Hackers and frackers, welcome to the sort-of-final Stimhack Community Review and Meta Predictions. Please leave your gift on the table over there and grab yourself a drink. Quickly, the game’s about to start!
Sportsmetal: Go Big or Go Home
CrushU
An interesting ID, the HB version of PE or Argus. I think the ID is meant to be scoring agendas, with side-benefit if they get stolen, but that isn’t the major point. As compared to Argus or PE, who want the Runner to take agendas. That said, HB also gets a ton of cards to help this archetype out, so we’ll have to see.
Grog
Quite a good ID. Not for the Argus/PE stuff, but just because you’ll probably get 4+ triggers in a game. Draw and money are both good. Strike is a card, though.
BlueHg
Scoring agendas normally kills tempo, but this ability lets you keep it up. Grog mentions Strike, and it’s worth mentioning that scoring through a Strike fizzles your ability. Getting 5c from a Hyperloop steal is great, or advancing your tempo even more from an Ikawah or SSL steal can help you recover. It synergizes with Jinja really well too. This is probably the HB ID of choice besides CI. Its most powerful ability might be getting to play purple cards influence free and still giving a benefit besides.
StephenBall
We have learned over time that agendas that recover the horrible tempo of scoring are good, through things like Oaktown Renovation, Hostile Takeover, even something like Remote Enforcement. Sportsmetal does that with all of your agendas, and if your agendas get stolen too. This seems like a very strong tempo or rush ID, and will allow for some pretty cool decks. I don’t agree with bringing up Employee Strike every time a Corp ID has to be reviewed, unless it’s a massive detriment. Yeah, Strike is kind of a bummer for Sportsmetal, but let’s not act like it’s as impactful as it is for something like Blue Sun or Mti. I think most of the cards that “go with” Sportsmetal in this pack are traps except for Hyperloop Extension, but the ID is really strong.
Miek
This is definitely one of the top 2 HB identities in the game, better than everything except CI. I like this ID a lot, as I think it encourages a fun sort of “tempo” Netrunner that’s crucial to the game. I’m probably incredibly wrong about this, but I have a sneaking suspicion that this ID might even be better than CI (in the same way that ETF was).
tvaduva
HB gets back a strong economic ID that doesn’t require bioroids after the loss of EtF. Should have been called SHIFT. Probably plays any agendas that gives it tempo, even 3/1 agendas like Hyperloop Extension and Research Grant.
Hyperloop Extension
CrushU
Sportsmetal plays this.
Grog
Seems good in Custom Biotics decks that play HHN and HPT, too, ha.
BlueHg
Custom Biotics. Any HB deck that really wants its econ advantage will use this, I just don’t know how many of those there are. A Game Changer combo CI will probably play this as a card they’re fine getting stolen.
Miek
I can’t really see anybody other than Sportsmetal playing this TBH, but in there it is really good.
tvaduva
Really nice when you’re playing, but not fun when you’re deckbuilding and trying to find the slots. Might be worth considering these as the seventh point in a mostly three-pointer agenda composition.
Meridian
CrushU
This is possibly the best non-Weyland Barrier. This can be compared to Eli 1.0. You don’t want to use it as the only ice on your server, it’s a pain to get through multiple times, but there is an alternative to breaking the subs to deal with it.
BlueHg
Good ice. Bastion was played last year and this is better in most situations. Also synergizes with Fast Break and Game Changer, and might see play in Philotic Entanglement decks.
theo
Early in the game, this is an unreliable piece of ice that you can’t score behind.
Later in the game, the -1 point might become extremely relevant, but it’s only three credits to break with Paperclip.
If the Runner never wanted to add it to their score area, it’s obvious this would be a great card, but giving them the option really weakens it.
Miek
This card is either good or bad, depending entirely on how much shadow net is in the meta. Since shadow net is a decent card anyway, I suspect this card will always be semi-bad, because if its gets good then people will just slot Shadow Net. On the off-chance that Shadow Net gets an MWL then this card is IMO very cool.
tvaduva
It’s a slightly undercosted mid-range barrier with a good facecheck penalty, but it give the Runner the option on how to deal with it long term. But, we’ll have to wait for a ruling for the ambiguous conjunction.
Gatekeeper
CrushU
The biggest problem is that even if you de-rez this, they know where it is. So Blue Sun loves it.
BlueHg
Powerful gearcheck, and synergizes with Divert Power really well. Hitting it is almost Architect-level tempo for the Corp, especially if they’re CI. Could be a double edged sword vs the Clan Vengeance decks running around currently, so I recommend not rezzing it if you know you’re playing against that deck.
StephenBall
I have to be way more high on this card than the people before me, as I think this card is really fantastic. The turn it gets rezzed it’s a monster, 6 strength with relevant subs for 3 credits is nothing to scoff at. But I don’t feel like this is just garbage after that, it remains a code gate with 2 subroutines that have to be broken. Enigma has been played forever, and now has no reason to be played in HB ever again, this is just better, and is a monster the turn it’s rezzed. Great card for CI, great card for Sportsmetal.
Miek
StephenBall speaking the truth. For me, the biggest thing that makes this card good is that the strength remains for the entire turn, not just the run. So you get one turn with this ice where its monstrously difficult to get past, and even just bouncing off it and trying again doesn’t fit that. Usually this will be rezzed on a crucial turn, will get a strong face-check outcome, and then give an ETR.
tvaduva
Similar thoughts to Stephen/Miek, this has better subroutines than Enigma at the same cost. Even at zero strength after the first turn, there’s no commonly played decoder where the two strength difference is a factor (outside of turtle). But, when it’s first rezzed it can be a tempo boost and stopper for the whole turn.
Ion_Fox
A bit late to the party on this whole review thing, but I personally feel that this card will be an amazing splash in Blue Sun where you can consistently have it in an unrezzed state, and is even better than Formicary which was clearly intended to be Blue Sun support. Consistently getting 6 strength Gatekeepers means one of the following: The Runner is getting heavily taxed, you have effectively locked down a server, or you are seriously filtering all your agendas and HQ. All of these are really good.
dr00
As mentioned, it has obvious synergy with Blue Sun, but I think it’s just a solid card you can throw in front of Archives to help protect yourself against a Runner who keeps trashing things from HQ or R&D and later runs in to try to scope out what got binned. I don’t think you really need to rez this more than once. It’s either really taxing on that first run or actually manages to fire and help protect your agendas, or bonus if you can tax the Runner a lot and you don’t even have any agendas to hide away. On later runs, it’s slightly taxing, but you’ve already gotten your benefit from it, and the Runner knows it’s already there, but I think that’s perfectly fine.
Divert Power
CrushU
A playable version of Testing Grounds. I actually think this could be pretty powerful. Breaker Bay Grid combos nicely with it, as well.
BlueHg
Actually a playable derez card. It synergizes with the Campaigns and Gatekeeper well. I think this might be a secretly powerful card but only time will tell.
StephenBall
A really interesting card. The big thing has been Breaker Bay/Assembly Lines, but even things like Vanilla or an NGO before you pop it are solid. Could make for a fun Surat City Grid deck, I think this card is playable.
theo
You do your killer combo and it nets you… a discount of seven credits? It can do some neat tricks but the payoff isn’t good enough for what it does for you.
Miek
I like this card a lot. It’s a fun pet card, and probably not as good as others, but I think I like it more anyway. Theo is correct that it only gives you seven credit discount, but if you use it with Marilyn/Adonis then you get to recharge their credit counters also, and that’s a significant credit gain too.
Neuropantser
At last, my “having 30 credits on every Campaign, even Launch” tribal deck is getting the support it needs.
tvaduva
Blue Sun gets several cards in this box and this one is only one influence. With Vanilla, Breaker Bay Grid, and so many playable zero and one rez cost assets and upgrades, it’s not hard to be able to rez any card for full value. A Blue Sun Breaker Bay deck sounds pretty fun and full of all kinds of tricks.
Fast Break
BlueHg
Maybe good? Sportsmetal high agenda decks will use this, but I’m not sure what else. Building a server out of nowhere has its merits, and a late game one can get out of hand, but I don’t know that any deck besides a specific style of Sportsmetal wants it.
Higgs
Feeding the Runner multiple Meridian can get pricey, so you probably want this card to help you recover.
theo
I don’t think Fast Break fits into any “fair” non-combo deck. This is a really situational card – you can only use it quite late in the game. That’s the point in the game is when you least need to install a bunch of ice. Usually, you put enough ice in your deck to see a few pieces early, so by the time this is on you likely already have more ice than you can afford to install and rez. The 4 cost is just crushing.
Is there a combo where you want to draw and install Arella Salvatore with a pile of Calibration Testings? That’s the only situation where I can see this card seeing play.
Miek
I think this suffers from the same problem that Meridian does – Shadow Net. Lots of small agendas with this kind of payoff, then it’s likely that the Runner will be just trading them for 9c, a DoF or another Indexing.
RJayz
Saving two clicks on an Ultraviolet Level Clearance that trades money for extra installs is potentially very powerful. I don’t think Sportsmetal wants this card – unlike Game Changer this is less likely to let you push out that last agenda to hit 7 points. Like Theo said, I’d keep an eye on this in combo Cerebral Imaging decks.
Whiteblade111
So first, how many agendas does the Runner need for this to be good? At x = 2 you pay 2, draw 2, and install 2 cards, which is good, but not really worth a card slot in my opinion, as it’s a worse rashida at that point. At x = 4 this is not bad, drawing you 4 for free and building a big remote. But here’s my problem, at 2, or 4 agendas, the game must have gone pretty late, so how valuable is this draw/remote install ability? I think of the two operations, game changer is better than fast break. Game Changer has more late game closing potential, while fast break is going to sit in your hand in the early game while the Runner builds up.
dr00
A more playable Stock Buy-Back. Great with Meridian and other cards that can add themselves to the Runner’s score area as negative points. Also Domestic Sleepers, which is something Sportsmetal might consider including. I think at 1 agenda, the value isn’t there. At 2, you’re drawing and installing 2 cards for 2 credits, so that’s decent if you get the full value. Once you get to 3 and higher, it’s amazing value if you have enough cards to draw or install. Luckily, you get to draw first, then choose what to install.
Game Changer
CrushU
Sportsmetal plays this. (And maybe Argus/PE.)
BlueHg
There will be a combo deck that uses this to great effect, maybe with Team Sponsorship, Calibration Testing, Arella Salvatore, or Research Grant. We’ll see. Walk on ice if you run against CI and see a bunch of one-pointers.
theo
Perhaps Game Changer is the card that makes feeding your opponent small agendas worth it. If your opponent has two agendas, it’s a pricier Biotic Labor, but if they have four you can score out a 5/3 and things only get crazier from there. There’s some tension in that you want a lot of 1-pointers in your deck to fuel Game Changer, but you also want big agendas you can score out with it. Again, maybe the best use will be in those crazy combo decks that can do mindboggling things with the extra clicks.
RJayz
Unlike Fast Break, Game Changer has the potential to turn the tables. It’s easy to fall in the trap of ‘best case scenario’ mentality with this card though, as the high end means you have 5 click turns or more, enabling a lot of nonsense. Like Fast Break I think Cerebral Imaging will make much better use of this card than Sportsmetal.
Miek
Feel like a repeating record here but Shadow Net.
Whiteblade111
I’m just going to summarize my thoughts on this whole “number of agendas in score area” sub theme that Memorial Field, Fast Break and Game Changer all play on. I’m kind of cold on it, for a bunch of reasons, but mainly because these cards only really turn on in the late game, when you’re close to losing (yes domestic sleepers, but if you’re playing sleepers in a turntable meta you’re a mad person). For the number of agendas to be high the Runner needs to score a certain subset of agendas (preferably your hyperloop expansions and domestic sleepers) while dodging the GFI’s and 2/3s. I don’t think is solid enough to base a slot on, and Corp slots are so tight nowadays you can’t afford to play inconsistent cards. Game Changer and Memorial Field are better in this respect, but I still think I prefer biotic. In a lot of my games, the Runner sat on two until I was flooded and then pushed for a win, turning this into an expensive, trashable biotic. Will sportsmetal even play this? Probably not, as biotic is going to be more consistent, and consistency wins you games.
dr00
At one agenda, you just spent 6 credits to get your click back. At 2, it’s a more expensive Biotic Labor. At 3 or more, that’s where the real value is, so you have to consider how often you’ll be in a situation where the Runner will have 3 or more agendas in their score area and you need this card. If you run a lot of low point agendas, it will definitely happen more often than one might think, but will you need all those extra clicks? Maybe for some good combo turn that doesn’t necessarily involve scoring.
Giordano Memorial Field
CrushU
I’m not as high on this as others, but I still think it’s good. It ends the run after passing all ice without allowing the Runner to trash it. I think Jinteki’s psychic clones would like to have a word with HB about stealing their ideas… The biggest issue is that this card does literal nothing until an agenda has been scored. I’m generally against any plans that involve your opponent scoring agendas, but the effect is powerful. Combine with Ash for the most obvious defensive upgrade server.
BlueHg
If that high-agenda Sportsmetal actually has some ice to rez, this’ll be gross. Even in more glacier-y builds like pj20’s Asa, I think this has worth as a singleton to help seal the late game score or as a tempo hit for central servers.
Miek
SHADOW NET!! In all seriousness I think this one is the worst because even without Shadow Net its very conditional to get the full value.
Neuropantser
Does fire before access replacement effects, so it’s a pseudo-Crisium. But the emphasis there is very much on pseudo.
tvaduva
A lot of the time it’s like a slightly worse or slightly better Red Herrings without an agenda requirement (or an unboostable Ash), except the Runner still has to pay the full cost to access plus the cost to trash this. I believe by the Black Level Clearance ruling that the runs are still considered successful even if they are ended.
dr00
I know Shadow Net has been mentioned in almost every HB card this box, but I think this is actually the least relevant card for Shadow Net. Sure, if your plan is zero or -1 agenda cards in the runner’s score area, but if you plan for many low-point agendas or if you suspect the runner will have their own cards like Mad Dash and Notoriety, you can get some decent value. With just one agenda, it’s a 5 credit tax on the first run if the runner trashes it and just gets better from there, so I think there’s some solid value here.
Saraswati Mnemonics: Endless Exploration
CrushU
Oh hey, I like this art, I have this as one of my desktop backgrounds… This looks like Mind Games Jinteki: The Identity. Of note, the card doesn’t have to be advanceable. (Also, maybe someone that isn’t BoN/SSO will play Mass Commercialization…)
Higgs
“Well, it ain’t NGO”: The ID
BlueHg
Good for tempo on those 4/2s. Being able to score two Niseis over three turns ain’t half bad. I’m sure someone will try a Plan B deck that isn’t good. Don’t be cute, just play it like glacier Mti and just use the ability for tempo. Also, if you look closely at the art you can see the silhouette of a person standing over the curved glass of the facility watching the clones. #flavor
Miek
I like the idea of Saraswati a lot. If every card you play is IA by default, then your 4/2s are by default considered “never advanced”. The fact that it turns off NGO is a significant downside, and the economic cost of using Saraswati (while still better than doing IA) is significant. Overall, I think this ID is good, but i doubt it’s going to edge out any of the power house IDs that Jinteki already has.
tvaduva
Jinteki gets an ID that considers playing NeoTokyo Grid. Oh, yeah, the 4/2 never advance game and the click/credit discount, that’s why this ID is pretty good.
Jumon
CrushU
6/2’s are almost universally unplayable, and I see nothing to make this an exception.
Higgs
3 Mushin, 3 Media Blitz…
BlueHg
I’m not sure I’d even play this as a 5/3. 6/2 is definitely a no go, thanks. Worth noting the advancement tokens can be on any card installed in a server (not in the Root), not just advanceable cards.
theo
This card is an Unnecessary Downgrade to Mandatory Upgrades, which much more reliably ended the game once scored. Maybe you can cheat it into your score area with Lady Liberty?
Miek
I love this card. Its hilarious and obviously not good but would probably be a really negative experience if it was actually good. Pricing it as a 6/2 is great IMO, as it allows you to have some great jank stories to tell about it. I think cards like this should exist and be overpriced and this is a great job.
RJayz
Requires Saraswati or Mushin to score it out over 2 turns. The effect is extremely powerful if it hits, so I do think it has potential in Saraswati. Requiring you to spend 3 clicks and 3c a turn to put 3 advancements on everything you put out is expensive though if you want to keep up the bluff.
API-S Keeper Isobel
CrushU
… Saraswati plays this? I guess? There are some interesting money schemes you can run, but I think it’s ultimately sub-par.
BlueHg
If you ever manage to score Jumon, you’ll have a nice econ engine going with this. But now you’re playing two mostly bad cards for a combo that doesn’t really help your wincon a ton, so it’s probably bad.
Miek
2 rez and 4 trash are good numbers. I agree with CrushU that this is probably entirely just a Saraswati card, but I think it’s really good for that ID. You can install every card as an IA.. allowing your 4/2s to be NA bluffs, and then you can either do stuff like score the 4/2 or gain 3c with this card.
RJayz
Solid economy in Saraswati. Worth mentioning it works with Tennin Institute as API-S can pull advancement counters off any installed card, meaning you can put advancements on safer cards like the Runner’s console and still profit off it. (but you probably want those counters for Trick Of Light)
tvaduva
An Aesop for your advancement tokens actually sounds pretty good: you still tried your bluff, but can recuperate your cost when it’s clear they’re not biting. Would someone still run an advanced card if you start removing tokens from it?
dr00
Amazing card for bluff-style traps to help recoup the losses from failed investments. Not super great competitively in that regard, but fun. I think if you have ways to give yourself free tokens, such as Tennin Institute, this card can help you get more value out of those tokens, but you may want to save them for Trick of Light anyway.
Neurostasis
CrushU
While this effect is nice, I’m not sure it’s better than just killing them with Junebug. If it’s played, it’ll be because of the trash cost being non-zero.
BlueHg
Mindgames Jinteki getting more cards. They have a wealth of traps already, but this one’s cool for nailing the popular The Turning Wheels, Bankrolls, and other high-impact cards that need to rack up counters. It’s decent, but it fits in snuggly with a bunch of other cards that have already explored this design space. I rate it Aggressive Secretary/10.
Miek
Aggressive Secretary definitely seems like the comparison. I think it’s probably a little worse overall but there are definitely use cases where it’s better, and the paperclip/black orchestra/MKUltra Anarch meta we have right now is a good example of one of those use cases.
RJayz
Strong trap for Jinteki glaciers that don’t care about flatlining through net damage, as shuffling away heap icebreakers can strand the Runner for a good couple of turns. We already have NGO Front and Bio Vault masquerading as agendas and pulling Runners through expensive remotes, so not sure if this can find a slot.
Neuropantser
Shoutouts to the card’s prefix. Reasonable mid- and late-game trap for decks where traps are a reasonable thing, but not a very good early Mushin target unless your opponent drops Laguna Velasco right before running your Mushin.
tvaduva
Runners tend to be prepared for Junebugs and Overwriters, not as prepared for this yet (or Aggressive Secretary, but they don’t care too much about trashed breakers).
dr00
This screams NBN, but it’s red, and I think it’s one of the best red traps printed. This effect is absolutely brutal, even if expensive.
Otoroshi
CrushU
Miiiiiiiiiiiiiind Gaaaaaaaaaaames. Especially with that flavor text.
BlueHg
Uh…okay I guess? This box’ll push more Yomi Jinteki, which will either lose or win with high variance, and not based on skill.
Miek
With Saraswati and this card, I think we can finally have a plausible Plan B into Viral Weaponization that the Runner will actually let fire. Probably not good but I can see why people might like this card even if I personally don’t.
RJayz
Fun effect – and the rez cost to strength is very reasonable. Requires significantly more setup than Cortex Lock to be good, but stays relevant unlike the former. If we see any Jinteki shell games pop up again, I could see this card deserving a slot.
tvaduva
So, most likely, the Runner pays three to get past this ice and you get three advancements on any card installed in a server. It does require that you have a card installed in a remote server. Mushin, then install this to protect it seems like a fun play. Now what to do with the advancement tokens left on cards that the Runner didn’t want to access, if only there was a helpful beekeeper…
Thimblerig
CrushU
Absolutely nuts. This is Jinteki’s best card of the pack, hands down. (Sadly it wasn’t a stiff competition…) You can do so many very interesting things with this, including putting unrezzed ice in the back of AgInf servers… It’s basically a replacement for Quandary, getting better for costing non-Jinteki decks an influence. Rush decks want this.
BlueHg
Neat. It helps you rearrange your servers so positional ice can actually work. I can see Acme importing these to get their Data Ward/Universal Connectivity Fee back out in front after swapping you build on top of those ice.
Miek
My favourite jank idea to do with this card is to add rover algorithm onto it and move it where you think the Runner is going to go. Especially good if you stack a big server and you make them go through the same Thimblerig over and over to get in.
Whiteblade111
On paper this effect seems innocuous, but in reality, it’s going to be a mind bender, putting taxing remote ice on centrals when the Corp needs to lock them down, and then shifting ice back over to the remote when you need to score. Swapping on pass is also great, but being able to shuffle your ice around? Expect it as a 1of in most Jinteki glacier decks, perhaps more.
dr00
Amazing card. Being able to work every turn instead of only when the Runner chooses to run is what makes this card so good. It probably won’t make positional ice any more viable, but it’s a great way to rearrange your servers so that Komainu is the outermost with all the other net damage ice on the inside.
Hangeki
CrushU
The only adorable thing here is that you can maybe prevent the Runner by winning via points if you have this, GFI, News Team, Meridian, and Shi.Kyu. It looks like An Offer You Can’t Refuse, only backwards.
BlueHg
Cool I guess? Not really down on all these mindgame Jinteki cards. Could fit into the hypothetical Game Changer deck, but I think News Team and Shi.Kyu are more reliable.
tvaduva
For the Jinteki player that feels the Runner never runs their installed ambushes, but instead just trashes them from centrals to get to the agendas.
Inactivist
Hi Jinteki players, were you feeling left out with all the talk about Shadow Net earlier? Don’t worry, we’ve got a card for you too.
Daruma
CrushU
Miiiiiiiiiiiiiiiind Gaaaaaaaaaaaames.
BlueHg
Actually a cool defensive upgrade. I’m not familiar enough with regards to Netrunner swapping rules to know if the swapped card keeps the advancement counters for traps, but even if it doesn’t, putting some chaff in the remote to save an agenda has definite utility.
Miek
Agreed with bluehg here. This card doesn’t have to be mind games at all to be value. You can put it in a server to remove the agenda just as they’re about to get in and it works like a pseudo BioVault but with way less effort. The main downside is that they do not keep advancement counters, so you lose any effort you spent on actually advancing any agendas. I think this card might actually be the best Jinteki card in the pack, even more so than Thimblerig.
Whiteblade111
Putting aside mindgame memes, Miek hit the nail on the head. The real value is being able to “save” an agenda at the last minute and swap in something. What you swap in is probably a question answered in deckbuilding, but it’s a pseudo Bio Vault effect. I think it will actually see a reasonable amount of play, at least as a more click efficient Bio Vault in rush decks.
tvaduva
Miek is correct that if you’re swapping the installed card with a card in HQ, then it loses all hosted items, but if you’re swapping with another card installed in a server (NOTE: not the root of a server), then both cards keep all hosted items. Much better than Toshiyuki Sakai, even though the Runner still has an option to jack out after this is used. Because, the Corp is incentivized to push out an agenda and if it fails, swap it for a trap or something they don’t mind losing instead of using Toshiyuki as a trap and guessing correctly at the time of access that the Runner will access/not access the ambush/agenda you just put in.
Acme Consulting: The Truth You Need
Grog
I hope you like hitting Universal Connectivity Fee over and over and over. Solid ID, enables annoying rushy glacier strats but maybe without upgrades since things like Data Ward, IP block, aforementioned Connectivity Fee, and the new ice Hydra (below) all fire and are all taxing to deal with.
CrushU
Card’s very very good. There’s a whole host of ice that get turned on by having a tag. Data Ward is the one I always think of, but UCF is good, too.
BlueHg
This ID will be very powerful to contend with. If they have Thimblerig you can bet something punishing is always going to be on the outside. Watch out for ice-destruction scenarios because it resets what ice is outermost; UCF into Data Ward or Hippo’ing an ice then hitting IP Block will make you sad.
theo
ACME gives you incredibly powerful ice, but has to compete with the generically-strong Azmari, which also resists Strike better.
Please note that you do not have a window to rez Zealous Judge during the encounter because cards cannot be rezzed during run step 3.1.
Miek
For ultimate jank, you can use a bioroid ice + surat city grid + Tyr’s hand to force a zealous judge rez during the encounter window. Thanks dodgepong for this great piece of knowledge.
RJayz
Unlike the others I think this identity is pretty middling. It enhances a very small set of ice (IP Block, Data Ward, Hydra, Pachinko, Universal Connectivity Fee, I guess it gives Resistor +1 strength). Out of these, IP Block is the only one I think remains good without being the outermost ice. The best case for this ID is rushing out behind a Data Ward or IP Block, and hope you can pull ahead before the Runner finds an answer.
tvaduva
Now is Henry’s time to shine!
Fly on the Wall
CrushU
A fixed Breaking News! Now we can all die to stupid agenda scoring tricks for a while until we bring back Aaron, I guess. Thankfully, as a 3/1, it’s super difficult to actually put together any sort of death combo. But not impossible.
Grog
Funny that it’s just better Posted Bounty.
BlueHg
Good card. Watch out for 24/7 News Cycle into Closed Accounts.
Miek
I feel like CtM wants this card, but building CtM lists I have no idea what to cut for it. Is it better than AR Enhanced Security? Probably not. I honestly don’t know CtM well enough to tell. Is it better than QPM? Probably, but again, I don’t know CtM well enough to know. This also has a lot of potential in Sync style lists too I think. 24/7 into closed accounts into HHN will be brutal. Slot your misdirections and turntables.
Whiteblade111
This card is great, and will be good in a variety of tag builds. Being able to install double advance a card and exchanging some information is really good. It gives nbn a credible never advance threat with 24/7, and overall punishes runners who sit back. Often runners who want to install their rig will let the first gfi float by and contest from there, but this is a threat that needs to be answered.
SIU
CrushU
Interesting card. It’s basically a SEA Source you pay the click for a turn in advance, giving you more room for things to do with that tag. I suspect this will see at least fringe play.
BlueHg
Proactive tagging will be good. With SEA Source you have to wait for the Runner to run; with this you can pressure them before you get set up. NBN: Controlling the Message will play at least one to turn on the unexpected Exchange of Information.
theo
This card has potential if only because it can land a tag without requiring a run or a click. If you’re winning the money war, though, can’t you just put down some other must-trash asset and then SEA Source them if they run it? There’s a high chance this will get trashed out of your hand or deck before you are richer than the Runner, ready to defend it for a turn and prepared to punish the tag.
Miek
If a deck like CtM is up against a deck like Misdirection Shaper, they probably have all their CBG going off but are unable to actually do anything because the Shaper refuses to run except on their own terms. A well timed early SIU seems really good for wrecking such a deck. A good card but for a different meta.
dr00
Note that is has the same rez timing and unique restriction as Rashida, so that can only be used once per turn if you install it and keep it around until your next turn. Not broken but very solid card.
tvaduva
One of those few threat cards that the Runner has to be prepared to handle. CtM has been doing very well this Regional season, and this being an asset plays into their gameplan when they have that Bankers money rolling. This and Judge can get a BOOM! off. NEH may also consider this.
Peeping Tom
CrushU
If you run Salem’s Hospitality, then this card is good.
BlueHg
Will also be good against Find the Truth builds, which are popular right now. Pretty hard to break comfortably with most breakers, too. It’ll be good in tagstorm decks as a 1x or 2x.
RJayz
Concept is very cool, unfortunately Black Orchestra will tear through this most of the time unless you are really good at guessing what’s in the opponent’s hand. I want to like this but I think Archangel will perform much better at the same cost.
Neuropantser
I’m fairly high on Standard Procedure, which makes me more likely to slot this as a tax.
tvaduva
It’s a bit of a gamble the first time they hit, but each other time will be much easier to get the optimal number of subroutines. Anarch most likely won’t ever pay more than three to break it. But, helps against any Origami or late game Adam. A bit of a Catch-22 for Harishchandra. Gnat laughs at this.
Hydra
CrushU
This ice is worth 10 to rez. Its effects are worth it, but from the Runner’s perspective, it’s just a big Sentry. This thing absolutely hurts to eat the subs on, but ice very rarely actually fires, so I’m holding my enthusiasm in check. That said, it’s brutal if it fires and the Runner is tagged before that. (See: ACME)
BlueHg
NBN’s new ‘god’ ice and it’s a big f’ing sentry. Strength 6 helps a lot in the MKUltra matchup. Acme is obvious, as is the Data Raven combo. Not sure every NBN deck will use it, but any focusing on tags may want 1x. CtM may have some utility for it when a Runner goes tag-me on Centrals close to the end of the game. I think most of the time without a guaranteed tag I’d much rather have Tollbooth.
Miek
10c is almost infinity when it comes to rezzing Netrunner ice, however this one has the potential to pay a decent chunk of it back. This definitely seems worth the rez if you get the faceplant, but if they break it you’re probably going to be significantly behind as a result.
tvaduva
If the Runner has access to D4v1d or is a pirate, then you shouldn’t rez this. If they can break this, then it’s for nearly the same cost, so choose that time wisely. If they cannot break this and are not tagged, they get a tag, you get five back, and it ends the run, which is probably the best order for these subroutines.
Eavesdrop
CrushU
This is the first condition counter put on ice that I think will see serious play. Besides Oversight AI, anyway. This gives any ice the Data Ward on-encounter, essentially, with the caveat that it’s worse against people with link. That’s strong, but I’m still not sure it’s good enough. Maybe you can put it on your Vanilla once they install Aumakua to force a higher tax, and that would be worth it? See, one of the problems with these type of cards is that all it does is increase the amount of credits to get through the ice. It doesn’t make it more likely to fire, since you have to do it on a rezzed piece of ice, so they already know what it is and can prepare for it. This tax might be enough, but even so, it’s just 3 credits/tag at most. (Okay, 5 credits if you’re Making News.)
BlueHg
Acme may use more than other IDs because they’ll have enough ice that want to have that tag effect that they can play it on most of their ice. I don’t think most NBN decks play this though; they have other things they could be using their deckslots for.
dr00
This card is great for turning on ‘while tagged’ ICE subs just like ACME’s ability. ACME may decide that the extra tagging is superfluous, but the tag at least stays longer than the encounter here. It could also be great to deter runs since you can host it on something before you rez it. You also get to choose the order, so I think you could make the Runner pay 3 with Data Ward then trace them at a discount for another tag.
Attitude Adjustment
CrushU
Card’s good. I expect only the Rush decks won’t play it as a 3x. (So basically, the Russian NEH build.)
BlueHg
The closest to Jackson that NBN’s ever gonna get. Excellent for tempo, and will really help the NBN glacier decks like Azmari EdTech decks before they’re ready to score.
Miek
IMO this card should be compared to Special Report, because they both do similar things (remove agendas, draw cards). One of the reasons I like slotting Special Report in my deck, is that when you don’t have agendas but want them it’s also very good. If this is a strong consideration for you, then I think Special Report is better (potentially, if you’re doing this with Attitude Adjustment you’re not even going to gain any money from it). If you’re REALLY flooded, I think Special Report is also probably better. One advantage Attitude adjustment has over Special Report is that if you’re flooded, you’re almost guaranteed to help with it, instead of shuffling agendas in only to draw them back. I’m personally not 100% sold on Attitude Adjustment over Special Report right now, but I definitely think it is worth testing and has potential.
Whiteblade111
It’s a more tuned Special Report (dammit miek, stop stealing all the things I was going to say!) but some builds will probably run this. In a world of Clan Vengeance, being able to cycle agendas from the heap is a nice effect, as well as from the hand. I like that it draws you cards as well, meaning you don’t lose any tempo from the shuffle effect. Overall I can see it slotting into Azmari, CTM and Sync.
Neuropantser
Seems a bit more Whampoa than Special Report to me, especially since it doesn’t self-RFG. Does cost influence for the decks that made the best use of Whampoa, though.
tvaduva
Maybe the best of the reveal agenda and shuffle into R&D cycle we got in this box (sorry Jinteki). It’s definitely the easiest to use. Gatekeeper is close since it won’t take up additional slots.
dr00
This card has really great value if you have agendas to reveal. With just one agenda, it’s still decent, but at zero agendas, you’ll wish you had Preemptive or just slotted Special Report instead. I think this card only fits into a deck that runs a lot of agendas and might want to recycle some of them away if you get too flooded. Argus or Personal Evolution comes to mind, but I don’t think many NBNs care in the same way.
Arella Salvatore
Grog
Reasonably certain this card can and will be very busted for 7 point combos. Have fun!
CrushU
Yeah, I think this card is awkward. I’m pretty sure there are 7pt combos that exist with it, and most of them might be Magically Christmas in nature, where everything has to fall correctly for it to work… But it’s still technically possible. I don’t think this sees play in anything that isn’t trying to go for that, though.
StephenBall
While obviously the first place one’s mind goes is 7 point combos, I think this is pretty sweet as a pure tempo card. Since it ignores all costs, you can install ice anywhere and put an advancement token on it. You can rush out your next agenda, you can install an NGO and get a free 5 credits, you can install your next Rashida. I want to try this in a Sportsmetal rush deck, it seems like a really solid card to me.
BlueHg
Let’s you score back-to-back 4/2’s, which is surprisingly strong. One of the big weaknesses of 4/2s is that you have some dead time between scores which gives the Runner an extra turn to close your scoring window. Palana and AgInfusion decks will love this for their Nisei’s.
Miek
Just straight up powerful, and great in any sort of deck that’s already going for Team Sponsorship style plays. Obviously really good in Sportsmetal, anything playing Estelle Moon, or general CI 7-point combos.
RJayz
2 rez cost to 5 trash cost is beastly for an upgrade, and the effect is strong. I think Arella will find a place in HB and NBN rush decks. Worth mentioning that you can install anything, which means Ariella works with NGO Front, and putting assets / ice out if you don’t happen to be holding an agenda.
Neuropantser
I especially like this in Sportsmetal because you can draw for a new agenda when you score.
tvaduva
Yikes, the numbers are all wrong; should be much cheaper to trash and higher influence so HB has a significant cost to get this. Seems like Mumbad design. Boggs has displayed great design and development, but no one is perfect. What I like least about it is that it’s snowbally. It doesn’t really help you get back in a game, but if you’re in a good spot where you can score agendas, it just finishes the game, or you can just combo off and win the game in one turn.
Off the top of my head it’s: a Breaker Bay Grid (optional, but saves a lot of credits), two Team Sponsorship, two Calibration testing, and this, and you can chain score all three-advance agendas in HQ for a total of three credits, plus one to two Shipment from MirrorMorphs (SfMM) or Fast Breaks (FB) and a Biotic depending on how much you’ve been able to set up. Or, you can set up most of the combo with a Successful Field Test (SFT) score if this is installed and rezzed by the time SFT is scored (i.e SfMM, FB), but there’s probably even more efficient ways to do it for I am not a Combo Lord.
dr00
I think this is a great card to give you some great click compression and tempo for rush. I think maybe it was designed with second rotation in mind, so the Team Sponshorship, Calibration Testing, and Breaker Bay Grid combo wouldn’t be a huge factor, but we did just see a lot of asset spam hate, so maybe this is one of the things they were expecting to get rid of. I see this as the true successor to SanSan City Grid, only it’s not a region. Combine with some other fun NBN regions and go nuts. Old Hollywood or Navi Mumbai Grid can help you score out the new card you installed. Midway Station Grid can help tax the runner as they try to peek at what’s in there: bonus points for you if it’s an NGO.
The Outfit: Family Owned and Operated
CrushU
I think this is good? It’s like GRNDL, on steroids, with a little less velocity right out of the gate.
BlueHg
Could be good, but obviously is going to have to find a different tact than the predominant glacier builds popular right now. Really makes me wish Profiteering were still in the cardpool. Going up eight net credits from a Hostile Takeover score is super intimidating. This also makes recovering from a stuck Mining Accident much easier.
Miek
The outcome of this ID depends pretty heavily on ways to make raw credits powerful when you can’t tax on ice. Sandburg comes to mind as a solid include. If all your ice is + 7 strength then it probably doesn’t matter that they get 8 free credits to get in. If something like Midseasons still existed, it would be another obvious example (but probably too good) example. Trojan Horse is probably another likely contender. I suspect The Outfit is definitely playable, although I doubt it will be tier 1.
Saan
This seems like an ID where it could be way too easy to go way too deep on the BP. There’s a threshold where it feels like the Runner doesn’t even need money any more, and you don’t really want to hit that. Miek covers things that might make hitting this point in the game still playable, so I’m not going to re-do what he’s covered. Instead I’m going to suggest that it might be possible to run some BP removal in this ID. Usually BP removal is bad because it’s too expensive, but you just got overpaid for the BP you just received, so ditching some isn’t the worst thing on earth. Ideally, though, there’s some strategy that allows you to keep the BP and turn that extra money into a wincon.
RJayz
As mentioned by others going on deep on BP can make your ice and assets less worthwhile, which is why I think The Outfit will be focused on rushing with gearcheck ice and a kill backup plan, a strategy we’ve already seen out of Argus. I think the choice of ID will come down to how strongly the bad publicity inhibits your ability to trace out the Runner.
tvaduva
Maybe plays Illicit Sales, with Profiteering rotated out.
Broad Daylight
CrushU
Private Security Force and tagging people all in one. I suspect this is strong enough to see play, probably off the back of Reconstruction Contract, which is pretty impressive for a 4/2. That said, I do think that if you play this, you want to be stacking bad publicity, which currently doesn’t really exist as a Weyland archetype. For added hilarity, score this out of Titan Transnational.
BlueHg
Another bad publicity support card. Ultimately I don’t think this box supports that theme enough, which means that I would rather just not have them. I don’t think this card is really playable.
Miek
A weird House of Knives for Weyland. If you score all 3 of these you can kill the Runner, but then you’ve scored 6 points so you were probably going to win anyway.
Saan
This is a cool card, but it seems more cute than good. It might combo with Armed Intimidation to force the Runner to take the tags rather than ditch their hand, but now we’re talking about scoring a lot of weird agendas while also taking BP, which makes it harder to score. It could be interesting, but it looks like it might be relegated to the binder.
RJayz
Worth mentioning the synergy with 24/7 News Cycle letting you load it up a second time. I don’t know if The Outfit wants this card as now Scorched Earth is gone, this doesn’t present that much of a threat, but could be interesting in Skorpios to try punch important pieces out of the Runner’s grip.
Drudge Work
CrushU
Notable for finally being a reason to run Helium-3 Deposits. Otherwise, this card is a pretty decent Jackson replacement. Not as strong as Jackson, obviously, but still pretty good.
BlueHg
Tempo gain and agenda shuffling at the same time; what’s not to love? Attrition decks that don’t want to have their agendas will use this (e.g. Potential Unleashed).
Miek
Probably a nice buff for Gagarin decks, but if Bankroll and Ms Bones are seeing play then I suspect Gagarin is dying anyway. This is theoretically decent value for any deck when dealing with flood, but I’d rather have Attitude Adjustment and/or Special Report as these cards also give you the draw component.
Whiteblade111
Besides the obvious Gagarin synergy, I could see this fitting into some weird midrangey glacier builds that want to cycle 3 pointers, such as blue sun, or cycling gfi’s in titan, but don’t want to pay influence for the NBN versions. Notably Drudge work can sit in a remote and be used whenever while the event alternatives take up an HQ slot and are one time use. Overall, different and powerful enough to see play.
Saan
I really like this card. It allows your deck to cycle away some agendas if you are waiting to score, and allows decks that don’t really want to score (or at least not immediately) to hang back and get whatever engine going before they actually want to see agendas. The fact that it pays you for them is gravy. This could be really cool in Blue Sun as well, since they can pick it back up for infinite agena reshuffling.
tvaduva
CrushU already mentioned it, but since it’s so significant: this is only the second (!) Weyland card that benefits from power counters (Chief Slee being the first). Why did it have to end when the H3D meta was upon us? Other than that, this is the final part of the reveal agenda and shuffle into R&D cycle, and not much worse than the others. This gives you a bit more control and longevity, but with less tempo gain. Someone is going to keep shuffling Government Takeover one game and be really grateful they have this in their deck.
Blockchain
CrushU
Whoever named this card deserves a raise. This card looks pretty good, and I expect it’ll be dated in about five years. The effects are good, BUT the strength is a bit lacking, and the rez cost is pretty high. I’m not sure this actually gets played, but if one is in your deck, I’d expect the full 3x.
BlueHg
Maybe good, but almost definitely over-costed. It’s an ice you only want to see late game, because 7c for a 4 strength/2 sub barrier early game is a bad idea. It’s anti-synergistic with Bryan Stinson, which any transaction-heavy deck will want, so I’m not sure this will see play in the decks that would hypothetically want to play it.
Saan
7 is verging on too much for a 4 strength ice, almost no matter what it does. I really do love that we’re finally seeing an ice that looks at other areas of the field to inform its subroutines, and it’s a shame it’s the only one we’ll ever see. If you run enough Transactions (an obvious fit for BABW), this could get a little out of hand. BABW should be able to pay for the slightly inflated cost as well. This one is a strange card. It’s either going to be really neat, or it’s going to never see play.
tvaduva
The most likely good case scenario is what? Like six to seven transactions in Archives? That’s still only five for Paperclip to break. Would have been neat if it was for every transaction or cost a couple credits less. But, really flavorful card.
Formicary
CrushU
When I first read this card, I thought you could move it whenever the Runner approached a server, instead of only when Formicary is unrezzed. So I’m a little disappointed it doesn’t do that. I think this is Fine. Not great, not unplayable, just Fine.
Miek
I think this card is cool. Install it naked somewhere and then move it to the relevant server as they approach it. Good for ignoring install costs, or for giving you some Mti style flexibility about where you want your ice. Unfortunately, for the hardest stuff (things like DoF) this will not be enough as it is porous.
Saan
This is a cool little early game ice that allows some early remote play without the need of actual protection. You can just kinda throw it wherever, and then move it to wherever the Runner runs. Sure, it has to live there now, since it can only move once (except out of Blue Sun, but I think Blue Sun usually doesn’t want to create many servers, so I don’t think many will play this). However, you have an iced server now, and the Runner either just took some punishment or ended the run, all for the low cost of a couple credits. I kinda wish that it didn’t have the option of ending the run instead of the net damage; I’d like the ice more if it was just pure facecheck punishment.
BlueHg
Worth mentioning that this is a nice way to bypass ice install cost when wanting to power up a Surveyor while adding a touch of tax. Besides that, I don’t think it’ll see much play.
Building Blocks
CrushU
Adorable. Blue Sun will take it. Everyone else probably has better things to do with 5 credits. Decent successor to Oversight AI for Blue Sun.
BlueHg
Interesting OAI replacement in Blue Sun. Gains you 10c from an Orion and 7c from a Chiyashi. It’s also invulnerable to D4V1D killing the ice, which was a major source of fragility in Blue Sun’s econ with OAI. Of note is that I’m pretty sure the install cost is ignored, which makes creating those super-servers easier. My first real Corp was Blue Sun, so I’m excited to try this one out.
Miek
I’ve seen people play EBC in AgInfusion just to rez a chiyashi on a central server so they have a nasty location to boop people into. Building Blocks seems like a solid replacement if you can find the inf for it. Money is always one of AgInfusion’s problems so the significant savings is huge here.
Saan
Obviously this is a Blue Sun card, and most other IDs don’t care that much about it. It’s sad that Curtain Wall has left us, as other barriers simply don’t give us as much money back, so I’d suspect that most Blue Sun decks to be importing Chiyashi, and potentially running Orion and possibly Hadrian’s Wall. It’s nowhere near as sick as the 13 credit gain from an OAI’d Curtain Wall, but getting 7 from Chiyashi or 10 from Orion is still a good chunk of change.
Too Big to Fail
CrushU
It couldn’t be the last release for Netrunner without a douchebag with his feet on a desk. We salute you, fine sir. As for the card, it seems Great. The only limitation being that you have to need to play it doesn’t seem like a big limitation at all. Again, bad pub stacking isn’t a thing yet, but with this card, it could be.
BlueHg
This is a great card. It allows rush to recover from low credits, and is a whopping 10c for The Outfit. Stacking bad pub isn’t good, but I think if you’re trying to play fast enough and run low enough to the ground to play this card, you probably aren’t playing a taxing game anyway. Titan and Skorp will make use of this, outside of the obvious The Outfit.
Miek
Let’s not forget that this is yet another Transaction. BABW might actually be getting enough of them to do something now. Love it.
Saan
This is a rush deck’s dream come true. Too often rush decks have to spend down to almost nothing in order to push out agendas while also trying to protect them. This leads to playing Beanstalk Royalties, and no one outside of BABW likes to play Beanstalk Royalties. Now they can go from 0-7 in just one click, with BABW gaining 8, and The Outfit gaining 10. I dig this card a lot.
tvaduva
It’s worth noting that it does have a trash cost, although it’s a pretty hefty one. Not sure if it’ll matter much, because if you have enough bad publicity already for the Runner to use towards trash this, you probably can’t even play it.
Under the Bus
CrushU
I see a bunch of people panning this card… Look, Contract Killer is surprisingly relevant, so being able to do it for a reduced cost and a bad pub is potentially very good. Notably, if the Runner puts an Agenda onto Film Critic, they accessed a card last turn…
BlueHg
Who’s panning this card!? This is huge for Punitive decks, whose biggest fear is Film Critic. I suspect some Jinteki decks that fear Critic might play this too.
Saan
In Regional and National season last year, I was running the most bog-standard Blue Sun BOOM! deck the world has ever seen, with the one piece of “tech” being an MCA Informant to kill Film Critic so she wouldn’t turn off my Midseason’s Replacements. I think out of 4 Regionals and 1 Nationals I lost a total of 4 games. It was great, and the reason it was great was that it had a reliable way to murder FC. Now, Midseason’s doesn’t exist anymore, but Punitive does, and Hunter Seeker does (at least in Skorp, and damn bin-breakers to death to keep it only in Skorp). This gives you a reliable way to murder FC, and keep 3 influence in-faction to boot! The BP is a shame, though, but murder doesn’t come without consequence.
Lady Liberty
CrushU
Achievement Unlocked: Put a Government Takeover into your score area with a Lady Liberty. So I think this card is unplayable. Its best use-case is putting a 3/1 from your hand to your score area. Because it does that, and doesn’t score the card, you’re looking for a 3/1 with a permanent effect. Ancestral Imager, AR-Enhanced Security, Crisis Management, Dedicated Neural Net, False Lead, Gila Hands Arcology, Improved Tracers, Personality Profiles, Self-Destruct Chips, Water Monopoly, Encrypted Portals, and Superior Cyberwalls are the agendas that do something without needing to be scored. Only a few of those are played, but this card can be used to help you score them. Ultimately, I think 1/deck and the limitation in how you have to score a card equal to the counters might keep this unplayable. I do like the idea of getting that 6/2 into play using this, though.
Grog
There’s a lot you could do with this. It’s expensive, though, and you have to time it before it becomes useless (or use the derez card above, say).
BlueHg
Secretly another Blue Sun card I think. The big thing about this is that you have to match the agenda total exactly, but letting you reset the counters could be relevant. If you see this card as a Runner, you’ll probably have to prioritize it, and it’s trash cost is not inconsequential. There’s going to be a lot of decks that toy around with this (including myself), but I think ultimately it won’t see a lot of play.
Miek
Yeah I think I’m in agreement with others here. I suspect that not only is this thing super unwieldy to actually match the agenda points to turns with, but the majority of Corp agendas are nice things with “when scored” abilities – which Lady Liberty will unfortunately bypass. I think the defensive 5/3s are probably the best use case of this card, but MCA Austerity Policy is just straight up better for the same sort of role, and while MCA-AP is definitely a strong card, it isn’t even seeing that much play right now.
Neuropantser
At last, my limit-one-per tribal deck is getting the support it needs.
tvaduva
Only “Region” asset, so it’s a bit harder to defend and watch out for game losses by breaking the region limit rule.
Final Thoughts
CrushU
Obviously this pack is terrible because it will end how we play Netrunner forever. Jokes aside, this does seem to be a pretty strong box, maybe not for Jinteki, though. Strongest Runner Cards: Office Supplies, Paragon, Divide and Conquer, Akiko Nisei. Strongest Corp cards: Giordano Memorial Field, Thimblerig, ACME Consulting, and Too Big to Fail. Sunny’s the winner on the Runner side (seriously her one card does a ton for her, and she likes Divide & Conquer, too.) while Weyland probably takes home the gold medal in this box, for re-invigorating Blue Sun and basically having no completely unplayable cards (closest is Blockchain).
Grog
Lot of good Corp stuff. All 4 Corp IDs are perfectly reasonable, though the Jinteki one is just Mushin ID which is annoying. ACME seems best of the bunch. Bittersweet way to finish. I’ll miss this game.
BlueHg
Lots of cool new cards. The return of aggro Criminal is super welcome, but I think Anarch won on the Runner side. I’d say probably 90% of this box is playable, and there’s only a couple of cards that I’d dismiss outright (with most of those coming from Jinteki). In a world where ANR was officially continuing, this box would make me so hype for where the game was going in the future. I’m glad this box was filled with mostly good cards. It seems like an excellent batch of cards to send Netrunner off with. I’ll miss this game a lot too.
Miek
I think Criminal is the faction that got the most here, followed by HB. I suspect that with Bankroll, Criminal might be in fighting shape next to Anarch for runner diversity. HB has been struggling a bit since VLC ban, but Sportsmetal brings some new archetypes to life and Gatekeeper is just really solid. Agreed that 90% of the cards here are really good and I’m looking forward to seeing how the R&R meta shakes out at Worlds.
RJayz
Truly a shame this is the last box we will see, as they nailed most of the cards by being good, interesting, or at least not immediately dismissable like other boxes / cycles we have seen. Glad Netrunner ends on such a high note.
Neuropantser
These cards look good, interesting, and fun. Sad we won’t get to see more of what Boggs had up his sleeve.
tvaduva
Best deluxe box by quite a bit. Even Jinteki gets good cards for those players that first fell in love with the faction. Really solid all around; pretty much right on the power curve. Boggs has done a great job and what he has produced has been best case scenario for an unknown (or any) designer. There’s only one card that I think is likely to be problematic, which is a great hit rate. If you’re just getting into this game, you’ll get so much use out of just this box and the Revised Core Set. I hope they print enough for everyone that wants a copy.
Inactivist
Now accepting submissions for what we review next. Stimhack Community Review of Ice Cream Flavours? Stimhack Community Review of Friends You Inexplicably Still Have From High School? We can opine on anything, anywhere.
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That’s it from us, friends, for one last time. Or is it? Thanks for sticking with us through the numbers and the missed opinions and that time we apparently overlooked tournament staple System Seizure. We really do apologise. Kind of.