Nikica Novakovic is the 2026 champion of Croatia!

The champion in the middle.

This event was played in Osiijek on January 24 with 40 Methuselahs. Reported by Denes Kocis, VEKN National Coordinator of Croatia:

First, a few words from the champion himself, Nikica Novakovic:

Playgroup from Osijek is the first one we, from Belgrade, made contact with back in 2003 when we started playing VTES and realized that we’re not alone in this world. Although they have diminished in size over the years, as life happens, there are always 2 or 3 players from Osijek at our Belgrade tournaments. Visiting them is always a joyous occasion, and it’s even more festive when the tournament attracts a large crowd alongside impeccable organization. So many people sharing a meal and reconnecting on things VTES and otherwise is something I look forward to every year for Croatian Nationals. This time I met the brand-new crew of players from Rijeka, Croatia, who came back to the scene after almost 20 years' hiatus, old friends from Austria, and old enemies from Hungary. :) What I was not looking forward to was a car ride with 4 other, not-so-small people in a small SUV and waiting at the border with the new Schengen entry system. 35 people were waiting for us, and the tournament started later than planned, but the grilled meat was still hot when the lunch time came!

Round 1
g2 Lasombra vote (me) -> g2 Tzimisce wall -> Camarilla Lasombra combat -> The Unnamed -> Black hand S&B

I’m playing first but have Dreams and 3 (out of 6) Deflections in my starting hand. Upon my first Cold War, for 3 dmg, my prey negotiates with the inferior Lasombras vote support in return for no aggression till the end of the game :/ Knowing that I have 2 stealth bleed decks behind me and a wall in front, I hunker down for a few turns, drawing into my 4th Deflection while discarding an odd thing here and there. My predator finally stabilizes after contesting The Unnamed’s Enkil Cog, which kept him bled for 4 and 5 each round, and finally goes forward. Prey with 5 pool and 2 cardinals (9 votes vs my 8 on the table, and I can’t get the Edge) can’t keep up with deflected bleeds at stealth from Karif al Numair and Izhim abd Azrael. Velya, the Flayer torporizes Izhim on a whim, and I manage to get off Cold War under Private Audience, and Gratiano finishes Tzimisce off as they have exhausted wakes and bounces. Vote lock is secured, but now Yewon Ong, Rinaldo Albizzi, and Azucena look back after terrorizing Unnamed’s cohort for a while. Moncada is torporized, and Azucena has no stealth to Graverob him or to punch down blocking Antonio Delgado, who already made Rinaldo Obedient once. Next turn, I banish Yewon and leave the prey at 1 pool with bleeds (no one left to play 2nd tradition), where his own Fame on unfortunate Horde, which was ticking for a round, kills him. I draw into my 6th and last deflection in less than 40% of the cards played. Unleash can’t block bounced bleed from Karim with Dominion, but reduces it with Visions of Zapathasura. Ancilla Empowerment removes 4 from prey, 5 from predator, and 3 from me. KRC kills the prey. I finally take some bleeds, but way too late, and Anarchist Uprising explodes my last prey for a table sweep. 1GW 5VP

As is established, a barbeque for lunch break, sitting all together.

Some Hardestadt’s shenanigans.

Round 2
Lutz & Co-> g2 Lasombra vote (me) -> Salubri grinder -> Path of Power and Inner Voice -> !Malk S&B

Unimpressive start, but my predator has it worse with S&B on his neck and no Zillahs’. I know I can’t bleed the grinder (well, I can, but it’s gonna fly everywhere), but votes are easy… except when Lutz finally gets out, and my grand prey’s Aaradhya and Üresség are also damaging me when calling Black Forest base :/ When I call Black Forest Base, it’s to break even, and the occasional post-vote modifier makes up for the difference, and Antonio Delgado stays unlocked, so yay! I annoy my prey, and I wait for Lutz to die, and then I’ll bounce some bleeds, I guess :shrug: Worked the last time. Lutz dies an undignified death after Wash on Minion Tap and Delaying Tactic on KRC under Awe. Now Rodolfo, Kite, and Dolphin Black are bleeding me. I guess votes were easy for my grand prey is now afraid of me, as 3 Salubris with DOM are behind her while she’s on ~10 pool. They agree twice to actively vote against me in exchange for Salubri's no-aggression pledge. Malachi gets Saulot's Guiding Wisdom, and there are 12 hostile votes (and a cancellation threat) vs my 8 from Antonio, Gratiano, and God Emperor of Dune, (11 with Power Structure), on the table. Again, I can’t hope to get the Edge over Ilonka with Sight Beyond Sight and all of the Argus’ Eyes. I’m proposing to my cross-table buddy that we kill our prey and have a head-on fight, but she is reluctant and likes the no-aggression pact a bit more. I take some bleeds when my minions are locked by Anarch Troublemaker and subsequently bounce a few. Still no votes for me. The agreement between Salubris and the Path of Power gang does not get renewed, and now she’s in trouble, although her own prey played Spying Mission on 2 bleeds that made it to her. Head-on with me comes with a disadvantage for her, but still better to end with one VP than none, so she accepts the previous deal proposal. Anarch Troublemaker comes back to Salubris, where it started, and Salubris are ousted. 1st VP this game and 15 min to go. !Malks die in the same turn, and the remaining matchup is not difficult due to vote lock. 1GW 3VP

Round 3
Matasuntha -> g2 Tzim, Path of Caine -> Ministry S&B -> Garou Gangrel Anarchs -> g2 Lasombra vote (me)

My predator’s 2 little Gangrels bring out 2 little Renegade Garous and a few turns later, Moncada is Famous in torpor, and my game ends in (purple) smoke. 0 VP

I use this opportunity to act as a waiter and bring drinks to people still playing and catch breath before the finals that I enter with 2GW 8VP total.

Standings before final:
1. Hrvoje Silic 2 GW 9 VP
2. Nikica Novakovic 2 GW 8 VP 132 TP
3. Milos Krstic 2 GW 8 VP 132 TP
4. Paul Direktor 2 GW 7,5 VP
5. Nenad Nikolic 2 GW 6 VP



As the 2nd seed, I chose seating so that I prey on Ministry with 2 Gangrels (2 players from Belgrade playgroup playing 90% same deck) behind me and contesting, hopefully. The top seed, Gangrel 1, sits in front of me. Not great; not terrible.

Yeah… :)

No accelerators in my first 8 cards (57% chance to get one, eh?). The three Gangrel players agree on one of the barons each, which is amazing, as it makes the amount of intercept on my undirected actions quite predictable.

Prey has Casey and André the Manipulator; the predator has contested Massimiliano, contested Nathan Turner, and contested Kuyen, all contested by my grand predator. I have the vote lock, no predator, and 4 of my Cold Wars in the first 15 cards.

The game is smooth, and I’m careful to balance so that my 2 predators do not die too fast, although, ideally, my predator should die before the grand predator so that Ministry gets only 6 pool instead of 12 for our inevitable clash.

Timely Villein on Massimiliano (before he got contested too) and blocked Banishment gets my predator out of my backoust range so I focus on the prey knowing Ministry with Anazir, Nonu Dis and Veneficti will get 12 fresh pool soon. Our agreement is that he lets one more round of contest pass instead of killing his prey outright, and in the turn I kill my prey I’m not touching him. Might seem paranoid, but if my pred (Miloš, who won the Slovakian nationals) gets 2 barons back, my stealth might not be enough, and his deck has 3xDelaying and 2xDI to boot. It’s better if he has no vampires at all by contest or death. Cold War on predator’s Garibaldi and 3 dmg to prey + 1 from Privileged Position and KRC latter my prey is gone.

Ministry kills the remaining 2 Gangrels, and we enter the final lap with 23 and 20-something pool in the war chests. I’m getting clogged with my Obediences, and soon the masters start coming in. I play Monastery to cycle cards. He bleeds without me blocking, and I vote without him interfering. His bleeds are for 2-5 at stealth, and mine are smaller as I’m slow to cycle cards, but politics chip away at his pool with Privileged Position. Banishment on a full Nonu Dis, who got the Villein + Giant’s Blood treatment, saves me from one bleed for a turn. Gratiano crashes into Unleash and gets rescued. The Ancient Influence gives us both 5 pool, but Privileged Position subtracts one from him, and I have some 13 pool once I returned the 3 from the uncontrolled region that Unholy Sacrament “gave” me, via Info Highway. He has a sporting chance to kill me with Sergio Bueno as his 4th minion. I survive the onslaught with 2 pool remaining and play Dreams to draw into 2nd Govern. GG with 3VPs. I was so focused on cycling cards that I completely ignored that I have KRC, besides the Govern in hand, which was enough anyway, and I can’t play it once I’m down to 1 pool.

The deck served me well, and I would not make any changes. In 4 games, I always had the same 3 vampires out (Moncada, Antonio, Gratiano). Regent showed up once, but with Tzimisce around the corner, it was discarded. Power Structure served for one crucial vote, and so did one Private Audience. I played 1 Obedience in 4 games, but blocking with confidence is important with no wakes to be found. Freak Drive is the latest edition (shoutout to Dušan Kosanović), as it’s easy to cycle, and Moncada can make up for the cost with a Voter Cap, with the benefits of multi-action.

Result: Nikica 3 VP, Paul 2 VP. Congratulations Nikica!

Tournament winning deck: “Purple haze” by Nikica Novaković
Description: "It is a pity, that most of the pieces had to be swept from the board." - Ambrosio Luis Monçada

Expect to have 3 vampires to work with. Depending on the draw, getting 9 cap and having 2 vamps to Govern down on Gratiano might be the way to go.

Path of Power gives me a better Seduction in Dominant Personality and a better Tenebrous Form in Unthinkable Humiliation.

All 3 of the post-vote cards can be played at the same time, so there is a much lower chance of getting clogged than with the Voter Cap alone. If you play all three on the single action, you get style points (and 6 pool)!

Unholy Sacrament is much easier to cycle than Zillah's.

Cold war is good, even for "just" 3 dmg, since there is no haggling over where the remaining one goes, unlike with KRC.

Obedience gives you confidence that your one unlocked vampire will not be locked when blocking.

Crypt (12 cards)
4x Ambrosio Luis Monçada, Plenipotentiary 10   DOM OBT POT PRE aus for   cardinal   Lasombra:2
2x Antonio Delgado   9   DOM OBT POT tha    archbishop   Lasombra:2
2x Francisco Domingo de Polonia   9   DOM OBT POT PRE pro   archbishop Lasombra:2
1x Alvaro, The Scion of Angelica   9   OBT POT dom pre   archbishop Lasombra:2
3x Gratiano   8   DOM OBT obf pot   priscusLasombra:2

Library (73 cards)
Master (17; 5 trifle)
1x Dreams of the Sphinx
1x Elysian Fields
1x Information Highway
1x Monastery of Shadows
1x Power Structure
1x Privileged Position
1x Regent
5x Unholy Sacrament
5x Villein

Action (6)
6x Govern the Unaligned

Political Action (15)
1x Anarchist Uprising
1x Ancient Influence
1x Ancilla Empowerment
3x Banishment
5x Cold War
4x Kine Resources Contested

Action Modifier (23)
2x Amici Noctis
4x Dominant Personality
2x Freak Drive
2x Magnetic Authority
2x Private Audience
5x Shadow Play
4x Unthinkable Humiliation
2x Voter Captivation

Action Modifier/Reaction (1)
1x Ominous Chorus

Reaction (11)
6x Deflection
5x Obedience

Friday night, warm-up party.

A few closing words from Denes:

We, a small community of VTES players from Osijek, welcomed the not so small gathering of 40 players for the Croatian Nationals 2026. Grateful to see the guests from Vienna (Austria), Budapest, Hatvan and Kecskemet (Hungary), Brežice (Slovenia), Belgrade and Novi Sad (Serbia), Pazin, Rijeka, Zagreb and Osijek (Croatia).

Knowing that some people would have to travel the day before, we organized a get together party at the nearby restaurant where we enjoyed some local meals and drinks to get to know each better.

Grateful enough, all the players preregistered with me, so I was somewhat less worried about the organization of the Saturday tournament knowing that our venue hosts are preparing a fine barbeque.

Albeit the tournament started half an hour late, due to border crossing of our friends from Belgrade we managed to smoothly finish the tournament in allocated time.

After the tournament, we who had some strength left, went for a nice evening sightseeing of local bars with our newfound friends.

I would like to thank the players for being all together nice and polite, and to having allocated their time to bring this event to an even bigger scale than I hoped for. Also, big thanks for my friends who helped a lot with the organization - Goran, Sinisa and Hrvoje. And thank the sponsors!

Thanks for this Denes, excellent report of what seems to have been an excellent event!

Vampire: Elder Kindred Network Newsletter December 2025

 
Greetings fellow Methuselahs,

Happy new year! Let´s celebrate with some spectacular preview art by Krzysztof Bieniawski. It will appear on a 2026 version of a classic VTES card - maybe you can guess which one?

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84 cards added to print-on-demand!

Black Chantry Productions have added another 84 cards to the print-on-demand offer of VTES Legacy Singles at Gamepod. This time it is cards of the Malkavian antitribu clan and the Dementation discipline that have been updated to the most recent layout and wording templates. A list of what cards have functional changes was in the official announcement. The same cards are said to appear on Drivethrucards (US printing) soon. A complete list with all Legacy Singles is available separately.

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The 2025 VTES and VEKN recap

Vampire: The Eternal Struggle entered its 31st year of existence, and what a year! Lots of new cards where printed and organised play flourished, with tournaments on all levels, including championships, in almost 40 countries, and Grand Prix circuits on four continents. The number of unique active players (a person that has played a VEKN-sanctioned tournament in the last 18 months) has increased from 2 383 in 2024, to 2 844 this year!

Here´s a very condensed recap of the year:

January: The 30-day “new card legality limit” for tournaments is removed.

February: Hecata preconstructed decks hit the stores.

April: Open playtest of two-player VTES starts, still ongoing.

May: The first tournament ever in Athens, Greece.

June: Martin Weinmayer is the 2025 North American champion!

June: Marc Álvarez is the 2025 Spanish champion, best of 123 players!

June: Joab Rogério is the 2025 champion of Brazil, best of 114 players!

August: The official Vampire: The Eternal Struggle V5 format is introduced.

September: Micon Garcia is the 2025 Asia champion!

September: The tournament rules are updated.

October: Nerijus Mikalajūnas is the European champion of VTES 2025!

October: Ben Szymkow is the 2025 Oceania champion!

October: Gino Sepúlveda is the 2025 South American champion!

October: Four Sabbat-themed preconstructed decks are released, especially celebrated in Italy with spectacular “The Week of Sabbat”.

November: Extremely many tournaments – most ever for a single month? 75 registered tournaments in 26 different countries, among them 12 major events.

If you want to know more about anything of this, check out the VEKN Newsletter archive.

The VEKN wants to thank all volunteers and ALL THE FANTASTIC VTES players for making this community and game staying undead!

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Martin Cuchet is the 2025 champion of France!

This tournament was played on November 8 (sorry for the late report!) with 52 players.

Read the full report: France National Championship 2025

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Martin Weinmayer wins Iberian Grand Prix 2025!

This tournament was attended by 41 Methuselahs on November 29 in Lisbon, Portugal.

Read the full report: Iberian Grand Prix 2025

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Milos Krstic is the 2025 champion of Slovakia!

This event took place in Bratislava on November 22 with 26 players.

Read the full report: Slovakia National Championship 2025

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Darby Keeney wins Grand Prix Vidor 2025!

This tournament took place on December 6 with 22 players.

Read the full report: Grand Prix Vidor 2025

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Darby Keeney wins Gulf Coast Roast 2025!

The final with the top five players of the Gulf Coast Roast Grand Prix circuit was played in Vidor on December 8.

Read the full report: Gulf Coast Roast final 2025

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Ignacio Vázquez wins Lilith´s Call 2025!

This is another exception from our "only reports from National, Grand Prix or Continental level" newsletter rule, included here because of the great cause and the excellent report.

Read the full report: Lilith´s Call 2025

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Überwald League of Temperance - a beginner-friendly tournament

We normally only present National, Grand Prix and Continental level tournament reports here, but we make an exception for this one, to showcase what a neonate playgroup looks like and how to develop it. 

Read the full report: Überwald League of Temperance

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A new way of getting cards in Europe!

Behold, a new fantastic way of getting VTES cards. In the words of the creator Miki Jorge:

TCG Market: A New Era for Vampire: The Eternal Struggle Players

Collecting and trading cards have always been an essential part of the soul of games like Vampire: The Eternal Struggle (VTES). Until now, buying or selling cards depended on forums, groups, or direct exchanges between players — but that stage has just changed!

TCG Market has arrived: a marketplace created by and for players, designed to offer a modern, safe, and seamless buying and selling experience.

Since its launch on December 15, TCG Market allows anyone — Antediluvians, neonates, or collectors alike — to list their cards for sale without the need for intermediaries. It’s not a traditional online store, but a community where players themselves are the true protagonists of the market.

The platform’s philosophy is clear: no sales commissions. Neither buyers nor sellers pay any fees to use it. Everything is designed to encourage community participation and make cards circulate more easily among fans of the game.

In addition, payments are completely secure, and shipping rates are very competitive, ensuring a smooth experience from any corner of Europe. TCG Market is now available to buyers across all European countries and already allows sellers from several of them to list their products — with a commitment to expand coverage even further soon.

The first game available is, of course, Vampire: The Eternal Struggle. From the very first Jyhad edition to the rarest promo cards, players can now find or list the cards they need to complete their library or strengthen their decks.

Since its launch, barely a couple of weeks ago, the platform has gathered more than 150 registered accounts, about 15 active sellers, and a total of 7,000 products listed.

If you’re passionate about the game and want to be part of this new open marketplace, visit tcgmarket.es and discover how TCG Market can help you expand your influence... both at the table and beyond.

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Reminder: Please join the World of Darkness Community Map!

Please, advertise your VTES playgroup and/or VTES events on the World of Darkness Community Map! This is important to help the game grow. But only things that happen in public places where anyone is welcome (nothing played at someone´s home) and no online events.

Check out the map here: World of Darkness Community Map

Submit here: Map submission form

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Black Chantry Summary: December 2025

• An article version of Product Director Ben Peal´s product road map presentation was published, including a New Blood preview card.

• Same Ben Peal was interviewed at Reading Between the Lyons.

• The preview season for New Blood Ravnos, Salubri and Tzimisce soon closes – check out all previews on the product pages at Blackchantry.com. The official store date is February 28.

• Playtest round 2 of the two Brazil and New York-themed sets has ended and reports are compiled for the design team to chew through. First comments indicated most things are looking clear and good, so let´s see if a third round of testing is even needed. Current plan is April or May release for these.

• Legacy Malkavian antitribu and Dementation cards are up at Gamepod (see above in this newsletter), also coming to Drivethrucards soon.

• The two-player set now has a target release in the third quarter 2026. Open playtest is still ongoing, check it out at VEKN.net.

• The following Black Chantry products are currently available through Gamepod, Drivethrucards.com and other stores:
Lost Kindred bundle (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Keepers of Tradition Reprint Bundle 1 (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Keepers of Tradition Reprint Bundle 2 (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Heirs of the Blood Reprint Bundle 1 (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Heirs of the Blood Reprint Bundle 2 (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Den of Fiends Preconstructed Deck (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Libertine Ball Preconstructed Deck (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Pact with Nephandi Preconstructed Deck (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Parliament of Shadows Preconstructed Deck (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Anthology I bundle
VTES Card Creator (Drivethrucards only)
25th Anniversary
First Blood: Malkavian (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
First Blood: Nosferatu (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
First Blood: Toreador (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
First Blood: Tremere (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
First Blood: Ventrue (Also Spanish, French) (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
VTES Legacy Card Singles (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Promo Pack 1 (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Promo Pack 2 (Drivethrucards and Gamepod only)
Promo Pack 3 (For promotion only)
Promo Pack 4 (For promotion only)
VTES "Parity Shift" playmat
VTES card sleeves
Vampire: The Eternal Struggle Fifth Edition (Stores only)
Vampire: The Eternal Struggle Fifth Edition Latin (Drivethrucards only)
Fifth Edition: Malkavian (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Fifth Edition: Nosferatu (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Fifth Edition: Toreador (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Fifth Edition: Tremere (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Fifth Edition: Ventrue (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Promo Pack 3 (Event promos only)
Fifth Edition: Banu Haqim (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Fifth Edition: Brujah (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Fifth Edition: Gangrel (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Fifth Edition: The Ministry (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
New Blood: Malkavian (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
New Blood: Nosferatu (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
New Blood: Toreador (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
New Blood: Tremere (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
New Blood: Ventrue (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
The Fall of London (Also Spanish, French, Latin)
Echoes of Gehenna
Shadows of Berlin (Also Spanish, French)
New Blood: Banu Haqim (Also Spanish, French)
New Blood: Brujah (Also Spanish, French)
New Blood: Gangrel (Also Spanish, French)
New Blood: The Ministry (Also Spanish, French)
Fifth Edition: Ravnos (Also Spanish, French)
Fifth Edition: Salubri (Also Spanish, French)
Fifth Edition: Tzimisce (Also Spanish, French)
30th Anniversary (Also Spanish, French)
Fifth Edition: Lasombra (Also Spanish, French)
Fifth Edition: Hecata (Also Spanish, French)
New Blood: Hecata (Also Spanish, French)
New Blood: Lasombra (Also Spanish, French)
Path of Caine (Also Spanish, French)
Path of Cathari (Also Spanish, French)
Path of Death and the Soul (Also Spanish, French)
Path of Power and the Inner Voice (Also Spanish, French)

Do you have opinions or questions for Black Chantry? Start a topic on the VEKN forum, or contact the company by e-mail, Facebook, Instagram or Twitter.

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Recent news in the World of Darkness

December was a rather calm month over at White Wolf, but we want to mention two things:

• Vampire: The Masquerade - Bloodlines 2, "where visceral vampire action meets a neo-noir murder mystery", had an Winter Holiday update, as shown in a dedicated video trailer. It brings new customisation options and custom difficulty settings, including an field of view slider, motion blur toggle and choosing to play as only Phyre or Fabien.

• Game designer and Storyteller extraordinaire Jason Carl left his position as Brand Marketing Manager of White Wolf over at Paradox Interactive. This might not mean a lot for you, but Jason has been the marketing contact for VEKN and this newsletter´s editior for 7 years, doing an excellent job. We wish him good luck in his new endevours!

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Calendar

Major events coming up:
February 7-8: National Championship Hungary, Kecskemét
February 28: National Championship Italy, Caldonazzo
February 28: National Championship Lithuania, Vilnius
March 7: National Championship Portugal, Coimbra
April 18: Grand Prix Zagreb, Croatia
April 25: National Championship Finland, Vantaa
April 25: National Championship Ireland, Dublin
May 23: National Championship Brazil, Campina Grande
July 25: Grand Prix Helsinki, Finland
September 19: European Championship 2026, Vilnius, Lithuania
December 13: Grand Prix Cearense, Brazil

Tournaments for the coming month (registered so far) are in:
Brazil x9
Chile
Czech Republic
Finland x2
France
Germany x2
Hungary
Italy x2
Mexico
Netherlands
Online x3
Portugal x2
Spain x11
Sweden x2
UK
USA x2

For details about these events, see the VEKN Event Calendar. Also, check out the World of Darkness Community Map.

Remember: Online tournaments are possible - just check the box "Online tournament" when you add the event to the calendar!

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Contact VEKN

You can contact the VEKN Inner Circle members using the contact forms at VEKN.net. Also follow the official VTES Facebook page Vampire: The Eternal Struggle, the official VEKN X (Twitter) account @VEKN_VTES and the official VTES Discord server.

The true sign of intelligence is not knowledge but imagination.