Gladiator Gauntlet is a two-player battle game of psychology, prediction, and combat. Two gladiators enter the arena. Only one leaves.

Each round, both players simultaneously choose one of three moves — Hit, Block, or Dodge. Neither player sees what the other has chosen until both have committed. The outcome of that choice, combined with your weapon, armor, and your weapon's unique special ability, determines how much damage you deal and receive.

There is no round limit. The fight continues until one gladiator's HP reaches zero. You can also fight the CPU in Skirmish mode to practise without a result on your record.

Your three moves form a triangle — each one beats one other and loses to one other. This is the heart of every round. Read your opponent, predict their choice, counter it.

Both choices remain hidden until both players have locked in. Picks are then revealed simultaneously and the round resolves. Note: the War Spear's Reach special can alter the RPS outcome — see Weapons for details. The Crossbow's Pin special can prevent you from choosing Dodge next round.

Winning or losing the move matchup determines a damage multiplier applied to both fighters' attacks simultaneously. Neither gladiator is ever fully safe — even the loser deals reduced damage.

Beyond the RPS multiplier, final damage is also shaped by: your weapon's base damage range, the 30% weapon matchup modifier, your opponent's armor defense reduction, the round's arena event, and any active weapon specials — bleed ticks, wound penalties, disarm, and crits can all shift a round significantly.

Your weapon is chosen before the battle begins and cannot be changed mid-fight. Each weapon has a base damage range, a counter matchup against two other weapons, and a unique special ability that triggers automatically — no input required.

The eight weapons form a fully symmetric counter wheel — every weapon beats exactly two and loses to exactly two. No single weapon dominates. The structure is circular, so there is always a counter to your counter.

Armor determines your starting HP, flat damage reduction on every hit received, and a unique combat mechanic. The three armors are meaningfully different — not just stat tiers.

At the start of every round, the arena intervenes. A random event is drawn and affects the fight — sometimes helping you, sometimes hindering you, sometimes both. Events cycle through a fixed sequence, so attentive gladiators can anticipate what's coming.

• ⚔Sand in the Eyes — The crowd hurls sand. Visibility drops. Atmospheric only — no mechanical effect.
• ⚔Arena Fire — A torch falls into the pit. Both fighters take 5 direct damage before the round. Armor reduction does not apply.
• ⚔Energized — The crowd erupts. Both fighters deal 20% bonus damage this round.
• ⚔Hidden Dagger — A blade is tossed into the pit. One random fighter snatches it and deals +8 bonus damage this round.
• ⚔Call for Blood — The announcer demands carnage. Critical hits are active this round — a crit doubles raw damage before the RPS multiplier is applied.
• ⚔Passing Shadow — A cloud crosses the sun. Atmospheric only — no mechanical effect.
• ⚔Emperor Rises — The Emperor himself watches. Both fighters deal 10% bonus damage from the pressure.
• ⚔Fallen Chains — Chains rattle underfoot. Movement is hindered. Both fighters deal 15% less damage this round.
• ⚔Medicus — The arena physician rushes in and restores +15 HP to one random fighter. Luck of the draw.
• ⚔Beast at the Gate — Something stirs beyond the gate. Fear spreads through the crowd — atmospheric only.
• ⚔Rain — The colosseum is drenched. Stone becomes treacherous — atmospheric only.
• ⚔Execution Horn — The crowd demands death. One random fighter hears the call and deals +12 bonus damage this round.

Every battle earns XP, which accumulates into gladiator levels. Levels unlock new items in the Armory Shop — most cosmetics require a minimum level before they can be purchased.

Your current level and progress bar are visible on the Stats screen. XP required per level scales gradually — early levels come fast, higher levels take more fights to reach. Levels and XP never reset.

Gold is earned after every battle, win or lose. It accumulates across sessions and is spent in the Armory Shop. You can never lose gold already earned.

The leaderboard ranks all gladiators by total wins, with gold as the tiebreaker. The top three ranks carry exclusive perks unavailable to everyone else.

Every leaderboard row is clickable — tap any gladiator to view their full stats page, including win rate, match history, and nemesis record. Your own stats are always accessible from the main menu via the Stats button.

Gold is spent in the Armory Shop, accessible from the main screen. All items are purely cosmetic — they change how you look, not how you fight. Once purchased, items can be equipped or unequipped freely at any time at no cost.

The shop uses a two-column layout: categories on the left, items on the right. Click any category to browse its contents. A gold dot on a category button means you already own at least one item inside it. Items above your current level appear in a locked section at the bottom of each category.

Raw damage only gets you so far. The arena rewards those who think ahead.

1. Memorise the counter wheel before you queue. You can see both weapons before the fight starts. A counter pick gives 30% more damage on every hit — that gap is decisive over a full match. Check the Counter Network section and choose accordingly.
2. Read your opponent's patterns. Most players fall into habits — three Hits in a row, or always Blocking when low on HP. Spot the pattern and counter it before they realise what you've figured out.
3. Respect the Spear's Reach. Spear users are never fully punished for guessing wrong against Hit — their Reach converts your win into a tie. Fighting a War Spear means Hit is less reliable. Lean on Block and Dodge to bait mistakes.
4. Crossbow pins force binary decisions. When you're pinned, your opponent knows you're picking Hit or Block — they've cut your options in half. If you're fighting a Crossbow, never string multiple losing rounds together or the pin pressure compounds quickly.
5. War Axe Wounds snowball hard. Each winning Axe hit permanently lowers your max HP by 8. After three or four wounds the gap becomes difficult to close. Against a War Axe, prioritise ties over losses — half damage beats a full Wound every time.
6. Dual Blades and Leather is a bleed machine. Leather swings twice, which means up to 6 bleed applied per round. That ticks at the start of the next round on top of regular damage. The combo can poison a fight into a slow death spiral — especially punishing for Heavy Plate wearers who can't burst back.
7. Heavy Plate locks your move — use it as a weapon. Your opponent knows you're locked in, but not what you picked. If you habitually lock Hit, they'll Block you for free. Deliberately lock Dodge or Block occasionally to make them second-guess even when they know you're committed.
8. Ties are not neutral when HP is uneven. Both fighters deal 50% damage on a tie. If you're ahead on HP, ties are quietly in your favour — your opponent loses proportionally more. Play into ties deliberately when you have the HP lead.
9. Know the event cycle. Events repeat in a fixed order. If fire damage is two rounds away, play aggressively now rather than conserving. If Medicus is coming, sometimes sacrificing a round to preserve position is worth banking on the heal.
10. The Last Stand Bonus is worth chasing. Below 20% HP and still in it? You earn +25 gold if you close it out. Don't concede a near-win just to end the match faster — the gold and the record entry are both worth fighting for.
11. Morningstar punishes Heavy Plate specifically. Armor Crush ignores 25% of defense, and Heavy Plate's entire value proposition is its damage reduction. A Morningstar user peels that advantage away on every hit. If you're running Heavy Plate and your opponent has a Morningstar, you're effectively wearing lighter armor than you paid for.
12. Chain Flail's Disarm is invisible until it fires. There's no indicator before the penalty triggers — your opponent simply deals less damage on their next hit without warning. Against a Flail user, never assume you know your next attack's damage precisely, especially in high-stakes finishing rounds.