I haven’t played this specific build, but I have played a lot of NEXT Design and for it to work you need quite a few stars to come right (you need the ICE, the right types of ICE and the money as well as the actual asset). Which isn’t to dismiss it at all, but unless they have a God hand, there is usually a pressure point that you can exploit.
The issue is that double-deep rush remotes can be problematic for this build in general. Tinkering is the best quick solution I’ve found, if you can make space for it (and is a good way of mitigating Archer as well).
I’ve always been a CT fan, mostly because I have an inexplicable amount of fun building a 40 card deck. I’m a big fan of this deck archetype, but I wonder how you guys are dealing with the inability to get your breakers out quickly? There are only 3 breakers and 3 test runs, and I always seem to trash my breakers with May or accumulate 3 scavenges before finding a single test run. I’ll have like 40 credits but a couple of quandaries and wraparounds will keep me completely shut out for 8-10 rounds.
Well there’s also 3 QTs and 3 diesels, so drawing into breakers or Test Runs isn’t usually that big a problem, especially if you also have May out drawing a card and 2 bucks a turn. Don’t be afraid to draw a bunch and then just throw a bunch of junk in the heap at the end of the turn. If breakers are what you need, the draw power is there to find them if you’re not afraid to make sacrifices. And with Levi, they’re not even that big a deal.
Correct, this deck is as much about adaptive pressure as it is drawing a card and netting two credits in the same swing. And if you’re already running 1x Hostage/2 x May, a second hostage isn’t very useful beyond fueling Power Nap. RR is also insurance against May whiffs, damage, and so on. It synergizes well with the overdraw, and can be a half Test Run without needing a second combo piece.
I really like code siphon, but having to clear the tag removes the ‘economy’ effect of CS…that said, the deck is rich, and tutor is really the missing factor. 2x code siphon has to be very good.
I’ve resleeved this and added a new spin on it (mostly due to cards being in other already made decks). I’m now testing it with racheal beckman. That hanging click is super nice for when you’re oracling every turn, and still want play a double…and run.
Seriously, the difference 1 click makes to this deck is amazing. The downside is the 1 lost influence vs NBN and Jinteki, since you’re not bothering at all obviously.
What do you think of adding a comet and starlight express? (ducks), with prepaid?
(I would arguably add 3x lawyer up as well). Lawyer up under these conditions essentially becomes another diesel.
Comet would give you one click per turn so long as you played at least two events a turn.
Starlight costs you one click, so more or less a wash. But starlight lets you play double events at no cost, saving you 14-15 clicks.
Aesop it when you don’t want it, and perhaps increase handsize (beachparty) to accomodate your draw events…
I think we went through Starlight earlier in the thread. You need to play a double every single turn for starlight to not be actively weakening you. The only turns it does you any good at all is turns where you play at least two doubles in a turn so you really want be doing that at least 50%. Give me a deck with 20+ doubles and it just might happen. But with the 9-12 this runs (even with Lawyer Up)? Nah.
Comet is (hopefully) going to push this deck back into playability from a “raw aggression” standpoint. I’ve even considered Rachel Beckman because this deck has the economy to make multiple big runs a turn. Comet + Beckman = holy shit clicks. Could you imagine every turn after those cards are played being 6 clicks? Me neither.
Starlight Crusade is a piece of garbage unfortunately. They really missed the mark designing that card, unless they add 10-15 new doubles to play with that are actually worth playing. Lawyer up is not even a diesel when starlight is up because it still costs 2… Running interference costs too much influence, so does singularity. Executive wiretaps? Oh man, the horrible doubles.
I played with Beckman in this deck for quite a while. As well as the obvious benefit of giving the click, she also gives you another use for your Hostages after you get May out. Unfortunately though she really is a dead card against NBN - either they’re going to win too fast for the 8 cred setback to be worth it, or they’re gonna tag you. Breaking News laughs in Rachel’s face. As at least 50% of Weyland decks are trying to tag you, and Jinteki has Snares she’s risky there too. That said, RP rarely runs Snare and having 5 clicks makes RP’s extreme click compression much easier to deal with. And of course Rachel is a massive help against HB. A decent shout if you have the influence, but definitely a meta call.
Oh and then of course there’s the anti-synergy with Code Siphon. So yeah definitely a niche include, though a good one.
Rewinding a few posts, I thought I’d weigh in on Code Siphon. I’ve tried it a bunch of times, and never once have I been satisfied with it. You need for too many preconditions to be true that it falls squarely into the jank category of cards.
Excluding the obvious best case expected value of the card, I think a average use case is going to be 1 piece of ice vs one of the following: a) having the correct breaker installed, b) having test run, c) having the wrong breaker installed + tinkering. Individual games might have better or worse scenarios, but I feel like this is the best you are going to see on average. And in that case, you are looking at whole bunch of clicks and a tag for a tutor effect and a 3 credit discount.
If anyone else has any tips on how to make this card pay out, I’d love to hear it. In my opinion, Kit is the only Shaper who can expect to get a good value out of this card.
One use case you haven’t mentioned: turn 1, a piece of ICE you’re suspecting of being porous on RnD (like, a Popup, Architect, Yagura, Errand Boy, Eli - something along those lines). In that situation, slapping down a Code Siphon presumably isn’t the worst play ever:
If it’s an ETR, you either forced a rez without wasting an Indexing/TME, or got a tutor out of it
If it’s indeed porous, they can rez or not rez and your tutor goes off.
If they don’t rez, you got a tutor out of it
If they do rez, you got a tutor at the cost of triggering the porous ICE once, but now know exactly what to tutor for in order to get back in easily
That doesn’t sound too horrible to me, provided you’re not reliant on resources. Definitely feels like a turn 1 card though, and I wouldn’t play it unless RnD had a piece of ICE.
Problem is that in this deck realistically you are only going to be able to pay for the fracter first turn and that’s rarely the one you want first up.
Oh don’t get me wrong - this is TOTALLY the wrong deck for Code Siphon in my opinion. Just saying that it’s a case of “wrong tool for this particular toolbox” rather than a case of “useless tool”.