Cookbook

♦ Cookbook 1[credit]

Resource: Virtual
Influence: 3

Whenever you install a virus program, you may place 1 virus counter on it.

“It waits on an unlabelled memstrip far below the deepest hab. Angry, desperate souls seek it out, hungry for power to change a brutal world. Once they can stomach no more bitter revenge, they return to that nameless tunnel, the book a recipe thicker.”
–Heinlein urban legend
Illustrated by Cat Shen
Decklists with this card

System Gateway (sg)

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

    Suppose the Runner has Cookbook and Hivemind installed, with 1 virus counter on Hivemind. If they then install Tranquilizer, is the host ice derezzed immediately? Or does it wait for the next check at the beginning of the Runner's next turn?

    By managing their abilities carefully, the Runner can choose whether to derez the ice right away or not. Hivemind’s second ability is a static ability, so it always applies as soon as Tranquilizer is installed. But the conditional abilities on Cookbook and Tranquilizer meet their trigger conditions at the same time, so the Runner can choose the order to resolve them. If they resolve Tranquilizer first, it will only have 2 hosted virus counters (including the one shared from Hivemind) at the time that the number of counters is checked. If they resolve Cookbook first, then by the time Tranquilizer resolves, it will have 3 hosted virus counters and will derez the ice.

Reviews

Do you play more than 6 virus cards? Are you in the anarch faction? Then you should only ask the question : why do I not play Cookbook?

The value is great! With Botulus, it allow you to break most ices on the same turn you install it. With Fermenter, you get 2 more, paying for itself. With Imp, you can trash a third card, getting more value (especially for René "Loup" Arcemont: Party Animal).

At 3 influences, you must have a very specific deck to justify using Cookbook out of faction.

Like most support card, there is few reason to have 3 of them in a deck, unless getting it early is part of the win con of your deck.

Great art, great flavor, great effect, great card.

(System Update 2021 era)
4224