some sort of lethal ranged unit, like Major Q9 or Syvarris, you'd better be prepared to a slugfest. Now then, Retiarius can actually be of use against this sort of army (which is classified as a Control Army). By having him attack the rats with Net Trip, you knock out a Deathreaver. Okay, so Retiarius did 10 points of damage to your opponent's army and will probably be attacked by the enemy ranged unit. Is that all? Certainly not, this is when Crixus does his best to circle around the wall of Deathreavers while Retiarius' Net pretty much guarentees instant death to a rat. The Capuans that are accompanying Retiarius should not attack the Deathreavers unless they have some sort of attack bonus, excluding Gladiator Inspiration. You don't want Crixus to get engaged until the enemy Deathreaver count starts to dwindle. If a Deathreaver does engage him, you can risk the leaving engagement strike if your primary target is within the 7 spaces of his threat range. From this point, go for the kill!
And although this attack-oriented Gladiator still has more secrets to unveil, that's all I can give for the moment. We have more to learn, and until next time: 'Scape On.
