Haas-Bioroid | Cybernetics Division | Heads You Lose v1.3

This deck will make your opponent's head explode.

I was practicing with this for a fun tournament that ended up not really happening, so I thought I'd publish to draw a line under what has been an entertaining few weeks. I built this using a couple of ideas; I'd constructed a brain damage deck back around November 2014, using Defective Brainchips, Edge of World, and Neural EMP. It sat on the shelf for a while. I slotted together the central idea for this deck, lifted the ICE suite from the first deck, and they seem to fit together quite nicely.

Heads You Lose

The centre of the deck is the interplay between Mandatory Upgrades, Cerebral Overwriter and Mushin No Shin. The runner may have seen a Cerebral Overwriter from R&D or hand, or may anticipate it, given the Cybernetics Division: Humanity Upgraded ID.

Mushining something out, even naked, instantly sets up a difficult decision for your opponent.

Mandatory Upgrades is ideal Mushin fodder early game, as the extra click allows Accelerated Beta Test or Self-Destruct Chips to be scored from hand.

In the event that your bluff is called from a Mandatory Mushin, your opponent takes 2 points - and you have Media Blitz, allowing you to take the extra click anyway (at least temporarily). Score from hand.

The other direction is to Mushin a Cerebral Overwriter. Three brain damage takes the default runner to a hand size of one, severely hampering their set-up and putting fear into them every time they run the ICE - selected for additional brain damage.

If the runner guesses correctly on your Cerebral Mushin, again, you are able to benefit. Back Channels gives a handsome payoff of 3cr for each advancement token, and adding to the Mushin three before cashing out can set up the next few turns nicely.

Economy

As ever, economy is the Achilles heel: the deck can run a little poor, and defending Adonis Campaign is usually key to building for a conventional win. I've frequently done this while using Adonis money to build up the scoring server. Losing an Eve Campaign is a blow, but if the runner pays to trash one unrezzed, I've found that the tempo hit of 5cr can actually benefit corp somewhat.

Accelerated Beta Test and Howler give you ways to get expensive ICE out - I can't think of a time I've paid for a Heimdall 2.0, though I think I have rezzed everything else the hard way at one point or another.

ICE mix

Brain damage, brain damage, brain damage.

Enforcer 1.0 and Vikram 1.0 are recent adds; Enforcer 1.0 due to the 1-point agendas, and Vikram to beef up what was a light set of sentries (it replaces an Ichi 1.0). Vikram is a monster.

Don't forget ABT can install Enforcer ignoring the agenda cost. There are thirteen pieces of ICE, including Howler, if you're trying to decide whether to fire ABT or not.

Paper Wall is there to bluff.

Don't neglect Ryon Knight: he plays well with bioroids, and also does well behind an Hourglass.