[Endoperez]

Probably not. Only one can win, and all the others die. If it'd worth sending one's pretender in, that would mean that it'd be worth it for someone else to send his pretender to the arena as well. That is, the price would be so good that it'd be worth killing one's pretender in the Arena - and in that case, it'd be a bit much.

Research is slower, so it takes longer to forge better gear than the Champion's Trident, and it might be harder to get access to Water (and to Quickness) now. Even now that it doesn't let mages cast their spells twice as fast, it's still a very good ability, and with the huge experience award, at least cheap thugs should be worth sending in. If they win, they become respectable combatants, and you won't lose too much even if they lose.