No Secrets from Vlad Tepes

The wording for Vlad Tepes is rather interesting:

Independent: Vlad can play and use cards requiring a title or a sect as if he had that title or were of that sect. +1 bleed.

I’m particularly interested in “can...use”. This wording seems to imply that if he plays a card requiring a sect or title that goes on him, his use of that card, and whether or not a sect/title-specific effect triggers at a particular time, is OPTIONAL, per the verbiage “can”. Is this right?

The case for abuse would be as follows:

Vlad plays No Secrets From the Magaji, worded as follows:

No Secrets From the Magaji
[Action] Action
+1 stealth action. Requires a ready magaji.
Put this card on this magaji and untap him or her. The magaji with this card gets +1 intercept when attempting to block vampires. If this magaji is tapped, he or she may attempt to block a vampire as if untapped. Burn this card if this magaji attempts to block a vampire but is not successful. A vampire may have only one No Secrets From the Magaji.

I can imagine a scenario in which the clause “Burn this card if this magaji attempts to block a vampire but is not successful” would normally kick in, but the player argues, “oh, I just won’t use the card as a magaji with respect to my failing to block, so the card doesn’t burn. After all, Vlad is not a magaji.”

Thanks!

Killiam wrote:

The wording for Vlad Tepes is rather interesting:

Independent: Vlad can play and use cards requiring a title or a sect as if he had that title or were of that sect. +1 bleed.

I’m particularly interested in “can...use”.

This thread over here: www.vekn.net/forum/rules-questions/69627-vlad-tepes-regent?start=6 has many interesting points about it. I've started on the second page, because that's where actual useful information starts because Pascal starts clarifying things, whereas page one is mostly speculation. Read the whole thing if you can, however.

Killiam wrote:

This wording seems to imply that if he plays a card requiring a sect or title that goes on him, his use of that card, and whether or not a sect/title-specific effect triggers at a particular time, is OPTIONAL, per the verbiage “can”. Is this right?

In most cases, it's also optional because Vlad doesn't have to do the thing that uses the card - say, a card in play that requires a Sabbat vampire to take an action to burn it, such as calling a referendum to burn Purchase Pact. (It requires a sect or title to play, so when he takes the action to burn it, he can mirror those requirement on that action.)

Killiam wrote:

No Secrets From the Magaji
[Action] Action
+1 stealth action. Requires a ready magaji.
Put this card on this magaji and untap him or her. The magaji with this card gets +1 intercept when attempting to block vampires. If this magaji is tapped, he or she may attempt to block a vampire as if untapped. Burn this card if this magaji attempts to block a vampire but is not successful. A vampire may have only one No Secrets From the Magaji.

I can imagine a scenario in which the clause “Burn this card if this magaji attempts to block a vampire but is not successful” would normally kick in, but the player argues, “oh, I just won’t use the card as a magaji with respect to my failing to block, so the card doesn’t burn. After all, Vlad is not a magaji.”

It's never been explicitly ruled on to my knowledge, but my off-the-cuff ruling in a tournament environment where I didn't know better would be:

His card text says he can use the card as a Magaji. When he chooses to use it in that way, he gets the good bits and the bad bits, and that means he gets to attempt a block with consequences if he fails. That's one "use", to my mind - he can block as a Magaji, with the good bits and the bad bits.



Somewhat analogously, if Mata Hari had sufficient capacity to bring the Great Beast into play immediately with the initial play of Call the Great Beast, she can't pretend to be a Baali for the purposes of playing the card but then turn it off for resolution so she doesn't burn.

jamesatzephyr wrote:

His card text says he can use the card as a Magaji. When he chooses to use it in that way, he gets the good bits and the bad bits, and that means he gets to attempt a block block with consequences if he fails.

Okay, then if Vlad were untapped or playing a Wake effect to block instead of using the No-Secrets block effect, then he could choose not to burn it, correct?

I played No secrets using Vlad before. I always played with the assumption that any failed block whether or not given by No secrets would burn it.
Since the 'burn this card...' text is in the next sentence.
Ill wait for James or Pascal for a more definitive answer.

Card text:
Burn this card if this magaji attempts to block a vampire but is not successful.

It doesn't matter how the attempts fails, only that the attempt fails.