new edition of Spartacus from Gale Force 9 releases on April 17

Who can resist a TV show (or game!) that has bloody arena combat between two (or more) fierce gladiators, where death may come quickly or it may come slowly in quick, debilitating cuts here and there that leave your gladiator struggling to survive?

Gale Force 9 can’t! And neither can I.

A game I really enjoyed back in the day, Spartacus: a Game of Blood & Treachery is an intense game of intrigue and bloody fighting, where players are a Dominus, or head of a noble house in ancient Rome. They are vying for influence, fame, and the favor of Rome.

On April 17, Gale Force 9 will be releasing a new edition of the game, which is based on the old STARZ TV series.

The game was designed by Aaron Dill, John Kovaleski, Sean Sweigart. I don’t know who has done the new artwork. It was originally published in 2012 (which I guess means there won’t be a special 10th anniversary edition next year).

The game will have new artwork but the gameplay will be mostly unchanged with just a couple of variants (including one common variant that has now been made an official variant).

This game is always fun when I have had the chance to play it, even though I’m not devious enough to actually win it.

Each House has its own special power. I love asymmetric abilities and Spartacus has it in spades.

Players will be buying and selling (or trading) cards that represent Gladiators, Servants, or perhaps weapons and armour that can be used in the Arena by the Gladiators.

They can also be using Intrigue cards to scheme and improve their own position, or maybe bring down one of their rivals.

They will then bid on who wants to host this turn’s gladiator fight. The host will invite two Houses to provide gladiators. Then each player will bid on the outcome of the fight.

You can even bid on whether the result will be defeat, maiming, or outright death!

It can be quite lucrative.

The trailer video does reveal one thing about it, in addition to giving you an idea of what’s going on.

Spartacus has moved away from photos from the show and gone to artwork instead.

Probably a good thing, because how many new players are going to remember the show?

It will be available in 5 languages to start with, and on April 17 should be available at any online store or FLGS.

Are you as excited about this as I am?

I think it’s pretty cool. I enjoyed the old version and this new version looks very well done.

Let me know what you think in the comments.