One, two, zero: Scales of strong interactions

We discuss our results on QCD with a number of fundamental fermions ranging from zero to sixteen. These theories exhibit a wide array of fascinating phenomena which have been under close scrutiny, especially in recent years, first and foremost is the approach to conformality. To keep this review focused we have chosen scale generation, or lack thereof, as a guiding theme, however the discussion will be set in the general framework of the analysis of the phases and phase transitions of strong interactions at zero and nonzero temperature.