Step 1 = Put 3x Modded and some hardware and breakers in your decks.

Step 2 = ???

Step 3 = Profit!

3x auto include in any shaper deck, IMHO. Would be more auto-include in non-Shaper decks too if it wasn't so much of an influence hog (compare to Career Fair).

Put yourself in a position where you will be doing a lot of drawing (Aniccam, Professional Contacts, Symmetrical Visage, Diesel, Build Script, etc) and put in a bunch of card based econ (Sure Gamble, Daily Casts, Dirty Laundry, Easy Mark, etc) and find a way to spend two cards per click (Comet, Modded, Career Fair) and this is an insanely good card in your likely insanely good deck.

The kind of card you want is the one which makes the best decks better. This is that kind of card.

First of all, this is a good card.

This card, more than most others, probably does a good job teaching people how they should be building decks. Focused, with fewer nice to haves taking up deck space.

What I like most about this card is that it forces you to be disciplined. IMHO, people should be trying to fit this in their stack. Not because it does something broken, but because it makes everything else you are doing more consistent.

This card forces you to focus on specific core concepts, which I think is good. By taking 3 influence from you and 3 deck slots from you, it helps ensure that you are only putting the best of the best cards in all the other slots.

Also, note synergy with the best shaper console Aniccam.

Summary: A card that compliments traces that are weak in payoff. E.g. Gutenberg, Macrophage, Traffic Analyzer.

Traces can be explained in game theory, where the Corp decides on their strategy (Boosting trace) before the Runner decides on theirs (Boosting Link). Therefore as the Corp, it is best to make the payout of both Runner choices as close as possible, since it is certain that the Runner will choose the least bad option given optimal play & similar value assessment.

The only basic action available for the Corp to change the payout balance is boosting the trace by using credits. This lowers the payout for winning the trace (since credits spent are "wasted"), BUT does NOT affect the payout for losing the trace (each credit spent is contested by an equal spending by the Runner, assuming equal value of credits for both side). The action favors traces with an payouts far outvaluing the credits that the Corp would spend for it, common examples are SEA Source in the SEA Scorch combo, Punitive Counterstrike, Hard-Hitting News. These cards do not work well with Aryabhata Tech since the winning case payout is already so far ahead that the Runner would be contesting the trace whenever possible most of the time.

This card increases the payout for winning the trace, which increases the expected payout of the trace. In my jank Aryabhata Tech, Surat City Grid, Traffic Analyzer trace spam deck, this card sways the balance of the Traffic Analyzer trace payoff matrix. Now instead of just a +1 (win) vs a +2 (loss), which Runners will let it fire obviously for a marginal expected gain of +1, it is now a +3 (win) vs a +2 (loss), where Runners are expected to contest for a gain of +2, double the original payout.

This is still a very good card. I would go as far as to say it should probably be a one of in almost every runner deck, because it's that good.

Specifically, this is one of the lowest cost ways to get more bang for your clicking buck. I mean that in every sense of the phrase. It costs no influence to put in a deck and it only costs two to throw it out, so there is not a huge tempo loss. Tempo loss is a big deal, and a major strike against a card like Professional Contacts. Not that ProCon isn't good, but it's a lot harder to build around, get out, and use than Symmetrical Visage is.

As for the card itself, the design is great. There is rarely a turn when you won't click at least once for a credit or a draw. If you need a credit, this makes sure you don't fall behind on draw. If you need a draw, this makes sure you don't fall behind on credits.

Out of all the engine cards in the game of Netrunner, this is one of the ones with the fewest restrictions for use and one of the ones with the highest probability of paying for itself any time you play it.

Furthermore, every deck should have some kind of engine in it and this card plays nice with basically every other engine out there.

If you already have one of these and you are sitting on 44 cards, you might even consider throwing in a second one of these so you see it earlier and more often.

Well, for all the Weyland fans out there, Salvaged Memories has been a true feast of meat... Damage, that is.

With the Salvaged Memories set coming out we now have a cornucopia of explosions to serve the runner! One tag? Scorched Earth! Two tags? BOOM!! Three or more tags? High-Profile Target! Don't forget to Consulting Visit to serve the runner the explosion that's best for them!

Now how do we tag? Still have the tried and true methods of SEA Source and Hard-Hitting News. But the question becomes, do we run both? Or just one? What's the ideal tag and bag package now?

I think the right combo is 2x Scorched and 1x BOOM! HPT only out-performs at 4 tags which is less likely to stick and BOOM! or double Scorch is still lethal then. The right tag combo might be 2x Sea and 2x HHN, but it's hard to say. What is the most consistent tag option? Is it worth slotting False Lead to prevent tag removal?

Salvaged Memories will be a new era of blowing stuff up. I'm looking forward to seeing what people come up with.