V:EKN Official Tremere Newsletter, April 2004 I. Introduction II. Strategy Discussion - CEL/THA combat III. Crypt Focus - Lucas Halton IV. Library Focus - Quicken Sight V. Deck Focus - VI. Conclusion I. Introduction Welcome to the April volume of the Clan Tremere Newsletter! This issue will highlight an out-of-clan discipline, Celerity, and how it can assist our Magi when in combat with our enemies. Celerity and Thaumaturgy is a combination that Methuselahs have been experimenting with since the beginning of the Jyhad, yet it has not received an in-depth look. This issue ought to be a great help for any Tremere with access to the discipline, as well as the handful of Assamites who have access to Thaumaturgy. On to the discussion, my fellow Warlocks. II. Strategy Discussion - CEL/THA combat Celerity does not offer much help to the Tremere outside of combat. Notable exceptions include Alacrity and Siren's Lure, both ways for our clan to obtain stealth at great blood cost. As many of you are already aware, between Theft of Vitae and Ankara Citadel, Turkey, large blood costs are not a great concern. Let us put that aside and find out why many Methuselahs choose to add Celerity to their Thaumaturgical combat package. Specifically, what does Celerity do better than Thaumaturgy? What does Celerity do that Thaumaturgy can't? The answers are obvious upon inspecting the cards. Flash, Pursuit, Rapid Thought: more efficient maneuvers and presses than found in Movement of the Mind and Apportation. A vampire requires superior Thaumaturgy to get a maneuver whereas inferior Celerity does the trick. Note that if the vampire DOES have superior Thaumaturgy, the cards (notably Flash) are of EQUAL efficiency at inferior Celerity. Acrobatics, Blur, Lightning Reflexes, Nimble Feet, Pursuit, Quickness, Side Strike: Additional Strikes, something Thaumaturgy just can't do, but would love to take advantage of. Psyche! defeats Strike: Combat Ends. The Tremere already have access to two superior S:CE hosers in Thoughts Betrayed and Telepathic Tracking, but it is still worthy of mention. Taking a look at these lists of cards it becomes clear that in order for your Celerity combat support to be more efficient than a pile of Apportation or Movement of the Mind, the vampire should have superior Celerity. Discipline Masters and/or Sanguine Instruction may be necessary as only one clan member comes with superior Celerity right out of the uncontrolled region. Also take a look at Drum of Xipe Totec, which can be fetched via Magic of the Smith at +3 stealth. With the above in mind, how specifically will Celerity help Thaumaturgical combat? Below are some modules I have created using common combat strategies. One way I like to think about THA combat is "how do I deliver that Walk of Flame?" Walk of Flame is the coup de grace, the finisher, the way to send a vampire to the ash heap. Typical Thaumaturgical combat, according to conventional wisdom: Theft of Vitae, press, Walk of Flame. Simple! With CEL you have access to Flash, which is all you need. This module highlights Flash's advantage over Apportation. 8+ Theft of Vitae/Soul Burn 4+ Walk of Flame 10+ Flash Walk of Flame is nice... but it fails against every kind of combat defense (Strike: Dodge, Strike: Combat Ends, Damage prevention). Theft of Vitae at the very least is not preventable, though it won't torporize a minion. If you like to pay for Minion Tap, Blood Doll, Rutor's Hand, Pulse of Canaille, etc., you want to suck the minion dry. Use Celerity's access to multiple strikes, but make sure you have sufficient strikes in hand. Something like: 15+ Theft of Vitae 6 Blur 6 Flash 6 Pursuit When looking for quick aggravated damage to put a minion down, there's nothing in Thaumaturgy's arsenal as simple as Burst of Sunlight. The problem is, of course, that you are also taking the aggravated damage! Here's where superior Celerity comes in with its only damage prevention: 8+ Burst of Sunlight 8+ Sideslip If you are playing an intercept deck with AUS, consider: Guardian Angel, Precognition, Rotschreck. These modules really showcase the strengths of Celerity in combat, but this list is not exhaustive -- use your imagination! Feel free to mix and match modules as your deck requires, or to add in other combat staples like Infernal Pursuit or Preternatural Evasion. III. Crypt Focus - Lucas Halton Lucas Halton Clan: Tremere Capacity: 10 Group: 3 qui AUS CEL DOM THA Camarilla Prince of Houston: Once each turn, when Lucas blocks an action, he may burn a blood instead of tapping for the successful block (before combat occurs). Lucas Halton is one of the most impressive Tremere ever, with a wide range of abilities. He can be the key vampire in a Group 3 Prince/Justicar crypt. His superior Auspex and special ability make him a cornerstone in an intercept-combat deck. He can add Deed the Heart's Desire to a Seduction bleed deck along with Perfect Clarity. Most importantly, at least for this month, he is the only clan member who has superior Celerity. Lucas Halton, when utilized properly, is nothing short of a monster. IV. Library Focus - Quicken Sight Quicken Sight Reaction Auspex & Celerity [aus][cel] +1 intercept, with an optional maneuver in the resulting combat if this vampire successfully blocks. [AUS][CEL] As above, but with +2 intercept. When using Celerity, this card combines two staples of most Tremere intercept packages: Enhanced Senses and Spirit's Touch. Most Thaumaturgy combat is fought at long range, and when planning on intercepting crucial actions, this card ought to keep the blocking vampire safe. Due to the maneuver available at the inferior level, smaller vampires can take advantage of it. You can also go with fewer maneuvers in your combat section, creating some free deck space to work with. V. Deck Focus - Flashfires (Group 3) Deck Name: Flashfires G3 Created By: Dorrinal Description: Tremere toolbox featuring the Group 3 Princes and Justicars and CEL/THA combat. Use Zillah's Valley to bring the titled vampires out fast and defend yourself while tooling up and looking for an opportunity to pass one of the various votes. Works great on defense and in combat, but the offense is usually slow at best. In addition, each vampire in the crypt has an invaluable special ability which you should exploit whenever possible. Crypt: (12 cards, Min: 29, Max: 39, Avg: 8.50) ---------------------------------------------- 3 Lucas Halton AUS CEL DOM qui THA 10, Tremere:3, Prince 3 Javier Montoya ani AUS cel pre THA 9, Tremere:2, Prince 3 Anastaszdi Zagreb ani AUS cel dom THA 8, Tremere:3, Justicar 3 Yitzak pre AUS CEL THA 7, Toreador antitribu:3 Library: (90 cards) ------------------- Master (18 cards) 1 Academic Hunting Ground 1 Arcane Library 2 Blood Doll 2 Celerity 1 Fetish Club Hunting Ground 1 Legendary Vampire 3 Minion Tap 1 Pentex Subversion 6 Zillah's Valley Action (6 cards) 1 Magic of the Smith 2 Nose of the Hound 1 Pulse of the Canaille 1 Rutor's Hand 1 Seeds of Corruption Action Modifier (2 cards) 1 Alacrity 1 Siren's Lure Political Action (7 cards) 1 Ancient Influence 2 Archon 3 Parity Shift 1 Political Stranglehold Reaction (15 cards) 2 Quicken Sight 8 Second Tradition: Domain, The 5 Telepathic Misdirection Combat (40 cards) 4 Blur 8 Flash 2 Preternatural Evasion 4 Pursuit 4 Telepathic Tracking 12 Theft of Vitae 6 Walk of Flame Equipment (2 cards) 1 Ankara Citadel, Turkey, The 1 Sword of Nuln This deck uses the "Flashfires" module listed above, with some modifications. I have sacrificed a few Flashes for additional strikes and Telepathic Tracking, to combat Strike: Combat Ends. Preternatural Evasion is a great emergency card for decks with access to superior Celerity. VI. Conclusion To cover the possibilities that just one out-of-clan discipline brings to the clan would be more than one Newsletter could hold. Suffice it to say, there are many great things one can do with Celerity simply in combat! Try various combinations with close- and long-range Thaumaturgy and see what works best in your playgroup. Next issue will either take a good look at the upcoming expansion, Gehenna, or touch upon another plentiful out-of-clan discipline: Presence. Until then, please send any and all complaints, opinions, et cetera, to dorrinal @ hotmail . com Dorrinal Blackmantle Chronicler of Clan Tremere