Android: Netrunner #24: Painting Kit: The evolution of a deck build - Part 1

It started with Paintbrush. A Shaper Program released in the Double Time data pack got me thinking about the number of Icebreakers needed in a deck. When you first start out with Netrunner you tend to put two or even three copies of each type in there because you don’t want to get caught out without anything to run with. But as your understanding of the game and the card pool increases, you find ways to reduce this number. There are cards that allow you search for Icebreaker programs or retrieve them if they have been trashed by your opponent.

The lowest number of breakers I have ever used so far is four. One decoder, one fracter, one killer and then a single Deus X for a surprise when the Corp puts out a big AP piece of Ice.

But Paintbrush got me thinking. For a click, you can change any rezzed piece of Ice to a type of your choosing, so it was suddenly possible to only take one Icebreaker. Granted, it has its limitations. The Ice has to be rezzed which means I’d still have to face plant into some to get this deck going and with Paintbrush’s ability costing a click, this deck would only really be good for one run per turn.

Nevertheless, I was excited by the prospect, so I set about building it.

First off, the Identity I think best suits this experiment is Rielle ‘Kit’ Peddler. Not only does this keep Paintbrush in faction, her ability allows me to hit that first piece of Ice, knowing she can deal with it as a code gate. So obviously the breaker of choice will be a decoder. Freeing up the need to pay for other breakers, I think I can afford to splurge a bit an opt for Torch.

With just one copy in the deck, I need the means to go and get it and also to save it should it get trashed. Test Run covers both eventualities and Clone Chip the latter, but the main addition here is of course, Self-Modifying Code. Not only can I go and get Torch with this, but Paintbrush as well and my main economy card - Magnum Opus.

Both Magnum Opus and Paintbrush take up 2 MU slots each, so my next port of call is CyberSolutions Mem Chip, increasing my memory allowance by 2. Dinosaurus is expensive but if I can get it out and host Torch on it, that’s  a pretty great combination. 2 copies of Lockpick are next to save some money on all this decoding.

Having been Scorched Earth one too many times recently and with my regular opponent turning to Weyland, I have put 2 copies of Decoy in there and 2 Plascretes. Heavy on the Hardware, I’ve added Modded to save some cash where I can and I have chosen Diesel and Quality Time to help work through the deck if I’m not seeing what I want.

Which leaves me to sort out my economy. The ever reliable Sure Gamble is straight in there along with my favourite lady of Netrunner, Kati Jones. I decided on Armitage Codebusting and Daily Casts and to take a little more advantage of these, Aesop is setting up shop alongside them. With 4 of my 10 influence used and no further out of faction cards to add, I thought I’d give Lucky Find a go.

Aiming for 45 cards, this left me with one slot left. At this point, I think we have to play it a little safe and go for Crypsis. Yes it’s painfully expensive and it’s already moving me away from the whole point of this experiment, but I need to get some Ice rezzed and Crypsis could help.

I’ll post up again when I’ve tested this build. There’s already food for thought. Forged Activation Orders would be a good fit to get Ice rezzed or trashed, but Lucky Find would have to go if I was to add this. And if this deck is reliant on one big run each turn, then perhaps I need to add the likes of Makers Eye and R & D Interface to improve my chances of hitting agendas.

I’ll leave you with the deck as it currently stands. Any comments would be appreciated.


Identity
Rielle ‘Kit’ Peddler: Transhuman

Event (16)
Sure Gamble x3
Test Run x3
Lucky Find** x3
Diesel x3
Quality Time x2
Modded x2

Hardware (9)
Clone Chip x3
Plascrete Carapace x2
CyberSolutions Mem Chip x1
Dinosaurus x1
Lockpick x2

Program (10)
Paintbrush x3
Torch x1
Crypsis x1
Self-modifying Code x3
Magnum Opus x2

Resource (10)
Decoy** x2
Armitage Codebusting x2
Daily Casts x3
Kati Jones x2
Aesop’s Pawnshop x1

Total Cards: 45
Total Influence: 10