Legbiter's Halloweenies

Legbiter's Halloweenies 

.... a Setite/GioVanni deck which DOESN'T suck.
This is a deck I've been playing with over a period of some months, and it is
now at a stage where it can do quite well in social play against good
players. In a previous incarnation it was good enough that when David Tatu
[runner-up in Atlanta last year, and all-round Good Chap] was my prey, he
felt it necessary to help his grand-predator [Lunar Moon] to oust me ... but
I've tweaked it some more since then [mainly to improve its pool gain], and
now it wins, regularly. The combination of insane chainsaw-wielding violence,
HORDES of weenie minions, Deathless Allies and corruption is a difficult one
for people to deal with but it kinda appeals to me, for some odd reason 
..remarkable, doncha think, for such a sweet mild-mannered chap as m'self? 
Here is the deck:

CRYPT [12 vampires]
4 GIOVANNI [i LOVE these guys. If ONLY the Giovanni girlies could've 
            fitted into this deck].
Cristofero Giovanni 3 pot nec
Mario Giovanni 3 pot nec
2 x Rudolpho Giovanni 3 NEC
8 SETITES [and these. Sigh. My two favourite clans, and my favourite combo].
Dedefra 5 obf nec SER +1 hand damage against Camarilla Vampires [Lady Legbiterin a bad mood]
2 x Hadrian Garrick 4 pre obf +1 hand damage
Khalil Anvari 3 pre ser
2 x Lalitha 2 ser
2 x Nepata 4 obf pre ser [a former Bride of Legbiter in a time-for-a-li'l-recreation 
                          mood ... sigh .. scene fades to reverie of white lacy lingerie 
                          and unbridled passion .....]

[Average 2.83, High draw 17, low draw 10].

LIBRARY [90 cards] 

20 MASTER CARDS [22%] 
No particular comment, except forGiant's Blood .... 
an unusual card for a weeny deck, you might think, and so
in a way it is. But, of course, the idea is to play it BEFORE the
heavy-hitter does, thus really pissing him/her off. No real skin off your
nose, if s/he plays it first. Also, it's probable that one of these cards
[SC, GB or one of the THGs] would have to be a Barrens, if you wanted to play
this deck in a tourney. 

4 x Blood Doll 
Giant's Blood 
Heidelburg Castle,Germany [o alright, ONE other comment ...use this to move 
                          the chainsaw around, and to rescue minions from the 
                          Talbot's Chainsaw trap [no blood, and can't hunt]. 
			  DO NOT cheat by trying to move the chainsaw to/from 
                          Ambrosius using this card. He is NOT a vampire.] 
KRCG News Radio 
Morgue Hunting Ground
5 x Obfuscate 
Opium Den 
Succubus Club [Sigh, OK, ONE more. Michael Beer told me to put this in. 
               i am not sure why. But Michael is DEFINITELY a better 
               player than me, so he is probably right.] 
2 x Temple Hunting Ground 
3 xTribute to the Master 

MINION CARDS 
32 ACTIONS [36%] 
No Comment, except to point out that Corruption will ONLY work in an 
No-Card-Limits environment. As a play-for-fun kinda guy i usually find myself 
in SPIRITUAL agreement withthe Card-Limits people. But this deck demonstrates 
why, nevertheless, i personally am adamantly of the No-Card-Limits camp. 

18 x Corruption 
10 x The Embrace 
Form of Corruption 
Lure of the Serpent [War ghoul, Succubus, Muddles and somebody else 
                    acquiring/ playing Ambrosius are BAAAD for this deck]. 
3 xTemptation [Two of these i swapped off Pierre Rebstock for the new 
               [Urza'sSaga] versions of Timetwister and City of Brass. 
               Silly ol' Pierre, huh? He even threw in a 
               Vampiric Embrace .... hehehehe]. 

18 ACTION MODIFIERS [20%] 
A heavy intercept deck can piss off most people, but not this deck. Also, the 
unexpected stealth-bleed for two of Kherebutu is GREAT fun. 
4 x Cloak the Gathering 
3 x Forgotten Labyrinth 
3 x Lost in Crowds 
5 x Spectral Divination [with the KRCG and Rudolpho, this is enough for 
                         +2 Intercept, but you won't get many of these. 
                         Keep them for the important blocks!] 
3 x Spying Mission 

7 ALLIES [8%] 
Allies and Equipment benefit IMMENSELY from the mantra: 
"Allies and Equipment Suck". Keep it up, News-Group Comrades! 
It's true that simple-minded ally/equipment strategies suggested in 
the VTES literature ARE easy to spot and easy to counter, and it's also true 
that a deck BASED SOLELY on either is likely to fail. It DOESN'T follow that 
allies and equipment in GENERAL suck. 

5 x Ambrosius the Ferryman, Wraith 
2 x Kherebutu (Bane Mummy) 

6 COMBAT CARDS [7%] 
ALWAYS have SOME combat is article I of the Legbiter Code. 
When i am feeling romantic this extends to, Combat is Good In and Of Itself.
But, alas, that is not really true ..... 
[debate to be continued on the NewsGroup, ad infinitum]. 

4 x Fake Out 
2 x Lucky Blow 

6 EQUIPMENT [7%] 
6x Talbot's Chainsaw [This is the ONLY thing in the current Newsletter that 
                      has anything to do with the Gangrel antitribu - for why, 
                      see the last issue. Hey, I''m feeling guilty, alright? 
                      So I'm TRYING to construct a Gangrel-anticombatty sorta 
                      deck for the next Portsmouth tournament. Happy now????].

Clearly this is a rare-heavy deck so it's unlikely to achieve wide 
circulation. But i think it does make the point that apparently-sucky clans
and cards CAN be made to work in unexpectedly-powerful ways in a 
No-Card-Limits environment. A deck that brings out little itty-bitty Setites
and Giovanni and plays a few Corruptions lulls people into a false sense of
security .... then WHAM! Embrace! Embrace! 4-5 Corruptions a turn! WHAM!
Ambrosius plus Talbot's Chainsaw! All of a sudden things are looking BAAAAD.