I wanted new bad pub options... looks like they're coming. While I'm glad, Mining Accident looks like quite some power creep to me at first sight compared with Activist Support and Frame Job.
The multiplication of powerful Virtual cards (here Caldera and to a lesser extent Dummy Box) will hopefully give Foxfire its short time to shine before rotation.
Severnius looks like a lot of fun, but I need to mess around with it a bit more. Haven't had the chance yet because I'm too busy experimenting with Smoke, my current flavor of runner.
Thank you user. Once Earth's Scion hits shelves, I'm going to make a fast advance weyland deck based around good ol' Anson Rose and Red Planet Couriers. And the agenda I'll be trying to score is government takeover. I am very excited to try and make it work.
A pity Caldera is months away. It would be nice for crims to get their feedback filter sooner rather then later.
So giving it a bit more thought... first, a good thing is that, this hitting right on the edge of rotation the power creep isn't going to plague the old cards in any significant manner.
That being said, things I don't like with Mining Accident:
- First, the lack of a downside. Frame Job demanded an agenda sacrifice. Activist Support demanded that you tag yourself. So did Perrault (not to mention the black/grayop requirement). Leverage to have any chance to work as bad pub dishing needed you to bluff a kill for the corp. A successful central run is a lot less, being something you're bound to do anyway.
- Then the escalation. AS (which is my comparison point, the cards being closest I think) was something you could counter from zero credits if needed by going take credit -> take credit -> trash a tagged runner's resource - basically passing your turn. Here you can't do that - the corp needs to be sitting on 5+ credits, not only do you lose more, you have less margins.
- Last both choices can only really be in the runner's favor (compare with SYN Attack).
Now that being said, is there an argument for a meta with more volatile Bad Pub?
Anyone that played dedicated BP decks knows that, in spite of the difficulties, they're incredibly powerful when they work.
With the more-or-less recent asset spam woes, making bad pub dishing easier actually offers a pretty interesting answer.
But then you have to do it in ways that will not also destroy the running econ balance.
We've seen already how ICE transaction value seems to have been deemed too low for a while. Too much BP would only magnify that.
So then, not only would you need a similar raise in BP removal (and post rotation I think we only have Exposé, Sacrifice, and The All Seeing I left) you would need even more power creep in ICE or upgrades than the farily controlled one we've seen so far. And I don't know that we want that long term.
I'm not digging the card much to be honest. Would have been more interesting had it not been so incredibly close to Feedback Filter, design wise.
Like I don't know, let's crazy, reverse the polarity:
Prevent one net damage: the corp may win 3 credits.
Prevent one brain damage: the corp may draw up to two cards.
You may only use Caldera once per damage source.
(Not saying it's good design, but at least it would have expanded the game instead of looking a bit stale)
From a fluff standpoint, we already have that mutually helpful (hopefully at the worst time) back-and forth between Jinteki and Crims since H&P. I think it would fit.
I keep thinking naming the card Mining "Accident" with quotation marks would have made for funny yet creepy undertones, what with not knowing whoever it is of runner or corp the implication is targeting.
Another possibility is what some players have been advocating for for a while now: positive effects that can only be used once you're past a certain level of of bad publicity.
Say, a Weyland operation that could do more damage the more BP you have would be an interesting proposition in such a meta. ICE that is more aggressive the more BP you have (well, more than Ireress). Cards working like the Seven Wonders for BP - if you have more than a certain amount, an alternative effect is resolved.
The idea of Corps going "fuck it" and dishing it all out past a certain point has both some fluff and mechanical appeal.
Gotta be careful around that one though.
Threat Level Alpha is weird. I can only wonder what kind of deck could make use of it, considering Big Brother does something similar for a much MUCH lesser cost and doesn't see use. Not needing a run is pretty strong though.
Breached Dome is great, I don't know why they thought Shock needed the second card boost though.
MCA Austerity feels like a HB Public Support, with a much stronger effect for the higher investment cost. Hitting centrals for any 5/3s stray agendas is probably a good idea if you can't get in the server for this. I also find an MCA card in HB to be interesting, and that Helium Deposit gets a mention is hilarious.
If Mining Accident becomes prevalent, I atleast hope either BP removal or positive BP effects become more varied as well. A Weyland 0 cost SEA Source you can only play with 2 - 3 bad pub would be nice, though Aaron is still a thing. "The runner is considered tagged until the end of the turn"?
Gonna agree with the user above for being too similar to Feedback Filter; it's nice, but dull. Notably almost cripplingly strong against brain damage though.
Dummy Box is interesting since it protects everything, and gives dead draws an extra use. Could be good especially in a Skorpios meta, though it does add more tech against an ID that can already be teched well against.
TLA is a SEA source that doesn't need any run involved, which can be good if the corp is rich enough to make sure the runner gets a tag (the duplication of tags like big brother is a bonus really), and immediately do something after (CA, EoI, ASE, et al).
Good to combo with MCA over 2 turns if Mr Marron is lurking about.
How much jank is too much jank
Skorpios Jank Systems
Skorpios Defense Systems: Persuasive Power
Agenda (14)
1x Graft
3x Hostile Takeover
3x Illicit Sales
3x Evidence Collection
1x Priority Requisition
3x Private Security Force
Asset (7)
1x Ghost Branch ●
1x Investigator Inez Delgado
2x Marilyn Campaign ●●
3x Mr. Stone
Upgrade (5)
2x Black Level Clearance ●●●●● ●●●●●
3x K. P. Lynn
Operation (12)
3x Beanstalk Royalties
3x Hedge Fund
1x Hunter Seeker
2x Scorched Earth
1x SEA Source ●●
2x Shipment from Kaguya
Barrier (8)
2x Hailstorm
3x Ice Wall
3x Wall of Static
Code Gate (6)
3x Enigma
3x Hortum
Sentry (7)
1x Archer
2x Colossus
2x Hunter
2x Shadow
15 influence spent (max 15, available 0)
24 agenda points (between 24 and 25)
59 cards (min 40)
Cards up to Terminal Directive