Midnight Shell Game [Startup]

HolyMackerel 1496

Do you want to kill people in Startup? You've come to the right place.

Versions of this deck has floated around since Midnight Sun gave us Mitosis and Blood in the Water. I think I've landed on a list that balances tricks with killing tools.

On the trap side, both Urtica Cipher and Cerebral Overwriter set up for a kill turn in their own way, and are very scary to hit. The fear of these bad boys is what allows us to play the rest of the deck. Clearinghouse usually rests on 2 on an open boardstate, waiting to be chained together with other tools. Ronin is the poor man's Clearinghouse, but it does the job if the runner ever stumbles.

You usually kill by chaining together a combination of scores, Clearinghouse/Ronin, and Neurospike. Blood in the Water is what pushes Neurospike over the edge, and makes every stumble or late-click Snare! a potential kill.

And the glue that holds it all together is Mitosis. Every game you see this, you're a happy camper. 4 credits and 6 clicks worth of value, all for 3 credits and 2 clicks is phenomenal. The speed and sudden threat level is, pun intended, to die for.

If you're a fan of old-school shell gaming, this is where you want to be in Startup. Put the fear of of the black tree back into the runners, and leave no brains uncooked.

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