Android: Netrunner

[Narkis]

It's a cyberpunk LCG by Fantasy Flight where one player is the evil Megacorp trying to advance their nefarious plans, and the other the hacker who tries to invade their systems and steal their data. Does anyone here play? Me and a friend recently picked it up and we're hooked.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

Got to play this once with a friend: really really big fan of the gameplay! I moved before I could start getting into it, though, and now I don't really have a playerbase around here.

Really awesome game, though; I'm a fan of how the core game is so complex in execution--deckbuilding is only part of it!

[Science Officer]

Android: Netrunner is probably my favourite game at the moment.
Very tense, very balanced, very difficult decisions.

Any new players have any questions, perhaps?
Might be nice to try to get some OTCGN games going.

[Brother Oni]

I've only played the original version before it got picked up by Fantasy Flight. I assume that none of the cards are compatible, but does anybody know of how the new game plays compared to the original?

[Narkis]

Android: Netrunner is probably my favourite game at the moment.
Very tense, very balanced, very difficult decisions.

Any new players have any questions, perhaps?
Might be nice to try to get some OTCGN games going.

I'll have to agree, Netrunner has supplanted Magic as my cardgame of choice, at least for now. Love both its theme, and how it plays.

I did have a couple questions, but can't remember them at the moment. I'd be up for some OCTGN games, do you have any link handy on how to do that?


I've only played the original version before it got picked up by Fantasy Flight. I assume that none of the cards are compatible, but does anybody know of how the new game plays compared to the original?

They're indeed not compatible, but mostly due to the different back. Many new cards are inspired by older ones, while some are straight-up reprints. I've heard they are pretty similar, but never played the original myself.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

As I understand it, original Netrunner didn't have factions?

[Science Officer]

I've only played the original version before it got picked up by Fantasy Flight. I assume that none of the cards are compatible, but does anybody know of how the new game plays compared to the original?

Very similar. Primary difference is the factions which influence deck construction.
Traces also work differently. Also, decks are limited to 3 copies of a card, which was not the case for at least a certain period of the old game.



I did have a couple questions, but can't remember them at the moment. I'd be up for some OCTGN games, do you have any link handy on how to do that?


Guide for OCTGN is here (http://octgn.gamersjudgement.com/wordpress/anr/installation/).

[Fri]

This is also one of my favourite game ever, and I'd love to play in OCTGN so I could play against other people than the same friend again and again :smallbiggrin:.

I find OCTGN is pretty confusing though.

[Narkis]

Guide for OCTGN is here (http://octgn.gamersjudgement.com/wordpress/anr/installation/).

Well, that was easier than I expected. I'll be up for a game as soon as I build a deck or two, which is more difficult than it should.

And I have a question: I know the Runner doesn't lose the game when his library is empty, unlike the Corp, but does anything special happens if he tries to draw by, say, playing Diesel or does it just fizzle?

[Starsign]

I've been interested myself in it, though this is in part due and thanks to my growing interest in Tabletop games. However the game seems rather... complicated, especially since that both sides play very differently. Could anyone let me know how difficult it is to get into and such? (before we go into the idea of deckbuilding, which I imagine is even more complex :smalltongue:)

While I'd also be interested in trying it, my options for getting it are very limited (and people in my neighbourhood that is interested in board games at all are pretty much zilch. :smallredface:)

[Science Officer]

And I have a question: I know the Runner doesn't lose the game when his library is empty, unlike the Corp, but does anything special happens if he tries to draw by, say, playing Diesel or does it just fizzle?

Nope, nothing special happens. If the runner runs out of cards, they just have to deal with it.


I've been interested myself in it, though this is in part due and thanks to my growing interest in Tabletop games. However the game seems rather... complicated, especially since that both sides play very differently. Could anyone let me know how difficult it is to get into and such? (before we go into the idea of deckbuilding, which I imagine is even more complex :smalltongue:)

While I'd also be interested in trying it, my options for getting it are very limited (and people in my neighbourhood that is interested in board games at all are pretty much zilch. :smallredface:)

The game is pretty quick to pick up I think, at a basic level.
The rulebook is written rather poorly, and there are an awful lot of fiddly little rules (MU limits, traces, cost for additional ice, etc...) but the main meat of the game is intuitive, hopefully.

Some recommend the Corporation side for new players, because your plays are a more restrictive and you have more of a clear goal. Runner has a lot of options and that can lead to some analysis paralysis. OTOH, Runner has a lot less hidden information, which makes asking questions a little easier in learning games.

And if there's no one to play with around you, you can play online on OTCGN, as we've been discussing.

[CarpeGuitarrem]

I've been interested myself in it, though this is in part due and thanks to my growing interest in Tabletop games. However the game seems rather... complicated, especially since that both sides play very differently. Could anyone let me know how difficult it is to get into and such? (before we go into the idea of deckbuilding, which I imagine is even more complex :smalltongue:)

While I'd also be interested in trying it, my options for getting it are very limited (and people in my neighbourhood that is interested in board games at all are pretty much zilch. :smallredface:)
I don't think it's too terribly complicated; based on mechanics alone, it's more sophisticated than Magic (which is not saying much :smalltongue:), but it's not very different from a typical strategic board game, but with customized decks. You have two players with different win conditions, two styles of play (laying out ice vs running against ice), an economy of money to manage, and then a limited number of actions you can take on a turn.

The reference cards are really handy.

[Starsign]

The game is pretty quick to pick up I think, at a basic level.
The rulebook is written rather poorly, and there are an awful lot of fiddly little rules (MU limits, traces, cost for additional ice, etc...) but the main meat of the game is intuitive, hopefully.

Some recommend the Corporation side for new players, because your plays are a more restrictive and you have more of a clear goal. Runner has a lot of options and that can lead to some analysis paralysis. OTOH, Runner has a lot less hidden information, which makes asking questions a little easier in learning games.

And if there's no one to play with around you, you can play online on OTCGN, as we've been discussing.


I don't think it's too terribly complicated; based on mechanics alone, it's more sophisticated than Magic (which is not saying much :smalltongue:), but it's not very different from a typical strategic board game, but with customized decks. You have two players with different win conditions, two styles of play (laying out ice vs running against ice), an economy of money to manage, and then a limited number of actions you can take on a turn.

The reference cards are really handy.

Hmm, I may take an interest by checking out OTCGN, though I'm hoping it won't be too difficult to set up. I haven't played much card games myself actually so I'll probably be poor early on. :smalltongue: I recall this is also one of the mods on Tabletop Simulator. Does anyone know if Android: Netrunner works well on that game or not?

EDIT: Oh yeah. Of all the expansion packs and such, are there any worth considering or not worth considering for whenever I get around to deckbuilding?

[Science Officer]

EDIT: Oh yeah. Of all the expansion packs and such, are there any worth considering or not worth considering for whenever I get around to deckbuilding?

It all depends on what kind of deck you want to build and what factions you feel like playing.

That said, the most bang for your buck would be the mini-box expansions, Creation & Control, and Order & Chaos.
Not only do they provide the most cards/$, they also don't rotate out of legality (Netrunner uses a rotating system like Magic does, only it's a lot slower. The first cards aren't due to rotate out for a few more years)

After those, most of the packs in the first cycle (Genesis) are pretty important, with the exception of perhaps Humanity's Shadow.
Cyber Exodus and What Lies Ahead especially, IIRC. That whole cycle is mostly "things that probably should have been in the core set", really.
The second cycle (Spin) is not as important, with the exception of the pack containing Jackson Howard (I think it's Double Time?).
The third cycle (Lunar) is pretty neat, each pack has a new identity. Lots of new options, but nothing super important to have, unless I'm forgetting things.

But there's a lot of game in the core set alone, and you can have a lot of fun with just what's in there. Also, if you're really competitive, you may need a second or third core set to get a complete playset of some cards.

[banthesun]

I've really gotten into this game lately(-ish)! I've been splitting my collection with my brother so I have someone to play with, but I'd love to have some games against other people (and a chance to play as runner, I've mainly just played corp so far)!

Would other people here be interested in playing games with a limited cardpool though? I kinda get a kick out of adding new cards to my collection, and I wouldn't want to spoil myself too much on that (I might make an exception for Jackson though).

Oh, and I've been watching a few netrunner videos on youtube, and I came across this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rVque104Jb0) game that I felt I have to share. Don't look at the timeline if you can help it, it gets really suspenseful!

[Fri]

So I mostly play with this one other friend. By mostly, I mean 99% of my game is against him, since we bought the core pack together.

But he has something that in my opinion is limiting his progress in this game.

How can I convince him that a leaner deck is better?

I mean, a slightly fatter deck than minimal is always fine, or even good in some circumstances. But last time I play against him, he used a 70 cards deck, for example.

Lately the win percentage between us has been leaning very heavily toward me. Something in the line of 4:1, and I'm afraid that this will turn him off from this game.

And by the way, how about those OCTGN matches :smallbiggrin:? How do we schedule or arrange this?

[CarpeGuitarrem]

How can I convince him that a leaner deck is better?

I mean, a slightly fatter deck than minimal is always fine, or even good in some circumstances. But last time I play against him, he used a 70 cards deck, for example.

What've you gone through so far? The important cost-benefit analysis here is decking out vs. not being able to draw the right cards at the right time. The bigger your deck, the more chaotic the deck becomes, and the less reliable it is. The smaller your deck, the easier it is to run out of options (or, as the Corp, outright lose).

[banthesun]

For Runner, what I keep in mind is that every extra card in your deck is one more card that isn't your console (especially if you just have the base set, so only one copy of your console). Almost every deck is going to have a 'best' card, or at least a card the player loves to see, and stuffing your deck makes it harder to find those cards. You could compare what it would be like to have only one copy of your favourite card in a deck of 20 cards to what it would be like with 3 copies and his deck of 70. Perhaps that would help make your point?

And for scheduling: I'm available generally between 04-16 GMT most days, but I'd need to get OCTGN set up first.

[Narkis]

So I mostly play with this one other friend. By mostly, I mean 99% of my game is against him, since we bought the core pack together.

But he has something that in my opinion is limiting his progress in this game.

How can I convince him that a leaner deck is better?

I mean, a slightly fatter deck than minimal is always fine, or even good in some circumstances. But last time I play against him, he used a 70 cards deck, for example.

Lately the win percentage between us has been leaning very heavily toward me. Something in the line of 4:1, and I'm afraid that this will turn him off from this game.

It's a classic newbie mistake, across all card games. The most succesful method in my experience is to talk to them about their favourite card(s), the one they want to see in every game, and how much more likely they are to draw it with a leaner deck.


And by the way, how about those OCTGN matches :smallbiggrin:? How do we schedule or arrange this?

I'm available almost every night, GMT. Not really sure how to find people and set specific matches in OCTGN though.

[Fri]

Thanks for the ideas guys.

And for the OCTGN matches, I'm also usually available everyday at GMT nights. I don't think you can set up private games in OCTGN? At most you can name a game "match against x" so you must discuss the game first in private chat or something first. I'm not terribly experienced with OCTGN though, so you might actually can set a private match.

And since someone asked about datapack buying earlier, me and my friend uses this guide. If you're not ideologically opposed to reddit or something, you can use it, just google android netrunner buying guide reddit or something, I find it generally useful.