When I asked Ben Peal about the Bringer of War list, the first thing he said was that the number one should be Una.

First of all, who’s Una? The picture at the right side show the vampire, as you already see it. At first glance, its a nice Country !Gangrel, with a title and presence, making her a potential good political deck star vampire. And her special is hot from the start, making her able to use freak drive and good damage prevention for free. But then… if she can freak drive for free, why not just giving her all the good equipment and permanent effect actions in one single turn? This is the principle that last year in LA turned a regular player, Matt Wedge, into the most hated player for many people in this game.

He just developed a deck where Una on a single turn can equip a lot of stuff, and blocking all that is a mad issue, because even the most strong wall doesn’t have 45+ wakes, and then rush all the table with the goods he just acquired. The deck get some sucess, mainly because getting the 45+ freak drives the deck needs is not easy, but since the beggining of 2008, it just showed in a number of places at full power. And yes this deck wins a lot.

The last report was from the European Qualifier in France, this saturday, and he just get a second place. But the problem isn’t this. Sometimes a deck shows power, or new power, and get a lot of sucess in the tournament scene. I can recall the quintuple A (Ambulance, Aching Beauty, Alexandra, Anson, Anneke), that have show at full power late 2007 and 2008, and no one said much against it. Why? Because its a regular VtES deck, that is strong, but do the things at the same point that VtES is always played. Una just exploits a gap on VtES, at least is what a lot of people think, just like the Turbo deck’s. The diference is that Una is getting wins at it.

The big question here is: Playing a turn of 30-40 minutes with almost zero interaction with the table, that is the main fun on VtES, is fair? What do you think? Many players around the world think that’s not. Sure that some things can be putted togheter to stop this at organization level. I’m not talking at banning (or even rewrite) Freak Drive, one of the most played cards ever. And even not sure about doing it to Una. If there is any solution, my favorite as to make a limit to the number of actions a vampire can make in a turn. Maybe a number around six or eight, will be fine. The normal decks using freak drive wouldn’t have many troubles with this, and the exploit like Una would be end.

There are some cards in Vampire that with they’re bare presence on the table, turn a deck that is just playing over there, with the others, in a enemy of the table. I’ve decided to call them, Bringers of War, since they’re interpreted by a lot of players as a declaration of war to the table.

In a talk with some players, I defined a little list of this kind of cards, and hosted a little fast vote. This list, and all the consequent voting is arbitrary, but its a list. Just a little bit of explanation about each one of them.

I asked a little group to make their voting, and this is the final result. Thanks Matt Morgan, Mats Ole, Jussi Hattara and Ben Peal to voting.

6th - Palla Grande

If there is a cardtype that truly get’s this concept out, is Palla Grande. Make a little new vampire or two, get yourself alive by intercepting and deflecting, regular stuff for a deck, not to agressive. Moments later, there come the Palla Grande, and the not so powerfull deck, becomes a killing machine. And its not breakable, and when it goes out, it does nothing bad to the one that as played it. Probably he plays another when he runs out the first one.

5th - Week of Nightmares

The card was always a frightening sight on any table. It is a palla grande that makes all your vampires +1 strength too. And Ravnos have better access to stealth. Sure, you have the drawbacks that Palla doesn’t have, but a more powerful punch, and it’s known to be used only when you have all that you need to go for the kill. Or you’re too desperate.

3th - Smiling Jack

When if first started to go to international forums about VtES, one of them was a Spanish one. There I read a player that as said that Walls are a lie created to protect the Smiling Jack. For sure that is not the only way walls have to oust in a game, but its the most common one. It unleashes a downgrade of power against all the table, except yourself. For sure that when you put in to play the Smiling one, you must have pool gain mechanism set, and a solid way to defend it. But when you do… its a win.

3th - Soul Gem of Etrius

In the same place of Smiling Jack, comes the Soul Gem of Etrius. If one is one card that boosts a traditional VtES deck archetype to a powerful level, the second one is the motivation to create a combo deck in VtES, that is not common. When you see the Soul Gem, you understand that you’re in presence of a turbo deck. If i have a Direct Intervention on hand, and see a Soul Gem, its very likely to get used right on that spot. If the combo starts, its almost unstoppable.

2th - Baltimore Purge

Who likes to see all the vampires at the table, except the ones of one Methuselah, going into torpor, beeing graverobed, striped from their blood and killed? When you see this card going into play, you know that the plan is to do all that stuff, and you’re on bad place. As the other cards on that list, you must unite, or be dead.

1th - Gehena

This is the only “card” in this set, that in the truth its not just one but a set of them. In the first list there was Recalled to the Founder, Wormwood, Blood Weakens, and so many others, but I think that they only are a thread because of the set of them, so they show here together. The concept of getting the vampires useless, or making their actions extremelly costy, makes a lot of people annoyed. And not just Imbued players use this, some decks that use weenies without disciplines, ally’s decks, and other tricks are using it.

The voting:

I may do a new listing, for that I would like to all put this list in the order of their choice, in the comment box below, to see what is the most terrifying Bringer of War.

What a best way to start a VtES blog, than to talk about new cards? And we are starting to get some impressions of they’re play here in Portugal. Our first event when they’re distributed to players was on Sunday, and some of them start to appear, but in a very shy way. Buts lets talk about each of them.

Cloak of the Abalone

How powerful can it truly be a card that is pure meta against two clans? All right, its not just one clan, and its a meta card to make you unblockable by two classic wall clans. But who will put it in on a tournament level deck? In my opinion, it’s not a card to use.

Convergence

Well, if you try to make a new approach to Pander deck, instead of just using weenies, this can truly be a valid card. you just bring up all the youngers, and after that you can bring Alfred or Matthew. Playable, but not great. I think the weenie approach is still the best way.

Path of the Void

When I first look at this card I thinked, wow! Great Baali card. It was just perfect, you could get the chance of paying 1 to untap, or discarding a master. And getting +1 stealth. But then I read it carefully, -1 bleed. Now it’s a card for a Baali deck that doesn’t need to bleed, but is offensive. So, if you want to go for a political Baali, this is a great card. Otherwise it can have spare use, but not great.

Reliquary: Shango Remains

For me, the best card in this pack. By the cost of 1 pool, and a vampire removed from your uncontrolled, you get a permanent dreams of the sphinx for 1 blood per use? Its a staple for almost all the Assamites decks.

Sound of a Breaking Oath

You can’t steal my minion, because I burn him! And you still take one damage point! Can it be better? For sure. Well, at least I get a new card to put my beer cup over.

Treaty of Laibach

Nice addition. It brings a new deck archetype up, or more. But my first view is for cryptic mission/temptation. With a low crypt is great, with tremere and setites with fortitude, can be great too. What to botter? Good cards, and pretty new decks to show up.

Walks-With-Might

I like it, but I must recognize that it isn’t a good card. The minion in itself its pretty strong. Nice life, nice strenght, and one of the best damage prevention I ever see on a minion. But the counterpart… its too heavy. You can play it on some decks, but in general, its not a top choice.

And for last…

Nergal

The first Nergal was pretty strong, but the new one, its even better. For sure the 2 bleed is powerful, and the card cost reduction (even if just one per turn), its great. But making the other vampires pay more for each reaction that they play? Its just amazing. And the +1 stealth is every time a good addition. Its a must for Baali lovers all around the world.

I’m not very good making the starting post’s on blogs and such. Well, many people probably say that I’m not very good at making the other posts too, but that’s just another question.

This blog is the result of my vtes experience, and the fact that I want to improve my English, that, as you at this point must have already been aware, is not great. And in fact as VtES is a small game, with not so many people playing, making a blog in English is the best chance to have somebody really reading it.

Well, and for sure to tell people how great Gwendolyn is.