N.E.A.R.P.A.D - Decklist, Discussion and VoDs

Near Earth Active Response and Protected Asset Division

A different take on Near-Earth Hub

Already Near-Earth Hub: Broadcast Center has been shown to be an amazingly strong identity. The extra influence and card draw have been used to good effect to bolster NBN Fast Advance, but I think that the ID can offer so much more.



Here are some commentated VoDs of me playing this deck on OCTGN:

vs Noise
vs Reina
vs Nasir
vs Whizzard

Near-Earth Hub Broadcast Center

20 agenda points - 49 cards

Agenda (11)

* 3x AstroScript Pilot Program
* 3x NAPD Contract
* 3x Project Beale
* 2x TGTBT

Asset (19)

* 3x City Surveillance
* 3x Dedicated Response Team ••••• ••••
* 3x Encryption Protocol •••
* 3x Jackson Howard
* 2x Marked Accounts
* 3x PAD Campaign
* 2x Snare! ••••

Operation (9)

* 2x Closed Accounts
* 3x Hedge Fund
* 3x Interns
* 1x Psychographics

Barrier (2)

* 1x Eli 1.0 •
* 1x Wraparound

Code Gate (4)

* 3x Pop-up Window
*1x Tollbooth

Sentry (2)

* 1x Data Raven
* 1x Information Overload

Multi (2)

* 2x Rainbow

Key Deck Concepts

• There are 31 cards in the deck that can be installed facedown in a new remote, this deck aims to install in a new remote at least once each turn
• The sheer number of trashable cards overwhelms all runner economy. It is not possible to trash everything, and is even difficult for Whizzard. Interns and Encryption Protocol add to this.
• Landing tags on the runner allows you to slow them down through taxing both credits and cards.
• There are multiple win conditions: flatlining through Snare!/Dedicated Response Team/TGTBT, by scoring an overadvanced Project Beale with Psychographics, or by regular AstroScript Pilot Program chaining when the runner is to scared to run new remotes or centrals.

Playstyle

• There are a wide variety of acceptable starting hands. You are looking for at least two of: PAD Campaign, Marked Accounts, Pop-up Window or Jackson Howard, and not too many agendas. Due to the draw ability, bad starting hands are somewhat mitigated.
• Use the ID ability every turn if able. There are 31 cards in the deck that can be installed facedown in a new remote, so this shouldn't be difficult.
• Ice is almost exclusively for central servers. If you think you have a window for it, you can try and score an AstroScript Pilot Program behind a Tollbooth, but Tollbooth is usually best spent protecting your most heavily attacked central server.
• City Surveillance strategy: this card is an MVP in this deck. Almost noone will trash them when they're unrezzed, especially if you have a few Encryption Protocols running. Place them face down, and then wait until the runner ends their turn with 1 or 2 credits, then rez as many as you can, even if it bankrupts you. This gives them the option of floating tags (which is what we really want), or spending a lot of turns getting the money to trash them while remaining tag-free, only to have you re-install them with Interns.
• Dedicated Response Team strategy: try and hide their presence for as long as possible, only rezzing them when they commit to accessing a Snare! or TGTBT. The other time to start rezzing them is if they start floating tags. Either way, they're going to be trashing them aggressively after that, so either protect them with light ice, or Interns them back for maximum frustration. Once they start floating tags,Dedicated Response Team taxes every run with meat damage, and slows them down a lot.
• Avoid HQ agenda flood at all costs. I don't mind holding onto 1 or 2 NAPD Contracts or an AstroScript Pilot Program that I think I'll be scoring soon, but otherwise they need to be chucked in the archives once you have a Jackson Howardon the table.
• I inevitably need to devote a section to countering Account Siphon: try to keep enough assets on the table that you can rez, then hit them with Closed Accounts as soon as possible. Keeping unrezzed Dedicated Response Teams can also wreck an unprepared siphoner. This deck isn't too badly affected by siphon play, and can destroy a runner that decides to float tags.
• There are a thousand mind games you can play with this card composition. Things like: install/advance a TGTBT, making it look like an NAPD, then they take the tag when they run. I'll often leave AstroScript Pilot Program facedown unadvanced for a few turns if they're not checking remotes and I have other priorities for my clicks at the time.
• As of writing this, Astrobiotics NEH is by far the most popular build. The runner may play in anticipation of this, meaning that you may be able to get kills when they are rushing and are careless.

Weaknesses

• Whizzard. This matchup can still work out, you just need to install faster than he can trash with his recurring credits. Manually draw if needed to supplement your ID draw for new assets.
• Ignoring your assets, and keeping pressure on centrals. If they have the econ to continually ignore the city surveillance tax and can enough to also hit your central servers, then your remotes are pretty worthless. Aim to get difficult ice likeTollbooth and Data Raven rezzed on your key centrals.

Potential Adjustments and Alterations

• Diversified Portfolio could work really well; I usually have 5+ remotes early on in the game.
• Add a few more ice. I've tried a few different iterations of the deck with more, and some with less. Around 10 seems enough to tax your centrals sufficiently.
• More consistent ice. With lots of 1/2 ofs, Your ice composition will be different every game. Counterargument: allows unpredictability, mitigated by deck's draw power, allows multiple games against an opponent without them knowing what your ice will be.

Additional Notes

• I've been playing around with Dedicated Response Team for a fair while, so I'm glad that an ID finally came out that makes it great!