Vtes a long time ago...

...in a galaxy, far, far...

no wait...

Hello, I used to play VTES during the late nineties a lot and had some cards from the editions of that time, now I only have a bunsh of random cards left but the old fever got me again what brings me to my questions.
Can someone be so nice to unveil the secrets of the expansions followed the Sabbat Expansion, I read a lot in the last days but cant find some basic information.

The secoond Edition started with "Sabbat War" and the Third one with "Third Edition" I think, is there something to say about compatibility between those editions and their expansions?

Im interrested in rebuilding my collection, but want to play the game as well, and I like the social part of the Game, sitting at a table with half a dozen other "Methuselahs" is just what I like.

The list of Salesman in another Thread helped me to get started, are there any advice in what direction I should search, buying old displays (Jyhad) would feel familiar but it is neccesarry, or am I better of with Second Edition, or Third Edition stuff?

Some comprehensive advice would be appreciated.

BTW: We played VTES with a card restriction back then limiting the number of equal cards to four in a deck would this be still a houserule?

Thanks for your help!

Innuendo

Ok, card limits are indeed only house rules. The rules page on this site has what you need to know, but ea h deck has: 60-90 cards for a library and @ least 12 cards in the crypt. Crypt cards are restricted to a pair of consecutive groupings. Everything from sabbat and sabbat war that is a crypt card is group 2, as is ancient hearts, final nights, and bloodlines. Jhyad/vampire base set is group 1. Any vampire from any other set will have what group it belongs to listed on the face of the card.
As far as "editions" , third edition was essentially a base set with both new cards and reprints, and the name has nothing to do with the game other than being the name of the expansion.

So to recap,: crypt must contain all vampires from 2 consecutive groupings (1&2, 2&3,3&4,4&5,or5&6) and other than deck size minimum and maximum and crypt size minimum, there are no restrictions other than cards explicitly placed on the banned list, also veiwable on this site. Edge explosion, memories of mortality, madness of the bard, succubus club, and protect thine own to name a few are no longer legal for play.

The easiest way to get back into the swing of things is to find a nearby playgroup and dive in.

Hope ive helped. You will need to know about imbued, also covered in rules section, and it would be helpful if you knew this: if a deck seems to be doing nothing but gain pool and play three master cards a turn, oust it. No matter where it is on the table.

Innuendo wrote:

Hello, I used to play VTES during the late nineties a lot

Welcome back to the night!

Innuendo wrote:

Can someone be so nice to unveil the secrets of the expansions followed the Sabbat Expansion, I read a lot in the last days but cant find some basic information.

Second Edition started with the Camarilla Edition, in 2002 . This introduced (and completed) the most errata to previously printed cards and new rules were added to the game about deck construction, all related to the crypt cards. It also introduced a new layout for the cards and new backgrounds for the clans (though the same discipline and clan symbols are still used).

(An example of the layout change is here, for Blood Doll .)

Innuendo wrote:

is there something to say about compatibility between those editions and their expansions?

All existing library and crypt cards can be played, regardless of the edition. Specific groupings of crypt cards can't be played together in the same deck, but they can be played at the same table. So one player can have the newest cards and be on an even playing field with someone with the oldest cards.

Innuendo wrote:

Im interrested in rebuilding my collection, but want to play the game as well, and I like the social part of the Game, sitting at a table with half a dozen other "Methuselahs" is just what I like.

The list of Salesman in another Thread helped me to get started, are there any advice in what direction I should search, buying old displays (Jyhad) would feel familiar but it is necessary, or am I better of with Second Edition, or Third Edition stuff?

Some comprehensive advice would be appreciated.

Your best bet is to buy for the clans and sects that you enjoy, and watch for collections being sold on the V:TES part of EBay .

If you are trying to get a new playgroup up to speed, I recommend the Barbed Wire Decks and the Black Hand Starter Display Challenge .

Once you are back in the swing of things, some things go well together and some don't mix easily. I gave some advice a few years back on Board Game Geek , that I'll update here.

~~~~~~~~~

Frequently, established groups will have thousands of cards available to be given away. Associating with one of these groups can help both with card acquisition and also with strategy, tactics, and having enough players to have a good game.

I'd recommend looking for a local volunteer, here:

www.vekn.net/index.php/vampire-elder-kindred-network/prince-list

You could also look for local players, here:

www.vekn.net/index.php/forum/62-city-state-country-a-region-talk


If you don't find other local players or a volunteer, then I would recommend avoiding the following sets because their investment minimum is too high (you need to buy too much of these sets to build new useful decks):

Legacies of Blood / Ebony Kingdom / Heirs to the Blood / Bloodlines
Lords of the Night / Kindred Most Wanted / Final Nights
Nights of Reckoning

Sets that I would recommend together:

3rd Edition + Sword of Caine (or Black Hand, but not both, as the crypt cards aren't compatible BH vs SoC)

Keepers of Tradition + Twilight Rebellion (with a much smaller quantity of TR)

Jyhad + V:TES

Other than that, it is mostly a matter of how much you want to spend. There are significant discounts available thru the online retailers, here:

www.thelasombra.com/cardtrader.htm

I'd recommend starting with a starter display box of a set that interests you and a matching box of boosters. If interest persists, add another box of boosters of that set or branch out to the closest compatible one.

There are a number of improved decks created by mashing two starters together, documented here:

www.thelasombra.com/dbc/dbc.htm

~~~~~~~~~

Here's a list of releases grouped by the clans/sects supported:

Camarilla
(Brujah, Caitiff, Malkavian, Nosferatu, Toreador, Tremere, Ventrue)
Jyhad
V:TES
Dark Sovereigns
Camarilla Edition
Anarchs
Gehenna
10th Anniversary Tins
Kindred Most Wanted
Blood Shadowed Court
Twilight Rebellion
Keepers of Tradition


Independent
(Assamite, Followers of Set, Gangrel, Giovanni, Ravnos)
Dark Sovereigns
Ancient Hearts
Final Nights
Kindred Most Wanted
Lords of the Night


Sabbat
(Brujah Antitribu, Gangrel Antitribu, Lasombra, Malkavian Antitribu, Nosferatu Antitribu, Pander, Toreador Antitribu, Tremere Antitribu, Tzimisce, Ventrue Antitribu)
Sabbat
Sabbat War
Black Hand
Gehenna
Third Edition
Sword of Caine


Laibon
(Akunanse, Guruhi, Ishtarri, Osebo)
Legacies of Blood
Ebony Kingdom


Bloodlines
(Ahrimanes, Baali, Blood Brothers, Daughters of Cacophony, Gargoyles, Harbingers of Skulls, Kiasyd, Nagaraja, Salubri, Salubri Antitribu, Samedi, True Brujah)
Bloodlines
Legacies of Blood
Heirs to the Blood


Imbued are mortal hunters with their own expansion. They are also greatly aided by specific cards from the Gehenna set and the equipment and non-discipline cards from every set.
Nights of Reckoning

Innuendo wrote:

BTW: We played VTES with a card restriction back then limiting the number of equal cards to four in a deck would this be still a houserule?

The arguments for and against card limits are captured here:
www.thelasombra.com/vtes_focs.htm#c3
and here:
www.thelasombra.com/card-limits-coupe.txt

The official rules of the game do not limit library cards by quantity, though you are free to play however you like in order to enjoy the game.

Easy way to acquire all group 1 vampires is to buy both 10th anniversary tin cans.

Easy way to acquire Camarilla Edition vampires (group 3) is to buy a box of blood shadowed court.

Jussi wrote:

Easy way to acquire all group 1 vampires is to buy both 10th anniversary tin cans.

Actually since they are sold out these most likely cost and arm and a leg nowadays (mainly due to few of the additional new cards included in each, like Carlton and Liquidation).

Cheap Jyhad Booster Displays should still be available and purchasing a few of those will probably be cheaper than the two 10th Anniversary Tins and will also net you a good supply of other cards than mere vampires to boot.

Adonai wrote:

Second Edition started with the Camarilla Edition,

I've always been under the assumption that 3rd Edition was named because it was the 3rd core set for Sabbat (Sabbat being the "1st" and Sabbat War being the 2nd"). Probably just my silly faulty reasoning...

First I have to thank you all for the quick and comprehensive responses, it helped me a lot to find the right places to read on and get more involved again.

By the time I called some old friends and managed to revive our Jyhad evening every second week, few of them still have some cards, others dont.
But, related to my question about the houserule I had, it is more than possible that we will play the game with them again, that means we will have a limit of four equal cards per deck and towerdecks (200-300 cards), and last but not least there will be no limited useage of vampires within the crypt (12+) except that no vampire may be used more than once per crypt.

Given the limit to equal cards per deck it would be perfect to have a good base of different cards for all sorts of actions, what booster displays will serve the best in this regard?

For now I have decided to stay with Camarilla/Sabbat based Displays beginning with Jyhad (booster display), Black Hand (booster display), Gehenna (booster display), Sword of Caine (Im not sure about this mini Expansion) and Keepers of the Tradition (starter display).

Is this a valid choice, or is there a high amount of reprinted cards in those releases?
If I can get a grip on Tenth Aniversary and/or Blood Shadowed Court will those blend into my former choice?
Will the Sabbat expansions (Gehenna/Black Hand) give me sufficient amounts of playable cards without the Sabbat War Base Set or can I use the "Third Edition" for this purpose (if im able to get my hands on a booster display of it)?

Thanks again!

Innuendo

P.S.: Are there any news about printing on demand by DriveThruCards, it would be a great help?