Prince Fleurdumal declared Miami Art Museum Elysium for the duration of
her lavish party. With much of kindred society aflutter with talk of Gehenna,
she couldn't resist the chance to host a, tongue-in-cheek, "End of
the World" party. Her invited guests, of course, were like-minded
cynics and it was unlikely that any of attendees were prepared to deal
with the events the evening would bring.
Fleurdumal outdid herself with an ostentatious display of wealth and decadence as was appropriate for kindred society's final soiree. One by one, her guests broke free of their gossip and back-handed compliments to congratulate her on the party's success. Adelaide Davis, neared the front of the receiving line but stood motionless upon reaching Fleurdumal. Adelaide stared blankly and then bellowed, "Hearken to the prophet's words." However, the sounds were that of two voices--one male and one female. "Hearken to the words of the oracle," yelled the male voice.
The second voice belonged to Paulo, a well-liked local artist whose Malkavian sensibilities seemed to rub off on the canvas. Paulo and Adelaide spoke in unison. They continued, addressing the entire room:
Hearken to the diviner's prophecies
Of blood-filled dreams and shortened nights
Of hunger risen to claim its own
Of arrogance turned to ash.
Within the get of Caine there is a hunger stirring
Once, twice, thrice the call to power and death
Will rend the souls of the Thirteen
This is the death without bloodshed
This is the grave that has no ghosts.
Initially, some of the guests believed this was arranged by Fleurdumal
to add to the theme of the party. The laughter and smiles were replaced
first by concern and then horror as the truth settled in...Malkavians
everywhere were simultaneously broadcasting the message. Paulo and Adelaide
continued:
There will come a time
when an Elder Darkness will stir
deep below a city which has forgotten
and will surprise the Elder, its children
There will come a time
when an ancient hunger will awaken
deep in the northern woods
and consume her childer
On these signs, you must know,
that Gehenna waits, even at the door,
as an actor waits in the wings
It is coming! It is near!
The speakers raised their arms in unison as they spoke their final proclamation,
"Shine black the sun! Shine blood the moon! Gehenna is coming soon."
League Instructions
The Prophecies V:TES League Kit is designed to allow up to 20 players
to participate in this multi-part event. Purchase of additional league
kits will be needed for larger groups. Players will experience the upheaval
and uncertainty of these final nights in the lead-up to Gehenna and the
release of the Gehenna V:TES expansion. The components of the league kit
have been created so that the league can be run over and over, as many
times as the players like. In addition, the unique format provides enough
variety to allow for a very different experience each time the league
is run.
To coordinate a league event with a retailer in your area, take the order form to your local retailer so that the retailer can place a special order for the Prophecies league kit.
Kit Contents
Poster
2 promo cards for each participant
Prophecies T-shirt for the league winner
12 Special Rule envelopes
Dates
The league will take place over a 4 to 11 week period, with the first
installment occurring no earlier than March 1, 2004. League organizers
are free to choose when, during the allowable dates, league play will
begin and how often games will take place.
When Do We Play?
Throughout these rules, the league is referred to as a "weekly"
league. Though this will be the most common arrangement, league organizers
are free to modify the play intervals to meet their particular needs.
For example, a league organizer may choose to play bi-weekly or even twice
weekly games. However, organizers should make the dates as firmly structured
as possible and should be certain to announce the schedule in advance.
League Rules
This league is intended to be enjoyable for players of varying skill levels
and should especially appeal to players who have not yet made the leap
to tournament play. Organizers, judges, and participants are encouraged
to be helpful to new players.
The official V:EKN tournament rules for standard constructed tournaments are to be used for these league events except where the league rules supersede those rules or where the standard tournament rules are obviously not appropriate (for example, section 3.1.3 Final Round Seating obviously doesn't apply). These rules can be found online at: http://white-wolf.com/vtes/
FAQ
Q: Do I report the results of my league to someone?
A: No reporting is required. Unlike previous storyline events, the winner
of each event will not affect the overall story. Instead, the current
league leader will directly affect the details of Gehenna within each
league with his or her choices.
Q: Do I have to play the same deck throughout the league?
A: Players may freely modify or switch decks between individual games
and weekly league sessions as desired.
Q: Do I need to use round time limits?
A: The organizer may choose to play games with or without round time limits.
The selection should be made for the league as a whole and not changed
for individual games.
Q: Do I have to build my crypts with 75% of one clan like in prior storyline
tournaments?
A: No.
Q: Can I add additional variant rules?
A: No. The rules must follow the V:EKN Standard Constructed Tournament
Rules, except for the exceptions given in this document.
Q: Can the judge play in the league?
A: Yes. Unlike normal V:EKN tournaments, the judge or judges may participate
in the games regardless of the number of league participants. If the judge
plays and the event has at least 6 players, the Multi-Judge System must
be used (V:EKN Tournament Rules 2.9).
Q: Will the league games count towards the official player ratings?
A: No. Since the league uses variant rules, it will not be included.
Q: How many games should we play during our league night?
A: The league organizer determines how many games are played during each
league play session. The number of games that will be played must be decided
before play of the first game begins.
Scoring
After each game, a player who has at least 2 Victory Points and more Victory
Points than any other player at the table is credited with a Game Win.
Each player who played in the game (unless they dropped out or a judge
ejected them) receives 1 League Point for participating. Player's Victory
Points are also tracked as the League Points and Victory Points are used
as the primary and secondary tie-breakers, respectively. The results of
each game are reported to the league organizer who records the results.
Scoring Example 1: At a five-player table, Robyn gains 3 Victory Points at her table and Steve gets the other 2. Robyn is awarded a Game Win. Each of the 5 players also receives 1 League Point. Scoring Example 2: At a four-player table, Mike and Paul each gain 2 victory points. While both players have at least 2 Victory Points, neither player has more Victory Points than any other player. No game win is awarded. Each of the 4 players receives 1 League Point.
Current Leader & Overall Winner
The player with the most Game Wins over the course of the entire league
is declared the league winner. Second most Game Wins finishes in second
place, third most Game Wins is third place, and so on. In the event of
a tie, total League Points will be used to break the tie. If players remain
tied, total Victory Points will be used to break the tie. The judge will
use a random method to break any further ties.
Throughout the league, it will be necessary to determine which participant is currently the league leader. Use the same method as you would to determine the overall winner to see who is the current league leader.
During each week of play, two special rules will apply to the games being played. During the first week of play, the league organizer will randomly select and open two envelopes and the special rules will be in effect for the first week of the league.
Each week thereafter, the league's current overall standings leader will choose one rule revealed in the previous week to remain in effect and will randomly select one envelope and reveal a new special rule. These two rules, the one the league's standings leader selects to remain in effect and the newly opened one, are in effect for the current play session.
If there is a tie for the league's standings leader, the league organizer may select a random method to determine who among the tied players will choose the special rule that will stay in effect. If the league's standings leader is not present, the league organizer may assign this task to the player currently in second place. If that player is not present, the organizer may assign the task to the third place player and so on.
EXAMPLE:
During the first week of play, the league organizer, Jim, selects 2 random envelopes and opens them. Doing his best impression of a Malkavian mouthpiece, Jim reads the prophesy: "Shine black the sun! Shine Black the moon. Gehenna is coming soon!" Jim then reads the special rule associated with the prophecy: "The Edge is worth 3 votes." He then reads the prophecy contained in the second envelope and then reveals the special rule, "All players start with 40 pool." Both of these rules are in effect for the first week of play. Jim places both special rules on the league poster with the Velcro tabs provided.
Just before the start of play in the second week, the current league standings leader, Daniel, chooses last week's "All players start with 40 pool" rule to remain in effect for week 2. Next, Daniel randomly chooses another envelope, opens it and reads the new prophecy and the new special rule. That new special rule says, "All vampires cost 1 less pool to influence." These two rules are in effect for the second week of play.
In the third week and each week thereafter, one of the two rules currently in effect will be chosen by the league's current standings leader to remain in effect. In addition, a second rule will be randomly drawn and revealed before play begins.
Additional Tools
Additional tools to make your league run more smoothly can be downloaded
here:
You may choose to track your league progress with The Oracle, an Excel Spreadsheet for tracking league results. (coming soon)
The Special Promotional Cards
Each player attending a designated league event will receive one copy
each of special promo-only cards The Erciyes Fragment and Prophecies of
Gehenna. Both cards will remain in tight circulation for at least one
year before any remaining stock is released into general support packages.
