The Sardinian giants, sons of Heracles himself, Nicodromus and Halocrates, blonde and smiling. They have their father's appearance and build, but you have found them pleasant and civilized - very much unlike their progenitor! They nod at you amiably, wishing you well, and you do the same. In the last competition, they had to work against one another, but will they again?

Dadaces, a Cycladian of low nobility (hardly more than a shepherd) and short height, but of great sportsmanship – he paces a bit anxiously, stretching his phenomenal shoulders and arms, as he does so. He hails you squarely and without shame – you hail him with respect in turn.

Hyperbius, the Theban, glowers in your direction while playing to the crowd – he is young, brash, foolish, and – gods damn it, your responsibility. At least a man’s thoughts are his own – curse that scaled bitch to Tartarus! you think.

Finally, the foreigner Faibokranef, whose forefathers had their hides blackened from Phaëthon’s doomed ride over Libya, Aegypt and Aithiopia. You have been charmed by the man, despite his difficulties in speaking Zeus’ Hellenika. His scarred shoulders and wiry frame are capable of greater feats of strength than you had imagined.

The crowd is simply too loud to make speaking to your fellow athletes possible, so when Eurykratides stands atop a platform in the stands, begins his opening benediction to the masses, you all turn to his attention. It is a thankfully brief address - Eurykratides repeats the general structure of today's event, but his final comment catches you off-guard -

"AND TO OUR COMPETITORS, I ASK THAT YOU SEEK OUT THE WISDOM OF HERACLES Λύσανδρος AS YOU STRAIN AGAINST YOUR FELLOWS!"

Strange - "liberator of men" is not a name commonly given to Heracles. As you frown, you see Hyperbius grinning blackly. Heracles was famed as the victor of many competitions, but often killed his opponents in the process of doing so. You grasp the king's euphemism and groan - Eurykratides suggests blood-shed between the competitors! The crowd doesn't grasp the implications, and the cheers fade away in confusion - but then, unseen horns blast a brief note - "Prepare yourself!"

You have only a moment to react -

>your strat, /qst/? Vote closes at 10pm EST tomorrow.

>Focus all of your efforts on capturing a bull as soon as possible, and wrangling it into a cage. Your best move to simply flee the arena at all haste.

>Attack one of your competitors at the earliest opportunity in order to remove them from the event - PLEASE SELECT TARGET AS WELL. The Heraclean clubs deal 1d4 "stun damage", but accidents can and do happen, especially when these clubs are wielded by men with semi-divine strength.

>Attempt to team up with a fellow competitor to defend against any onrushers and capture a bull as swiftly as possible. Teamwork is an uncertain thing - you move as quickly as your partner, and may even be betrayed later.