First VTES game in Iloilo

After a year of procrastinating, I finally managed to get a demo game going last Sunday. Pretty small table (3 players)for a vtes game but it’s a start.

We used the pre-constructed starters from Keepers of Tradition, Raf playing Brujah, Greg playing Malkavian and I took the Ventrue. The Malkavian starter was tweaked as per my earlier post (maybe a year ago) by using 2 Malkavian starters so it had a lot of bleed (more kindred spirits and eyes of chaos) and a decent combat defense package (all glancing blows).

Raf bled into Greg a lot but even his potence combat wasn’t enough to send any of Greg’s vamps into torpor due to the abundance of glancing blows. Meanwhile Greg was spending almost all of his minion’s actions into bleeds of 2-5. I was unable to block any due to lack of intercept and had to pray to get some form of bleed bounce.

Not bad for a tutorial game, Raf had problem with the Brujah crypt selection (no minion had celerity and no one had POT). I took a look at the library and saw some harass and public trust, so the main problem was definitely the crypt. I’ll just tweak that a bit for more rush and better discipline access.

Here’s to more games in the future–hopefully with 2 more players so we can get a full table of 5!

Heirs to the Blood starter deck spoilers

!VENTRUE-!SALUBRI

1 Titus Camille
1 Polly Kay Fisher
1 Jefferson Foster
1 Mariel St. John
1 Jephta Hester
1 Neighbor John
1 Aredhel
1 Langa
1 Nkechi
1 Rashiel
2 Uriel

Uriel
!Salubri, G4, cap 8
AUS FOR VAL ani obe
Sabbat bishop: In combat, the controller of the opposing minion plays
with an open hand.

2 Villein
2 Vessel
2 Blooding by the Code
1 Path of Retribution, The
1 Corporate Hunting Ground
1 Information Highway
1 Fame
1 Fortitude
1 Auspex

4 Govern the Unaligned
3 Abbot
2 Brother in Arms
2 Rumble
2 Sense of Death
1 Graverobbing
1 Blessing of the Name

5 Baseball Bat

2 Dawn Operation

5 Indomitability
5 Unflinching Persistence
3 Vengence of Samiel
3 Sword of the Righteous
3 Target Vitals
2 Death Seeker
1 Blissful Agony
1 Eye of Unforgiving Heaven

5 Wake with Evening’s Freshness
3 Eyes of Argus
3 Enhanced Senses
3 Precognition
2 Telepathic Counter
2 Hide the Heart
1 Melange

1 Dragonbound

Hide the Heart
Reaction, aus/val, no cost
[aus] Reduce a bleed against you by 1.
[val] The action ends (unsuccessfully). The acting minion may burn 1
blood to cancel this card as it is played. Onle one Hide the Heart may
be played ay [val] each action.
[VAL] Reduce a bleed against you by 2, or tap to reduce a bleed
against any Methuselah by 2.

Death Seeker
Combat, !Salubri, costs 1 pool
Cancel a combat card played by the opposing minion as it is played (no
cost is paid). A vampire can play only one Death Seeker each round.

—————————–
NOSFERATU-SAMEDI

1 Federico di Padua
1 Shahid
1 Topaz
1 Harold Tanner
1 Petra
1 Slag
1 Troglodytia
1 Tanginé
1 Macoute
1 Abebe
2 Baroque

Baroque
Samedi, G5, cap 7
NEC THA aus for obf
Independent: Baroque can enter combat with a younger vampire who is
not Giovanni or Nosferatu as a (D) action.

4 Agent of Power
2 Villein
2 Vessel
2 Coroner’s Contact
1 Warsaw Station
1 Dummy Corporation
1 Dreams of the Sphinx
1 Houngan

4 Computer Hacking
3 Night Moves
2 Little Mountain Cemetery
2 Deep Song
2 Horseshoes
2 Off Kilter
1 Divine Sign
1 Rampage
1 Patagia: Flaps Allowing Limited Flight

3 Sport Bike
3 Camera Phone

3 Reanimated Corpse
1 Underbridge Stray

4 Lost in Crowds
4 Veil the Legions
4 Cloak the Gathering
2 Mask of a Thousand Faces
2 Freak Drive
2 Under my Skin
1 Marked Path
1 Hag’s Wrinkles

2 Cold Aura
2 Compress
2 Soak

4 On the Qui Vive
3 Steadfastness
2 Elder Intervention

Off Kilter
Action, Samedi, no cost
+1 stealth action
Gain 1 pool. If you do not have the Edge, you get the Edge. Otherwise,
you may burn the Edge to gain 1 additional pool.

Under my Skin
Action Modifier, obf/thn, 1 blood
[obf] +1 stealth
[thn] +1 stealth and put this card on this vampire. On any action
after this one, this vampire may burn this card to get +1 stealth.
[THN] As [thn] above, but for +2 stealth when played.

—————-
LASOMBRA-KIASYD

1 Luca Italicus
1 Lord Vauxhall
1 Black Wallace
1 Virginie, Prodigy
1 Ermenegildo, the Rake
1 Andrew Emory
1 Pherydima
1 Omme Enberbenight
1 Roderick Phillips March
1 Dame Hollerton
2 Isanwayen

Isanwayen
Kiasyd, G4, cap 6
DOM MYT OBT
Sabbat: While ready Isanwayen may tap to give you an additional master
phase action. Recuing him from torpor costs an additional blood. Cold
iron vulnerability.

2 Villein
2 Wider View
2 Blind Spot
2 Capitalist
1 Vessel
1 Obtenebration
1 Dominate
1 Political Hunting Ground
1 Channel 10
1 Sudden Reversal

6 Govern the Unaligned
1 Eternal Vigilance
1 Goblinism
1 Song of Pan

2 Tinglestripe
1 Zaire River Ferry

2 Nocturn

1 Mr. Winthrop

6 Bonding
6 Stone Travel
4 Shadow Play

1 Shroud of Absence
1 Blanket of Night
4 Aura Absorption
4 Murmur the False Will
3 Fae Contortion

3 Absob the Mind
3 Oubliette
2 Darkness Within
1 Autonomic Mastery

3 Obedience
3 On the Qui Vive
2 Covincraft
2 Folderol

Wider View
Master, no requirements, 1 pool
Master: Trifle
Put this card in play. You may use a transfer to move the top card
from your crypt to your uncontrolled region and then remove a crypt
card in your uncontrolled region from the game. You may use four
transfers to burn this card and gain 2 pool.

Tinglestripe
Equipment, requires Mytherceria, no cost
Weapon.
[myt]Strike: 2R damage. This weapon can be used as a strike only once
each round.
[MYT] As above, or strike: 1R damage, with an optional maneuver each
combat.

—————————
TREMERE-GARGOYLE

1 Lord Ephraim Wainwright
1 Muhsin Samir
1 Claus Wegener
1 Hector Trelane
1 Tarrence Moore
1 Frank Weisshadel
2 Cedric
2 Rocia
2 Rusticus

Rusticus
Gargoyle, G5, cap 4
VIS for
Camarilla. Tremere Slave: Flight.

2 Villein
2 Effective Management
1 Thaumaturgy
1 Fame
1 Guardian Angel
1 Depravity
1 Antediluvian Awakening
1 Barrens, The
1 Wasserschloss Anif, Austria
1 Chantry

3 Bum’s Rush

1 Defender of the Haven
1 Create Gargoyle

1 Soul of the Earth
1 Hatchling

1 Rock Cat

3 Razor Bat
1 J.S. Simmons, Esq.

4 Conditioning

4 Stonestrength
4 Rockheart
4 Slam
4 Soak
3 Torn Signpost
3 Immortal Grapple
3 Raking Talons
2 Pounce
2 Lead Fist

6 Wake with Evening’s Freshness
4 Scry the Hearthstone
4 Patrol
4 Deflection
2 Voices of the Castle

Voices of the Castle
Reaction, tha/vis, no cost
[tha] This vampire burns 1 blood to get +1 intercept.
[vis] +1 intercept, or give +1 intecept to a vampire to whom this
vampire is enslaved.
[VIS] Reduce a bleed against you by 2.

Lead Fist
Combat, tha/vis, no cost
[tha] Strike: hand strike at +1 damage.
[vis] As [tha] above, an once this round this vampire can burn a blood
to get a press, only usable to continue combat.
[VIS] As [vis] above, but at +2 damage.

Heirs to the Blood previews are up!

The previews are up for the latest Vtes expansion: Heirs to the Blood over at the main white wolf site. There may be some technical errors on the card images so googlegroups is still your best option for viewing the ten previewed cards.

It’s a pure bloodlines expansion set so we get to see new group six vamps as well as a couple of new rules.

The most interesting thing for me is the introduction of two new pseudo disciplines only for infernal vampires: Maleficia and Striga. They can’t be used by Ian Forestal and the Great Beast can’t name them for his discipline set hence my nickname pseudo-discipline hehe.

Speaking of infernals, what is up with that new ten cap Baali? The unnamed has two kick ass special abilities, one of them gives you two pool for a successful bleed! Legal manipulation now bleeds your prey for three and gives you three pool just for spite!

I foresee lots of baali bleed decks using the unnamed and the new action modifier that gives you a pool for a successful action.

Every bloodline gets five new group six vampires and the scarce bloodlines gets four new vamps. The exception would be the gargoyles who start with six vampires, one of them is non-unique like tupdog.

Sounds like fun times for Vtes! I can’t wait for Febuary!

My standard anarch package

When I make an anarch deck,
(regardless of the theme/idea/discipline) I always include what I consider as staple cards for any anarch deck. These are generally auto-includes or “must have” cards in order for the anarch mechanic to survive or function well. A large number of these are master cards.

Here’s my anarch deck package:

Masters

Twilight Camp (1-2)
Anarch Free Press
Anarch Railroad
Hospital Food
Club Illusion
Anarch Revolt (1-2)
Seattle Committee

Action Modifier:

Monkey Wrench (usually 2-4)

Retainer/Equipment:

Crypt’s Sons
Stolen Police Cruiser

Action:

Constant Revolution

Combat:

Weighted Walking Stick
Target Vitals
Taste of Vitae

Vampire:

Anarch Convert (3-4)

Definitely a toolboxy approach to anarch deckbuilding but that’s always been my style of play with regards to using 3 ways. I like versatility and multi-purpose cards suit me well.

I may change some of the cards like the combat package depending on which disciplines I decide to go with since Diversion is pretty good as an offense/defense card and Crimethinc and Power of One are also fun to use. I’ve included some ways to oust your prey with Monkey Wrench, Anarch Revolt, Constant Revolt and Club Illusion.

Eden’s Legacy Storyline results (Manila)

Just got the word from Paul about the Eden’s Legacy storyline for the Philippines: (9 players total)

Osebo won motivated by secrecy.

On another note, Lasombra won the storyline in Singapore (check out singing vtes’s blog for the full report)

apologies for the inactivity

Been a bit busy with another card game haha (legend of the five rings) and I haven’t really had the chance to play any vtes games in months but this will change with the announcement of the new storyline: Eden’s Legacy.

I’ve already ordered the kits and hopefully we’ll get them on time to schedule some tourneys at the end of the month or next month. We’re planning on holding 2 tourneys but it all depends on player attendance and schedules.

I’m also very excited to get my hands on heirs of the blood, anything with bloodlines vamps is just pure fun for me. I had a chance to visit Tokyo but didn’t get to meet or play with the japanese vtes players. Maybe next time!

Storyline Manila (Imperator part 2) results

Ventrue (Gangrel) played by Tammy won! Karsh gets another nomination for Imperator!

Number of players: 6
Date: June 14 2009

Kotek Spoilers!

I won’t post them here but just click on the newsgroup link somewhere in this blog for the (almost) full spoilers from Kindred of the Ebony Kingdom. James Coupe got it from the french vtes website: Sabbat in France.

Possible new converts!

Even though the Philippines has an active VTES community, 99% of the players live in Manila. I think i’m the only one in Iloilo (a small city in another island, 1 hour flight to get to manila) but recently I discovered a group of gamers here in Iloilo! They play all sorts of RPGs and CCGs from Dungeons and Dragons 4th Ed and Vampire: The Masquerade and Requiem. The main CCG is Legend of the Five Rings (which I’m also getting into at the moment hehe) but I met a guy with some old VTES cards and I think I’ll hold a demo game for them to introduce them to VTES.

I think I’ll order the demo kit from Lasombra and slowly try to embrace the group into VTES hehe. If things go well, I can actually hold a storyline tournament in the future here in Iloilo!

I like the fact that they’re already familiar with the basic concept of VTES since they’ve been playing the tabletop rpg so I’m guessing they just need a little nudge hehe.

Another interesting TWD

I’m guessing Extrala might post this for his deck of the month but if not then at least it gets some attention here!

Gliwice by Night – Mini Qualifier
Gliwice, Poland
25. April 2009
18 players
3 R + F

WInner: Tomasz Izydorczyk

Deck Name : tempt me plox
Author : Tomasz Izydorczyk
Description :

Crypt [12 vampires] Capacity min: 1 max: 8 average: 5.33333
————————————————————
3x Synesios 8 POT PRE TEM obf ser 2 votes True Bruj:2
2x Allonzo Montoya 6 OBF SER ani aus Abominati:3
2x Hesha Ruhadze 6 SER ani obf pre Follower :2
1x Count Ormonde 5 OBF dom pre ser Follower :2
1x Dedefra 5 SER nec obf Follower :2
1x Celine Chevalier 3 obf ser Follower :2
1x Lalitha 2 ser Follower :2
1x Julius 1 qui ser Caitiff:2

Library [86 cards]
————————————————————
Master [18]
8x Blood Doll
1x Crocodile Temple, The
2x Dreams of the Sphinx
1x Heidelberg Castle, Germany
1x Obfuscate
1x Opium Den
1x Serpentis
1x Tabriz Assembly
2x Wash

Action [29]
1x Aranthebes, The Immortal
3x Blithe Acceptance
2x Clotho’s Gift
2x Dream World
4x Enticement
2x Entrancement
15x Temptation

Action Modifier [24]
3x Cloak the Gathering
7x Domain of Evernight
3x Faceless Night
4x Forgotten Labyrinth
4x Lost in Crowds
3x Spying Mission

Action Modifier/Combat [3]
3x Swallowed by the Night

Ally [2]
1x Carlton Van Wyk (Hunter)
1x Mylan Horseed (Goblin)

Equipment [5]
1x Aaron’s Feeding Razor
1x Camera Phone
1x Changeling Skin Mask
1x Heart of Nizchetus
1x Signet of King Saul, The

Retainer [4]
2x Ghoul Escort
1x Malajit Chandramouli
1x Robert Carter

Event [1]
1x Narrow Minds

Interesting build on the classic temptation deck. No combat and bleed defense except for tons of blood dolls and vessels. Apparently the main play strategy is to tempt your own vamps during the first few turns thereby insuring some untap/multi-action goodness. Blood gain via Hesha who can untap and gain tons of blood. Then in the end game where everyone is low on blood–offensive temptations start. Nice strat and awesome deck design!