so, after a week in and out of the gauntlet:
-last sunday a small group of K-D came down for a bit, other than that i have seen no one else except a couple of thieves.
-df's i can solo now much easier than before imbuing, but still die often to.(i curse the designer who invented the blood oath spell)
-no arties yet, and i've done at least six round trips in the gauntlet solo, with two df's spawning a couple of those times.