Principia (🍎) completes the Unity–Echelon cycle of “Breakers-matter Breakers” (from System Gateway).

For example, if you already have the Decoder and Killer installed, then the Fracter costs 2[$] (like Gauss); or even less, if you have an empty Propeller around too. Otherwise, it can still cost 4[$] (like Pressure Spike).

BTW, I like the (Programs trashed as part of installing this program don’t count.) reminder text, especially for a core set.

Flavor-wise, “On the shoulders of giants.” refers to This program costs 1[$] less to install for each other installed icebreaker.: the more Galileo’s and Ibn al-Haytham’s who came before, the easier “Philosophiæ Naturalis Principia Mathematica” was for Newton to come up with (apocryphally, after getting bonked on the head with an apple, as in the artwork).

(Cleaver is banned.)

Rising Tide (🌊) becomes a 1[$] Corroder, having base strength 2 once you've trashed your 2nd copy.

Synergies:

• Temporary Fracters: Like Propeller. Especially self-trashing ones (like a new Spike or Demara would be). Since they end up in the heap anyways.

• “Auxiliary” Fracters: Like Banner. Since it can be your 3rd Fracter, by complementing a pair of Rising Tides.

• Multi-type Fracters: Like Penrose or Lobisomem. Both are Decoder - Fracter’s, that primarily break codegates (thus filling the “decoder deckslot”), and only secondarily break barriers.

• Anarch self-mill/self-burn/sacrifice: Like Lago Paranoá Shelter and Tsakhia "Bankhar" Gantulga.

• Any novel “Utility” Icebreakers: Like Interface → Whenever a barrier subroutine resolves, gain 1[$]..

See s:fracter z:standard .

Within Elevation (as a core set), Tide:

• nudges newer players towards multiple copies of icebreakers. Which lets them get past Barriers sooner, keeps them from getting locked out by a Destroyer, and so on.
• has an explicit deckbuilding incentive. The 101 is just "sleeve up more fracters", and the 102 is "or cards that get those fracters into the heap".

NB. You can “expend” a second copy by over-installing the first (even if you have unused memory). CF. [click], 1[$], Trash this program from your grip: Place a “+1 strength” counter on an installed “Rising Tide” program.

When installing a program, the Runner may first trash any number of programs already installed. They must do so if installing the new program would exceed their memory limit.

— Rule 8.5.6.c. (thanks @zhansonic)

It's the retrain of Archer! As a result, we have a direct comparison of how strong this card is (but the tl;dr is Archer is good and so is Biawak).

First off, being rezzable without forfeiting an agenda or choosing to for the same 4c rez cost is already a huge boon; it's a strong tempo loss but being forced to respect a Weyland with big money due to this card's devastating facecheck regardless of whether you think they're willing to surrender points is excellent. Of course, this is probably the best ICE to rez from an Eminent Domain score or a SAM on a Tucana (DON'T do this if you have more than 11c+install cost after; you'll be forced to rez the card for full price or by forfeiting by Tucana). The biggest mark against this rez cost is that you can no longer scoop your Biawak for 3c tutors in Ob.

And let's talk about that facecheck, it trades the 4th gain 2c subroutine (quite useful if you were bankrupting yourself on rezzing Archer) and second program trash subs for being able to trash a Resource (plenty of strong hits eg Bankhar) or functionally having 3 ETRs to Archer's one. The facecheck has less potential to shoot two breakers and win the game on the spot, but targeting Resources means it can set the Runner back in the early to midgame more often where they might only have 1 program and a Resource or something, so this isn't a bad trade.

Looking at the break, 6str matches Archer and does well into common breakers like Echelon, Carmen, and Revolver, but you can still blow it up with Devil Charm + Crew. The one lower subroutine often went unbroken on Archer to save Revolver bullets or some other resource e.g money, so the ICE isn't making you money past its rez like Archer did and it taxes one less on Physarum Entangler. On the other hand, common ICE cheating solutions like Boomerang and Botulus have a MUCH harder time getting all the way through this ICE due to the multiple ETRs, which cannot be undervalued.

As a result, my conclusion is that Biawak is mostly actually an upgrade. It's less likely to win the game if the Runner is reckless on facecheck and probably worse for Ob specifically, but the added resilience to ICE cheating, being rezzable without forfeiting and subroutines more relevant in the early game are incredibly useful. This slimy little komodo dragon (that is not at all little) will be eating plenty of runners. And I see Moth is sending more members of NSG to their net demise.

This card pairs well with GAMEDRAGON™ Pro, allowing you to ensure that stacked pieces of ice will share a subtype. Now the boosted strength being carried over will likely be more useful!

On the downside, you still have to watch out for cards like Hammer which demand a specific type of breaker in their text.

A near print of Egret which I always thought was a cool card but I didn't see other people playing it. Perhaps to reflect that fact this card is both cheaper (1 credit instead of 2) and doesn't have the restriction of having to be installed on a rezzed piece of ice - meaning you could use to face check when you have a single breaker installed. Of those changes I feel like the lifting the rezzed restriction is a bigger deal. Writing this just prior to the release of Elevation so I've not actually played with it yet but seems like a cool card, both for early game face checking and also as a tool for dealing with a tricky bit of ice so you can use your best/most efficient breaker