User blog:Deathblade 100/Rome's deadliest rivals: Spartacus vs Arminius

Rome, possibly one of the greatest empires of all time. As such, all empires are bound to make enemies, whether they're from outside its borders or inside. And today, I'm pitting two of Rome's deadliest enemies against each other.

Arminius- the Germanic chieftain of the Cherusci tribe; whose knowledge of Rome's battle tactics lead to the destruction of three legions in the Battle of Teutoburg Forest

VS

Spartacus- the gladiator rebel; who built a slave army and defeated the Roman legions in Italy for two years before falling.

WHO...IS...DEADLIEST?

To find out the history of war and modern science collide, as we test the weapons and tactics used by these legends of war. We dissect their strengths and weaknesses for an all new battle to the death. No rules, no safety, no mercy. It's a duel to the death to find out who is the Deadliest Warrior.

Arminius
"Quintili Vare, legiones redde! (Latin: Quintilius Varus, Give me back my legions!)"

- Augustus on the loss of the 17th, 18th and 19th Roman Legions at Teutoburg Forest

Arminius, also known as Armin or Hermann was a chieftain of the German Cherusci. Arminius was born in 17 or 18 AD, and in his younger years was sent to Rome as a tribute, and actually attained Roman citizenship and even petty noble status, training to be a commander in the Roman Army. Arminius commanded a unit of Roman-Germanic reserves in the Balkans in 4 AD, but in 7 or 8 AD, he returned to Germany. In the fall of 9 AD, Rome sent a massive military force into Germania, planning bring the region under total Roman control. Knowing of this plan, Arminius hit the Romans exactly where their military tactics were weakest, in the dense Teutoburg forest. The Roman force under Quintilius Varus were marching along a sunken road in the woods, in the middle of rainstorm, when Germanic forces felled trees behind them, preventing escape. The Germans then hurled stones, darts, and javelins at the Roman soldiers from the forests above and to either side, before charging in with their swords and framea spears, slaughtering numerous Romans at close range and forcing the rest into a retreat that brought them directly into Germanic field fortifications prepared near Kalkriese Hill. The Romans were trapped between the fortifications and the pursuing force of Germans and slaughtered, three legions being completely wiped out and 16,000-20,000 men killed. Varus was not killed in battle, but committed suicide by falling on his sword when he realized defeat was certain. The few survivors, if any, were likely taken into slavery. The Romans later retaliated, defeating Arminius in major battles and recapturing two of Rome's legionary eagles, and Arminius became involved in inter-tribal conflict, being killed under mysterious circumstance in 21 AD. In spite of this, Roman Empire would never again attempt to make an attempt to establish a permanent presence in Germania west of the Rhine River.

Weapons:
Arminius wields: Long Range= Framea Mid Range= Double handed Axe Close Range= Spatha Special= Fire Hardened Club Armour= Shield
 * Length: 5.5 feet
 * Weight: 3 LB
 * Material: Iron, Wood
 * Length: 5 feet
 * Weight: 7 LB
 * Material: Iron, Wood
 * Length: 3 feet
 * Weight: 4 LB
 * Material: Iron
 * Length: 2 feet
 * Weight: 4 LB
 * Material: Ash Wood, Iron, Beeswax
 * Length: 4 feet diameter
 * Weight: 4 LB
 * Material: Ash Wood, Iron

Spartacus
"When a free man dies, he loses the pleasure of life. A slave loses his pain. Death is the only freedom a slave knows. That's why he's not afraid of it. That's why we'll win."

- Quote from Spartacus, 1960 Movie.

Spartacus was a Thracian gladiator, who along with the Gauls Crixus, Oenomaus, Castus and Gannicus was one of the slave leaders in the Third Servile War, a major slave uprising against the Roman Republic. Little is known about Spartacus beyond the events of the war, and surviving historical accounts are sometimes contradictory and may not always be reliable. All sources agree that he was a former gladiator and an accomplished military leader.

Weapons
Spartacus revolted with: Long Range= Pilum Mid Range= Trident Net Close Range= Gladius Special= Sica Armour= Manica
 * Length: 5 feet
 * Weight: 4 LB
 * Material: Iron, Wood
 * Length: 5 feet
 * Weight: 4 LB
 * Material: Iron, Wood
 * Length: 4 feet
 * Weight: 3 LB
 * Material: Natural Fiber, Iron weights
 * Length: 2 feet
 * Weight: 4 LB
 * Material: Iron
 * Length: 2.5 feet
 * Weight: 4 LB
 * Material: Iron
 * Length: 2 feet
 * Weight: 3 LB
 * Material: Bronze, Leather

Weapons Evaluation
Long Range: Spartacus. Both weapons are very similar, as they can both be used as projectile weapons as well as thrusting weapons. Despite that, the Pilum is more adapted to the ranged side of things.

Mid Range: Spartacus. The axe is much more heavier that the trident and is slower to swing. The trident is lighter and in conjunction with the net can allow the gladiator to both attack the chieftain as well as entangle his weapon.

Close Range: Arminius. The Spatha is the longer of the two blades and while it isn't as light as the gladius, its design is similar to the type of swords that Arminius and his tribesmen used in combat.

Special: Arminius. While the Sica is the longer of the two weapons, the club is hard enough to stop attacks from swords and add to the fact neither of them are wearing helmets and it's an easy win.

Armour: Draw. Both bits of armour have their own strengths and weaknesses.

Battle
TBA