Comparing this Ambush to its Kitara counterparts Tempus and Forced Connection, I think this one comes out on top. Let's discuss why:

1) Highest base trace strength of the 3 Ambushes PLUS it's in the faction with all the trace-boosting (i.e. NBN: Making News, Primary Transmission Dish, etc.)

2) Does not give the choice to the Runner like Tempus so the corp can choose the most painful card to bounce such as a Dhegdheer hosting a Mopus or a charged-up The Turning Wheel or Net Mercur

3) While 2 tags or a brain damage will hurt, Intake in your scoring server along with NGO Bait can open up a big scoring window for yourself next turn that Tempus and Forced Connection can not

The downsides of NBN's newest Ambush are significant however. It has the potential to do nothing if accessed turn 1 or 2 and it won't set up a win condition on its own like 2 tags can. Its 3 influence is hefty but it shouldn't matter since it'll likely only see play in the new NBN bounce-to-grip archetype that's been fleshed out this cycle. Overall, I'm willing to give it a shot even if its only use will be draining the Runner of 4.

This reprint of the now-rotated Surge is ideally designed to prevent lockout for those heavily relying on the new virus breakers Yusuf/Musaazi. Note that this can put 3 virus counters on to any installed Runner card (not just programs) so even if you lost your virus breaker on the previous turn, you can still contaminate a part of your rig now to be used later (i.e. empty Friday Chip).

Things that Contaminate can do that Surge could not:

• Get a purged/fresh-installed Aumakua/Yusuf/Musaazi going without needing to make a run

• Be able to gain net 5 from a purged/used/fresh-installed Consume without trashing a Corp card

• Get a purged/fresh-installed Datasucker ready without needing to make a centrals run

• Install and mill 2 with Gravedigger without needing to trash an installed Corp card

• Re-supply a used Imp for more trashing

Do note that I keep writing fresh-installed or purged because Contaminate can only vitalize cards with no virus counters on them. If your 3-counter Aumakua is having trouble with an Archer, Contaminate won’t help a bit. In that way, Contaminate can be a bit of a liability when you’re having to hold it in hand until a purge finally comes. It’s a good card in conclusion but virus decks often have many cards that dissuade the corp from purging (i.e. Acacia, Fester, etc). Therefore, if you're using Contaminate, you better have enough virus pressure to actually force the Corp to purge otherwise this could be sitting in your hand for a while. Lastly, don’t run this with Progenitor, just don’t.

--

P.S. 1st Trypano, 2nd Contaminate, 3rd Knobkierie run, 4th Hivemind for instant-trashing shenanigans.

“On one hand, you knew you shouldn’t slot it in your deck. On the other, it was really shiny.”

Envelope, the latest addition to the Jinteki Barrier-AP suite, doesn’t have quite the lethality of Chiyashi or Wall of Thorns so its most similar comparison is Kakugo. Kakugo costs the same to rez, has 2 less strength, but comes with unbreakable net damage which makes it great for setting up Obokata Protocol remotes and the like.

Wall of Thorns’ little brother can’t deal out unbreakable net damage but it can be a gearcheck ICE with an unexpected facecheck penalty. Unfortunately, it’s not a very good gearcheck ICE as Clippy will be getting through it for 2. By slotting in Wall of Static, you could have got the same break cost for a credit cheaper.

So then Envelope's saving grace must be its facecheck penalty and even that’s a bit questionable. Yes, each net damage adds up (especially in Jinteki: PU) but you could have spent 4 credits to rez Neural Katana instead and got an ICE that actually bites. You might say a wary runner always gets their killer up (or in the heap if it’s MKUltra) before they start running without needing to find their fracter but nowadays, there are even code gates that a corp can use that can deal some serious facecheck punishment.

--

TL;DR – While Jinteki did need cheap-to-rez barriers (they only have Himitsu-Bako and Kakugo!), the numbers on this make it hard to warrant a deck slot. For surprising a runner without using a Sentry, there are tons of viable Code Gates these days to use that should be slotted in before Envelope.

Kamali 1.0 reminds me of a lot of ICE – it has the taxing trash effects of Fairchild 3.0 (and the rest of the suite), the crippling brain damage subs of Janus 1.0 (RIP), and rez/strength numbers similar to Tribunal (which also happens to force the runner to trash cards). Surprisingly, those 3 comparisons range from Restricted to Top-Jank to Unplayable status respectively. If I had to make a guess, Kamali 1.0 is going to be in the middle of those 3 - good, but not great.

With must-break subs similar to Janus 1.0, Kamali 1.0 will either fry your board or fry your brain, already making it better than Tribunal which gave all the flexibility to the Runner to choose which cards to trash as opposed to specific card subtypes. Kamali 1.0 does offer flexibility in being a bioroid but a runner will need to run first click if they want to avoid all brain damage/trashing. The ICE also gives the runner the choice between brain damage and trashing so it will often never lead to a flatline alone as long as the runner has cards to trash.

Finally, its numbers don’t exactly match the Fairchild suite in terms of rez/strength but it can put MKUltra users in a tight spot forcing them to spend either the full 6 or take a brain damage/trash a card after 1 boost. For other killers, you can expect a break cost closer to 3 or 4 (Mimic, Mongoose, Na'Not'K*, GS Shrike M2) which is respectable, but could be better for a 6 investment that doesn't ETR.

Overall, it’s a nice addition to the brain damage theme FFG has pushed for in the Kitara cycle and a lot cheaper than the Jank God that was Janus 1.0 for inflicting brain damage. While it won’t see play in every HB deck as a viable Sentry, it can be synergous in Architects of Tomorrow, with Wetwork Refit, or any deck looking for a good bioroid.

Fixed-Strength Breakers. Trashing. Milling. Viruses.

Long ago, the four Anarch archetypes lived together in harmony. Then, everything changed when the Rotation attacked. Only the Virus Console, master support for all four Anarch archetypes, could stop it, but when the world needed it the most, it vanished.

A hundred days passed and my Boggs and I discovered the new Virus Console, an Anarch card named Knobkierie. And although its virus-memory benefits are great, it has a lot to learn before it’s ready to save anyone. But I believe... Knobkierie can save the world.