Decks What I Lost With at Origins 2010 #2

So, Saturday at Origins was the Origins Qualifier. My crew was totally pumped. So totally pumped that we didn't look at the starting time for the event, assuming it would start at 11AM.

This was a mistake.

After having a leisurely breakfast, I decided to doublecheck the starting time, for my own peace of mind, at around 9:30AM.

We were 30 minutes late. Weak. Devin and I raced down to see what was going on, but Robb was in the shower and said he'd be a few. Kevin Mergen was just seating people as we arrived, and graciously rearranged some 4 player tables so that Devin and I could play. Robb missed the first round.

I decided to play Baali. I wasn't going to do this; I had offered to loan the deck to Dave McCarty out of Southwest MI, who I'd run into the day before. Dave said he didn't have a deck. I really wanted someone to play the Baali deck in a tourney, because I think it's got some interesting things going for it. It's still a huge gamble playing Baali, but what the hell.

No, seriously.

Anyway, Dave didn't show up for the tourney, and I decided, with what little time I had to think while setting up to play, that I would play my Baali deck instead. It went okay. I played badly a number of times. I don't think I could have done much better than I did, even if I'd played better. I got hosed more by luck than by my own failures, particularly in the third round. It makes me feel better to think so, anyway. On Sunday I just plain failed. I'll get to that next time. . .

Deck Name: Flock Off

Created by: Merlin

Description: I wanted to play Tend the Flocks, so I put together a crypt that would give me the most out of the minions while leaving the actual crypt draw to less of a chance. Wider View makes it moot after you get moving, but get out the biggest guy in your opening draw and Tend down, a la Govern, seemed like an itneresting idea. Most of the bleed actions gain me a pool, so the minion is paying for itself, hopefully. If I can get the unnamed and play some I Am Legion, mores the better. I've found that having the Ruins in play is actually clutch for this deck's success. I'm considering adding another copy or two so that I get them earlier. Seems like I should really have a Giant's Blood and a Pentex in there. I was worried about not having enough stealth, but really, it hasn't ever been an issue. I am Legion doubles as dai stealth in a pinch, and Greater Curse has some built-in sneakiness. The new Baali toys are great. Unleash Hell's Fury is awesome, and Infernal Servitor can be really good if he's recruited at superior.

Crypt [12 vampires, average capacity: 6.33333]
3x unnamed, The CEL DAI OBF PRE PRO 10 Baali:6
2x Annazir DAI OBF POT PRE 9 Baali:5 2 votes
1x Xeper, Sultan of Lepers OBF PRE ani dai pro 7 Baali:6
1x Arishat DAI OBF PRE 6 Baali:6 1 vote
5x Horde, The dai obf pre 3 Baali:6

Library [88 cards]

Master [20]
1x Dreams of the Sphinx
1x Dummy Corporation
2x Information Highway
2x Ruins of Charizel (I might need more of these because it's so awesome)
1x Sudden Reversal
9x Tend the Flock
2x Villein
2x Wider View (These were Effective Management at Origins, which is so far inferior to Wider View in this I'm not even sure what I was thinking)

Action [15]

4x Greater Curse
4x Legal Manipulations
5x Social Charm
2x Unleash Hell's Fury

Action Modifier [23]
4x Cloak the Gathering
2x Elder Impersonation
2x Faceless Night
3x I am Legion
2x Lost in Crowds
2x Psychomachia
6x Spying Mission
2x Veil the Legions

Action Modifier/Combat [2]
2x Swallowed by the Night

Ally [3]
2x Infernal Servitor
1x Veneficti (Mage)

Reaction [8]
3x Eluding the Arms of Morpheus
2x On the Qui Vive
3x Wake with Evening's Freshness

Reaction/Action Modifier [8]
8x Sense the Sin

Combat [9]
1x Flames of the Netherworld
1x Ignore the Searing Flames
7x Majesty

Crafted with: Anarch Revolt Deck Builder [Mon Jul 26 08:20:05 2010]

Game 1:

Me--->Player A (Temptation Halim Bey)--->Player B(Nos Royalty)--->Player C(ANI Weenies Rush combat)--->Player D (Anarch Midcap !Gangrel Baron Vote)

Player B and D didn't get to play much this game. Player C's animalism weenies were ferocious and wild. He rushed and torped two minions per turn. This left me, playing poorly, and my prey, playing crafty Temptation, in a weird two-player situation at the other side of the table.

I screwed up my opening. I assumed I was influencing Annazir, who I had down, but I'd mistakenly transfered 9 to Xeper. Whoops. This is how flustered I apparently get when I'm 45 minutes late for a tournament game. Bad Merlin. I guess I wanted to bleed myself for 2 and have a _much_ worse minion for my game. Xeper sucks compared to Annazir for so many reasons: doesn 't untap from Unleash Hell's Fury, doesn't get superior Infernal Servitors, can't gain me extra pool with I Am Legion. It's all kinds of bad for me.

It turned out okay.

I also got a couple Horde through Tend the Flocks. I kept another down for respiration.

Player A tempted some Nos with his midcap setites. Halim Bey was the one to keep an eye on. He was all bouncing bleeds and whatnot. Every time a Nos got Tempted, player C nuked it with a Deep Song Crowbat rush. In fact, nearly any titled vampire that Player B got into play or voted a title onto was immediately destroyed. Player B still managed to bleed C a bit with KRC, but shit was serious over there.

Player D got a minion, Harry Reese, I think? I don't recall because he was Famed and dunked before he took an action, and someone crosstable ate him as a favor to us all. Celeste came up next for D, but she got binned too.

Player C got up Stick, Fish, and some other ANI weenie (I don't recall who). The one I don't recall wound up Tempted crosstable by the Setites, and Player C basically sacrificed him by diablerizing Murat soon after. He recruited a Gregory Winter in exchange, though. The Setite player looked at Player C and then looked meaningfully at Xeper, whose text says "I steal allies", and said something about it. Player C shook his head and said something about moving cards.

So. Having no predator, my deck did okay for quite some time. The Setites didn't like me not having a predator, but hilariously, they couldn't stealth Temptations onto my guys. Turns out he was running lots of no stealth actions and not a lot of black box cards (or perhaps not drawing them, but it was a theme for him all game). So my 8 untaps and Sense the Sin (which I couldn't use on bleeds anyway because Xeper is sub-par) were saving my demonflesh bacon. After a Horde Unleashed Hell's Fury the Setites decided that taking actions my way wasn't a good idea after all. Besides, one of my Horde had been knocked into torpor, and I was really only bleeding with Xeper every turn, which was bounced by Halim every turn. Eventually he let a Setite get binned by the Fury in order to get it off the table.

The Nos and the Gangrel got ousted by their respective predators. The game took a weird turn at this point. My two active Baali were on one blood. I needed two actions to oust Player A, or at least one to Unleash Hell's Fury again, and another to summon a Veneficti or maybe bleed for a bunch.

Player C had used his vampires to oust D, and Greg Winter was untapped. I thought for sure I'd be looking at a hunt loop for an Infernal minion, which is all kinds of lose. But wait! He taps Greg and equips a Heart of Nizchetus! For reals!

My next few actions were then prescribed. I stole the now-invaluable Greg, who couldn't even be the target of a Deep Song rush, and Unleashed Hell's Fury with my Horde. I didn't have much pool, but from that point on I always had a Tend the Flocks to play, always had a combat card, and Gregory Winter stole Halim Bey's only blood every single turn so that I could bleed without fear of bounce. I ousted Player A soon thereafter.

Player C did okay during the head's-up, but I managed to get up the aforementioned Annazir. The next turn he decided to rush him with both of his remaining guys, but I Unleashed Hell's Fury on one and dropped Flames of the Netherworld on the other. I ousted him moments later.

Player A 1VP, Player C 1VP, Me 3VP and 1 GW.

Game MVP: Player C's Gregory Winter and Heart of Nizchetus. Clutch.

Game 2:

Player E (Ravnos G2 with dom Crowbat)--->Me--->Player F(Baron Reanimated Corpse Zombo Combo)--->Player G(!Malk Voters)--->Player H(Permarush POT/cel)

This was a sad game. My crypt draw was actually what I had accidentally played the previous game, Xeper and three Horde. I got 'em all up with Tend the Flocks, but it turns out paying 3-4 pool per turn to play your game with inferior Baali disciplines sucks. I was trying to mug the Zombo Combo before it started getting ridiculous amounts of minions and pool. Alas, I couldn't keep up with it. I made it totally clear that I would steal any Shambling Hordes Player F recruited, but that he could keep his Reanimated Corpses to go forward.

He didn't get to do much early on. I bled him lots.

However, my predator was tenacious, bleeding me with Nadia using Deep Song and Fata Morgana nearly every turn. Bleeds for four hurt a lot. When he did that with all his minions in one turn I was on the ropes. He did it again and I was ousted.

I don't recall Player G's deck much. It did okay at first, but the Theo Bell/J-Mac tag team kept going backwards and mugging his guys. I got the feeling that Theo and Jeremy didn't have the cards to destroy Nadia and her Crowbats, so they kept bullying backwards instead.

I passed by the table after I got ousted and saw that The Baron had managed to oust Player G, but that the three player had stagnated. Player E was still lamenting a turn one discard of Week of Nightmares. I think this might have gone to time, though I was ousted in like 35 minutes. Probably because I bled myself for a lot.

So I left.

I think the table timed out. No Game MVP without a GW!

Karl Schaefer and I went to North Market (I think?) for some grub. Now I hadn't been to the North Market despite being to Origins several times now. And I'm a bit pissed about it. It's like a Flea Market, or a "Dirt Mall", as Kevin Smith's Mallrats call them. But instead of a collection of greasy pawnshops, there's eateries of all kinds. It was awesome. I bought some sushi for me and pad thai for Devin, who had skipped breakfast due to our tardiness.

Karl seemed keen on the beer store at North Market, and he promptly purchased a nice bottel for himself. I was right behind him. Place was awesome! I picked up a huge 22 oz. Stone I.P.A, wallet in hand, and then. . .put it back.

"Jesus, Karl!" I said.

"What's the problem?" he replied.

"I can't drink a huge beer between rounds at a major tournament. Christ, I'm playing bad enough already."

Karl shrugged.

I should have quaffed that beer.

Game 3:

Player Z (Weird weenie giovanni/allies with Anu Diptinatpa)---> Player J (Mary Anne Blaire Ventrue)---> Me---> Player K (Unnamed Malefecia nonsense) --->Player L (huge Tremere Oriando vote)

This round was stupid. I finally saw the unnamed, decided to go for him first, and as soon as I get him, Player K's (my prey) face falls. "Apparently we should have been talking," he said. He pulled up Arishat on the next turn, but there were already 6 beads on another vampire in his uncontrolled region.

I Villeined my unnamed for eight, anticipating the contest. I then bleed for 3 with him, gaining 3 with his special and an I Am Legion. So I gained eleven from my ten-cap. Player K said something like, "now you've gotten all your pool back for him, so I'll contest until you yield."

I tried to think of a scenario wherein I yielded the contest and still was able to get VPs and the game win, but it seemed like allowing my prey to have a 10-capacity minion to Villein, who gains him roughly 3 pool per turn, is not good for me at all.

So I didn't yield. Shit got really ugly after that. Arishat got a couple Maleficia skills, which was really bad for me. Whenever I did something that required an action card (say, Legal Manipulations, or Unleash Hell's Fury for defense), it got the Evil Eye.

Evil Eye is incredibly strong.

I did get a Horde and Annazir up with my spare pool, but Player J's Mary Anne was just ruthless with the bleeding. He piled into me for a bunch early, dropping Governs and Conditionings like it was going out of style.

With me unable to get defensive cards into play, and contesting, and being Infernal. . .well, it wasn't so good.

While all this was going on, Player L popped Troius and Mistress Fanchon. Then he was begging Mary Anne and her Ventrue Headquarters to pass his votes. Mary Anne wanted all that incidental vote damage to go my way, which was bonus bad.

Everyone sort of ignored the weenie giovanni thing Player Z was running until it had 4 minions. Then he started bleeding the ever-lovin' dogshit out of Mary Anne, who failed to bounce most of it. I was shocked about the lack of reaction cards from the Ventrue.

Suddenly the Ventrue were on the ropes as well. They teamed up a bit to do more damage to Player Z and the weenie bleed horde, but Player Z was Delaying a Parity Shift every turn and then fishing it back out of his ash heap with the Sargon Fragment. Ruthless. Giovanni weenies overran the Ventrue on the back of tons of wee bleeds (Leonardo bleeds for one, every turn!). Player J was ousted.

Player L made his move, popping Oriando and giving himself a ridiculous amount of votes. The table had deteriorated badly. He had to wait a turn to use Oriando, and he'd let himself get pretty low on pool. So Player K made his move as well, bleeding for three with Arishat ("I can't bleed for more than three with this deck," he said, with. . .pride? I think I might have squinted at him quizically). That got bounced to the weenie Gios, who apparently were also lacking bounce cards at the time.

Votes and Fanchon's bleed were enough finish the deal. I might have ousted my prey in the final moments, but it was a hollow, short-lived, bitter-tasting victory.

Me 1VP? (I don't recall; it was a slog; he was on one for a time), Player Z 1 VP, Player L 3 (or 4) VP and GW.

Game MVP: Player K and I contesting the unnamed, giving Player L no predator for like seven turns. Go us.

Next time: Nehemiah!

-Merlin out

Decks What I Lost With At Origins 2010 #1

So I like to get to Origins every year, even if I don't go to the NAC. It's close enough that it's reasonably priced, the timeline is generally good for my work schedule, and I can wrangle a few friends to carpool with me.

I quite enjoy Origins.

However, I lose a lot of VTES games there. Here's the first of several posts detailing my experiences this year.

Day 1, Friday, U.S. Championships of VTES. 3 Rounds + a Final that I didn't get to.

My deck was approximately thus, although there are some changes to in since that day:


Deck Name:
Bored of Directors
Created by:
Merlin
Description:
A breed/boon deck based around Joao's special and Ventrue Directorate Assembly.
Crypt [12 vampires, average capacity: 4.25]
1x Catherine du Bois DOM for obf pre 5 Ventrue:3
4x Joao Bile DOM FOR pre 5 Ventrue:4
1x Louis Fortier aus dom for obf pre 5 Ventrue:4
1x Victor Pelletier PRE cel dom for 5 Ventrue:4
1x Elena Gutierrez aus dom pre 4 Ventrue:3
1x Robin Withers dom obf pre 4 Ventrue:4
1x Diana Vick dom pre 3 Ventrue:3
1x Lana Butcher dom for 3 Ventrue:3
1x Jackson Asher dom 2 Ventrue:4

Library [83 cards]
Master [25]
1x Giant's Blood
1x Hostile Takeover
5x Life in the City (there were 6 in at Origins)
1x Not to Be
6x Obfuscate
1x Pentex(TM) Subversion
2x Perfectionist
1x Sunset Strip, Hollywood
1x Unnatural Disaster
3x Ventrue Directorate Assembly (2 at Origins)
3x Ventrue Headquarters

Action [12]
1x Aranthebes, The Immortal
3x Becoming, The
8x Embrace, The

Action Modifier [14]
1x Awe
4x Bewitching Oration
2x Cloak the Gathering
2x Cryptic Rider
1x Faceless Night
2x Forgotten Labyrinth
2x Lost in Crowds

Action Modifier/Combat [1]
1x Swallowed by the Night

Event [1]
1x Uncoiling, The

Political Action [24]
9x Consanguineous Boon
2x Conservative Agitation (only 1 at Origins)
1x Domain Challenge
6x Kine Resources Contested (only 5 at Origins)
1x Neonate Breach
1x Praxis Seizure: Berlin
1x Praxis Seizure: Cairo
1x Praxis Seizure: Miami
2x Ventrue Justicar (there were 3 of these at Origins, and another Praxis)

Reaction [6]
3x Deflection
1x Delaying Tactics
2x On the Qui Vive

Crafted with: Anarch Revolt Deck Builder [Sun Jul 25 14:27:13 2010]

There were also 2 Majesty and a Tribute to the Master at Origins, but I removed those, as they were actually not awesome when I drew them.

Round 1:

This one is hazy for me. I remember preying on a deck with votes, which wasn't so good for me. My grandprey was playing Daughters breed/DoC-boon/vote, my grandpred was playing Kyasid bleediness, and my predator was playing !Ventrue Teflon Block/Bounce a lot/Prevent/Cancel Votes.

When my predator got out the Demonstration in the late game it hurt. After my prey ousted the Daughters, those !Ventrue had an asspile of Dominate, and after Delaying a turn of Con Boons they had me. My predator also contested Joao in the late game, which was all kinds of bad for me.

Edit: I remembered that I was bleeding into a Maris voter, and that it sucked for me a lot.

0VP

Game MVP: My prey's Maris Streck.

Round 2:

This went better for me, but it was a tough battle. W (G1 Renegade Garou) --> Me --> X (Cybeletron)--> Y (Lambach hooge Tzimmies) --> Z (I don't recall. something i wasn't very concerned about, so it must not have been votey).

My deck functioned well, although I did not draw very many breed cards, and I was stuck playing my opening draw, which did not have Joao in it. That was okay. I managed to Directorate Assembly a bunch of titles on my guys before there was a lot of table votes. On top of that, my predator, Player W, was playing a Renegade Garou deck that paid for Garou by calling early Praxis Seizures and Parity Shifting. This went incredibly badly for him after I dropped the Headquarters on turn 2 (I had Jackson down).

He still managed to get a Garou, and though my deck did okay I wasn't drawing oust votes. Cybele, as it turns out, gains a lot of pool via master cards. I'd whittle her down, and then she'd Villein/Great Beast or Golconda or whatever. Then another giant Baali would come out. Player X of the Cybele deck did _not_ get his Soul Gem, so as good as it was, it wasn't quite good enough.

He still mugged player Y's Lambach deck. Y was forced into a defensive stance early, and that allowed Z to drive into W a bit.

My deck was functioning well enough by midgame that the table all hated me. Lambach wasn't into me passing votes, the Renegade Garou and Great Beast were dropping two of my titled guys per turn, and player W managed to get a Prince title. He went for the Parity Shift the next turn and I Delayed it. Then I backousted him with a Neonate Breach. I finally managed to oust Cybele by drawing into several KRC this same turn.

The endgame went surprisingly quickly. We were running out of time for the round and player Y decided he needed another Tzimisce to seal the deal. He got out Caliban but dropped himself to three pool in to process. I drew the right emount of stealth to get past Lambach and push a vote, and then ousted player Z as well with scant minutes to spare.

4Vp and 1 GW

Game MVP: Neonate Breach. Backoust for the win!

Round 3:

VTES is full of learning experiences. I learned something this game. Had I applied this knowledge as soon as I'd gotten it, I feel I might have won this game. Alas, I did not.

Me-->Player A (weenie hack)-->Player B(BH Dom Tools)-->Player C (antoher Cybeletron)

The learning experience: I called an early get-a-title vote, not realizing that my prey had already bled and therefore should have the edge (he had not taken it from the center of the table). Player B, immediately recognizing that the game state was not correct, handed my prey the edge.

At this point I should have picked up the vote card and said, "Well, then. I don't want to call this at the moment." Instead, I decided that since I had played the card, I must stand by that play. I lost that title, and I'm pretty sure it cost me the game. I was not able to pass a vote the rest of the game. I managed to get 4 crypt Ventrue and 4 Embraces in play, but after Cybele popped up Annazir, who has 2 votes, I couldn't pass a Con Boon before Cybele ate me up.

Cybele swept. The weenie hacks had mugged player B, but couldn't oust him in time for the Baali train. Player B didn't get much of chance to do anything other than be bled.

0 VP.

Game MVP: My predator's Cybele. She's awesome.

5 VP and a GW isn't enough to get into the finals at a U.S. Championship, so I packed up my cards and left.

I talked to Player B after the game about my mistake. He said, "Oh yeah, you should have pulled that vote back if you would not have called it. I didn't mean to mess up your game or anything, I was merely correcting the game state." I assured him I didn't blame him for my own poor play.

It was still a good time.

Next time: Baali!

-Merlin out

First Post: Random VTES Games

I met some fellows in Flint for VTES last night. It was Devin, Ray, Sean, and myself. We tried to conscript a fifth from the more casual players who wander the store like game-zombies, but we were unsuccessful. Alas.

We played two games.

Game 1:
In game one seating and decks were Me (Jessica Art of Pain/Shadow Strike combat toolbox)--> Sean(Nos Royalty with Sniper Rifles)--> Devin(Goratrix Hexaped bleed)--> Ray(Cailean Wall).

I started out with a mediocre crypt draw, pulling three of my four Jessica and Nic Chang. Sean pulled out a massive Cock (Robin) and got Nik Vermuelen soon after. Devin got Hannigan and Goratrix (base, natch). Ray pulled Basil, Cailean, and eventually Christianus, the Chronicler who is Mad.

Adam was nearby at the last, and cried "Hunter S. Thompson!" There was mirth at this.

Sean had played Powerbase: Montreal on the first or second turn. I decided that my prey didn't need that, so I stole it as soon as possible with Jessica. Cock Robin wasn't really afraid of Jessica, but was tapped the turn I stole it, I think.

Devin's deck did what it does well: It got a Rutor's on Goratix early, and then Goratrix found a Hexaped each turn. Hannigan also got Hexapeds, and there was enough Govern in the deck to either get more minions or bleed for four at one stealth with a link counter and a Govern. It seemed pretty solid.

Ray sat like a turd for most of the early game. He took no forward actions for a while, wait. . . he took no forward actions, period. Basil went for a Laptop eventually, but by then I'd gotten out Julia Prima (thanks for the Powerbase!) and she kicked his ass for trying.

After getting out Julia and kicking Basil's ass, I started bleeding about as heavily as my deck bleeds, which is for one (two with Julia) with most of my guys. I play a lot of untap and reaction cards, so I can tap out most turns and get away with it. Cock Robin decided he'd had enough of Jessica's shit, and he blocked my bleed for one. This precipitated the demise of Sean. For alas, my deck plays a lot of Shadow Strike and Telepathic Tracking, and I happened to have two of each in hand. Because I have those cards, I put two Ahriman's Demense in the deck, which is really quite a rude card if I can actually play it. I had one of those as well as an Aura Reading to see if I could land it.

I looked at Sean's hand with Aura reading and saw his doom. By now the Cock had a Sniper Rifle, and the Cock targeted Jess's vitals with it, but I had enough combat cards to spare. It cost Jessica most of her seven blood and most of the combat cards in my hand, but Cock was burned at the hands of the Toreader Antitribu.

Sean's deck respirates well, so he still got out Judah with a dozen pool to spare, but it was only a matter of time before I brought him low.

On the other side of the table, Goratrix bled heavy each turn, and when Cailean could block it Ray did alright. When he couldn't things got hairy for him. Ray finally got a Raven Spy on the big guy and Bobby Carter on Christianus, but Jessica took exception to the latter and Nose of the Hounded Hunter Thompson, Striking his Carter with Shadows at long range.

Things broke at the four player the way they often do: Devin and I, as crosstable allies, had good games. Sean and Ray did not. I ousted Sean, who tenaciously kept blocking Devin's actions with Nik and a Sniper Rifle (probably because Nik could survive against Devin's minions and not mine.), at around the same time Devin ousted Ray. Cailean had finally become Eternally Vigilant, but Goratrix did the unthinkable and Seduced an elder Nosferatu for the oust.

In the heads-up game, I had a huge minion advantage thanks to the Powerbase and a trio of Wider View, which had given me Quira the Bitch Queen (who is dope) pre-oust and Elena Mendoza Vasquez post-oust. Devin had finally gotten his Research to Develop, but even drawing the precise cards he needed he couldn't stop me from running him over. It seems that his deck actually lacks reaction cards aside from On the Qui Vive, and Hexapeds don't do well against Jessica after she's artfully painful. A Fame on Hannigan and a Nose of the Hound rush sealed the deal.

Me 3Vp and a GW, Devin 1VP.

Game MVP: Sean's Powerbase:Montreal.

Game 2:

Seating and decks were similar, as we randomly got the same positions. Sean played the same deck, even. Me(Represent! Nocturn/War Ghoul machine)--> Sean(Nos Royalty Sniper Rifle)-->Devin (Trujah prerange agg damage bully bleed)-->Ray (!Salubri block/Trarmor of Train's Trury).

I got to take several unmolested actions due to Ray not drawing intercept and Sean going for Harrod first, even though he went second (so turn four flip). This was strange play, I thought. My deck failed to get the Agent of Power necessary for my weenie Tzimmies to get thr Nocturns in my hand, but i did draw my Assambonsonjellopuddin'pops "Cosby Ghouls", which are damn useful in a pinch. Charismatic Terrence and Elizabeth Wescott got me two Cosby Ghouls and Terry made one a War Ghoul early on. I drew and played the Unmasking early as well.

Sean popped Harrod late, but then revealed his master plan by Villein/Giant's Blooding him the next turn, which was really good for him. He pulled the Cock out a few turns later. Devin got Nehemiah and a Powerbase:Montreal, and Nehemiah (via Enchant Kindred) and the Powerbase got him Ibn Khaldun cheap and early. Ray popped up Aredhel, Rashiel, and Uriel.

Ray blocked less than I thought he would, but then I made a habit of blocking his Blessin' in the Name Of with my Cosby Ghouls whenever I couldn't make him promise not to block me with them. Ray seemed to be stockpiling arms against Devin, who was playing a Domain-for-aggs Outside the Hourglass prerange agg combo. Turns out that Ablative skin and Trarmor of Train's Trury is bad for Trujah doing that trick. Truly. Ray's big play of the game was to diablerize a Heart of the City-havin' Nehemiah with Aredhel after an epic fight. Devin ran out of Outside the Hourglass, but Ray didn't run out of Trap presses or Sense Deaths.

Ray and Sean decided that Aredhel should live.

I decided that Sean needed to go around this time. Harrod became Famous, despite (or perhaps because of) owning a sweet Leather Jacket crafted by Timothy Bradstreet though the art for Nigel the Shunned is clearly the same dude in the same pose. I then rushed with my Dub-G, and trapped Sean's Cock for Cock-blocking. His Cock wound up in the dirt, and Piotr Andreikov, the nasty boy that he is, ate that Cock right up.

Sean's gonna have to stop playing that deck if I post here regularly.

Piotr didn't make it through the blood Hunt. Harrod lived another day, but my War Ghoul, Fluffy, was still at 2 life and raring to go again. I managed to get a Nocturn/2nd War Ghoul around this time, which was universally reviled by the table. My ready region had 8 minions at one point, with 2 Cosby Ghouls, 2 Dub-Gs, an unmolested Nocturn and 3 wee Tzimisce.

Things were going well. I rushed and torpered Harrod even with Calebos running interference, and Sean's game ended. Ray was bazooka-bled by Ibn Khaldun for 6 or 7 at one go, and that ended his game.

In the head's up I stole Devin's Powerbase and then used my minion advantage to live while gaining pool from Terry the Vessel, Wider View, the Edge, Dreams, and the Powerbase. I even got The Rose up. Ibn put up a hell of a fight, gaining blood through the Tabriz Assembly and Perfefctionist every turn, but I think Devin made a mistake Decaptitating Wendy Wade in the late game. Ibn never realy had more than a few blood on him from that moment on. He killed two War Ghouls (who had Trapped him!) with Outside the Hourglass for damage, maneuvers, and a Stunt Cycle he had lying around, but the third and fourth War Ghoul overran him, and the fact that he actually wasn't playing a lot of stealth meant I could sacrifice minions to keep the edge and with that pool get another minion (Charismatic, Taxicab havin' Terrence got Greg Winter, two Nocturns, Carlon Van Wyk, and two War Ghouls in last four turns).

It took about five turns, since I was having difficulty torporing now-Famous Ibn, but I eventually got through Devin's fifteen-odd pool after he ousted Ray. Dub-G number three took Ibn to the bin after several fruitless rushes and blocks.

Me 3VP and 1GW, Devin 1VP.

Game MVP: I want to say Devin's Powerbase:Montreal so that I can make a point about playing this card willynilly. But the Cosby Ghouls were probably the best thing for me. They could block !Salubri without me losing a bleeder, they could block Ibn Khaldun and hit him at close (he was fleeing to range with OtH), and they could be turned into War Ghouls when my tricksy plans weren't working. The Unmasking was also clutch, as it allowed my Allies to stop Ibn Khaldun from doing anything but make me discard a card with Vaticination or spend all his blood to bleed me for three unblockably.

So, Powerbase: Montreal. It's a tricky card, I feel. I don't put it in many decks. The decks that I do put it in generally have one of several features; I want to be able do one of the following:

1) Have so many vampires that I can have a reasonably reliable chance at getting the powerbase back.
2) Have enough untap/intercept/trumpy permanent combat (say, a Carna deck) to block attempts to steal it or otherwise bully those who I've leant it to to let me take it back.
3) Have enough stealth to make sure I can get it back.

Sean's deck had enough obfuscate and Freak Drive to maybe manage a PB:M, but I felt that Devin's deck was a little lacking in that regard. Yes, Devin was playing a deck that says "block me and I torp a guy, maybe worse," but I'm not sure that's great policy for PB:M inclusion. Of course, he's playing an all-Trujah crypt (because he's clinically insane and/or depressed), so maybe any poolgain is good poolgain, even in the short term.

-Merlin out