The 2008 Nossies are over and these are the winners. Thanks to all who took the time to vote.
A non-discipline combat card that allows your minion’s current strike to inflict two additional points of damage on his opponent. Any minion can use it – Fredrick the Weak, Smudge the Ignored, even cute little Alia, God’s Messenger suddenly doesn’t look so impotent. The only downside is that the opposing minion may discard two combat cards from their hand to cancel this card. But up against decks that are light on combat, that may not be a problem for the user of this award winning card.
What better way to keep your prey busy than using the vampire with a built in untap? Nakhthorheb can untap once during each of your minion phases. In addition he also has +1 strength and minions with your corruption counters cannot block him. So let’s see here – a multi-action, hard hitting, unblockable vamp… Hmm there must be something here to like, right?
The race for Best Supporting Vampire was the closest contest of any category. With five nominees it came down to a close horse race between the Tremere Antitribu Carmen and the Ravnos Vasiliy Vasilevich. Vasility has a nice special ability of untapping after performing a successful bleed on your prey as well as a built-in +1 bleed. But Carmen took the prize being both an inexpensive Black Hand member who gives all your non-camarilla vampires an additional +1 stealth on equip actions. That carte blanche ability was in the eyes of many the best reason to give her the award.
The sharp little technology that is the camera phone has now made it’s way into V:TES. A useful piece of equipment that allows your minions to bleed at +1 bleed as a (D) action. It’s like your own personal, pocket-sized Computer Hack. And it’s free!
Things lurking in the shadows got a little more terrifying this year with the addition of the Nocturn. This inexpensive ally is not only able to act on the turn it’s recruited, but your acting vampire will untap the first time they bring one into play. If the acting vampire has superior Obtenebration, he or she may recruit more Nocturn on the same turn, with the cost increased by 1 blood. The Nocturn have a short life span, as you must burn them during your next untap phase. But with a few [OBT] vamps and enough Nocturns in hand, you can create a swarm of kamikaze bleeders to blitz your prey in one turn.
It’s a common sight in any V:TES game – bleed followed by ‘bounce.’ But now performing all those deflections, redirections and misdirections won’t be so easy as this new event increases the costs of all cards that change the target of a bleed by an additional blood or life. Your pool may be protected from enemy incoming, but watch out that your minions don’t quickly run out of steam from all that bouncing.
by Heather V. Kreiler
Artist Heather Kreiter won the top art prize for her rendering of this Vicissitude combat card. A powerful card to begin with – allowing your vampire to burn allies or diablerize younger vampires in combat, Heather beautifully and skillfully captured the visual of such an event with the depiction of a panicked young vampire watching her arm become liquefied.