Running the Gamut
By Angela Rowland– February 20, 2013
I feel all over the place right now – I’m at my fourth post for the year (already, in February, at half of the amount of posts I had written in 2012) and I’m already onto my third game. What’s going on here?!
Truthfully, most of my entering into the Netrunner world was pride. My husband seemed to feel I might not be able to handle two new games in so short a time. The fact that he clearly had the mental capacity to jump into both Star Wars and Netrunner in one fell swoop didn’t seem much of a counterpoint to him. Clearly my weak feminine mind (or, perhaps, my lack of LCG experience overall, but why split hairs?) would be much intimidated by the overwhelming amount of new rules and goals associated with two differing asymmetrical games. Thus, of course, I had to play – if for no other reason than to flex my mental agility in his face.
After three different games, all in which I felt I was floundering, one of which I won by sheer accident (though he tried his best to make me feel as though I had planned an expert strategy, rather than just lucking into my damage-inducing set-up), being pushed to the verge of brain-weary tears more than once, I was beginning to fear I may have to cry uncle and tell him he was welcome to find a new Netrunner partner. I hated this game.
But then Philip suggested I might try a new Corporation. Haas-Bioroid, he assured me, might be able to tackle the income deficit I continually faced with Jinteki – a crippling poverty-stricken agenda (in my experience, anyway) who struggle to horde enough credits even for ice-rezzing, let alone advancing agendas. I had been prone to spreading my servers thin, one ice on each, not prepared to pay the necessary costs for layering my protection. But six servers with little security only make for six easy Runner targets. And easy winning. Before I could even manage a scored agenda.
It didn’t hurt that I began my first Haas-Bioroid game with Adonis and Pad Campaign in hand (the latter having been my only previous hope for non-click-requiring income with Jinteki). Between these and the natural Haas ability to gain a credit for the first install of each turn, the money seemed to pour in. While I occasionally found myself spending turns to gain credits, I also noticed there was much less budget-related stress on my side of the table overall. I knew if my opponent came at me, I could rez the ice necessary to slow him down. I was advancing agendas (finally!) and even stacking ice two, three, and even four thick.
Another added benefit of the Haas-Bioroid Corporation is its focus on brain damage and destroying programs. I had been used to net damage with Jinteki, but it felt like I was beating my head against a wall, getting Philip regularly down to an empty hand but unable to complete the task of issuing that fatal last blow, leading him to beef up his hand once again and putting me at square one. Feeling like I had some kind of control (however feeble) of the cards on his side of the table made me feel much less powerless as he placed one Ice-Breaker after another.
This point was driven home when my Aggressive Secretary, hidden behind three walls of ice, layered with three Advancement tokens, cost him twelve credits to access and then rewarded him by destroying all the programs he had just used to break through. Yes, she’s one of my new best friends.
That’s not to say Junebug has no value to me – I still consider it a trusty standby and was sure to splash it in with my new Haas buddies, along with a snare and a few damage-causing ice.
Thus, I’m not sure how much of my new appreciation for Netrunner stems from a serious love of Haas-Bioroid (it’s hard not to love a faction which leads you to victory in your first two runs with it) or from the fact that I’m simply learning from previous failures (layer ice, set up traps wisely – and maintain the poker face) to grasp just how this Corporation operates.
Either way, I’m not throwing it out just yet. And I might even take my chances as the Runner soon. Maybe not tomorrow. But soon.
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I’m very surprised you learned by being the Corp first. It’s very intimidating. Almost everyone I know learned by being a Runner first and then slowly playing more as a Corp.
Sounds like you found an identity that works for you though, and that’s really most of the issue with playing and enjoying the game.
She learned Corp first because I thought it would be easier to get into than the Runner. Runners have to make a lot of tough choices like knowing when to run and where or when to spend a turn building up credits or just drawing cards, not to mention the decisions they may need to make mid-run. The Corp player just has to build up ICE and credits and once they’re settled, start throwing out Runner bait.
Notice, once again, his lack of faith in my decision-making abilities
Actually, though, after we’d played a few times and I whined I’d probably be better on the aggressive side (I hate playing defensively), I figured he was probably right – there seemed to be a lot more rules for Runners that might have overwhelmed me if I was just jumping in. Not to say I’m not ready to be the attacker at this point.
Aggressive Secretary is my favorite corp card.
Angela, I sincerely hope that you write much more than eight blogs this year, as I am always excited to see when you have written a new blog (because I have always enjoyed all your previous ones, and your first still remains one of my favourites of all time!)
Something about your lack of gaming experience lends itself well to giving such an honest and refreshing viewpoint to the games you are blogging. And I also think the fact that you are a woman also helps, in some way, as it gives me hope for introducing some of these games to my girlfriend (who I am getting into board games – but she is reluctant to make the transition to LCGs)
But please, keep blogging!
I, too, was intimidated by the idea of card games once upon a time – Philip first lured me in by introducing me to the World of Warcraft TCG. As I found the computer game intriguing and was still in that blissful honeymoon stage the first year of marriage can be, I decided it couldn’t hurt to enter his world a little more. Give her time, she’ll come around
And, thanks, I hope to continue writing – it’s almost hard to play a game these days and NOT want to tell someone else about it!
I also started this game Angela with the Corp. and still prefer the defence way of play. I like the Jenteki, but also found $ to be an issue. I have been SLOWLY getting into the runners, but am just startting to mix out of faction cards in my deck with the new Data packs coming out now. After reading this I have a new found bravery if you will to try another Corp. ID and get away more from the starters.
Great write up for the non-hardcore gamers!
Mixing and matching definitely has its advantages! After discovering what some of my favorite Haas cards were, I realized I might actually like Jinteki again if I splashed these in. I’m clearly new to deck-building and I know other games penalize you, in a way, for venturing out-of-faction, so it was fun to break the mold a little and actually create something I liked from the options available just in the starter.
im glad your husband started you with jinteki. everyone’s first corp faction should be jinteki because if you can get good winning games being dirt poor its all downhill after that
i’ve found from introducing my women friends to role playing games, board games and card games over past couple years that they are as good as men and have just as much fun. when i asked them why they had never played before they would often say A. ” i was never invited to play before.” B. ” i don’t like doing things i’m bad at” and C. “i don’t have the time.”
A. is men’s fault. we don’t like rejection so if you tell us once, twice, three times you don’t want to play then we will stop asking not just you but every woman.
B. is universal. no one likes doing things they are bad at.
C. is false if you have time to watch american idol. dexter, toddlers and tiaras and/or real housewives you have time for gaming