[SOCR4] Be A Shame If Something Happened To That CI

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DNj1dXi-z0M

The Sales Pitch

Games of Netrunner can take a long time. That's a drag! All of that time and you only got to play one game of Netrunner. You know what's better than a game of Netrunner taking a long time? A game of Netrunner not taking a long time.

To that end, this deck aims to finish a game of Netrunner at above average speed. There are three main steps to the plan:

1. Draw agendas

2. Jam agendas into a remote

3. Advance agendas until they are scored

The clearances help a lot with step 1. If you have a hard time with 1, you can substitute MCAAP into step 2--there's no clot in Cache Refresh, so it's a slam dunk 2-3 points if you can tick it all the way up. Runner decks in the current Cache Refresh are often a bit fiddly and can take a while to get going--the best economy engines in Shaper cost 5, for instance--and if you can capitalize and score an Elective within the first few turns of the game, you are in extraordinarily good shape. This deck can have a lot of cards and/or money, so Ash and Helheim are legitimate ways to secure a scoring server even after your opponent has the correct breakers.

Of course, sometimes you run into trouble with the plan. But that's fine! There's a backup plan:

1. Draw agendas

2. Jam agendas into a remote with Helheim Servers and Tithonium

3. That's a real nice board state. Be a shame if something... happened to it

4. Advance agendas at your convenience until they are scored

While this plan contains an extra step, it is also best executed at a quicker-than-average pace. This plan works pretty well until you face Inside Job and/or Femme. Word to the wise: there is a lot more Inside Job in Cache Refresh than one might expect. It's advisable to expect it out of every faction and adjust your ice placement/the timing of your scoring plays accordingly. Also, don't forget Tithonium's alternative rez cost. It kinda sucks to give up 2 points, but there are situations where it's game-winning to do so. Just be sure your opponent isn't on Clone Chip/Levy before you sell out for the lockout.

Frequently Asked Question

Q: Isn't this just a bad version of the win condition from Hydra and/or Lunatic CI?

A: Yes.

Q: No really, what do you do when they Femme your Tithonium?

A: Hope that they Scavenge it to land an Indexing, then whiff on the Indexing because you are horrifically flooded.

Ball Don't Lie

This deck went 4-1 in SOCR4. The loss was a game in which I did not respect double Inside Job, then revealed 5 points in two clicks to Corporate Defector. The wins played out as described above, three by vanilla rush and one by lockout. My Ayla deck put in a much more anemic 2-3 performance, landing me in 13th overall.

So is this the best corp deck in the format? Almost certainly not. I do think it's a strong rush plan, and there are much worse plan B's to have to fall back on (including Plan B).

One thing I can claim as a success, however: this deck is fast. Every single one of my corp games was shorter than the corresponding runner game, and that includes a round where Ayla got flatlined turn 5 (shoutouts to the dude in the art of Punitive Counterstrike). If you want to play Android: Netrunner but have to be somewhere in 20 minutes, this may be the deck for you!