Gladiator
| Gladiator | |
|---|---|
| DCI Sanctioned | |
| Paper |
 |
| Magic Online |
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| Magic Arena |
 |
| Rules | |
| Type | Constructed |
| Multiplayer |
|
| Add. rules | Best-of-three, no sideboard |
Gladiator is a Magic Arena-specific constructed format for Magic: The Gathering.[1] It is not an on-demand format, but instead exclusive to events.
Description
The decks are 100-card, singleton, and 20-life, with a card pool of the Timeless format (aka the Arena card pool). While digital-only cards are permitted, rebalanced cards are usually not played. The format is "best of 3, no sideboards".
It differs from the Commander format - and the Arena equivalent of Historic Brawl - in that there is no commander, no extra life, no free mulligan, best of three and 1v1.
History
Gladiator was developed by Canadian Highlander players in mid-2020 so they could continue to play singleton during the COVID-19 pandemic. One of the chief developers of the format is Ben Wheeler of LoadingReadyRun, who was also one of the architects of Canadian Highlander.[2]
In August 2020, Magic: The Gathering Arena featured an event known as "Super-Singleton", which was similar to the community-created custom format. Gladiator was first featured under its name as a Community Spotlight in August 2022.[1]
Community Spotlight: Gladiator
This event was held from August 11 to 15, 2022.[3] There were ten example decklists provided by members of the Gladiator community that players could craft for themselves or modify, provided they had the cards in their collections.
| Events deck name |
Colors Included | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
| |
| Azorius Control | W | U | – | – | – |
| Belzenlok Combo | W | U | B | – | G |
| Boros Control | W | – | – | R | – |
| Esper Reanimator | W | U | B | – | – |
| Gruul Monsters | – | – | – | R | G |
| Jund Sacrifice | – | – | B | R | G |
| Mono-Blue Skies | – | U | – | – | – |
| Mono-Red Aggro | – | – | – | R | – |
| Mono-White Aggro | W | – | – | – | – |
| Rakdos Midrange | – | – | B | R | – |
The Gathering: Gladiator All-Access
An event held between November 24 and 28, 2022.[4] Players were able to build decks including any card on Arena, even if they didn't have them in their collection.
Midweek Magic: Gladiator Showcase
This was a phantom preconstructed event held from April 9 to 11, 2024 as part of Midweek Magic.[5][6] There were ten decks provided by the Gladiator Council as examples of the format.[7][8][9][10]
| Events deck name |
Colors Included | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| Azorius Control | W | U | – | – | – |
| Cow-Tech | W | U | B | – | G |
| Dimir Pact-Oracle | – | U | B | – | – |
| Gruul Sneak-Attack | – | – | – | R | G |
| Jeskai Tempo | W | U | – | R | – |
| Mardu Aristocrats | W | – | B | R | – |
| Mono-Green Elves | – | – | – | – | G |
| Naya Bard Class | W | – | – | R | G |
| Rakdos Reanimator Midrange | – | – | B | R | – |
| Sultai Channel Storm | – | U | B | – | G |
Midweek Magic: Gladiator Spotlight
An upcoming phantom preconstructed event to be held from May 20 to 21, 2025 on Magic: The Gathering Arena[11][12]. While Gladiator is normally played Best-of-three, for this Midweek Magic event it will be Best-of-one.
| Gladiator deck name |
Colors Included | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| 5-Color Lands | W | U | B | R | G |
| Azorius Control | W | U | – | – | – |
| Boros Aggro | W | – | – | R | – |
| Esper Three-animator | W | U | B | R | G |
| Gruul Sneak | W | U | B | R | G |
| Jeskai Green | W | U | – | R | G |
| Mardu Reanimator | W | U | B | R | G |
| Mono-Black Midrange | – | – | B | – | – |
| Selesnya Midrange | W | – | – | – | G |
| Sultai OmniTell | – | U | B | – | G |
Banlist
As of August 2025, the ban list for Gladiator consists of seventeen cards:[1]
- Ajani, Nacatl Pariah[13]
- Demonic Tutor
- Emperor of Bones[14]
- Guide of Souls[14]
- Invert Polarity[14]
- Mana Drain[13]
- Minsc & Boo, Timeless Heroes
- Natural Order
- Oko, Thief of Crowns
- Psychic Frog[13]
- Solitude[14]
- Strip Mine[15]
- Tasha, Unholy Archmage[14]
- Tajic, Legion's Valor[14]
- The One Ring[16]
- Treasure Cruise[13]
- Reanimate[16]
While Alchemy cards are allowed in the format, players are not allowed to use the rebalanced versions of cards (distinguished by an Arena “A” symbol in the top left corner).[17]
External links
- GladiatorMTGA format panel.
References
- ↑ a b c Wizards of the Coast (August 3, 2022). "MTG Arena Community Spotlight: Gladiator". magicthegathering.com. Wizards of the Coast. Archived from the original on 2022-08-03.
- ↑ Gladiator: A New Arena Format (TTC 316) (Video). LLRMTG. YouTube (May 12, 2020).
- ↑ DoggertQBones (August 11, 2022). "MTG Arena Community Spotlight: Gladiator Event Guide and Decklists". MTG Arena Zone. Retrieved on April 11, 2025.
- ↑ Wizards of the Coast (November 15, 2022). "The Gathering: Gladiator All Access November 24-28 (website)". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved on April 14, 2022.
- ↑ Clayton Kroh (April 8, 2024). "MTG Arena Announcements – April 8, 2024 (website)". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved on April 10, 2025.
- ↑ Arena's Best Format Is Back! (Video). PleasantKenobi. YouTube (April 11, 2024).
- ↑ GladiatorMTGA (2025). "About (website)". GladiatorMTGA. Retrieved on April 10, 2025.
- ↑ MTG Arena Run: Midweek Magic: Gladiator Showcase PART ONE (Bug Alert) (Video). Shepherd's Gaming Run. YouTube (April 10, 2024).
- ↑ MTG Arena Run: Midweek Magic: Gladiator Showcase PART TWO (Video). Shepherd's Gaming Run. YouTube (April 11, 2024).
- ↑ MTG Arena Run: Midweek Magic: Gladiator Showcase PART THREE (the bug is fixed) (Video). Shepherd's Gaming Run. YouTube (April 11, 2024).
- ↑ Jubilee Finnegan (April 28, 2025). "MTG Arena Announcements – April 28, 2025 (website)". Wizards of the Coast. Retrieved on April 29, 2025.
- ↑ Justin Koehler (May 20, 2025). "Midweek Magic Gladiator Showcase (website)". Gladiator MTGA. Retrieved on May 20, 2025.
- ↑ a b c d Justin Koehler (January 25, 2025). "January 2025 Banned List Update". GladiatorMTGA.
- ↑ a b c d e f June 2025 Banned List Update GladiatorMTGA
- ↑ August 2025 Banned List Update GladiatorMTGA
- ↑ a b Justin Koehler (May 6, 2024). "May 2024 Banned List Update". GladiatorMTGA.
- ↑ About - The Banned List. GladiatorMTGA. Retrieved on October 10, 2024.