So it occurred to me how much jargon there is in this crazy, cyber-punk, sci-fi hackers versus the evil executives death-match we know as Netrunner. I know there may be other slang databases out there, but I thought as a reference for newer players I would put my understanding of most of the words they might hear at tournaments when players are shop talking. I’m also just interested in doing this as a writing activity for my own personal mental organization.

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Slang derived from MTG:

As other former MTG (Magic the Gathering) players will have noted, the Netrunner LCG takes many terms from that old child’s card game (just kidding, obviously I have the same evolutionary respect for MTG that humans have for chimpanzees). Here are the few most common examples:

Tier 1, Tier 2, Tier 3: The tier system is a way for players to rate the consistency of different decks for use in competitive play. Tier 1 decks use the best cards and have the highest level of consistency. Tier 2 decks are still very strong, but may be more difficult to pilot. Tier 3 decks are archetypes that are missing some key cards to become stronger, but they have potential.

Jank, and Janky: Jank refers to experimental decks that are great to play casually to play newer cards or strange combinations. Some janky decks rely on very unlikely boardstates or combinations of cards to try to win. Other janky decks can be based on themes or having a lot of cards of the same subtype or flavor.

Boardstate: This refers to the overall power of a players cards in a specific instance of a game. Often boardstate refers to only the public information that even an observer of the game could see. Having a good boardstate is having a clear advantage, like lots of rezzed ice or a strong lead in credits.

Mill: To mill is to put the top card of a players deck into their discard pile. I believe the term originated from the MTG card Millstone, but I could be wrong. To mill somebody out, is to have their deck run out of cards. A mill deck, such as Noise or Keyhole, is a deck that puts more cards into the Archives then other decks. Unlike MTG, it is rarer for runners to win from a corp running out of cards, because they are more likely to just score enough agendas accessing Archives.

Pilot: To pilot a deck is to play the deck. Being a good pilot means you know how to pace the deck to open up the most scoring opportunities during a game. More than any other card game I have ever played, the skill of piloting decks in Netrunner is more a factor in whether a player wins or not. The decks power levels, relative match-up and luck do play big parts, but an experienced player in Netrunner would likely beat a newer player even if the newer players’ deck was way more overpowered.

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Netrunner specific Jargon:

I’m not entirely sure if these terms only exist in Netrunner, but I first heard them over the three years I’ve been playing competitively. Obviously I am not including terms and keywords that were made by FFG and are part of the game.

Meta: Meta refers to the common decks and play styles of a specific gaming group. When people refer to the larger ‘meta’ of Netrunner, they mean the global competive scene of the decks that are either popular or Tier 1. A ‘local meta’ refers to the player community of a specific city or area.

Facecheck: This is something the runner should do at least twice in the first turn. Just kidding, that’s not always a great idea (I’m looking at you Architect!). It means running into a facedown ice that you have no, or little information, about what it will be if rezzed. When a runner is facechecking, they are not running to access points but are hoping to rez the ice so they know what breaker to install (like when your holding Account Siphon and Special Order) or if the ice doesn’t get rezzed they are hoping to get information from the card they access.

Running Without A Rig: This is something the runner should do for as long as they can. ‘Running Without a Rig’ means running without the risk of program destruction or card trashing posing any serious problems. The reason this is the optimal strategy for the runner in the early game is that the corp will either spend money to rez ice (and in this game you need money to make more money) or they will let you get accesses and likely bleed a few points. As the corp I am always hesitant to go below five credits early on because I may draw a hedge fund.

Agenda Flooded: This is the bane of all bad corp draws and one reason Jackson Howard is an integral part of playing Netrunner. Having three or more agendas early on means the corp is vulnerable, not getting infrastructure and likely to get most of those early game points stolen. This is another reason running HQ early as the runner can be profitable, especially if the corp took a mulligan. Being agenda flooded in the late game can also be bad because the runner is strong and may be able to easily get into HQ.

Taxing: Ice that costs the runner a significant amount of credits to get through. A taxing server is a server that costs more credits than the runner can easily produce.

Glacier: A slower corp deck that plays a lot of ice or really big ice. Glacier decks can take longer to set up but can sometimes be unstoppable if they are not interfered with. Example: most Replicating Perfection decks.

Big Rig: A (slower?) runner deck that uses a lot of installable cards or really expensive programs and hardware. Example: Stealth decks.

Fast Advance: Corp decks that use cards that allow them to install and score agendas in a single turn.

Never Advance: Installing an agenda without advancing either naked (no ice) or in a server with lower defense. The agenda is then score in a later turn.

Tag’n’Bag: A corp kill deck that tags the runner and then kills them with meat damage. Traditionally this has been done with a combination of Sea Source and Scorched Earth.

(Hmmm, is there a name for fast runner decks that use very small rigs? These decks exist, such as Keyhole Maxx, but since runners have to be more well balanced than corps its not as common.)

Tech (and Teched-Against): Okay, this term exists in all card games. Tech cards are cards with strong abilities that are often very specific to interactions with other cards. Being ‘teched-against’ a certain deck archetype means your deck has the cards that counter your opponents strategy. I have also heard these defense cards referred to as ‘silver-bullets’.

Drip Econ: Economy cards that stay in play and give a small amount of credits each turn (ex: PAD Campaign, Daily Casts).

Burst Econ: Economy cards that give a one-time only larger sum of credits (ex: Lucky Find, Hedge Fund). Burst economy has the advantages of surprising your opponent, who may be gambling on the fact that you do not have enough credits to get into a server.

I think I covered most of the terms I could think of. If you don’t know what the word ‘archetype’ means, I suggest you read some Joseph Campbell. Anyway, I hope you got something from my attempt to clarify the jargon. If I missed something important or made some glaring error, please comment below.

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