Strongest Together

pastorn 30

Chimera is the most important card in this deck. This forces the runner to start installing their breakers, which will cost them a lot. And when Chimera has forced them to put all their breakers out it's still going to be insanely expensive to run.

A nice strategy is to install and (once) advance an Accelerated Beta Test in server, while holding Jackson Howard in your hand. Next turn you score and trigger it. If it goes to shit you can just install Jackson and he will save the day.

13 comments
20 Nov 2014 Doragunov

Looks awesome man, you thought about Inazuma at all?

20 Nov 2014 pastorn

It can have that, and has had it before. It's aleady a bit heavy on Code Gates so I don't really know how I feel about that. You could switch the 2 x GRNDL Refinery to 1 x Inazuma and another Power Shutdown (or 1 x Edge of World). But I've had economical problems with this deck, so that's why I chose GRNDL Refinery.

If you have confidence that the Aggressive Secretary will hit, then by all means, take out that Power Shutdown :)

20 Nov 2014 pastorn

Hmm... Thinking about it, these are some good changes:

  • -1x Aggressive Secretary
  • -2x GRNDL Refinery
  • -1x Enhanced Login Protocol
  • +2x Melange Mining Corp
  • +1x Power Shutdown
  • +1x Inazuma

When adding that one more ICE that will land at strength 5 I would probably remove 1x Ichi 1.0 and add a third Archived Memories.

20 Nov 2014 Doragunov

I think melange instead of GRNDL is a great idea, if the runner lets you have a few turns of it you'll get so far ahead, and with the 2 Archived memories you don't have to worry about random trashes of it off RND.

20 Nov 2014 pastorn

If you want to skip Inazuma you can always add cards this way instead:

  • +2x Melange Mining Corp
  • +1x Carprice Nisei
  • +1x Archived Memories

I see the problem with running MMC is that it's very difficult to properly defend it. Any bioroid is easily clicked through and Chimera will cost. +7 (for MMC) -2 (Chimera rez) = 5. That's a net gain of 2 credits as long as the runner keeps hammering. Adonis/Eve at least has their trash costs as a defense.

You could also go

  • -1x Aggressive Secretary
  • -2x GRNDL Refinery (4 inf)
  • -1x Power Shutdown (2 inf)
  • -1x Tsurugi (2 inf)
  • +2x Melange Mining Corp
  • +2x Carprice Nisei (because fuck de rannah!)
  • +1x Archived Memories
  • +1x Guard (and fuck inside job!)

Another thing, which I came to think of just now, is Targeted Marketing. This is a GREAT economy card. Against Criminal you say "Faerie" or "Special Order" (because of Chimera shenanigans). For Anarch you say "Parasite" or "Datasucker". Against Shaper you say "Self Modifying Code" early game and "Clone Chip" mid-to-late game. And at just 1 influence I can easily see this deck running at least 2 copies.

If you get an extra influence while fiddling, consider Marker. It's at strength 3, which no other ice has (fuck you Atman). When considering that Guard is annoyingly expensive to rez, Marker is often times going to be better at protecting from Inside Job.

20 Nov 2014 Doragunov

I agree with everything you said about Targeting Marketing....I usually run 2, Oh you want to play that card you need?

GIMME 10 CREDITS, and sometimes I think if you're not playing ETF you need that massive boost of economy that stronger together doesn't necessarily have.

20 Nov 2014 mjortman

One card I've started considering over Melange Mining Corp. is Private Contracts. If used for all 3 clicks on your turn, you only get 1 credit less than Melange, and it gives you the flexibility to take money for 2 clicks and do something else for your last click. Granted over the course of 3-4 turns Melange comes out way ahead, but I find it pretty common that I want that 1 extra click that I don't get when using Melange. For example, I've double-clicked Private Contracts and then used Hedge Fund, to gain 9 bucks that turn instead of 7. It just seems to make it easier to manage your hand size too, because you can lay down an ice or other card plus gain 4 dollars. It can sometimes be nice against Account Siphon as well, because you can take the money when you need it, not necessarily grabbing it all at once.

I'm not advocating that it's always better, but it is sometimes worth considering, depending on how the deck is designed to play. In ETF in particular it can be good, because you get the same 7 dollars for 3 turns, and get to play a card each turn as well, generally giving you another dollar (or saving you one, stacking ice).

20 Nov 2014 mjortman

Oh, forgot to add that Melange Mining Corp. is much cheaper to trash than Private Contracts as well.

20 Nov 2014 Doragunov

I've loved the idea of Contracts for so long, and Think im going to try some in my ETF deck now. The 5 trash cost is indeed amazing.

Begining of turn rez adonis gain 3, say he trashes on his turn thats -3 for him. Next turn you install contracts +1 for ETF then click twice. There is no way in hell he is going to trash that for 5, unless hes Whizzard :)

20 Nov 2014 pastorn

The 5 trash is good, but I think that the card generally is bad. You can count on it:

You install it. The next turn you pay 3 to rez it and use it 3 times. Now you're at +3 credits (which could've been gained normally). So 4 clicks = +3 credits. Next turn you might use it two times. That's 6 clicks for +7 credits. And it only has 2 uses left. If you use it two more times you're at +11 credits, having spent 8 clicks. That means that without shenanigansvit gives you +3 credits compared to just taking credits normally. So it's a Hedge Fund.

I understand that in the real world, filled with Engineerinf the Future, Blue Suns, counter-rezzing on a siphon and Executive Boot Camps it's different. But even so, I'd rather play something else...

20 Nov 2014 mjortman

I don't think I'd looked at it that way before. My main reason for liking it was the flexibility with clicks. Too often I find myself not wanting to use all 3 clicks for Melange, and using 2 clicks for Contracts plus another click to install or do something else (like Hedge) has been preferable.

But seeing the "11 credits for 8 clicks" does make me wonder if there isn't a better card to use. I just generally feel hamstrung by Melange, and the low trash cost makes it hard to protect.

20 Nov 2014 pastorn

PAD Campaign. 4 to trash, lots of click flexibility and just as good as a scored Gila Hands. If the runner runs on it and trashes it the turn after it got rezzed she's down 1 click and 4 credits (+ breaker costs) while you're only down 1 click and 1 credit.

23 Nov 2014 pastorn

A tournament report from yesterdays event can be found here along with the actual version of the deck that I played.