Lots of Risk, Little Reward... Unless you play it right

Functionally similar to the Runner resource Theophilius Bagbiter, this ID will bestow serious bragging rights to any player who is able to use it successfully. See Scorched Imaging decklist by PeekaySK as a masterful example of recursion & Scorch that was used to successfully overcome the obstacles that Cerebral Imaging: Infinite Frontiers puts up.

Combos

IQ is a nice for for this ID, get it installed early when HQ hand size is small/empty then they can become very touch to get through later in the game.

Ashigaru another ice that could be quite wicket with this ID since it's based on hand size.

Panic Button could provide the corp with lots of options for getting more cards or keeping the runner out of a server if perhaps used in combo with Ashigaru & IQ

A good economy. - You are going to need ways of constantly generating income efficiently

Astounding financial discipline - A player that Dave Ramsey would be proud of.

Research Station & Cybernetics Court could go a long way towards mitigating the negative aspects of this ID

Blue Level Clearance both provides economy & card which addresses both the strength & weaknesses of Cerebral Imaging: Infinite Frontiers

Jackson Howard or Archived Memories could be used not so much an offensive but a defensive backup plan in case the corp runs out of money and ends up trashing cards that need to get out of archives

Hide at bottom strategy: With Cerebral Imaging: Infinite Frontiers ID & Daily Business Show installed and a slow draw strategy along with a protected R&D it may be possible to reserve a number of agendas keeping them out of HQ. With fewer or possibly no agendas in HQ, this ID is isn't as risky and HQ size could be allowed to grow a bit more allowing more options. Finally Shannon Claire could be used to undo the madness when the corp is ready to score.

Scorched Earth & SEA Source etc could combo with this ID to tag & bag the runner since the corp will inevitably always have a lot of in reserve that could be used in one big push to flat-line the runner.

Pros

You'll always tend to have a pile of money, which can be used for 1 big game-ending push

It may be possible that you could have like 35+ cards in your HQ, making it bigger than your R&D. Think of the power! Start practicing your evil villain laugh

If you have an agenda or two in your 35 card HQ, they are probably pretty safe, you may even be begging the runner to run on HQ, anything to draw attention away from the dwindling cards in your R&D.

If through some miracle you are able to pull off a win in a competitive tourney with this ID people will high-five you in the comments below this review!

As you spend turn after turn collecting income and not playing cards from your HQ, your opponent will rue the day he/she sat down to play with you.

Cons

As you spend turn after turn collecting income and not playing cards from your HQ, your opponent will rue the day he/she sat down to play with you.

Any slip up and agendas or other important cards will be picked up out of Archives by the runner

Judicious use of financial attack cards such as Account Siphon or Vamp etc could be devastating if the runner is able to time things well.

With your economy constantly being locked up, You risk being paralyzed from executing your strategy by facing sub-optimal choices in relation to the other cards in your HQ.

Summary

There is good reason why this ID hasn't been reviewed on this site up to this point. Most popular player ID's provide a unique bonus to the player, with little to no side effects. This ID is the antithesis of most in that it provides a severe negative with little to no benefit. This ID really cannot stand on it's own, it really needs combo cards that work with hand size etc, otherwise corp players rarely benefit from larger hand sizes in the way that the runners do so bottom line: Play with critical combos otherwise this ID shines best when viewed as a handicap, where an experience corp player can use this ID to help even the playing-field when playing against a novice player.

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Combos

Oversight AI combos well with cards that have high strength and a high installation cost. Ideally the subroutines can do some significant damage in the mean time.

Archer: Main thing here is getting a good piece of ice out without having to forfeit an agenda and only 1 .

Curtain Wall: is pretty expensive at 14, however in combo with Oversight AI that's only 1 and possibly strength 10 depending on server position!

Other mentions: Hadrian's Wall, Orion, Wotan and many more ice that runs on the expensive side.

Pros

Huge savings to get otherwise prohibitively expensive ice rezzed

Can overcome painful additional costs on ice such as Archer and Enforcer 1.0

Cons

Removes element of surprise making the ice much less likely to survive the first run

Beefy ice more likely to slow the runner down and act as a tax to runner since he/she will know exactly what it is.

Can only rez ice during corp turn rather than during runners run.

Does not combo well with big Bioroid ice that can simply be broken.

Summary

I really do like Oversight AI, I generally tend towards cheaper ice but Oversight AI allows me to play with some very powerful ice that I would normally just look over. Obviously it changes the nature of that ice so that it simply taxes the runner. Still that taxing can be important to open up a scoring window. It is splash-able for two influence points in other faction decks, but probably not more than one per deck. Playing as Weyland however Oversight AI should definitely be considered.

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Combos

Tag storm strategies using Tag dependent gotcha operation cards such as: Scorched Earth, Bad Times, Big Brother, Closed Accounts, Freelancer, Psychographics, Shoot the Moon, The All-Seeing I, Traffic Accident all could benefit from Restructured Datapool's ability allow the corp to trace it's way to getting tags on the runner.

Tag dependent Agendas such as; Private Security Force, Market Research, Quantum Predictive Model become more powerful when you have more flexibility in getting tags onto the runner.

Tag dependent assets/upgrades such as: Reality Threedee, Keegan Lane & Lily Lockwell

Tag dependent ice such as: Pachinko, Resistor & Universal Connectivity Feehave much more bite if the runner is tagged, a scored Restructured Datapool can help make this more likely.

Tag Dependant ID SYNC: Everything, Everywhere would benefit by having an always available option for getting tags onto the runner

Pros

Restructured Datapool is the only NBN 5/3 agenda, helps with agenda compression decks

Gives corp chance of giving tag storm to runner for only 1

If runner link is weak, a scored Restructured Datapool with the runner fearing tags gives the corp an opportunity to tax the runner on-demand for the remainder of the game.

Cons

Same as all other 5/3 agendas, high risk/high reward gambit

Trace 2 is weak and will most always require buffing in order to be successful.

Link defense cards such as: Rabbit Hole, Access to Globalsec etc can quickly make using Restructured Datapool more costly to the corp than to the runner.

Summary

Tag Storm: NBN Tag storm decks might want to give a close look at including this agenda where every turn the corp could seize momentum by forcing the runner will to pay to avoid getting as many as three tags a turn. If the runner runs out of credits to fend them off, getting rid of them could be even more expensive in terms of s & s. (Note: Yes a strong economy will already need to be established for tag storm to really work it's magic) Agenda Card Compression: From an agenda/card compression stand-point the case for this card isn't quite as strong, still other than Restructured Datapool, for NBN the only option is to look to a pile of neutral 5/3 agendas; Eden Fragment, Executive Retreat, Global Food Initiative, Hades Fragment, Priority Requisition & Utopia Fragment. Not to mention the neutral 6/4 Vanity Project provides even better agenda/card compression.

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Note Regarding Caïssa programs

Knight is the 3rd in the series of Caïssa programs. Hat tip to Fantasy Flight Games for the cool name as Caïssa is the name of a fictional Thracian dryad portrayed as the goddess of chess. Thematically all Caïssa programs once installed onto ice may move around the servers with unique movement restriction rules similar to chess pieces moving on a chessboard. Currently only four Caïssa programs have been released, Pawn, Rook, Knight & Bishop

Combos

Deep Red is the console specifically tailored to complement Caïssa programs by providing dedicated memory as well as allowing the unlimited positioning for only one . This ensures you can get Knight onto the specific ice you need it on to break it's subroutines.

Pawn can provide the runner some savings and compression when used to run on a preferably lightly guarded server where in addition to accessing whatever is in that server the runner may then install a Caïssa program like Knight for free.

Pros

As an AI ice breaker, Knight can break ice of all sub-types.

It's awesome 7 strength put it in range of the vast majority of ice

2 cost to break subroutines is reasonably good

Can be re-positioned to help the runner get through other-wise difficult to break ice as the runner learns where it's needed most.

Unlike Parasite, Caïssa programs are not -ed once they've done their work

Costs 2 which is cheap compared to some other AI ice breakersl.

Cons

Costs 1-2 s to re-position

Unlike other icebreakers, Knight can only target subroutines on the ice it is installed on. For servers with more than one ice program the runner will need other icebreakers installed

Summary

Until King or Queen are released, probably the only main Caïssa program that will see any usage will be Knight. Both Bishop & Rook seem to weak in their payloads given their costs. Perhaps future Caïssa program, hardware resources or even perhaps events will change things, to make an overall Caïssa program strategy more viable. Still with 3 Knight cards in a deck the runner will have some very flexible ice-breakers at low cost to target some of the most scary ice out there.

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Note Regarding Caïssa programs

Rook is the 2nd in a series of Caïssa programs. Hat tip to Fantasy Flight Games for the cool name as Caïssa is the name of a fictional Thracian dryad portrayed as the goddess of chess. Thematically all Caïssa programs once installed onto ice may move around the servers with unique movement restriction rules similar to chess pieces moving on a chessboard. Currently only four Caïssa programs have been released, Pawn, Rook, Knight & Bishop.

Combos

Deep Red is the console specifically tailored to complement Caïssa programs by providing dedicated memory as well as allowing the unlimited positioning for only one . This ensures you can get Rook onto the specific ice you need it on frustrating the corp with slightly higher rez cost.

Pawn can save the runner some credit and click savings when used to run on a preferably lightly guarded server where in addition to accessing whatever is in that server the runner may then install a Caïssa program like Rook for free. Additionally sometimes a corp being harassed by Rook may choose to trash the ice hosting it, Pawn can then be used to bring Rook right back onto another piece of ice.

Pros

Can make some cheap ice such as Pop-up Window or Data Mine much less desirable to rez.

Easiest of all Caïssa programs to position onto a specific piece of ice

2 Additional rez cost slightly taxing to Corp

Can be continually re-positioned to unrezzed ice harassing the corp with potentially 6$ + tax on a single run (potentially even more in cases like Cell Portal which de-rez themselves and therefore could be rezzed multiple times in a single run)

Unlike Parasite, Caïssa programs are not trashed once they've done their work

Cons

Costs 1-2 s to re-position

Costs 2 to install. Even if it was 0 like Pawn, it seems doubtful this card would seem much usage.

Payload for Rook results only increasing the rez cost of ice by 2 , costs the same as Knight where you actually get an AI ice breaker.

Seems steep given the limited payload

Summary

Until King or Queen are released, probably the only main Caïssa program that will see any usage will be Knight. Both Bishop & Rook seem to weak in their payloads given their costs. Perhaps future Caïssa program, hardware resources or even perhaps events will change things, until then probably not much appeal here.

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