Root Cause - Steven Wooley, the Hero

Root Cause is a series of bi-weekly Android: Netrunner articles about deck building, strategy and tactical decision, for new and mid-level Anarch players. It was named in honor of Sam "Root" Groves, the character from CBS' show Person of Interest.

I believe that most casual players are not really worried about this, but as a competitive player, it's hard for me to stick with Anarch when the World's Top 8 had seven Andromeda, Dispossessed Ristie decks. It is even more frustrating to see that most of those Criminal players are using our weapons - like Corroder, Yog.0 and Datasucker - to win! But there's one man to inspire us all. I present you Steven Wooley, the only Anarch player to hit the top 16 in the World Championship Weekend.

He entitled his deck "Whizzard GCD", which I'm not sure what it is supposed to mean (great common divison?), but it is a straight forward offensive deck. A "back to basics" build, as he says.

The Rig that Breaks Everything

2x Corroder
1x Crypsis
1x Mimic
1x Ninja
1x ZU.13 Key Master
2x Special Orders

The first thing that called my attention was that he used 2 copies of Special Orders. I believe I mentioned it in one of my last articles, but this works wonderfully for Anarch. We can't depend on Djinn (which is slow) to search for Crypsis (which is slow too) in a meta that is dominated by fast advance decks. We need speed!

Well, about speed, the second thing that makes Steven's rig so solid is that it can abuse Stimhack. Stimhack is one of the strongest cards in the game but, sadly, most Anarch icebreakers cannot use it properly. Spending 4 influence points, you can fix this problem and leave the Corp with a constant fear to install something at his or her remotes.

The Server Pressure

2x Medium
2x HQ Interface

When I was watching the stream, my first reaction was "What the heck is that noob doing?! Why he's not using Nerve Agent rather than waste his influence on this stupid dog statue?!". But then, when I read his report and I had access to his complete deck list, I realize how clever he was by using HQ Interface.

If you're not using a lot of virus programs, there's no reason to use Grimoire. So Spinal Modem is your best in-faction option. But without Djinn, that's not enough memory to run Nerve Agent and Medium. Once again, Steven spent his influence to fix an Anarch's weakness.

The Strong Economy

3x Dirty Laundry
3x Liberated Account
3x Stimhack
3x Sure Gamble
2x Daily Casts
2x Kati Jones
2x Spinal Modem

One of my main frustrations with Anarch is how bad is our economy is. Shaper has Magnum Opus, Criminal has Account Siphon, and we have... Liberated Account. While it is one of the most expensive economy cards in the game, it is also one of the fastest: once you draw it, it gives you 10 credits in 5 clicks - it is basically a free Magnum Opus. How to support an expensive early game economy card? With a cheap late game economy card! The partnership between Liberated Account and Kati Jones works greatly if you're not a Wyldside player, as it gives you a huge burst of money when you need it.

Did you say no Wyldside?

3x Quality Time
2x Special orders

I remember when people used to say that Wyldside was one of the best cards in the game. Now, we can used it for free, but spending influence to pick an out-of-faction option brings better results than our "broken" resource. Why? Exactly, because Wyldside is too slow against fast advance. With this set of "cards that draw more cards", you're likely to find what you need when you need more often than not.

Taking a Break from Fanboyism

While I do respect Steven Wooley for getting the top 16, there are something that I'd change or, at least, try before copying/pasting his deck list to play on my league. I don't know how much he tested his deck and maybe some (or all) of my ideas were already discarded by his teammates and him, but I still think that trying alternatives is worth the time (even discarded ones).

I'm kinda indifferent between ZU.13 Key Master and Gordian Blade. I understand the advantage of being cheaper, but I also like the fact that the alternative requires less credits to run. I'd try both and stick to the one that fits my style better. About Ninja, I'm not really a fan. Femme Fatale costs less influence and it is way more useful, in my experience.

I also think that there are other options for HQ pressure that are "memory free". The first one that comes into mind is Vamp - you're already running the Adonis Campaign killer, one well-done Vamp is all you need to break the Corp for good. Another out of faction alternative is Emergency Shutdown - specially if paired with Vamp - as it will keep the Corp poor and punishes Archer and Grim, both very popular pieces of ICE in the current meta.

The economy is solid, but I'd try some small changes. At first, I'd add a third Kati Jones. I'm also not a huge fan of Daily Casts in any deck that's not Wyld/Shop, it is too slow for my taste. Three copies of Dirty Laundry might be risky too. I think it is worth at least to try a pair of Cyberfeeder to see how it works.

In the card advantage section, I really don't like Quality Time. I'd use Diesel or Mr. Li as soon as I get the influence, but I'm not sure which cards I'd remove. Maybe HQ Interface, maybe an icebreaker, it is hard to tell. That would require a lot of testing, and I'm aware that I'm a minority, so I won't say that you should try to replace Quality Time. If it works for you, stick with it.

At last, I think the deck is fine the way it is. I'd love to include a second copy of Ice Carver, maybe replacing a Deja Vu or an Infiltration, but it is not like I can't play with a single Ice Carver. It is a good card, but not a must have.

Red is the New Black

Tomorrow Reina Roja will be officially released and I guess a lot of people will be playing Anarch. There will be a lot of cards to try, as this is a great Data Pack (my favorite from Spin Cycle, until now) for everyone. We have not only a new identity, but a new console, a "ghetto Desperado", and Raymond Flint, the first card that synergizes with Frame Job! Time to hype, baby!

Well... if you're not a big fan of chess, you can play a back to basics archetype with Reina Roja.

And congratulations, Steven Wooley! I, for one, welcome our new Team Covenant overlord (you can find his report and his complete deck list here).

João “Hraklea” Almeida is a brazilian amateur card game player, and the responsable for the Android: Netrunner league in Porto Alegre - RS -, in partnership with Lojas Jambô. This is his current deck list.