Gladiator NPC Stat Block 5e: Shield Bash, Parry and the Arena Fight

This page covers the gladiator NPC stat block, the arena champion, pit fighter or noble's paid duelist. It's a CR 5 Medium Humanoid worth 1,800 XP, with AC 16 (studded leather and a shield), 112 hit points, three spear attacks at +7 for 11 damage each, a Shield Bash that knocks targets Prone, and a Parry that adds +3 AC against one melee hit instead of the usual +2. In the 2024 rules Shield Bash becomes a DC 15 Strength save that ignores Armor Class, and the gladiator loses its Brave trait.

Table of Contents

• •Gladiator Stat Block (2014)
• •The Gladiator in the 2024 Rules
• •How the Gladiator Fights
• •Running a Gladiator Encounter
• •How Players Beat a Gladiator
• •Gladiator Encounter Ideas
• •Frequently Asked Questions

Gladiator Stat Block (2014)

SRD 5.1's gladiator has more hit points than the 2014 veteran and knight put together (112 against 58 + 52).

Brute is already in the numbers. A spear normally deals 1d6. The gladiator's 2d6 + 4 includes Brute's extra die, so don't add it again.

Ignore the two-handed spear line. The 13 (2d8 + 4) option needs two hands, and the gladiator's AC 16 assumes it's holding a shield. Use 11 per hit unless the shield is gone.

Three saves are proficient: Strength +7, Dexterity +5, Constitution +6. Its Wisdom (+1) and Intelligence (+0) saves are where it's weak. Brave gives it Advantage against being Frightened.

Athletics +10 wins almost every grapple or shove contest. Trying to wrestle a gladiator is what it wants you to do.

The Gladiator in the 2024 Rules

SRD 5.2.1 keeps the gladiator's body and changes how it uses its shield.

What changes in play:

• •Shield Bash ignores AC. In 2014 the bash has to hit and then the target has to fail a save. In 2024 there's no attack roll; only the save. Against the party's plate-armored fighter, that's the attack that gets through.
• •Only one bash a turn. The 2014 gladiator could bash three times (each needing a hit and a failed save). The 2024 version swaps at most one Spear for it.
• •Three spears, three throws. The 2024 gladiator can throw all three spears in one turn, but its gear lists exactly three. After that it's fighting with its shield until it picks one up.
• •Fear works now. No Brave, no Frightened immunity. Its Wisdom save does rise to +4.

How the Gladiator Fights

A gladiator fights like it's being watched. It goes for the opponent the crowd will remember, knocks it down, and finishes it on the ground.

Base damage. Three spear attacks at +7 against AC 16 hit on 9 or higher, 60% each: 3 × 11 × 0.6 = about 20 damage a round.

Bash first, then stab. The bash knocks a Medium or smaller target Prone, and attacks from within 5 feet against a Prone creature have Advantage. Advantage raises a 60% hit chance to 84%. Against a wizard with Strength save +0 (fails DC 15 on 14 or lower, 70%):

The gain is bigger against heavy armor. Against AC 20 and Str save +0, three spears average 13.2, while the 2024 bash-then-two-spears line averages about 18.8, because the bash doesn't care about AC. And the target starts its turn Prone, spending half its movement to stand up.

Parry, worked out. Parry adds 3 to its AC against one melee hit, more than the +2 most NPCs get. A +7 attacker hits AC 16 on a 9 or higher (60%); Parry turns 9, 10 and 11 into misses, dropping that attack to 45%. One in four of that attacker's hits vanishes. Hold it for the hardest swing of the round.

Throw from range. At 20 feet (60 with Disadvantage) it can throw spears: two in 2014, three in 2024. Use this against a party that tries to stay back, then charge.

Showmanship. A pit fighter who fights to the death and a duelist who stops at first blood both use this stat block. Decide which before the fight. A gladiator who drops its spear and salutes a worthy opponent at 30 hit points is a good scene and a better recurring NPC.

Running a Gladiator Encounter

A gladiator is worth 1,800 XP. Under the 2024 SRD budget for four characters:

The 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide guidelines (used by our encounter calculator) rate one gladiator against four level 4 characters as Hard and against four level 5 characters as Easy. Two gladiators count as 5,400 XP with the ×1.5 multiplier, Deadly at level 5.

A one-on-one arena duel is a different problem. A single level 5 character against 112 hit points and 20 damage a round loses most of the time. If the story calls for a duel, let the champion fight a weakened gladiator or give the fight a non-lethal condition (first to yield, first knocked out of a ring).

How Players Beat a Gladiator

• •Target Wisdom (2014) or Intelligence (both). Its 2014 Wisdom save is +1 and Intelligence +0. Hold Person at DC 14 lands 60% of the time against a 2014 gladiator, 45% against a 2024 one (Wis +4).
• •Fear works in 2024. The 2014 gladiator has Advantage against being Frightened; the 2024 one has nothing.
• •Get bigger. Shield Bash only knocks Medium or smaller creatures Prone. The enlarge option of Enlarge/Reduce makes a Medium character Large, which turns the bash into 9 damage and nothing else.
• •Don't grapple it. Athletics +10 and Strength save +7. Restraining effects that call for Dexterity are also weak, since its Dex save is +5.
• •Bait Parry with the small attack. Parry is one reaction a round. Lead with the cheap swing; the paladin's smite goes second.
• •Stand up carefully. If you're knocked Prone next to it, standing costs half your speed but no attack. Then step away only if you can survive the opportunity attack, or stay and fight from your feet.
• •Fight it at range in 2024. It carries three spears. Once they're thrown, it has to close the distance with a shield.

Gladiator Encounter Ideas

The debt fight. A party member's sibling owes a fighting pit a fortune. The pit boss will cancel the debt if one of the party beats his champion in the ring. The gladiator is honorable and fights fair. The pit boss isn't, and has paid someone in the crowd to throw a dagger at the party's champion when the fight turns.

The champion who wants out. The arena's star gladiator approaches the party in secret. She's a slave to the arena's owner and wants to escape after her next match. The party has to get her out of the stadium in the middle of a crowd of five thousand people, past the arena guards, without the owner noticing until it's too late.

The duelist for hire. A noble who has been insulted by the party doesn't fight them. He hires a gladiator to do it, under the city's legal dueling rules. Refusing the duel means public dishonor (and the noble's lawsuit); accepting means facing a CR 5 professional who is very good at not dying. Check our noble guide for the noble's side of the scene.

Frequently Asked Questions

What CR is a gladiator in 5e?

The gladiator is CR 5 and worth 1,800 XP in both 2014 and 2024. It has AC 16 and 112 hit points.

How does the gladiator's Shield Bash work?

In 2014 it's a +7 melee attack for 9 bludgeoning damage, and a Medium or smaller target it hits must succeed on a DC 15 Strength save or be knocked Prone. In 2024 there's no attack roll: one creature within 5 feet makes a DC 15 Strength save and on a failure takes 9 damage and is Prone if Medium or smaller.

How many attacks does a gladiator get?

Three spear attacks in both editions. In 2014 any of them can be a Shield Bash, or it can make two ranged attacks instead. In 2024 it can replace one of the three with Shield Bash, and all three can be thrown.

What does Brute mean for the gladiator?

Brute (2014) makes its melee weapons deal one extra die of damage, already included in its attacks. That's why its spear deals 2d6 + 4 instead of 1d6 + 4. The 2024 gladiator has no Brute trait, but its spear deals the same 2d6 + 4.

Is the gladiator's Parry better than the knight's?

Yes. The gladiator adds 3 to its AC with Parry, while the knight, the noble and the 2024 Warrior Veteran add 2.

Stat blocks: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Tactics, encounter math and ideas are Loreify's own.