I am going to differ from other reviews : this card is an early-game monster. It fits into the Anarch philosophy : "I am getting in, no matter the cost".

And it does exactly that. When you install this Resource, you send a clear message to corp : any server covered by 1 Ice is basically free. While it becomes less and less impactful as the game progresses, it's in my opinion the best opening card you can have for an agressive anarch deck.

For instance, this allows you to land Chastushka and Time Bomb very easily, threatens early agendas that can no longer be safe behind a Palissade. There is also the very powerful combo with Raindrops Cut Stone that refunds the cards you burned through, and the obvious Steelskin Scarring.

Of course, it has counters and weaknesses. Small ice like Pop-up or Tithe make this a very bad option, and big ice like Vampyronassa can flat you if you aren't careful. But overall, this is a card that gives immense range to your early game, at a VERY low cost, and can allow you to bully corp into an easy win.

Bankhar is the dog. Apparently I need to write 180 further characters to justify this "review", but I shall not be doing that when it is clearly self-evident. Bankhar is the dog. No further questions.

Situationally very limited. Corp recursion isn't very good currently, so if this allows you to land a Chastushka or a Time Bomb early, that's respectable value for the tempo loss to net damage. Bankhar matches up very well against some common ice like Tollbooth and Sandstone and early-game gearchecks. I would suggest taking more meaning from life than your virtual bird, though.

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Although Raindrops Cut Stone quotes Bankhar, I don't think the two work well. Most of the things I'd want to do with Bankhar are high-impact run events. Runs can only use one run event and RSC is probably not enough value for the level of danger that Bankhar invites. If you're running on unknown ice with incomplete breakers, which I think is the most common Bankhar use, you are liable to burst into flames if you hit an Envelopment or Anansi or Endless EULA and can't break it. Bankhar gets safer as the game progresses and you have a better idea what the first ice will be (and have more options for breaking it if you need to).

Fun card! For the low price of 1, you can pass any ice in a pinch, in exchange for what you have in hand. Early game, it let you contest any ice for some damage. Even better if that damage trigger Steelskin Scarring. In late game, if you are low on credit, you can still pass that ultimate ice and get to the winning agenda.

Combined with Raindrops Cut Stone, you get credit and replace any damage done by Tsakhia "Bankhar" Gantulga.

This could combo will with Nathaniel "Gnat" Hall: One-of-a-Kind, who need ways to deplete cards in hand. It would combo also very well with Heartbeat, especially with Apex: Invasive Predator.

While it could be used with Caldera, avoiding the resolution for 3 seems expensive.

If depleting your cards seems a issue with this, Buffer Drive would help toward this. Also, this could be used with Harmony AR Therapy, which would bring back 5 cards, but that is very much click intensive.

The art is friendly, which pairs well with the quote. It makes quite the combination with the effect of the card. I'm not sure if we are seeing Esâ Afontov: Eco-Insurrectionist on the card or Tsakhia "Bankhar" Gantulga? A fun and easy to use ressource, well balanced.