What about the Bottom Members? Those who just barely qualify? Luccio is amongst those at the moment.

Nah, Luccio got dropped down a few pegs, but I don't think she's near the bottom.  They don't conjure fiery lasers at a moment's notice.  Closer to average wizard, I'd say.  Unfortunately, average wizard can't keep up in most of the fights that Harry gets in nowadays.  Before DB, she was in the running for Senior Council level wizard.

Just out of curiosity, exactly how do wizards fight fair?  Given the rules, assuming you aren't the Black Staff, you can't kill with magic, you can't enthrall with magic.  So  what do you do? If it's down to fisticuffs Harry tags everybody shorter and lighter than he is. If it comes down to ordinance, watch Carlos, he carries grenades. Harry put down Corpse Taker with a 44 to the back of the head.  Kincaid killed Harry with a sniper rifle.  And the Red Court used sarin gas to kill thousands including wizards.

In the face off with the Black Court nobody won.  Everybody called it a day and blew the vicinity. Winning involves getting whatever prize you were playing for. It looks like nobody got everything they wanted.

Was Drakul trying to stage a Dark Hallow?

A fair fight wouldn't necessarily be to the death, but this is all theoretical anyway.

The explanation in BG was that Drakul was kind of out on a whim to gather information.  He could either build up an army of zombies, or the Accords forces could come to stop him, and he'd get an idea of their capabilities and possibly some new blampire recruits (which he managed to do).  He didn't much care himself whether or not Ethniu and the Fomor actually succeeded in Chicago.

No, it isn't.  The discussion was how Harry specifically, plus LtW, River Shoulders, and the wardens did vs Drakul and the Black Court Vampires.  The result was a loss.  "surviving is a win" was LtW referring to how he and River Shoulders did vs Drakul.  The vampires suffered no casualties while team Dresden lost people (who are now probably vampires). 

Also as I stated previously, Harry lost.  He was dead to rights and got rescued.  Being rescued by someone isn't a victory for you.  If I was being held hostage and police saved me, it wouldn't be my victory. 

So Harry and the Wardens got beat by the BCV's.

The wardens did manage to take down a couple blampires from the large group of them before Harry pays attention to them again.  At least, they don't get mentioned again.  Your main point stands, though.

Yet, those times you mention, compared to Cowl, Harry is very young and inexperienced without
the aid of a mantle of any kind, further though the shadow of Lasciel was in his head for part of the time, she didn't enhance his power or magic.  Still he held his own, I disagree that Cowl was simply toying with him in their first meeting, Harry has grown since they last met in knowlege, mantel, and experience.

Cowl was definitely going easy on Harry in their first meeting.

"Just as well," Cowl murmured. "I have wanted to see for myself what has the Wardens so nervous about you."
The cold wind rose again, and the hairs on the back of my neck rose up stiffly. A flash of sensation flickered over me as Cowl drew in power. A lot of power.

...

I've traded practice blows with my old master Justin DuMorne, himself at one time a Warden. I fought him in earnest, too, and won. I've tested my strength in practice duels against the mentor who succeeded him, Ebenezar McCoy. My faerie godmother, the Leanansidhe, has a seriously nasty right hook, metaphysically speaking, and I've even gone up against the least of the Queens of Faerie. Throw in a couple of demons, various magical constructs, a thirteen-story fall in a runaway elevator, half a dozen spellslingers of one amount of nasty or another, and I've seen more sheer mystic violence than most wizards in the business. I've beaten them all, or at least survived them, and I've got the scars to show for it.

Cowl hit me harder than any of them.

...

Cowl walked slowly toward me down the sidewalk, all cloak and hood and shadows. "Disappointing," he said. "I hoped you were ready for the heavyweight division."

...

Cowl kept walking toward me. Hell's bells, it didn't even look like he was trying all that hard.

I got a cold feeling in my chest.

Harry has grown since DB, but not enough to make a match of Cowl yet.

Ferro was willing to show up to Bianca's ball.  I think Harry's wedding is a bigger deal than that, tbh.  It may be an either/or thing between him and Vadderung, though.

As far as people to expect to show up, I'm expecting most supernatural nations to get an invite to send representatives.  It is good to shore up Accords relations if nothing else.
Something like the following seems reasonable to me:

• Summer - Sarissa and Fix, possibly Eldest Gruff
• Winter - Mab, Molly, and retainers
• White Court - all the living named characters here except maybe Thomas
• White Council - token pair of senior councilors (say Listens to Wind and Ancient Mai with TC's nameless wardens.  Nobody that's gonna be too friendly to Harry)
• Archive
• Marcone/Gard and possibly the new Hendricks (Childs perhaps?)
• Svartalves - Etri and his sister
• Vadderung or Ferro, but probably not both

Probably a good portion of that is wrong, but I could see any of those choices actually showing up.



For Twelve Months, it's going to be a different kind of book.  Instead of Harry's worst weekend, it's going to be stretched over the course of an entire year.  That means that Harry gets time to rest between episodes of interest.  I think that might make it hard to keep up a usual murder mystery plot.  The usual time pressure is going to be off, anyway.  Stepping back and having a less combat focused book would be good after BG, too.

Do we know for sure Harry will be going to the mirrorverse alone? Logically it seems likely, but if he's with someone else (like standing at the altar for his wedding) and some magical thing kicks in, and someone close to him (like Lara or his best man or the minister) grabs for him, could they be pulled in as well?

We know he's going to be summoned by negaHarry to be killed in his place.  I think that's got to be a solo trip tbh.  None of the other summonings we've seen have included multiple beings.  Besides, I think that you'd need a True Name for a mortal to summon another mortal across realities, much less have the magical oomph to pull in someone else for the ride.

primeChandler will be the touchstone for Harry to get real information about the mirror reality and what's different.  Also, probably one to give him inside information on who's gunning for him suddenly in the WC to call to vote him out.

Hmm, probably Butters unless Thomas is available for best man.

As far as guests, I'd imagine it'd be a who's who along the lines of Bianca's masquerade.

Harry wasn't fully in charge as of Cold Days, it wasn't until he spent a full year on the island, up until Skin Game did he learn the ins and outs of the defensive system and how to turn it on.  Going to full defensive mode is apparently something Alfred cannot do completely on his own.

Agreed, but I don't think the Island is continuously in full defensive mode, even now that Harry knows how to trigger it.