Icy Shell Game v1.3

Card draw simulator
Odds: 0% – 0% – 0% more
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Derived from
Icy Shell Game v1.2
Inspiration for
Icy Shell Game v1.5
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Ajar 1624

Second place at FFG's February monthly tournament (16 players). This deck went 3-0 (one timed win at 6 points scored, which cost me the tourney), and I even flatlined the 2012 world champ after a long game of cat and mouse. :)

Each time I increment Iceless Shell Game, I end up adding more ice. The total now stands at 7, and I'm pretty comfortable with it.

Ice up one of HQ/R&D ASAP, depending on what Runner you face. Hokusai generally still goes on R&D, but can go on a remote with a Fetal in a pinch. You can ice up one remote if needed, for bluffing Fetals/Ronins. Even a single Tsurugi is a decent deterrent; a Chummed Tsurugi or Viktor 2.0 is pretty solid.

Otherwise, play the usual Jinteki shell game. Sticking a single point of brain damage goes a long way, especially in the early game; the deck would love to get the third Cerebral back, but it's hard to give up Sweeps Week, which is an absolute all-star in the Andromeda-heavy tournament scene, and is still often a Hedge Fund against Runners who correctly keep their hands as full as possible.

Under consideration for v1.4: a single surprise Archer. Tough to fit in given influence constraints, but devastating if rezzed at the right time.

7 comments
4 Feb 2014 scifor

Congrats on getting second place. I am also playing PE at the moment. Does your winning comes from points or flatling the runner? I once played a deck with only 5 ICE in the deck aiming to faltline the runner but it never work out for me. So, I change the approach and aiming agenda points win with net damage taxing.

4 Feb 2014 Ajar

I win more by flatline than by scoring, although I still try to score agendas and get to match point in order to pressure the Runner, since then they're more likely to make errors. I've also noticed that they tend to make errors when they're at match point themselves, but that's obviously a much riskier situation and I'd prefer not to be in it.

In older versions, I had no Braintrust and a lot more 1-pointers (16 agendas total, one Nisei), and it was almost impossible for me to win by scoring. In this version, it's a little more likely, but I still win more often by flatline.

At the tournament, I got agenda flooded in the second round, and actually managed to score two Fetal AIs. Runners totally don't expect your install-advance-advance to be Fetal, that's a play I've used before when I get stuck with Fetals in hand instead of in R&D where I usually like them to stay. I ended up on match point with two agendas in hand when time was called, but couldn't score them in the two turns we had left, so I got a timed agenda win at 6 points scored.

4 Feb 2014 AsteriskCGY

I need the balls to run with less Ice.

4 Feb 2014 Ajar

It definitely makes you sweat at times, but you only really need to draw 2-3 pieces of ice in a deck like this. This version has an 84.5% chance of drawing 2+ ice by turn 15, and only a 6.3% chance fo drawing zero. 1-2 more ice wouldn't be remiss, but I probably won't go there until Shinobi is an option. Replacing Chum with Inazuma also looks quite appealing.

7 Feb 2014 Ajar

I'd also love to replace the 2x Chum with 2x RSVP, but the influence cost makes it tricky. Still, the thought of RSVP in front of Hokusai and Fetal makes me giddy.

I think the next iteration of this deck will be renamed Stabteki, since that's how I've been referring to the archetype lately.

16 Feb 2014 kyokorebit

I really like this deck. Have you ever thought of replacing those Hokusai Grid with Trick of Light? Fast advancing Braintrusts is pretty tempting, also open up some fast Ronin kills.

17 Feb 2014 Ajar

I had Trick of Light in previous versions of the deck, but ended up taking it out because I used it so infrequently. Also, Ronin almost never kills for me on its own; I pretty much always need at least one EMP or nearly-scored agenda along with it. So Trick would come in purely to help score Braintrust out of hand after a failed trap bluff.

If it makes the deck faster, it could be worth trying again; I'd like to be able to get points on the board more quickly to increase pressure on the Runner. I don't know, though, I do like Hokusai -- especially if I can fit in RSVP. I'll have to think about it.