i Tupdogs & Nephandus
Highlights
This is an rush deck using Tupdogs and Rock Cat to take down opposing vampires, then Graverobbing to steal them. It uses simple bleed for one from its own vampires as well as the stolen ones to oust its prey.
The combat is dominated by the Tupdogs and their and cards combination, using Brick By Brick to set the range if needed, Immortal Grapple to prevent Dodge and Combat Ends, and Raking Talons for aggravated damage. Torn Signpost and can provide additional damage if needed.
The Rock Cat are also good combat ends and can use cards too. Contrarily to the Tupdog, they stay in place and can rush every turn, consolidating the deck's control on the table even though opponents also get pool from Autarkis Persecution. Moreover, they can get recruited by a Tupdog even with no Tremere Antitribu in play, as early as turn 1.
The critical part of the deck is to get a couple of Tremere antitribu i out fast, so that the Tupdogs can rush, and Deflection and Graverobbing can be played.
As the Crow allows Tupdog to unlock so they can call Autarkis Persecution or recruit Rock Cat on top of a rush. Using Tupdog to call the vote makes it unappealing for anyone to block.
The core issue of the deck is the high pool cost. Tupdogs only last a single turn and the deck should get one out every turn at least for safety and control. Plus the Rock Cat are 4 pool a piece, and the deck aims to recruit at least 4 to 6. Autarkis Persecution is the main tool to bloat, supported by Ashur Tablets.
Tips & Tricks
Disabling voters then blockers is a priority, so Graverobbing and Autarkis Persecution can be played. Graverobbing should be used on titled vampires first to help the votes get through later on. Cross-table voters might be pressured to let the vote pass by threatening them with a grave rob if they do not comply, but one must try not to alienate the whole table too fast: the deck is fragile in the beginning.
To support the swarm strategy of the deck, influencing multiple vampires on top of a couple of Tupdog every turn is key. Master cards provide one more transfer, with Dreams of the Sphinx, Information Highway or Powerbase: Montreal.
Secure Haven is included to contest if an opponent plays it.
Variants
The Nephandus variant uses Nephandus to bleed and defend. It is a less aggressive, but also requires less bloat and does not rely on Autarkis Persecution. See Jorge Delgado's deck for an example. You might want to read Tommi Hakomaa's article about that variant, it goes a bit more in details on how to build and play it.
The Dominate variant also forgoes the Rock Cat and Autarkis Persecution, and instead includes a solid bleed module to oust faster. This makes Unleash the Hounds a neat inclusion, see Jukka-Pekka Vainiola's deck for an example.