The story of Sulla's return from exile, his installation as dictator of Rome and his self-imposed retirement It witnesses the spectacle of Pompey, who calls himself Magnus, who is determined to leapfrog over the accepted path of Roman politics, and retells the story of Spartacus and his doomed slave revolt Caesar's exploits as a young soldier and advocate test his talents, until he finally towers over all the others with whom he shares the stage of Roman politics