Leech

Leech 1[credit]

Program: Virus
Memory: 1 • Strength: -
Influence: 1

Whenever you make a successful run on a central server, place 1 virus counter on this program.

Hosted virus counter: The ice you are encountering gets -1 strength for the remainder of this encounter.

The greediest bloodsucker this side of a corporate boardroom.
Illustrated by Cat Shen
Decklists with this card

System Gateway (sg)

#8 • English
Startup Card Pool
Standard Card Pool
Standard Ban List (show history)
Printings
Rulings
  • Updated 2021-10-11

    Is Leech a functional reprint of Datasucker?

    Not quite. Because Datasucker says that the ice you are encountering must be rezzed, there are some rare encounters where it cannot be used, such as an encounter with an Archangel being accessed from the Corp’s hand or deck. Leech can be used even during these encounters.

Reviews

Reprint of Datasucker, which rotated.

It is just as good and has become pretty much essential if you plan to use the anarch breaker suite. Because the anarch breaker suite, (Cleaver, Buzzsaw and Mimic, need support to be used. Along with Ice Carver, this will allow to have breaker which break ice for an amazing efficiency. Otherwise, breaking ice with strenght 5 or above become prohibitive.

It combine well with Atman, allowing you to lower the strenght of the ice to the Atman strenght, letting you break the ice cheaply.

Finally , it will save you creds for any breaker, especially breaker that boost for more than 1 , like Echelon, Odore, Black Orchestra or Femme Fatale (there is many more).

At one influence, just like Datasucker, it can be splashed in any deck with ease. At 1, it is always a great value and will pay for itself easily in credits saved.

The art is among the best among the card of the system gateway, the quote is just perfect and the whole card is great. Chef kiss!

(System Update 2021 era)
4250

How exactly does the "hosted virus counter" mechanic work? Do you have to spend the virus counters on Leech? Thanks in advance! I'm new to the game.

"Hosted virus counter" as a cost mean that you have to remove one virus counter from the card that the cost is written on in order to pay the cost. ("Hosted" means "from this card", and "virus counter" is obvious.) So you use the ability by removing virus counters from Leech, yes.

To add to this, a colon : on cards indicates a cost. Both Fermenter and Ronin's abilities require paying the cost of a click and trashing themselves to work. Project Vitruvius requires you to spend a hosted agenda counter, but they're all just pennies on cards, cause one card never hosts two different kinds of counters.

It is possible for one card to hold two different types of counter (advancement counters can be placed on anything with certain cards, like PAD Factory and Slot Machine). I can't think of any cards that "naturally" use two different types of counter right now, though.

Good point! Thank you! It occurs to me that one could play Seamless Launch on a rezzed Marilyn Campaign (or anything) and create token confusion, but that's more of a "nothing in the rulebook says a dog can't play basketball" kinda example (unless I'm missing something, which is likely). And my previous reply could be confusing if a new player interpreted it to mean that one could pay an advancement token on an un-scored Project Vitruvius in order to use its ability, if "they're all just pennies on cards".