Malkavian Antitribu Newsletter, April 2007 Volume VI, Issue IV 1. INTRODUCTION Everybody knows that I'm a great fan of fetching cards from my library. Looks like somebody in the WW staff also likes this, so we are getting the new fetching cards in each set. Wonderful! Sooner or later we'll see the "heavy fetching decks" that I tried to call "hardcombo decks". The term appeared to be too clumsy, alas. What about the term "fetch-decks"? It's short, it's clear, and everybody can immediately understand what are we talking about. Are the "fetch-decks" really tournament worthy? Prior to Sword of Caine, they mostly weren't. The best fetching cards were severely limited: Sibyl's Tongue has the increasing cost, Fortshritt Library can be played only once per game... actually, only Magic of the Smith could really be used in large quantities without any penalties. Fortunately, now we have a card that can make our Sibyl's Tongue much better, and finally justify building a deck with a lot of fetching cards. 2. CARDS OF THE MONTH Name: Drop Point Network [SoC:R] Cardtype: Master Cost: 1 Pool Requires a ready Black Hand vampire. Remove 7 cards in your ash heap from the game to search your library for a minion card. Show it to all players and move it into your hand. Discard to your hand size afterward. Ladies and gentlemen, yet another fetching card! The card's power is very good, but far from Sibyl's Tongue - it can fetch any minion card, but not a master card or an event, and they are usually the most popular candidates for fetching. On the other hand, the requirements are smaller than the requirements of any other fetching card: you just need one ready Black Hand vampire. It's much less than Sibyl's Tongue's clan requirement or Magic of the Smith's discipline requirement, since there are 54 Black Hand vampires now, and they are different, so you can find a decent one or two for every deck theme. Note that Drop Point Network is a master card, not an action, so you won't have to include stealth cards to pass unblocked as you had with Sibyl's Tongue. What is the best feature of Drop Point Network? The COST. Not the pool cost, which is OK for such card, but the "remove 7 cards in your ash heap from the game" requirement. When you're playing a fetch-deck, you are going to have some cards that you WANT to remove from your ash heap... guess what cards I'm talking about? Sibyl's Tongues! The first Tongue costs you nothing, the second - 1 blood, then 2, 3, and so on, and the actual cost is determined by the number of Tongues in your ash heap. Remove them, and the next Sibyl's Tongue will be free again! Now we can build decks with, say, 15 Sibyl's Tongues and 5 Drop Point Networks to fetch the complicated 5-6 card combinations early enough! Trumpets!!! OK, enough celebrating. Let's look at the most obvious cards that we can fetch with DPN: a). Aranthebes is always #1 to fetch when you really need it :) Disciplineless weenie must die! b). Tattoo Signal, Praetorian Baker and Black Hand Emissary. If you have a Seraph and other Black Hand vampires, you will want these cards, but you cannot have many copies of them. Fetch them to get a lot of votes and one free untap per turn. The same about all other actions with "put this card into play" words, especially unique. The Status Perfectus, Anima Gathering, Ex Nihilo and so on. c). Ancient Influence to gain 6 pool for your Elimelech, Political Stranglehold to get the same (or even more!)... even Parity Shift and PTO! You can play Black Hand vampires in Camarilla deck, too. d). Any equipment, especially unique - though Magic of the Smith will be much better for that. But you may fetch Magic of the Smith itself! This is far from stupid, as +3 stealth is much, much more than +1 stealth of a common equip action. You aren't going to lose your precious Heart when your neighbours block you, right? e). Any ally or retainer, especially unique. Fetch Pack Alpha to employ a retainer - or a retainer to play the Pack Alpha. f). Disguised/Concealed Weapon when you have an important weapon to disguise/conceal, or the weapon itself when you have only Disguised/ Concealed Weapon :) g). Graverobbing, Sacrificial Lamb and all other cards that work once per 1000 years but perform wonders when they work. h). Some cards to scare other players. Fetch Kiss of Ra and "show it to all players". Make sure that they fully understand the text :) ... and many other cards, including the next one! Epiphany, Action [SoC:R] Cardtype: Action +2 stealth action. Requires an unmerged base vampire. Untap this acting vampire and search your crypt, uncontrolled region, or ash heap for his or her advanced version to move to him or her. Shuffle your crypt afterward. This is a good merging card if you really need *base* version of a vampire more than the advanced one - so, you can put 4 copies of base vampire and 1 advanced. This doesn't happen every time, in many cases the advanced version is more popular. Advanced Ramona can hunt and feed other Gangrel, base is just a weenie that can avoid hunt sometimes. Advanced Dr. Julius Sutphen can avoid the chump-blockers when he rushes, base will just force them to pay 1 blood (if they aren't allies). Advanced Alan Sovereign makes the investment cards really useful, base just provides a little bonus for them. Advanced Valerius Maior is a blocking monster, base is just a slightly better Thaumaturgist. Advanced Ferox is a powerful hoser of two disciplines, base just has some minor abilities. Finally, advanced Jessica is very good in any OBT-based voting deck, and advanced Jeremy is a good rusher/blocker, while their base versions are just smaller. Nevertheless, sometimes the base version is better. Advanced Tariq is a pale shadow of base, advanced Quentin King III is not a Prince, advanced Sebastian Goulet cannot recruit allies cheaper, and advanced Count Germaine isn't immune to weapons. Advanced Marcus Vitel not only lost his title, but gained a disadvantage instead; advanced Helena has nothing to justify playing an infernal 10-cap without a title; advanced Lambach has just 2 votes instead of 3 and cannot strike for 2 aggravated anymore; advanced Goratrix lost his precious ability as well. If you like their base versions and want to get the "merged" benefit as well - Epiphany is a card for you. Let's compare Epiphany to Gift of Experience. New card is much "cheaper" - you don't have to spend a Master Phase Action, and the vampire isn't tapped. Sudden appearance of a merged vampire that can be much more powerful than a base version may really matter a lot, if the vampire can act immediately. Merged Count Germaine can immediately bleed for 3, and merged Kemintiri suddenly gains +1 stealth, 3 votes and can play something like Alastor! With Epiphany, you can also find the missing vampire in your uncontrolled region - so you won't be forced to spend pool and transfers for merging. On the other hand, Epiphany can be blocked. +2 stealth is good, but one Second Tradition is enough to block it. So make sure that your vampire can add more stealth or just use good old Gift. When you use special cards to merge vampires, you want to fetch them, and here Epithany has an important advantage: it can be fetched with Drop Point Network, while Gift of Experience cannot. I guess this advantage is going to be crucial if you don't use !Malks and cannot play Sibyl's Tongues. 3. VAMPIRE OF THE MONTH Name: Hagar Stone [SoC] Clan: Malkavian Antitribu Group: 5 Capacity: 6 Disciplines: obf AUS DEM Sabbat. Black Hand: While Hagar is ready, you have +1 hand size. While Hagar is untapped, do not replace cards you play on your turn until Hagar taps or your turn ends. Hagar isn't just "good" - he is wonderful! A good DEM/obf bleeder needs superior Dementation and at least inferior Obfuscate, having 5 capacity: Persia, Uncle George, Apache Jones. A vampire of 6 capacity should add something to this minimal package: superior Obfuscate or superior Auspex is enough. Superior Auspex isn't needed for each vampire of a Kindred Spirits deck, but you will want to have at least one such vampire to bounce bleeds. Hagar is the youngest AUS/DEM/obf vampire in the whole game, and his nearest competitors in 4-5 groups currently start at 8 capacity! Thus, he is going to be a no-brainer candidate for that role for a long time. As you see, Hagar would be considered extremely good with just his disciplines, prior to even looking at his additional abilities! And the abilities really worth your attention. Hagar is Black Hand, so he can use all their goodies, including Drop Point Network. He has AUS/ obf, so you can use him in the most popular Black Hand decks (Thugginator and Black Hand Auspex). But the best thing is his ability: Hagar increases your hand size! Don't be confused with his disadvantage, it really matters only if you want to leave Hagar untapped for the whole turn AND to play a lot of cards in that turn. If you are playing a stealth-bleed deck (or any deck that can use Hagar proactively), just use him first. That's all! In the Black Hand decks with Seraph you can just untap him at any time with Tattoo Signal, if you really need him to bounce bleeds. Does "+1 hand size" really matter for a stealth-bleed deck? Surely it does! When you have more cards in your hand, you can keep some of your cards to defend. Keep that Direct Intervention until somebody want to rush you. Keep that Telepathic Misdirection until somebody bleed you for 3. Keep that Gemini's Mirror until you get blocked (or rushed), and so on. The increased hand size allows you to keep such cards while still functioning as a regular S&B, and this cannot be underestimated. How good is Hagar outside the S&B decks and the Black Hand decks? This depends on the kind of your deck. He is a bit too heavy for a support vampire, but he alone enables all the fetching package (Sibyl's Tongues and Drop Point Networks), increases your hand size and plays Telepathic Misdirections. His disadvantage makes him a bad choice for any deck that plays a lot of cards during your turn (Rush deck, for instance), but he is very good for any blocking deck. As long as you play almost nothing on your turn, who cares that these few cards aren't replaced until end of turn? Even if you miss your opportunity to discard some unwanted card (that you draw only when the turn ends), that's a little price for +1 hand size. Finally, if you want a REALLY twisted deck, try to use both Luc and Hagar. +4 hand size, anyone? :) 4. DECK OF THE MONTH Deck Name: Bloodthirst! (aka The Blackest Magick) Created By: Ilya Ginsburg Description: Lernean and Valeruis Maior use Thaumaturgy at the full potential! Crypt: (12 cards, Min: 20, Max: 37, Avg: 7,42) ---------------------------------------------- 1 Valerius Maior (ADV) nec pre AUS DAI DOM THA 7 !Tremere 4 Valerius Maior nec pre AUS DAI DOM THA 7 Tremere 3 Lernean for pro AUS CEL DOM THA 10 !Tremere 4 Hagar Stone obf AUS DEM 6 !Malk Library: (90 cards) ------------------- Master (14 cards) 2 Drop Point Network 5 Minion Tap 1 Creepshow Casino 1 Spirit Summoning Chamber 2 Obfuscate 2 Dreams of the Sphinx 1 Admonitions Action (13 cards) 6 Magic of the Smith 1 Rutor`s Hand 1 Eternal Vigilance 1 Atonement 1 Epiphany 3 Sibyl`s Tongue Action Modifier (6 cards) 6 Forgotten Labyrinth Reaction (16 cards) 6 Telepathic Misdirection 5 Eagle`s Sight 5 Spirit`s Touch Combat (34 cards) 1 Blood to Water 12 Theft of Vitae 5 Apportation 5 Telepathic Tracking 1 Shotgun Ritual 2 Soul Burn 2 Blood Fury 4 Walk of Flame 2 Aura Reading Ally (1 cards) 1 Repo Man Equipment (6 cards) 1 Ruins of Ceoris 1 Ivory Bow 1 Bowl of Convergence 1 Helicopter 1 Heart of Nizchetus 1 Sport Bike This is an example of the "fetch-deck" that demonstrates both Drop Point Network and Epiphany. The major idea is very simple: both Valerius Maior and Lernean can play two Thaumaturgy strikes per round without any additional cards, so why not use them together? The deck has quite a lot of Thaumaturgy strikes. It isn't going to kill everybody, but it really can kill a lot. This deck tries to use the full potential of merged Valerious Maior. The primary combo here is: get base Valerius, fetch Epiphany and play it to merge Valerius (he will become a "usual" 5-cap vampire), then fetch Bowl of Convergence to have some permanent intercept (preferably with Magic of the Smith), fetch Atonement and play it. Don't hurry to call me crazy, I didn't finish yet! After that, your Valerius would stay untapped after blocking any vampire with equal or lower capacity. So, you need to increase his capacity with the provided Obfuscate skill cards. You may also ask other players to put the "unneeded" skill cards on Valerius to increase his capacity, and promise something in return. The goal is to create the "eternal guardian" that would block most actions without spending Wakes and intercept cards. Now let's analyze: is the plan really so crazy? You have 2 Drop Point Networks, 6 Magics of the Smith and 3 Sibyl's Tongues. You have Spirit Summoning Chamber that can fetch any Thaumaturgy card, including Magic of the Smith. You have +1 hand size. You have Admonitions, Dreams and Aura Readings to cycle your hand. Finally, you have Repo Man that can fetch your Helicopter and Sport Bike. And, most importantly, you will have some time. Even one Bowl will generally be enough to block some actions and slow your predator. Having Bowl on the merged Valerius should provide you enough time to get the rest. Ideally, Valerius should get Bowl, Helicopter and Atonement, Lernean - Eternal Vigilance, Rutor's Hand and Sport Bike. Ivory Bow would work much better for Lernean, as Valerius' special is restricted to Thaumaturgy strikes. Some of your actions may be blocked, but you should try to fetch the most important equipment with Magic of the Smith. If your Valerius would get some Obfuscate cards, he would be able to play Forgotten Labyrinths for the most crucial actions. Plus, you may get (or fetch) Creepshow Casino. This deck is powered by Hagar Stone (TM). He cannot play most cards, so he serves as a support vampire here. As long as you don't play a lot of cards on your turn, his disadvantage isn't going to hurt you a lot. Try to play Telepathic Misdirections with Hagar - no need to tap your primary blockers for that. This deck can become somewhat better if you replace Hagar with Carmen, since you really need her Thaumaturgy and especially her ability (Non- Camarilla Vampires you control get +1 stealth on equip actions). You will lose +1 hand size, Sibyl's Tongues and Forgotten Labyrinths, but you will have a dedicated Thaumaturgy deck, probably, with enforced intercept and combat. Why didn't I do that myself? Bah, you are reading anti-Malkavian newsletter, not anti-Tremere one, right? 5. BONUS TRACK (Another Deck of the Month!) Deck Name: Tariq Blocks The World Created By: Ilya Ginsburg Description: Tariq Atones And Makes More Sins! Crypt: (12 cards, Min: 15, Max: 28, Avg: 5,41) ---------------------------------------------- 1 Zoe cel obf AUS 3 Malkavian 1 Idalia dem AUS 4 !Malk 1 Maldavis for pre AUS 4 Caitiff 3 Colonel cel dem obf AUS 5 !Malk 4 Tariq cel AUS FOR OBF QUI 7 Assamite 1 Tariq (ADV) cel AUS FOR OBF QUI 7 Assamite 1 Roger Farnsworth aus OBF 4 !Malk Library: (90 cards) ------------------- Master (14 cards) 1 Market Square 3 Drop Point Network 1 Celerity 1 Dementation 1 Corporal Reservoir 1 KRCG News Radio 1 Fragment of the Book of Nod 1 Admonitions, The 2 Blood Doll 2 Animalism Action (9 cards) 1 Atonement 1 Epiphany 1 Blessing of Chaos 6 Sibyl`s Tongue Action Modifier (3 cards) 3 Freak Drive Reaction (17 cards) 6 Black Sunrise 6 Telepathic Misdirection 5 Eagle`s Sight Combat (31 cards) 5 Unflinching Persistence 8 Amaranth 6 Psyche! 5 Rolling with the Punches 5 Pursuit 2 Disguised Weapon Ally (1 cards) 1 Deviki Prasanta Retainer (2 cards) 2 Raven Spy Equipment (5 cards) 2 Rowan Ring 1 Bowl of Convergence 1 Ivory Bow 1 Sengir Dagger Combo (8 cards) 2 Draught of the Soul 6 Swallowed by the Night Same idea, but different vampires, different groups - and, as a result, the completely different deck. Get Tariq, play Atonement, then merge Tariq with Epiphany and return to 7 capacity. Get Deviki Prasanta and use her to fetch all your skill cards for Tariq, increasing his capacity. Theoretically, your Tariq may have up to 11 capacity, so he won't tap even after blocking Arika! I'm not going to delve into the Tariq combat tactics, as this isn't an Assamite newsletter. Basically, he just inflicts some aggravated damage with his weapons (or sends opponent into torpor with Rowan Ring) and then plays Amaranth, restoring his blood and grabbing all equipment, including the Ring. You may rush other vampires, if you wish, but it would be wise to play as an intercept deck for a while. You have a lot of permanent intercept here. Two locations, the Bowl, two Draughts and two Raven Spies that can be employed after playing the first Animalism card. You have Celerity for combat and Dementation for Blessing of Chaos that disables Majesty. Freak Drive and Black Sunrise help you to keep Tariq untapped. This deck has several advantages compared to the previous one. Firstly, merged Tariq is Black Hand, so you potentially can use much more Black Hand cards here. Then, Tariq's disciplines are closer to ! Malks, so he may use the same Swalloweds by the Night in combat. Finally, 2-3 groups Black Hand !Malks are smaller than their 4-5 group colleagues, and you don't have titans like Lernean, so your setup is shorter. That's all for April. Next time you will see Black Hand !Malks deck that is very funny and powerful (I suppose). Yours, Ector