Roman shield

[A_Volpe]

In terms of modifiying gear, as has been mentioned, it's unlikely. Gladiators were trained in very specific styles and using specific equipment for that style (ie Thracian, Murmulo, Hoplomachus ~ wearing specific pieces of armor like a helmet, a specific sword/dagger, shield, et cetera) - So to have a gladiator modify his gear, would essentially change what kind of fighter/style he was supposed to be. It would be like having a Football player wearing a Lacrosse helmet instead of a football helmet.

(A Retiarius (net & trident guy) wearing a lot of body armor or a helmet is no longer a Retiarius. If he was fighting with a regular spear instead of a trident because he doesn't like a trident, he's no longer the 'standard' Retiarius. If he was to wear a different piece of gear than is "standard" of his style, the audience may not visually recognize him as a Retiarius (remember the audience is up in the stands, for those of us who are near-sighted...)

So much is the same for modern sport - The comment that a fighter wants to win is true, but that doesn't mean he can just modify his gear - Boxers have to have their gloves inspected for modifications, yes? If they were modified they would be against the rules and standards, or even if they were not the correct weight - would be disqualified. Ice Hockey you have the 'rule' where a blade cannot be curved to a certain degree, as that would give an advantage to the shot - but there are allowances for you to tape up your stick (and many players are religious/superstitious about such things) - so in terms of modifying, perhaps to the extent of having the gear properly fitted and comfortable is probably what's allowed, but making changes or adding things (spiked) to the gear was probably not allowed.

As for the fighting seen in the Rome clip - at the begining, where Pullo and the Gladiator are coming up and over their shields thrusting down at each other - that is seen in a number of Roman sculpture and art both of Soldiers and Gladiators. It can be very fast and damn brutal, as it targets the face, neck, chest. At one point you see Pullo do the 'classic' Legionary attack, shoving with the shield and pushing upwards to deflect the blow, while thrusting right into the belly.

Using the shields to smash/check each other is very probable - using the boss/umbo and even the whole shield as a giant brass knuckle, punching and shoving - is certainly possible and quite effective. Using the edge of the shield to knock down a swordblow, or the other's shield, or hitting the oponent with the edge, like a hit to the face, chest, arm, groin - all very possible and very nasty.

As that fight scene goes on, it gets more and more drama-hollywood. You do see some elements of what would be 'traditional' Gladiatorial gear, such as the helmets and arm/shoulder guards, but the big leather 'wrestling' belts and spiked-skull mace...Nope. The producers apparently were on the notion that the 'classic' gladiatorial styles and games as we know and love did not really exist as we currently see it, until Vespasian and the Colosseum. So they were trying to make this 'look' like an earlier, raw, unprofessional, back-alley street fight sort of feel for effect.

The idea of lobbing off limbs and heads I'm sure is as much as Hollywood as it is reference to the gladius hispanesis, where allegedly (Spanish?? I forget) were shocked and horrified at the severed limbs and severe gashes inflicted from that sword by the Romans.

The fight of Verenus and Spiked-Skull-Mace Guy was just silly. All built up from dramatic effect. I seriously doubt Verenus would have been able to really resist that downwards smash of that mace, while holding a (2-edged?) sword in both hands, overhead. And of course, any -real- fight the Gladiator would have just cracked that mace across Verenus' head and smashed it to bits in the first second of that fight. But then, we'd lose our beloved lead character and the fight would have been over in a minute. Boooorrrrinng!