Gladiator

From Dragon Quest Wiki
Gladiators in Dragon Quest X
An expert fighter who's mastered the way of the warrior and the martial artist. --Description from Dragon Quest VII

The Gladiator (バトルマスター, Batorumasutā), also known as Battlemaster or Dragoon, is a recurring, full-frontal offensive vocation in the Dragon Quest series. A gladiator is a fierce fighter who rains continuous carnage on the foes who face them.

Dragon Quest VI

In addition to increases in Strength, HP, and Agility, Gladiators also gain a variety of powerful skills that allow them to deal with many different enemies. A character requires mastering both the Warrior and Martial Artist vocations to become a Gladiator. A unique trait of gladiators is their ability to brush-off an attack, essentially being an additional evasion boost that goes up along with their rank.

Rank Ignore Damage Rate
1 1/256
2 1/64
3 1/48
4 1/32
5 1/16
6 1/16
7 1/16
8 1/8

Stat Changes

Statistics Change
Battles to Master 250
Strength +15%
Agility +10%
Defence +10%
Wisdom -20%
Max HP +50%
Max MP -40%
Trait Chance of shrugging off an attack
Mastery Bonus +20 Strength

Abilities

Level Title Learns Battles Needed Target Info MP
1 Flyweight Gust Slash 1 One enemy An attack that channels the power of a destructive whirlwind. 0
2 Featherweight Undead Undoer 15 One enemy An attack that excels at expelling the undead. 0
3 Lightweight Cop Out 35 Self Palms off an enemy attack on a random friend or foe. 0
4 Welterweight Multislice 65 All enemies A flurry of sword slashes that strike all enemies. 0
5 Middleweight Flying Knee 100 One enemy A jumping attack that delivers a bone-crunching knee. 0
6 Cruiserweight Dragon Slash 140 One enemy An attack that pierces even dragon's scales. 0
7 Heavyweight Boulder Toss 190 All enemies Showers all enemies with enormous boulders. 0
8 Champion Metal Slash 250 One enemy An attack that carves through even metal-bodied enemies. 0

Dragon Quest VII

DQVII Gladiator male.png
DQVII Gladiator female.png

Gladiators are required to master (alongside Paladins) to unlock the Champion vocation. Though they no longer shrug-off blows, they now have the high critical hit rate of the martial artist.

Rank Critical Hit Rate
1 1/64
2 1/64
3 1/64
4 1/32
5 1/16
6 1/16
7 25/256
8 1/8

Stat Changes

Statistics Change
Battles to Master 200 (PS1)
169 (3DS)
Strength +15%
Agility +10%
Resilience +10%
Wisdom -20%
Style Null
Max HP +20%
Max MP -40%
Mastery Bonus +15 Bonus to Strength

PS1 Abilities

Level Title Learns Battles Needed Target Info MP
1 Gladiator Nothing 0
2 Fencer VacuSlash 15 One Enemy Attacks one enemy with wind damage 0
3 Swordsman ZombieCut 35 One Enemy Does 50 percent extra damage to zombies, regular damage to all other enemies 0
4 Ronin 2EdgeHit 60 One Enemy Does 50 percent more damage to one enemy, 25 percent of the damage is reflected to the user 0
5 Mercenary Massacre 90 One Enemy or Ally Instant Critical Hit to one enemy or ally 0
6 Duelist FalconCut 120 One enemy Attacks one enemy twice with 75 percent power 0
7 Champion Nothing 150
8 Avenger QuadHits 200 All Enemies Four attacks to random enemies at 50 percent power 0

3DS Abilities

Level Title Learns Battles Needed Target Info MP
1 Flyweight Gust Slash 1 One enemy Deals 130% melee damage with the woosh element. 0
2 Featherweight Undead Undoer 11 One enemy Deals bonus damage on undead targets. 0
Mean Sweep One enemy Attempts to trip an enemy, also deals damage 0
3 Lightweight Gritty Ditty 27 Party Increases defense of entire party. 2
Double-Edged Slash One enemy Deals high damage but inflicts recoil on the user. 0
4 Welterweight Toxic Dagger 47 One enemy Attempt to poison an enemy, also deals damage. 2
Helm Splitter One enemy Reduces enemy defence 0
5 Middleweight Weird Whacker 71 One group Attempt to confuse enemies, also deals damage. 0
Klepto Clobber One enemy Higher item drop chance from the hit enemy. 0
6 Cruiserweight Falcon Slash 95 One enemy It attacks twice in one turn, each strike at 75% power. 2
Metal Slash One enemy Damage a metal opponent by dealing one extra point of damage. 0
7 Heavyweight Multislice 119 All enemies Damages all enemies. 2
8 Undisputed Champion Multifists 169 All enemies Throws four strikes at random targets for 50% damage per hit. 2

Dragon Quest IX

DQIX Gladiator Male.png
DQIX Gladiator Female.png

Gladiators can wield Swords, Axes, and Hammers as weapons. The main selling point of Gladiators is their extremely high Attack, allowing for powerful strikes. However, their Defense is lower than that of the other melee classes, and many of their best abilities will either lower their Defense further or deal recoil damage. Fortunately, they can equip the heavier armor that Warriors and Paladins wear, but are unable to equip a shield without investing 100 skill points into the Shield skill line while in another vocation.

Statistically, Gladiators far outstrip even Warriors in terms of raw attack power, boasting a monsterous base 500 Strength at level 99 compared to the Warrior's 404. This is balanced by the fact that Gladiators suffer from comparatively lower HP, MP, and Resilience. However, Gladiators also have more Agility and Deftness, as well as a negligible lead in Charm (only a single point; Warriors have a base 89 Charm at level 99 while Gladiators have 90).

In battle, Gladiators will usually be the target of initial Attack-boosting spells such as Oomph, and will typically attack every turn if able. For maximum damage, Gladiators can equip the Über Falcon Blade and repeatedly use Falcon Slash to deal immense single-target damage, which makes sword-wielding Gladiators highly valuable in boss battles.

Gladiators have the unique skill set "Guts." Their Coup-de-Grace is "Tension Boost," which increases their Tension to at least 50 (if not 100). In other words, it is equivalent to using Psyche Up four times, but like Psyche Up, the final "use" may fail to boost the user into the 100 Tension level.

Unlock

This vocation is unlocked by completing Quest 103 "Gladiator Graduator" at Alltrades Abbey. Afterwards, characters may change into the Gladiator vocation, and new Gladiators may be recruited at the Quester's Rest in Stornway.

Stats

Attribute Starting Stats Maximum Stats
Level 1 99
HP 32 540
MP 2 41
Strength 30 500
Agility 7 124
Resilience 19 322
Magical Might 0 0
Magical Mending 0 0
Deftness 15 256
Charm 5 90

Guts

Accolades Required points Name Effects
Bruiser 4 Natural Max HP +10 Permanently adds 10 to Max HP
Brawler 10 Clap Trap Strikes an enemy
Battler 16 Natural Strength +10 Permanently adds 10 to Strength
Challenger 22 Double Up Increases Attack by two levels, but lowers Defense by one level
Winner 32 Natural Max HP +20 Permanently adds 20 to Max HP
Champion 42 Double-Edged Slash Deals high damage but harms user with recoil damage
Vanquisher 55 Natural Strength +30 Permanently adds 30 to Strength
Conqueror 68 Blind Man's Biff Attacks one random opponent for high damage
Decimator 82 Natural Max HP +30 Permanently adds 30 to Max HP
Annihilator 100 Feel the Burn Increases Tension every time the user is hit

Revocation Award

Trivia

  • The Gladiator's rank names in the remake versions of VI and VII refer to weight classes in combat sports, ranging from lightest to heaviest.