Wow my brain took a vacation on that one. I was thinking speculatively for Call of the Wild and forgot about it affecting animals only, but teleport and Darkfenne Hydra alone are sufficient. Granted the armor on spawnpoints like Lair reduces some of the hydra's power, but like you guys said the hydra is very effective against creatures, forcing your opponent to consider carefully before sending them in to stop the onslaught. Nor do you need to turn the hydra away from his task if they do thanks to his built-in counterstrike.

I'm amazed there were only 14 participants, but I guarantee there will be more next year. I'm curious how the spellbook building was handled in the tournament. Did participants build and submit a single book to use throughout the tournament?

Also, I agree that teleporting is a fantastically effective tactic against a temple strategy. Attach a teleport to a mage wand and make your friends pay if they don't have enough dissolves