This article is a collection of thoughts and opinions on the newest data pack, Escalation, by several members of the Stimhack community. In this first half, we’re going to go through all of the Runner cards from the pack and look at their position in the current meta and game overall. Let’s meet the community members who will be reviewing these cards:
- Ruben Jacobs “Rjayz” – Representing Luxembourg when it comes to ANR.
- SimonMoon – Philadelphia Regionals winner 2016, 2nd place North American Championship 2016. Always Right. Author of Where the Wild Agendas Are.
- Jakob Helms “Terrificy” – Copenhagen all-star with multiple Regionals under his belt, as well as a second-place finish at this years Nordic Championship.
- Ethan Studog “Dogs” – 2nd place finish NYC Regional 2016, Top 4 North American Championship 2016. Author of Take Six, Run R&D: A Nexus Kate Primer.
- Gabriel Fiedler “Gejben” – “King of the North” Nordic Champion, 2016.
- Luke Rule “Inactivist” – Runner up, kitchen table meta
- Jonas Wilson “thebigunit3000” – The force behind DLR Val and IG Biolock. Did reasonably well in the Top Deck monthly cup. Author of World Champion on a Budget.
Peregrine
Rjayz
Peregrine is a minor upgrade to Peacock. Its home will be along Passport in Criminal decks that aren’t willing to spend influence on a Decoder. Furthermore, it’s worth mentioning that Datasucker helps save on the expensive boost cost, as it does for most Criminal breakers that boost multiple strength at a time. I reckon Peregrine will see some play as a worthy addition to Criminal’s choice of Decoders.
Terrificy
Peregrine is indeed a minor upgrade to Peacock, and an addition to a vast array of Criminal Decoders with each their own pros and cons. The last ability on the card is very niche and unlikely to actually be used, as the total cost of 7 + breaking a Code Gate simply isn’t a good cost when it comes to derezzing a piece of ICE. While it is not the worst Decoder in the Criminal faction, I cannot see myself including this in a deck, and would rather ask myself, “What can I cut to splash something better than this?”
Gejben
Peregrine is an improvement to Peacock on all relevant ICE except Archangel and the 2 credits higher install-cost. If you run Datasucker you get around some of the more awkward breaks and 1 counter can save you 3 credits and probably moves Peregrine to the “Not Terrible”-tier. The derez ability is probably most of the time way too expensive to be worth using, but being able to derez a Tollbooth if you manage to Account Siphon the Corp to zero credits is a nice addition. I will definitely try this out and see if it’s worth to spend the dedicated Decoder influence in Criminal on something else.
Note: For further discussion on Peregrine, other Decoders, and their place in Andromeda decklists, check out Decode: Code Gate Breakers in Standard Andromeda by vinegarymink.
Houdini
Rjayz
Quite blatantly designed to be a replacement for Refractor in preparation for rotation, Houdini gives Stealth Shapers a second Decoder to choose from. The decision which Decoder to play depends mostly on whether 6 strength Code Gates are prevalent enough to warrant paying an extra credit on code gates from 3 to 5 strength. My take on it is that Houdini is not worth it over Refractor, due to the nature of the two Code Gates it will be relevant against, Archangel and DNA Tracker. Archangel only sees play in NBN decks, generally ICE-light decks. You’ll probably have the extra Stealth credits, seeing you won’t be boosting Refractor all that often otherwise. DNA Tracker has not seen a lot of play due to Rumor Mill holding down Jinteki glacier decks, and is expensive enough that stacking multiple copies is unlikely. I’d hold off on using Houdini until Refractor rotates, as it’ll end up costing you a few credits more (and hence some games) to use.
SimonMoon
This card is extremely close in quality to Refractor, being one more credit to install, and against a lot of relevant Code Gates one more to break (even against less than 2 or 6 strength). Where it has upsides against Refractor is when Code Gates are stacked on remotes (or when the opponent is discouraged from stacking Code Gates due to it being in play). They break even at 2-stacked 5 strength, and Houdini comes ahead with 3-stacked 5 strength or 2-stacked 6 strength. However, I think the non-stacked case is more common than the stacked Code Gate case, and overall Refractor is going to be generally more efficient. Finally, there is an important note with how each of them combo with Net Mercur. Since it’s two to boost, you can’t spend an extra Stealth credit to boost Houdini’s strength on a random run to trigger Net Mercur and get a pseudo Desperado credit. While I think Houdini is worse than Refractor (and therefore will have no impact on Worlds Meta), I don’t think it’s worse by a very large margin and will be an adequate replacement after rotation.
Terrificy
Houdini is absolutely not a bad choice when looking for a Stealth Decoder, being rather close to Refractor. While Houdini is better than Refractor – which is the only reasonable comparison – in some situations, it is worse in others. I do not believe that Houdini is currently a better Stealth Decoder than Refractor, but it can easily replace it when rotation hits.
Gejben
Houdini is a really good Stealth Decoder. It is already better than Refractor vs two very relevant Code Gates: Archangel and DNA Tracker, and when the Code Gates become stacked you start to save the Stealth credits you’d otherwise need with Refractor. As of now I am not sure if I would run this over Refractor anyway, since the install cost and 1 credit more to break quite a lot of ICE is relevant but it’s definitely not as big of a deal anymore to Stealth that Refractor is soon about to rotate.
Net Mercur
Rjayz
I’ve already heard this card being called “the Shaper Desperado”, which hints at its power. Giving your Stealth credits a second use seems powerful, and is attested by preliminary playtesting. I am less convinced by the card draw option, which at first glance seems like a catch-22, in that to draw towards the other pieces of your rig, you already need to have them in order to be able to spend Stealth credits and make useful runs. Even with this new tool Stealth rig decks have at their disposal, I don’t see them making many waves due to the metagame being somewhat hostile to Shaper at this point, and especially Stealth due to it usually being poorer. NBN: Controlling the Message and Industrial Genomics are still relevant, and ready to prey on Runners that tend to be poorer, such as Stealth rig decks.
SimonMoon
This card is really good. It pays out a massive amount of credits over the game, and is similar in power level to Desperado in a Stealth deck. That being said, it does not fix the main problem Stealth (and all of Shaper to an extent) is having: ICE isn’t that important to Corp strategies right now. A large chunk of decks in the meta right now (CTM, IG, Sync) rely on asset spam or pure money leads to win. While Net Mercur helps turn Stealth into a complete late game monster against traditional taxing Glacier decks, it doesn’t help Stealth trash early assets or create a money lead without running. This being said, Stealth is not very influence-gated and is able to splash Temüjin Contract fairly easily which gives it a big boost versus Asset Spam and Hard-Hitting News decks. Ultimately, I think this card gives enough of a boost in power to Stealth that I would not be shocked to see some Stealth decks in the top 16, but would also not be shocked to see it miss the cut. I would at least be aware of your Corp deck’s matchup with Steatlh, though I don’t think having a bad Stealth matchup is a deal breaker.
Terrificy
Net Mercur is one of those cards where it shouldn’t take long to grasp it’s power-level (spoiler: it’s really good). It only took minutes before Stimhack legionaries were shouting “in-faction Desperado!” — and that is mostly true. In a Stealth deck, it should probably be able to gain another credit (or draw a card, which is less relevant in most cases) very frequently. For the upcoming Smoke ID, Net Mercur can basically do Desperado-like performances even without other Stealth cards. While not a saviour of Stealth as an archetype, it certainly is a powerful addition and definitely pushes Stealth towards the higher level of competitive play, even if this archetype certainly has some issues in the current meta — most of which can be mitigated by running 3x Temüjin Contract, which you should. If you do so, Net Mercur has the added secret ability of being excellent at keeping credits where Closed Accounts can’t reach them. Do note that these credits can be used for anything, with no restrictions – and until you’ve seen someone hard-install a Shard with this, you really haven’t seen it all. Keep an eye on this card.
Gejben
Horrible, dies to Foxfire.
Omar Keung: Conspiracy Theorist
Rjayz
Boasting a powerful ability that synergizes with already good cards like Medium, Temüjin Contract, and Bhagat, Omar seems like a strong contender for Anarch IDs. However, his low influence combined with many Anarch cards being placed on the Most Wanted List means cutting corners, especially when trying to use a Faust-based deck to profit off his console, Obelus. For now I think Whizzard: Master Gamer will remain the gold standard Anarch. It is worth mentioning is that Omar is a strong Rebirth target for Valencia Estevez: The Angel of Cayambe decks.
SimonMoon
Anarch is the faction with some of the strongest ID abilities, and Omar continues that tradition. Being able to Sneakdoor Beta once a turn provides extremely strong central pressure, and in the faction with ICE destruction it has the ability to spread the Corp’s ICE thin. However, the 12 influence is a very real problem. Anarch has several cards on the MWL that Omar wants to play. There’s also Temüjin Contract, a card every deck wants to play, and Omar seems like a very strong Temüjin Contract user. I think his ID ability gives him a lot of potential, but I don’t think at the moment it will overcome his influence problems. However, I think no matter what he will represent an extremely strong Rebirth target in Anarch, and gives a non-negligible boost to Valencia Estevez: The Angel of Cayambe (and a weird Rebirth Maxx deck seems possible).
Terrificy
Omar’s ability certainly is a strong one. It basically enables you to use a Sneakdoor Beta-like ability on either HQ or R&D once per turn, highly likely resulting in at least one central server being open on your opponent’s first turn. The problem is that this is tough to leverage into any real advantage. As a once-per-turn ability, installing Medium and crossing your fingers isn’t a real option, and generally, I believe that Omar’s ability has the most traction in the late game. Omar definitely wants ICE destruction, which is problematic with so many of the premier cards being on the MWL and Omar only having 12 influence. If so, you would build similarly to Dumblefork, in which case you’re playing Dumblefork with 3 less influence and an ability that is worse in the early game. In that case, playing Dumblefork with Rebirth is simply a better bet. That is, for the time being, going to be Omar’s best contribution to Netrunner: a fine addition to the great number of available Rebirth targets in Anarch. I do not believe that we will see Omar much, unless your opponent was Valencia Estevez: The Angel of Cayambe first — because Rebirthing into him is the best way to use Omar’s ability. And if your opponent plays around Omar’s ability, preventing you from suddenly Rebirthing and getting new life on a Medium that’s stuck on 4 counters with a locked R&D, you can choose to Rebirth into another ID.
Dogs
While an excellent Rebirth target in the late game, I think folks are jumping the gun too soon by saying he’s an automatic choice. If you find Rebirth early, I think Edward Kim: Humanity’s Hammer or Whizzard: Master Gamer will often still be the correct choice. I also think the existence of Temüjin Contract makes Omar quite a bit worse, as many Corp decks are planning to ICE archives these days anyway to turn off free Temüjin Contract runs.
Gejben
Omar seems both good and really fun, sadly he suffers from the “not Whizzard: Master Gamer“-syndrome. Maybe the early aggression that his ability gives him can provide him the speed to stay on top of the corp anyway but I think that while assets stay as strong as they are now and as long as Whizzard: Master Gamer is in the card pool, Omar will be best as a late game Rebirth target.
Black Orchestra
Rjayz
The cheap install cost and the ability to install from the heap are enticing, but taking a closer look at Black Orchestra reveals its awful efficiency at breaking anything else than mid-tier code gates. Paying three credits to break a Quandary is awful, and so is paying nine credits to get through a Tollbooth or DNA Tracker. In my opinion the only deck that would want Black Orchestra is a MaxX Data Leak Reversal deck, as it’s an answer to help clear out defensive upgrades behind Code Gates with End the Run subroutines, and break through Turing that unlike Yog.0 doesn’t care about getting dumped into the heap by MaxX.
Terrificy
The numbers on this are just off. If you’re playing Anarch, paying 3 to install and 3 to break on a clutch run against a Lotus Field or central Turing can be fine, but continually paying 6 credits to break through some of the current premier Code Gates like Fairchild 3.0 is not sustainable. This screams “backup solution”, and in reality, you probably just want to play Yog.0.
Dogs
Clearly this should not be used as anything more than a backup, but as a one-of I think this is okay to be Anarch’s Lotus Field solution. Doing so allows Temüjin Contract Anarchs to consider cutting Net-Ready Eyes (NRE) to free up influence for Employee Strike. Unclear to me if this is the right call, but it seems worth considering.
Gejben
Black Orchestra is probably too expensive to use as main Code Gate breaker. As a influence-free answer to central Turing, Lotus Field and as backup for e.g. Faust or Eater I think it’s fine and will probably see some play. That said, Yog with support like NRE, Ice Carver and Datasucker is really good now with the strong code gates coming out in this pack and if you have that there is no reason at all to play Black Orchestra.
Inactivist
If you were unable to hear the phrases ‘Lotus Field’ or ‘Turing on a Central’ without uncontrollably foaming at the mouth, this is the card you have been waiting for. Also, get that checked. It fits a slot as a secondary breaker, but is only really comfortable with mid-strength Code Gates on its own.
Obelus
Rjayz
Definitely a card that screams “build around”. Obelus feels like it’s designed to slot into a strategy built around Faust and Medium, in order to both be able to draw a large quantity of cards, and have use for them. The hand size increase when using tags is nice to counteract Weyland kill decks relying on Midseason Replacements, but against NBN it’s too risky to not shake tags, nor take them yourself with cards like Account Siphon. I’m skeptical of how much play Obelus will see, as the new Code Gates in this data pack present a challenge for Faust decks, together with the MWL making it difficult for such decks to also have Temüjin Contract to stave off NBN decks.
SimonMoon
Obelus seemed like a card with a lot of upside and lots of potential decks it can fit into. The most obvious place is in a Timmy style Account Siphon Whizz which Siphons and then goes ham on R&D. It gets benefits from both halves of the ability, allowing you to get a massive hand size (and dodging kills so you don’t need plascrete) for Faust while also drawing lots of cards for Medium. However, I don’t think you need to run it in a tag me deck, as it can also be used primarily for its draw ability with the upsides of helping you survive Midseason Replacements kill decks in a single slot. Just from pure power level, I wouldn’t be surprised if someone showed up with a surprise deck that utilizes this and performs well, and on top of that I think Account Siphon Whizz is a reasonable (though not the best) deck. I wouldn’t be shocked by a top 16, but I also wouldn’t be shocked if there were no Obelus in the top cut.
Terrificy
This does plenty of work in some decks. It is obviously best coupled with R&D pressure – because drawing a large quantity of cards AND accessing a lot of cards for 1 click is not a bad idea. It is weirdly build-around. Even though the ability is obviously good and would have been absolutely insane as an ID ability, it is not an automatic choice for console in Anarch. It has places in Valencia with Blackmail (and Medium or R&D Interfaces), where drawing 2-4 cards by Blackmailing R&D click one is pretty strong, as it is likely to draw you into more ways to play Blackmail. Of course, this also supports Faust as a breaker, as you will need to have some sort of offset for your extra cards.
The second ability, related to tags, is clearly gravy. It is an OK ability, but it is not currently easy to use, as there is no way to quickly gain a multitude of tags (though I suppose a weird Account Siphon-spam build with Game Day would be possible). It is mostly an upside against decks with low tag punishment or a kill-focus, where having extra cards is a huge boon, but going tag-me against an Exchange of Information deck is not recommended, even if having a hand size of 19 is pretty cool.
Dogs
I think Obelus can be an extremely strong card even outside of dedicated Account Siphon decks. I think a slightly modified reg anarch is out there running a bit more denial, some high impact resources, Joshua B, and Wireless Net Pavilion that will really make this card sing. Even without tagme cards, Obelus gives the runner additional flexibility in determining when and how to go tagme against tag punishment decks like NBN: Controlling the Message and SYNC: Everything, Everywhere. Looking forward to seeing how people use it in the future.
Gejben
Obelus has two relevant abilities printed on one card, that makes it a really strong card. Choosing a console in anarch is becoming a very interesting decision and while Obelus is probably best in a tag-me anarch I’m not sure it is not worth running in a reg-ass build as well, and I still don’t think it is an auto include over e.g. Turntable or Vigil in an Account Siphon-deck.
Find the Truth
Rjayz
Since Damon Stone cleared up that directives are chosen after IDs are revealed, and therefore you can pick three of the four directives to start with as Adam: Compulsive Hacker every game, Find The Truth presents interesting choices for Adam: Compulsive Hacker players. It potentially lets you drop one of the other Directives if its downside is too great in the matchup you are about to face. Find The Truth will most likely not solve enough of Adam’s problems to make him a good tournament choice and therefore make an impact on the metagame, but it is a welcome addition nonetheless.
Terrificy
I’ve never played Adam: Compulsive Hacker, but I suppose this is cool if you want to remove one of your other Directives.
Dogs
Seems fine in a no-frills Adam: Compulsive Hacker deck, as it can free up influence otherwise spent on multiaccess. Revealing your draws can be a major hindrance though, given that many of Adam’s draws happen at the end of turn due to Safety First. This gives the Corp 3 clicks to react to any potential tricks or high impact cards drawn. Ultimately, I’m suspicious of it.
Gejben
Find the Truth is good in two ways: The ability on the card is good and you don’t have to play Always Be Running. The drawback of the card seems pretty minor if you are running a “good stuff”-deck without leaning on tricks and surprises and the Spy Camera decks have shown that looking at the top card of R&D can be a strong ability and especially so when it is installed at the start of the game and is permanent. Tags will still continue to be a problem for Adam: Compulsive Hacker, maybe more than for most but I still think that this card puts him at the best position he’s been since he was released, which maybe is not saying that much. I’m excited to try it out at least!
First Responders
Rjayz
While not a bad card in itself, First Responders doesn’t quite work out against the flavour of kill decks most likely to show up after Escalation hits. Against the Industrial Genomics: Growing Solutions deck with Dedication Ceremony, while it does help you survive the turn they attempt to kill you, as well as let you get around Genetics Pavilion by letting you draw on their turn if they damage you with Bio-Ethics Association, First Responders drains credits you need to be able to destroy the assets this deck puts out against you. As for meat damage decks, most of them will be relying on BOOM! to kill you, meaning that First Responders is blank. Otherwise, First Responders being a resource means that they can potentially trash it and then kill you later. I don’t see this card being played a lot, as its strongest use is staving off non-IG net damage decks, which aren’t as strong.
SimonMoon
This is a tech card for Runners to use against kill decks. There are two kinds of kill decks, tags+meat and net damage. For meat damage kill decks, there are two problems with the card; they have the ability in Boom! to kill in one shot, and since they’re tagging they can simply trash the First Responders. I think net damage decks are where this card actually works, but it has serious problems against Industrial Genomics: Growing Solutions, the most popular net damage kill deck. Industrial Genomics: Growing Solutions has two win conditions, the one shot kill (Dedication Ceremony + Ronin, Bio-ethics Association, Chairman Hiro) or creating a locked board with Bio-ethics Association and Hostile Infrastructure. While First Responders stops the first condition, as it does so it makes you spend money that you need to trash things to stop the second win condition. Ultimately, it is not good enough against the decks it should be tech for, and the deck it does work against (Jinteki: Personal Evolution, Bio-ethics Association) are basically non-existent in the current meta.
Terrificy
A cool tech card design in my opinion – but it is not good in the current meta. In general, it is expensive and doesn’t feel that useful. There are no good ways for Runners to turn drawing their whole deck into their hand into a win during the next turn, which is one of the obvious uses of this card.
thebigunit3000
This card is utter garbage. You pay two credits (almost the same as Sports Hopper or Plascrete Carapace) for the privilege of having to pay through the nose every time you want to draw more. You can’t even draw on command — that would make too much sense in a BOOM! meta, wouldn’t it? It’s doubly useless versus meat damage, because they can just go and trash it before killing you. If this card is in the Top 8 of a Nationals or higher, I will proxy all of my Temüjin Contracts into First Responders.
Final Thoughts
That concludes our thoughts and reviews on the Runner cards in this Datapack. It’ll be interesting to see which of the Runner cards end up shaping and defining the meta throughout Worlds and the Store Championship season. Check back soon for the Stimhack Community Review of the Corp side of Escalation. Thanks!