Submission: Mastering Puppets

Name: Mastering Puppets
Cardtype: Action Modifier
Cost: N/A
Capacity: N/A
Discipline: Dominate/Presence
Clan: N/A
Requires an untapped vampire other than the acting vampire when an ally or younger (than this modifying vampire) vampire is attempting to block.

dom/pre: The block fails, that minion may not attempt to block this action again.

DOM/PRE: As above, and if the action succeeds, this modifying vampire burns 1 blood to cause the blocking minion to tap and enter combat with a minion controlled by another methuselah (than its controller). In this combat, this vampire has a press, only usable to continue combat. Only one Mastering Puppets at superior can be played each action.

Flavor text: "These neonates are so rash and impulsive, so easily provoked and distracted, like puppets in strings." -Lady Anne Bowesley, Ventrue, Queen of London.

Art notes: A shadowy figure in the background mentally influencing a ganger in the foreground, causing him to forget a person he was harassing and instead turn his attention (and anger) to a random other person who happened to be nearby.

World of Darkness reference: No specific one, but this card represents pretty much the typical things that one can do with dominate and presence, messing up with peoples minds and emotions.

How does this card address a compelling game need?: As can be seen from the discplines this card uses, it is mostly aimed to help Ventrue with their biggest problem of getting actions through, while also offering a rather unique effect at the superior level that can be used to manipulate the table in ways like one should be able to do with dominate and presence. It is still reasonably limited though to not make it too powerful as it only works on younger and requires you to have at least two minions out before you can even play it, with the non-acting one needing to be untapped also.

Created by: Kari Mäkinen

I think it's overpowered (stronger than Siren's Lure), it dilutes dom/pres with the ability to stealth/block fails wich is not what those disciplines do. Dominate is already the strongest (most efficient at ousting straight up) discipline in the game, giving them options that normally fall outside of their discipline is another power increase.
Ventrue do have ways to get things through: seduction and daring the dawn, otherwise they get blocked do some fortitude combat (prevent*press, wwstick and target vitals) and freak drive to do something else.

I'd really like more viability for non dominate based decks instead of an addition to the already impressive dominate package.

I wouldn't say its strictly stronger than siren's lure since it only works on younger, and requires two superior discplines for the full effect, and costs a blood for the superior, and what it does is very thematic to what those discplines are all about, which is manipulating others.

The inferior is quite OK I think. The superior effect is really powerful
I think the ability to not only to tap the would be blocker, but also to send him/her to combat say Enkidu across the table and especially with mandatory press is hilarious but bit over the top. Either drop the mandatory press or increase the cost in some significant way, say tap this modifying vampire to...

That is quite fair suggestion, making the superior tap the modifying vampire also could be possible way to make it weaker, or removing the press would work too if its deemed too powerful. The reason why I put the press there was because I kind of modeled it after Frenzy (and those couple presence actions that let minions to enter combat), the modifying vampire using presence to cause the target to get really angry, and dominate to point them to the direction he or she wants. The basic effect is more weaker version of this in that one they only make the target to focus their attention on someone random nearby, allowing the acting vampire to slip past during the distraction.

Let's be honest, I use the following grid.

A - is that a dominate card - YES
B - is it not a wallpaper - NO
=> conclusion : it's a bad idea. Change discipline or forget about it. If you want to represent all fluff use of dominate, you will go from "the strongest discipline" to "nobody will ever use a vampire without dominate".