V:EKN Clan Assamite Newsletter, May 1999 Assamites Clan Newsletter Volume 2 Issue 1 (May 1999) *Note: I have taken over the production of the Assamite monthly newsletter from Mike Bohlmann. Thanks Mike for getting the Assamites started. Quick Overview of the Assamites: In the World of Darkness, the Assamites are one of the most feared clans due to their reputation of being assassins of kindred and mortals. In fact, at one point in time, all of the Camarilla clans had to band together in order to stop the Assamites. Unfortunately, in the world of the CCG the Assamites have a slightly different fate. Ok. A very different fate. As many of you know, the Assamites are one of the hardest clans to run effectively. This is because the Assamites basic skills of Celerity, Obfuscate, and Quietus do not enhance bleeding, intercepting, bouncing bleeds, or even voting. And even in combat, the Assamites still struggle with normal combat defense since they have no S:CE killer (like Immortal Grapple), no Dodge killer (like Scorpion Sting), and little in the way of directly preventing damage. They also do not have any princes to give them the powerful traditions that could help out in the intercepting and pool gain areas. So far, the Assamites do not have much going for them. Another disturbing aspect of the Assamites is the capacity of the vampires. Yes, the vampires with capacity of 7 and above kick major ass but the smaller ones (besides al-Rashid) struggle in comparison to other clans. This means that you are going to have to make each and every action you take count. And of course, the only way the Assamites can get multiple actions per turn is using the dangerous Rutor's Hand. So what can they do? Well, they can dominate combat if they are prepared correctly for it. They can get around Fortitude with Blood Sweats. They can continue combat with kindred that play S:CE with the use of Psyches. And they can even defeat vamps that rely on Dodges by packing many extra strikes. But rarely can they do all three in a game. Why play the Assamites? For complete satisfaction when you roll over someone or an entire table. Yes, it can be done. I mean, anyone can build a Malkavian sneak and bleed or a Ventrue vote deck. But how many people see the Assamites getting 4 or 5 victory points? It can not be done without careful planning and a good dose of luck. But it can be done and I am going to show you how over the next several months. May's Fiction Section: Within the somber antechamber located inside Alamut, the air was heavy in anticipation. Thetmes had called court with his greatest assassins of the clan. These meetings had become fewer and far between in the past years as recently Thetmes mood had slipped to below horrid. The clan's campaigns had severely failed around the globe. Many unsuccessful investments and uncountable unfulfilled contracts had left a bad taste in Thetmes' mouth. Image is everything to him and right now the Assamites' image appeared vulnerable. Most of the kindred in attendance knew of the mysterious visitor that had arrived earlier today. His arrival was unannounced and seemingly uninvited. When Al-Nastal brought Thetmes the news that a stranger had slipped past all of their outer defenses in the, Themes only shrugged as if he half expected it. No one spoke in the room now. It was as if all of the Kindred held their breath waiting for the next instructions. Of course breathing was only necessary for mortals but Thetmes had a way to make everyone seem less than immortal when he was present. "Please allow our visitor to enter the hall", Thetmes said to the assassin closest to the door. When the stranger entered the hall, all eyes turned to see what the man looked like. The visitor could only be described as painfully ordinary. On a busy street, he would be just one of the nameless faces in the crowd. No distinguishing features. Nothing. And with a loud voice, Thetmes said to the crowd of assassins, "Take a careful look everyone. This is the man that will change us forever. He has the information that I have sought for many years. This marks the beginning of a new campaign and a new day for us. A campaign that will once again raise the Assamites to be the most feared clan." And with that, Thetmes turned to the nameless visitor and said, "Let me see your true face. Please take off the Mask of a thousand faces." The man hesitated just for a brief second before responding, "Are you sure? Some people have a difficult time seeing the truth as you know." Thetmes said only one word in response. "Please". The disguised man simply closed his eyes for a moment and everything around him began to wane. Images began to blur. What was once a plain man standing before them now became a hideously deformed monster. There were many shocked clansmen gasping as they quickly realized that a Nosferatu was now among them here in the sacred halls of Alamut. Thetmes did not show any outward signs of horror. Actually, the only thing Thetmes did was slightly smile and say "Welcome, my brother." May's Deck Idea Clinic: As we saw in the fiction section, Thetmes understands the importance of information. Having the right information at the right time can be an insurmountable advantage. Here we will try to duplicate this. The Crypt: Al-Ashrad (9) CEL QUI obf aus THA Parnassus (7) CEL QUI aus tha Parnassus (7) CEL QUI aus tha Parnassus (7) CEL QUI aus tha Abd al-Rashid (5) CEL QUI obf Abd al-Rashid (5) CEL QUI obf Dorian Strack (4) cel AUS Colin Flynn (3) cel aus Zoë (3) cel obf aus Harika Guljan (3) QUI Harika Guljan (3) QUI Kanya Ahktar (2) cel CEL - 10 (4 at minor and 6 at superior) QUI - 8 (all at superior) AUS - 7 (5 at minor and 2 at superior) OBF - 4 (all at minor) THA - 4 (3 at minor and 1 at superior) Total Capacity of crypt: 58 Avarage Vamp Size: 4.83 Masters: 2x Dreams of the Sphinx 2x The Path of Blood 1x Fame 1x Market Square 1x The Barrens 4x Blood Doll 1x Tribute to the Master 1x Auspex 1x Celerity 2x Quietus Library: 2x Bang Nakh 2x IR Goggles 1x Kali's Fang 8x Computer Hackings or 8x Bums Rush or a mix 1x Magic of the Smith 3x Revelations 3x Scrying the Secrets 2x Foul Blood 2x Enhanced Senses 2x Precognition 2x Telepathic Misdirection 2x The Spirit's Touch 4x Forced Awakening 3x Lucky Blow 5x Taste of Death 5x Blood Sweat 5x Lightning Reflexes 2x Silence of Death 8x Rapid Thought 3x Pursuit 4x Psyche 5x Taste of Vitae Deck Comments: The main focus of the deck revolves around knowing what your opponents are going to play in a given situation. The Auspex cards of Revelations and Scrying the Secrets will allow you to see a bunch of cards at one time. If you can get both cards to kick off around each other you could potentially know the next 14 cards the opponent will use. That can be a huge advantage. When playing with the Assamites, you must make every strike count. And make sure that when you get a Revelations on the table to bargain with the other players to keep it out there. The other card that is key to the deck is the Rapid Thoughts when played at superior. This forces the opponent to play his strike first. Yes, I know this is not the best way around S:CE but it prevents you from playing a bunch of killer combat cards and then not even being able to hit for anything. The Lightning Reflexes are a way to smack Dodgers fairly easily with multiple strikes. I may not have gotten the right number of strikes to maneuvers and presses but I think I'm fairly close. You can change the Bum's Rushes and Computer Hacks quite easily depending on your playing environment. This may not be the best Assamite deck that I can build but it demonstrates that to be affective with the Assamites you are going to have to be creative. Coming in next month's issue: In the next newsletter, I will take a very detailed look at the Assamites in combat and show their strengths and weaknesses. We will see how they match up against other clans as well. The fiction section will continue the story of Thetmes and the new information gained by the Assamites. And in the deck idea for June, we will see how Contracts can be very deadly. I have a ton of ideas that I can not wait to share with you all about the Assamites. But if you have any ideas or decks that you would like to share with me, please drop me an email. I would love to see other's ideas with this clan. Until next month, Todd Banister Prince of Atlanta T_Banister@Premier-Lending.com