First, my apologies for this letter getting out late. Several items came up besides some vacation time in Vienna and Graz, Austria. Thanks for the invite, Carl. I know it is now October, but as I had the newsletter 90% complete for September, I felt it should still come out as the Sep Newsletter. In short, I am working on the premise of better later than never. Enjoy! Mike Eichler Michael.Eichler@ramstein.af.mil - - - - - - - - - - - Story Time - A Strategy to Conflict Minion Call - A discussion of cards Deck - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly - - - - - - - - - - - A Strategy to Conflict Silence (A sigh from lungs that no longer breathe comes out from the darkness) "My time of silence has passed and time for action is again at hand. A challenge and a hunt begins anew." "Damned Sikkim! Does he really believe I am so easily taken unawares? No, I think not, but facing him now is not the right time. I need to delay his arrival, blunt his influence and deflect his mad minions on fool errands." "Delays… who will so kindly act as my distraction? Ha! Ha! Ha! No one would willing go against Sikkim without thorough preparation. What maneuverings can I initiate to slow Sikkim's assault?" "I must set the playing field to my advantage. Both Sophia and Careras are within my reach for manipulation. Maneuvering Wrangel to assault Sikkim will take time, however, I know it will be worth the effort. Hmm." "I must delay Sikkim and watch to see who he has decided to force in my direction. Will it be Cearbhall or Runako? Runako, I would believe will be his Cat's Paw in his initial assault as Cearbhall still carries a grudge from the time his prize city within Africa was destroyed. Runako it is then! Caceras and his minions will just let Runako's puppets know that I am not some weak Methuselah, waiting to be overrun or forced from my haven. I am still amazed that Runako is still around, the preening fool. Yes, it is time to teach Runako the meaning of survival and then watch him fall short of the requirements. Ha! Ha! Ha!" - - - - - - - - - - - Minion Call - A discussion of cards… Currently the Lasombra clan possess 10 cards requiring Obtenebration. Of these cards, only 8 are of any real use, IMO. Discussion of the cards will be staggered over several Newsletters. The cards to be discussed this month are "Arms of the Abyss" and "Call the Lamprey." Arms of the Abyss Combat Card with no blood cost Normal Strike: Dodge Superior Strike: Dodge, with an additional strike This card is one of my all time favorites. It is a wonderful variation of Acrobatics, but using Dodge rather than an Additional Strike for it's Normal Strike and all at the low, low cost of nothing. The uses of this card is a great addition to any Lasombra deck that faces the possibility of combat with people who just adore Aggravated Strikes and possess little or no additional strike capability. Against the Gangrel, this card is almost a must if any combat is ever seen. The limitation of the card comes into play when you face Immortal Grapples or Thoughts Betrayed. With Immortal Grapple you will not be allowed to use the card as you are unable to dodge and with Thoughts Betrayed, you are just unable to play any strike cards. This limitation must not only be viewed from what you will face in your opponents, but also from yourself. The use of Immortal Grapple by the Lasombra greatly enhances your offensive capabilities and increases your ability to land the damaging strikes when facing Methuselahs who use the "Combat Ends" strike cards as their defensive strategy for dealing with combat. The next limitation is it still allows only 1 damage capable strike to be used against your opponent. With the Brujah, the capability of landing multiple blows against their adversary is a plus. For Obtenebration users, this means you must make your damaging strikes count! In all, this is a major combat card for anyone using Obtenebration. Even with the limitations presented with the use of the card it is still very flexible in it's application. The very fact it costs nothing to use should offset any negative aspects of it's use. Call the Lamprey Combat Card with no blood cost Normal Strike: Steal 1 blood from the opposing ally. Only usable during combat with an ally. Superior Strike: Steal 1 blood from the opposing minion. This card qualifies, IMO, as one of the not so useful cards available to Obtenebration users. Initially the use of theft to damage your opponent appears as a great capability until you read the text closely. At the Normal ability, this card can only be used against allies. It is only at the Superior ability does the card provide a capability against all enemies. This limits the card in it's application unless you have Superior Obtenebration. If you constantly face Methuselahs who are into using allies, then this card coupled with Arms of the Abyss can be utilized with good results, against vampires this a very weak offense. The only area where is can be used against vampires is to deny their use of Fortitude. Another limitation the card possesses is it's restriction of close range usage. This card mirrors the Setite card, Tongue of the Serpent, only it is limited to theft of 1 blood overall. Strong thought must be used to search for any real reason why you would include the card in your deck. With deck space at a premium, I currently have not found any real reason to include the card in any deck. Anyone finding a good use for this card, please drop me a line explaining what you do and if possible a deck design. I include your suggestions and deck in a future newsletter. - - - - - - - - - - - Deck - The Good, the Bad and the Ugly This deck really has no real Good in it, per say. :) The concept of the deck came out of a possible combination using Nosferatu and Lasombra. Carlotta Giovanni was thrown in based upon her disciplines and special ability. The deck is a combat-oriented deck with bleed and stealth capabilities. This deck is designed as a tournament deck. It was designed to use the capabilities of both Lasombra and Nosferatu cooperating toward a common goal, eliminating all opponents from the table. Politically, this deck is weak. The only method of dealing with politics is to go after the political problems. Bleed and Combat, augmented with stealth, are the meat and potatoes of the deck. Let me know if you see any ways of improving the deck and possibly moving it beyond the meta-gaming class. Deck size is 90 cards with 12 minions. Gratiano - 8 - Lasombra - Priscus - po ob DO OT One additional vote during Prisci vote, +1 bleed Lisette Vizquel - 6 - Lasombra - Bishop - pt DO PO +1 intercept vs. any vampire attempting diablerie Aurora Van Brande - 6 - Lasombra - fo po do OT May inflict 1R damage as a strike Guido Lucciano - 5 - Lasombra - ob do OT 2x Ignacio - 4 - Lasombra - ot do po Marty Lechtansi - 9 - Nosferatu - Primogen - fo an DO PO OB Once per combat, may burn 1 blood to press Grendel - 5 - Nosferatu - po an OB If Grendel is ready, you may look at next card in your crypt Olivia - 5 - Nosferatu Antitribu - Sabbat Bishop - vi OB PO 2x Agrippina - 4 - Nosferatu - po OB Carlotta Giovanni - 7 - Giovanni - ob do PO NE +1 stealth action, burn 1 blood to exchange any library card in ash heap for a card in your hand Master Cards 2x Minion Tap 2x Blood Doll 2x Haven Uncovered Master - Unique Location Cards 2x The Parthenon Slum Hunting Ground The Secret Library of Alexandria Storm Sewers Elysian Fields Political Hunting Ground Master - Discipline Cards 4x Dominate 2x Obfuscate Retainer Cards Camarilla Vitae Slave Non-Discipline Cards 5x Computer Hacking 2x Ambush 2x Bum's Rush 4x Taste fo Vitae 2x Forced Awakening Obfuscate Cards 2x Psychic Veil 9x Cloak the Gathering 2x Disguised Weapon Potence Cards Rampage 3x Torn Signpost 4x Immortal Grapple 3x Increased Strength 3x Undead Strength 3x Pushing the Limit Dominate Cards Far Mastery 3x Govern the Unaligned 3x Seduction 3x Conditioning 4x Threats 3x Deflection Equipment Cards 3x Brass Knuckles 3x Laptop Computer