HB Brainbuster - Store Champion Clem's Fort Wayne IN

x3r0h0ur 8877

I've played this deck for a few weeks, only changing to it the night before. This deck catches a lot of runners of guard, makes tons of money, and keeps the runner out, and always questioning themselves.

Notables: 1 Win through advancing agendas, 2 flatlines and 1 loss when I drew nothing but agendas and assets. PILE SHUFFLE. Also using Vitruvious counters to refill my hand while HQ is being attacked.

Duds: None, I don't think there was a card I didn't want to see. Never stuck an EoW, but the play being there is nice, and even the when the runner trashes it, you can fairly safely install into a 3-4 ice remote and the runner has lots of pause, especially if a Sentinel defense is score.

Flatlines were after sticking 3 brain damage, triple EMP, and 1 double-advanced CO doing 4 damage before a triple EMP on my turn.

Possible changes, putting in a 3 pointer or two, just to accelerate the game win, since I can play advance or not-advance on installed cards.

44 comments
2 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

1 small error -2 Eli +2 wall of static.

2 Mar 2014 Ajar

Very unique. I'm intrigued. Did you have any issues with match time?

2 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

Oh god no. The closest to time I ran was when the NBN player I played had this glacier thing going on, only 3 point agendas, and was unable to get his psychographics in time. I lucked out that game for sure. Always at least 15-20 minutes left in the other games though. This deck tends to glacier up a bit, so you can push out agendas rather quickly once that happens. I frequently had 20+ credits (not 1 campaign was trashed after it was installed), so I might slot for Biotic Labor to help close out the game, but the only replaceable slots would hurt the econ (2x Eve).

Also if your ice line up right (paper wall, enigma, fenris) and you get a nice flow of agendas and cash, you can just crank them out one after the other. The only concern that I had all night was just getting too many agendas. I even run 20 ice! -_- Can't complain though, a lot of things went my way in the tournament.

3 Mar 2014 mplain

Hey, so, you won the Store Championship with these decks, right?

3 Mar 2014 YourHero

Cool deck got a few questions if you don't mind, how did sentinel work out for you? How do you find swordsman?

Did false lead pull its weight?

3 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

mplain: Yes this is what I played

YourHero: Sentinel was amazing when it was scored. I scored 2 in one game and from then on the runner never ran on advanced cards (he had brain damage from a Fenris already). It kind of converts your deck to a jinteki style, which is what I like. Also mid game IAA cerebral overwriter gets much more punishing, and likely to cause you to win via Neural EMP if you have a sentinel scored.

False lead is kind of a 'deck-mindset' card. Like in weyland for use of the tag on snare (and hand size), you can use this post CO (with or without sentinel) to keep their handsize down. The other one that most people don't think of...I had a runner run at my newly installed and rezzable Heimdall 2.0, and he was just shy of credits (if he even had the breaker at all). So before rezzing but after he encountered it, I sac'ed the false lead, taking him to 1 click. He then ate 2 brain damage, which is awesome for what this deck is doing. It works with a surprise ichi 2.0 to eat up programs, and can utterly end a turn if they spend 2 clicks preparing to make an agenda stealing run on a remote. I'd say it didn't live up to it's potential, but I can't think of a 1 pointer I'd rather have as far as enabling plays.

3 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

Oh and sentinel turns your edge of worlds into 3 cost mind-melting snares! If the runner sees an EoW early, they're also less likely to even try to run on an installed card in a remote with 4 ice over it that isn't advanced. With cards like paper wall, wall of static, etc, they're all rezzable too on the way in to sell the bluff. That's 8 damage with 1 sentinel scored, 4 of which is brain!

I'd like to slot a zed, but then I'd be stabbing myself in the dick if I drew him late when I needed ice, and not early, and I don't want to run 3 to ensure I do get him early. I'd probably do this if I switched to a more "trash breaker" style play, but still wanted some brain damage.

3 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

I should clarify that I did 3 damage on the advanced over writer and 2 on the heimdall he double clicked and took the brain damage on. Sentinel is like the cleaners and only adds one damage.

3 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

And in my previous post it was before coffee, that scenario is 'only' 5 damage

3 Mar 2014 YourHero

Thanks I can't believe I hadn't thought of false leads to catch people with bioroid ice a really nice move!

How do you think Tyr's Hand would work, to try stick some brain damage from bioroid ice and some guaranteed etrs.

3 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

Tyr's hand is ALWAYS something I tell people to put into brain damage decks. Unfortunately I can't slot it. It is amazing for sticking subs, especially when you surprise with an ichi 2.0, and they're stuck clicking. Heimdall and viktor 2.0 as well. The problem is you're usually already ahead when you're rezzing these ice, so the slot is better devoted elsewhere. If 54 card decks were a thing, I'd slot 2.

3 Mar 2014 HepatitvsJ

Cool deck. Congrats! :)

I've been debating an HB trap deck since my meta isn't heavy on expose effects or traps right now.

Fort Wayne is pretty close to.me actually. Have you ever been to champaign illinois? Armored gopher games is having their store championship this Saturday if you can make it. :) Not that I want to play against this deck. @_@ lol

4 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

I'm actually from the South Bend area. Thats a 3 hour drive to the Armored Gopher. Would be a bit of a haul to make I think, I'll have to see whats in store this weekend.

4 Mar 2014 HepatitvsJ

Gotcha. I love your decks and I'm always looking for good players to talk to. I was hoping you were close enough to make it easily. :( Lol

4 Mar 2014 Merick

Hey, I know that NBN Glacier guy! points to self Definitely an interesting deck. As I assaulted R&D with Keyhole, I must have reacted to what I saw with "Eww" about 5-6 times. Too bad I was Anarch-screwed ;)

4 Mar 2014 Elthane

x3r0h0ur said: "I frequently had 20+ credits (not 1 campaign was trashed after it was installed)"

How did this happen? are you putting 2 ICE over Adonis? Have people forgotten that you Always Always trash econ assets even at loss after they have been rezzed?

4 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

Either played the Adonis after there were eve's online, or when the runner was already lower on credits than I could tell they were comfortable with trashing it. Essentially it's asset overload when I get them going. The beauty of Eve is that she sits there all day looking pretty giving you surprising amounts of money, and makes Adonis a little less noticeable.

That said, yes some players just openly refused to run him. I believe in trashing resources! Particularly campaigns.

6 Mar 2014 Grimwalker

Really want to see what I can do to fit 3x Subliminal Messaging into this. Maybe -1 Swordsman, -2 False Lead, -1 Hedge Fund, +1 Vitruvius, +3 SM?

6 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

I think you'll lose more from dropping the false leads than you'll gain out of the handful of credits you'll get out of SM. I'm not a fan at all of SM.

What I would recommend is cutting down on 2 pointers (3/2s) since you can switch to always advance, run more 3 pointers, and slot them that way.

The beauty of this deck is that it can be played with any number of advancements when installing agendas/traps, so you might hurt flexibility there, but going to 3xProject Wotan might help you slot Subliminal Messaging. I personally do not like subliminal messaging, but I can see why it works here over most decks. Try it out and see how it plays.

7 Mar 2014 HepatitvsJ

Subliminal messaging is drip econ and comparable to PAD campaign. It's best in a Celebrity gift deck imo because multiple copies can return to your hand for a larger gift allowing you to keep other cards hidden. That being said, until Corp gets a version of same old thing to spam operations, i expect SM to not be heavily played. even then, there's better options than Celebrity gift for a corp SoT. Also...as soon as diversified portfolio is out, we're going to see even more of Jinteki:RP shell game remote style decks. which wil rely on drip econ and Thomas Haas/GRNDL refinery for creds.

7 Mar 2014 Satellite Uplink

x3r0h0ur has kindly given me the inside info on his deck for my blog, so if you're interested in this deck check out: http://thesatelliteuplink.blogspot.com/2014/03/brainbuster-purple-jinteki-deck.html

7 Mar 2014 KillerShrike

Very nice deck. I had tried going the other way, pulling in HB cards into Jinteki and it just didn't work. I don't know why it didn't occur to me to try going the other way, but of course! I will be putting this together and trying it out. Thanks for sharing it!

7 Mar 2014 PeekaySK

which wil rely on drip econ and Thomas Haas/GRNDL refinery for creds

I hope you do realize that the only way to actually make money off ol' Tommy is to have him get some sweet, sweet lovin' from Simone, right?

7 Mar 2014 HepatitvsJ

Not really, you may be forgetting he is 2c per advancement? With an IAA turn for Haas you get a net 1c + the benefit of what resources the runner had to expend to get in to the server. After that, the ratio increases. Mushin no Shin will help make it better and you can trash in response to a runners run to make it a click waster, especially good if you're burning a dirty laundry too. :) T Haas is better in my opinion specifically for the trash in response ability over GRNDL refinery's click requirement. Add in plan B, diversified portfolio, Mushin no shin and you have a deck that can ICE up centrals and protect agendas in hand and when the runner goes after your stuff it makes things work better for you. The true danger is when Jinteki gets a scary advanceable agenda similar to P-Vit, P-Ares, P-Beale, etc. I'm actually interested in seeing what Jinteki gets for their Project agenda.

8 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

Haas is 1 to rez, he is exactly clicking for credits. He is really just a bank of credits, and a surprise to rez an ice that you might not before. He doesn't 'gain' you credits until you're either not spending a click, or a credit, or both. He also takes a click to play so for those doing it that way, its 1c there too.

8 Mar 2014 jinsaku

Thanks for the credit! I designed/played the original version of this that you credited in Fort Collins about a month ago. My idea was a "surprise" brain damage deck people wouldn't see coming. I also went 3-1 in very much the same way.. 2 BD flatlines (one through two public sympathies), one agenda win, and one agenda megaflood (8 agendas in the first 11 cards after a mull). It's a pretty fun deck to play.

8 Mar 2014 jinsaku

In about 10 OCTGN test games before that, I went 9-1, I think I scored an agenda once in all those games, and the one loss was due to another flood. I don't get much time to play, and I like variety, so after the FoCo tournament I abandoned it and hadn't played it since. The TO posted it up here.

8 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

Its one of the most fun decks I've ever played honestly. I'd like to try it out with the chronos protocol identity =O

8 Mar 2014 Crunchums

This deck is sweet. I grabbed a similar deck off this site before but found that it was always short on cash, so I'm a big fan of the campaigns.

Unrelated: could someone please explain to me how the "Derived from" and "Inspiration for" things work? Does it just go off of whether you used the "copy" button when building your deck? Is it something you explicitly set somewhere in the publishing process? Something else?

8 Mar 2014 Crunchums

I'm very skeptical that Swordsman is worth running in this deck, and I'd be interested in hearing you justify why you are running it and what you might consider substituting for it.

8 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

I expected knight gabe and atman. Sat uplink doubted swordsman too, I don't really see the hate for swordsman. What would you put in instead? Its an ice that shuts out AI breakers and forces a new breaker, and it does damage, and its dirt cheap to rez, whats not to love? If you have AI everywhere, then you COULD run wraparound, but then any fracter turns it into nothing. At least with swordsman its 2 credits if they run most killers, and want to keep their AI breaker, or just take damage.

8 Mar 2014 Crunchums

Swordsman's main selling point is the blowout of getting to trash an AI breaker, but it seems unlikely that you ever manage to pull it off, in which case it seems pretty weak. I guess it makes sense if you are specifically expecting a meta full of AI breakers, but otherwise I would probably prefer Rototurret (or maybe 1 Caduceus 1 Roto).

9 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

roto is a maybe, but i'd be looking at 1 2 inf ice, but caduceus does nothing for me here. Swordsman is cheap and does damage, and is a release valve against atman or crypsis, or even knight only running, all of which are brutal early game.

Seriously, is atman not running around everywhere still?

9 Mar 2014 ttsgosadow

Ran this deck against a Noise who had Darwin as breaker.

9 Mar 2014 Heartthrob

| Its an ice that shuts out AI breakers and forces a new breaker, and it does damage, and its dirt cheap to rez, whats not to love?

I love everything about Swordsman

9 Mar 2014 Crunchums

I think I was undervaluing what Swordsman does when it's not able to trash an AI breaker. Thanks for the explanation.

9 Mar 2014 weepinggorilla

Is Edge of World really that strong? Do people go for it? I always have my doubts about non-advanceable traps

9 Mar 2014 x3r0h0ur

In HB? Yea, almost all HB agendas can be scored from no advancement. But like I've said before, the impact of trashing one out of R&D makes people hesitant or refuse to run a 3-4 ice remote if you don't advance what you install. You can also let a criminal inside job your remote early and stick 1-2 brain damage depending on your ice layout. I think its well worth the slot, and works with the theme of the deck, and agendas.

2 Apr 2014 Twitch_City

Just came across the Satellite Uplink article - very cool deck idea! Definitely want to give it a try. I was curious, any thoughts about any cards from the latest data pack? (e.g. Reclamation Order, Gyri Labrynth, NAPD Contract, Quandry)

4 Apr 2014 x3r0h0ur

Ice must have substence so quandry is out. I think Gyri might be too much of a dead draw later, but if you can land a few breaker trashes, it might be okay, I'd have to play 15 games slotting...2 of them?

Reclamation order is okay, but I don't think I'd ever be happy using it even for neural EMP, its just better to have "3" in hand (vitruvious) NAPD doesn't help the archetype much, I'd have to replace the sentinals...unless I want to go full "always advance some way or another" and replace ABT, which is the least helpful of all agendas. I suppose it could slot over ABT....Try it and find out!

9 May 2014 secretsecret

What about then new Jinteki stuff? Any upgrades?

16 May 2014 x3r0h0ur

I would love to find a way to slot tori hanzo, I've not had time to come back to this in some time. I'm not sure it really benefits from any of the new things except maybe inazuma, but I'm not sure what to cut. I'll D/L it and filter for DT + H&P and see what comes to mind.

10 Nov 2014 dpolishsensation

May be a stupid question but why Paper Wall over Quandry? Is it due to Paper Wall being free to rez? Also, if Paper Wall gets trashed, does that still fulfill the requirement of Edge of World?

21 Nov 2014 x3r0h0ur

Mostly when this deck was new siphon was a big deal...i wanted a hard etr, that would still allow me to rez Adonis /eve or play hf. both are about equal value since yog eats quandary for free after 5, paper wall dies for 3 vs corroder...but meh it got its stop most likely. at least paper wall doesn't die instantly to parasite. I think quicksand might fit in that slot if parasite starts to die out