Nine players showed up to do battle for the Millenium Cultist, James turned up halfway into the first round. The event was scheduled for 2 rounds, but as usual the players munched through the first round (40 minutes) and the second round (1 hour) with all tables completed, so a third round and the final were hald with time to spare.
I elected to run a super-cheese deck this year and went with an Arika/Marcus Vitel stealth/vote/bleed monstrousity.
Round 1:
Lasombra Power Struggle (Merrick) >> Lasombra Power Struggle (Chris) >> Ventrue G1 Primogen Pre/Dom/Fort (Ed) >> Me.
Merrick went forward into Chris, Chris nashed his teeth on Ed's S:CE, Ed bleed forward into to me. The table was fairly balanced for the early-to mid stages of the game, Chris Power Struggled Arika but couldn't bust through my Majesty or Rolling with Punches defense, Merrick opted for softer targets and bleed Chris. Everyone went below the fifteen pool mark. I managed to seize control of the cultist deck and Arika picked up the Cultist Assult Rifle and Atonement much to he wailing of Chris. There was some discussion with Chris about sharing the cultitst deck, but since I had vote control (Arika and Markus in play) of the whole table, I saw no need to share
I cycled some master card from the cultist deck that re-filled my pool back to the healthy regions of 15+, I moved alot of blood of my vampires in play. Reading the Cultist cards, I realized that I had an awesome bleed hand. The Reverend bleed Merrick for 6 or 7, Cloaked by Arika......no deflections or archons were played so Arika followed the Reverend in for the killing blow. Chris lost some more pool to a KRC and a freaky Markus bleeding him for 5.
Chris offered not rush backwards and let him kill Ed, I declined. Chris rushed backwards and Arika gunned down a Shadow-Striking Lasombra. After this I easily cleaned off the rest of the table.
1GW 4Vps
Round 2:
Louhi Wall (Micheal) >>> Big Cap Malk Anti Stealth Bleed (Joel) >>> (someone) >>> Lasombra Power Struggle (Chris)
After overhearing the wailing of Merrick from the first round and Chris blubbering all over the table, Micheal simpy shut me down for most of this game. I sat around and waited for Chris to do anything for me.....but he postured and posed in usual Chris fashion and achieved nothing. Joel ate the (someone) who's name I can't remember.....Chris posed and threatened to Power Stuggle the Malks......who bleed me instead (sigh).
The alliance of three players with votes and Micheal using Louhi's ability and intercept simply closed down my game. Lots of posing from Chris and everyone ignoring me pointing at Micheal as the table threat. Micheal managed to sieze the Cultist deck and then decided he wasn't going to share and take the game win.
I transferred out seeing no way to gain anything and gave Chris a VP.
Round 3:
Me >> Tremere-Anti Rush/Bleed (James) >> Louhi Wall (Micheal) >> Osebo wall (Dave)
James busted right out of the gate and forced Micheal to go backwards, Dave decied it would be fun to block my undirected actions and make me cycle....arrrgh annoying. Dave nerfed my first PTO on Louhi with some Osebo who could burn blood to cancel an action card, this annoyed Arika alot and so the Osebo was banished back into the uncontrolled region.
Dave clagged on combat and proceeded to nimble into my pool with small bleeds. James began to look like running away from me and the table concented to allowing Arika another PTO to burn Paul Cornwood....James began to foam at the mouth and walled up. Micheal hit a Minion Tap and sucked Louhi dry. I had to talk James into going forward and even dropped a few KRC's on Micheal's pool to encourage him.
I nibbled at James till he was within ousting range and then got him, James had left Micheal in a sorry state and Micheal followed the turn after. Dave made out for a tasy snack in the end game.
Final Placings:
Damien Hennessy (Arika&Vitel Cheese) 2GW 8VPS
Merrick Hughes (Lasombra Power Struggle) 1GW 4VPS
Joel (Last Name) (Big-Cap Malk Anti Stealth Bleed) 1GW 4VPS
Micheal Whatt (Louhi Wall) 1GW 3VPS
Martin (Tzimice Pre/Vic Stealth/Vote/Bleed) 1GW 4VPS
Final Table:
Martin >> Micheal
Micheal figuring he was doomed from the start simply elected to be bled by Martin, who's deck he wasn't worried about as he could easily stop it.
Joel >> Martin >> Micheal
Martin wasn't packing any bounce apparently.
Merrick >> Joel >> Martin >> Micheal
Merrick had no intention of sitting anywhere in front of Joel and wasn't looking foward at the prospect of me once again attempting to fulfil my long-standing grudge
Damien >> Merrick >> Joel >> Martin >> Michael
There was an amusing discussion that I should actually sit in front of Joel, as my deck seemed to be the only one capable of standing up to the cheesy malks. Since I could bloat and bounce effectively.
Final round:
Every started off slowly and carefully, the whole table decided to nerf my voting ability early on and stopped me from getting anything through. Martin ploughed into Michael, who walled up. I sat around and discarded my hand of awesomeness my deck decided to give me , Merrick cowed in fear under the gaze of Arika. Joel munched happily on Martin's pool.
I don't fully remember the whole round, but some of the game turning points and stupid play mistakes made the table collapse into Merrick's hands.
- Merrick hitting some early power struggles and binning my precious vampires.....my deck decided it would go on holiday this game.
- Merrick convincing the whole table to vote down a PTO that would have burned his vampire with 4 votes.
- Me realizing 2 turns later I had an AWE IN MY HAND that could have pushed the PTO through DOH!!!!!
- Martin going down screaming to the Malks.
- Joel following suit when sandwitched between Merrick and Michael.
- Michael bleeding me down too 1 pool with a massive lunge bleed from the Reverend and friends.
- Everyone realizing that the Reverend actually had +1 bleed....another DOH!!!! moment.
The minor mistake made by all players saw me survive on 1 pool and Golconda Arika (for some reason) giving Merrick vote control (from a power struggle). We didn't discover our error till a few turn later, Merrick mantained control of the cultist deck and brought out quite a large array of small vampires and equipment.
My deck suddenly decided to come back from holiday to find the world on fire and it kicked into gear, with me bleeding Merrick for 4-6 each turn, but he managd to oust Joel and then Micheal....the pool buffer keeping him afloat and bleeding me out with the ravening horde of small cultist vampires.
Merrick 1 Game Wind and 4Vps.
Joel 1 Vp.
Damien.