Card Analysis: True Colors

The insert for True Colors is an article about veterans of both the Lunar and Martian wars.  Specifically, it is about how the government is not doing enough to help ease the suffering that came as a result of both cyber and physical warfare.  We know that Reina Roja fought on Mars, so is she fighting because of damage she suffered in that conflict?  There is still not enough information yet for a definite conclusion, so it is time to examine the cards from this pack.

Keyhole

As I have stated before, Netrunner is a game of information.  This card can grant you a great deal of information while also damaging the corporation.  While this is installed, you can spend a click to make a run on R&D.  If that run is successful, instead of accessing cards you get to look at the top 3 cards of the corporation's deck.  Then you can trash one of those cards for free, even if it can not normally be trashed, and the corporation then shuffles their deck.  So you can pick off important cards that the corporation needs, such as economy or ice, as well as finding out 2 other cards that are in their deck.  Or you could throw agendas into their Archives for an easy score, or force them to use their Jackson Howard before they would like to.  So, if you can get into R&D reliably, then you could potentially use this to destroy the corporation.  Just make sure to have the extra memory you need for this and the rest of your programs.

Pair cards: Datasucker, Medium, Desperado, Deep Thought, Mirror

Activist Support

Well, this could be a cheap way to give the corporation its first point of bad publicity.  But the catch is pretty big.  First, while this is in play, you take a tag at the start of the corporation's turn if you have no tags.  That free tag means that the corporation just needs 2 credits to trash this card, so even if they started the turn with no credits, they could get up to 2 and trash it in one turn.  So if you are running this card, you will probably want a way to avoid tags.  Second, when your turn begins, you give the corporation 1 bad publicity if they have no bad publicity.  That means this is only useful before the corporation has any bad publicity, which may mean that this becomes a dead card before you even take your first turn.  So unless it is very critical for your deck that the corporation has a point of bad publicity, it may be better to play other cards.  Still, there are some combinations possible with this.

Pair cards: Decoy, Aesop's Pawnshop, New Angeles City Hall, Blackmail, Fall Guy, Chop Bot 3000, Forger, Wireless Net Pavillion

Lawyer Up

Spending 2 clicks and 2 credits to remove 2 tags is somewhat decent, but throw in a Diesel on top of that and you are in a pretty good situation.  Of course, this works best when you know you will be taking at least 2 tags, but seeing as there are cards that give the runner tags, you can use this to clear off some of those tags.  Or you could just use this as in in faction card draw for Criminal, if you do not have quite enough influence for Diesel or Quality Time, but there are other options for card draw as well.

Trivia: It turns out this is a reprint.  From the Classic expansion to the Netrunner CCG, we have Meat Upgrade, which has the same effect and cost as this, including having to spend an additional click.

Pair cards: Account Siphon, Vamp, Code Siphon

Leverage

I have some mixed feelings about this card.  I do not think I have actually ever seen anyone play this, so I have no idea if my theories on it might be valid.  As such, you might think this would only work if your opponent is playing a tag and bag deck, since they would want to take the bad publicity over not being able to damage you.  But, maybe we should be going the other way with this.  If the corporation chooses to prevent all damage since they are not doing damage anyway, then you could do all the damage you want to yourself on your turn.  After all, there are some runner cards that require you to damage yourself when you play or install them.  With this, you could use those cards without suffering that particular penalty.  The only real drawback is that you must have made a successful run on HQ, which means you will likely only have 2 clicks left to exploit the fact that you take no damage.

Pair cards: Skulljack, Titanium Ribs, Net-Ready Eyes, Brain Cage, Mad Dash

Garrote

Possibly the most efficient sentry breaker in the game.  It starts with 2 strength, gains 1 strength for 1 credit, and breaks subroutines for 1 credit.  The drawback is that it costs 7 credits to install, and takes up 2 memory.  Still, Criminal does make enough cash to make an install of this feasible.  As such, the only thing you really need to worry about is getting the extra memory.

Pair cards: Modded, Test Run, Silencer, Multithreader

LLDS Processor

Not the greatest card when it first came out, but now it does have a bit more usefulness.  When you install an icebreaker, each copy of this gives 1 extra strength to that icebreaker for the rest of the turn.  So you want to have some clicks left in order to utilize that icebreaker's increased strength.  Of course, most icebreakers tend to be installed only once, so you can use them over and over again.  But, if you use an icebreaker that needs to be installed repeatedly, then you can get more use out of this.  Unfortunately, the FAQ definition of the word "swap" means that this does not work with the Deva icebreakers, since swapping them does not count as installing the new one.  However, there are some ways to get more use out of this chip.

Pair cards: Test Run, Replicator, Scavenge, Clone Chip, London Library, Chameleon, Golden, Peregrine, Saker

Sharpshooter

Sort of a situational card, but one that could be very helpful.  The destroyer subtype generally indicates that the piece of ice trashes programs.  It also is usually only on sentry ice.  So running into a destroyer without a sentry breaker could end with you losing some of your programs, or could be expensive for you to break.  With this program, you have less to fear from destroyers.  It starts with 3 strength, which is fairly respectable, and gains 2 strength for every credits you are willing to put in.  But, you can trash it to break any number of subroutines on a destroyer piece of ice.  Take what might be the most feared destroyer, Archer.  With this, it only costs 2 credits to bring up to strength, and then breaks all of the subroutines for free.  Of course, having to trash this to break a destroyer means that you will have limited uses of this.  So if you plan on putting this in your deck, you will want a way to get it back.

Pair cards: Test Run, Clone Chip, Self-modifying Code, Panchatantra

Capstone

Well, this could be a way to cycle through your deck faster.  It is a unique piece of hardware, meaning you can only have one copy installed at a time, but you would only ever want one installed.  By spending a click, you can trash any number of cards in your hand.  Then, for each card you trashed which you have a copy of installed, you then draw a card.  As such, if you already have your icebreakers installed, you could use this to get rid of the extra copies of them to draw into your events.  Still, there are more effective methods of drawing cards, so if your goal is just to draw cards, you will want to utilize those cards.  But if you need to burn through your deck 2 or 3 times, this might just help you with that.

Pair cards: Replicator, Levy AR Lab Access

Starlight Crusade Funding

The big drawback to double events is that you have to spend the extra click in order to play them.  That counters the fact that their effects tend to be very powerful.  But what if you could play several double events in a single turn?  With this card, you can ignore the additional costs on any double events you play, effectively making them normal events.  The downside is you have to give up a click at the start of your turn, so unless you need to play 2 or 3 double events every turn, this may not be a great choice.  Although, there was a Kate build that made good use of Prepaid VoicePAD, Lucky Find and Power Nap, so maybe you could get some use out of this card.

Pair cards: all double events, Aesop's Pawnshop, Adjusted Chronotype

Rex Campaign

Well, what can be said about this?  When you rez it, you place 3 power counters on it, and when your turn begins, you remove 1 power counter.  Then, when there are no more power counters, you trash it and either gain 5 credits or remove 1 bad publicity.  So, if you have gained bad publicity, this could be a cheap way to get rid of 1.  Otherwise, this might be a decent bit of delayed burst economy.  Still, if you intend to use it that way, you should probably invest some resources into defending it, as the trash cost of 3 means that it is somewhat easy for most runners to trash.

Pair cards: Spark Agency: Worldswide Reach, Ad Blitz

Fenris

And now an illegal piece of ice for HB.  This can be somewhat compared to Viktor 1.0, as they both have the exact same suubroutines.  The difference being that Viktor can be broken by spending clicks, whereas Fenris requires the runner to have a sentry breaker.  Of course, runners are less inclined to run against ice without their killer installed now, but this could potentially deal a point of brain damage to the runner.  As such, if you think you can pull it off, then putting this in your deck might be a nasty surprise to an unprepared runner.

Trivia: The name is probably a reference to Fenrir, a monstrous wolf from Norse mythology.

Pair cards: Sentinel Defense Program

Panic Button

There are possibilities with this card.  At the cost of 1 credit, you can draw a card, but only during a run on HQ.  So, if the runner plays Account Siphon, you can spend your credits with this, preventing them from gaining credits off of your credits.  Similarly, if they play Legwork when you have few cards or several agendas in hand, you could use this to draw more cards.  Of course, you could end up drawing more agendas, so this card may not give you the result you want.  Plus, it has a low trash cost, so you might only get to use it once or twice.  As such, it really is meant for a panic situation.

Trivia: Another reprint here.  From the Proteus expansion to the Netrunner CCG, we have Panic Button, which has the exact same ability and rez cost, but costs 4 to trash.

Pair cards: Celebrity Gift, Ashigaru, IQ, Reuse

Shock!

Another ambush card for Jinteki, but this one is quite interesting.  It deals 1 point of net damage to the runner when they access it, even if it is not installed.  That means no matter where this is, the runner will take damage when they encounter it.  It even works while it is in Archives, making it a significant deterrent against running into that server, since they must access all card in Archives, usually.  So you can just put this into your deck for some extra surprise damage on the runner.  Just watch out for runners who have the ability to remove cards from the game, such as with Archives Interface or Salsette Slums.

Trivia: Sort of a reprint.  The Proteus expansion to the Netrunner CCG has several cards that do 1 net damage to the runner on access.  Specifically, Bel-Digmo Antibody and Stereogram Antibody.

Pair cards: Celebrity Gift, An Offer You Can't Refuse

Tsurugi

This could be expensive for the runner to deal with.  It has 4 subroutines for a 6 rez cost.  3 of those subroutines do 1 net damage to the runner, so not breaking this means the runner could take some significant damage.  The catch is the first subroutine.  It ends the run unless the corporation spends a credit.  So if you are unable to pay that cost, the runner could just let the run end, avoiding all the damage.  Still, with 4 subroutines, this ice can be expensive to break.  Just watch out for ice destruction on this.

Trivia: A tsurugi is a type of Japanese sword, specifically a double-edged sword from antiquity.

Pair cards: Akitaro Watanabe, Midori

TGTBT

So here is something new: an agenda that you want the runner to access.  When the runner accesses this agenda, you give them a tag.  This surprise tag means they may have to spend an extra click and 2 credits to clear that tag, or else risk having a tag on your turn.  Of course, if they ended up stealing this, then you have access to even more possibilities.  The downside is if the runner manages to easily avoid the tag, then you have given up an agenda point for little gain.  Also, since it is worth 1 agenda point, you are likely increasing your agenda density by running this, or you have to run some 3 point agendas.

Trivia: TGTBT is an acronym for "too good to be true," as evidenced by the flavor text.  Also, the card is sort of a reprint.  From the Proteus Expansion, we have Marked Accounts, which also gives the runner a tag when it is accessed.  The big difference is Marked Account has an advancement requirement of 4 and is worth 2 agenda points.

Pair cards: Red Herrings, Midseason Replacements, Strongbox, Haarpsichord Studios: Entertainment Unleashed

Sweeps Week

Usually, the runner will try and keep as many cards in their hand as possible, since it reduces the likelihood of being flatlined and also gives them more possibilities on their turn.  With this card, you can profit off their tendency to hold their cards.  Playing this gives you 1 credit for each card in the runner's hand.  If they are holding the default 5 cards, then this card gives you 4 credits above its play cost, making it equivalent to Hedge Fund, but only costing 1 credit.  However, if you can force the runner to draw more cards, then you can make even more money off of this card.  How can you do that?  Well, that is a bit more in line with another corporation's philosophy.  Also, if you are facing a certain runner who starts with 9 cards in hand, playing one or two copies of this will give a massive jump start to your economy.

Pair cards: Sweeps week is a week when the Nielsen corporation collects data from people participating in the system to determine audience sizes for television shows.  There are four months where sweeps occur: November, February, May and July.

Pair cards: Mental Health Clinic, Pālanā Agroplex

RSVP

An interesting piece of ice that can force a run to end.  If the runner is unable to break this piece of ice, then they are unable to spend any credits for the remainder of the run.  That means they can not spend credits to boost the strength of their icebreakers, or even pay to break subroutines.  They can not use programs that require spending credits as part of the cost, such as Self-modifying Code.  They can not spend credits to trash assets or upgrades, or spend credits to boost link strength.  Being unable to spend credits may just force the runner to abort their run until they have a way of dealing with this, which could buy you the time you need.

Trivia: RSVP is an acronym for Resource Reservation Protocol, a transport layer protocol designed to reserve resources across a network for an integrated services Internet.

Pair cards: Red Herrings, Ash 2X3ZB9CY, Encrypted Portals

Curtain Wall

A massively expensive piece of ice, but one with potential.  If this is the outermost piece of ice on a server, then it gains 4 strength, making it a 10 strength barrier.  Plus, it has 3 end the run subroutines, forcing the runner to break all of them to get through.  In any case, this will be very expensive for the runner to deal with, but if it is the outermost, the could easily get around it with Inside Job, so watch out for that.  Plus, it is a very tempting target for Femme Fatale, since that makes it only cost 3 credits to get around this.  However, the high rez cost has made this a popular choice for a specific Weyland identity.

Pair cards: Sunset, Oversight AI, Tenma Line, Blue Sun: Powering the Future, Superior Cyberwalls

Punitive Counterstrike

It is obvious to compare this to Scorched Earth, as both operations cost 3 and do meat damage to the runner.  The key difference is that with Scorched Earth, the runner must be tagged in order to play that, whereas this can be played even if the runner is not tagged.  This card starts a trace with a base strength of 5, and if it is successful, it does damage to the runner equal to the number of agenda point on the agendas they stole on their previous turn.  So in order for this to work, the runner must have stolen an agenda before you use this.  Plus, in order to do significant damage, it needs to be worth at least 3 agenda points, unless you can play 3 copies when the runner steals a 2 point agenda.  Even so, you may need to play at least 2 copies of this in a turn to flatline the runner.  So, your choice as to whether to run Scorched Earth or this will depend on what agendas you plan to run as well as if you intent to tag the runner.

Trivia: Well, the Netrunner CCG does have a card named Punitive Counterstrike, but it functions much differently.  It costs 0 to play, can only be played if the runner is tagged, and does 2 meat damage.

Pair cards: The Cleaners, Primary Transmission Dish, Government Takeover, Vanity Project

Veterans Program

So you may have built up some bad publicity.  That can happen if you want to take advantage of some very good cards.  But you may want to get rid of it.  Well, with this agenda, you can remove up to 2 bad publicity when you score it.  Of course, to benefit from it, you need to have some bad publicity when you score it, so you should have played or rezzed your cards that give bad publicity before you score this.  Otherwise, it is a 1 point agenda with no effect.

Pair cards: illicit cards, Hostile Takeover, Geothermal Fracking, Profiteering

And that is it for True Colors.  Next time, there's Fear and Loathing in New Angeles.