Asian Continental Championships 2013

So the ACC has been over for a week and I finally got time off from Real Life to talk about it.

First, a quick round up of the players, the decks and how they did:

Rank	Name - Deck	Prelim GWs	Prelim VPs	Final VPs
1	Bann - Mummify (Spell of Life ft. Halim Bey)	1	7	3
2	Stephen - Saulot Puppeteer (Spirit Marionette ft Saulot)	1	6.5	0
2	YY (Me) - Ladies & Gentlemen (G4/5 Ventrue Grinder)	1	4	1
2	Nomura-san - (G2/3 Thrown Junk Bruise Bleed)	1	4.5	1
2	Hidetoshi-san - (Stanislava et al)	2	8.5	0
6	Fadzuli - (G2/3 !Malk Vote)	1	4
7	Fay - The Scarlet Letter (G1/2 Toreador Aching Beauty)	1	4
8	Johann - Traditions of the Camarilla (Gangrel Vote)	1	3
9	Ayukata-san - Al-muntaqim, the Avenger with his Catiff friends that multi-rush (True Brujah Combat)	0	2
10	Troy - (Blood Brothers Torrance Circle Combat)	0	1.5
11	Jared - (Cock Robin Toolbox)	0	1.5
12	John Ferdie - (!Tremere Toolbox)	0	1
13	Arsenio - (G1/2 Toreador Vote)	0	1
14	Keith - Dirty Money (Giovanni Weenie Bloat & Bounce ft Acquired Ventrue Assets)	0	0.5
15	Aaron - (G2/3 Lasombra Vote)	0	0
16	Lucinio - (Euro Brujah)	0	0
17	Kristine - (Tremere/!Tremere Combat ft Muaziz)	0	0
17	John Worrall - Isouda de Blaise Multiact	0	0

I think I did pretty well this time around, with much less mistakes (at least major ones).

Round 1

Aaron -> Bann -> Fadzuli -> Me -> Kristine

It was unfortunate that Kristine's main deck combo did not work the way she expected it to (old card vs new text) and she was ousted fairly quickly by me. I think I had Mary Anne Blaire, Victor Donaldson, Mustafa the Heir and Graham Gottesman out by that point. Since I had the majority votes, Aaron and Fadzuli could not do much, so I just kept bleeding into Aaron and bouncing bleeds over. Unfortunately, I could not oust Bann before time ran out.

1GW + 2.5VP

Round 2

Me -> Hidetoshi-san -> Nomura-san -> Jared -> John Worrall

I got off to a shaky start for this game (note to self: take out Juniper from the deck. She has a cute ability, but the lack of votes hurts like crazy), drawing only 3 titled vampires and getting Victor Pelletier when I went fishing for more (another note to self: take out Victor P from the deck. He is the only vampire I cannot get for free with Govern) and starting off with no bounce and no wakes. Fortunately, John was not able to oust me before I finally drew into some bounces.

The game lasted for an hour and a half with no one being ousted. I was unable to bleed Hidetoshi-san for big amounts (dude packs way too many bounces) and he managed to stealth past Nomura-san's defenses before I could oust him. Then John lost all his minions to combat from both sides and he was ousted by Jared. I managed to convince Jared to send all of Hidetoshi-san's minions into torpor, but time ran out and I had to settle for 0.5VP.

Stephen commented that the amount of combat on my table was ridiculous and hoped he didn't have to sit down with us at any point during the event. Guess he reckoned without Murphy's Law.

1GW + 3VP

Round 3

Stephen -> Me -> Lucinio -> Fadzuli

I hate sitting downwind of a Spirit Marionette deck! Between that, Saulot, Neutral Guard and Heidelburg Castle, I spent the entire game hunting and bloating. Stephen got into a pretty comfortable position with Saulot getting a Heart of Cheating and Mylan Horseed untapping him for various shenanigans. I finally had enough of the old man and got Pentex to park a van outside his apartment.

Then came the longest pitch for a deal I have ever had to do in V:tES. For a good half an hour, Stephen and I spent our time between turns trying to convince Lucinio to do the right thing. Of course, for Stephen, this meant for him to help remove Pentex Subversion as it would mean a weaker predator for him once I go into full defense mode. I, however, was convinced that if Stephen and he were to go one-on-one, Lucinio would not be able to handle Saulot and he should leave the Pentex alone while Fadzuli weakens Stephen.

When I talked to Lucinio after the game, he told me that when we first started pitching, my plan did sound better. I guess when he finally decided to burn the Pentex, it was too late for him. I bled him down to one pool and agreed to help Fadzuli oust Stephen if he would oust Lucinio with his KRC.

In the end, I could not out vote Fadzuli's minions and a Powerbase: Madrid and was ousted immediately after Stephen.

1GW + 4VP

Final Table

I managed to edge past Fadzuli and Fay in tournament points to get into the final table.

Unfortunately, it is now the wee hours of the morning and I don't think I can coherently talk about one of the most exciting finals I have ever played in, so I will continue in the next post.

Stay tuned!

Asian Continental Championships (or How I Failed at V:tES)

So my first ever foray into the international V:tES tournament scene is officially over and I am back home again. It was wonderful to see 25 players turn up for a tournament and it was definitely an interesting experience to see and feel the Filipino meta game.

Unfortunately, I crashed spectacularly and left with a paltry 0.5VP. I think I know now what went wrong, and I believe it started way before I even left Singapore (event report to follow).

Mistake Number 1:

After some playtesting with fellow Singaporean players, I decided to change the crypt to include a few Tupdogs to do some effective crypt cycling. Which was fine. What was NOT fine was that in a frenzy, I overdid the idea and ended up with almost half my crypt with crypt cycling cards. Not my brightest idea. While it never came up during my limited playtesting, I should have realised that it doesn't even work in theory.

Mistake Number 2:

So I came back early from work that day to grab the stuff we were going to need for the ACC and I took the opportunity to look through my deck once more and took out my one last copy of Second Tradition. On hindsight, I should have kept all 4. Got royally owned on the third round simply because I couldn't even generate that measly 1 intercept (see report for more). Also, what I failed to realise at that point was that removing the Second Traditions meant that I was losing 4 wake options as well, which, as expected, came back to bite me.

Mistake Number 3:

Going to bed at almost 2am the night before the tournament does not a better play make.

Mistake Number 4:

This was partially due to mistake number 1. See, what my deck was meant to do was spend lots of pool to bring out a big vampire, and just keep using superior Enchant Kindred to bring out the smaller vampires for cheap or for free. Which always meant that I ended up with way more pool than what I should have based on the minions I control. So because I included the Tupdogs, my first turn was suddenly much faster (even if ineffective). That changed my entire tempo and I suddenly wanted to keep being able to do stuff, so I brought out the smallest vampire, and screwed up the entire strategy.

Now, if you are still with me, the tournament report! Disclaimer: all events are reported purely from memory, so report may differ from actual events.

It was 9am on the morning of Sunday, 9th October 2011. We got a free ride from Luicinio, one of the local players and were at the Schizo Art Cafe before anyone else.

Schizo is this leettle art cafe tucked away at the end of Katipunan Avenue in Quezon City, Philippines. Located at the second floor of a two level shop house, it is a nice cozy spot to hang out with friends, and was a snug fit for 25 players.

We waited around while the other players appeared and Paul, the resident Prince of Manila got around to doing registrations.

For some strange reason, the Archon file that Kristine downloaded for use did not automatically do the round seating, so we ended up spending quite a bit of time simply trying to get the first round going. Kudos to the organisers for being able to quickly arrange and seat everyone the old fashioned way. Strangely enough, the both the copy I got for the Singapore qualifiers and the one I just grabbed off the VEKN website works fine. Might have been the macro settings on Kristine's notebook. Oh well.

Round 1

Ayukata-san (Princes with Dom/Obf) -> Me (Ishtarri Coalition Multiact) -> Jhun (Lasombra feat. Marcus Vitel) -> Khervin (Tzimisce Raptor) -> Faust (Kiasyd S&B)

I had 3 Tupdogs and Klaus Konrecht in my opening crypt.

"Worst crypt EVER!"

So I decided to bring out 2 Tupdogs, which gained me a collective gasp from the table. Then the Tupdogs called a single Neonate Breach (not a single KRC or CA came up in my first 15 or so cards, which became a trend the entire tourney), hitting everyone else on the table for 1.

After two turns or so, Jhun had Marcus Vitel, Khervin had Velya, Faust had Isanwayen and Dame Holllerton and Ayukata-san had Gilbert Duane and Cardano who had become a Legendary Vampire, which meant everyone had a comfortable start, except me. Remember how I talked about the pitfalls of using Tupdogs as a crypt cycling mechanic? Yeah, it bit me right then, and I was sitting on 15 pool with only Ubende in my ready region. Jhun then got out Lucita (merged), who got herself a .44 Magnum and then proceeded to bleed Khervin for a little. Khervin brought out John Paleologus and pinged away at Faust's pool (he later conceded that he never drew a single of the Raptors that his deck so relied on for intercept). Without much pressure from behind, Faust's Kiasyds happily bled into Ayukata-san with Governs and Bondings, which, of course, got bounced on to me. Ayukata-san quickly ousted me after that, but not before I convinced the table to remove Cardano's Legendary status.

Faust then managed to bring out Pherydima and ousted Ayukata-san, but ran out of blood on his vampires and could not generate enough stealth to get past Jhun's Lasombra. Jhun took the opportunity to go forwards and cleared his way to victory with a well timed Entombment on Khervin's Eternally Vigilant Guardian Angel, Velya. Without Velya's support, Khervin succumbed to Jhun's bleeds and Faust, who had been severely weaken by then, fell soon after.

Result: Me 0VP, Jhun 1GW 3VP, Khervin 0VP, Faust 1VP, Ayukata-san 1VP

Round 2

Kristine (Presence S&B) -> Edmund (Matthias et al) -> Karl (Trujah Powerbleed) -> Me -> Troy (Ivan Krenyenko Equipment)

I spent the enitre game alternating between pushing for Karl to be ousted and rooting for him. I actually had a fair shot at a GW this game, but made too many mistakes and snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.

Once again, I made the mistake of bringing out a small vampire, this time being Victor Pelletier. Fortunately for me, while it did hamper me some, it was not a grave mistake this time. On my third turn, I attempted a Parity Shift against my minionless prey, and Karl expertly used Quicksilver Contemplation to force Victor to abstain, making it my one vote against Lydia's one. Edmund could throw his edge (which he had obviously no way of keeping) to help his grand prey move further away from his prey's ousting capabilities, but flatly refused, even though I offered to grant him pool on my next vote.

The table then began to grind, with each player taking increasingly repetitive actions:

• Troy used Ivan Krenyenko's ability to fish for equipments and equiped them, then used Freak Drive to untap and bleed Kristine for some. At some point, he slapped an Enkil Cog on Ivan to bleed some more.
• Kristine bled Edmund with Public Trusts and Social Charms, sprinkled with the occasional Aire of Elation for extra flavour.
• Edmund used Matthias to Spirit Marionette whoever was available and then bled Karl with the Marionetted vampire and his many Dominate weenies
• Karl grabbed the Ankara Citadel with Summon History and proceeded to Vaticinate, untap with Freak Drive, and bleed with Cheat the Fates and Quicksilver Contemplation.

Interetingly, my deck, which has up to that point always allowed be to take a number of repeated actions near rivaling God Himself, decided that I needed to see how Voter Captivations worked, and happily fed me 3 copies without a single political action card. Needless to say, I didn't do much.

I finally drew into a copy of Disputed Territory, after contesting Karl's Dreams of the Sphinx, and promptly stole the Ankara Citadel for myself. The resultant Voter Cap gave me just enough pool to not be ousted that turn. I managed to keep my pool up with Villeins, an Ancient Influence and more Voter Caps long enough to see Karl fall to Edmund's bleeds.

Then I made an awesome mistake. I Pentex'd Ivan Krenyenko and had a field day bleeding and voting, but forgot to keep Ayo untapped to block the burn attempt, which led to Kristine's oust by Troy and the table timed out soon after.

Results: Me 0.5VP, Troy 1GW 2.5VP, Kristine 0VP, Edmund 1VP, Karl 0VP

Round 3

Me -> Stephen (Ahrimane Toolbox) -> Paul (Tumnimos Eldest are Kholo) -> Mark (Ventrue Combat feat. Lucinde) -> Nomura-san (Brujah Antitribu Urban Reconstruction)

Once again, the changed tempo killed the deck. Mark also did not help, since he spent almost the enitre game doing nothing to his prey, which meant Nomura-san kept all of his Sport Bike riding minions to block my actions. The only interesting things that happened this game was that Mark did not bring out Lucinde because he did not want to contest the Ventrue Justicar title with Victor Pellitier (I specifically asked if he would prefer if I went for the Prince of Paris title instead, but he said nevermind. On hindsight, I should have been clearer in my offer and not assume that he knew what Victor does. Later on, he confessed he had no idea.), and that Paul was nice enough to keep rescuing Victor from torpor.

I made the mistake of over counter-offering what was already a fantastic deal, and got ousted by Nomura-san fairly quickly. An unpressured predator is an unnecessarily strong predator. Not a fun game, this one.

Results: Me 0VP, Stephen 1GW 4VP, Paul 0VP, Mark 0VP, Nomura-san 1VP


All in all, it was a good experience to meet up with other players and see the Philippines meta game. Stephen won the final table, successfully defending his title (read all about his road to victory on Singing V:tES). Next year, I should put out a bounty for anyone who ousts or helps oust Stephen. Muahahahaha! Until next year then!

Asian Continental Championship - Last Chance Qualifier

  From Paul, Prince of Manila City, Philippines:

The Last Chance Qualifier happened last September 10 at Marks place. We started at 10 in the morning and ended on a happy note sometime past 6pm. Lunch was served with a giant 36" pizza, yet i disgress from the actual report.

We had a total of 9 players, which was a shame really as a 10th player might have joined but was still new and didnt feel like he could participate well in a tourney.

Participants:

Aurelio Icatiano (Imbued toolbox deck)
Jeremiah Faustino "Faust"(Assamite intercept)
Jason Docalios (Tremere anti G3-4 bleed)
Khervin Cheng Chua "Toad"(Tzimisce G3-4 bleed)
Paul Jonathan Tio (Una multiaction deck)
Hannibal Bobis "Haig"(Setite G2-3 temptation deck)
Charlene Fernandez Bobis "Charlie"(Salubri/Harbinger G2 intercept deck)
Mark Villareal (Brujah G2-3 Fortitude rush/bleed)
Francis Godoy "Jun"(Lasombra G2-3 bleed)

ROUND 1

Table 1

Aurelio (3VP, GW)
Jason
Charlene (1VP)
Paul

The game started with the imbued but the table was pretty static by itself, as Jason's bleeds were confounded by Charlie's intercept deck. Aurelio kept a good pressure on his predator Paul by throwing Vampiric disease (which severely limited her ability) and Society of Leopold and Pentex. The only highlight here was when Paul stole Cassie with an entrancement at superior which was passed by at +3 stealth. In the end though the mortals got the table when Charlie ousted Paul after Una coudnt untap anymore because of the Vampiric Disease draining Una's precious blood.

Table 2

Jeremiah
Hannibal
Francis (Jun)
Mark Khervin (Toad) (5VP, GW)

This table got into a ruckus with combat getting mixed with the various Meths, in the end the Tzimisce bleed swept the table and the game win with careful planning and consolidation of his vampires while the other Meths were busy.


ROUND 2

Table1

Jeremiah (Faust)
Jason (2 VP)
Haig
Charlie
Aurelio (3VP, GW)

The Tremere anti bleeder got through with some very important bleeds under mirror walk, and was able to oust Haig and Charlie succesively. But in the end, ran into the imbued set up and fresh after his oust of the Assamite Faust. In the end the mortals claimed this win as well.

Table 2

Mark
Jun
Paul
Toad (4 VP, GW)

Toad made an early headway as bleeding with fiendsih tongue and changelings as Mark brought the biggest vamp yet Gwendolyn. This left him with a weakened state and didnt allow him to influence any other vamps. Jun brough out adv Vitel followed by Lucita adv. By the time Toad ousted the Brujah, the Lasombra had three vampires out which included Aurora van Brande. But at this time the Una deck had set up and pretty much had so many attachments including eternal Vigilance and premanent +4 bleed, and +3 intercept. Sengir dagger and Ivory bow equipped it was a an awesome sight and held the Lasombra incursions to a minimum, especially after Vitel was Pentexed by Paul and Aurora falling to a well timed Coma by Una. In the end though, Jun fell to the Tzimisce. The battle was a close one but eventually Tzimisce hordes swept the table.


ROUND 3

Table 1

Jason (1 VP)
Mark
Faust (4 VP, GW)
Haig
Jun

The Assamites managed to solidify their position in this table. In the end, with the exception of Mark being ousted by bleeds it was swept away by the Assamites.

Table 2

Aurelio (3 VP, GW)
Charlie
Paul (1 VP)
Toad

Aurelio managed to solidify his position early and started weakening both prey and predators with Vampiric Diseases. Toad placed an early Pentex on Una, but Paul retaliated by placing a well-timed Pentex of his own on Lady Zara. Una, Jacob fermor and Ossian started bleeding, eventually weakened from the disease Toad succumbed to the bleeds. Charlie fell soon afterwards to Aurelio, but before a real battle could commence Aurelio slaps Una with Penetex and soon claims victory.


FINALISTS:

1 Aurelio Icatiano (3 GW, 9VP)
2 Khervin Cheng Chua (Toad) (2 GW, 9 VP)
2 Jeremiah Faustino (Faust) (1 GW, 4VP)
2 Jason Docalios (3 VP)
5 Paul Jonathan Tio (1 VP)
5 Charlene Fernandez Bobis (1 VP)

Check out Aurelio Icatiano's winning deck.

Congrats Gerentt!

Congrats to Gerentt for winning his first Standard Tournament and making it into the TWDA! More on his win on his very own blog. Incidentally, that also qualifies him for the ACC. Now if only he can make it... :p  

Asian Continental Championships - Manila City Qualifier

Congratulations to Charlene, Hannibal, Francis and Lucinio for joining the list of qualified players! The current qualified players are:

VEKN#	Name (Qualifying Tournament)
-------	-----------------------------------
1006637	Stephen Sing (1st place ACC 10)
1003787	Hidetoshi Hayakawa (2nd place ACC 10)
3160000	Yeo Le Fei (2nd place ACC 10)
5360018	Law Gee Hwan (2nd place ACC 10)
1001215	Johann Ong (2nd place ACC 10 & 2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
1004027	Taka'aki AYUKATA (Organiser Osaka Qualifier)
1001135	Karl Ian Uy Cheng Chua (1st place Quezon City Qualifier)
1003558	Troy Espiritu (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
1002594	Mark Raymund Villareal (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
1004269	Frederick Tomas (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
1002111	Kristine Bartolome (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
1003299	John David V. Balingit (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
9430001	Mara Angela Narciso (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
1001661	Paul Jonathan Tio (Organiser Quezon City Qualifier)
1000287	Charlene Fernandez (1st place Quezon City Qualifier)
1000288	Haig Bobis (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
1002104	Lucinio de Guzman Jr. (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)
1001125	Francis Godoy (2nd place Quezon City Qualifier)

From the VEKN official site:

On the next day, 6 players showed up for the 2nd ACC qualifiers at Louie's place. Unfortunately, due to the lack of further players, 1 of them Kristine graciously backed out and a 5player table was made.

Hannibal (weenie potence)
Charlene (Arika bleed/bloat deck)
Mark (Giovanni rush)
Lucinio (Louie)(weenie political brujah G5)
Francis Godoy (Lasombra toolbox deck)

Round 1	Round 2	Round 3
------------	------------	------------
1)Francis	1)Charlene	1)Francis (5 VP, 1GW)
2)Hannibal	2)Mark	2)Hannibal
3)Louie (1 VP)	3)Louie	3)Charlene
4)Mark	4)Hannibal (4VP 1 GW)	4)Lucinio
5)Charlene (4 VP, 1 GW)	5)Francis (1 VP)	5)Mark

Finals:
1)Charlene (3VP 1 GW)
2)Hannibal (1 VP)
3)Francis (1 VP)
4)Lucinio
5)Mark

Organizer: Lucinio (Louie) De Guzman
Winner: Charlene
Charlene's Tournament Winning Deck
Qualifying players:
1)Charlene (3VP 1 GW)
2)Hannibal (1 VP)
2)Francis (1 VP)
2)Lucinio
2)Mark

 

Asian Continental Championship Singapore Qualifiers Finals

 
Sorry for the long delay, but here's the report from the finals.

After the dust from the preliminary rounds settled, 5 Methuselahs lined up for the final table.

• Derek didn't have much of a choice, going into the final table at 5th position.
  
• Keith chose to be bled by Derek, after having seen Derek's deck, and feeling fairly confident of his ability to stop Derek's bleeds.
  
• My memory is a little vague on this one, but I believe Danz chose to bleed Derek, and Stephen inserted himself between Danz and Derek.
  
• Robin then chose to be bled by Keith, knowing full well that he had exactly what was needed to completely stop Keith.
  

Le Fei's roll of a die set the final table in the following order:
Stephen's Forest of Blood bleeding Derek's Tremere/!Tremere Bruise Bleed bleeding Keith's Khazar's Diary bleeding Robin's Madness Network bleeding Danz's Toreador Toolbox.

Round 1

• Stephen played a Dreams of the Sphinx.
  
• Keith played a Channel 10 and influenced out Cristofero Giovanni.
  
• Robin played a Zillah's Valley.
  

Round 2

• Stephen influenced out Chavi Oraczko.
• Derek got himself Selena's services.
• Keith Liquidated some assets, got Cristofero to recruit Carlton Van Wyk, influenced out Mario Giovanni, and Unmasked the Masquerade.
• Robin finished exerting his influence on Rachel Brandywine.
• Danz lured Marcellus into his employment.

Round 3

• Stephen visited a Fortune Teller Shop who told Chavi to Deprive Marcellus of his Senses, but a Direct Intervention from Danz himself saved Marcellus the embarrassment. Chavi then decided to get herself a set of Shilmulo Tarot instead. Stephen used his Sphinx's last dream to end his turn with Papa Legba in his service.
• Derek got his own Dreams of the Sphinx but decided to bide his time and ended his turn after some influencing.
• Keith paid a visit to the Parthenon and used its powers to Liquidate some more. He then used his new found fortune to call in the services of Ambrosius, the Ferryman and then promptly used a Sudario Refraction to get back a Khazar's Diary, a Spectral Divination and a Liquidation. Marciana Giovanni joined his fast growing family of necromancers.
• Robin made Rachel his Blood Doll and got her to bleed Danz for 2. Marcellus attempted to block the bleed, but Rachel Cloaked her own Gathering to sneak past Marcellus to give Robin the Edge and making herself the leader of Enkil Cog.
• Danz had Marcellus get the Ivory Bow.

Round 4

• Stephen taught Pap Legba a level of Chimestry. Chavi and Papa Legba both embraced a Tumnimos each. Stephen then influenced out Gharston Roland.
• Derek made a Vessel of Selena, severing the link between Robin and Rachel. Selena's bleed was blocked by Carlton. Carlton dodged Selena's hand strike, and when Selena pressed with an Apportation, Carlton managed to Dodge it again. Selena pressed again with Apportation and they both had a little bitch fight. Derek then got out Ladislas.
• Keith Acquired some Assets from the Ventrue, and Liquidated some more of his own. Cristofero started the Khazar's Diary engine. Mario recruited Felix Hessian and Keith got Chas Giovanni Tello.
• Robin made Rachel a Perfectionist who proceeded to perfectly employ a Homunculus. Henry Taylor joined Robin's army.
• Danz had Marcellus bleed, but was blocked by Gharston. Marcellus pulled out a Concealed Saturday Night Special and shot Gharston's Apparition a little, and then tried again with a Blur of shots, but all he got was another Apparition. Marcellus tried to press with some Telepathic Tracking, only to realise that the Apparitions stayed for the whole combat. Danz then brought Sheila Mezarin into the team.

Round 5

• Stephen started on the Path of Paradox, and led with a bleed for 1 with Gharston, gaining the Edge. Chavi recruited a Procurer. and Papa Legba got the Treasured Samadji while one of the Tumnimos hunted again.
• Derek got Ladislas to Govern Keith's Unaligned, but was blocked by Felix Hessian, resulting in some ghetto fighting. Selena tried bleeding for 1 but got slapped around by Ambrosius instead. Thelonius joined Derek's forces.
• Keith Liquidated twice and used a Sudario Refraction to get back 2 copies of Khazar's Diaries and a Suadrio Refraction. Marciana added to the Diary and Chas recruited the Repo Man. Robin activated Rachel's Enkil Cog to bleed, but Sheila Telepathically Misdirected it to Stephen, who used his untapped Tumnimos to block.
• Robin untaps and tries to have Henry Taylor Clan Impersonate a Malkavian. Rachel tries again to bleed Danz for 3. Danz Wakes Sheila Mezarin and sends the bleed to Keith with My Enemy's Enemy. Keith blocked using Repo Man, who dies. Victoria is now out.
• Danz calls a Kindred Segregation with Sheila, successfully burning Felix Hessian and Ambrosius, though Keith paid to keep Carlton. Marcellus' attempt to effect a Parity Shift was blocked.

Round 6

• Stephen teach Tumnimos Chimerstry. Papa Legba then bleeds for 2, but was Deflected to Keith instead. To keep the forward momentum going, Tumnimos bleeds with Fata Morgana. Chavi also bleeds with another Fata Morgana.
• Derek plays the Barrens, then continues on to bleed lots. Thelonius bleeds for 1, followed by Selena bleeding with Governed the Unaligned. However, Selena's bleed was blocked by Carlton van Wyk, who shot Selena for 1 and dies. Ladislas bleeds with Govern the Unaligned and Conditioning for 6. Derek gets Brooke.
• Keith Liquidates twice again, and tries to complete Kharzar's Diary with Cristofero. Rachel blocks with the right of the Second Tradition and loses Cristofero in a Mental Maze. Keith tries again with Mario and succeeds in bring Khazar's Diary to 7 counters, allowing Marciana and Chas to make some wraiths. Robin uses the Enkil Cog again to bleed with Rachel, who Impersonates Marcellus' Elder when he woke and attempted to block.
• Robin bloats a little with Victoria's ability and plays the Madness Network. Henry Taylor gets himself a Carrion Coffin, using Form of Mist to slip past Keith's wraith. Victoria Impersonates the Giovanni and Rachel bleeds again for 3.
• Danz got some pool back when Marcellus' used a Parity Shift to move pool from Robin. Sheila bleeds and effects an Aire of Elation for 3 pool loss. Robin uses the power of the Madness Network to have Henry Taylor equip with a Sport Bike and bleed Danz with Rachel.

Round 7

• Stephen plays a brand new copy of Dreams of the Sphinx and, acknowledging that the end is near, bled with everything he had. Keith lost 2 pool from a Deflected Papa Legba, but the rest managed to land on Derek. Robin used Rachel to bleed, but Danz Forcefully Awoke Sheila and used her Telepathy to Misdirect Rachel to Stephen.
• Derek used Thelonius to bleed for 1 and chose to leave the other minions untapped in preparation for Stephen's next wave of bleeds. Rachel's attempt to bleed using the Madness Network was sent to Stephen when Sheila got wind of it On the Qui Vive.
• Robin bloats some more with Victoria and sets up a Powerbase in Zurich. Rachel bleeds and Victoria, the newly minted Giovanni, made a wraith using the magic of Khazar's Diary.
• Danz ousts Stephen with a bleed from Sheila. Marcellus tried to block Rachel, but Lost her in the Crowds. Even his Enhanced Senses failed to penetrate her Cloaking.

Round 8

• Derek bleeds for 1 for a bunch, and Rachel using Form of Mist to land a bleed past Marcellus.
• Keith attempts to withdraw.
• Robin sent Rachel out to hunt for blood, while Victoria proceeds to make more wraiths. Both wraiths bleed into Danz, and Marcellus could not prevent his master from being ousted even with a desperate cycling of cards. Henry then bleeds into Derek, but was deflected to Keith, causing Keith's withdrawal attempt to fail.

Round 9

• Derek get a Visit from the Capuchin, but was unable to land a single bleed on Keith. Rachel calls on the Fifth Tradition to feed Henry, who attempts to bleed Derek. Rachel tries to Cloak Henry in an attempt to sneak the bleed past Ladislas, but a timely report from Keith's Channel 10 promptly put a stop to that.
• Keith attempts to withdraw again.
• Robin uses Victoria to make another wraith, and the three wraiths manage to oust Derek. Henry bleeds Keith for 1.

Round 10

• Keith attempts to withdraw again, and manages to convince Robin to give him the chance to experience a successful withdraw attempt.
• Robin does nothing.

Round 11

• Keith's withdraw attempt is successful, netting him 1 Victory Point.

Final Result:

1st - Robin Pong with Game Win and 3 Victory Points in the final table.

2nd - Danz Holandez with 1 Victory Point in the final table

2nd - Keith Lee with 1 Victory Point in the final table

2nd - Stephen Sing 

2nd - Derek Yang

6th - Eng Boon Khim

7th - Bann Lum

8th - Wu Yi Peng

9th - Edward Choy

10th - Fauzi Shafie

11th - Muhd Dzaki Abadi Samri
12th - Zheng Yongyan (withdrew from event)

Pictures to come when I get the time.
 

Ruling: Freak Drive and Voter Captivation

 
Freak Drive (and cards that are usable only after a successful action) may be played before or after Voter Captivation (after resolving a successful referendum).

That is, the acting minion may
A) Play Freak Drive, pay 1 blood, untap, play Voter Captivation, gain blood and/or pool as per Voter Captivation card text, in that sequence, or
B) Play Voter Captivation, gain blood and/or pool as per Voter Captivation card text, play Freak Drive, pay 1 blood, untap, in that sequence.

Reference:
http://groups.google.com/group/rec.games.trading-cards.jyhad/msg/b91656a4dfe25b34
 

Results: Grooming the Protege

 
8 Methuselahs signed up for the Grooming the Protege tournament and after a quick perliminary round, the following 5 Methuselahs made it to the final table:

- Yeqi (1GW, 4VP)
- Khris (1GW, 4VP)
- Sherman (0VP)
- Boon Khim (0VP)
- Ben Sum (0VP)

The seating arrangement for the final table was
Khris -> Ben Sum -> Boon Khim -> Yeqi -> Sherman

After a long (I mean looooooooooooooong) game, Boon Khim emerged the victor with 2.5VP and the game win (Sherman had 1 VP and Ben Sum had 0.5VP), netting 2 Legacy of Blood boosters.

A more detailed report can be found on Stephen's blog.

Congratulations to Boon Khim for a event well played, and a pat on the back for all participating Methuselahs.

Special thanks to Stephen for organising the event, Paradigm Infinitum for providing the venue, and Bann for providing IT support (even if it was barely used), and a big thank you to everyone who made the event a success!
 

Eden's Legacy Storyline Results

 

Congratulations to all finalist and especially to Gee Hwan for winning the event.

Five Methuselahs competed for the right to put their clan in the forefront of the race for Eden's secrets, but in the end, the Guruhi, the Ishtarri, the Giovanni and the Anarchs all fell to Lasombra's manipulation of the shadows.

Thanks to all who helped make the event a success, and Paradigm Infinitum for providing a great place to game at.

For more details, check out the Singing VTES blog.

 

Eden's Legacy Singapore

First and foremost: a big thank you to all those who came down for the preliminary rounds.

A pat on the back for the new players, Nor Shah and Joshua, for having the courage take the Jyhad to the older Methuselahs.

The following players qualify for the final round (1st December 2009):

1. Law Gee Hwan (Lasombra, Motivated by Knowledge) - 1 GW, 7VP
2. Bann Lum (Anarch Ishtarri, Motivated by Gehenna) - 1GW, 3VP
3. Keith Lee aka Zombie-boi (Giovanni, Motivated by Jyhad) - 4VP
4. Zheng Yongyan aka Y.Y. (Ishtarri, Motivated by Gehenna) - 4VP
5. Benjamin Chia (Guruhi, Motivated by Gehenna) - 3VP

Blood Inc. (20/10/2009)

Results:

Game #1:
Ben Chia -> Yeqi -> Richard -> Bann(5 VP) -> YY

Toreador Presence Anarch swept the table even with wall decks as both predator and prey. Too many cracks in the walls, methinks. :)


Game #2:
Stephen(3 VP) -> Dzaki -> Damian(1 VP) -> Gee Hwan

I wasn't at the this table, but it ended in less than an hour. Something about a stealth bleeding Abomination.


Game #3:
Ben Chia -> Stephen -> Yeqi(3 VP) -> Bann (1 VP)



Game #4:
Damian -> Dzaki(1 VP) -> Gee Hwan -> Richard(4 VP) -> YY

This turned out to a lesson in why you should never cripple your predator, lest our grand predator sweeps the table.

Blood Inc (06/10/2009)

Results:

Game #1
Le Fei (!Tor) -> Bann Lum (FoS 4VP+GW) -> Gee Hwan (Ven) -> Damian (Trujah)

Game #2
Damian (Kiasyd 2VP) -> YY (!Tor) -> Gee Hwan (Assamite) -> Bann Lum (Nos/!Nos 2VP)

Game #3
Ben Chia (Bru 0.5VP) -> Richard Lim (Ravnos 0.5VP) -> Dzaki (Gangrel 0.5VP) -> Stephen Sing (Ravnos 0.5VP)