Gino Sepulveda is the 2025 South American champion!
Organiser, champion, beautiful playmat and key card.
Report by Daniel Bravo, VEKN National Coordinator of Chile:
On Saturday, October 25th, the SAC was held in Santiago, Chile, at the Piedra Bruja store, bringing together 19 players. Among them, we had the pleasure of sharing the event with Daniel Motta, a player who travelled all the way from Brazil to play in Chile.
Three rounds were played, and the level of competition was very high – it wasn’t clear who would make it to the final table until the end of the third round. The same happened with the players who reached the anti-final.
The final table was composed of:
Daniel Motta, our friend from Brazil, playing his Stanislava deck, who achieved 4 VPs and 1 GW in the three rounds.
Sebastián Aguayo, with his Barons with Protean deck, earning 5 VPs and 1 GW.
Jackson Iribarren, who entered with 5 VPs and 1 GW, playing Ministry – Platinum Protocol.
Gino Sepulveda, who entered with 6 VPs and 1 GW, using his Anarch Gangrel V5 deck.
And the top performer of the tournament, Ignacio Vásquez, who entered with 8 VPs and 2 GWs, piloting his Hecata deck with zombies and ghosts.
The first player eliminated was our friend Daniel Motta, who quickly left to pick up his wife at the Costanera Shopping Center, saying goodbye to all the players. It was truly an honor to share the event with him.
The Hecata weren’t able to finish off the Ministry, and after a brief lapse, the Gangrel took out both the Hecata and the Ministry, leaving a Barons vs. Gangrel table. However, the Barons had no way to attack the pool directly. After several turns, they decided to end the game due to time, which made Gino the new South American Champion 2025, with 2.5 VPs in the final table.
We want to thank Tienda Piedra Bruja for the space, the patience, and the commemorative playmats for the tournament. Thanks also to all participants – especially the women players. Daniel Motta mentioned that there are more women participating in Chile than in Brazil. A warm hug to our Brazilian friends!
This are words from Gino Sepulveda:
The 2025 South American Championship had fewer players than its previous edition, but in exchange, we enjoyed a great atmosphere – friendly yet still very competitive. We also had the pleasure of welcoming Daniel Motta from Brazil, a very nice person and an excellent player.
I decided to play my deck “Gangrel Anarco Things”, a deck I know very well since I didn’t have time to test other builds, and I’ve reached several finals with it. The deck is fairly simple to play, quite forgiving, and focuses on bringing out lots of minions through Things to wear down the prey while blocking key actions – since it’s not a deck that blocks everything.
For the deck’s construction, I have to thank two great players and friends, Walbert and Felo, for their valuable feedback, and the amazing “VTES Conce” group for all the playtesting.
My first two rounds ended by time, and I only managed to get 2 victory points in total. However, I knew I could win the third table – and I did. The third game was hard-fought, as I had a tough battle against Consuelo, who had me against the ropes for several turns. She’s a new player who has grown a lot and keeps improving every time she plays.
I was unlucky to start the final table, but I wasn’t too worried since I chose to be preyed upon by Sebastián with his Barons Gangrel deck, which isn’t fast at applying pressure. He was quite busy defending against deflected bleeds and Stanislava’s plays, so I was able to slowly build my setup while Jackson eliminated Daniel, the great player from Brazil.
Then the table got stalled for both Hecata and Ministry, as they couldn’t break through the control defenses. I managed to oust the Hecata player thanks to a Monkey Wrench, and on the next turn, I ousted the Ministry, who only had two pool left. By that point, I had six minions and about 23 pool.
In the 1v1, the Barons deck couldn’t break through my defense and would eventually fall to attrition. Since it was late and we were all exhausted, we agreed to end the game in a draw — which secured my victory with 2.5 victory points.
Finally, I want to thank all the participants, especially the people I played with, Piedra Bruja, which is a great store that fully supports our community, and Daniel, our National Coordinator, for all his work and for continuing the efforts started by Faroock, our former Coordinator.
Tournament winning deck: "Gangrel Cositas SudAmericano" by Gino Sepúlveda A.
https://vdb.im/decks/a9772918e
Crypt (12 cards)
1x Massimiliano 7 ANI FOR pro baron Gangrel:6
2x Casey Snyder 6 PRO ani cel for baron Gangrel:6
2x Kuyén 6 ANI PRO baron Gangrel:6
1x André the Manipulator 6 FOR PRO Gangrel:5
1x Kamile Paukstys 5 PRO ani for Gangrel:6
1x Nathan Turner 4 PRO ani Gangrel:6
1x Joaquín de Cádiz 3 for pro Gangrel:6
1x Lillian 3 ani pro Gangrel:5
1x Malcolm 2 ani Gangrel:5
1x Ruslan Fedorenko 2 pro Gangrel:6
Library (90 cards)
Master (14; 4 trifle)
1x Anarch Free Press, The
1x Carfax Abbey
1x Ecoterrorists
1x Gangrel Revel
1x Garibaldi-Meucci Museum
1x Powerbase: Montreal
1x Rack, The
2x Smiling Jack, The Anarch
3x Vessel
1x Villein
1x Zoo Hunting Ground
Action (19)
2x Army of Rats
1x Constant Revolution
16x Thing
Ally (1)
1x Double Deuce
Equipment (3)
2x Heart of Nizchetus
1x Sniper Rifle
Retainer (4)
1x Mr. Winthrop
3x Raven Spy
Action Modifier (2)
2x Monkey Wrench
Action Modifier/Reaction (3)
3x Form of the Bat
Combat (20)
3x Donnybrook
13x Earth Meld
4x Form of Mist
Reaction (24)
4x Bait and Switch
5x Deep Ecology
4x Eyes of the Wild
9x Organized Resistance
2x Protection Racket
Thanks to Daniel and Gino for this report, and thanks to all volunteers, sponsors and participants. The Chile National championship is on November 29 – drop by if you have the chance!
Andy Smith wins Grand Prix Metairie 2025!
The finalists: Andy (champion), Mark, Norm, Brad and Dean.
Reported by Kelly Lyons, VEKN Prince of Vidor:
The 4th Leg of the Gulf Coast Roast II was held in Metairie, Louisiana at Go 4 Games. GCR II – New Orleans was about great VTES and great food. The appetizer started on Friday Night with a long time coming win from the Prince of Dallas, Chris Franklin for the Wave of Insanity Tournament. Chris played old school Matasuntha for the victory.
Enjoying his desert on Sunday, the winner for the Wave of Lethargy Tournament, Andy Smith, kept his outstanding play going. Andy played 5th Edition Lasombra to cap off a great weekend of tournament play by the veteran VTES player.
Saturday Grand Prix event, results after preliminary rounds:
1. Mark Figuerola 2 GW, 9 VP, 174 TP
2. Norm Brown 2 GW, 9 VP, 168 TP
3. Andy Smith 2 GW, 8 VP
4. Brad Cashdollar 2 GW, 6 VP
5. Dean Garrison 1 GW, 1 VP
The Gulf Coast Roast II – New Orleans was the main course of the weekend. Did we mention Andy Smith enjoyed his desert? That’s because Andy ate up the competition for dinner. Last year, Andy won two of the three tournaments in New Orleans. He repeated himself again in 2025, playing Gangrel Filth for the victory. 2 GW 8 VP and then 5 VP in the final!
The tournament winning deck: “Gangrel Filth” by Andy “AndisSoonerborn” Smith
Crypt (12 cards)
2x Massimiliano 7 ANI FOR pro baron Gangrel:6
2x Casey Snyder 6 PRO ani cel for baron Gangrel:6
2x Kuyén 6 ANI PRO baron Gangrel:6
1x André the Manipulator 6 FOR PRO Gangrel:5
1x Hanna Nokelainen 4 ani for pro Gangrel:6
1x Nathan Turner 4 PRO ani Gangrel:6
1x Indira 3 PRO Gangrel:6
1x Joaquín de Cádiz 3 for pro Gangrel:6
1x Ruslan Fedorenko 2 pro Gangrel:6
Library (90 cards)
Master (20; 5 trifle)
1x Anarch Free Press, The
1x Anarch Railroad
1x Backways
1x Carfax Abbey
2x Club Illusion
3x Dreams of the Sphinx
1x Ecoterrorists
1x Ennoia's Theater
2x Garibaldi-Meucci Museum
1x Powerbase: Montreal
5x Villein
1x Zoo Hunting Ground
Action (16)
1x Aranthebes, The Immortal
1x Army of Rats
14x Thing
Political Action (3)
3x Revolutionary Council
Equipment (1)
1x Heart of Nizchetus
Retainer (1)
1x Mr. Winthrop
Action Modifier (4)
3x Earth Control
1x Monkey Wrench
Action Modifier/Reaction (3)
3x Form of the Bat
Combat (16)
4x Donnybrook
8x Earth Meld
4x Form of Mist
Reaction (26)
7x Bait and Switch
6x Deep Ecology
3x Delaying Tactics
3x On the Qui Vive
7x Organized Resistance
We want to thank Devin Villegas, the Prince of New Orleans, for hosting and especially Go 4 Games for the great location and the JAMBALAYA!!!
Here are the current top 20 of for GCR II:
RANK PLAYER POINTS
1 Brad Cashdollar 48
2 Dean Garrison 43
3 Andy Smith 35
4 Joey Theriot 28
4 Norman Brown 28
6 Logan Jameson-Hatch 27
7 Justin Shackleford 26
8 Destyn Bowers 25
8 Kyle Fabre 25
8 Parth Patel 25
11 Matt Hatch 21
11 Chance Thebeau 21
11 Mark Figuerola 21
14 Chris Franklin 18
15 Tom Nichols 16
15 Kelly Lyons 16
17 Clay Farmer 15
17 Felipe Fiuza 15
17 Sidney Conklin 15
17 Darby Keeney 15
17 Josue Torres 15
Next up for the GCR II is the 5th and final leg of the season held in Vidor, Texas, on December 3-7. There will be video podcast, casual play, and all kinds of tournaments including a draft tournament. Go to https://www.lyonsdengames.com/vampiretes for more information.
Thank you Kelly for the report, and thanks to organisers, sponsors and of course all the wonderful players!
Ben Szymkow is the 2025 Oceania champion!
Champion in the middle.
Reported by RichE, VEKN Prince of Melbourne and Head Judge:
The Oceania Continental Championship (OCC) was held in Melbourne on Saturday, 25 October. We would like to thank Plenty of Games for hosting, Black Chantry for the beautiful price support, Mots Imports, Australia’s Online VTES card store, Steve Harris, Keith Lim, Bert Perry, all the organizers for their help, and all attendees.
Such a great turnout of 31 people for the championship and a greatly run event. Of the archetypes I saw today, the most prevalent was Malkavian (4), followed by Banu Hakim, three Ventrue, three Hecata and three Tzimisce.
About 55% of the decks were V5 decks, the rest legacy decks. Stealth Bleed was probably the most prevalent of the five main archetypes, and nominally combat was pretty close. Vote was a little bit behind that. There were four Ally decks and two wall decks that I saw. Overall, it was a wide range of archetypes and the way they were played. As head judge, I saw a lot of smiles and fun had by all.
The OCC annual coaster for all participants.
Pre-finals standings:
1. Benjamin Szymkow 2 GW 7.5 vp
2. Ke Carlton 2 GW 6 vp
3. Bert Perry 1 GW 6.5 vp
4. Stephen Harris 1 GW 6 vp
5. Andrew Stott 1 GW 6 vp
The champions report AKA “What’s a girl to do all alone in the PoG?”:
I’ve top seeded and identify no good seats. The choice to sit as Hecata prey was based on the idea that if I spend the first chunk of the game concentrating on survival then hopefully the table can collapse around me and then I can use my tech to control the votes and close out the game.
I see Catalina, Diana, Diana, and Mkhokheli in my uncontrolled region. I decide to influence out a copy of Catalina so I can quickly Groom and Enchant to get an almost free Mkhokheli and be off to the races. Unfortunately for me I blunder and place counters on Diana. Much laughter on the table all round as I do my best cry of doooom!
Diana will be the only vampire I influence for the entire game.
Steve is doing his best to put me down quickly as the rest of the table sets up and goes about doing their business. I Parity Shift backwards with a Voter Cap as my first action which is supported by Ke. My first turn ends with a Forced March into Enchant Kindred and quickly transfer off.
I spend the next forty minutes or so desperately nursing the little pool I have left with the help of Enchant Kindreds. My predator brings out more minions and gets closer and closer to killing me. I manage to call an Anarchist Uprising with Diana cancelling Steve’s delaying tactics. My game looks pretty hopeless, but I hold on for dear life.
Bert Camarilla Iron First forward, I secure a precious pool by voting for it. Ke does not like this, but does Banish forward to help me survive. His intention was to Banish backwards but I threatened him with a Scalpel tongue and I think he needed that Amici Noctis for his maths to work. Steve can’t quite oust me on his next turn but gets very close.
Andy is firing on all cylinders as he has no predator. Bert defends admirably with Carlton but eventually succumbs. Ke has only managed to get two vamps out.
Andy uses Inside Dirt plus Marajava Thugee to bin one of Ke’s minions (great combo!).
Worth noting at this point that one of Andy’s minions with Guarded Rubrics is taking a dirt nap. Ke makes some tough decisions and decides to throw a vote backwards onto Andy to assist me getting the oust.
I get the oust with another Anarchist Uprising which allows Ke to make quick work of Steve’s remaining pool. On the turn I got the oust I play a risky Art Museum with the hope that will help me win heads up.
Heads up does not take too long as instead of eating Ke’s torpored minion I just focus onbleeding, unlocking and holding Scalpel. Very hard position for Ke at this point and I manage to take the game win.
Somehow I manage to win with a single vampire. It was a great day all round and thanks to all the finalists and spectators for a great experience!
Final result: Ben won with 1.5 vp (and highest seed tie breaker). Andrew had 1 vp and Ke had 1.5.
Tournament winning deck: “Girl walks into PoG” by Ben Szymkow
Comment: Diana with tap/bleed module using Scalpel and Under the Skin. Predicted a wide-board meta so ran extra Anarchist Uprising and a Neonate Breach instead of KRC. Expulsion was to have an answer for baron flick and reduce.
Crypt (12 cards)
4x Diana Iadanza 9 AUS CEL FOR PRE justicar Toreador:7
3x Catalina Vega 8 AUS CEL PRE for prince Toreador:6
2x Flávio Gonçalves 7 CEL PRE aus for prince Toreador:6
2x Mkhokheli 6 PRE aus cel for prince Toreador:6
1x Maila 6 AUS PRE cel primogen Toreador:6
Library (90 cards)
Master (16)
1x Anarch Troublemaker
2x Art Museum
1x Camarilla Conclave
1x Creepshow Casino
1x Direct Intervention
1x Dreams of the Sphinx
1x Fortitude
5x Grooming the Protégé
1x Monastery of Shadows
2x Visit from the Capuchin
Action (9)
7x Enchant Kindred
2x Entrancement
Political Action (17)
2x Anarchist Uprising
1x Ancilla Empowerment
2x Banishment
3x Camarilla's Iron Fist
1x Expulsion
1x First Tradition: The Masquerade
1x Neonate Breach
6x Parity Shift
Action Modifier (30)
2x Aire of Elation
6x Forced March
3x Freak Drive
5x Loup
4x Perfect Paragon
3x Under the Skin
7x Voter Captivation
Action Modifier/Combat (4)
4x Resist Earth's Grasp
Action Modifier/Reaction (4)
4x Scalpel Tongue
Combat (6)
2x Charismatic Aura
4x Majesty
Reaction (4)
2x Second Tradition: Domain
2x Telepathic Misdirection
https://vdb.im/decks/07732accb
Photo opportunity with two fresh champions: Micon Garcia, who won the Asian Continentals last month in the Philippines popped in to say hi over the weekend.
Thanks for the report, and thanks to all organisers, sponsors and players!
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