Her overall demeanor and behavior seems to catch the eye of some of the more experienced fighters, nodding at her silently and acknowledging her as an equal. When she moves to exchange words with them their responses are similarly polite and short, respectful to another warrior but condensed enough so it wouldn't be giving up any advantages to a rival.<br/>According to the veterans, the crowd is interested in two things in particular: the bodies of the gladiators and the violence of fighting. The female audience will always be biased towards the better bodied males and unfriendly toward female fighters, trying to disencourage their partners of cheering for them as well. The male audience will quite likely take notice of the female fighters but will be split between wanting to see her succeed and see her defeated by their current favorite. A good bet seems to be to make the more effective combat stunts look flashy as well, appealing to the crowd with violence and style. Though it is not required to power one's way through the competition, the favor of the crowd may provide some aid in that the fight turns unfavorable for the crowd favorite it can cause an uproar, providing a second chance. What's more, gladiators who get noticed by wealthy and influential viewers often get jobs offered to them if they provide a pleasing show and make it far enough in the tournament. No doubt bets also happen in the background so there's always a chance that beating a famous fighter could backfire. In the end it's all about going out there and doing the best one can, and making it look good.<br/>In the arena dirty fighting is not forbidden, in fact it's anything goes to some extent. Only the use of magic is forbidden, but as long as the fighters use martial skill and cunning, the rules won't be limiting them.<br/><br/>The locked doors were opened at this point and a short man a scroll came walking in, silencing the chatter in the waiting room.<br/>"The qualifying round of today's game will begin shortly. Fighters will enter the cage in groups and fight opponents one at a time. Winning three consecutive duels advances you to the next round. There will be no rest between fighting opponents and there will be multiple pairs dueling at the same time, so you better make it look good if you want to be noticed. Interfering with another duel is prohibited, as is the use of any form of magic or outside items or equipment. Our gracious host will have no killing in the cage either. Fights last until one side yields or is knocked unconscious. Now form up in two lines and I'll have the first half enter the arena immediately."<br/><br/>Looks like the qualifying round was split between two groups. Many of the loudmouths were pushing their way forward in lines to have a chance to fight first, and so was the brunette that entered the waiting room just after the paladin. Evelyn had the option to do so as well, as several of the more quiet warriors didn't bother to get out there early, including the massive barbarian and the veterans she's been talking to. She could go out with the more unsavory fighters first and get over the first matches quicker, or she could stay behind a few more minutes and be in the second batch of fighters.<br/><br/><div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">If you beat a DC 14 History check</div><div class="spoiler_body">Traditionally in gladiator games, the opening match would be fought by famous and popular gladiators. The fights would then proceed with the lower ranking fighters out first and building up towards pitting the most famous and skilled warriors against another. Though this was a tournament and not a gladiator arena, they seemed to have many similarities, and based from what  Evelyn learned about the crowd so far, going out early could get a few light bets on her if she appealed to the audience enough, but any bigger bets and definite favorites would emerge later on.</div></div>