Here are the tournament results from this SC www.acoo.net

the real question is do you have enough code gate. Good god.

Thoughts on replacing some of the drip econ with Melange Mining Corp.? I feel like, as something to draw them through a server and rez your ice, it seems good. This deck feels okay to play a little slow. Also, I found room for a 1-of Peak Efficiency in my versions, since usually you've got a lot of ice rezzed by the end of the game and drawing that single card for a +8 swing or more is fantastic.

Consider swapping Fairchild for a Heimdall 2.0? Big barriers are good these days, I find, although admittedly it's not entirely great at flat-out ending the run.

@CodeMarvelous Oh yeah, I guess that is a lot of Code Gates. Very few subs actually fire and so it is mostly about tax at that point. Code Gates tax well. And Fairchild is really a Sherlock 2.0 that I am testing. It may go back or switch to something else.

@tzeentchling I hadn't considered Melange Mining Corp.. I think I prefer drip to save my clicks for installing more ice. I don't feel this deck is abnormally slow. I tend to be very aggressive in scoring agendas though, often giving up 2-4 points in remotes in any given game.

Heimdall 2.0 sounds cool but I fear it is too expensive for my deck. And they can still click through it. I used to simply click through it as a runner and happily take the brain damage. One brain to break that ice is fantastic value for the runner. I do like taking brain damage more than most I suppose.

It looks like there was a lot of Kate decks in the tourney (plus Andy and Geist). With all that link was 3 Ash worth it?

In my attempts at AOT, it gives up too many agendas to Centrals accesses before I can get the ice out to tax their run tempo sufficient to think about scoring. How do you score agendas from behind ice that is fundamentally porous? By the time I can really take advantage of economic scoring windows the runner is on 4-6 points.

@dawspawn The top 2 Kates were both Dyper (no link) so Ash 2X3ZB9CY was very much online. I remember installing one on Archives (which I was unfortunately too poor to rez when the time came) and one on HQ in the final turn to win. It was good vs my 2 Geist opponents as well but mostly because they were limited to 2 link in those lists (Hoppers got popped for draw). I didn't face a link runner on the day but honest, Ash is not super important. It is nice to rez Ash with the ID ability but certainly not a card I overly depend on in this list (I was considering dropping it at one point but it does enough to earn the spot). I mostly use it to tax the runner out, not fully defend agendas. I also tend to give up 2-4 points a game in remote servers. This is fine. You want the runner to know you aren't screwing around.

@Grimwalker Great question. It sounds stupid but scoring in a remote over 2 turns is something I have practiced A LOT over the years of playing the game. I think about what I would want to do if I were the runner. Would I want to spend my 4 clicks setting up my board, gaining credits, drawing cards, or clicking through some dumb bioroid ice to see what I assume is an Ash or Adonis and certainly not the ABT?

I also try to not signal when the agenda drops (or signal the agenda is dropping when I want them to run). There are a lot of hints you can send. For example, drawing on click 1, installing an asset on click 2, and drawing on click 3 is a very normal pattern. It looks like the corp is looking for something, finding something, and then digging for something else. It doesn't look like the Corp is focused on the remote. A similar play is installing the agenda in the remote and then installing a second or third ice on HQ. That signals that density is in HQ. I'm constantly looking for novel ways to suggest the runner go down the line I want them to go down and compenstate for their truly optimal line. I wish I could offer something more concrete but it's really just a style of play.

TLDR: I take calculated risks. Very often, I know the runner can get into my server and the runner knows I know they can get into the server. But we both also know they can't get into my server next turn if they go in this turn.

I recommend checking out my YouTube channel where I commentate on local games and give insight into these sorts of matters. www.youtube.com

@Grimwalker I just thought of another sick play. End your turn with 2 credits (and no drip coming in) after installing the agenda in the taxing remote.

They see you can't score an agenda next turn so they have to assume it is not an agenda. You score it 2 or 3 turns later. I did this once and it was excellent.

For similar reasons, you have advantages vs Val.

Only if Val let's you actually rez ice. Blackmail is a pretty effective way to shut down HB:AoT

While it lacks specifically anti-Val tech like EBC or Lizzie Mills, ABTs & the sheer quantity of ICE in this deck looks pretty good.

Just got paired up against a newer player on jnet, running Yogasausus. This deck is quite sad now.

@kollapse lol that seems like a problem for the deck.

Fairchild 1.0 is extremely good here. Most runners seem to leave drip econ alone when sat behind this ice, as it triggers your ID ability for low cost.

Hmmm...5 influence to spend. How about 2x Executive Boot Camp? Maybe take out on Ash and a Hedge Fund (EBC should get the ID ability triggered more often)?

I play against Val a lot at the moment ... I'm worried about being black mailed and mediumed to death without a single ice ever beeing rezzed (I know..there is ABT...but as the only plan, it is a bit too inconsistent for my liking).

Addon: I'm also thinking about slotting Cerebral Static in, as Employee Strike seems to be the death of the game plan. So my employees aren't working? How about your BRAIN ain't working!

@mate Yes! I wouldn't cut a single copy.

@gegenzeit There is no free influence in this list (are you not counting Eli and Architect?).

Val is an interesting challenge. The ID itself helps a lot here but I have also been experimenting with Executive Boot Camp. I tested -1 Jackson Howard for 1 EBC this weekend (and -1 Fairchild for another Friends in High Places). I am unsure if this is the right slot but it is difficult to drop anything else.

Jackson Howard is really bad to lose here as it helps fire Accelerated Beta Test which is REALLY good. So I am still testing! Let me know how your testing goes.

Cerebral Static feels like too much influence. A current would be nice as I am seeing a lot of Employee Strike as well. Right now I am scoring out an agenda to clear Strike which is working well enough most the time. We need a decent 0 or 1 cost HB current that helps AoT to justify a slot I'm guessing.

Hi murphy are full results of this event somewhere?

@lpoulter Yes, they were posted here: alwaysberunning.net as well as on acoo: www.acoo.net

I'm curious about your comment regarding Markus 1.0. I have 3x Eli and 3x Markus.

If there were another mid-range Bioroid barrier, I would swap out Markus for sure. Wish he was strength 4. But being able to install Markus, install Eli, and Hedge on turn 1 and then rez both for 3-4 is pretty nice.

I am loving AOT too. Right now I am going full Adonis + Eve + BBG, and Biotic + 1x SSCG for the scoring plan. Hitting Eve + BBG on a FiHP, or Adonis into a BBG remote and recurring the SSCG, feels very good.

@rwknoll Basically because Paperclip breaks Markus 1.0 for 2 credits and the runner often has a card they can trash if really needed. It would compete with Eli 1.0 or Ravana 1.0 in my list and doesn't win out over those 2 cards (even counting influence on MWL Eli). But also, I haven't played this list with Markus 1.0 so who knows.

I would like to have SSCG but can't give up my sweet, sweet Crisium Grid! I have since gone up to 2 Friends though. So good! The future is bright for AoT!

Good work on the win!

Independently I've come up with a fairly similar list and probably share some, if not all ideas. FC1 is interesting - I've been using FC2 instead as it often has a tax effect if the runner isn't on Yog. It does cost more money, but I mitigate this by going all-in on the Breaker Bay / Campaigns economy.

I like the idea of the cheeky AAL use, I'll have to check it out. 2x Crisium is a must I feel - I've been tempted to go to three!

I've recently added a Best Defence, just to clear early SMCs and deal more effectively with Siphon Spam decks - sexy robots help in this regard too.

Cheers!

@evilgaz Thanks!

It sounds like you have more economy so I can understand the reason for FC2 over FC1 but I wouldn't change it in this list (Yog is a big factor here for sure).

Best Defense would be great! I have a bit of flexibility. I can shift things around for 1 slot. Right now that is Executive Boot Camp but I may shift off that.

I just want to know, do you not play against much Smoke in your area? Because I feel like stacking Code Gates so heavily is just giving Houdini what it wants and making yourself sad.

@Rhaplanca1001 We have a dedicated Smoke player that I often play against. He is very good in general so the games are always close ignoring any particular match up or cards.

However, he doesn't play Houdini because Refractor is generally better. In either case, Smoke has to spend some amount of credits and that is all I care about with this deck.

Is Brain Taping Warehouse (combined with slightly bigger ice) not an option do you think?

@the.jxc It may be! It would be a different deck but could be a good way to go. I would personally shy away from that competitively right now due to Şifr but who knows.

In the first iteration of this deck I played two Brain-Taping Warehouse. They seemed good but when I really thought about it, they weren't pulling their weight. I switched to more traditional econ and the deck just worked better for me. I still really like Brain-Taping Warehouse!

Brain-Taping Warehouse also suffers from a few problems - it usually creates an open server that they can run on, either for Temujin or Security Testing or whatever, and it feels bad to devote an ice to protecting it since you aren't replacing it like with the campaigns. Plus, if you're not protecting it, Whizzard is just going to trash it, and I hear he's still popular. Lastly, if the runner isn't running, it's not doing anything for you, unlike campaigns that are actually making you money to be used for other things.

It's frustrating, because if ever there was an ID that wants BTW, it's this one!

That's kind of the conclusion I've come to as well. BTW just isn't doing the job.

Once BTW is on the table, the runner just runs last click, and we have no real way to punish them for that. And as you say, Temujin loves an open server -- but icing BTW is a waste of good ice!

It is indeed a tragedy to see such synergy fail. But then again, I guess "synergy" is contextual.