Evolution of a Professor Deck

Deck Archetypes
21

I had a deck once with Disruptor instead of plascretes. I was also playing heavy link strength to beat traces and I still managed to lose via Sea Source, Double Scorch hahaha.

22

@Arkhon

Well, itā€™s not necessarily about being casual either, but I guess I was just trying to say that this wasnā€™t meant to be a comparison of Professor vs other IDā€™s or else it does tend to change the dynamic of the thread from its original intention. And I can see your point with meta and even agree with it, Iā€™ll just reiterate that I normally agree with the meta (and still do), I just view it a little differently regarding A:NR. But I do disagree in saying yes I do need to post on an online forum particularly if I donā€™t have that living room situation with friends, Iā€™m in a fairly remote place where a local scene barely exists (which currently counts up to about 5 or 6 people total and about 3 that take it seriously) and I just met them. Yes, itā€™s a sad story for now =(

I think we can say everyone has a different reason in why they pick a particular ID, I donā€™t think the Why is as important as to what is trying to be done here, but I think maybe this something we donā€™t quite see eye to eye on.

Hah, I was just expressing my opinions over the use of analogies, if you want to use them itā€™s fine, I just tend to think they donā€™t provide much in actual discussion because they seem to get twisted easily and I seem to be exposed to US politics too much. Drives me nuts how easily they tend to twist analogies or find one that fits an argument/counterargument.

I guess ultimately I donā€™t think I necessarily want to try to fit the Professor within a strategy that probably works better with other IDā€™s, but discover perhaps an entirely new (and probably entirely unique) strategy that fits the Professor the best. I agree, the 1-ofā€™s is a disadvantage when compared to running multiples of particular non-faction cards, but we also arenā€™t just confined to 1-ofā€™s in the entire deck either. And perhaps the secret to some amount of consistency might be running something like 3x Atman-2x Datasucker might be better and minimizing the 1-ofā€™s to an extent. Who knows, unless we can compile a full discussion about it or if a handful of people go through all the possible strategies that might work for Professor.

23

Alright, I decided Iā€™m transforming this thread from a Framework for Professor thread to an evolution of creating and tuning a Professor deck. I figured building this Framework were the initial steps towards creating my deck(s) and also this allows me to continue posting about Professor decks and now more specifically mine. It is open to feedback,but Iā€™m treating is more as a journal to share with everybody, not to say I wouldnā€™t be listening to other players etc.

So hereā€™s the framework Iā€™m settling on, now based on my personal preferences:

Professor Framework

The Professor: Keeper of Knowledge (Creation and Control)

Event (8)

  • 2x Scavenge (Creation and Control) : Not limited to 2 copies, but no less than 2 copies
  • 3x Sure Gamble (Core Set)
  • 3x Test Run (Cyber Exodus)

Hardware (3)

Icebreaker (2)

Program (10)

  • 1x Djinn (Core Set) ā€¢ā€¢
  • 1x Imp (What Lies Ahead) ā€¢ā€¢ā€¢
  • 1x Keyhole (True Colors) ā€¢ā€¢ā€¢ : Interchangeable with Medium
  • 1x Lamprey (Upstalk) ā€¢ā€¢ : Interchangeable with Nerve Agent
  • 2x Leprechaun (Upstalk) : Not limited to 2 copies, but no less than 2 copies
  • 3x Self-modifying Code (Creation and Control)
  • 1x Sneakdoor Beta (Core Set) ā€¢ā€¢ā€¢

0 influence spent (max 1)
23 cards (min 45)
Cards up to Upstalk

Deck built on NetrunnerDB.

So, this is a framework primarily for me and what I prefer mostly or currently experimenting with i.e. Leprechauns instead of CyberSolutions Mem Chip. I did replace Medium and Nerve Agent with Keyhole and Lamprey. This allows me to be more dangerous towards R&D and HQ without requiring a buildup and I donā€™t want to burn too many card slots on ā€œaccessā€ programs. These two cards provide me ways to try to break down the corp and mostly following advice from peers in previous posts regarding Keyhole. (I also tried it out vs my buddy who plays Jinteki mostly and it tore him apart, also great with Test Run).

Currently Iā€™m trying out 2 Leprechauns and Djinn for my solutions with memory issues. I still like Djinn for its limited tutor ability (taking some weight off Test Run), but this also allows possibility of swapping out Kati Jones for Magnum Opus later if I feel less squeezed on memory with this setup and given I feel relatively safe from Leprechaun getting trashed. I donā€™t want to do too much babysitting for this program so itā€™s still somewhat up in the air.

Well this is all I have to say about my personal framework for Professor, feel free to drop any criticisms or general opinions, questions etc. I will post my current state of the deck later today, I just ran out of time for now, lol.

24

Here is the current state of my Professor Deck:

Light Rig Professor

The Professor: Keeper of Knowledge (Creation and Control)

Event (12)

Hardware (4)

Resource (6)

Icebreaker (8)

Program (15)

1 influence spent (max 1)
45 cards (min 45)
Cards up to Upstalk

Deck built on NetrunnerDB.

Main Strategy: Run fast and run often. Primarily uses tutors and cheap breakers to deploy and exploit the Corp. Keyhole, Lamprey, Sneakdoor Beta, Imp and Crescentus are there to disrupt Corp strategies. The idea is similar to Anarch decks but with more variety in programs and relying on Shaper tutor/draws, Clone Chip and Personal Workshop. Everything in this deck runs cheap which translates to faster and more efficient as well.

Support: Dinosaurus is there as a way to help relieve memory issues and boosting icebreakers when needed primarily to save money from having to inflate strength or for Mimic. Leprechauns and Djinn alleviate memory issues that the deck might run across, primarily saving the space for 2 MU programs (SMC, Keyhole, Sneakdoor Beta) and icebreakers. Sharpshooter helps keep them protected from destroyer ice. Levy is for when a game goes on too long or I end up sifting through my deck too quickly, it lets me reuse everything trash-able and Same Old Thing primarily backs it up in case I draw it too early and it gets trashed to damage etc., but isnā€™t limited to that role.

Hard Counter Cards: Deus X is in there vs Jinteki net damage decks and a way to break through strong AP ice in general, particularly with Haas Bioroid. Disruptor is my excuse to not run Plascrete Carapace and also a counter towards NBN decks particularly with Midseason Replacements.

Weakness: This game doesnā€™t have a strong late game and this is why I try to include cards like Datasuckers, Parasite, Crescentus, Lamprey etc. to try and prolong the Corp from gaining control of the game too early. No Magnum Opus for now until I test out whether or not Kati Jones is sufficient. I find myself doing a lot of different tasks in a single turn so I figure Kati Jones is more ideal while I keep my deck busy with other tasks like trying to run early, tutoring, drawing etc.

25

Iā€™m not sure disruptor is a terrible idea if youā€™re not running magnum opus. I wish I could give you the deck iā€™m currently working on but my access on the work computer is limited.

I think you can still come up with a professor ā€œframeworkā€ but I donā€™t think you can be too specific with it. I would start with concepts such as ā€œwe want to achieve ~X MU " or " we want X number of econ cardsā€.

i think modded is all but auto-include with professor. Almost never a dead card.

I think scheherazade is a card to really give thought to. thereā€™s so many cresā€™s, sharps, deus, etc. for professor. Lots of cards that get scavenged or clone chipped. scher is a card that can be part of your money-net.

I favor at least one magnum opus but that could just be preference.

I do not favor toolbox (just throwing that out therer). it only took a couple games to see that it slowed me down too much. perhaps that was obvious but i was seduced by the recurring creds + MU. Dino might be sexy.

I donā€™t think youā€™ll get much value out of the lamprey. I would swap it for pheromones. It gives you the benefit for hitting hq and contributes more to your money-net than lamprey takes from theirā€™s. it also stays on the table once it provokes a wipe.

go get 'em! :slight_smile:

26

I love Dino out of professor because no matter when I get it, I can drop it and then throw something on it either from hand or scavenge it there if Iā€™m desperate.

27

Professor - Freelancing Variation

The Professor: Keeper of Knowledge (Creation and Control)

Event (18)

Hardware (3)

Icebreaker (7)

Program (17)

1 influence spent (max 1)
28 influence total on non-faction programs (including the 1 influence spent)
45 cards (min 45)
Cards up to Upstalk

Deck built on NetrunnerDB.

Hereā€™s a variant of the Professor deck Iā€™m testing to see if itā€™ll pan out. Itā€™s basically a variant that tries to take advantage of Freelance Coding Contract with heavier amounts of draw. The plan is to get out an early Leprechaun followed by Magnum Opus asap. The Test Runs main job in the deck is to pull out that Magnum Opus so with this in mind, the opening hand might favor searching for Leprechaun or Djinn and then digging hard for Magnum Opus perhaps using Freelance Coding Contract to provide a boost in credit if Iā€™m not pulling Opus or Test Run fast enough. Otherwise, my program suite is more or less the same as my Light Rig set-up with Passport instead of Knight because I canā€™t host Knight onto Leprechauns. Let me know what you guys think!

28

I worry that taking the first 2 turns off, essentially, to play opus might slow the deck down too much- you still need to get a rig up after that. Thatā€™s always been my problem with building around Opus.

Some of the program choices look a bit odd. What does the lamprey or disrupter relly do for you? And playing both leprauchaun and djinn seems like overkill- is there a reason you need both? Iā€™d also think that nerve agent would be a good fit, especially with sneakdoor.

29

For now, just toying with Lamprey as a tool to slow down the corp, I could agree that Nerve Agent could wind up better, but would like to see how it ties together as a whole. My thinking was Lamprey works for me right out of the box, Nerve Agent takes an additional run to get going (and this is the same thinking going with Keyhole over Medium), but this is all things Iā€™m mostly toying with, Lamprey definitely isnā€™t a lock in the deck, but how many other deck variations have the opportunity to combine Lamprey with Sneakdoor Beta? If I could shave off 1 or 2 credits when Lamprey comes out then take off 3 the following turn, I think it paid itself off. If I get a purge even better because Iā€™m a Shaper deck, not an Anarch or Criminal deck, I have 8 other opportunities to bring it back and thatā€™s not including 2x Levy. Iā€™m mostly trying to maximize my effects and keep it cheap and get it going fast as possible rather than build a super rig and focus on maximizing card # accesses. This deck is mostly built to disrupt corp strategy and get in early.

Disruptor was explained a little further up as my way to try and dodge SEA Source or Midseason Replacements instead of using Plascrete Carapace and saves me a card slot, becomes searchable and trashable for FCC. Itā€™s my NBN/Weyland w/ Sea Source counter basically.

The plan is to use this very much like Deus X where you just fish for it early and keep it out as insurance. Djinn to me isnā€™t quite overkill when we are trying to draw a Daemon in opening hand ideally. Program choices might seem a bit odd but we are also looking at Professor so keep that in mind. This deck is still supposed to work light and fast as listed in my Light Rig variation above.

1 Like
30

Ah, you may be misunderstanding how disruptor works. You have to use it before the corp spends money, so it effectively just sets the trace value to 0- if the corp has enough money, they can still pay to make the trace effective. This has some use against midseason, but it doesnā€™t really work against SEA source, the corp just needs to spend an extra 3 credits.

1 Like
31

No, I understand thatā€™s exactly how it works, but the 3 (SEA Source) or 6 (Midseason) credit difference is 3 or 6 less I might have to pay personally and forces more of a drain on the Corp. Again, it isnā€™t a perfect defense or a perfect answer, its not a direct hard counter like Carapace is, but Carapace only answers Scorched Earth (and Punitive if you want to count that), so its a little trade-off. Itā€™s hard to have everything in a single deck especially in a Professor deck and especially a Professor deck using FCC, but hereā€™s hoping the 9 credit advantage on a 5-program FCC trash can overcome a Weyland SEA Source tag.

32

You are absolutely correct in all of your assessments. The Prof is a utility knife, and he is the least strong (I wouldnā€™t call him weak when he runs Keyhole and/or Medium) against FA, which is the majority in competitive Corp decks. Yes, there are a couple PE player he can stomp, and there are a couple RP decks he can compete with, but overall, Professor is just not the best choice against NBN FA.

I would even add to that list, that the Professor is rather predictable. I can assume he has Keyhole, Sneakdoor, and the virus access cards. I can assume he will be running good breakers that he usually must SMC/Test Run for, and that he probably has Stimhack or 2x Femme. This is a lot to prepare for, but I am just showing that point 1 of your criteria is the most important for Professor. Right now, the good decks for him run the same things, the biggest weakness.

The most common runners have different builds. When Kate or Andy hit the table, I honestly have little clue what they will be doing. Against Professor, I already can start planning how to bait spending on a Sneakdoor or a Keyhole.

33

When Kate hitā€™s the table Iā€™m 99% certain Iā€™ll face-off against multi-rnd access, prepaid voicepads and an event based economy. Andy will almost always be using red breakers and datasuckers, and will almost always be using security testing as back-up economy.

Knowing your opponents game in the staleness of the current meta is easy. The point Iā€™m trying to make though, is that you still have to beat it. Which is easier said than done.

Sadly, in the Professorā€™s case, this is usually the easier part. LOL. Hopefully weā€™ll see some more interesting suites coming up, and I still do think there is probably a staple shaper set that powerā€™s him. Mem/Opus etc.

I think at his core, heā€™s still R&D lock, and has access to all the best tools in the game to really take control of it, in multiple ways, in one deck. I think the idea of a ā€˜toolboxā€™ approach to the Professor is whatā€™s killing him.

34

Freelance Professor v1.1

The Professor: Keeper of Knowledge (Creation and Control)

Event (18)

Hardware (3)

Icebreaker (7)

Program (17)

1 influence spent (max 1)
27 influence total from non-faction programs
45 cards (min 45)
Cards up to Upstalk

Deck built on NetrunnerDB.

I decided to deal with Scorched Earth, I was going to veer towards using Imp and HQ Accesses as my counter. Again, not a perfect solution but a better one than Disruptor which I replaced with Nerve Agent. Overall I think itā€™s a better answer and has broader applications.

I removed Lamprey because it does seem to lack bite and economically I felt I could gain more from using Sahasrara especially in this deck. I also discovered getting multiple Scavenges can hurt in certain situations so I removed one and put in Test Run, which I can use to bring out a program from heap still, but also allows me to get Magnum Opus out into play better.

I agree the toolbox approach is hard to work with but heā€™s also somewhat forced into the situation. Like I would love to have multiple Crescentus or Parasite via a program with a different name but thatā€™s just not possible so weā€™re forced to try to find something that ā€œkindaā€ fits your primary goal or aim. So, thatā€™s why Iā€™m ultimately stuck with this disruption style strategy because all the programs with utility that are worth using are mostly Anarch with a touch of Criminal.

35

Iā€™m a little bit out of touch with the current state of the game so take my comment with a grain of salt please:

First, I loooove people experimenting with the Professor again! He such a blast to play.

Second, I think you are too all in on the Exile package (Test Run, Clone Chip, Scavenge) plus appropriate support cards (Diesel, QT, FCC). The difference ist that Exile actively wants his cards in the heap, while Professor does not. The value of cards like Faerie gets greatly reduced when their first instead of second use comes from a Clone Chip. Now you might say, you just play the useful programs right away and you should, but that weakens FCC to the point where you might just play Modded or Dirty Laundry. Therefore I donā€™t think FCC is a natural fit for the Professor (yet?).

Basically I question the ecomony basis :wink:
In my mind thereā€™s some options for you:

  • if you want to keep to FCC, you need more programs, probably something like Sahasrara.
  • my favorite so far is Personal Workshop, allows you to install on the fly and dump your extra draws on.
  • But an economy with Ice Analyzer and Aesops Pawnshop also seems to be intersting. But Pawnshop opposes FCC.
  • just go full Magnum.

Overall FCC seems too fiddly for me, food for thought anyway.

Some card observations:

  • why no Morning Star? Eli is the most played Ice by far
  • two Levy AR is overkill. If you are worried about losing one to damage, Same Old Thing is the answer
  • three Leprechauns and one Djinn also feels like overkill, probably could cut one. One Akamatsu plus Djinn was all I ever needed in play before Leprechaun came out. With the speed of NEH I doubt that changed much.
  • Why Passport over Zu13 or Yog?

To not totally come across as a jerk, I completely agree with the no Plascrete policy. You have either Imp or the more stable economy, thats enough. Plus the Prof has a lot of control about when to run.

Hope that helps

36

  • FCC is more of a play-test/experiment thing with Professor more than anything. So far my personal preference playing with Professor has been to draw rather than tutor into programs and just because I have FCC, does not always necessarily mean every program instantly becomes an auto-trash. We would want to think that sometimes it might be more beneficial to actually keep that Faerie in hand and trash only 4 programs instead of 5 etc. Itā€™s up to the matchup and the current state of the game at the time you FCC etc. But in all fairness, Iā€™m not entirely sold on FCC either, Iā€™m mostly just trying it out and seeing how it plays out :wink:

  • I just added Sahasrara but didnā€™t get to test it out yet.

  • Personal Workshop works great and I have tried it out on Professor with Kati Jones, but I only had 3 Diesel for its drawing power. I felt like when relying on resources more (even with Professional Contacts), the deck was more contingent on whether or not we drew those cards and if we didnā€™t, life tend to suck a little bit until we do manage to get what we want. Personal Workshop is definitely still a consideration though.

  • Ice Analyzer is something I still have yet to try perhaps in combination with Personal Workshops. When I tried Aesops Pawnshop, there wasnā€™t too many situations where I wanted to play something then trash it especially program wise and it also competed with Scavenge a bit too. I didnā€™t really think this resource fit with Professor.

  • Iā€™m still open to full Magnum, but what to cut to squeeze the 2 copies is a bit of a challenge, thatā€™s why first experimenting with seeing if 1 Magnum could be enough.

  • No Morning Star because the overall plan in my deck theoretically is to keep my icebreakers easy to deploy and efficient to use at least vs most cheap ice and try to keep the Corp on edge as much as possible. Some games this has worked as intended and others it has been a challenge in getting it going.

  • Two Levy AR was necessary for two reasons, the first reason is that Iā€™m running FCC, so sure I want to play from heap, but I found myself cycling through my deck pretty fast and dumping cards a lot so what if I do run out of Clone Chips, Scavenge and Test Run for recursion and I need that Faerie again, FCC and try to roll the dice on pulling it out again. I did have Same Old Thing before, but my primary plan anyway for that was to mostly back up Levy AR in case it ended up in the heap somehow i.e. drew too early vs Jinteki or got Scorched out etc. So in that matchup, personally it felt even more vital to ensure Iā€™m able to pull off the Levy after drawing through the deck the first time etc.

  • The 4 Daemons are mostly necessary because I want to ensure I can get one in my opening hand or by the 2nd or 3rd turn at the latest mostly by drawing into it if not in the opening hand so I can follow it with Magnum Opus (hence why 3 copies might be important for Opus). Memory can be a bit of a squeeze in this deck especially when we consider Sneakdoor Beta and Keyhole etc. And also if I do draw into a 3rd or 4th Daemon, we can use it as FCC fodder a lot more comfortably. So another reason why I like FCC is because being Professor and having 20+ programs means some of those programs in a particular game state vs a certain match-up are not going to be as useful which frees it up to be burned for 2 credits and perhaps if the game state changes where that program is needed then I can just pull it out if absolutely needed.

  • Passport over Zu13 (for now) because my primary strategy is centrals ultimately via Keyhole and picking apart key Corp cards in deck or Nerve Agent/Sneakdoor for access. Cyber-Cypher is mostly for Lotus Field and easy remote server access. However, I am considering trading in both Passport and Cyber-Cypher and running Zu13 instead to open up a card slot possibly add another copy of Magnum Opus, but for now I do like the combo because Passport breaks through Enigma and code gates with 2+ str a little better than Zu13 along the centrals. I donā€™t run Yog for the same reasons as Morningstar and also because of Lotus Field. (No AI Breaker currently)

Haha I donā€™t take constructive criticism or skepticism too personally and would prefer it so I can question the design of my own deck myself. So donā€™t worry about coming off as a jerk because the questions are still insightful :wink:

37

thoughts:

given your economic setup your 2 sure gambles hold less value in your deck than replacing them with 2 more magnum opusā€™s to round out the opportunity to draw one right out of the gate (or via a diesel/QT).

You can likely dump mimic. Your datasuckers power your femme to break subs and the faerie can get you by until you get the cash or scavenge combo.

Passport over gordian? ::edit:: oops you covered this. donā€™t agree though. Your saving a few creds on the front end and losing a lot on the back end.

You can dump one or two leprechauns and replace them with hardware. You have few 2mu programs and it will likely be hard to properly realize its value (which is hosting 2mu programs). i recognize you were thinking theyā€™d just get tossed in for FCC, I just donā€™t see it being worth it.

if youā€™re choosing corroder over morningstar, and youā€™re playing crescentus, i think itā€™s all but a morale imperative to include d4v1d.

38

Oh sorry about that ericbtool, I actually updated my deck to include 3 Magnum Opus.

Freelance Professor v1.2

The Professor: Keeper of Knowledge (Creation and Control)

Event (18)

Hardware (3)

Icebreaker (6)

Program (18)

1 influence spent (max 1)
45 cards (min 45)
Cards up to Upstalk

Decklist published on NetrunnerDB.

This is the latest iteration of the deck that I published on NetrunnerDB. I took out Passport and Cyber Cypher for Zu13 Key Master and a Crescentus to make room for the 2 copies of Magnum Opus.

Regarding Mimic, I actually think this fits in with my strategy because its a quick and easy to get out icebreaker, however I am considering instead of running Femme Fatale. I want to delegate a more specialized role for Femme Fatale and Faerie because itā€™ll save me from burning recursion to get past like Rototurrets or Caduceus etc. Femme Fatale and Faerie was mostly meant to bypass big ice in this deck and if I give it the starting job for main sentry breaks, I feel it would break my bank and apply pressure on my deck that otherwise could of been avoided using Mimic early on.

Iā€™m aware of saving the creds up front, itā€™s the main strategy behind this deck. With Leprechauns I either go all 3 copies or none at all. Iā€™m still considering using hardware over it, but spare Leprechauns lends itself to FCC after getting 1 or 2 Daemons out. FCC somewhat needs the deck to open itself up to these types of situations or else I would have a harder time finding cards to toss. Memory is still a huge issue with this deck and sometimes I donā€™t draw any of my Daemons even with the draw power.

D4V1D and Knight are still up for consideration and I think I need to find room for at least one of them in deck. I am just not sure where to make those cuts, my only options are Sahasrara (which is my poor manā€™s Modded which Iā€™m not running any of) or Escher (which I really like as a surprise card) or maybe 1 copy of SMC because I have 3 Test Runs and I want to rely mostly on draw to pull some of the cards I need out anyway. I think Iā€™m leaning towards cutting out 1 SMC. What does everyone else think?

39

@Sirprim
I am highly interested in your current professor deck, which you played at the german nationals.
I know you used sarashara and morning star. It would be awesome, if you could post it here on the board! :slight_smile:

40

Any professor deck that doesnā€™t run Aesopā€™s is trash. Why not play CT if you are going big rig?