Highlander Strategy

by Jens Kreutzer

The "Highlander" format is an overlooked, but rather interesting variant for Constructed tournaments, the concept of which can be summed up in one sentence quoted from the movie Highlander: "There can only be one!" (namely, only one copy of each card is allowed in a deck). On first glance, this lets Highlander appear to be some kind of glorified Sealed Deck format, because only seldom will you pull several copies of the same card in Sealed. But I think that it is not that easy. In the 2004 German Netrunner Nationals, we tried this Highlander format. The idea was that players who usually are reluctant to enter Constructed tournaments because of their small card collections would be attracted by this "leveling" environment: They can compete with the grossest "card lords" on equal footing if they have just one complete set of Netrunner. In the end, only six players participated (and the usual suspects to boot), but we liked the format a lot.

Since for Highlander, there is no strategy discussion of note to be found anywhere, I'd like to put together some thoughts of my own. These are based on my limited experience from the German Nationals. I have the decklists of all the participants as data to base my evaluation on. To print all twelve lists here would be a bit boring, but if anybody is interested in them, just email me and I will send you the file.

Well, to my mind, there are several questions that pose themselves right away.

1. Is there a "perfect" Highlander deck? We should definitely take a closer look at the two decks that won the tournament. But we should also look at statistics: Cards that are deemed especially good for the format will show up in almost every deck.

2. Do you play the same cards that you would consider good in a Sealed tournament? Here, statistics will help as well.

3. Is it possible to play distinct archetypes in Highlander, like Tag'n'Bag, Net damage, fast advancement etc.? If so, which one is strongest?

Let's start with a "hit list" of the best-liked cards.

Corporation
Agendas

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	Corporate War	6
2	Tycho Extension	5
3	Employee Empowerment	4
3	Unlisted Research Lab	4
4	Corporate Downsizing	3
4	Data Fort Remapping	3
4	Main-Office Relocation	3
5	Corporate Retreat	2
5	Marine Arcology	2
5	On-Call Solo Team	2
Honorary mention (used by one player each): AI Chief Financial Officer, Executive Extraction, Fetal AI, Marked Accounts, Security Purge, Theorem Proof.

There are 31 agendas in the game of Netrunner that weren't used by any player at all. The hit list isn't very surprising and reminds me of Sealed-deck play. Rare cards play only a marginal role here, as do specific themes such as Tag'n'Bag. Cheap and sleek, Corp War and Tycho Extension ruled the day.

Nodes

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	BBS Whispering Campaign	6
1	Rockerboy Promotion	6
2	Braindance Campaign	5
3	Chicago Branch	4
3	Department of Truth Enhancement	4
3	Holovid Campaign	4
3	South African Mining Corp	4
4	Vapor Ops	2
5	ACME Savings & Loan	2
5	Information Laundering	2
5	Pacifica Regional AI	2
5	Schlaghund	2
5	Setup!	2
5	Spinn Public Relations	2
5	TRAP!	2
5	Vacant Soulkiller	2
5	Virus Test Site	2
Honorary mention (used by one player each): Bel-Digmo Anti- body, City Surveillance, Investment Firm, Siren, Strategic Plan- ning Group.

Only the tournament winner, Fabian, didn't play Braindance Campaign, and everybody played BBS Whispering Campaign and Rockerboy Promotion. The money nodes are clearly on top here, unsurprisingly. Advancement helpers come second, followed by some few damage cards. Conspicuously absent are Sealed-deck favorite Government Contract, Blood Cat, and Corporate Negotiating Center.

Upgrades

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	Bizarre Encryption Scheme	3
2	Networked Center	1
2	Rio de Janeiro City Grid	1
2	Roving Submarine	1
2	Sterdroid	1

Upgrades, it turns out, were hardly used at all.

Operations

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	Accounts Receivables	6
1	Project Consultants	6
1	Systematic Layoffs	6
2	Efficiency Experts	5
2	Management Shake-Up	5
3	Credit Consolidation	4
3	Off-site Backups	4
3	Overtime Incentives	4
4	Night Shift	3
4	Urban Renewal	3
5	Falsified-Transactions Expert	2
5	Manhunt	2
Honorary mention (used by one player each): Chance Obser- vation, Corporate Guard Temps, Day Shift, Edgerunner, Inc., Temps, Punitive Counterstrike, Scorched Earth, Trojan Horse.

Few surprises here, but half of the players didn't want to miss out on the chance a well-timed Urban Renewal offers them.

Ice

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	Quandary	5
2	Fire Wall	4
2	Keeper	4
2	Mazer	4
2	Nerve Labyrinth	4
3	Banpei	3
3	Bolter Cluster	3
3	Cerberus	3
3	Crystal Wall	3
3	Data Naga	3
3	Data Wall	3
3	Data Wall 2.0	3
3	Glacier	3
3	Haunting Inquisition	3
3	Neural Blade	3
3	Rock Is Strong	3
3	Wall of Static	3

Ice choice was much more variegated; ranks 4-5 are not shown. That code gates and walls lead the field is perhaps explained by the smaller number that is available in comparison with sentries. Glacier and Haunting Inquisition really deserve a higher rank, I think. Nerve Labyrinth is a bit of a surprise. All in all, this list looks similar to Sealed choice as well: Neural Blade, Banpei and Bolter Cluster just give a good run for the money. Quandary as the anti-Skeleton-Passkeys-ice leads the field: Very likely a metagame choice. This brings us to the Runner.

Runner
Programs: Icebreakers

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	Cyfermaster	4
1	Skeleton Passkeys	4
2	Pile Driver	3
2	Redecorator	3
2	Rent-I-Con	3
3	Big Frackin' Gun	2
3	Codecracker	2
3	Corrosion	2
3	Dwarf	2
3	Early Worm	2
3	Loony Goon	2
3	Matador	2
3	Shaka	2
3	Wrecking Ball	2
Honorary mention (used by one player each): AI Boon, Bartmoss Memorial Icebreaker, Hammer, Jackhammer, Psychic Friend, Ramming Piston, Raptor, Wizard's Book.

It seems that the metagame choice for Quandary was justified, with Passkeys right at the top. Also at the top is the anti-card for Quandary, Keeper and Mazer, though: Cyfermaster. Pile Driver was a no-brainer, but Redecorator sure has become a shooting star. Rent-I-Con was the breaker of choice for half of the players, and I can tell you: It works, even in Highlander. Fabian played both Rent-I-Con and Bartmoss/Joan in his winning stack!

Programs: Non-Icebreakers

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	Newsgroup Filter	6
2	Zetatech Software Installer	4
3	Imp	3
3	Shredder Uplink Protocol	3
4	Afreet	2
4	Clown	2
4	Emergency Self-Construct	2
4	Self-Modifying Code	2
4	Succubus	2
Honorary mention (used by one player each): Enterprise, Inc., Shields, Joan of Arc, Microtech AI Interface, Mouse, R&D Protocol Files, Skullcap, Startup Immolator, Superglue, Taxman, Vienna 22.

I would have considered Emergency Self-Construct a must-include, but only two players did run it. With Filter and ZSI, bit-gainers lead the field. Very few virus cards - because you cannot run then in multiples, perhaps they are not worth it, like in Sealed.

Hardware

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	Zetatech Mem Chip	5
2	Militech MRAM Chip	4
2	Vintage Camaro	4
3	WuTech Mem Chip	3
4	Microtech Backup Drive	2
4	MRAM Chip	2
4	Nasuko Cycle	2
Honorary mention (used by one player each): Bodyweight Data Creche, Little Black Box, R&D Interface, Tycho Mem Chip.

No Zetatech Portastation, no The Deck? Mainly memory and hand-size increasers take up the list. The Backup Drive is for Rent-I-Con, of course. People relied on tag prevention rather than on Emergency Self-Construct, it seems.

Resources

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	The Short Circuit	6
2	Broker	5
2	Junkyard BBS	5
3	The Shell Traders	4
3	Short-term Contract	4
4	Expendable Family Member	3
4	Fall Guy	3
4	Mercenary Subcontract	3
4	R&D Mole	3
4	Rigged Investments	3
4	Streetware Distributor	3
4	Technician Lover	3
5	Back Door to Hilliard	2
5	Crash Everett, Inventive Fixer	2
5	Executive File Clerk	2
5	Liberated Savings Account	2
5	Loan from Chiba	2
5	Wired Switchboard	2
Honorary mention (used by one player each): Access to Arasaka, Airport Locker, Aujourd'Oui, Back Door to Netwatch, Corporate Ally, Credit Subversion, Danshi's Second ID, Databroker, Death from Above, HQ Mole, N.E.T.O., Sandbox Dig, Swiss Bank Account, Top Runners' Conference, Umbrella Policy.

Fabian was the only one who didn't use Broker. Is he crazy, or is Broker overrated? In a format where your favorite cards only feature in one copy, Short Circuit and Junkyard are good ideas obviously. It is interesting to see that so many players liked Shell Traders (while nobody played Precision Bribery).

Preps

rank	name	used by x players (of 6)
1	Bodyweight Synthetic Blood	6
1	Jack 'n' Joe	6
1	Score!	6
2	Custodial Position	5
2	Inside Job	5
2	Networking	5
2	Rush Hour	5
2	Temple Microcode Outlet	5
3	All-hands	4
3	Cruising for Netwatch	4
3	Executive Wiretaps	4
3	Lucidrine Booster Drug	4
3	Mantis, Fixer-at-Large	4
3	Panzer Run	4
4	Gideon's Pawnshop	3
4	If You Want It Done Right...	3
4	Livewire's Contacts	3
4	Sneak Preview	3
5	Arasaka Owns You	2
5	Core Command: Jettison Ice	2
5	Library Search	2
5	MIT West Tier	2
5	Priority Wreck	2
5	Security Code WORM Chip	2
5	Social Engineering	2
5	Stakeout	2
Honorary mention (used by one player each): Blackmail, Booster- gang Connections, Do the 'Drine, Edited Shipping Manifests, For- gotten Backup Chip, Hunt Club BBS, misc.for-sale, On the Fast Track, Organ Donor, The Personal Touch, Playful AI, Synchro- nized Attack on HQ, Terrorist Reprisal, Valu-Pak Software Bundle, Weefle Initiation.

No big surprises with the preps: Bodyweight, Jack 'n' Joe and Score! remain all-time favorites. So far, the statistics seem to suggest that Highlander is indeed very close to Sealed Deck. But let's now have a look at what the individual decks tried to accomplish.

rank	Corp
1	Fast-advancement with meat and Net damage.
2	Fast-advancement with Rio City Grid and Roving Sub.
3	Fast-advancement with Gray Ops, Sleepy Ice.
4	Fast-advancement with Networked Center.
5	Fast-advancement with "trap" cards and tagging/Urban.
6	Tag'n'Bag with fast-advancement and ambush nodes.

While fast-advancement was a given, each player tried to add some gimmick or surprise to it. A good mix seems to be a good idea: The winning deck included three avenues to victory (fast-advancement, Tag'n'Bag, Net damage). Sadly, the deck that included the most Tag'n'Bag cards also finished in last place.

rank	Runner
1	Rent-I-Con + Bartmoss MI, ice destruction, Taxman.
2	Rent-I-Con + breaker suite, HQ/R&D attack, ice destruction.
3	AI Boon, multi-access, Tech Lover, Corporate Ally.
4	Rent-I-Con + breaker suite, HQ/R&D control, multi-access.
5	Multi-access, Terrorist Reprisal, Vienna 22.
6	Multi-access.

Unlike in Sealed games, HQ attack and ice destruction seem to be feasible in Highlander. The audacity to play both Rent-I-Con and Bartmoss paid off for Fabian, but bodes ill for breaker variety. Strangely enough: The winning stack had no multi-access whatsoever! This is a clear departure from Sealed deck. In fact, the stack that most closely resembled a Sealed deck finished in last place.

To conclude: The Corp decks do look rather similar and are close to Sealed deck, but they always come with a fascinating twist. The Runner stacks suffer from Rent-I-Con monoculture, but represent a clear departure from Sealed deck, which in my eyes is quite a surprise. Hopefully, this article has given you an impression of what you can expect in a Highlander tournament and whetted your appetite for giving it a try.