So you’ve got the Core Set for Netrunner (available from Amazon, bookstores, and game stores everywhere for about $20-40). Now what? Maybe you’ve played a bit online with decks you found on Netrunner DB. (In case you didn’t know, there are fantastic places to play Netrunner online for free, including Jinteki.net.) But that’s all cyber-cards. What about assembling the cardboard ones? Today, we are looking at how to expand your collection from a single core set, and using those cards to build a stronger Runner deck.

You will learn Netrunner most effectively by building a strong Runner deck and learning the fundamental running skills. Runner decks are generally more flexible than Corp decks (in part due to Agenda requirements in Corp deck building), and so it is easier to build a viable Runner deck with fewer core sets/expansions. For these reasons, we will focus on Runner first, and it is suggested that newer players begin building and learning from the Runner side, as well.

This article assumes basic familiarity with the Core Set and the rules of Netrunner. It guides you in constructing your first deck out of a card pool beyond that of a single Core Set, using the addition of just one single expansion pack.

We will explain what goes into building a competitive, consistent Runner deck. We’ll explore economy cards, rigs/breaker suites, and win conditions. You’ll be up and Running with a viable Shaper deck in no time!

An Identity Crisis

The first thing we must do is choose an ID to build out of.

Because we are limited in the number of cards we can work with, we want to choose the ID that gets the most out of a single expansion pack. In our case, some of the most important and useful Runner cards come in Creation and Control, which features Shaper and neutral cards.

While the Runner IDs in C&C have some situational use, in particular Kit, there is no Shaper ID to date that is as all-around powerful and flexible as Kate. Her ID rewards you for doing something you need to do anyway, which is install programs and hardware. Kate’s ID is truly the bar against which all other Shaper IDs are measured.

Kate “Mac” McCaffrey: Digital Tinker Identity: Natural • Link: 1 • Deck: 45 • Influence: 15 Lower the install cost of the first program or piece of hardware you install each turn by 1.

We will take advantage of the flexibility of her ID, as well as the cards in C&C and the Core Set, to build a flexible, powerful Kate deck that installs plentiful programs and hardware at a great discount.

A Study in Economy

In Netrunner, you cannot install programs and trash assets without cold, hard cyber-credits. There are multiple ways of gaining credits that are far more efficient than simply clicking for 1. The goal is to never click for credits except as a last resort or when you really need to “pass” and do nothing on a click.

Different economy cards have advantages and disadvantages, of course. Let’s first understand what econ options are available to us now that we have an expansion pack in hand, and how they are best used.

Drip Economy

Drip econ cards are consistent, reliable ways of getting a certain amount of credits into your credit pool over a certain amount of clicks/turns. Usually you can only gain a few credits per action or turn, but these credits will start to add up!

Resource • Install: 3 • Influence: 0

Place 8 [credits] from the bank on Daily Casts when it is installed. When there are no credits left on Daily Casts, trash it.

Take 2 [credits] from Daily Casts when your turn begins.

Over the course of 4 turns, you will eventually net 5 credits. The only downside is, this money trickles in 2 credits at a time. The up-front cost of 3 credits and 1 click to install for a net gain of 5, however, is unparalleled efficiency. We will combine Daily Casts with Magnum Opus for a strong drip economy.

Burst Economy

Burst economy essentially allows you to rapidly and efficiently gain a large number of credits, usually as a one-time deal. Or, in the case of Dirty Laundry, you can combine credit gain with another useful action, namely making a run.

Event: Run • Cost: 2 • Influence: 0

Make a run. After the run is completed, gain 5 if it was successful.

Now of course, the run does have to be successful in order to get the money. But the sheer efficiency of Dirty Laundry is most apparent when you make a run to trash a card. At a small upfront cost, you can make a run, trash an asset, and make a buck, all in one click! Of course you can also simply use Dirty Laundry to make a buck on an unprotected server.

Dirty Laundry, Modded, and Sure Gamble form the basis of our burst economy.

An Embarrassment of Riches

In our deck, we will combine Dirty Laundry, Daily Casts, Sure Gamble, Modded, and Magnum Opus, so you are sure to find the money you need, when you need it!

Rigged Results

Now that you’ve got money, you’ve gotta spend it on something…how about a sweet rig to break some ice! The key to a well-rounded icebreaker suite is that it breaks the most common types and strengths of ice for the lowest cost possible.

A Little Help From My Friends

In our deck, we will be using some of the Core Set Anarch breakers supported by several copies of Datasucker as our main breakers.

Why so many Anarch breakers for our main breakers? Efficiency.

However, aside from Corroder, Anarch breakers tend to have limitations: Mimic has fixed strength and cannot be pumped! Datasucker helps with that problem, so while it may take several runs to build up Mimic to break bigger ice, your ability to break ice once set up is nearly unstoppable. Gordian Blade, a very fine in-faction decoder, rounds out our selection.

If it seems strange that a Shaper deck is playing a largely out-of-faction breaker suite, keep in mind Shaper’s strengths: accelerated card draw, and the ability to search for and install cards from nearly anywhere. This means we never need more than one copy of each of our key breakers! Shaper’s ability to support and synergize with programs from out-of-faction is unmatched in the game.

Supporting Actors

Cyber-Cypher is there to take care of tricky high strength ice like Lotus Field, on which Datasucker has no effect. Its efficiency is astounding…for a single server. Most games, you will end up only needing one of the decoders, but if you end up needing both, you’ve got the tools!

Atman combos very well with Datasucker also, and is a great tool to take care of ice of particularly high strengths if you install it with enough power counters. Consider either installing Atman at 0 as your first breaker supported by only Datasucker if you see many low-strength ice like Vanilla, or installing it at 4 or 5 if you need to consistently break ice of strength 5 or higher.

Parasite is an extremely valuable card in a deck with Datasucker. By combining the two, you can trash high-strength ice once and for all, rather than needing to repeatedly break it!

And finally, Self-modifying code will turn into any of the programs you want, at any time, so long as you haven’t drawn them yet! Of course, a few Clone Chip round out your ability to find and install programs.

The key to using this suite is in the wise use of Datasucker tokens. Don’t spend them when you can spare a regular credit instead! Try to save them to break nasty ice with Mimic or Atman, or to destroy ice with Parasite. And beware of a timely virus purge!

The Winning Agenda

Money and breakers are good for getting you into servers…but what is your plan for stealing that winning agenda? In the Core Set, Kate has one particular answer to that: R&D lock.

We will use three copies of The Maker’s Eye as our primary way of locking down R&D, to make sure we see agendas before the Corp does. Don’t tunnel vision on R&D just because you have this card, however! It’s important to try to clear Agendas out of other servers before you for broke.

The Maker’s Eye not enough win for you? Let’s add Medium to get even more R&D multi-access! Unlike Maker’s Eye, this card takes a while to get going, but once it gets going, Medium with Shaper efficiency and support from Datasucker is extremely hard to stop.

Let’s put it all together with some other cards!

Other Goodies

Akamatsu Mem Chip and Grimoire are sources of memory, which we need for our full rig of Medium, Sucker, and breakers. Grimoire also provides additional virus counters.

Rabbit Hole helps protect you from traces, which are common especially in NBN decks. Strangely enough, the Core Set only provides 2 copies; this card really shines with 3 in the deck, to protect you from Controlling the Message and other traces.

Paricia gives you a source of extra credits to trash assets. Keep in mind, however, they cannot be used to trash any other type of card. Don’t be afraid to trash them if you need your full rig out.

Levy AR Lab Access gives you another go around at your deck. Ideally, you should play this card when you are down to a few cards left in your deck, so most of your Event cards are in the heap. Now you can get another run through all of them!

Escher allows you to reshape the nets how you want, so that you can put all the cheapest ice on R&D, and hammer it all the way home with The Maker’s Eye and Medium. It is Shaper’s in-faction punishment for lightly-defended HQs.

Same Old Thing allows you to re-play one of your important events. Save this resource for a game-winning card like The Maker’s Eye, or in case it gets trashed due to damage, Levy AR Lab Access.

The Deck: “Viral Kate”

Kate “Mac” McCaffrey: Digital Tinker (Core Set)

Event (16)

Hardware (7)

Resource (6)

3x Daily Casts (Creation and Control)

3x Same Old Thing (Creation and Control)

Icebreaker (5)

1x Atman (Creation and Control)

1x Corroder (Core Set) ●●

1x Cyber-Cypher (Creation and Control)

1x Gordian Blade (Core Set)

1x Mimic (Core Set) ●

Program (11)

12 influence spent (max 15-3★=12, available 0)

45 cards (min 45)

This deck as listed above uses one Core Set, one copy of Creation and Control, and follows the tournament rules, so it is legal to play in competition as of the Flashpoint cycle, but is easy to assemble from a limited card pool!

Good luck and happy running! Feel free to post your experiences with or questions about the deck below!

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