Seriously, I’m starting to lose my calm here. I get the instinct to look for new cards’ uses too, but you’re pushing it way beyond reasonable, I feel.
How, exactly? The only thing you break for cheaper is Rototurret (and maybe Komainu, but you’re going to insta-parasite that thing away anyway).
Architect costs one credit more than Mimic. Caduceus costs one credit more than Mimic. All this for a temporary solution, which should be by definition more efficient (to offset its transient nature), not less.
Suggesting Tsurugi as a good use case seems super-twisted, as you’ll have to find another copy (or waste recursion) after 2 runs, driving the price (and making you hate your life in general) way up above what Mimic would have cost you. Just use the slot for the recursion you’d have used for a Lucky Find or a Liberated Account, and you’re better off.
Cujo:
a) costs the same to play as a Mimic
b) is not permanent
c) can cost up to 3 credits to break stuff that Mimic can regularly trololol through
d) if you’re using it on “many subs” ICE, your “savings from not paying to break subs” will vanish due to its transient nature and having to re-play/recur another copy, because your tokens will be gone faster than snow in july. If it were “use a counter to break any number of subs”, the story might be different, but it’s not.
e) if you’re using it on “high str” ICE, your savings will vanish from having to pump it. Notice that nearly all the high-str sentries (with the one notable exception being Archer) pretty much have a single sub, meaning you won’t save that much money from not having to pay to break them.
f) against pretty much anything other than Ichi 1.0 and Data Raven, you have a better option in the d4v1d + mimic combo. Seriously, tell me which of those ICE you’re putting Cujo in your deck against, because it sure as all hell ain’t the STR<4 stuff and I definitely hope it’s not the STR > 4 stuff.
Stop fighting what you know to be true - it’s just a bad card.
edit: I can sort of see the use for Helping Hand, but still - I’d rather have a Mimic and be able to stop worrying about Caduceus, Architect, most Shadows and that new tank thing you can pay through.