Argus Attrition

This deck is designed to be just porous enough to let the runner through without having them feeling like you let them. The remotes are filled with traps - a fact that is true even when they contain agendas, thanks to your ID.

Main objective is to flatline, though you can punch agendas through in a pinch if you need to. Economy is there, but takes some getting used to.

Key Plays

Edge of World and Cerebral Overwriter pair nicely with your suite of Snares to keep things dangerous for the runner. Scoring surprise brain damage from either of the first two makes SE all the more lethal later on, while the snares give your Ravens some backup in terms of unexpected tagging. Pop a false lead afterward, and you're set.

Don't be afraid to toss Cleaners to power up Archer if you need it. Remember, you're winning by flatline nine times out of ten. Sometimes it's worth it.

Decision Points

I took Project Atlas out of this deck and subbed in NAPD Contract because it fits the theme better. The agendas are there to tax and damage the runner. I also cost myself several games trying to overscore atlas, so for me, this deck runs more smoothly without it.

The icebreaker suite is designed to be expensive but not difficult to bypass. You want the runner broke and paranoid.

I tested and discarded Fire Wall for being too hard to rez and too good at discouraging runs. I also tried Caduceus, Orion, and Wormhole, but just didn't like the way they panned out. The first never worked the way I wanted it to, and the other two were too slow to make worth rezzing. Errand Boy is actually an interesting choice that I am on the fence about including, too.

Influence is tight here, but I really like the options provided by this layout. Edge and Cerebral work really well with each other, and using one (or having one exposed) doesn't spoil the other one because they work differently. The Snares are useful in a lot of situations, and Jackson recycles all of your utility. Keep in mind that Edge of World only needs 3 credits to trigger, so runners who think they are safe from your Snares will often find themselves unpleasantly surprised.

A note about Jackson, though: sometimes you want to leave four agendas in your archives. The runner will have to take several tags to stay alive, and you can punish him for it on your turn.

All in all, this deck is a ton of fun to play, and I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

EDIT

A note about DRT: There are versions of Argus for which Dedicated Response Team is perfect, but this isn't one of them. You won't be landing tags on the runner for more than a turn or two, and usually you'll only manage that if they run on their last click or if you use your False Leads to shut their turn down immediately after they got tagged. Because of that, DRT was too inconsistent to retain its slot over the other assets I wanted to run.