The Stockholm League - May 23 2012

Three tables were played in the second round of our May-Juli league. Standard tournament rules apply + printed proxy is allowed.

Table 1:
1. Jonas H (Ventrue w Undele vote)
2. Henrik K (Toreador powerbleed w dem) 1 vp
3. Daniel H (Pro-princes ???)
4. Erik M (Ahrimanes toolbox) 3 vp, 1 gw

Table 2:
1. Kalle (Assamites ???)
2. Donk (Hermanas rush)
3. Robert D (Ahrimanes bleed)
4. Marcus (!Malkavian toolbox w Louhi) 3 vp, 1 gw
5. Ober (!Toreador breed-boon) 2 vp

Table 3:
1. Ivan (Brujah gr 3-4 royalty)
2. Kristoffer L (Dem-stealth-bleed) 3 vp, 1 gw
3. Daniel H (DOM+POT bruise n bleed) 1 vp
4. Jens (Dom+Obf stealth-bleed)

League standings:
Henrik K 28 rtp
Daniel H 24 rtp
Erik M, Kristoffer L, Marcus 20 rtp
Kristofer Å, Robert D, Tomas W 8 rtp
(1 gw = 8 ratingpoints, 1 vp = 4 ratingpoints. Note: Players can play more than one game each round if their participation are needed to complete a table where at least one player has not yet played a league game this round, but only the best result each round counts for rating. No league game starts after 20.00.)

Next round is played at Dragon´s Lair, Kungsholmstorg 8 next Wednesday about 1800-ish. Be there!

Next tournament: June 9th 2012

Invoke Poison Glands Stockholm 2012
Date: June 9th 2012
Time: 12:00-20:00
Format: Standard constructed tournament, 2 rounds + final
Location: Dragon´s Lair, Kungsholmstorg 8, Stockholm
Fee: 20 SEK
Promos for all participants!
Welcome!

The Stockholm League - May 23 2012

Three tables were played in the first round of our brand new May-Juli league. Standard tournament rules apply + printed proxy is allowed.

Rules change in the tournament rules: First tie-breaker for winning the league after 10 rounds are number of game wins.

Table 1:

1. Robert D (Ahrimanes powerbleed) 2 vp

2. Henri K (Toreador powerbleed w dem) 1 vp

3. Randy (Imbued w Gehenna)

4. Ivan (Aggressive Ventrue lawfirm)

5. Tomas W (Synesios+setites masterdeck) 2 vp

Comment: Great tablehate versus Randys imbueds in this game. Misdirection played on predator, multiple crosstable 5-1 Reckless Agitation and bounces going that way. That´s what you get when you have 17 cards in play turn 4, including Champion, Ivory Bow and 3 Gehenna events.

Table 2:

1. Henrik K (Giovanni stealth-bleed) 4 vp, 1 gw

2. Jonas H (Ishtarri breed-boon)

3. Ivan (Hermanas pot-rush)

4. Randy (Arika & co bigcap stealth-bleed)

Comment: Arika got torporized by a couple of Hermanas turn 2. Clean sweap for Giovannis. Crater-decks are hard to play.

Table 3:

1. Donk (Baali Unnamed w Maleficia)

2. Daniel H (Pro-princes stealth-bleed) 3 vp, 1 gw

3. Marcus (!Malkavian toolbox w Louhi)

4. Kristofer (Assamite tap n bleed) 2 vp

5. Ober (Aus-weenie)

League standings:

Henrik K 24 rtp

Daniel H 20 rtp

Kristofer, Robert D, Tomas W 8 rtp

(1 gw = 8 ratingpoints, 1 vp = 4 ratingpoints. Note: Players can play more than one game each round if their participation are needed to complete a table where at least one player has not yet played a league game this round, but only the best result each round counts for rating. No league game starts after 20.00.)

Next round is played at Dragon´s Lair, Kungsholmstorg 8 next Wednesday about 1800-ish. Be there!

Pub talks

After our weekly games on wednesdays we go and have some beer at the local bar "La Dame Noir" here in Stockholm, talk ranges far and wide and louder with each passing beer.

This week we had an interesting discussion on the power of Dominate. It's been a joke among us that you can take any bad concept or idea and just staple dominate on it to make it work. Why is both obvious and questionable, it's a sad state of affairs that this actually works and that this is the measuring stick of all other disciplines.

After a few beers we talked and got the thought, what would be the effect of banning Govern the Unaligned? Dominate would be less of a powerhouse, but what would the loss mean? You still have Scouting mission which is comparable although less powerful. You have Conditioning, but bleeds would be reduced from 6 to 5, small but important change, also early game would be crippled with investment return from actions going down from 2 pool and 3 transfers to 2 pool and 2 transfers, a significant change also with the addition of lessened bleed. Presence bleed would be more of a contender, while those bleeds actions would be heavier they would lack the versatility of Dominate. Deflection would still be in game, but slightly lessend since bleeds deflected would not be as heavy.

How else would this change effect the game, what would be pro's and cons? Discussion is also posted on forum here

PS. This was more of a theoretical discussion since banning is something that we're mostly all inherently against, but it's interesting to theorycraft on such a thing.

Brewers Corner: Protected Resources

I will try to keep a segment in this blog called Brewers corner partly because I like beer and partly because I like to experiment with cards, ie trying to find new angles in cards that aren´t necessarily useless, but not a common sight in tier 1 decks. And in this first instance I will look at:

Protected Resources

In the meta we play in Stockholm a bleed for less than 5-6 isn´t really a justifiable action unless you have 6+ minions, you have table control or you need the edge.  I this this is an environment your decks should be built to handle if you bring them to an international/bigger national tournament. After all, bleeding is the number one form of ousting your prey in tournament viable decks.

So a card like Protected Resources which guarantees the loss of a bleed to be no more than 2 should be a card that has a major impact on most of your predators in a tournament environment, yet seeing it in tournament decks is a rare sight indeed. Why is this?

So you are guaranteed not to get bled by more than two per action for the measly cost of two pool and not being able to take the most defining action of the game, bleeding. This is of course the major drawback in the card, but there are multiple decks who don´t care that much about bleeding. Why don´t people play it more in these decks?

So you are not allowed to bleed if you want to keep this baby in play then you will have to have the deck geared towards ousting your prey in another fashion. Vote decks, trickdecks or combat- and wallish decks relying upon other means of ousting than the odd bleed for one should be really helped by this card. So why are people hesitant to add it to their decks?

In my own opinion I think it is a number of things: One of the main reasons is table image. You are someone who blocks the ebb and flow of deflected heavy bleeds. A Protected Resources is more or less a sign that says "The bleed stops here! (oh and by the way, it´s only for two)", which to many players are annoying since the card just prolongs the time it takes to oust you and doesn´t in itself help you oust your prey. It more or less denies you a potential big part of your arsenal.

Of course there is nothing in the card itself that says that you yourself can´t redirect the bleeds that targets you, but that is a bit like wearing both belt and suspenders and very easily clutters up the math in your deck (and more importantly perhaps, in your hand). In an auspex deck (and to a lesser extent a deck which features Aksinya) this would be mitigated by the versatility of the bleedbounce cards or as in Aksinyas case the surplus Protected Resources become bounces themselves.

So how to avoid this? A Lutz or other aggressive vote decks puts enough pressure forwards to not be seen as effectively timing the table. Maybe a breed-boon deck would save vital pool with this card until it shifts gear and starts going for the oust? There are a plethora of decks where it could be used in the build up phase and then burned as you have gotten the state of the table to where you want it.

I have vowed to myself to try to play this card in tournament decks more during this year and would love to hear from you readers about experiences you have had while playing or facing this card.

Until next time - May your topdecks be good and your pool be sufficient

Limit master cards?

I´m sick and tired of the master decks. It´s getting monotonous, boring and way too good. Also, it´s not really in tune with what I perceive as the theme of VTES, with methuselahs influencing minions to do their bidding. Now it´s more like players flipping, fetching and shuffling in a more and more solitaire/MTG-style of game. It´s more and more about drawing the right card (Tablets, Infernal Pursuit etc) instead of make the right decision, for example block/not block.

What about limiting master cards in decks? 20 % maybe?

For example, rounded up, this would be
20 % of 90 cards = 18
20 % of 70 cards = 14

As I see it,
Pros: Less master-focused decks, more minion-focused playing. Very subjective of course, but I think this is more fun.
Cons: Limits deckbuilding. Limits odd masters seeing play. Another reason for deckchecking/penalties in tournaments.

What do you think?

(This was also posted and discussed here)

Know your crypt: Lodin (Olaf Holte)

Clan: Ventrue
Generation: 7th
Embrace: 1852
Sire: Datura
Haven: Several residences all over Chicago.
Childer: Edgar Drummond (1865), Horatio Ballard (1881), Edward Neally (1896), Tommy Hinds (1906), Al Capone (1941), Joseph Peterson (1978), Jacob Schumpeter (1981) , Kevin Jackson (1984), Bobby Weatherbottom (1984), Riggs, Brennon Thornhill (1985) and Lorraine Matthews (1987).

• Olaf Holte was born in Norway in 1824, but he migrated to Pennsylvania  in 1830 together with his family. He was enlisted and attended the military acadamy at West Point. He was praised for his command as a lieutenant in the battle of Vera Cruz in the war against Mexico.

• It was in Vera Cruz he was embraced by Datura, the Ventrue lover of Eletria, Toreador Prince of the city. The Kindred sought an american officer to control. Olaf spent 22 years in Vera Cruz.

• He came to Chicago in 1869 and presented himself as “Lodin” to the current Prince, the Brujah Maxwell.

• In 1871 Lodin replaced Maxwell as Prince: “Right before he could deal the killing blow, Maxwell transformed himself into mist and made his escape on the night winds.”

• In 1880–1913 he struggles with the Toreador Modius (childe of Annabelle Triabell) to control Chicago.

• In “Chicago by Night 1st edition” Lodin is still the Prince. All the other Ventrue in the city are descendant from him. “He bagan creating a brood to help keep him in power, but found the constant need to destroy the incompetent and the overly ambitious.” “Lodin has taken great care to teach his Get only those disciplines he thinks they need.” “Much of Lodin´s power comes from his lieutenants. They control much of the city and have divided it up according to his orders.”

• In “Chicago by Night 2nd edition”, Lodin has been destroyed in the Council Wars of 1993. That setting is all about who will be the new prince, and his childer Ballard and Capone are two of the contenders.

• “A gaunt, tall man, he has very Nordic features. Blue eyes, prominent cheekbones and blond hair.”

• “Roleplaying hints: Let a little bit of Norwegian accent creep into your voice (it is very flat, very midwestern and the vowels drag out slightly. “Yas, we can do that. But what vill you do for me?”)”

Remarkable statistics:
Attributes: Dexterity, Stamina, Charisma, Manipulation, Appearance, Perception and Intelligence.
Abilities: Etiquette, Politics and Area knowledge: Chicago.
Disciplines: Dominate, Fortitude, Presence, Protean, with lesser Animalism, Auspex, Celerity, Obfuscate and Potence.
Backgrounds: Contacts, Herd, Influence, Resources, Retainers and Status.

Sources:
“Chicago by Night 1st edition” (WW 2201)
“Chicago by Night 2nd edition” (WW 2203)