Seems pretty weak for a cost of 8. With enough NEXT ICE out, it could flat-line the runner, but at that stage of the game, the runner can probably deal with a 4 strength Sentry.

My thoughts exactly. It takes too long to become effective.

I agree with the above comments: that's the most expensive strength-4 Sentry. In the end, it only has two subroutines. By the time you spring the "trap," the Runner is prepared for it.

Maaaaaan...say what?

I've been waiting for NEXT Gold for many months, and this is just a massive let down. Anticlimactic at the very least.

I don't get the hate for this card. It's practically an Ichi 2.0 that can't be clicked through and that's assuming it's the only NEXT ice on the table.

I don't get the hate for this card. It's practically an Ichi 2.0 that can't be clicked through and that's assuming it's the only NEXT ice on the table.

The cost to effect is not good. This is priced as mid to late game ice, but mid to late game a strength 4 2 sub sentry is taxing, but not a show stopper. The punishing subs are unlikely to fire, making it largely pointless. It is basically a "Timmy" card; big effect but usually impractical or unlikely to trigger. I was hoping for something like a piece of ice that got +1 subroutine with a significant impact per rezzed piece of NEXT ice. Like, gains sub-> 1 brain damage for each rezzed NEXT ice. The impact on hit as well as the tax on break would scale with the number of NEXT ice rezzed. Something along those lines.

I don't get the hate for this card. It's practically an Ichi 2.0 that can't be clicked through and that's assuming it's the only NEXT ice on the table.

Most killers will get through this for 4 credits or fewer. Some get through it for 2.

It has 1 less strength than Ichi 2.0 and 1 fewer subroutine. Ichi 2.0 generally can't actually be clicked through, and as the Corp, I want the Runner to blow clicks mid-run.

Ichi 2.0 is decent, but hardly great. This isn't as good.

Finally, Gold is really the same no matter how much NEXT ICE is rezzed. Faerie costs 2. Dagger is 2 plus a stealth credit. Femme bypass costs 2. Mimic is 2 plus a Datasucker token.

That's awfully easy for 8 to rez. It's not even good at taxing. Snowflake is as expensive to get through and costs 1 to rez. Snowflake.

Get it out early enough and the Runner can go programless and walk through it to take 1 net damage for a cost of 8 credits to the Corp. That has to be among the most expensive ways to make a naked Runner trash 1 card that exists currently in the game.

Personally, I would have preferred something like this:

NEXT Gold, 8 cost, 6 strength, Sentry

The rez cost of NEXT Gold is decreased by 1 for each rezzed piece of NEXT ice.

- [Subroutine] Do 1 brain damage.

- [Subroutine] Trash 1 program.

But whatever. Now we've got this and have to deal with it.

Most killers will get through this for 4 credits or fewer. Some get through it for 2.

 

It has 1 less strength than Ichi 2.0 and 1 fewer subroutine. Ichi 2.0 generally can't actually be clicked through, and as the Corp, I want the Runner to blow clicks mid-run.

 

Ichi 2.0 is decent, but hardly great. This isn't as good.

 

Finally, Gold is really the same no matter how much NEXT ICE is rezzed. Faerie costs 2. Dagger is 2 plus a stealth credit. Femme bypass costs 2. Mimic is 2 plus a Datasucker token.

 

That's awfully easy for 8 to rez. It's not even good at taxing. Snowflake is as expensive to get through and costs 1 to rez. Snowflake.

 

Get it out early enough and the Runner can go programless and walk through it to take 1 net damage for a cost of 8 credits to the Corp. That has to be among the most expensive ways to make a naked Runner trash 1 card that exists currently in the game.

This might be your best post ever. Agreed down the line.

If this were just some random new piece of stand-alone ice, I would just shrug and be like whatever. But putting forth NEXT Bronze and Silver and the entire NEXT mechanic of ice that makes other ice in a subset cumulatively better and then making us wait for a long time to get NEXT Gold, FFG failed to deliver on an implicit promise to deliver a complete suite of ice that is both viable and stylish.

A sad-making turn of events. But, as AdorablePython says...

...But whatever. Now we've got this and have to deal with it.

Due to it's high cost, the assumption seems to be that this is a weak late ice, when in fact it is a pricey early game changer. I play as NEXT Design, so I get my ice on the table quickly. This could easily be my third rezzed NEXT ice within the first few turns, and I wouldn't think twice to break the bank for 3 net damage and a decimated rig.

That's an interesting perspective.

I'm perfectly willing to grant you that this might work well in NEXT Design with a full NEXT suite. That's a pretty specific niche. Perhaps even Foundry (or NEXT 2.0 as we call it locally).

But, two qualifying questions:

1) does it work better than an equivalently priced piece of ice with more effect, or a less expensive piece of ice with equivalent effect. I.e. is the NEXT ice boost good enough in the early game play to make the $8 worth it?

2) as this is a very recent release, how many games have you been able to run this card so far, and what was the high, low, and average result when you managed to rez and stick it?

I haven't played NEXT Design since soon after it released and I couldn't make the ID work well enough to be worth it, and I played Foundry for a bit with a few different configurations including NEXT ice and Grail, Mother Goddess, etc, but ended up taking it apart as it was a very un-fun deck for both me and my opponent (subjectively), and wasn't that great to begin with (objectively based on win / loss). So, I've got a little bit of a feel for the deck type but I'm always willing to defer to someone with more experience on a given subject and would value your responses.

Awakening Center hosts only bioroids piece of ice.

Well, at least it still boost the other NEXT ICEs. If you've managed to activate like 4 or 5 Bronze/silver NEXTs, it's actualy a good ICE, mostly because it buffs 4 or 5 of your other ICEs. Even if it remains itself a discount Ichi 2.0.

Then this could easily end a game with a corporate troubleshooter at the right time!

Then this could easily end a game with a corporate troubleshooter at the right time!

Corporate Troubleshooter...now there's a card I haven't thought about in a while.

Still, $8 to rez + $??? to pump CT == a very high price to pay; particularly considering that some number of other NEXT ice must already be rezzed to make X > runner's grip.

There are easier and cheaper ways to flatline.

However, if an opponent pulled this off against me, I'd give them 10 points for style.

One way to rez this would be Shoot the Moon, if the runner has a couple of tags. Of course to get the runner tagged is just a new problem to be solved and HB-deck with tagging capability with NEXT-ICE is just making things harder for the corp. Also the element of surprise is gone when you Shoot the Moon with this ICE.