Mitra Aman (😷🧪) is “hard” ice-swapping (the Runner can't jack out since they're already approaching), alongside burst econ (0[$]3[$]).

Design

Its gain+swap is strictly more flexible than a cost-redux (CF. Install a piece of ice in that position, ignoring all costs. You may rez that ice, paying 3[$] less.). CF. How Clean Getaway can earn “Asset-Trashing credits” (unlike Dirty Laundry), but lets you keep them too (unlike Bahia Bands).

It rewards the Runner for revealing hidden information (and remembering that revelation). For example, despite ‘missing’ on HQ/R&D breaches by seeing an (untrashable) Cloud Eater—or other more realistic AP/Destroyer facechecks (like an Empiricist, Vampyronassa, Boto, etc)—you've at least learned that it's swappable. And if you access(/expose) a splashed Mitra out of Weyland or Haas-Bioroid, you could hedge against a Biawak or even Týr, while running on rezzed Descents and Ablatives.


However, Mitra Aman has some limitations and does some telegraphing. (Transcribing some analysis during spoilers from “Elevation and Rotation - In Person Netrunner discussion ft Sokka, The King, and Peter H.” | @Kitchen Meta - With Bridgeman :)

  • Given an unrezzed rooted card, you can now approach a rezzed Tatu-Bola and encounter a facedown Saisentan and flatline. Which (Against Jitneki in particular, when running into UNrezzed ice, you already need to prepare for an AP* anyways, like a Killer being pre-installed/available.) But **Mitra implicitly pseudo–derezzes the safe/known ice (which will cost credits to re-rez); unless you're only swapping out heavily-On-Rez ice, like Anemone.

  • While recursion gives you “ice-advantage”, swapping only gives you “ice-selection”. You can get back your best ice that got CrewCharm’d, but your deck/servers are still “down one piece of ice”.

  • Telegraphed on centrals: Besides a few upgrades that can defend centrals or relocate themselves (like Mavirus and Adrian Seis), installing a card in the root of iced HQ/R&D is very suspicious.


Also, Mitra’s +3[$] econ is like Bola’s +2[$] (not NGO Front), IE. their credits can't get “cashed out” until their server gets run.

PS. ICE-Swapping is catnip [non-derogatory] for more casual players like myself. So let me know how it feels to play against, and how good it seems to be when playing with it!

Cards

IDs:

  • triggers A Teia off-turn: like Tatu-Bola does.
  • fuels LEO Construction (2 inf-per-copy): swapping previously-sacrificed Bioroids in and non-Bioroids out. For example, “(rezzed) Ablative → (sacked) Bumi”.
  • enabled in Restoring Humanity: when you want the spiky ice (being swapped in) to be available later against a not-yet-known server, and you don't care about the gearcheck (being swapped out) ending up in Archives rather than HQ. (And AU Co. milling itself? In decks with enough ice.)

On-Rez/“Blinkable” ICE:

Flavor

mitra means “friend/colleague” and aman means “safe/secure”. This “spring-loaded mind” is ready to be hot-swapped in against even the most mindful Runners.

Custom

I like that Mitra is “Midori, but good” (no jack out, credit-gain, Archives-swap too).


Here's a variant that's repeatable (like Midori) but more constrained (than Mitra): to can trigger it every run (with a cost-reduction and direct-rez), but it's limited by the ice you're swapping out (to give the Runner more deduction hooks, and let them do more risk management):

  • Once per turn → Whenever the Runner approaches a piece of ice protecting this server, you may draw 1 card and swap that ice with a noncopy piece of ice from Archives or HQ that shares a subtype. You may rez it, paying 3[$] less.

Which makes you swap Barriers with Barriers (“primary ice-types”), unless you swap AP with AP (“secondary ice-types”), but not Anemones with Anemones.

Rules

The Elevation box includes this “refcard”:

Mitra Aman allows the Corp to swap an installed piece of ice with a piece of ice from HQ or Archives. This effect uninstalls the previously-installed ice, trashing any hosted cards or counters, and installs the other ice in the same position. The Runner will still be approaching that position.

A player installing a card through a swap effect does not pay an install cost and does not have the opportunity to trash other cards as part of that installation. A Corp card that becomes installed by being swapped enters the play area unrezzed, just as if that card had been installed normally.


Rules-wise (IIUC!!), the Corp may choose to rez Mitra (at Step 6.9.2.e), after the Runner has chosen to not jackout (at Step 6.9.2.c), and before the Runner will approach/encounter whatever ice is at that current position (at Step 6.9.2.f). See Phase 6.9.2. (Movement):

c. The Runner may choose to jack out, proceeding to step 6.9.6, Run Ends Phase. If the Runner does not, continue to (d).

d. The Runner's position moves to the next position inward, if any.

e. A paid ability window occurs, in which players may use paid abilities and the Corp may rez non-ice cards. (P) (R)

f. If the Runner moved to a new position, return to step 6.9.2, Approach Ice Phase, approaching the piece of ice in their new position.

Nanomanagement is a direct reprint of Biotic Labor from the ANR core set which is in turn a direct reprint of Overtime Incentives from the original netrunner ccg released way back in 1996. This is a card that has quite literally existed as a part of Netrunner for as long as Netrunner has existed. Needless to say, old-heads know this card well so I'm going to target this review exclusively towards newer players who have never had the joy of firing a Biotic Labor and might currently be scratching their heads looking at this card and wondering what to do with it.

Corp Turn Fundamentals

Playing an Operation takes a click, so functionally, you are spending 1 click and 4 credits to gain 2 clicks for a net result of +1 click and -4 credits. Essentially allowing you to take 4 (non-nanomanagement) clicks in a single turn.

Let's start from the top by taking a look at all the potential actions available to the Corp that they can spend this extra click on.

  • Gain a credit: Terrible idea, spending 4 credits to gain a credit is throwing 3 credits down the drain so definitely not the play

  • Draw a card/Install multiple cards: If you wanted click compressed draws or installs Top-Down Solutions or Red Level Clearance are much cheaper alternatives so I'd refer you to those

  • Purge (and then take another click: Once again you're probably better off playing something like Mavirus or Flyswatter for compressed purges

  • Trash a resource: Theoretically a possibility but when you add up the costs and conditions you need to be in a boardstate where the runner is tagged and the fourth most important Resource on the table is worth 6 credits to trash. Anecdotally, this almost never happens.

  • Advancing a card/playing an operation/using a card ability: Now we're cooking, this is the meat of Nanomanagment’s applications, fast advance and (to a lesser extent) combo kill.

Kill Decks

Certain click intensive combos like Mutually Assured Destruction + End of the Line require extra clicks to be played in one turn and Nanomanagement finds a home here. Other click intensive kill combos that include Pivot or multiple copies of Public Trail + End of the Line find use for Nanomanegement as well. But these combos are expensive and finicky to pull off so while you're more than welcome to have some fun designing exciting combo kill decks this review will focus on fast advance from here on out.

Scoring Agendas

Let's establish some logical lines of reasoning.

  1. At its core, netrunner is a game about scoring agendas (some players might disagree with me but let's operate on this doctrine for now).
  2. If you want to score agendas, you're going to need clicks.
  3. The click requirement to score an agenda is simply the advancement requirement + 1. Since to score an Agenda you must spend 1 click installing it and a number of clicks equal to it's advancement requirement advancing it.
  4. A normal Corp turn consists of 3 clicks which means the only type of Agenda that can be “naturally” scored from hand are 2/1s.
  5. 2/1s represent the lowest amount of points you can get from an agenda (we don't talk about Domestic Sleepers) and since 2/1s tend to have relatively weak abilities too, most decks need to score at least some number of larger agendas to win and this can't naturally be done directly from hand.

To score larger agendas, you'll often need to install the agenda and potentially even pre-advance it on one turn, and then score it on the next.

The question of how to do this without the runner just stealing them is central to archetype divergence and playstyle.

Will you hide them amongst a sea of assets? Bluff them with the threat of nasty traps? Defend them under mountains of ICE reinforced with powerful defensive upgrades? Rush out using gear checks and tempo scoring tools? Fork the runner with the threat of nasty reprisals?

Nanomanagement (and other fast advance tools like it) offer you another solution by letting you bend the rules of the game, by giving you a 4 click turn (or by placing multiple advancement counters in 1 click) it's possible to score out 3/1s or more commonly 3/2s in a single turn, directly from hand without needing to leave it in a remote server for a turn.

This leads to the archetype known as fast advance, often shortened to FA and occasionally called “rush.”

There are also “hybrid” decks that score out some agendas behind ICE and then fast advance the last agenda to win. Anecdotally these decks have found more success in recent years than the “pure” FA variants have. But both variants must include some amount of "fast advance tools" nonetheless.

The only catch is cost, Nanomanagement tacks a 4 credit premium on top of the existing costs to score out an agenda and when scoring agendas is already one of the most expensive activities in the game you are going to need a very robust economy to make this card viable.

Additionally, its high influence cost at 4 pips per copy makes it difficult to import outside of HB.

Combos

Operation contingent Fast Advance like Sudden Commandment or Nebula Talent Management: Making Stars can be combined with Nanomanagement to FA a 4/2.

Wage Workers + Nanomanagement can also FA a 4/2.

Nanomanagement + The Holo Man can FA a 5/3 in MirrorMorph since the first three clicks will technically be Operation, Install, click Holo then you can still triple advance.

Alternatives

All factions have atleast some means to gain clicks or place multiple advancement counters in 1 click.

Jinteki

Jinteki has the most limited Fast Advance options in standard, the only one being Moon Pool, which requires extra agendas already in HQ or Archives which you then cycle back into R&D for clickless advancement counters. In a deck with a large number of agendas (10+) this is worth considering, otherwise, it will be hard to consistantly trigger it.

Weyland

Slash and Burn Agriculture is incredibly cheap and easy to use, but it puts an agenda face up in archives, so unless Archives is well defended, you have a Spin Doctor on the table or it's the winning Agenda, you're going to have to accept that you're functionally trading points with the runner. Additionally, Agendas cannot be imported so you can't play this outside of Weyland.

Plutus isn't fast advance in and of itself but it can be combined with click-neutral operations such as Petty Cash, Red Level Clearance, Greasing the Palm or Peer Review to become a fast advance tool. It is incredibly cheap once setup, to the point of sometimes even being credit positive and can be used multiple times so long as you have multiple click neutral operations, but it needs to be pre-installed and protected, and comes with a special rez cost that can be difficult to pay.

Puttin these two to the side, let's talk abou the real King and Queen of FA, HB and NBN.

Haas-Bioroid

Big Deal It's easier to use than needing to assemble 3 Biotic Labors to FA a 5/3. But it's high cost makes it inflexible and strictly inefficient for fast advancing 3/2s. And its trash cost makes it vulnerable to the runner while you're busy saving up the credits.

Greasing the Palm By installing and placing an advancement counter in 1 click you can FA 3/2s and it's one of the very few credit-positive FA tools in the game. However it can be challenging to get the runner to float a tag, especially in HB which lacks much tag support.

Otto Campaign Another credit positive FA it can be used to FA 4/2s on the turn it pops. But, since it takes 3 turns to tick down and has a measly trash cost of 2 credits, it gives the runner plenty of time to shut it down before it can be useful.

Bass CH1R180G4 While cute and thematic (he's even referenced in Nanomanegement's flavor text) is simply inferior to Nanomanegement. Since you have to spend a click to install him on a prior turn, he doesn't functionally save you any credits over Nanomanegment and he doesn't have any frills like being reusable. I suppose certain niche decks might consider him because he's one influence less or because you can rez him at a discount using something like Mahkota Langit Grid but for most decks, there's little reason to play Bass.

NBN

Focus Group It's technically an option but its inconsistency means it almost never sees play.

Sudden Commandment It has utility applications and provides bonus card draw but it has substantially more rigorous requirements than Nanomanagement, needing Threat 3 and another click Neutral or click positive operation to combo with. Plus, like Big Deal it can be trashed.

Shipment from Vladisibirsk While a Big Deal at one 17th of the cost might sound appealing I wouldn't underestimate the requirement. Getting the runner to float 2 tags is quite challenging and the amount of time and resources you'll spend on giving the runner those tags and getting them to stick is variable, but it's ultimately a large hidden cost I wouldn't underestimate.

The Holo Man is flexible, reusable and more efficient than Nanomanagement if used more than once. But, it needs to be pre installed and can be trashed, meaning even if you don't need to protect your agenda, you'll need a way to protect the Holo Man.

Vladisibirsk City Grid is like The Holo Man in the sense that it's reusable and more efficient if reused but needs to be preinstalled and protected. Generally The Holo Man sees more play unless you have some synergy like that of Pravdivost Consulting: Political Solutions.

Closing Thoughts

Ultimately, Nanomanagement, while not necessarily the most efficient in a vacuum, shines due to its overwhelming consistency. Unlike almost every other FA option, it doesn't require setup, support or extra conditions to make it work and can't be easily trashed. As long as you have the money, Nanomanagement can do the job.

These traits have classically made Biotic Labor a staple in many HB FA decks, HB hybrid decks and still made it a valuable import into other factions in spite of its incredibly high influence cost. I have no reason to assume the same won't be true for Nanomanagement.

So, the next time you find yourself struggling to score out that last agenda, try slotting a Nanomanagement or two to make it a hybrid deck and start experimenting from there!

TLDR: A reprint of what is arguably the most classic fast advance tool of all time and remains one of the most reliable ways to fast advance today.

Syailendra (🏛️🏔️) is the “new Mausolus”: a $4/5s/3↳ AP–CodeGate, that’s advanceable (“Seven Wonders ICE”).

Design

Like Mestnichestvo, this has an On-Encounter ability that's gated by advancement, and that “resolves” the ice's first subroutine.

I think Advanceable ICE with On-Encounters, or with “Anti-Breakage” abilities (like Akhet and even Hortum), are more fun than ice which (like Colossus) boost strength and/or make subroutines harsher; since the former “guarantee” some partial returns on your investment.


I also like “advancement”-subroutines, because it:

  • is contextual/situational: Being blank unless something advanceable is installed; and never a generic “+1[$], +[click]”. It's also more valuable on Agendas/Assets than on ICE: a Tree Line’s +1 strength is worth less than a Charlotte Caçador’s econ (Gain 4[$]. Draw 1 card.), an Off the Books’s selection/compression (Search R&D for 1 card. Add it to HQ or install it, ignoring all costs.), a Clearinghouse’s kill (Do +1 meat damage.), or so on.

  • can have interesting decisions: If you're advancing an agenda that can be stolen (revealing some information, modulo faceup/expose), or an asset that can be trashed (wasting your advancement, modulo fast [trash], Hosted advancement counter: … costs), you're taking a risk. If you're advancing an ice, then you're hedging; no risk, but much less value.

However, double-advancing a single card (saving 2[$], [click][click]), or even requiring a rooted card to be advanced (like Jinteki) as well as a piece of ice, could lean more into this “higher risk, higher reward” gameplay. While granting the advanced card a “self-protective” Public-esque ability could “hedge” for more safety (like City Works Project’s When the Runner accesses this agenda while installed, … for each advancement counter on it.).


[EDIT] (as @Baa_Ram_Wu pointed out) If Syailendra—like Mausolus—ended the run once triple-advanced, then—despite being ‘porous’ and with ‘light’ subs—it could ‘harden’ itself for the third encounter, after being facechecked twice (since the 1st sub resolving would level-up the 3rd sub before it resolves, during that same encounter).

CF. Doomscroll, which ‘doubles’ its own effect for the second encounter, after being facechecked once (without detagging).

Notes

IMO, the tax of Syailendra’s subs (Do 1 net damage. The Runner loses 2[$]. Place 1 advancement counter.) is softer than Mausolus’s (Do 1 net damage. Give the Runner 1 tag. Gain 1[$].).

However, by both pinging and credit-zapping (like Vampyronassa), Syailendra does enable Measured Response (FWIW): both its Do 4 meat damage … and its … unless the Runner pays 8[$]..

Synergies

Advancement that's repeated/incidental (whether subroutines like Syailendra’s/Akhet’s, or triggers like Wall to Wall) obviously synergizes with anything advanceable. Especially infinitely-advanceable ones, like:

As well as with “Advancement-Moving”, like:

See x:"can advance" t:asset|upgrade|ice z:standard b:active


PS. read @DarkoM’s/@Kram’s review/comment (most of my review was written during spoilers over on Reddit).

Flavor

Syailendra means “King of the Mountain”. The art shows Borobudur, a Buddhist temple (and UNESCO World Heritage Site) in Java, built by the Syailendra Dynasty.

This card is, verbatim, 30yo:

  1. WotC (1996): TRAP!
  2. FFG (2012): Snare!
  3. NSG (2025): Byte!

[$0] Node [-$0]: Ambush
(Corporation uncommon)

If you pay [4] when Runner accesses TRAP!, it does 3 Net damage and gives Runner a tag, even if TRAP! is not installed. Ignore this effect if Runner accesses it from the Archives. If TRAP! is accessed from R&D;, Runner must show it to you.

[$0] Asset [-$0]: Ambush
(Jinteki 2/5)

If Snare! is accessed from R&D, the Runner must reveal it.

If you pay 4[$] when the Runner accesses Snare!, do 3 net damage and give the Runner 1 tag. Ignore this effect if the Runner accesses Snare! from Archives.

[$0] Asset [-$0]: Ambush
(Jinteki 2/5)

While the Runner is accessing this asset in R&D, they must reveal it.

When the Runner accesses this asset anywhere except in Archives, you may pay 4[$]. If you do, give the Runner 1 tag and do 3 net damage.

This card already has two reviews, but if you read either of them, let alone both, you'd probably be confused and slightly misled. Is this card unplayably bad? Or is it a great console for any Anarch? Well... neither.

This card is built for Esâ Afontov: Eco-Insurrectionist and Esa only, I have never seen this card show up in a competitive deck outside of Esa and I have never seen a competitve Esa deck that plays anything else in it's console slot. It is, without question, one of the most "hard-coded" console/runner pairs in standard.

For the average Anarch this is indeed Brain Cage + Spoilers + Akamatsu Mem Chip and that is not worth your console slot, almost anything else would be better, even importing a console like Aniccam or Hermes would be preferable to this.

For Esa however, it does many things

+2 Hand Size - let's you take 2 additional Core Damage, that's two more Running Hots or two more Finalities on top of your "regular" Core Damage budget. After all, since Esa treats hand size as a resource, it stands to reason that +2 Hand Size would be worth a lot

1 Esa trigger (bought and paid for) - That means 2 extra sabotage and one instance of card cycling as soon as you install it

1-2 (sometimes more against certain decks) Bonus Sabotage - Whenever an Agenda gets scored, you'll get an extra instance of Sabotage to boot, which will usually be at least once or twice a game

Cheap Infaction MU - with Begemot requiring 2 MU, having an cheap, zero-fuss source of extra memory is another nice bonus

Best case scenario this card is functionally bankrolling 2 Chastushka's worth of sabotage over the course of a game, half of which it triggers itself. That's... exactly what Esa needs.

Would Esa play Brain Cage if it was still in standard? Almost certainly. But in the context of the more limited cardpool, where your only other alternatives are cards like T400 Memory Diamond, Hippocampic Mechanocytes or Supercorridor, Marrow is simply the best option you have when building an Esa deck and that's why for the foreseeable future, this card will continue to be hard coded to Esa.

TLDR: Esâ Afontov's Console, and Esa doesn't like to share...

"a best case of '2 Chastushkas', from the Cybernetic and On-Score abilities, plus the +2 max hand size", for just two credits, is a great way to look at it!

I actually tried to play this outside of Esa, but the decks never really worked out. My line of thought was that the extra hand size mitigates the core damage from #

Zenit Chip JZ-2MJ, a good draw tool, and Ghosttongue, a good eco tool, in Tremolo decks. Well, that neither worked for my Steve nor for my Hosh xD