Published by White Wolf (2000/10)

Release date: May 19, 2003

Total cards: 260 cards (128 new cards)

Boosters: 11 cards (pool of 132 - 7C, 3U, 1R)

Decks: 3 non-random preconstructed decks, Feral Gangrel, Anarch Barons and Anarch Gangs (each deck contains 2 new vampires that aren't found in the boosters - 89 cards)

Anarchs is the 5th set released by White Wolf for Vampire: The Eternal Struggle.

Xaviar, the promo card, was released on Scrye #58, April 2003. It as a smaller anarch symbol and release date of 2002.

New Rules

Anarchs & Barons - "Anarch" is a designation for a special type of Independent vampire - non-Camarilla and non-Sabbat. If the vampire joins either sect, he loses his anarch status along with his Independent status. A vampire who is not an anarch may become an anarch by the effects of various cards. There is also a new cardless action option available for the vampire to join the anarch cause as a +1 stealth action that costs blood, although vampires with titles are prohibited from taking that action.

"Baron" is a title that can only be held by an anarch. A ready baron gets 2 votes. The title of baron is associated with a particular city and can be contested by another vampire who claims the title of prince, archbishop or baron of the same city. If the title is contested with a prince or an archbishop, then the anarch's cost to contest it is increased by 1 blood. If a baron loses his anarch status, he loses the benefit of the title until he becomes anarch again, as usual for titles.

Advanced Vampire - An advancement card is a vampire card in all respects, so it can be influenced in the normal manner. In addition, you can merge the advancement with the associated regular "base" vampire if you control one and the other is in your uncontrolled region. This costs 4 transfers and 1 pool during your influence phase. When merged, the counters and cards on the vampire remain, and the two crypt cards are treated as a single vampire card, even if Banished, until the vampire is burned. When merged, the vampire has the special abilities of both the base and advanced cards. The rest of the base card is ignored (capacity, Disciplines, etc.). The advancement card applies in full. Some merged cards have an additional effect that only applies when the two cards are merged. This effect is identified in the card text by a "merged" icon. The advanced vampire (merged or not) will contest other copies of the same vampire (advanced or not) in play, as usual.

Gangrel - The Gangrel clan is now Independent. Since crypt cards all have text (or errata) identifying the individual vampires' sects (which overrides any clan's default sect), the change really only matters for vampires who change clan to become Gangrel (via Clan Impersonation, for example) or vampires created in the game (via The Embrace, for example).

Trifle - Trifle formalizes one of the mechanics introduced in Sabbat War on the card The Coven. A Trifle is a type of master card that gives another master phase action to the Methuselah who plays it. A Methuselah may play no more than one Trifle each turn. If the Trifle is canceled (via Sudden Reversal, for example), the Methuselah does not gain the additional master phase action.

Tri-Discipline cards - Continuing the split discipline mechanism introduced in Bloodlines, some cards have a three-way split. These cards give anarchs some additional adaptability and give players some additional flexibility in crypt selection. An anarch can use any one of the effects that he has the discipline for, as listed beside each effect.

Politics - Politics works the same way in Anarchs as it always has, except that the rule against replacing cards during a referendum has been dropped. Cards are replaced during a referendum as normal. Note that each Methuselah is still limited to using no more than one Political Card to gain a vote in each referendum. Note that, like all new rules, this rule only applies when the set is legal for play. For constructed deck V:EKN tournaments, that will be June 18 (30 days after the set is released).

Migration - A few of the cards reprinted in the Anarchs expansion have been functionally changed from previous printings. Some of these changes simply bring the printed card text in line with existing rulings and errata. Some are new. The latter set is listed below:

- The Coven: is a trifle.

- Form of Mist: continuance costs 1 blood. A vampire may play superior only once each action.

- Gangrel Revel: costs only 1 pool and is unique.

- Meat Hook: provides a press only once each combat.

- Secure Haven: is a haven (for new cards that refer to havens).

- Sudden Reversal: the cost of the canceled card is not paid.

 Clarifications and Rulings

- Advancing Disciplines: If a base vampire has a Discipline card on him and is merged with his Advancement who has the Discipline at superior printed on the card, the Discipline remains at superior and the vampire's capacity is still increased by 1 for the Discipline card. In effect, a level 3 (double-superior) or higher Discipline is treated exactly the same as a superior Discipline. (Similar to a vampire with a Potence Discipline card equipping with the Hand of Conrad, for example.)

- Car Bomb: An anarch who plays a Car Bomb for -1 stealth can still block the action if he plays a Wake (before or after the Car Bomb), per the normal rules.

- Cry Wolf: The ally cannot act the turn he is brought into play. The action to enter combat is mandatory, and so must be done before any non-mandatory actions. It is a card-based action, however, so if the ally untaps (by whatever method), he cannot perform that action again in the same turn, so he'd be stuck and can take no other action (but at least he'd be untapped).

- Delivery Truck: Face down cards are out of play. They do not contest.

- Ghouled: Cannot be used on a superior The Summoning action, since the type of the ally isn't defined at announcement.

- Jeremy Talbot: His special ability can be ordered among your other untap phase events, per the normal rules.

- Magazine: A card in play isn't burned until some effect says to burn it. See also Shadow Court Satyr.

- Michael Luther: Must tap to use his voting special. Wake won't suffice.

- Sword of Nuln and aggravated damage: If the Sword does aggravated damage for whatever reason, the vampire pays the normal amount of blood to prevent destruction. Aggravated damage cannot be healed by definition.

- Sword of Nuln and Taste of Vitae: The Taste will count the amount of blood burnt healing the damage.

- Sword of Nuln and Regenerative Blood: The vampire with Regenerative Blood heals two damage from the Sword for each two (double the normal amount of one) blood he spends. So if the Sword does 1 damage, the vampire burns 2 blood to heal it. If it does 2, he burns 2 blood to heal it (that's twice the amount he would normally burn). For 3 or 4 damage, he burns 4 blood. And so on.

- Repo Man: If the retrieved equipment costs blood, the recipient (not the Repo Man) pays the cost.