Rome / Gladiator / Spartacus?

I love the series and have given some thought to starting an RP about two competing ludus. I?m going to share with you the idea to get your opinion and maybe start the role-play. The idea requires two CO-GMs, each runs a ludus and recruits gladiators, and then we have gladiator matches, and everyone who isn?t a gladiator (the social class), votes at the end of a match who wins. My suggestion is to follow the rating system created by Skallagrim. Gladiators would die in this game. Make sense?

The story we play should be character driven and so at the start everyone is character building. The way I see it is to stay non-cannon so that everyone has an opportunity to play their characters as they like. But we would need to fill in some protagonists like in the series, the lanistas, doctore, roman senators, roman soldiers, gladiators, slaves, to say the least.

As for plots, well the main plot is the competition between the ludus houses, there is already bad blood between them and both houses will do anything to be the best. The Gladiators are after one thing, honor and glory, to be the champions and heroes of the social class, to be rock stars of their time. The senators want the favor of the people and so they sponsor the ludus houses to entertain the people and win their votes. Slaves want to buy their freedom, escape their misery or be the best slaves for the food and roof over their heads. The social class wants to be entertained.

One idea I had was for the two ludus to be owned by rivaling siblings. Two brothers (or brother and sister) inherited the ludus but both had different business tactics and they split. Now they compete against each other ? maybe one of them killed their father, maybe they tried to kill each other too. OR both loved the same woman but only one married her? I just think it would work well if the competing houses are related.
SO, what do you think?

Suffice to say, I enjoy roleplays that I can escape into.

dick cheney heart umf peter frampton elite eight stephon marbury the lion king suzanne collins