Gauntlet

The Gauntlet is one of the two quests that are open to all players at the beginning of the game, and focuses on combat, while the other quest, the Sphinxes, is centered on enigmas. The Gauntlet is filled with monsters whom the Disciple, for a certain anima cost, can fight. These monsters can drop artifacts and favour, and their difficulty varies depending on what Portal of the Gauntlet you are in. Their are also some non-combat encounters in the Gauntlet, which mostly provide either anima, Favour, or Vitality.

Portals
There are 9 portals unlockable within the gauntlet (three of them aren't called portal). These are named as follows:

First Portal [5]

Second Portal [10]

Third Portal [15]

Fourth Portal [20]

Fifth Portal [25]

Sixth Portal [30]

The Pit [40]

Forsaken Plane [50]

Forsaken Keep [60]

Each of these Portals contains monsters of differing strengths, with the higher portals containing harder monsters.

NOTE: Forsaken Keep only unlockable after getting the Charred Key from the Fell Dao Lord.