V:EKN Clan Assamite Newsletter, September 1998



A Walk in the Park



Where: Grant Park, Chicago, Illinois

When: Last night



Abd al-Rashid now had his Contract from Ramiel DuPre on Lucia Pacciolli. Abd

had accepted contracts for harder targets, but Lucia still wouldn't be easy.

It only took a few days to locate Lucia within the city. The Ventrue were

relatively easy to track because of their involvements in mortal

affairs. Using contacts throughout Kindred society in Chicago, Abd had learned

that Lucia had a close ally in a Gangrel Childe that lurked in

Grant Park along Lake Michigan.



The Gangrel are different than most of the other clans. They have this weird

affinity for protecting nature in all its forms. This Gangrel had

taken it upon himself to make sure Grant Park remained as natural as possible.

Lucia, as many Ventrue in Chicago, had her hand in politics. Specifically,

she had heavy control over the Chicago Park District. Lucia, being the clever

one, had convinced the Gangrel that she wanted to help him keep Grant Park in

good shape.



All Abd al-Rashid had to do now was to watch the Gangrel and wait for Lucia to

appear. A confrontation in the park will damage the

Camarilla's poor Masquerade, but it is of no consequence to him.

Watch for next month's newsletter to see what happens next.



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The New Rulings and their Effects on Assamites



The new rulings have created quite a ruckus in many places. For the

Assamites, the direct effects are few. The only card that has been changed

and directly affects the Assamites is Rotschreck. Now, you can make sure

someone doesn't combat ends away from your Taste of Death. Or you can use it

against a Thoughts Betrayed if you use Ivory Bow, Sengir Dagger, or Kali's

Fang.



Fame could be a consideration. However, with Assamites being best at burning

rather than just torporizing, the slots for Fame is better used

for something else.



One other benefit for Assamites is that you don't have to worry about

cross-table bleeds anymore just because you're torporizing or burning

everything in sight.



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Deck Building - Combining with Other Clans



In this week's installment, we'll see how we can combine the Assamites with

other clans, specifically the Tremere.



With three Assamites having Thaumaturgy, they make a great combination for the

Tremere. The same Assamites also have Auspex except

for Kalinda. However, this is more or less a pure rush deck. It includes

Anathema as you could possibly have vote dominance after a few

precise rushes. With such large vampires, some form of pool gain beyond Blood

Doll is absolutely necessary. The crypt selection uses +1

bleed vampires wherever possible.



Crypt (12 vampires)

    2x Parnassus, Assamite 7, tha, aus, CEL, QUI, +2 hand damage

    2x Al-Ashrad, Assamite 9, obf, aus, CEL, THA, QUI, +1 bleed, can burn

       Camarilla locations as a (D) action

    2x Kalinda, Assamite 6, tha, OBF, CEL, bleed at +1 with +1 stealth

       and burn to blood

    2x Javier Montoya, Tremere 9, ani, cel, AUS, THA, Prince of Barcelona, +1

       bleed, burns 1 less when rescuing from torpor

    Lazarus, Tremere 9, cel, pot, AUS, DOM, THA, Primogen, can inflict 1R as

       a strike

    Cardano, Tremere 9, ani, aus, cel, DOM, FOR, THA, Prince of Boston

    2x Ulugh Begh, Tremere 10, cel, pot, for, DOM, AUS, THA, Justicar, may

       discard one card extra at end of turn if he is ready

Library (90 cards)



Master (12 cards)

    4x Haven Uncovered

    2x Information Highway

    2x Blood Doll

    2x Celerity

    2x Thaumaturgy



Action (10 cards)

    6x Bum's Rush

    4x Ambush

    4x Anathema



Combat (66 cards)

    8x Flash

    8x Blood Fury

    10x Theft of Vitae

    6x Walk of Flame

    4x Blood to Water

    4x Burst of Sunlight

    8x Blur

    6x Sideslip

    6x Taste of Vitae

    6x Psyche



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Dealing with Fast Stealth and Bleed



When faced with fast stealth and bleed, an Assamite deck has a hard time

keeping up. They just don't have enough good small vampires. In environments

where heavy bleed is common, you need to play with more Bum's Rushes,

Ambushes, and Haven Uncovereds. Without them, you won't be able to make sure

Ozmo goes to torpor or is burned. Permanent aggravated strikes are also

important like Sengir Dagger, Ivory Bow, and Kali's Fang. Without those, you

will run out of maneuvers fast.



These are your best hopes if you are playing a standard Assamite deck and are

faced with heavy bleed



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Next Month



    Abd al-Rashid faces Lucia Paccioli

    Deckbuilding: Assamite Sniper's?

    Card Slots - The Biggest Asset of Any Rush Deck



--

Mike Bohlmann, MAIP - Prince of Urbana-Champaign