Stately Pleasure Dome (SC Winner)

JohnnyMilton 1052

You know the drill. I wanted to play an underplayed ID with a bunch of its partner cards. This is what happened.

An FA/rush deck that recycles Dedication Ceremonies for max impact.

The Identity

The 40 card deck size is the real drawcard. Don't be distracted by all those words. Not yet. The decksize makes shuffling cards back in from archives better and slots this agenda suite really elegantly.

The ID ability rewards advancing ICE though I don't think just having advanceable ICE is a whole strategy. It also means that having slightly less ICE in total is okay. Kind of. The draw rate is still the same, but in the mid to late game when you're cycling back in non-ICE cards, you're not going to be hurting chances of drawing that ICE you want.

Seriously, I fooled around with The Cleaners and tagging and Crisis Management in this. Too inconsistent. Amazing when it worked but too variable. It's not about the meat damage. The meat damage is just like a bonus subroutine for doing something this deck can support now that Mausolus has been released and advancing ICE has some real economy (see more in the ICE section).

This is just a tight deck full of cards that synergise really well, after assuming the conceit that there are going to be advanceables.

The Agendas & Scoring Them

Project Atlas can be scored using Trick of Light, or left in the remote unadvanced and scored the next turn with relative safety. If you can score safely over two turns to get extra counters, awesome.

Oaktown Renovation is great as a first rush agenda. Can also be scored off a Mumbad Construction Co. with either Trick Of Light or a Ceremony on the turn you rez the MCC (Trick Of Light being way cheaper). I actually managed to win a game by playing a Beanstalk Royalties, clicking for a credit to get up to 8 credits, then installing it last click and moving 4 MCC counters over that had built up over a few turns.

Hollywood Renovation has 4 different modes of scoring that are pretty cool:

1) The no-tricks rush score is okay early game in the absence of significant shenanigans on the runner's part. Those advancement counters are pretty nice.

2) Rez MCC : install Hollywood Renovation : Dedication Ceremony on the MCC : advance the agenda : move counters over from MCC. (total cost 14 credits)

3) Rez MCC : install Hollywood Renovation : double Trick Of Light : move counter over from MCC (total cost 8 credits if including the cost of advancing ICE, 4 credits if not)

4) Turn one = Install : advance : Dedication Ceremony. Turn two = Install Project Atlas, and double advance the Renovation, putting counters on the Atlas and scoring both.

Strong agenda. Beefy.

The Other Tricks

Dedication Ceremony plus GRNDL Refinery and Reversed Accounts is awesome. It gains serious tempo. I even GRNDLed out of a Vamp from the richest Maxx I'd ever seen (props to David Lynch, real name no gimmicks).

Chuck Anson Rose behind a double advanced Mausolus, Fire Wall or even Ice Wall and you're gonna have a good time. Mausolus : Anson behind it : rez Anson : Dedicayion Ceremony is threatening. He can also make a great Trick Of Light battery, as some Titan decks are putting to good use.

This deck previously used Contract Killer to deal with Aaron Marron, in its tag-and-bag incarnation. This deck also originally had a Bryan Stinson and I think he would work better in a similar deck played out of Gagarin Deep Space.

The Utilities

Jackson Howard and Preemptive Action recycle those Dedication Ceremonies and Tricks and money and destroyed ICE. I'm tempted to drop an Accounts and maybe a Jackson for a Special Report or an Anonymous Tip; this deck goes better fast.

The ICE

Almost all advanceable. Smaller deck means less ICE. Based on the Damon theory that advancing a piece of ICE 3 times should be worth as much as installing a new one (save a click drawing, a click installing and a credit for the server cost plus the rez cost), Fire Wall, Mausolus and Ice Wall live up to that. Changeling I always switch to its most taxing mode or effective type. Builder does surprising work. Great tax for a 2 cost code gate.

This deck hates Sifr + Parasite to be fair. But it if played aggressively it has some game. Especially with the Reversed Accounts.

In hindsight, playing this immediately after Martial Law's release would have been truly amazing. I feel some regret.

The Playstyle

Put stuff in the remote. Tax them out with repeat runs kinda like jammy HB. Use Ceremonies on anything that looks like the best target. Advance ICE whenever the runner's board state indicates you need to adjust to stay taxing. Early tempo and scoring is important. After sticking one agenda early, scoring the second two or three for the win becomes much more feasible. Really fast runners are the bane of this deck. Leaving R&D open in exchange for the early remote rush is legit.

The Future

My next changes are -3 Jackson Howard, -1 Reversed Accounts, +2 Special Report, +1 or +2 Preemptive Action. It should add some speed because Special Report will allow for more accurate and faster HQ control than Jackson. Also because advancing ICE means you're not moving cards out of HQ.

21 comments
5 Feb 2017 Genesys

Super cool deck and congrats on the win. Would you consider a Macrophage over the CVS.

5 Feb 2017 JohnnyMilton

@Genesys Definitely. In this case, I went with the CVS so that I could bluff it as a Crisium Grid or Atlas in the remote, and as anti-clot tech.

5 Feb 2017 willybn1

Errr Special Order? Is this code for a corp card? looks good though, I'm gonna build this tonight and will report back to the Lounge.

5 Feb 2017 willybn1

Ah, Special Offer. As you were.

5 Feb 2017 JohnnyMilton

@willybn1 Oh whoops! I meant Special Report, sorry.

5 Feb 2017 Saan

Seems like maybe if you can fit a couple Bryan Stinson in there, it might have some synergy with the Reversed combo to allow for a huge credit burst. Since he's an Upgrade anyhow, you can just throw him in your best server.

Also, I was going to harry you about having no Sentries, and the value of making them install the breaker, then I realized that you are running 3 of them, and they're called Changeling =P

Seems like a really cool deck. I like the idea of just using the meat damage as a tax, although I really wish there was some kinda punishment for letting your hand drop too low. Obviously it's basically impossible to fit punishment in this deck, as slots are pretty tight, but that doesn't stop that part of me that wants to kill careless people =P

Anyhow, I like it! I'll probably mess around with variations of your deck this week =)

5 Feb 2017 hi_impact

Election Day is much better than Anonymous Tip. Check it out sometime.

5 Feb 2017 Michael2.0

Can you explain parts 2 and 3 to me, in slow-motion, since you can't put advancement counters on MCC (from hollywood renovation). It states you may place an adv. counter on a card that can be advanced, while MCC can't be advanced.

5 Feb 2017 Michael2.0

Or did you take into account the "at start of turn" advancement counter? My wee ol' tired mind :(

6 Feb 2017 Saan

@Michael2.0 Yeah, you rez the MCC and it gets 1 counter as the turn begins. You then dedicate it to 4 counters. Click two you install the Hollywood, and click 3 you advance it once, simultaneously dumping counters onto it from the MCC. I would imagine that the free advancement counter you get from Hollywood goes on a random advanceable ICE, but you are correct that it can't go onto the MCC. Fortunately, it doesn't have to.

Although he did get the math wrong; it only costs 13 credits, not 14. The cost breakdown goes: 4 credits to rez the MCC. Advancing the Hollywood takes 1, bringing total costs to 5. It then takes 2 credits per counter to bring them over from the MCC, and we need all 4 of them (2x4=8). This brings us to 13 credits total (4+1+8 =13). I'd imagine he just messed up and counted every advancement on Hollywood as requiring 2 credits.

6 Feb 2017 Michael2.0

@saan 4 MCC, 1 Adv C, 1 Ded. C, 8 pop over = 14 I'm not the only tired one :)

6 Feb 2017 Saan

@Michael2.0 OH SHIT. Yeah, Dedication costs money =P #rekd #just2AMthings #weylandlife #howdoIrushwhenthisentiredeckcosts5torezanything

7 Feb 2017 JohnnyMilton

@Saan yeah fair, add an extra Ice Wall for a Fire Wall and a Quandary for Mausolus and it'll feel rushier. But when I play it's rushy like Jammy HB is rushy - you just keep making them run the remote and either way you benefit - with either a scoring window or a Reversed Accounts/GRNDL fire.

11 Feb 2017 overlord midas

This looks really cool. Congrats on the SC win!

13 Feb 2017 bubbathegoat

Cool deck, but in the absence of Bryan Stinson, how much value is Reversed Accounts giving you? I know taking the runner to 0 helps your rush game a lot, but you have a number of expensive FA options that could take better advantage of your own credit pool, which GRNDL Refinery boosts for not influence cost.

Macrophage vs CVS is an interesting discussion, but I think CVS is slightly better. Sapper is also great, since it will fire frequently out of an undefended R&D.

Does Anson Rose do a lot of work for you? I've never used him.

I really like the Trick of Light synergy in this ID. They are essentially like 2x Biotic Labor, but for fewer credits and influence, since you want to advance ICE anyways.

My only caution about cutting Jackson Howard for Special Report is that the report does not recycle your Dedication Ceremony, which it seems like is your best card along with Trick of Light, both of which you're like to see again after you use them once. As others have said Election Day with Jackson on the board can be a pretty cool draw play.

13 Feb 2017 Ulkrond

Congratulations! You've done it! Now you gotta take it to Worlds 2017! I was always impressed at how functional #=Hollywood Renovation worked with the ID but you definitely fine tuned it to a real rush style build that I couldn't have foreseen. I love it.

13 Feb 2017 Tozar

I played this last week and I really liked what you were trying to do with Mumbad Constructions Co and Reversed Accounts, but I can't fathom running this deck without Bryan Stinson. The economy required for rushing out a Hollywood Renovation just isn't there if the runner is applying any sort of pressure. I also changed the ID to core to make ramping up easier, replaced most of the ice suite with cheaper ice and ice that taxes on encounter (data pike, for example).

Moving counters from MCC to a reversed accounts you just installed, then clicking Bryan is hilarious and mean.

14 Feb 2017 JohnnyMilton

@bubbathegoatYou're spot on - in recent games I've gone: -1 Reversed Accounts, -1 Jackson, +1 Preemptive Action, +1 Cortex Lock, to help with the early game rush. Also swapping a Changeling for an Ice Wall has been pretty good!

Next I think I'll swap another Reversed Accounts to get that Jackson back and, depending on how we go, try to find space for Election Day and another GRNDL Refinery!

14 Feb 2017 JohnnyMilton

@Tozar Yeah, I totally hear you. This used to have Stinson and I reckon that's a totally legit call.

For keeping it in this ID, I reckon dropping the Reversed Accounts might make this more focused.

But seriously, the MCC + Accounts play is CRUEL... I love it!!

15 Feb 2017 esutter479

I love this deck! I played 2 games with it last night, and the fun factor is through the roof. My first game with it was against Geist, and it was 6-4, runner ahead. I had a Hollywood Reno in hand, a Trick of Light ready to go, and I FINALLY stuck a MCC on the board (was previously trashed through R&D accesses) w/Dedication counters on it from the previous turn. Admittedly, being a rookie at this deck probably cost me the win, but as I said...fun factor infinity! Anyway, he top decked an Oaktown and won...but I showed him what was coming, and he was like "phew!" Darn single accesses, lol.

Seriously, I cannot WAIT to see this in its final form!

21 Mar 2017 Dloaf

I cannot make this deck work. Looked fun, but I just must not be able to play it.