So I'm currently reading the 2nd Edition...

[VAMPIRES SUCK!!!!!]

...And there's no AKD or Ashewood Abbey in the core book.
What's the reason for these changes?

[Stupid Loserman]

They're actually somewhat present in basic mechanical form in the book: they're the examples used in the Storytelling chapter for the guidelines for creating compacts and conspiracies, including 2e Status benefits for both organizations and the rules for two sample Relics.

There was some conversation during development on whether or not to deemphasize Ashwood Abbey as an up-front core example of player character behavior. I'm not as familiar with the decision to sideline the Aegis Kai Doru, aside from the general need to free up word count.

[VAMPIRES SUCK!!!!!]

Perhaps there could've been more emphasis made on the 'hunting the most dangerous game' and 'occult socialite' aspects of the Abbey and less on the ''''parties''''.

[ArcaneArts]

Perhaps there could've been more emphasis made on the 'hunting the most dangerous game' and 'occult socialite' aspects of the Abbey and less on the ''''parties''''.

The thing of the matter is that the general approach the Abbey, hunting monsters because it's fun, was it's thematic point, and while hunting the most dangerous game or being an occult socialite can play into that, neither can stack up to that tentpole-particularly given how in being so, the Abbey reflects the very thing people are doing when they play Hunter: the Vigil. That said, the concensus was against Abbey, and they wanted room for a new compact, so it got relegated to being an example.

While we know the goal was to show off a new conspiracy with the new edition and that space issues meant that another conspiracy would take the bullet, it's never been precisely explained why it was Aegis Kai Doru that took it (I mean, the other most likely candidate were the Ascending Ones, and I'm a bigger AO fan than an AKD fan, so I'm not complaining), but if I had to speculate a reason, I would wager that they wanted to have a longer time to workshop making the relic answer to the sacred prey of mages and werewolves work more fully and completely, which had a handy side benefit of downplaying arguments about Hunter's relationship with Mage Second Edition around release.

[LostLight]

Well, the upcoming Tending the Fire (the 2e Companion book) was stated to contain both the Abbey and the AKD with full writeups, so we are going to get them when he book will come out.

[Father Enoch]

Who are the AKD? White Wolf Wiki seems to have nothing.

[21C Hermit]

Who are the AKD? White Wolf Wiki seems to have nothing.

Aegis Kai Doru. You know, the relic maniacs.

[ArcaneArts]

Who are the AKD? White Wolf Wiki seems to have nothing.

Aegis Kai Doru, a Greco-Roman heritaged organization of would-be Indiana Jones and Achilles who gather Relics to bring to bear against their sacred enemies of mages and werewolves, as well as other enemies who otherwise interfere with their secret goal of rebuilding the world to it's pre-lapserian glory. Also they like labyrinths and severed heads.

[Father Enoch]

Thank you 21C Hermit, and ArcaneArts.

[Aurumae]

Well, the upcoming Tending the Fire (the 2e Companion book) was stated to contain both the Abbey and the AKD with full writeups, so we are going to get them when he book will come out.

Glad to hear it. I thought the absence of Ashwood Abbey from the Core was one of the many weaknesses of Hunter Second Edition compared to First Edition. I thought Ashwood Abbey did something quite key in first edition - they made it clear that Hunters are not the good guys. The desire to find things that aren't human and kill them is not a healthy one, and Ashwood Abbey exposed this more clearly than any of the other compacts.