Who's Who in the V:TES Community

Vital Statistics:

Name:
Year of Birth:
Occupation:

Other Games Played:
Number of Cards owned:
Number of Decks ready to play:
Play in:

Jared Strait
1969
Senior Engineering Specialist (Composite Materials)
Too numerous to list - mostly strategy games
10000+
10 Competitive, another 10 fun decks
Detroit-area, MI

Q1: How (and when) did you begin your career as a VTES-player? Who introduced you to the game? Where did you play originally?
I began playing Jyhad shortly after its release while a grad student at Penn State. I played off and on for several years, but it wasn't until I moved to Michigan that I really started playing competitively.

Q2: Which of the Sets and Expansions to VTES is your favorite, and why is it your top choice?
The Sabbat expansion is my favorite, primarily because of the artwork in the set. Also, because of the length of time between the original release and the Sabbat, most players (including myself) were dying for new cards, and therefore it will always be remembered as the first infusion of new cards.

Q3: What is your favorite deck to play, and why?
My favorite deck to play is a Tremere/Anti-Tremere deck focused on the Succubus ally, along with Thaddeus Zho, Charnas the Imp, Cryptic Missions, Society of Leopold, and Seeds of Corruption. It is alot of fun to play, made the finals at GenCon the year I built it, and, like most of my decks, is not posted. I am a firm believer in not releasing the details of decks to other players. As most everyone who knows me is aware, I collect the Succubus card, and anyone having one for trade should contact me at their convenience. I have about 40 or so, and am shooting for 100.

Q4: If you could add something to the game, what would it be?
I would add a card or two specifically designed to remove my two least favorite deck types: the weenie horde, and the wall. Both of these deck types significantly alter the playing landscape and are generally no fun to play against.

Q5: What do you do to help promote the game / why are you in this list of people?
I suspect that I am here because I am extremely competitive and have been pretty successful over the last five or six years. I have made the finals at GenCon several years in a row now, in fact, I even voluntarily stepped down one year to play in another VTES tournament, arguing that three rounds of gaming is better than one! I finally managed to win the GenCon championship this past year (2002), and I suspect that there are an awful lot of players out there who have no interest in being my prey (or my predator)! I give a ton of cards away, including rares, and have brought many new players to the game. I have travelled to many conventions hundreds or even thousands of miles from home, mostly to play VTES, and am feared across the country (lol)!

Q6: What is your favorite deck style for casual play / tournament play?
I typically play decks with clans that everyone else thinks are worthless. I don't know if I have a particular style, but I usually try to find fun combinations that most people haven't discovered. Rarely will I play a heavy bleed deck, and I prefer to do atypical things like ally based decks or unusual clan mixes.

Q7: Is there a difference between your casual play and tournament play?
Absolutely. I'll play anything casually, but for major tournaments, I typically rely on decks that are very balanced, especially with respect to their weaknesses (I prefer to have none). I will rarely play one-sided decks, believing that strong defense and balanced offense is the way to victory.

Back to the index of Who's Who in V:TES.

Q1: How (and when) did you begin your career as a VTES-player? Who introduced you to the game? Where did you play originally? I began playing Jyhad shortly after its release while a grad student at Penn State. I played off and on for several years, but it wasn't until I moved to Michigan that I really started playing competitively.	Q2: Which of the Sets and Expansions to VTES is your favorite, and why is it your top choice? The Sabbat expansion is my favorite, primarily because of the artwork in the set. Also, because of the length of time between the original release and the Sabbat, most players (including myself) were dying for new cards, and therefore it will always be remembered as the first infusion of new cards.
Q3: What is your favorite deck to play, and why? My favorite deck to play is a Tremere/Anti-Tremere deck focused on the Succubus ally, along with Thaddeus Zho, Charnas the Imp, Cryptic Missions, Society of Leopold, and Seeds of Corruption. It is alot of fun to play, made the finals at GenCon the year I built it, and, like most of my decks, is not posted. I am a firm believer in not releasing the details of decks to other players. As most everyone who knows me is aware, I collect the Succubus card, and anyone having one for trade should contact me at their convenience. I have about 40 or so, and am shooting for 100.	Q4: If you could add something to the game, what would it be? I would add a card or two specifically designed to remove my two least favorite deck types: the weenie horde, and the wall. Both of these deck types significantly alter the playing landscape and are generally no fun to play against.
Q5: What do you do to help promote the game / why are you in this list of people? I suspect that I am here because I am extremely competitive and have been pretty successful over the last five or six years. I have made the finals at GenCon several years in a row now, in fact, I even voluntarily stepped down one year to play in another VTES tournament, arguing that three rounds of gaming is better than one! I finally managed to win the GenCon championship this past year (2002), and I suspect that there are an awful lot of players out there who have no interest in being my prey (or my predator)! I give a ton of cards away, including rares, and have brought many new players to the game. I have travelled to many conventions hundreds or even thousands of miles from home, mostly to play VTES, and am feared across the country (lol)!	Q6: What is your favorite deck style for casual play / tournament play? I typically play decks with clans that everyone else thinks are worthless. I don't know if I have a particular style, but I usually try to find fun combinations that most people haven't discovered. Rarely will I play a heavy bleed deck, and I prefer to do atypical things like ally based decks or unusual clan mixes.
Q7: Is there a difference between your casual play and tournament play? Absolutely. I'll play anything casually, but for major tournaments, I typically rely on decks that are very balanced, especially with respect to their weaknesses (I prefer to have none). I will rarely play one-sided decks, believing that strong defense and balanced offense is the way to victory.