For the rest of the time until the tourament I played around in the under halls. I brought some underhall credits using 3 demi. It wasn't a fortune but it enabled me to bring on my new summons as a character, upgrade the major and the squad. I also brought some other units that I thought was for my style of play. I then went and played some table tops for low stakes, just losing credits, no units and getting used to the style of play. Kusog was doing the same, however I also notice that he took more risks then I did, but they paid off for him. Then again, he had been playing for 20 odd years.

The day of the tourament came. First up was the gambling part. It was an odd part. you were picked at random to play in games. You had to accrue a certain amount of points, which was scored by the credits you put up or collateral in the form of your units. you then had to reach a target by winning. If you lost it all, obviously you was out of the running. Seeing as the target was double what we had to put in, it was obvious that at least half of us would be going out.

I paid using the under hall credits I have, saving my units for later. Some demigods looked at me enviously, only able to make the cut by using the units they were to play with. I then went on to pay several games of card and dice. While I eventually managed to make the target, it reinforced to me that I did not like games of chance like this. I much preferred to be as much in control of my fate as I could. Kusog also made it through as well. After two days of this, finally we could move on to start the next part.

First, we had to put up an army. This is where it could all fall apart. I was more the organisational type, using irregular units. While Kusog used powerful units that enabled him to wipe the floor in a fight along with newly formed units. However, if the powerful units were lost, a severe reduction in combat power would hit us. However the weak troops might level up and become more of use or they might be wiped out. While the beginning scenario for each of us was designed to be roughly in line with our troop, the third might throw a curveball at us and leave us trying to tap dance to win. So we had to get as much through as we could to give us more options.

I chose to send the following in for my army.

My character, along with my summons and a convoy of supplies. This cost a full third of my points. However, If we met up with Kusog army intact, and won the third game, it would give us an considerable advantage in the dreamscape.

Lieutenant Tiewt and the veteran squad. I had reinforced them back to full strength and spent some credit to upgrade them slightly. They took up the points totals so that half of my points were now spent.

The remaining half of my points I had chosen what was considered to be an unusual set of choices. But I had conversed with Kusog and we agreed it made sense for me to have them. First was the mounted unit. Fast, quick to react and could fill the other side full of arrows. However if they got bogged down or trapped, the unit would be dead in an instant. However, they also gave me the option to use them as irregular scouts that would help to make sure my convoy would always be on the move, as safe as I could make it. I also had a healer along with a smith with me who could at a pinch, do rudimentary repairs but would come in more useful when I teamed up with Kusog. Along with their supplies, they cost me a quarter of the points left.

For the last quarter I chose something unusual that I had found while exploring through the auctions and swaps. A mage with elemental powers. Not normally that popular due to the single or dual element versions of the mage being more powerful, I envisioned the mage being a ulitiy type mage, able to solve minor problems for me and giving me a more wider range of choice since I didn't know the terrain we be in.

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The game I played was interesting. I had to connect with five of the 17 villages that were on the map and then I could leave. For every village more I hit, I would get a bonus towards the third game that could extend to the dreamscape. However, I was being hunted by the army on the other side. The longer I stayed on the map, the more likely they were to find me. The problem was, I had no idea from where he would be starting. I took at look at the feaures of the map. Although we could see the terrian I had no idea what season we would be in, until we played. If it was spring or winter, I might have problems. It was a mountainous region so I might be able to play hide and seek while travelling to the villages. But if I got myself trapped it would be game over.

I managed to hit 14 of the villages before I had to leave the map. Most of my forces made it. However, my mounted forces were decimated. Out of a 40 strong force, only 4 of them made it. They had achieved what I needed them to. But if I wanted to play them in the future, I was going to have rebuild them first. That if, they survived the next part.

Kusog started off his game. His was the same except that he was the one hunting. He immediately marched his more powerful units to bottlenecks and had them roaming around those parts. Most of his weaker troops he had them doing hit and run tactics and moving quickly around the villages. In short order he had defeated his opponent and kept his powerful units. However, he lost around half olf the weaker units, but they upgraded to regular troops.

Then came the third game. By this time there were only a quarter of the teams left, the rest either having lost or wrecked too much of their army to continue. Kusog came stood at a side of the table to me. The objective was to meet up and set up camp, prepare defences and anything else that we could do. However, the same was going for the team up against us.

we deployed and I used my summons for the first time in the games. With his talents he could fly high, find out where everyone was and I could then signal Kusog as to where I was. To which one half of the team against us moved towards where I set off the signal. To which I smiled. Because as well as having launched the dimraven up, I had gotten the elemental wizard to travel with the four members left of my mounted unit. As a result they did hit and run tactics and slowed down the army heading for me, enabling Kusog to find then and hit them hard. This left us with one half still lef to find and dispatch. We found them at the designated area trying to set up defences. we sent in two heavies from Kusog team plus the veteran squad. It was soon taken care of and we had won the board. The umpire came over to us and congratulated us and asked us what trump cards we had to play going into the dreamscape. We smiled and showed what we had prepared.

My convoy had plenty of resources plus the extra it had picked up from the villagers. I had also managed to find some extra equipment in those villages. This enabled us to set up a truly formidable camp, with hardened defences. My veteran squad did some training with the regular troops while the healer made sure everyone stayed healthly. The smith made repairs and generally worked on improving the gear of the regular troops with items from the convoy. This meant the regular troops moved up a level and became tougher. Added to the heavies that Kusog already had, it meant that we had a force that could take and give a beating. I assigned the four mounted troops to the elemental wizard and made them train the wizard to ride a horse. This meant I had a unit that could move quickly for an extra advantage to help support where needed.

Well supplied, well equipped, well fed main force with support and a well established base camp. I fancied our chances going into the dreamscape. Then I was told what the objective was for the dreamscape and I felt some doubt. Me and Kusog would take control and have to last a month. That was all the information given. No 'invasion coming' or 'Monster wave' or anything. We would have to find out and hope that we would cope.