NBN: Reality Plus

NBN: Reality Plus

Identity: Megacorp
Deck size: 40 • Influence: 15

The first time each turn the Runner takes a tag, gain 2[credit] or draw 2 cards.

Why Settle for Real?
Illustrated by Emilio Rodríguez
Decklists with this card

System Gateway (sg)

#51 • English
Startup Card Pool
Standard Card Pool
Standard Ban List (show history)
Printings
System Gateway
Rulings
  • Updated 2021-10-11

    If the Corp uses Public Trail or another card to give the Runner a tag, can they trigger NBN: Reality Plus?

    Yes. Giving the Runner 1 or more tags results in the Runner taking tags.

  • Updated 2021-10-11

    If the Runner prevents taking a tag, can the Corp still trigger NBN: Reality Plus?

    No. If a tag is prevented, then the Runner does not take the tag.

  • Updated 2021-10-11

    If the Runner prevents taking a tag and then takes a tag later in the turn, can the Corp trigger NBN: Reality Plus?

    Yes. NBN: Reality Plus’s ability looks for the first time a tag is actually taken. It doesn’t care whether it’s the first time an ability tried to give the Runner a tag.

  • Updated 2021-10-11

    If the Runner accesses Snare! from R&D and takes a tag, can they still trash the Snare! if the Corp draws it with NBN: Reality Plus?

    No. Once a card being accessed moves to another zone, the access ends immediately.

  • Updated 2023-10-04

    The Runner accesses Behold! in the middle of accessing multiple cards from R&D. The Corp, playing NBN: Reality Plus, uses Behold! to give the Runner 2 tags, and draws 2 cards. Where does the Runner resume accessing cards?

    The Runner continues accessing from the topmost card of R&D that they have not already accessed. If the Corp drew past the point the Runner already accessed, the new top of R&D is the next card accessed. If the Corp uses the effect of NBN: Reality Plus to draw 2 cards the Runner has already accessed, the Runner continues accessing R&D from the position they were already accessing.

Reviews

NBN offer a different tempo than HB. Also, NBN is has the most tools to tag the runner. NBN: Reality Plus shows that in a grand way. Tags either let you draw or gain credits. At first look, this seems fairly tame.

But in reality, it is more like The Outfit: Family Owned and Operated. Rez Funhouse, get 2 credits back from giving a tag to the runner, making the cost effectively 3 instead of 5. Use Public Trail, tag the runner and now it cost you effectively 2 or even better, let you see 2 cards, giving you more chances to have the tag punishment that you need. Score Tomorrow's Headline and it cost you only one effective credit. Even Snare! and Prisec become cheaper for you!

The runner goes "tag me", and run all your ices without a care for the tag. You will get credits or draw out of turn at every turn. That is a good way to make your plan goes faster.

This ID encourages you to play like NBN would play : tag the runner and punish the runner for getting tagged. Which mean you have to consider what you want to do with tags, as it will be an important part of you plan. There are good tag punishment : Retribution, The All-Seeing I or Self-Growth Program to make the runner life more painful. BOOM! and High-Profile Target to make the runner hurt a whole lot more. And of course, you would get even more benefits from Predictive Planogram. And those are just a few exemples.

If you think Misdirection would ruin you days, there is always Best Defense for that, among other cards.

As usual, a 40 cards decks will let you have a more concise plan. Which makes for stronger decks in my opinion.

Beautiful art, beautiful quote, beautiful card.

(System Update 2021 era)
4224

This is a fun ID. It's fast-paced and makes economical some cards which probably wouldn't see much play otherwise. Most tag ice are overpriced and need an ID interaction to be worthwhile, and this is probably the fastest-tempo tag identity we'll have for a while.

Power level: Reality+ is the strongest of the new 40/15 identities and over the last several months it's been one of the strongest corps overall. It has an unusually strong ability for a 40/15 identity. Unlike Azmari, which was strong enough to get (temporarily) banned, its ID involves some limitations on deck composition, so it's not AS crazy-flexible as Azmari was. Suggestion to game designers: the existence of this ID guts the economics on runner cards that cause tags (e.g. Rogue Trading), so it might have been beneficial if the Reality+ ability only triggered on tags that come from corp cards. Or from tags that come during a run, because do we actually need more incentive to play Hard-Hitting News?

(System Update 2021 era)
393

I've played the R+ versus Rogue Trading matchup from the Rogue Trading side, and it seems entirely winnable – in a Rogue Trading deck, a huge proportion of your deck is dedicated to making tag removal cheaper or even beneficial, and that means that many of the cards in the R+ deck will be blank. Often you can just use the Rogue Trading anyway and let the corp's ID ability fire – they'll have lots of credits or cards if they want, but nothing to do with them, so you're getting more benefit than they are.

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I think the key tag-removal card for Rogue Trading is Citadel Sanctuary. It only removes tags for free if you are ahead on econ. That seems like an unsure proposition against a Reality Plus that gains $2 each turn you use Rogue Trading or Hot Pursuit. I think every other option for tag removal takes clicks and/or money.

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