Why the original Netrunner design was superior, Pt2
A Genesis Cycle Mid-Term Report
First off, apologies for the title but this is a continuation of a sub-series of articles on the correspondences between Original Netrunner (O:NR) cards and Android: Netrunner (A:NR) cards. Keeping the series straight means keeping the series title consistent and I started off the original post by being ranty, before deciding to do something useful with my time.
I was initially intending to report on all the cards available at the time of writing but my development speed wasn’t keeping up. The rate of producing the original article meant that if I kept trying to update it with the new monthly expansions I might never get around to publishing the first article, let alone ever completing the analysis. As such I decided to break out the Genesis Cycle expansion cards and leave them for this article. I think I’ll do another one, as an end of term report, wrapping up the cycle and the correspondence analysis, as a retrospective. If a few previewed cards creep in to the discussion, well I think they’re fair game for consideration even if we haven’t actually got them yet. What are previews for apart from fomenting discussion?
I think that the first thing to note is that a lesser number of correspondences (more NULL matches) indicates that in this expansion cycle, the game’s designer Lukas Litzinger is starting to stretch his “design legs” a little. While there have been no truly novel mechanics introduced thus far, the focus on tracing has remained throughout the cycle thus far.
Trace in Focus
The focus is intended to more fully explore the revised trace mechanics in A:NR from O:NR. There’s an article on the FFG Netrunner site news feed that explains the design thinking behind the change, but for the TL/DR the blind simultaneous bid between Corp and Runner is replaced with the open bid from the Corp, followed by the Runner deciding whether to match the trace strength by expending their own credits.
In exploring and emphasising the new trace mechanic, we see cards like Power Grid Overload (GC#38) and Data Hound (GC#??) extending the value of the Corporation winning the trace by a certain amount - no longer simply wanting to out-bid the Runner by a mere point of trace value. This puts a little more power into the Corp by giving additional effects to the trace, but also allows the Runner to decide whether to mitigate the possible damage the Corp can inflict by effectively re-investing credits in the Hardware (in the case of PGO) or almost meeting the trace value and allowing the Corp to filter out some of the better cards at the top of their Stack (DH).
Some few cards make a return unchanged: e.g. Fetal AI (GC#32), some are marginally recosted: e.g. Sensei (GC#34; originally Tutor), Snitch (GC#45, originally Smarteye). Other cards have been modified slightly in how they work to presumably balance them in the environment of the new game, such as Trick of Light (GC#33; see below), or so redesigned that while they perform a similar function, they do so distinctly enough that they are almost different cards, e.g. Executive Retreat (GC#39; see below).
Cyber Exodus provided another card that could ‘tutor’ for programs (and not just breakers) supporting a fetch scheme (over a raw draw scheme) for Runner Rig setup. Weyland also got more tutoring in the form of Project Atlas (GC#18) while HB found more discard retrieval in the form of Project Vitruvius (GC#51), thematically extending both Corporation schemes. Weyland’s‘right card at the right time’ allows them to engineer a flatline better, which Haas-Bioroid’s ‘recycle’ options allows it to gain more efficiency from the deck through reuse of valuable Operations or even open up strategies of controlling its hand by using the Archives as a backup storage.
Novel Design and Mechanics
Despite my earlier blanket statement of there being no truly novel mechanics, which for Genesis Cycle 1-3 is ostensibly true, A:NR has some novel mechanical elements added from Core that the first tranche of Data Packs developed.
Advance Ice: Weyland Consortium's Barrier Ice has the neat ability of being able to be advanced, much like Agenda and some Assets. This is a new concept introduced in Core, and in Trace Amount and Cyber Exodus we see two cards (Trick of Light and Commercialization) which can key off these "spare" advancement counters. The idea is further explored in the design of Woodcutter (GC#58) in CX, in Ice with no subroutines until is has been advanced, and which cannot be advanced until rezzed (typically meaning the first encounter as the Runner runs it). This weakness means that the Corporation needs to find ways to rez and advance the Ice before the Runner encounters it, to make it effective, e.g. Amazon Industrial Zone from TA (GC#37). The hope would be that the later tranche of Data Packs would further develop this idea, but with the hindsight rulings made for Matrix Analyzer and Weyland Because We Built It (from ASiS) this hasn't been so well developed.
Front-loaded Ice: The novel function of "when encountered" effects on NBN Ice has been sadly unexplored in the first tranche of Data Packs. The reprise of Misleading Access Menus into Pop-Up Window makes for a strategically interesting piece of Ice to place where you know (expect) the Runner to be attacking. The ongoing trickle economy can potentially prove to be a disincentive to the Runner with an eye on the credit differential. Despite the potential strength of the front-loaded Ice design, NBN's options at the moment (from Genesis at least) seem weak.
Virus function: I discussed this in greater detail in a previous article, especially in the context of the Purge action (spending vs foregoing the actions). The change to the rules from O:NR has seen the potency of Virus-based decks jump a notch (coupled with Noise, Hacker Extraordinaire's ability) to make truly effective Anarch decks, and viruses to be quite viable splash cards in other faction's decks. While I approve of the gain in power that Viruses as a whole have gained, I still think that a forego Purge would make for better strategic play.
E3 Feedback Chip: An individual card does not a novel mechanic make, perhaps, but supplementing the power of certain (deficient) Icebreakers is interesting. E3 working as a hard counter to the click-breakable Bioroid Ice might have been perceived as a threat to Haas-Bioroid, but in my experience E3 is not seeing a lot of play, and certainly not the the extent of hampering the HB Fast Advance decks that apparently dominate.
Hosting vs Installing: The clarification in FAQ v1.1 of the distinction between cards being installed and cards being hosted resolved some rules disputes, but the need for the clarification seems to indicate a design weakness. The distinction being made between installing and hosting cards impacted on - for example - Personal Workshop in comparison to its predecessor The Shell Traders. The latter card would work with other copies installed, all working in conjunction to remove multiple counters from a single installed card on one Shell Trader; Personal Workshop can only remove counters from the cards hosted on that specific PW. The distinction between hosting and installing and the confusion that arises from this for the casual player is also evident in the example of Parasite being hosted on a specific piece of Ice, and thus not being able to benefit from the additional memory available in Djinn.
Cyberfeeder and Femme Fatale: The prior FAQ (v1.0) also apparently reversed a earlier ruling that Cyberfeeder's recurring credits could only be used for the paid abilities (cost: effect) on Icebreakers, thus precluding Femme Fatale's bypass ability from being paid for using these credits. The FAQ has set a precedent (which, granted, can be overturned in future rulings) that any ability on an Icebreaker that has a credit cost may be funded from Cyberfeeders.
Moving on to the cards. Note that I am completely ignoring the new Identities for the most part.
What Lies Ahead (ADN02):
Spinal Modem (#2)
Omnitech "Spinal Tap" Cybermodem (Classic)
The “Spinal Tap” cost 5 to install, and provided +1 MU, as well as two recurring bits for icebreakers. It randomly did 2 brain damage if a start of turn die roll came up a 1, and did two more brain damage if it ever left play. Nothing about suffering brain damage is a trace is successful mid-run.
Imp (#3)
Garbage In
Imp (1) is cheaper by two over GI (3 to install). Imp has a limit of two counters spent to trash cards not normally trashable, vs GI which could work indefinitely, but required two (functionally ineffectual) runs to first lay down two Garbage counters, which were spent to trash any and all cards accessed in a run. GI gave the Garbage counters after the run (cf. Medium/Highlightin the previous article).
Morning Star (#4)
Piledriver
Piledriver was the bane of wall-decks in O:NR and the seriously reconsidered version of that breaker is far fairer in A:NR. Rather that 7 Strength, with the non-drawback of being Noisy, the reprose costs seven more credits (8), for only 5 strength that cannot be naturally raised. Piledriver broke 4 subroutines for 3 bits, where MS does all subroutines for only the 1 credit.
Cortez Chip (#5)
NULL
Peacock (#6)
NULL
Peacock is the Criminal Decoder analogue to Aurora and Ninja from the Core set, the latter of which is a direct reprise of Matador from Classic.
ZU.13 Key Master (#7)
Psychic Friend (Classic)
Key Master costs 1 less for the same strength, and costs 1 to raise instead of 2, but Psychic Friends from Classic is the closest analogue that I can find.
The Helpful AI (#8)
Lockjaw
Lockjaw was a program that trashed for +2 Strength until the end of the turn. The AI is a Resource (thus less MU intensive but more tag vulnerable), but does grant additional link while in play.
Plascrete Carapace (#9)
Armored Fridge
for the same cost, the Carapace only has four counters to prevent meat damage, vs the Fridge's seven.
Mandatory Upgrades (#11)
Subsidiary Branch
MU has had its agenda point value increased to 2 over the SB's 1, otherwise the same - 6 advancement cost for the score benefit of an additional action. SB was a Gray Op, where MU is Agenda-Initiative
NB: in a stunningly bad design decision this agenda is Corp specific (Haas-Bioroid) rather than being neutral and available to all factions - apparently Jinteki, Weyland and NBN do not benefit from additional actions (or benefit too much)? Either way, not a good call.
Janus 1.0 (#12)
NULL
While there may have been big ice that did a heap of brain damage, the closest would be the Liche, perhaps, or Colonel Failure for price. Neither the former did as much Brain damage spread across as many subroutines, nor the latter at 17 to rez for five s/routines (Ichi 3.0?) are quite the analogue for Janus, though, even disregarding the Bioroid nature of the new Ice.
Ash 2X3ZB9CY (#13)
NULL
Braintrust (#14)
NULL
While there were Nodes and Upgrades/Regions that allowed rezzing Ice cheaper no Agenda existed with that effect.
NB: One can trace back the development of this and like Agenda (Project Atlas, Project Vitruvius) from Project Beale (forthcoming in Future Proof). Project Beale is directly inspired by Project Babylon, a 3/1 Agenda that could be "overclocked" for additional agenda points. The "overclock" theme has then been extended back into the Genesis Cycle cards to inspire thematically appropriate analogues for each of the Corporation factions.
Snowflake (#15)
Too Many Doors
unchanged, but for minor wording.
Restructured
Datapool (#16)
Netwatch Operations Office
this NBN agenda is 5 advancement for 3 agenda points, instead of the NOO's 5/2, and likewise gives a trace2 for a click. NB: A:NR traces, recall, start at the number of the trace effect, whereas O:NR traces were capped by the same symbology.
TMI (#17)
NULL
the TMI barrier violates the O:NR default template for basic walls of costing one more credit to rez than their strength.
Project Atlas (#18)
NULL
vide. Braintrust discussion above.
Caduceus (#19)
NULL
Draco (#20)
Homing Missile
Draco starts out much smaller and doesn’t have HM’s 8 strength cap; Draco’s trace is only to tag and ETR, whereas HM would ETR and prevent the Runner from making another run until they spend an action and 2 bits.
Trace Amount (ADN03):
Vamp ((#21)
Priority Wreck
unchanged
Liberated Account (#22)
NULL
while obviously modelled on Short-Term Contract as is Armitage Codebusting in the Core, O:NR only had one such resource that gave a block of credits for an action. Adding a second such card for the credit poor Anarch faction (rarely is it splashed into the "richer" Criminal or Shaper faction decks) gave them a much needed boost.
Satellite Uplink (#23)
NULL
I am slightly stunned that there was no analogous card in O:NR!
E3 Feedback Implants (#24)
NULL
see above
Compromised Employee (#25)
Hell's Run & Field Reporter for Ice and Data
CE costs 2 more than either precursor card, but provides a recurring credit for beating traces (HR), as well as 1 credit for each piece of ice rezzed by the Corporation (instantly, rather than at the end of the turn).
NB: combining the effects of two underplayed cards has created a potent option in the Runner's arsenal.
Notoriety (#26)
Pirate Broadcast
where PB forces a run on every server, Notoriety only requires that the Runner run on each central server (Archives, R&D and HQ), and moreover does not provide the run actions to do this; it may only be played as the fourth (or later, with later Data Pack options for gaining actions) action on a Runner's turn, after successful runs on the three central servers.
Snowball (#27)
Snowball
A:NR costs 4 for strength 1 barrier breaker that increases in strength for each subroutine broken, vs 10 cost for strength 0 sentry breaker that improves for each subroutine broken.
Dyson Mem Chip (#28)
NULL
no cards in the original game apart from decks offered a combined MU and link increase. The closest that I can find would probably be the
Encryption Protocol (#29)
New Galveston City Grid
no longer a region, and sadly nothing to do with Code Gates; EP costs two less to trash (2) vs NGCG's 4, but only adds 1 to the trash cost of all installed cards (thus actually costing 3 to trash). Despite being an Asset, not an Upgrade, it is still stackable, as each one will support the others.
Sherlock 1.0 (#30)
NULL
no trace Ice would uninstall programs in the old game.
Fetal AI (#32)
Fetal AI
unchanged
Trick of Light (#33)
Falsified-Transactions Expert
ToL moves only two advancement counters to another card vs. FTE's 3
Sensei (#34)
Tutor
unchanged except that Sensei is only 3 to rez, so a discount of 1 (& I am very pleased to see the return of this very fun piece of ice!)
Big Brother (#35)
Datapool® by Zetatech
unchanged
ChiLo City Grid (#36)
NULL
Amazon Industrial Zone (#37)
NULL
Power Grid Overload (#38)
Power Grid Overload
both are Operations, the new PGO has built-in tracing but may only destroy one piece of Hardware, while the old PGO required the Runner to be first tagged, but spent X to destroy X pieces of Hardware.
Executive Retreat (#39)
AI Chief Financial Officer
five to advance for 3 agenda points, versus AICFO's 5/2, ER still shuffles HQ into R&D, but not Archives and does not automatically redraw. Instead the hosted agenda counter is spent with an action to draw 5 cards.
Freelancer (#40)
Corporate Detective Agency
Freelancer is a Grey Ops subtype, and costs 1 less (at 0 credits) to play, otherwise unchanged.
Cyber Exodus (ADN04):
Nerve Attack (#41)
Vienna 22
unchanged, except as with the revised Highlighter (i.e. Medium) the virus counter is given at the point where the run is successful and so the effect of the virus starts to pay off a full turn quicker than its predecessor.
Joshua B. (#42)
Preying Mantis
Joshua B. for an additional credit (1) grants an additional action each turn, as did the Preying Mantis. Joshua’s cost, however, is a mere tag at the end of the turn instead of the Mantis’ inflicted unpreventable(!) 1 Brain Damage.
Emergency Shutdown (#43)
Core Command: Jettison Ice
much needed for the Criminal faction; Emergency Shutdown derezzes a piece of Ice, where for the same requirement and cost, CCJI let you pay the rez cost of a piece of Ice to trash it entirely.
Muresh Bodysuit (#44)
Techtronica™ Utility Suit
the Techtronica cost 6, but was a deck, and did so much more (giving MU and recurring bits to power link - itself less potent in O:NR than in A:NR). The Muresh, by contrast, is cheap to the point of unplayability - no more than Net Shield at least. Criminals may bitch here.
Snitch (#45)
Smarteye
Snitch costs 1 more than it’s predecessor (at 3 credits) but otherwise remains unchanged. Criminals may continue to bitch.
Test Run (#47)
Sneak Preview
unchanged
Dinosaurus (#48)
Eurocorpse™ Spin Chip
ESC cost 6 to install, vs Dinosaurus' 5; it allowed only 1MU Icebreakers to be installed, with no subtype restriction (Dinosaurus not permitting AI Icebreakers). Where Dinosaurus provides a flat +2 strength bonus, ESC gave 2 recurring credits for powering the installed Icebreaker. The reprise card is far, far stronger.
Personal Workshop (#49)
The Shell Traders
unchanged for the most part; unlike The Shell Traders, which could combine the removal of shell counters from the one installed card in a turn, Personal Workshop can only remove counters from cards hosted in the specific Workshop.
Public Sympathy (#50)
various Mem Chips
interesting; most hand size icreases in the original game were “Mem Chip” hardware, where this is a resource and hence can be trashed. Why make it a resource instead of a cheap mem chip that can be threatened by Power Grid Overload above is a mystifying decision.
Project Vitruvius (#51)
NULL
vide. Braintrust discussion above.
Viper (#52)
NULL
no Code Gates in O:NR had a trace subroutine!
Edge of World (#53)
Vacant Soulkiller
different in execution, these two brain damage delivering ambush nodes/assets are quite distinct. EoW cannot be advanced, so it is harder to sell as an Agenda than it’s predecessor. It costs 3 credits to activate when accessed, instead of 2 to rez. Where VS did 1 brain damage for each advancement counter, EoW does 1 brain damage for each piece of ice installed (not rezzed) on the server that it is installed in.
Sunset (#54)
Herman Revista
although New Blood is closer in card type and cost, in that it is an Operation costing 0 bits, it was far broader in effect, allowing the Corp to rearrange Ice across servers. Revista, by contrast, only allowed the Corp to reshuffle the Ice in the fort he was installed in (for 0), but he cost 1 to rez and 4 to trash.
Marked Accounts (#55)
Spinn® Public Relations
SPR costs 1 rez/4 trash, versus 0/5 for MA. In a wicked piece of irony, the renamed resource takes its name from a Proteus Agenda that tagged the Runner when accessed (even from R&D), which NBN players might have preferred to receive rather than an action-intensive credit-generating asset.
Pop Up Window (#56)
Misleading Access Menus
(whee! a personal favourite of mine returns) slightly changed; now one less strength (0), it nets a credit for each time that the Runner encounters it, instead of simply giving 3 when rezzed.
Commercialization (#57)
NULL
without advanceable Ice in the old game there would be no call for cards like this.
Woodcutter (#58)
Correction: Food Fight
Correction: with the emergence of Tyrant I associated that Barrier with the Sandstorm Wall from Proteus; this leads me to associate Woodcutter with Food Fight. With the same rez cost and confusing trait of having no subroutines when rezzed, the Food Fight Ice was one strength more at 3, and the Corp could pay additional bits to add one ‘End the run’ subroutine for each 2 bits paid above the rez cost (but only when rezzing). Compared to Woodcutter, Food Fight is both better and worse.
Chimera (#59)
(Proteus Ice)
an almost irrelevant comparison, various piece of Proteus Ice could be rezzed as a different class for an additional cost. Chimera does this for free, but immediately derezzes after the encounter.
Private Accounts (#60)
BBS Whispering Campaign
each giving 2 credits per action, PA takes a few actions to start paying off, unlike its comparative predecessor. Also PA gets 14 bits on activation, for only 3 to rez, instead of BBS giving 16 bits for 0 rez cost. PA costs 1 more to remove at 5 to trash instead of 4.
First off, apologies for the title but this is a continuation of a sub-series of articles on the correspondences between Original Netrunner (O:NR) cards and Android: Netrunner (A:NR) cards. Keeping the series straight means keeping the series title consistent and I started off the original post by being ranty, before deciding to do something useful with my time.
I was initially intending to report on all the cards available at the time of writing but my development speed wasn’t keeping up. The rate of producing the original article meant that if I kept trying to update it with the new monthly expansions I might never get around to publishing the first article, let alone ever completing the analysis. As such I decided to break out the Genesis Cycle expansion cards and leave them for this article. I think I’ll do another one, as an end of term report, wrapping up the cycle and the correspondence analysis, as a retrospective. If a few previewed cards creep in to the discussion, well I think they’re fair game for consideration even if we haven’t actually got them yet. What are previews for apart from fomenting discussion?
I think that the first thing to note is that a lesser number of correspondences (more NULL matches) indicates that in this expansion cycle, the game’s designer Lukas Litzinger is starting to stretch his “design legs” a little. While there have been no truly novel mechanics introduced thus far, the focus on tracing has remained throughout the cycle thus far.
Trace in Focus
The focus is intended to more fully explore the revised trace mechanics in A:NR from O:NR. There’s an article on the FFG Netrunner site news feed that explains the design thinking behind the change, but for the TL/DR the blind simultaneous bid between Corp and Runner is replaced with the open bid from the Corp, followed by the Runner deciding whether to match the trace strength by expending their own credits.
In exploring and emphasising the new trace mechanic, we see cards like Power Grid Overload (GC#38) and Data Hound (GC#??) extending the value of the Corporation winning the trace by a certain amount - no longer simply wanting to out-bid the Runner by a mere point of trace value. This puts a little more power into the Corp by giving additional effects to the trace, but also allows the Runner to decide whether to mitigate the possible damage the Corp can inflict by effectively re-investing credits in the Hardware (in the case of PGO) or almost meeting the trace value and allowing the Corp to filter out some of the better cards at the top of their Stack (DH).
Some few cards make a return unchanged: e.g. Fetal AI (GC#32), some are marginally recosted: e.g. Sensei (GC#34; originally Tutor), Snitch (GC#45, originally Smarteye). Other cards have been modified slightly in how they work to presumably balance them in the environment of the new game, such as Trick of Light (GC#33; see below), or so redesigned that while they perform a similar function, they do so distinctly enough that they are almost different cards, e.g. Executive Retreat (GC#39; see below).
Cyber Exodus provided another card that could ‘tutor’ for programs (and not just breakers) supporting a fetch scheme (over a raw draw scheme) for Runner Rig setup. Weyland also got more tutoring in the form of Project Atlas (GC#18) while HB found more discard retrieval in the form of Project Vitruvius (GC#51), thematically extending both Corporation schemes. Weyland’s‘right card at the right time’ allows them to engineer a flatline better, which Haas-Bioroid’s ‘recycle’ options allows it to gain more efficiency from the deck through reuse of valuable Operations or even open up strategies of controlling its hand by using the Archives as a backup storage.
Novel Design and Mechanics
Despite my earlier blanket statement of there being no truly novel mechanics, which for Genesis Cycle 1-3 is ostensibly true, A:NR has some novel mechanical elements added from Core that the first tranche of Data Packs developed.
Advance Ice: Weyland Consortium's Barrier Ice has the neat ability of being able to be advanced, much like Agenda and some Assets. This is a new concept introduced in Core, and in Trace Amount and Cyber Exodus we see two cards (Trick of Light and Commercialization) which can key off these "spare" advancement counters. The idea is further explored in the design of Woodcutter (GC#58) in CX, in Ice with no subroutines until is has been advanced, and which cannot be advanced until rezzed (typically meaning the first encounter as the Runner runs it). This weakness means that the Corporation needs to find ways to rez and advance the Ice before the Runner encounters it, to make it effective, e.g. Amazon Industrial Zone from TA (GC#37). The hope would be that the later tranche of Data Packs would further develop this idea, but with the hindsight rulings made for Matrix Analyzer and Weyland Because We Built It (from ASiS) this hasn't been so well developed.
Front-loaded Ice: The novel function of "when encountered" effects on NBN Ice has been sadly unexplored in the first tranche of Data Packs. The reprise of Misleading Access Menus into Pop-Up Window makes for a strategically interesting piece of Ice to place where you know (expect) the Runner to be attacking. The ongoing trickle economy can potentially prove to be a disincentive to the Runner with an eye on the credit differential. Despite the potential strength of the front-loaded Ice design, NBN's options at the moment (from Genesis at least) seem weak.
Virus function: I discussed this in greater detail in a previous article, especially in the context of the Purge action (spending vs foregoing the actions). The change to the rules from O:NR has seen the potency of Virus-based decks jump a notch (coupled with Noise, Hacker Extraordinaire's ability) to make truly effective Anarch decks, and viruses to be quite viable splash cards in other faction's decks. While I approve of the gain in power that Viruses as a whole have gained, I still think that a forego Purge would make for better strategic play.
E3 Feedback Chip: An individual card does not a novel mechanic make, perhaps, but supplementing the power of certain (deficient) Icebreakers is interesting. E3 working as a hard counter to the click-breakable Bioroid Ice might have been perceived as a threat to Haas-Bioroid, but in my experience E3 is not seeing a lot of play, and certainly not the the extent of hampering the HB Fast Advance decks that apparently dominate.
Hosting vs Installing: The clarification in FAQ v1.1 of the distinction between cards being installed and cards being hosted resolved some rules disputes, but the need for the clarification seems to indicate a design weakness. The distinction being made between installing and hosting cards impacted on - for example - Personal Workshop in comparison to its predecessor The Shell Traders. The latter card would work with other copies installed, all working in conjunction to remove multiple counters from a single installed card on one Shell Trader; Personal Workshop can only remove counters from the cards hosted on that specific PW. The distinction between hosting and installing and the confusion that arises from this for the casual player is also evident in the example of Parasite being hosted on a specific piece of Ice, and thus not being able to benefit from the additional memory available in Djinn.
Cyberfeeder and Femme Fatale: The prior FAQ (v1.0) also apparently reversed a earlier ruling that Cyberfeeder's recurring credits could only be used for the paid abilities (cost: effect) on Icebreakers, thus precluding Femme Fatale's bypass ability from being paid for using these credits. The FAQ has set a precedent (which, granted, can be overturned in future rulings) that any ability on an Icebreaker that has a credit cost may be funded from Cyberfeeders.
Moving on to the cards. Note that I am completely ignoring the new Identities for the most part.
What Lies Ahead (ADN02):
Spinal Modem (#2)
Omnitech "Spinal Tap" Cybermodem (Classic)
The “Spinal Tap” cost 5 to install, and provided +1 MU, as well as two recurring bits for icebreakers. It randomly did 2 brain damage if a start of turn die roll came up a 1, and did two more brain damage if it ever left play. Nothing about suffering brain damage is a trace is successful mid-run.
Imp (#3)
Garbage In
Imp (1) is cheaper by two over GI (3 to install). Imp has a limit of two counters spent to trash cards not normally trashable, vs GI which could work indefinitely, but required two (functionally ineffectual) runs to first lay down two Garbage counters, which were spent to trash any and all cards accessed in a run. GI gave the Garbage counters after the run (cf. Medium/Highlightin the previous article).
Morning Star (#4)
Piledriver
Piledriver was the bane of wall-decks in O:NR and the seriously reconsidered version of that breaker is far fairer in A:NR. Rather that 7 Strength, with the non-drawback of being Noisy, the reprose costs seven more credits (8), for only 5 strength that cannot be naturally raised. Piledriver broke 4 subroutines for 3 bits, where MS does all subroutines for only the 1 credit.
Cortez Chip (#5)
NULL
Peacock (#6)
NULL
Peacock is the Criminal Decoder analogue to Aurora and Ninja from the Core set, the latter of which is a direct reprise of Matador from Classic.
ZU.13 Key Master (#7)
Psychic Friend (Classic)
Key Master costs 1 less for the same strength, and costs 1 to raise instead of 2, but Psychic Friends from Classic is the closest analogue that I can find.
The Helpful AI (#8)
Lockjaw
Lockjaw was a program that trashed for +2 Strength until the end of the turn. The AI is a Resource (thus less MU intensive but more tag vulnerable), but does grant additional link while in play.
Plascrete Carapace (#9)
Armored Fridge
for the same cost, the Carapace only has four counters to prevent meat damage, vs the Fridge's seven.
Mandatory Upgrades (#11)
Subsidiary Branch
MU has had its agenda point value increased to 2 over the SB's 1, otherwise the same - 6 advancement cost for the score benefit of an additional action. SB was a Gray Op, where MU is Agenda-Initiative
NB: in a stunningly bad design decision this agenda is Corp specific (Haas-Bioroid) rather than being neutral and available to all factions - apparently Jinteki, Weyland and NBN do not benefit from additional actions (or benefit too much)? Either way, not a good call.
Janus 1.0 (#12)
NULL
While there may have been big ice that did a heap of brain damage, the closest would be the Liche, perhaps, or Colonel Failure for price. Neither the former did as much Brain damage spread across as many subroutines, nor the latter at 17 to rez for five s/routines (Ichi 3.0?) are quite the analogue for Janus, though, even disregarding the Bioroid nature of the new Ice.
Ash 2X3ZB9CY (#13)
NULL
Braintrust (#14)
NULL
While there were Nodes and Upgrades/Regions that allowed rezzing Ice cheaper no Agenda existed with that effect.
NB: One can trace back the development of this and like Agenda (Project Atlas, Project Vitruvius) from Project Beale (forthcoming in Future Proof). Project Beale is directly inspired by Project Babylon, a 3/1 Agenda that could be "overclocked" for additional agenda points. The "overclock" theme has then been extended back into the Genesis Cycle cards to inspire thematically appropriate analogues for each of the Corporation factions.
Snowflake (#15)
Too Many Doors
unchanged, but for minor wording.
Restructured
Datapool (#16)
Netwatch Operations Office
this NBN agenda is 5 advancement for 3 agenda points, instead of the NOO's 5/2, and likewise gives a trace2 for a click. NB: A:NR traces, recall, start at the number of the trace effect, whereas O:NR traces were capped by the same symbology.
TMI (#17)
NULL
the TMI barrier violates the O:NR default template for basic walls of costing one more credit to rez than their strength.
Project Atlas (#18)
NULL
vide. Braintrust discussion above.
Caduceus (#19)
NULL
Draco (#20)
Homing Missile
Draco starts out much smaller and doesn’t have HM’s 8 strength cap; Draco’s trace is only to tag and ETR, whereas HM would ETR and prevent the Runner from making another run until they spend an action and 2 bits.
Trace Amount (ADN03):
Vamp ((#21)
Priority Wreck
unchanged
Liberated Account (#22)
NULL
while obviously modelled on Short-Term Contract as is Armitage Codebusting in the Core, O:NR only had one such resource that gave a block of credits for an action. Adding a second such card for the credit poor Anarch faction (rarely is it splashed into the "richer" Criminal or Shaper faction decks) gave them a much needed boost.
Satellite Uplink (#23)
NULL
I am slightly stunned that there was no analogous card in O:NR!
E3 Feedback Implants (#24)
NULL
see above
Compromised Employee (#25)
Hell's Run & Field Reporter for Ice and Data
CE costs 2 more than either precursor card, but provides a recurring credit for beating traces (HR), as well as 1 credit for each piece of ice rezzed by the Corporation (instantly, rather than at the end of the turn).
NB: combining the effects of two underplayed cards has created a potent option in the Runner's arsenal.
Notoriety (#26)
Pirate Broadcast
where PB forces a run on every server, Notoriety only requires that the Runner run on each central server (Archives, R&D and HQ), and moreover does not provide the run actions to do this; it may only be played as the fourth (or later, with later Data Pack options for gaining actions) action on a Runner's turn, after successful runs on the three central servers.
Snowball (#27)
Snowball
A:NR costs 4 for strength 1 barrier breaker that increases in strength for each subroutine broken, vs 10 cost for strength 0 sentry breaker that improves for each subroutine broken.
Dyson Mem Chip (#28)
NULL
no cards in the original game apart from decks offered a combined MU and link increase. The closest that I can find would probably be the
Encryption Protocol (#29)
New Galveston City Grid
no longer a region, and sadly nothing to do with Code Gates; EP costs two less to trash (2) vs NGCG's 4, but only adds 1 to the trash cost of all installed cards (thus actually costing 3 to trash). Despite being an Asset, not an Upgrade, it is still stackable, as each one will support the others.
Sherlock 1.0 (#30)
NULL
no trace Ice would uninstall programs in the old game.
Fetal AI (#32)
Fetal AI
unchanged
Trick of Light (#33)
Falsified-Transactions Expert
ToL moves only two advancement counters to another card vs. FTE's 3
Sensei (#34)
Tutor
unchanged except that Sensei is only 3 to rez, so a discount of 1 (& I am very pleased to see the return of this very fun piece of ice!)
Big Brother (#35)
Datapool® by Zetatech
unchanged
ChiLo City Grid (#36)
NULL
Amazon Industrial Zone (#37)
NULL
Power Grid Overload (#38)
Power Grid Overload
both are Operations, the new PGO has built-in tracing but may only destroy one piece of Hardware, while the old PGO required the Runner to be first tagged, but spent X to destroy X pieces of Hardware.
Executive Retreat (#39)
AI Chief Financial Officer
five to advance for 3 agenda points, versus AICFO's 5/2, ER still shuffles HQ into R&D, but not Archives and does not automatically redraw. Instead the hosted agenda counter is spent with an action to draw 5 cards.
Freelancer (#40)
Corporate Detective Agency
Freelancer is a Grey Ops subtype, and costs 1 less (at 0 credits) to play, otherwise unchanged.
Cyber Exodus (ADN04):
Nerve Attack (#41)
Vienna 22
unchanged, except as with the revised Highlighter (i.e. Medium) the virus counter is given at the point where the run is successful and so the effect of the virus starts to pay off a full turn quicker than its predecessor.
Joshua B. (#42)
Preying Mantis
Joshua B. for an additional credit (1) grants an additional action each turn, as did the Preying Mantis. Joshua’s cost, however, is a mere tag at the end of the turn instead of the Mantis’ inflicted unpreventable(!) 1 Brain Damage.
Emergency Shutdown (#43)
Core Command: Jettison Ice
much needed for the Criminal faction; Emergency Shutdown derezzes a piece of Ice, where for the same requirement and cost, CCJI let you pay the rez cost of a piece of Ice to trash it entirely.
Muresh Bodysuit (#44)
Techtronica™ Utility Suit
the Techtronica cost 6, but was a deck, and did so much more (giving MU and recurring bits to power link - itself less potent in O:NR than in A:NR). The Muresh, by contrast, is cheap to the point of unplayability - no more than Net Shield at least. Criminals may bitch here.
Snitch (#45)
Smarteye
Snitch costs 1 more than it’s predecessor (at 3 credits) but otherwise remains unchanged. Criminals may continue to bitch.
Test Run (#47)
Sneak Preview
unchanged
Dinosaurus (#48)
Eurocorpse™ Spin Chip
ESC cost 6 to install, vs Dinosaurus' 5; it allowed only 1MU Icebreakers to be installed, with no subtype restriction (Dinosaurus not permitting AI Icebreakers). Where Dinosaurus provides a flat +2 strength bonus, ESC gave 2 recurring credits for powering the installed Icebreaker. The reprise card is far, far stronger.
Personal Workshop (#49)
The Shell Traders
unchanged for the most part; unlike The Shell Traders, which could combine the removal of shell counters from the one installed card in a turn, Personal Workshop can only remove counters from cards hosted in the specific Workshop.
Public Sympathy (#50)
various Mem Chips
interesting; most hand size icreases in the original game were “Mem Chip” hardware, where this is a resource and hence can be trashed. Why make it a resource instead of a cheap mem chip that can be threatened by Power Grid Overload above is a mystifying decision.
Project Vitruvius (#51)
NULL
vide. Braintrust discussion above.
Viper (#52)
NULL
no Code Gates in O:NR had a trace subroutine!
Edge of World (#53)
Vacant Soulkiller
different in execution, these two brain damage delivering ambush nodes/assets are quite distinct. EoW cannot be advanced, so it is harder to sell as an Agenda than it’s predecessor. It costs 3 credits to activate when accessed, instead of 2 to rez. Where VS did 1 brain damage for each advancement counter, EoW does 1 brain damage for each piece of ice installed (not rezzed) on the server that it is installed in.
Sunset (#54)
Herman Revista
although New Blood is closer in card type and cost, in that it is an Operation costing 0 bits, it was far broader in effect, allowing the Corp to rearrange Ice across servers. Revista, by contrast, only allowed the Corp to reshuffle the Ice in the fort he was installed in (for 0), but he cost 1 to rez and 4 to trash.
Marked Accounts (#55)
Spinn® Public Relations
SPR costs 1 rez/4 trash, versus 0/5 for MA. In a wicked piece of irony, the renamed resource takes its name from a Proteus Agenda that tagged the Runner when accessed (even from R&D), which NBN players might have preferred to receive rather than an action-intensive credit-generating asset.
Pop Up Window (#56)
Misleading Access Menus
(whee! a personal favourite of mine returns) slightly changed; now one less strength (0), it nets a credit for each time that the Runner encounters it, instead of simply giving 3 when rezzed.
Commercialization (#57)
NULL
without advanceable Ice in the old game there would be no call for cards like this.
Woodcutter (#58)
Correction: Food Fight
Correction: with the emergence of Tyrant I associated that Barrier with the Sandstorm Wall from Proteus; this leads me to associate Woodcutter with Food Fight. With the same rez cost and confusing trait of having no subroutines when rezzed, the Food Fight Ice was one strength more at 3, and the Corp could pay additional bits to add one ‘End the run’ subroutine for each 2 bits paid above the rez cost (but only when rezzing). Compared to Woodcutter, Food Fight is both better and worse.
Chimera (#59)
(Proteus Ice)
an almost irrelevant comparison, various piece of Proteus Ice could be rezzed as a different class for an additional cost. Chimera does this for free, but immediately derezzes after the encounter.
Private Accounts (#60)
BBS Whispering Campaign
each giving 2 credits per action, PA takes a few actions to start paying off, unlike its comparative predecessor. Also PA gets 14 bits on activation, for only 3 to rez, instead of BBS giving 16 bits for 0 rez cost. PA costs 1 more to remove at 5 to trash instead of 4.