Ben Peal#
Official V:EKN Clan Salubri Newsletter Vol.1 No.1 (March 2002)
Of interest to Scholars and Slanderers
Editor: Ben Peal
In this issue:
1. Introduction
2. Miscellanea et Demonica - strategy
3. The Dwinding Few - featured vampire
4. The Powers of the Righteous - featured card
5. The Hosts of Heaven - featured deck
6. Conclusion
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1. INTRODUCTION
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Welcome to the first official V:EKN newsletter for the Salubri! In
this and the coming months, I'll be spotlighting the cards and
strategies of this mysterious clan. While they are healers who walk
the path of Golconda, they have been reviled and hunted by other clans,
who view them as diablerists. They seek to clear their name, and the
name of their founder Saulot, which has been slandered by the works of
the Baali. The Salubri also seek to free vampires from the bonds of
the inner beast, and lead them to salvation.
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2. MISCELLANEA ET DEMONICA
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The Salubri have a number of very strong cards available to them, such
as Renewed Vigor and Spirit Marionette. The problem that they face,
however, is getting these actions to succeed. With only Repulsion for
stealth, they can typically only generate two stealth on an action.
Given 2nd Trads and light intercept, two stealth often isn't enough.
Looking at the Salubri themselves, they can pull the same tricks with
Fortitude that the Ventrue have been doing for years. They can make
their actions unblockable with Day Operation and Daring the Dawn, with
the added advantage of having Renewed Vigor's ability in the outferior
to get them out of torpor. The trouble there is that a Salubri provides
a tempting target for diablerie, as they can be a obvious lynchpin for
your deck. You'll have to account for the extra defensive overhead in
your deck that may be required to protect your vampires, such as extra
wakes, intercept, and damage prevention.
Another option available is the "bruise 'n act" strategy. Matthias and
Blanche Hill can play Kiss of Ra at superior, which can be a substantial
threat to those considering blocking. There's also Dawn Operation,
which can help accomplish much the same thing. The problem here, apart
from the possibility that your opponents will have Fortitude as well, is
that the actions can still be readily blocked if your opponents feel
it's important for them to do so, or if they feel they can get away with
it.
The better approach lies with the vampires with whom they're teamed.
It isn't typical for a Bloodlines clan to operate by themselves, so one
should look at what other vampires can offer. Harbingers of Skulls and
!Ventrue immediately come to mind, as they share both Auspex and
Fortitude as in-clan disciplines. The Harbingers of Skulls, however,
have Necromancy, which provides a little extra stealth. One can include
a few Necromancy skill cards, as well as Matthias (who has inferior
Necromancy), to help supplement the stealth. The !Ventrue have some
stealth available to them as well as three !Ventrue (Quentin, Gustav,
and Gerard) have Obtenebration. Again, include a few skill cards, and
that can give the help you need.
One rarely talks about stealth without talking about Obfuscate, and it's
a discipline that can help the Salubri, as well. Vampires with superior
Obfuscate can help actions get through via Cloak the Gathering, and
again, skill cards help, too. Malkavians and !Malkavians are an obvious
choice, given that they share Auspex with the Salubri. The Samedi
provide an intriguing option, providing superior Obfuscate along with
the shared discipline of Fortitude, as well as Necromancy.
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3. THE DWINDLING FEW
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Matthias
Salubri
Capacity 7
AUS FOR OBE nec
Independent: While Matthias is ready, Baali and Followers of Set get
-1 bleed when bleeding you. +1 intercept. Scarce.
While he doesn't have a title, his special abilities more than make
up for it. Matthias can be the cornerstone of a very solid defense.
What I find most intriguing, however, is his inferior Necromancy.
He's the only Salubri with a second discipline that provides stealth.
The ability to play Spectral Divination and Call of the Hungry Dead
(even at inferior) can go a long way towards getting his actions
through. It also lets him team up nicely with his Cappadocian
colleagues, the Harbingers of Skulls.
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4. THE POWERS OF THE RIGHTEOUS
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Repulsion
Action Modifier
Obeah/Presence
[pre] Only usable when the acting vampire's action is announced. If this
action is blocked, the acting vampire gets 1 optional maneuver, only
usable to maneuver to long range, during the resulting combat.
[obe] +1 stealth
[OBE] Put this card on this vampire. This vampire gets +1 stealth. Burn
this card if this vampire goes to torpor. This vampire cannot have or
play another Repulsion.
This month's featured card is a staple item of the Salubri, as it
provides needed stelath to their actions. The only reason to use
it at inferior Obeah is if you're using Miriam Benyona, as it's
obviously better to have permanent stealth. Note that you can use
Repulsion at superior even when you don't need the stealth, much like
you can attempt to block with a minion who has a Sport Bike when the
intercept isn't needed. So, don't forget to play Repulsion when you
have it. Also, don't forget to burn the card when the vampire goes
to torpor.
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5. THE HOSTS OF HEAVEN
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I was going to build a deck with Salubri using Obtenebration, as
Quentin, Gustav, and Gerard from the !Ventrue have both Auspex and
Fortitude, as well as Obtenebration for stealth. I figured I could
throw in a few Obtenebration skill cards to retrofit the Salubri
and get that extra stealth I wanted for the Obeah actions. Alas,
I've run out of Obtenebration stealth cards, so here's another idea.
I noticed that there are a few Assamites with Auspex, Fortitude, or
both. Why not team them up with the Salubri, using superior Obfuscate
for Cloak the Gathering to help the Salubri get their actions through?
This deck needs some fine-tuning, but I think it illustrates the idea.
Crusaders and Saracens
1 x Tansu Bekir (4): OBF, cel
1 x Badr al-Budur (5): OBF, qui, cel, dom
1 x Yusuf, Scribe of Alamut (5): CEL, obf, qui, aus
1 x Fatima al-Faqadi (8): OBF, CEL, QUI, aus, for
2 x Tariq, The Silent (7): OBF, QUI, FOR, AUS, cel
2 x Bajazet al-Nasir (8): OBF, QUI, cel, for, pre
2 x Matthias (7): OBE, FOR, AUS, nec
2 x Blanche Hill (6): OBE, FOR, aus
1 x The Barrens
1 x KRCG News Radio
1 x Information Highway
2 x Heidelberg Castle, Germany
3 x The Stranger Among Us
2 x Fortitude
1 x Obfuscate
2 x Sudden Reversal
2 x Blood Doll
4 x Minion Tap
1 x Sight Beyond Sight
1 x Market Square
2 x Kali's Fang
1 x Tasha Morgan
1 x J.S. Simmons, Esq.
8 x Wake with Evening's Freshness
1 x Lost in Crowds
1 x Swallowed by the Night
1 x Faceless Night
8 x Cloak the Gathering
2 x Pulse of the Canaille
2 x Eagle's Sight
2 x The Spirit's Touch
2 x Enhanced Senses
6 x Telepathic Misdirection
3 x Telepathic Counter
6 x Repulsion
5 x Spirit Marionette
5 x Renewed Vigor
4 x Skin of Steel
4 x Skin of Rock
5 x Daring the Dawn
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6. CONCLUSION
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Well, that's all for this month. Hopefully I'll get some more
Obtenebration stealth cards so I can explore that angle. If you
have any ideas, comments, or suggestions of your own, feel free
to send them to me at fu...@optical.mindstorm.com.
See you next time!
- Ben Peal