Descent

Descent 2[credit]

Ice: Code Gate - Expendable
Strength: 1
Influence: 2

[click], 1[credit], reveal and trash this ice from HQ: Draw 1 card. Reveal up to 2 agendas in HQ and/or Archives and shuffle them into R&D.

When your turn begins, you may add this ice to HQ.

[subroutine] End the run.

A little circular reasoning never hurt anybody.
Illustrated by Krembler
Decklists with this card

Rebellion Without Rehearsal (rwr)

#125 • English
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  • Updated 2024-05-27

    Where is Descent's ability that lets you add it to HQ active?

    Descent's ability to add itself to HQ is only active while Descent is installed and rezzed. The ability is not active in Archives.

Reviews

cheap End the run ice with a dual purpose? sign me up !

Descent is essentially weyland's mini Spin Doctor, cant be used at instant speed but can also help deal with agenda/swamped hands ! this should not be seen as a replacement to our good little doctor of spins but as a nice addition to it.

the ability to bounce it back to HQ lets you not have to choose between its uses unlike its compatriot Tree Line, AND counters Arissana Rocha Nahu: Street Artist or other trojan heavy decks, not preventing itself from being bypassed, but providing an easy instant speed trash of the hosted program :3

(Rebellion Without Rehearsal era)

Descent (🌀) can protect agendas both:

  • with its ↳ End the run. subroutine, and
  • with its Shuffle up to 2 agendas in HQ and/or Archives … expendability.

And (because it draws 1 but shuffles 2), you can still tuck away an agenda already in HQ even if you also draw another one. For example, tucking two The Basalt Spire’s or SDS Drone Deployment’s can be brutal; unlike the in-faction Drudge Work, it won't earn you six credits, but also won't take up a deck slot, and isn't rotating. (However, @Sokka’s semi-spoiled champ card Key Performance Indicators seems to be a “Weyland Level Clearance” that can tuck agendas and advance anything, which could cannibalize Descent by also being an anti-flooding effect that's “multiple cards in single slot”. IDK.)


Like Tatu-Bola, it's a $2/1s/1↳ EtR that can reposition itself (& shrug off trojans) and/or gain “unbreakable” (non-subroutine) value. AFAICT, it's the last in NSG's cycle of “gearchecks with late-game” (tho the only Code Gate):

  • Ping (sg): has an On-Rez.
  • Ablative Barrier (tai): has a (Threat’d) On-Rez.
  • Tatu-Bola (tai): bounces to swap, for econ, and repositioning.
  • Descent (rwr): bounces to expend or reposition.
(Rebellion Without Rehearsal era)

Such a good ice with a cool ability. Obviouly, the expendable trait is taylor made for Nuvem SA: Law of the Land. But even other corp will profit from this ice.

First, it is a fairly cheap early gear check that end the run. But, it get better. Suddenly, you can get rid of trojan located on the ice by bringing it back to HQ. Just like Tatu-Bola (but barring Hush). At 2, it is fairly cheap to trash a trojan (like Slap Vandal).

Better yet, it allows the corp (and Nuvem in particular) to better manage their hand and archive to bring back agendas. Just like having Attitude Adjustment, but double with and ETR ice. If the corp play more than 8 agendas, having at least one Descent has fairly good value just for that.

Finally, at 2 influences, this can be played out of faction, especially if having hand management cards and ices is restricted by card slot (like a lot of Sportsmetal: Go Big or Go Home decks).

The art, name and quote goes well together. While I'm not entirely sure how it relate to the effect, it is a very good design.

(Rebellion Without Rehearsal era)
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