Gangrel Clan Newsletter | September 2006 "If you call one wolf, you invite the pack." - Polish Proverb ---------------------------------------------------------------- I. Fiction II. Introduction III. Featured Library Card IV. Featured Crypt Card V. Strategy VI. Deck of the Month VII. Next Month ----------------------------------------------------------------- I. Fiction: "Conquering the Beast" Darkness had settled over this quiet northeastern town like a soft blanket. Although summer was almost at an end, tiny chirps and the buzzing of insects could still be heard. The only sound that disturbed the peaceful setting of this town was the soft thump of a travelers footfalls and the stomping of his partner keeping pace. The air was cool, but the smaller of the two travelers was burning with rage. Once the lights of Main Street could no longer be seen, Jezebelle could no longer contain her anger. "So that's it Horrock, the Prince asks you to help him defend the city and yet you sit here watching over this little rust-belt town?" Horrock sighs to himself as his eyes begin to glow a soft green with the gift of Proteus. "Yes Jezebelle, I'm staying here for now. This town has a lot of meaning to me. Patrolling these old farms and forests is more important right now than helping the new Prince dispense with his justice." "Are you afraid of the politics? What the hell is stopping you?" "Nothing is stopping me. I'll do it, but I'll do it on my own time." "What the HELL is that supposed to mean?" "It means that I control my destiny right now, I control my desires." Horrock's eyes now begin to glow a dark, evil red as he continues. "And most importantly, I have come to understand the Beast within. I know when to give it just a taste of what it wants. And I can throw the full fury of a Legion of Hell's Demons at my prey when *I* deem the time to be right. Take that message back to the Prince. He'll know when I'm coming back to answer his summons." ----------------------------------------------------------------- II. Introduction Greetings, My name is John Zbyszinski and I am the Prince of Allentown, PA. I'm very excited to be writing the Gangrel Newsletter. Some of you may also know me by my pen name of Johann Lionheart. I wrote several reviews for the clan novels under that name. I've been playing VTES now since '95 and I have had a love-hate relationship with the Gangrel since that time. Everyone that I have played with over those years has seen me struggle with trying to sweep the table with a Gangrel deck. As you'll see with the Featured Deck and Card of the Month, I think I have finally come to terms with the strengths and weaknesses of the Gangrel. They don't have any natural disciplines for Bleed or Politics, but Protean is arguably the greatest support discipline in the game. It allows the Gangrel to achieve their strategy for success. The secret, however, is knowing when to "unleash the Beast." ----------------------------------------------------------------- III. Featured Library Card: Name: Conquer the Beast Type: Combat Requires: Animalism, ' Rarity: R Set: Jyhad:R, V:TES:R Text: Only usable before beginning of combat. [ani] You get one press each round, only usable to continue combat. You are obliged to use this press and cannot use equipment. This continues until 3 rounds pass with no cards played. [ANI] As above, but the presses are optional. ----------------------------------------------------------------- IV. Featured Crypt Card: Name: Horrock Clan: Gangrel Capacity: 6 Disciplines: vic ANI PRO Group: 3 Text: Independent: Protean cards cost Horrock 1 less blood to play. ----------------------------------------------------------------- V. Strategy: The Featured deck this month is very combat heavy - (39 cards!), but it isn't a rush deck. In fact, there isn't a single rush card in the deck. The concept of the deck is to BLEED! If you are blocked, you beat on the blocking minion until they are down to 1 blood or empty, THEN use Form of Mist at superior to continue at +1 Stealth. The combat payload is fairly standard - Crows, extra hand damage with Pack Alpha, and Flesh of Marble for prevention. The addition of our featured card this month, Conquer the Beast, gives you a "Trap-like" press, but at ANI, the presses are optional, so you don't have an issue with cycling them out of your hand and you can escape if combat gets out of your control. As you move forward, Tier of Souls and other permanent affects give you the ability to get Victory Points. The perm effects, +1/+2 bleed, Intercept, and extra hand damage also solves the age-old problem of using a lot of card slots for combat and having no ability to oust your prey. Our featured vampire, Horrock, is perfect for this deck. First, He has the two superiors that are needed to gain the permanent effects in this deck. Second, his capacity makes him quite easy to influence out. Finally, his special makes him the obvious choice for us to place a blood doll on him for a little bloat. I purposely did not put any rush or any aggravated damage in the deck to force me to go forward. I ended up 4th in the finals at the 2006 NAC Qualifier in Atlantic City. This deck was a lot of fun to play, but most important of all, it forces you to watch the table. You can easily get three mid-cap vamps with 2 hand damage, 2 Intercept, and a bleed of 2 within a few turns. Then, you only need to plan for the right moment to pounce. If it isn't played right, the permanent effects can make you look like a table threat. (Imagine that... the Gangrel as the table threat...) ----------------------------------------------------------------- VI. Deck of the Month: Deck Name: Conquer the Mist in my Pants Created By: John Zbyszinski Description: A Bruise and Bleed Deck with Conquer the Beast, Form of Mist, and Pack Alpha (Dog in my Pants) Crypt: (12 cards, Min: 19, Max: 29, Avg: 6.08) ---------------------------------------------- 1 Brunhilde pre ANI FOR PRO 8 Gangrel 1 Ryder ani pot FOR PRO 7 Gangrel 1 Beckett cel ANI FOR PRO 7 Gangrel 2 Horrock vic ANI PRO 6 Gangrel 1 Dr. Allan Woodstock ani aus for PRO 5 Gangrel 1 Celeste Lamontagne for ANI PRO 5 Gangrel Antitribu 1 Janey Pickman for ANI PRO 6 Gangrel Antitribu 1 Lord Ashton for pro ANI 5 Gangrel 1 Bobby Lemon pro ANI 4 Gangrel 1 Danielle Diron chi for ANI PRO 7 Gangrel 1 Doyle Fincher aus for obf ANI PRO 7 Gangrel Antitribu Library: (90 cards) ------------------- Master (16 cards) 1 Backways 5 Blood Doll 1 Direct Intervention 1 Dreams of the Sphinx 2 Ecoterrorists 1 Gangrel Revel 1 Sudden Reversal 1 Zoo Hunting Ground 1 Dummy Corporation 1 Retribution 1 Archon Investigation Action (13 cards) 2 Army of Rats 1 Ritual Challenge 5 Tier of Souls 2 Restoration 3 Computer Hacking Action Modifier (4 cards) 4 Earth Control Reaction (8 cards) 5 Rat`s Warning 3 Wake with Evening`s Freshness Combat (39 cards) 5 Carrion Crows 5 Conquer the Beast 5 Drawing Out the Beast 8 Flesh of Marble 7 Form of Mist 4 Gleam of Red Eyes 5 Pack Alpha Retainer (10 cards) 5 Raven Spy 1 Tasha Morgan 3 Owl Companion 1 J. S. Simmons, Esq. ----------------------------------------------------------------- VII. Next Month I hope you enjoyed this month's clan newsletter. Next month I will be posting the first week of the month to coincide with the rest of the clan newsletters. I will also be focusing on how the release of the 3rd Edition is going to affect the Gangrel. - John Zbyszinski http://www.vtesinpa.org