VEKN Official Gangrel Newsletter Vol. 1 Number 4 May 1999
FROM THE EDITOR
First off, I would like to apologize for skipping last month's newsletter. One
thing led to another. It will probably happen again, so I'm not going to make
any promises that it will not. I will, however, assure you that this
newsletter will be packed solid with information.
That being said, I still have not received any fictional writing for the
newsletter. As a matter of fact, I have received only one contribution...
period. I need more of everything: stories, deck design, articles, you name
it. Hell, write to me and tell me how much I suck.
Greg "Bone Spur" Faulkner
Editor
VAMPIRE OF THE MONTH
Bear Paw
Gangrel
5 capacity
ANI for pro pre
Bear Paw is a blessing for several reasons. The first thing that you'll note
is that he is the cheapest Gangrel to provide superior Animalism (the next
closest is Gitane at 7 capacity). He still has two more in-clan skills, so he
fits well with almost any Gangrel deck. Finally, the presence skill is an
anomaly, but we'll get to that later.
I don't need to remind everyone how useful superior Animalism is. Playing
Cat's Guidance at the superior for the +1 intercept is good at catching people
off guard early in the game. If +1 isn't enough, then Bear Paw is one of the
ideal candidates for an Atonement because he is at the maximum capacity, yet he
still has 2 inferior in-clan skills (for, pro) that you can increase after the
Atonement to give him a capacity of 7. I know that playing Atonements are hard
to defend (especially in my group); however, the Gangrels are one of best clans
at making an Atonement work. The best combination is to wait for a Freak Drive
that will let you immediately untap Bear Paw after the Atonement. Earth Meld
is also good for protecting the Atonement, but you need superior Protean to do
it.
Finally, not too many have found a good use for Bear Paw's presence skill, but
I have been able to develop a very successful presence-protean deck. The goal
is to make a vote deck around the presence, then use the protean to
stealth/strike combat ends. People really get disappointed at a deck that will
Form of Mist all the votes.
LIBRARY CARD OF THE MONTH
Force of Will
Action
Fortitude
1 Blood
Only usable by a tapped vampire.
Normal: Untap this acting vampire; he or she bleeds at +1 bleed as a (D)
action, but takes 2 points of aggravated damage (damage not preventable), even
if the action is blocked. Damage occurs after the action or combat is resolved.
Superior: As above, but the (D) bleed is at +2 bleed and the acting vampire
takes 1 point of aggravated damage (damage not preventable).
Evil, huh? Not quite as deadly as the time before No Repeat Actions (NRA), but
still effective. Gangrels don't readily have access to the presence and
dominate bleed modifiers that other clans have. Gangrels can equip with
retainers, laptops, and Tiers of Souls, but this fortitude card can give
Gangrels the surprise factor that they need. Unfortunately, it has a steep
cost. The aggravated damage will either torporize or burn your vampire at the
end of the action (whether successful or not). For this reason, many players
prefer to use it as an endgame strategy.
However, the Gangrels are very adapt at doing things in torpor and getting out
of torpor. Regeneration, Rapid Healing, and Movement of the Slow Body can help
the Gangrels afford the cost of playing this card. More so than any other
clan. Furthermore, the newly changed aggravated damage rules (7/98) will send
your vampire to torpor with one more blood than before.
DECK OF THE MONTH
Okay, I really wanted to post Shaun's "Shadow of the Beast" deck, but he has
been very busy. Shaun, if you're reading this: the world wants to see your
deck. In the meantime, I have decided to post one of my own creations. In
light of the recent "tournament-worthy" debates, I wanted to share with
everyone a tournament-worthy Gangrel deck.
Weenie Animalism
Gangrel / Gangrel Antitribu, intercept deck
Name Clan and Capacity
Raziya Samater Brujah, 3
Gunther - Beast Lord Gangrel, 7
Bear Paw Gangrel, 5
Anastasia Grey Gangrel, 3
Vliam Andor Gangrel, 2
Shane Grimald Gangrel Antitribu, 4
Luther Gangrel Antitribu, 6
Leon Gangrel Antitribu, 3
Nigel the Shunned Nosferatu Antitribu, 5
Tommy Nosferatu Antitribu, 3
Dani Nosferatu Antitribu, 2
Navar McClaren Caitiff, 1
Average Vampire age: 3.67
Average opening crypt draw: 14.67 (less than half your pool)
Maximum draw: 23
Minimum draw: 8
Total Library Size: 90 cards
Action: 9
· Tier of Souls (3)
· Shepherd's Innocence
· Army of Rats (4)
· Atonement
Combat: 29
· Song in the Dark (2)
· Aid from Bats (4)
· Carrion Crows (10)
· Song of Serenity (6)
· Canine Horde (3)
· Trap (4)
Equipment: 11
· Leather Jacket (6)
· Saturday Night Special (2)
· Ivory Bow
· Palatial Estate
· Flak Jacket
Master: 17
· Animalism (6)
· Direct Intervention
· Tribute to the Master (2)
· Slave Auction
· The Rumor Mill, Tabloid Newspaper
· Blood Doll (2)
· Guardian Angel
· Zoo Hunting Ground
· KRCG News Radio
· Misdirection
Reaction: 19
· Forced Awakening (3)
· Rat's Warning (6)
· Cat's Guidance (10)
Retainer: 5
· Mr. Winthrop
· Murder of Crows (2)
· Raven Spy (2)
Strategy: Get all four minions out and have them take any and every action
possible. Be very proactive, and cycle the deck to get the permanent
intercept, because the temporary intercept (Cat's Guidance) will not be enough.
Get one or two vampires really buffed up (Jackets, Retainers, Guns) and let
them do multiple blocks with untap cards. Protect the Tiers and the Army of
Rats, and put constant pressure on your prey. It doesn't have to be massive
bleeding or demoralizing combat. Just irritate them with the low bleeds and
intercept. Later in the game (after Tributes and VPs), you should continue to
influence vampires. You'll average about 6 vampires up.
Result: Amazing staying power. This deck can sucker in the weakling bleed
decks when all of your minions are tapped out. After adding Tiers and Army of
Rats, you are eventually doing a significant amount of damage to your prey each
turn (4-5 points) that cannot be ignored. Also note, the bleed modification
from your Tier of Souls cannot be deflected, which hoses deflection decks
considerably. You are eventually required to torporize all of your preys
minions (not too hard, but it slows you down). Versions of this deck have
taken 2nd and 3rd places in the two tournaments it has entered.
Why this is good for a tournament: Cheap, fast, and effective. It never
matters which four vampires start in your crypt, so you get consistent play
from round to round (no worries of getting a bad draw in the final).
Furthermore, the risk (and the price) of contesting vampires is very low. It
holds and keeps the edge. Really good blocking power. It hoses bleed-bounce
strategies, blocks votes, and almost stands toe-to-toe with rush.
Bleed defense: multiple untaps, intercept, lots of extra pool
Vote defense: intercept, lots of extra pool
Combat defense: leather jackets, dishes out environmental damage (and strikes)
that cannot be dodged or maneuvered away from, immortal grapple causes no
problems, some aggravated damage, some guns
Weakness: Every deck has its weakness, but fortunately this deck has very
few. It will struggle against strike: combat ends and Obedience. It really
sucks to pitch all of your "before range" cards just to get nowhere. I have
discovered that blocking the actions is usually enough. A little combat card
cycling is good, but remember that your opponents will Majesty just for the
untap. Eventually they will run out. Instead of waiting you could try adding
a Dog Pack. In this deck, it is highly affordable and potentially useful,
especially since you can have one vampire block several actions a turn.
The other weakness is votes. But I'm not worried about the votes of my
predator or my prey. I can block those. I am more worried about the votes
that come from across the table. Domain Challenge can cripple this deck.
There's almost nothing you can do short of a Direct Intervention.
Finally, unblockable bleeds could be a serious problem (Day Operation,
Daring the Dawn). Still, the deck is designed to have excessive pool which
could handle one or two of these actions.
Possible Changes: Amazing. I just noticed that my crypt is missing Caitlin. I
would probably replace Luther or Shane Grimald with Caitlin so that I could get
the Bishop vote. If I play this deck in a tournament again, I think I will add
more Direct Interventions. DI can counteract all three areas of weakness by
canceling S:CE, votes, and unblockable action modifiers. A Backways might be
useful, but it's been unnecessary so far. These changes would bring my master
card count pretty high for a intercept-combat deck that needs to cycle. What
to cut?
I would also like try adding an Owl Companion or a Dog Pack so that I can know
when and how to play my combat cards. As I said before, one vampire can do a
whole lot of blocking each turn. If anyone tries this deck with a Dog Pack,
then let me know. I am real curious. More Tier of Souls might be good.
And finally, I have thought of adding the vampire, Laurent de Valois. He and
Shane Grimald both have dominate which would let me add a few random
deflections to this deck... but then it wouldn't be an Animalism deck, now
would it?
Rules: Official DCI-rules
Deck by: Greg Faulkner, Austin Council
And that brings this month's newsletter to a close. Next month I will be
gearing up for a tournament in Dallas. I may include some tips for tournament
play. Until next time.
Please send all comments and submissions to:
Greg Faulkner
gfaulkner@austin.rr.com