As I said at the beginning, the gaming possibilities are legion in the story 0f Spartacus. We can do any number of small scale skirmish actions based on the early career of Spartacus as he and a small band of men ravage the countryside around Mt. Vesuvius. Various patrol actions could be fought, as Roman security forces attempt to bring him down. (The situation would be similar to that in the American Revolution where heavily armed British forces sought to defeat Francis Marion's irregulars.) A series of dames could revolve around various raids. Spartacus' objectives would be to capture slaves and booty; the Roman player would attempt to deploy his forces to protect likely targets, with the added pressure of Roman political intrigue to spur his efforts.

On the army level, DBA provides an outstanding framework: for playing out the attempts to leave Italy. The Roman forces could be a standard Camillan Roman army. The garrison of Rome referenced in the movie could be a smaller torte. At least two Roman armies should be involved, one in Italy and one coming from outside. The players would roll for the appearance of this army. It should land at Rhegium or Brindisium. depending on whether it was from Spain or the East.

The Spartacan army should probably be a mix of Gaulish and Early German figures with a good smattering of Roman-equipped tiqures thrown in. This is a great opportunity to use up those odd leftovers from different armies, since the slaves would use about any arms they could get their hands on. I wish someone had a source for gladiator figures, since of few of them should be in as. well. A suggested DBA list, based in the main on the army shown in the movie, is as follows: 1 x 4 blade (Spartacus and the Gladiators) 3 x 3 warband (Gauls), 3 x 4 warband (Germans): 2 x 3 3/4 auxiliaries (Eastern figures, Samnites, etc), 2 x 2 Psiloi (javelin figures): 2 light horse (Numidian figures painted with light skin might work. The figures should preferably be unshielded and unarmored). According to the movie, women were fighters as well, so this might be an opportunity to use up some leftovers from your D&D days.

Another possibility is based on one of the sources which stated that the Spartacans significantly outnumbered the Romans, out were undisciplined and so were interior fighters. simply add three or four more warbana stands to the above army, but reduce all stands fighting factors by one when in combat against Romans. The blades stand (representing Spartacus) should be an exception to this. At least four of the stands should be classed as unreliable allies, with the possibility of splitting off before a combat. This possibility should be low when in southern Italy, and higher as you approach the Alps.

In the campaign. the Spartacus player should have to roll for the destination of his army. Suggested rolls are: 1-50 Brindisium; 51-75 Alps; 76-100 Sicily. Once a destination is determined at the beginning of a campaign year, the player can add or subtract 10 on subsequent rolls. If the destination is Brindisium or Sicily, the Spartacan player must negotiate with pirates for transport. He must, of course, be able to pay the pirates. The Spartacan player must roll 65 or better to convince the pirates to take his army. For each city sacked, the die roll is increased by 10. Of course, attacking cities takes up time, which allows the Roman player a chance to catch up.

To win, the Spartacan player must destroy all Roman forces in Italy or successfully transport his army out of Italy. For the Roman player, nothing less than the destruction of Spartacus and his army will do. All campaign rules, other than those noted above, will be as per DBA.

Map

Spartacus of Thrace

Part 1: The Movie Background
Part 2 The Games