Pros

• Guaranteed trashing is a strong ability
• Good against upgrades, as it will trash all in the server root for free, in addition to the cards accessed from in the server

Cons

• 2 and a cardslot for this is too steep a cost to trash a single random card
• so needs to be combo-ed with centrals multi-access cards to hit multiple cards
• or else need to be able to run R&D twice, once to check the card first, then again with this to trash it (generally not a great plan)

Notable Interactions

• Medium and Nerve Agent are powerful in-faction centrals multi-access programs which can be really powered up with this.
• Can also work with HQ Interface and R&D Interface
• a good technique with Demolition Run is to make a run with it when you know you will be able to run again immediately, to see a whole fresh set of cards after the trashing cards from the first run
• overshadowed by Wanton Destruction, which is much easier to use as it has the destruction and multi-access built in
  • however, Wanton destruction does not work on R&D
  • using Demolition Run you access the cards first, which lets you steal agendas, while Wanton Destruction must be followed up by an Archives access in order to steal any agendas
  • the accesses with Demo Run can also trigger ambushes though

Final Thoughts

• amazing, potentially game-winning effect when you pull it off with decent amount of multi-access
• but quite difficult to successfully arrange effective use of it

Demolition Run saw some heavy use early on with deep Medium digs, to see even more cards. A Demo Run plus several Medium counters would allow you to see twice the number of cards you would have seen with only 2 regular medium runs. Timing it was a problem around purges as was being able to make enough money to get through the ICE. It was also the one of the first of the Run - Sabotage types, along with Account Siphon. Now that set includes the Cutlery brand and the dangerous Wanton Destruction. Without multi-access cards such as the Interfaces and viruses like Medium and Nerve Agent, Demo Run falls rather flat on its face, being no better than an Imp counter.

Could Demo Run make a come back with more design influence for Sabotage runs? Imagine if you will a card that doubles the effectiveness of Run - Sabotage. Of course, then Account Siphon is even more powerful. Such a design space interaction would have to be carefully considered because of that interaction.

Currently, unless one is heavily relying on multi-access, Demo Run is better replaced in most decks with other cards that aid in digging. Wanton Destruction can do the same thing (on HQ) without any other cards to help it (though cards like Amped Up and Stim Dealer can clearly make Wanton more effective, it doesn’t need them) Showing Off even works instead, with the same amount of required helper cards, with the added benefit of being useful against Daily Business Show agenda hiding.

And that is where Demo Run’s problem comes in. Without additional card support it is a dead sort of card in your hand until such things are set up, and that just means its taking up space. Getting rid of one card at a time isn’t worth it unless you can do it reliably over multiple turns of the games (ie: Noise) or it gives some other benefit. At this current design state of the game, Demo Run still remains a secondary card that can easily end up as the 46th card in a runner deck, ready to be cut.

However, with newer cards like Crisium Grid and even for some uses against dreaded heavily upgraded centrals, it could find some use. You do access all the upgrades, so in specific cases, Demo Run without multi-access can be useful. However, in a deck building for consistency you never want to rely on the ‘specialized cases’ - especially ones where there are other, more efficient ways to do it.

(Written during the meta of The Valley, part of the SanSan Cycle. For more reviews like it, visit wyldside.blogspot.com)

(Revised Core Set Perspective)

This card has been severely nerfed since the Core Set due to one card's notable absence: Medium.

Without an in-faction multi-access (installed) card, Demolition Run only has one friend left: HQ Interface. Given that HQI is out-of-faction and doesn't quite offer the firepower that Medium once did, Demolition Run will see much less play than it did in the Original Core Set.

Still, HQI + Demo Run offers an interesting silver bullet for corp players that have operation-critical win conditions. I've never had so much fun than using the combo to pluck out 2 Biotic Labors from the corp's hand. Without HQI though, the card becomes little more than a one-time Imp.

Overall, a decent card when paired but the influence can get pricey as both cards run at 2 influence each. If you're spending 4 influence using the combo in Shaper, make sure it's because your meta asks for it.

What's the opposite of netdecking? Bad decking. Demo run is the bad deck king. Demo run is best used for style points and to see if you really can win the game in one turn. With +click cards and +access if you can hit R&D every click with a demo run or two in hand you either win the game or cripple the corp via mass trashing critical corp cards. Of course, while you're assembling your big run the corp can win the game playing like a normal person, potentially twice. Trashing 10+ cards off R&D is really funny though. Binning the HQ can also produce a few giggles but it isn't a crowd pleaser like dumping R&D where it belongs.