NISEI Comprehensive Rules Document
This rules document is to be used as reference material. It is not intended to be read straight
through. If you still have questions after consulting this document, please ask us online via email or Twitter.
This is version 1.5 of this document, effective
13 August 2021.
Summary of Changes
The biggest changes from version 1.4 are detailed below. To see this document with a complete
list of changes and with new material highlighted, please visit the Comprehensive
Rules Hub at <nisei.net/comp-rules>.
- Added the notion of “objects” to consolidate rules about how
effects interact with cards moving around (section 1.12). An object refers to a card or
counter, but only until it moves to another zone.
- Changed the rules for consoles to work like unique cards (section 3.8.5).
- Updated rules for icebreakers (section 3.9.5) and ice encounters (section 6.5) to support the new
“interface” keyword. Added rules for fully breaking ice in an encounter
(section 6.5.7).
- Expanded the zone and location rules to include counters. The bank is now
defined as a zone (section
4.7), and the locations of counters in the play area are explained in section 4.6.5.
- Terminology about where cards are installed is now consistent across all
servers. Reorganized rules about servers (section 4.6.6), central servers (section 4.6.7), and remote servers (section 4.6.8).
- Added section 5.1.4 to clarify “turn
begins” and “turn ends” abilities, particularly the new “discard phase
ends” phrasing, which has the same timing as older “turn ends” abilities.
- Changed the definition of an action from any paid ability with [click] in
its trigger cost to only paid abilities where the trigger cost begins with [click] (section 5.2.1).
- Completely reworked and updated the timing structure of a run
(section 6).
- Completely reworked the rules for accessing (section 7). Most importantly, the new
keyword “breach” encapsulates the rules for accessing the set of cards associated with a
particular server.
- Introduced mid-access abilities as a new kind of paid ability, and
redefined the Runner’s opportunity to trash cards they access as an ability of this kind, called
the “basic trash ability” (section 7.1.5).
- Introduced a new procedure for drawing cards that allows for cleaner
handling of abilities like Daily Business Show and
Jinja City Grid (section 8.4).
- Subroutines are now their own ability type, covered in section 9.8.
- Added rules for ability flags (section 9.3.6); introduced the
“persistent” keyword (section
9.12.5).
- Each step in a timing structure (but not in other defined sequences of
steps) now counts as an instruction and follows the same rules as instructions from abilities
(section 9.11.2).
- Removed the list of card errata. Cards with updated rules text are now
documented in the NISEI
Card Text Updates Document, which can be found at <nisei.net/rules/card-text-updates>.
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
-
- General
- The Golden Rules
- Symbols
- Deck Construction
- Extra Cards
- Starting the Game
- Ending the Game
- Cards
- Counters and Tokens
- Credits
1.10.5. Recurring Credits
- Clicks
- Objects
- Host, Hosted, and
Hosting
- Ownership and
Control
- Targets
- Costs
- Score, Scoring, and
Stealing
- Advancing Cards
- Trashing
- Memory
- Card Visibility
-
- Name
- Unique Symbol
- Play Cost, Install Cost, or Rez
Cost
- Advancement
Requirement
- Agenda Points
- Trash Cost
- Strength
- Memory Cost
- Base Link
- Starting Memory
Limit
- Minimum Deck Size
- Influence Limit
- Faction Affiliation
- Influence Cost
- Card Type
- Subtypes
- Text Box
-
- Identities
- Agendas
- Assets
- Ice
- Operations
- Upgrades
3.6.5. Regions
- Events
- Hardware
3.8.5. Consoles
- Programs
3.9.5. Icebreakers
- Resources
-
- General
- Deck
4.2.7. R&D
4.2.8. Stack
- Hand
4.3.8. HQ
4.3.9. Grip
- Discard Pile
4.4.6. Archives
4.4.7. Heap
- Score Area
- Play Area
4.6.6. Servers
4.6.7. Central Servers
4.6.8. Remote Servers
4.6.9. Protecting a Server
- Bank
- Set Aside
- Removed from the
Game
-
- General
- Actions
5.2.7. Corp Actions
5.2.8. Runner Actions
- Draw Phase
- Action Phase
- Discard Phase
- Steps of the Corp’s
Turn
- Steps of the Runner’s
Turn
-
- General
- Position
- Initiation
- Approach Ice
- Encounter Ice
6.5.7. Fully Break
6.5.8. Bypass
6.5.9. Forced Encounters
- Movement
- Success
- Run Ends
- Steps of a Run
-
- Accessing Cards
- Steps of Accessing a
Card
- Breaching Servers
- Determining
Candidates
- Steps of Breaching a
Server
-
- Faceup and Facedown
Status
- Card Movements
- Arranging and Rearranging
Cards
- Drawing Cards
8.4.5. Steps of Drawing N Cards
- Installing and Uninstalling
Cards
8.5.13. Steps of Installing a Card
- Playing Events and
Operations
8.6.6. Steps of Playing an Event or Operation
- Searching for Cards
- Swapping Cards
-
- General
- Timing and Priority
- Interpreting Card
Text
- Static Abilities
- Paid Abilities
9.5.6. Steps of Using a Paid Ability
- Conditional
Abilities
9.6.14. Steps of Triggering and Resolving a Conditional Ability
- Play Abilities
9.7.2. Steps of Resolving a Play Ability
- Subroutines
9.8.10. Steps of Resolving a Subroutine
- Interrupts and Replacement
Effects
- Lingering Effects
- Identifying
Instructions
- Other Rules and
Terminology
9.12.1. Simultaneous Effects
9.12.2. Acting on Sets of Cards
9.12.3. “Must”
9.12.4. “Repeat this process”
9.12.5. “Persistent”
-
- General
- Information
10.2.2. Hidden Information
10.2.3. Open Information
- Checkpoints
- Damage
- Tags
- Bad Publicity
- Link
- Traces
10.8.6. Steps of Resolving a Trace Attempt
- Load and Empty
- Infinite Loops
- Self-Referential
Language
-
- Overview
- Timing Structure of
Turns
11.2.1. Corp’s Turn
11.2.2. Runner’s Turn
- Timing Structure of a
Run
- Timing Structure of
Breaching a Server
- Timing Structure of
Accessing a Card
Acknowledgements
-
Game Concepts
-
General
These rules are compatible with cards from the game ANDROID: NETRUNNER by Fantasy Flight Games. ANDROID: NETRUNNER is a game about the cyber-struggle
between massive Corporations and subversive hackers known as Runners.
- The game is played between two players. One player takes the
role of the Corp (Corporation) and the other takes the role of the Runner. This rules document will
frequently refer to a player interchangeably with their game role.
- Each player needs a legal deck, an identity card for their role, and any
extra cards used from outside their deck. They also need a supply of tokens as described in section 1.9. The constraints that
define the legality of a deck are defined in section 1.4, and the cases where cards outside the deck and
identity can be used are defined in section
1.5.
-
The Golden Rules
- If the text of a card directly contradicts these rules, the
text of the card takes precedence.
- If a rule or ability directs something to happen, but another
effect states that it cannot happen, the “cannot” ability takes precedence.
- If a “cannot” effect prohibits all of the effects of another
ability, that ability cannot be triggered.
- If a “cannot” effect prohibits only part of another
ability, that ability can be triggered, but the prohibited steps of resolving that ability are not
carried out.
Example: During a run, Lockdown’s subroutine resolves, preventing the Runner
from drawing cards for the remainder of the turn. The Runner has a Diesel and a Process Automation in their
grip. For the remainder of this turn, they cannot play Diesel as its entire ability is prohibited, but they
can play Process Automation. Even though cards cannot be drawn through Process Automation, the Runner can
play it to gain 2[c].
- If an instruction includes the
words “if able,” it can only be carried out fully or not at all. If any part of the
instruction is not possible to carry out, the entire instruction is ignored.
- If an instruction does not include the words “if
able,” as much of that instruction as possible is carried out. Any parts of the instruction that
are not possible to carry out are ignored.
- A player can only take an action or use an ability if its effect has the
potential to change the game state. This potential is assessed strictly by what the action or ability
can be expected to accomplish, without regard to the consequences of paying
any costs to initiate that action or ability and without regard to any other abilities that may
meet their conditions in the process of initiating or resolving
that action or ability.
Example: The Corp has one unrezzed piece of ice installed and Liquidation in
HQ. As Liquidation requires the Corp to have at least one rezzed card to trash, the Corp cannot play
Liquidation as it cannot change the game state.
Example: The Corp has one rezzed piece of ice installed and Liquidation in HQ.
Because the Corp has at least one rezzed card that could be trashed (which would change the game state),
they can play Liquidation, spending a click and paying its play cost. The Corp then chooses any number of
their rezzed cards to trash, which could be zero cards.
Example: The Runner is playing Armand “Geist” Walker and has Forger
installed. The Runner can only trash Forger and trigger Geist’s ability when they are about to take a
tag (which Forger could avoid) or while they have a tag (which Forger could remove). Using Forger at any other time has no potential to change the game state.
-
Symbols
- Several non-English symbols appear on cards and in this rules
document. This section serves as a basic guide to those symbols.
- When this document is presented in a format without images,
plaintext replacements are used. These replacements are listed along with the symbols themselves for
reference.
- The symbol [c] (plaintext: [c]) stands for “credit”. It always
appears with a numeral, such as 1[c], which means “one credit,” or 3[c], which means
“three credits.” See section
1.10 for rules about credits.
- The symbol [click] (plaintext: [click]) stands for “click”.
Multiple clicks can be represented either by multiple symbols, such as [click][click], or by a numeral
and symbol, such as 2[click], both meaning “two clicks.” See section 1.11 for rules about
clicks.
- The symbol [recurring] (plaintext: [recurring]) stands for recurring
credit. It always appears with a numeral, such as 1[recurring], which means “one recurring
credit,” or 3[recurring], which means “three recurring credits.” See section 1.10.5 for
rules about recurring credits.
- The symbol [link] (plaintext: [link]) stands for “link”. It is
always used with a quantity, such as 1[link], which means “1 link.” See section 10.7 for rules
about link.
- The symbol [MU] (plaintext: [MU]) stands for “memory unit”. It
always appears with a quantity, such as 2[MU], which means “2 memory units.” See
section 1.20 for rules about memory.
- The symbol [sub] (plaintext: [sub]) stands for
“subroutine”.  See rule 3.4.7 for
information about subroutines.
- The symbol [trash] (plaintext: [trash]) stands for
“trash this card”. It is used as a self-referential cost in card text, such as
“[trash]: Draw 2 cards,” which means “Trash this card to draw 2
cards.” See section
1.16 for rules about costs, and section 1.19 for rules about trashing
cards.
- The symbol [interrupt] (plaintext: [interrupt]) stands for
“interrupt timing”. It is used to designate abilities that resolve immediately before other
abilities. See section 9.9 for rules about
interrupt abilities.
-
Deck Construction
- Each player’s deck is associated with a single identity
card that determines the faction, minimum deck size, and influence limit of that deck. The identity card
may also stipulate other variances from the standard deckbuilding rules.
- The identities The Catalyst and
The Syndicate from the System Gateway
Starter Pack are intended for use only with the decks included in that
pack. They are not legal for play under the full deck construction rules.
- Each deck must meet all requirements in this section to be legal for
play.
- The deck must contain at least as many cards as the minimum
deck size indicated on the corresponding identity.
- Identity cards, extra cards that begin the game outside the deck,
and player aid cards are not part of the deck and are not counted towards the size of the deck.
- There is no maximum deck size.
- Decks cannot contain identity cards, player aid cards, cards
from the wrong side (Corp cards in a Runner deck or vice-versa), or out-of-faction cards that lack
influence costs.
- Neutral cards and cards that belong to a faction other than the
corresponding identity’s faction are all considered out-of-faction. The total influence cost of
out-of-faction cards in the deck must not exceed the influence limit of that identity.
- The total influence cost of out-of-faction cards is counted by copy
and not by name.
Example: Including a single copy of Diesel in a non-Shaper deck adds 2 to the total
influence in that deck, while including two copies of Diesel in a non-Shaper deck adds 4 to the total
influence in that deck.
- A Corp deck must contain agendas totalling a certain number of
agenda points, as determined by the total number of cards in the deck.
- A deck with 40 to 44 cards must contain 18 or 19 agenda
points.
- A deck with 45 to 49 cards must contain 20 or 21 agenda
points.
- A deck with 50 to 54 cards must contain 22 or 23 agenda
points.
- A deck with more than 54 cards must contain 22 or 23 agenda points, plus an
additional 2 agenda points for every full 5 cards in the deck over 50.
Example: A 66 card deck requires 6 additional agenda points, since it includes 3 sets of
5 cards beyond 50. This gives a final requirement of either 28 or 29 agenda points.
- The deck cannot contain more than 3 copies of any single card,
by name. Some cards stipulate alternative copy limits in their card text.
- Tournament play may impose other restrictions or requirements
on the legal configurations of identities and decks.
-
Extra Cards
- Some abilities allow for the use of additional cards from
outside the deck.
- One Corp identity, Jinteki
Biotech: Life Imagined, has the ability, “Before taking your first turn, you may
switch this card with any copy of Jinteki
Biotech.” There are 3 versions of this identity, which have different abilities on their reverse
side.
- A player playing Jinteki Biotech as
their identity may bring any number of copies of that identity along with their deck. After completing
game setup, that player may choose any copy they own to be their active identity for the duration of the
game. All other copies are placed outside the game.
- One Runner identity, Adam: Compulsive
Hacker, has the ability, “You start the game with 3 different directive cards installed (these cards are not considered part of
your deck).”
- A player playing Adam as their identity must bring at least 3 differently named
cards with the directive subtype along with their deck. The
player may bring any number of directive cards
over the required 3.
- After players reveal their identities, the player
playing Adam selects exactly 3 of their provided directive cards. Those cards begin the game installed in the play area.
All other directives the player brought this way
remain outside the game.
- A player playing Adam can also include
directive cards in their deck. The cards chosen to be
installed at the beginning of the game do not impact the deck’s influence requirements or the
maximum allowed number of copies of those cards.
- Once the game has begun, the cards installed this way are treated
exactly as any other installed cards. Abilities that move these cards to other zones function normally,
including shuffling them into the stack.
- Two cards, Rebirth and
DJ Fenris, make use of identity cards other than the one
selected by the player during deck construction.
- A player may bring any number of additional Runner identity cards
along with their deck. These cards are kept in a pile outside the game. The Runner may look at these
cards at any time.
- When an ability refers to an identity other than the Runner’s
current identity, it refers to the cards provided this way. If an identity card leaves the play area, it
must be returned to the pile outside the game.
- In a tournament, all identities brought to the game this way must be
legal for players to use as their actual identity in that tournament.
- One Runner identity, Hoshiko Shiro, is
double-sided (see section 3.1). If the Runner switches their
identity with Hoshiko, it enters play with the front side faceup. If the Runner switches Hoshiko with
another identity, the new identity enters play faceup regardless of Hoshiko’s current
status.
-
Starting the Game
- The players decide who will play as the Corp and who will play as the
Runner. Each player places an appropriate identity card for the side they are to play faceup in the play
area, then supplies a corresponding deck, placing it facedown in the play area, and any appropriate
extra cards.
- Some identity cards have abilities that affect setup. Even though
cards are not active until the game begins, these identities still alter
setup at the appropriate step as indicated by their text.
- Some identities are double-sided (see section 3.1). If a player is playing a
double-sided identity, it begins the game with the front side faceup.
- If a player’s identity has an ability that affects setup
or the start of the game, and that ability does not directly correspond to a setup step outlined in this
section of the rules, that player makes any necessary decisions and changes for their identity’s
special setup or start of game abilities at this time. If both players have setup or start of game
abilities at this time, the Corp resolves theirs first.
- The players create the bank by gathering all types of tokens described in
section 1.9.
- Each player takes five credits from the bank, placing the
credits in their credit pool.
- Each player shuffles their deck.
- Each player draws 5 cards from the top of their deck to form
their starting hand.
- After drawing starting hands, the Corp may choose to take a
mulligan; then, the Runner may choose to take a mulligan. To take a mulligan, the player shuffles their
starting hand back into their deck, then draws a new starting hand. They must keep the second hand as
their starting hand.
- The game begins and the Corp takes
their first turn.
- If the Corp’s identity has an ability with instructions for
“before taking your first turn,” the Corp resolves that ability immediately before taking
their first turn, and thus before the game starts.
-
Ending the Game
- The game ends when a player meets one of their win
conditions.
- If both players would simultaneously satisfy their win conditions,
the game ends in a draw.
- Each player has two possible win conditions available.
- Either player can win by collecting agenda points in their score area (usually
done by scoring or stealing agendas; see section 1.17). A player with a score of 7 or more
wins the game.
- The Corp wins if the Runner is flatlined. The Runner is flatlined immediately
if they suffer more damage than they have cards in their grip. The Runner is also flatlined if, at the
beginning of their discard phase, their maximum hand size is less than 0. See section 10.4 for more information
about damage.
- The Runner wins if the Corp is required to draw a card from R&D
but cannot because R&D is empty.
-
Cards
- There are six types of Corp cards: agendas, assets, ice, identities,
operations, and upgrades. All cards except the identity card are shuffled into the Corp’s deck at the beginning of the game.
- There are five types of Runner cards: events, hardware, identities,
programs, and resources. All cards except the identity card are shuffled into the Runner’s deck at the beginning of the game.
- Cards that are ACTIVE are able to affect the game through their abilities.
- Runner cards that are installed and faceup in the play area, Corp
cards that are installed and rezzed, events and operations in the play area, agendas in the Corp’s
score area, and both players’ identities are active.
- Unless otherwise stated, Runner cards become active as part of the
process of playing or installing them.
- Unless otherwise stated, Corp cards other than operations are
installed unrezzed, and thus inactive, into the play area. Assets, ice, and
upgrades become active when they are rezzed; agendas become
active when they are scored. Operations become active as part of the process
of playing them.
- Identity cards become active when the game begins.
- Cards that are INACTIVE are unable to affect the game or have most of their abilities used.
- Cards are inactive in R&D, HQ, Archives, the heap, the grip, the stack, the
Runner’s score area, while set aside, and while removed
from the game. Cards installed facedown are also inactive.
- Inactive cards in most zones retain their printed characteristics
(name, card type, faction, cost, subtypes, influence, etc). Runner cards installed facedown have no
characteristics.
- For a player to DRAW 1 or more
cards is to take that many cards from the top of their deck and put them into their hand. Section 8.4 provides
more details about drawing cards.
- Most abilities are active if and only if the card they appear on is
active. Section 9.1.8 details the cases where abilities on inactive cards are still active.
- Abilities can convert cards from one type into another type, or even from
a card into a counter. Rules
10.1.3 and 10.1.4 explain the details of card conversion.
-
Counters and Tokens
- COUNTERS and TOKENS are game pieces (or equivalent) that track various
resources, effects, and statuses of players and their cards.
- The terms “counter” and “token” are
interchangeable.
- The BANK is the supply of
counters not yet in play. Counters in the bank are
available to both players to take and use as dictated by the game rules and card abilities. Players do
not control counters in the bank and cannot spend them. The bank
is an unlimited supply; running out of game pieces to track a type of counter
does not prohibit a player from gaining counters of that type or placing them on
cards.
- If an instruction directs players to place counters on a card
without designating where those counters come from, take those counters from the bank.
- A condition or restriction that looks for counters being placed on a
card can be met by either counters from the bank or counters moved from another location.
- Some abilities can convert a card into a counter. A counter put into play
in this way is tracked with the card acting as a
game piece. See rule 10.1.4.
- Some abilities can cause a player or card to have or be “considered
to have” 1 or more counters or additional counters
without placing or giving those counters. A counter
considered to exist in this way conveys all the same information and effects as a
counter of the specified type would, except that it cannot be moved or
removed from the card or player it belongs to, nor can it be spent to pay a cost.
- There are ten types of counters: credit
counters, click counters, tag
counters, bad publicity counters, brain damage
counters, advancement counters, virus
counters, power counters, agenda counters, and condition counters.
- CREDIT COUNTERS are used to track the number of credits each player has in their credit
pool; they can also be placed on cards. Rules for credits, the credit pool, and other related concepts
are in section 1.10.
- CLICK COUNTERS are a
gameplay aid used to track the clicks the active player has spent or has left to spend during their
turn. Rules for clicks are in section
1.11.
- TAG COUNTERS are used to
represent tags on the Runner. Rules for tags are given in section 10.5.
- BAD PUBLICITY COUNTERS represent bad publicity the Corp has earned. Rules for bad
publicity are in section
10.6.
 Each point of brain damage the Runner
suffers forces them to take a brain damage token. See section 10.4.
- ADVANCEMENT COUNTERS are a counter used primarily on installed agendas to track the
Corp’s progress toward being able to score them.
- VIRUS COUNTERS are a generic
counter, used primarily by virus programs, that can be removed by the Corp purging them. See
rule 10.1.2.
- POWER COUNTERS are a generic
counter used by a variety of cards.
They have no special rules.
- AGENDA COUNTERS are a generic counter
used primarily on scored agendas. They have no special rules.
- CONDITION COUNTERS are
counters that have rules text. Their abilities
are active as long as they are hosted on a card.
-
Credits
Each of the Runner’s credits represents enough money to upgrade some basic
parts for their console, have a meal at a decent restaurant, or buy a ticket and some concessions for a
night at the sensies.
Each of the Corp’s credits represents enough money to manufacture a run of
computer parts, buy out a decent restaurant, or film a low-budget sensie.
- A CREDIT ([c]) is the basic unit
of currency. Players spend their credits to pay for various costs, card abilities, traces, etc. Credit
counters most commonly represent 1[c] each, but can represent larger
denominations if clearly marked.
- Each player has a CREDIT
POOL where they keep a supply of credit counters matching the credits they have available to spend. The number of credits in a player’s
credit pool is open information.
- Credits enter and leave a player’s credit pool as that player gains,
loses, or spends credits.
- A player GAINS credits whenever
credits enter their credit pool from any location.
- If a player is required to LOSE credits, that player is forced to move the specified number of credits
from their credit pool to the bank. Players cannot lose credits from cards.
Example: If a subroutine on DNA Tracker resolves, the Runner must lose 2[c]
from their credit pool, or 1[c] if that is all they have. If the Runner’s credit pool is empty, the
effect does nothing.
- To SPEND or PAY credits, a player puts the specified number of credits
back into the bank. By default, the credits must come from the player's credit pool.
Abilities can also allow players to spend credits hosted on their cards under certain conditions. If any
such abilities apply, the player chooses how to divide the credits they are spending from among the
allowed locations. The terms “spend” and
“pay” are synonymous.
Example: The Runner may use the credit from Cyberfeeder to pay for
Atman’s first ability.
Example: The Runner may use credits from Ghost Runner when secretly spending
credits to resolve a Psi ability (such as The Future Perfect).
Example: The Runner must use credits from Ghost Runner if this is the only way
for them to pay 3[c] when resolving the “when encountered” ability on Tollbooth.
- Abilities can place credits on cards, as discussed
in section
1.13. Credits on a player’s card are not in that player’s credit pool; the player
can only interact with those credits as instructed by card abilities.
- If a player is instructed to TAKE credits from a card, they remove that many credits from that card and gain those
credits.
- If an ability specifies how a player is allowed to spend credits
from a card, they can be spent from that card as if they were in the player’s credit pool for the
specified actions or abilities.
- If an ability specifies a time period during which a player is
allowed to spend credits from a card, they can be spent from that card as if they were in the
player’s credit pool for any purpose (other than losing credits) as long as the specified time
period is active or the specified duration has not expired.
- Spending credits from a card is considered “using” the card
that allowed those credits to be spent. See section 9.1.6.
-
Recurring Credits
- RECURRING CREDITS ([recurring]) place credits on a
card repeatedly. The text “N[recurring]” means “When this card
becomes active, place N credits on it. Before abilities meet their trigger conditions for your turn
beginning, if there are fewer than N credits on this card, place credits on it until there are N credits
on it.”
- Recurring credits are first placed on a card as soon as it becomes active. This
occurs at step
8.5.13e of installing the card if it is installed active, step 8.6.6c of playing an event or operation, or as soon as the card is
turned faceup or scored, as applicable.
- Recurring credits are refilled during step 5.6.1c of the Corp’s turn and step 5.7.1c of the Runner’s
turn, before other abilities that apply at the start of the turn
resolve.
- Recurring credits do not accumulate. They are refilled only up to the indicated
number.
Example: The Runner installs Spinal Modem, which has 2[recurring]. 2 credits are
placed on Spinal Modem now. The Runner spends 1 of those credits later in their turn. At the beginning of
the Runner’s next turn, the credits on Spinal Modem should be replenished up to 2[c], so 1 more credit
is placed on it.
-
Clicks
Working a job, making connections, and especially jacking in—everything you do takes time, and it always goes by faster than
you think. A click represents an abstract amount of time spent on a particular activity, either several
hours all at once or scattered across the day.
- A CLICK ([click]) is the basic
unit of activity. Players spend their clicks to perform actions and trigger
abilities. Each click counter represents 1 click.
- As the first step of a player’s turn, they gain an allotted number
of clicks to spend during the action phase of that turn. See section 5 for details about the procedures
of player turns.
- The Corp receives 3[click] on each of their turns.
- The Runner receives 4[click] on each of their turns.
- Players can gain, lose, or spend clicks.
- A player GAINS clicks
whenever the number of clicks they have is increased.
- If a player LOSES or SPENDS clicks, the number of clicks they have is reduced by that amount. The
terms “lose” and “spend” are not synonymous for the purposes of meeting conditions and restrictions of card
abilities.
- Paid abilities that begin with [click] are actions and have special timing
rules (see section 5.2).
Aside from taking actions, there are no special restrictions to how or when a player can spend their
clicks during their turn.
- Some cards have the subtype priority and the text, “Play only as your first
[click].” A player can only play a priority card using the basic action to play an event or operation, and
only if they have not spent any other clicks that turn. Losing clicks
does not affect a player’s ability to play a priority card.
-
Objects
- An OBJECT is an
occurrence of a card or counter existing in a particular zone. When a card or counter moves from one
zone to another, it becomes a new object.
- Restrictions and effects on a card or counter only apply for as
long as that card or counter remains the same object. Cards and counters have no memory of the objects
they were in the past.
Example: The Corp uses the first ability on Vaporframe Fabricator, which
specifies that it can only be used once per turn, and trashes Vaporframe Fabricator during the installation
process. Then the Corp plays Restore, reinstalling the same copy of Vaporframe Fabricator from Archives.
Even though it is the same physical card, the reinstalled Vaporframe Fabricator is a new object, and its
“once per turn” ability is available to be used this turn.
Example: The Runner accesses Ganked! from the root of a server they are
breaching. The Corp uses Ganked!’s ability to trash it and force the Runner to encounter Drafter.
While resolving Drafter’s subroutines during that encounter, the Corp reinstalls the same copy of
Ganked! from Archives into the same root. Since the Ganked! card left and reentered the zone it was accessed
from, it is now a new object, and the Runner must access that object before completing the breach. Thus, if
the Runner does not interfere (such as by breaking Drafter’s subroutines), the Corp could repeat this
sequence of events several times.
- An ability that moves cards can identify the new objects that those
cards become and continue to act on them.
Example: The Corp plays Priority Construction, installing a piece of ice from HQ.
That ice is now a new object in the play area, but Priority Construction’s second instruction can
still find it and place advancement counters on it.
- A card that moves from its location to a hidden or secret
location becomes a new object, even if the new location is in the same zone.
Example: The Corp scores Accelerated Beta Test, looks at the top 3 cards of
R&D, and installs and rezzes a piece of ice from among them. As a chain reaction, the Corp then uses The
Foundry: Refining the Process to search R&D, with the result that the other cards currently being looked
at by Accelerated Beta Test are shuffled along with the rest of R&D. Since the cards were moved to an
unknown location in R&D, Accelerated Beta Test can no longer act on them, so those cards can no longer
be looked at and will not be installed or trashed.
Example: The top card of R&D in the current game state is an object. So is the
2nd card from the top of R&D, the 3rd card, and so on. If the Corp plays Precognition and rearranges the
top 5 cards of R&D, the Runner will not know which cards correspond to which objects in the previous
order, so the cards become new objects under their new order.
- A card or counter that moves to a known location in the same
zone is still the same object.
Example: The Runner has chosen a piece of ice with Femme Fatale, and the Corp
uses Thimblerig’s ability to move that ice to another location. But the ice has not left the play
area, so it is still the same object and the Runner can still use Femme Fatale’s ability to bypass
it.
- A card that is turned faceup or facedown is still the same object.
Example: The Corp uses Vaporframe Fabricator, installing a piece of ice at no
cost, and then plays Divert Power to derez Vaporframe Fabricator and rez their newly-installed ice at a
discount. The Corp can rez Vaporframe Fabricator again, but since it is still the same object, its
“once per turn” ability cannot be used again this turn.
- When a card or counter becomes a new object, its previous
object ceases to exist, but can still be remembered by rules or abilities that refer to past game
states.
Example: The Runner plays Bravado. During the run, a piece of ice that the
Runner has already passed is trashed. When the run ends, Bravado’s ability must determine how many
pieces of ice the Runner passed during that run. It does this by reviewing the game history and counting
each distinct ice object that the Runner passed. Even though the object corresponding to the trashed ice no
longer exists in the present game state, Bravado can still count it.
Example: The Runner trashes the top card of R&D while accessing it. The
object corresponding to that card in its location on top of R&D ceases to exist, but still counts
against the number of cards the Runner can access from R&D during this breach.
-
Host, Hosted, and Hosting
- Whenever an object is
“placed” or
“loaded” onto a card, a host relationship is created between those two
objects. The object placed on top of a card is
HOSTED on that card. The card onto which the other object is
placed is the HOST.
- The state of being hosted is distinct, but not exclusive from,
the state of being installed. If an ability instructs a player to host a card from an inactive state
without reference to installing it, the hosted card remains inactive.
- An object can only be hosted on a single card
at any given time.
- A card can host any number of other objects, except where
explicitly restricted by a card ability.
- Any card can act as a host, but a host relationship can only be created
or permitted by a card ability.
- If a card has an ability describing the types and/or numbers of cards it can
host, but it does not have an ability that directly hosts cards onto itself, then the card is permitted
as an eligible installation destination for the types of cards listed, up to the number specified. A
host card is chosen as an installation destination during step 8.5.13b of the installation
process.
Example: Off-Campus Apartment has the ability, “Off-Campus Apartment can host
any number of connections.” This means that
whenever the Runner installs a connection card, they can choose to install that card into the play area hosted on Off-Campus
Apartment or as normal directly into the play area.
- If a card has an ability describing cards it can host, but also one
or more abilities that can create host relationships onto itself, then it only allows cards to become
hosted on it through those abilities. A card cannot be installed directly onto the card through an
unrelated install effect.
Example: Glenn Station reads, “Glenn Station can host a single
card”, but also has a paid ability that hosts a card on itself. Therefore, Glenn Station only lets the
Corp host cards through that paid ability, not through an install action.
- If a card has an ability stipulating that it can only be installed
hosted onto another card, then during the installation process a player that wishes to install that card
must choose a valid destination matching the description provided. If no such destination exists before
the installation process begins, the card cannot be installed.
 The Runner can only install Egret if there is an
installed, rezzed piece of ice available before the installation process begins; otherwise, it is illegal
for the Runner to install Egret.
- Some operations and events convert themselves into condition counters and
install themselves hosted onto other cards. An operation or event can never be installed through an
install effect; it can only become an installed counter through its conversion ability. See rule 10.1.4.
- Unless otherwise noted, a card that is hosted as it is
installed is hosted onto the destination card in the same faceup or facedown status it would normally be
installed in.
- Once a card is installed, hosted or not, a player cannot change
that card’s hosted status unless a card ability explicitly directs it to be hosted onto a new
card.
- Host relationships are not transitive. If card A is hosted on
card B, and card B is hosted on card C, card A is not considered to be hosted on card C.
Example: If the Runner installs a Leprechaun hosted on a Dhegdheer, programs
hosted on Leprechaun do not have their install costs reduced because they are hosted on Leprechaun and not
on Dhegdheer.
- If an ability on a card refers to a “hosted” card or counter,
that ability only references objects hosted on that card.
- Hosted objects can be removed or
spent from their host without affecting the host.
- If a host card is uninstalled, all objects
hosted on that card (and all objects hosted on those
objects, and so on) are trashed during the next checkpoint. This cannot be
prevented. See section
10.3 for details on checkpoints.
-
Ownership and Control
- The OWNER of a card
is the player who provided that card at the start of the game as their identity, part of their deck, or
an extra card along with their deck.
- A card that is converted into a counter retains its owner.
- No player owns counters that are not converted cards.
- The CONTROLLER OF AN OBJECT is the player responsible for that
object.
- The controller of a card in the play area is the player who
installed or placed it there.
- The Corp controls each agenda in the Corp’s score area. The
Runner controls each agenda in the Runner’s score area.
- Cards in other zones are controlled by their owner.
- Each player controls the credits in their credit pool.
- The Corp controls each bad publicity token. The Runner controls each tag
token. However, see rule
10.5.5 and rule
10.6.3 regarding paying costs that involve tags and bad publicity,
respectively.
- The controller of a counter hosted on a card is the player who controls the
host card.

- A player can only pay costs using objects
they control.
- Unless otherwise stated, a player can only use abilities
on objects they control.
- The CONTROLLER OF AN ABILITY is
the player who triggered or is allowed to trigger that ability. By default, this is the player who
controls the ability’s source. See also section 9.1.3.
- Some abilities state that they can only be used by a specific
player. The specified player controls each such ability, even if they do not control its source.
- Unless otherwise noted, the controller of an ability carries out its
effects and makes any choices required. If a player is specified to perform all or part of an effect,
the specified player carries out that part of the effect and makes any choices
required instead.
Example: Rototurret’s first subroutine reads,
“Trash 1 installed program.” Since
Rototurret is a Corp card, the Corp chooses which installed program to trash. Conversely, Bulwark’s
first subroutine reads, “The Runner trashes 1 installed program.” Since the Runner is specified to be carrying out this effect, they
choose which of their installed programs to trash.
- Some trigger conditions care about effects performed by a
particular player. These conditions are only met when that player is the one to carry out the relevant
effect.
Example: The Corp has a rezzed Hostile Infrastructure. Apocalypse does not specify
who trashes the cards, so the Runner is responsible for the trashing and Hostile Infrastructure meets its trigger condition.
Example: Alice Merchant states that “the Corp must trash 1 card from
HQ”, so the Corp carries out this effect even though Alice Merchant is a Runner card, and therefore
Hostile Infrastructure does not meet its trigger condition.
-
Targets
- Many abilities require players to choose 1 or more objects or subroutines
to affect. Each object and subroutine chosen for an ability is a TARGET of that ability.
Example: Top Hat reads in part, “you may choose 1 of the top 5 cards of
R&D and access it.” The target of this instruction is the card in R&D the Runner
chooses.
Example: One of the subroutines on Colossus reads in part, “Trash 1
installed program and 1 installed resource.” The targets of this subroutine are the two cards that
will be trashed.
Example: Trick of Light reads, “Choose 1 installed card you can advance.
Move up to 2 advancement counters from 1 other card to the chosen card.” The targets of this operation
are the advancement counters to be moved and the destination card. If 2 tokens are chosen, they must be
hosted on the same card.
Example: The Runner is encountering a barrier and uses Cleaver to break
subroutines. The targets of Cleaver’s interface ability are the 1 or 2 subroutines that it will
break.
- Cards found during a search are not considered targets of the instruction that
performs the search. Players do not need to announce what card(s) they expect to find before the search
actually takes place. See section
8.7 for rules about searching.
- Only objects and subroutines are announced as targets. If an
instruction directs a player to choose (or "name") a number, a card type, a subtype, a card
name, a server, or one of a specified set of effects, that choice is not made until the instruction
resolves.
- Immediately before an instruction becomes imminent, the player resolving
that instruction must first choose the targets required by that instruction. For each time the
instruction requires a player to choose 1 or more objects and/or subroutines, that player ANNOUNCES appropriate targets. Once players are finished announcing targets
for an instruction, the instruction becomes imminent, and players have the opportunity to modify the
effects of that instruction with interrupt abilities before it resolves. See section 9.9.
- When a player announces a card as a target, they indicate clearly
which card is being chosen without changing its facedown/faceup status or location.
- The player resolving the instruction can only choose targets that
are valid for that instruction. A target is valid for an instruction if it meets any specified
requirements of that instruction or can otherwise be acted upon by that instruction.
- Unless an instruction explicitly specifies the zone from which an object must
be selected as a target, only counters in the play area and
installed cards are valid targets for that instruction.
Example: The Corp resolves a subroutine that says “[sub] The Runner
trashes 1 program.” The Runner must trash 1 of their installed programs and may not trash a program
from their grip or stack.
- Some effects allow a player to choose multiple
cards as targets for a single announcement. Section 9.12.2 contains rules
about resolving effects involving sets of cards.
- A player may announce the targets for an instruction in any order,
but each object or subroutine can only be chosen as a target once for each announcement. If there are
not enough valid targets available, then that player chooses as many distinct targets as possible and
the remaining targets are not announced.
Example: The Runner accesses an Aggressive Secretary with three advancement
counters on it. The Runner only has two installed programs, so the Corp chooses both of those programs for
Aggressive Secretary. After the programs have been chosen, they are both trashed simultaneously.
- Targets cannot be chosen for an instruction at any other time. Even
if the game state changes due to interrupt abilities while the instruction is imminent, unannounced
targets remain unchosen.
- At the time an instruction resolves, if any of its targets either have
become invalid or were not announced, as much of that ability resolves as possible without acting on the
unannounced or invalid targets, following rules 1.2.3 and 1.2.4 of the Golden Rules. A target can be
invalid because the chosen object or subroutine no longer exists or because the target no longer meets
other requirements specified by the targeting ability.
- After the resolution of an instruction that chose a particular target,
subsequent instructions of the same ability can continue to act on that target without needing to select
it again, even if the ability moves the target or changes its properties. See also section 1.12.2.
Example: Howler’s ability targets a card in HQ. Its first instruction
installs that card, and its second instruction creates a delayed conditional ability that refers to that
card in the play area. The latter ability can
find and act on the card as long as it is still installed.
-
Costs
- In order to initiate an action or ability or use an optional ability, a
player may be required to pay a cost. A cost can take the form of any card, counter, or other item a
player must spend; an effect a player must resolve; or other type of requirement a player must meet. If
a player cannot pay the full cost of an action or ability all at once with cards and counters they control, they cannot use the effect associated with that
cost.
- The act of paying a cost cannot be modified or cancelled by optional
prevent/avoid abilities.
Example: The Runner can trash Clone Chip to trigger its paid ability, but cannot use LLDS Energy Regulator to prevent Clone
Chip from being trashed this way.
- If a static ability or a mandatory
conditional ability interrupt would prevent the steps of paying a cost from
being carried out if they were performed as an effect, that cost cannot be paid.
Example: The Runner cannot pay the additional cost to steal Obokata Protocol
while Guru Davinder is installed, because the Runner could not currently take 4 damage if instructed to:
Guru Davinder’s first ability would prevent the damage.
Example: The Runner is playing as Jesminder Sareen and encounters Funhouse,
without any other tag-related effects resolving earlier in the run. Since Jesminder’s ability would
prevent taking 1 tag, the Runner cannot take 1 tag to pay the nested cost in Funhouse’s ability.
Funhouse will end the run.
- If a cost is subject to effects modifying its value, determine its
final value from its default value by first applying each effect that increases the cost, then applying
each effect that lowers the cost. Finally, if the value determined by this process is less than 0, set
the value to 0.
- A cost of 0 can still be paid by a player, even though no items are paid.
Costs of 0 are not paid automatically. A player pays a cost of 0 by explicitly
announcing they are paying it.
Example: The Runner accesses
a Beanstalk Royalties from R&D and announces that they are using the ability of Freedom Khumalo: Crypto-Anarchist to trash the Beanstalk Royalties. Even though the Runner does not remove any virus
counters from any cards, they have still paid the cost.
- After a player pays a cost, a checkpoint occurs. See rule 10.3.
- Some cards have a printed play or install cost of X. The value
of X is determined when the card is played or installed, after applying any modifiers which affect the
play or install cost of that card.
- If the play or install cost of a card with a play or install cost of
X needs to be referenced at any other time, X is considered to be 0.
- There are six main types of costs: install costs (found mainly
on hardware, programs, and resources, and incurred when installing ice), play costs (found on operations
and events), rez costs (found on assets, upgrades, and ice), paid ability trigger costs, additional
costs, and nested costs.
- Install costs, rez costs, and play costs are all
costs that are inherent properties of cards. These costs are automatically applied to any ability that
performs the corresponding effects (installing, rezzing,
or playing) unless that ability stipulates otherwise. See also section 2.3 (for more
about these costs as they appear on cards) and section 8.5.11, rule
8.1.2d and section 8.6.2 (for more about
paying costs to install, rez, and play cards).
- When a player takes an action that plays or installs one or more
cards and has no other effects, the play cost or install cost of each of those cards is considered to
have been spent to take that action, even though other steps take place between initiating the action
and paying that cost.
Example: The Corp has Jeeves Model Bioroids rezzed, and uses the basic action
"[Click]: Play an operation." to play Blue Level Clearance. Both the click spent for the cost of
the basic action and the click spent for Blue Level Clearance's additional cost count as clicks spent to
take the "[Click]: Play an operation." action.
- The INSTALL COST of a card must be paid to install that card.
- The install cost of a program, resource, or piece of hardware is
listed on the card itself.
- The install cost of a piece of ice is a number of credits equal to
the number of pieces of ice already protecting the server that ice will be installed protecting.
- There is no cost to install an asset, upgrade, or agenda.
- The PLAY COST of an
operation or event must be paid to play that card. It is listed on the card itself.
- The REZ COST of an
asset, upgrade, or piece of ice must be paid in order to rez that card. It is listed on the card
itself.
- The TRIGGER COST of each paid
ability is the first part of that ability’s text. It is followed by
a colon (:) and then the ability’s effect. See section 9.5 for more details on
paid abilities.
- An ADDITIONAL COST adds something to the regular cost of initiating a particular game effect. A player
must pay all additional costs along with any regular costs in order to initiate an effect.
- If a player would be forced to carry out a game effect, but doing so
has an additional cost, that player may decline to pay the additional cost, even if they are able to pay
it, thus preventing that effect from occurring.
Example: The Runner accesses Obokata Protocol. Normally the Runner must steal agendas that they access,
but because Obokata Protocol has an additional cost to steal, the Runner can decline to suffer the net
damage and not steal the agenda.
- A player must pay all additional costs simultaneously with the cost
that is being added to, even if multiple cards or abilities are adding separate additional costs. A
player cannot pay the original cost or any of the additional costs individually. If they cannot pay for
all of the costs at once, then they do not pay any of the costs and the corresponding effects cannot
occur.
Example: The Runner accesses Obokata Protocol while Ben Musashi and Predictive
Algorithm are both active. The Runner must be able to pay 2 credits and suffer 6 net damage all at once in
order to steal the Obokata Protocol, even though each of the three costs are from different card abilities.
After all costs have been paid, abilities that meet their trigger conditions from the paying of any of those
costs, such as I’ve Had Worse or Order of Sol, can then resolve as applicable.
- If a player is directed to carry out a game effect and ignore a
particular cost, they must still pay any additional costs that apply. If a player is directed to carry
out a game effect “ignoring all costs”, they do not pay any additional costs that would
otherwise apply.
- A NESTED COST is a cost
appearing within an ability’s instructions
that must be paid while the ability is resolving in order for some or all of the
rest of the effects of that ability to resolve.
- Nested costs are usually written in the format “[player] may [cost] to
[instructions]” or “you may [cost]. If you do,
[instructions].” If the indicated player pays the indicated cost, the indicated
instructions are resolved. Otherwise, that part of the ability is not
resolved.
- Nested costs can also be written in the format
“[instructions] unless [player] [cost].” If the indicated player
pays the indicated cost, the indicated instructions are not resolved.
Otherwise, that instruction is resolved.
Example: A subroutine reading “End the run unless the Runner pays
1[c].” contains a nested cost. If the Runner chooses to pay 1[c], the subroutine will not end the
run.
-
Score, Scoring, and Stealing
- The sum of all agenda points on agendas in a player’s score area is
that player’s SCORE.
- If at any time a player’s score becomes greater than or equal to 7,
they win the game at the next checkpoint. See section 1.7 regarding winning the game, and
section 10.3 for details about checkpoints.
- Players add agendas to their score areas by SCORING or STEALING them. The
Corp can score an agenda to their score area as an option during certain
paid ability windows on their turn. The Runner can steal an agenda to
their score area while accessing it.
- The ADVANCEMENT REQUIREMENT of an
agenda restricts when the Corp can score it. The Corp can only score an agenda that has advancement
counters on it greater than or equal to its advancement requirement. See
section 1.18.
- The Corp is not required to score an agenda immediately upon
satisfying its advancement requirement.
- Scoring an agenda does not cost [click] and is not an action.
- The Runner cannot decline to steal an agenda they access, unless there is an
additional cost to steal that agenda and the Runner cannot or does not wish to pay it. Section 7 details accessing,
and section
1.16.9 details additional costs.
- If an effect directly adds an agenda to a score area or otherwise
moves an agenda from any zone to a score area, that agenda is not considered scored or stolen.
- If an effect causes another card to be added to a score area “as an
agenda”, the newly converted agenda is not considered scored or stolen. See rule 10.1.3.
- Agendas are always added to the score area faceup, regardless
of their previous faceup/facedown status.
- If an installed agenda is scored or stolen, it becomes uninstalled. Any
advancement counters on the scored or stolen agenda are returned to the
bank. See rule 1.13.11.
- Some agendas and other cards have abilities with a trigger condition
related to an agenda being scored. These abilities become pending after the Corp moves the agenda
from its current zone to their score area.
- Some agendas and other cards have abilities with a trigger condition
related to an agenda being stolen. These abilities become pending after the Runner moves the agenda
from its current zone to their score area.
- If an ability meets its trigger condition from an agenda being scored or
stolen, the agenda’s last known number of advancement
counters before being scored or stolen is used for any references to the
number of advancement counters in the effects of that ability.
-
Advancing Cards
- To ADVANCE a card is to place an
advancement counter from the bank on it. The Corp typically
advances cards with a basic action during their action phase, but card abilities can also advance
cards.
- Resolving an instruction that directly places
an advancement counter onto a card is not the same as advancing a card. Likewise, resolving an
instruction that moves an advancement counter from one card to another is not the same as advancing a
card.
Example: The Corp plays Mushin-no-Shin, choosing to install an Oaktown Renovation.
Because the three advancement counters were placed on
the card directly, the Corp does not gain any credits from the ability on Oaktown Renovation.
- The Corp can only advance certain installed
cards. Agendas can always be advanced. If a card other than an agenda says that it
“can be advanced” or that “you can advance” that card, the
card can be advanced even while it is unrezzed. There is no
limit to the number of times a card can be advanced.
- An “advanced card” is a card with 1 or more
advancement counters hosted on it.
-
Trashing
- TRASHING is the act of moving an
object to its owner’s discard pile.
- During access, the Runner has the opportunity to pay the
trash cost of the accessed card to trash it. See section 7.1.5.
- A trashed card is not considered to have been discarded, and
vice versa. Cards that prevent a card from being trashed cannot prevent a card from being
discarded.
- The symbol [trash] represents trashing the
object it appears on. It is used as a cost for
certain abilities.
Example: Fall Guy’s last ability reads “[trash]: Gain 2[c].”
The cost to trigger this ability is to trash Fall Guy.
- “A [trash] ability” refers to a paid ability that includes [trash]
in its trigger cost.
-
Memory
- A MEMORY UNIT (MU) is
a space available to the Runner to install programs. Memory units always appear with a quantity, such as
2[MU], which means “2 memory units.”
- The Runner’s MEMORY
LIMIT is the total number of memory units the Runner has. If the
Runner’s identity card does not specify a starting memory limit, their starting memory limit is 4[MU]. Card abilities that indicate +[MU] apply that
increase to the Runner’s memory limit.
Example: The Runner has Astrolabe installed, which has the ability
“+1[MU]”. The Runner can therefore have up to 5[MU] worth of programs installed.
- Programs have a MEMORY COST that
is continually applied against the memory limit. Rule 3.9.3 details how the Runner’s
installed programs are constrained by the memory limit.
-
Card Visibility
- Cards in the play area and other public zones are either FACEUP or FACEDOWN. Faceup
cards are freely visible to all players. Facedown cards are oriented so that the face containing the
card’s information is not visible.
- Cards in hidden or secret zones (see section 4.1) are neither faceup nor facedown.
- When a player LOOKS at a card, they are allowed to see the front face of the card even if the front face
would not normally be visible to them. A player should look at that card without showing it to the other
player if it is not normally visible to that player.
- A player may look at facedown cards they control at any time.
- To REVEAL a card is to show its
front face to all players, then return it to its previous state.
- Some abilities instruct the Runner
to EXPOSE one or more cards. To
expose a card is to reveal it, except that only installed, unrezzed cards can be exposed.
- Effects that instruct a player to look at, reveal, expose, or access a
card are not the same, even if they would be performed similarly at times. See section 7 for more information on
accessing.
- If a resolving ability directs one or both players to look at
or reveal a card or set of cards, each such card remains visible to the relevant player(s) until the
entire ability is finished resolving or the card moves to a different location.
- The ability “While the Runner is accessing this card from
R&D, they must reveal it.” is a static ability that applies for the entire duration of the
access. This is also the case for cards with the older wording, “If [this card] is accessed from
R&D, the Runner must reveal it.”
-
Parts of a Card
-
Name
- The identifier of
a card is its NAME, alternatively referred to as its title. It is written along the top of the card for
identities, agendas, ice, operations, events, and resources, or immediately below the art box in the
case of assets, upgrades, hardware, and programs.
- Identities have a subtitle written immediately below the main
title line. Their full name is the combination of their main title and subtitle.
- When a card refers to its own name, it is a self-reference. See
section 10.11.
- When a card refers to “copies of” cards with a
particular name, it refers to any card with that name.
-
Unique Symbol
- Some cards are UNIQUE,
and have a unique symbol (◆) before their name to designate
this. See rule
10.1.1.
-
Play Cost, Install Cost, or Rez Cost
- The play, install, or rez cost of a card is a number that appears in the
top-left corner of most card types. Play and install costs appear within a large circular icon, while
rez costs appear within a small octagonal icon.
- Play, install, and rez costs on cards are all paid in credits.
Section 8 details how cards are played, installed, and rezzed.
- Events and operations have a play cost.
- Hardware, programs, and resources have an install cost.
- Ice also has an install cost, but it does not appear on the card. The install
cost of ice is determined by the configuration of other installed ice rather than being intrinsic to the
card. See rule 1.16.5.
- Assets, ice, and upgrades have a rez cost.
-
Advancement Requirement
- The advancement requirement appears only on agendas. It is a
number in the top-right corner of the card, within a small circle.
- Section
1.17 details how agendas are scored and the purpose of the
advancement requirement.
-
Agenda Points
- The agenda point value appears only on agendas. It is the
number in the center-left of the card, on top of a graphic depicting three pillars.
- The agenda points in a player’s score area contribute toward that
player winning the game. See section
1.7.
-
Trash Cost
- Assets, upgrades, and some ice and operations have trash costs.
A trash cost is a number appearing in the lower-right corner of the card within a [trash] symbol.
- Section
7.1.5 details how the Runner can trash a card they access by paying
its trash cost.
-
Strength
- Strength is a number appearing on ice and on icebreaker programs. It appears on the bottom-left corner of
the card within a large semicircle.
- Non-icebreaker programs have a dash (–) in the bottom-left corner instead of a strength
value.
- Section
3.9.5 discusses the interaction between ice strength and icebreaker strength.
-
Memory Cost
- Memory Cost is a number appearing only on programs. It appears
to the right of the install cost, within an [MU] symbol.
- Section
1.20 discusses the topic of memory, and rule 3.9.3 details how programs interact with the Runner’s memory limit based on their memory
cost.
-
Base Link
- Base link is a number appearing in the top-left of Runner identity
cards.
- The Runner’s base link contributes to their link value.
Section 10.7 defines how
the Runner’s link value is calculated, and section 10.8 explains how it contributes to
contesting trace attempts.
-
Starting Memory Limit
- Starting memory limit is a number appearing near the top-left of
Runner identity cards, within the [MU] symbol.
- The Runner’s memory limit is checked against the total memory cost of
programs they have installed. This value is calculated by applying any active modifiers to the
Runner’s starting memory limit. See section 1.20.
-
Minimum Deck Size
- Minimum deck size is a number shown as the uppermost of two small
boxes in the lower-left of Corp identities and the lower-right of Runner identities.
- Section 1.4 details the rules for building a deck, including the requirement to adhere to the
minimum deck size of the deck’s associated identity.
-
Influence Limit
- The influence limit is a number shown as the lowermost of two
small boxes in the lower-left of Corp identities and the lower-right of Runner identities.
- Section
1.4 details the rules for building a deck, including the
requirement that out-of-faction cards in the deck adhere to the influence limit of the associated
identity.
-
Faction Affiliation
- Cards are divided into ten factions: four Corp factions, three
Runner factions, and three Runner mini-factions. Factions and influence restrict deckbuilding options,
allowing each faction to have distinct play differences from one another.
- The Corp factions are Haas-Bioroid, Jinteki, NBN, and the Weyland
Consortium.
- The major Runner factions are Anarch, Criminal, and Shaper.
- The Runner mini-factions are Adam, Apex, and Sunny Lebeau.
- A card’s faction can be identified by the color of its background,
as well as a faction logo in one of its four
corners. This logo also appears as a watermark behind the
text box. If a card has a white background and no logo, it is neutral.
- Each identity is associated with one faction. Section 1.4 details how factions
affect deckbuilding.
-
Influence Cost
- A card’s influence cost, or influence value, is
represented in a bar with 5 circular slots near the bottom of most cards. The influence cost is the
number of slots that are filled with a blue circle, and can range from 0 to 5.
- Some cards cannot be played out of faction, and therefore do
not have an influence value, which is different from an influence cost of “0”. These cards
do not have the influence bar at all.
- Some Corp cards have the subtype alliance and text defining adjustments to their influence
costs. The ability adjusting the influence cost of an alliance card applies only when determining the legality of an already
constructed deck and does not have any effect during gameplay. The ability references other cards
included in the deck to determine whether the card should apply its printed influence cost or 0 against
the deck’s influence limit.
- Section
1.4 details how a card’s influence cost (or lack thereof)
affects deckbuilding.
-
Card Type
- A card’s types appear as a line of text across the center
of non-ice cards above the text box. For ice, they run along the left side of the text box, rotated
90° from the rest of the text.
- Each card has one card type, which can be identity, agenda,
asset, ice, operation, upgrade, event, hardware, program, or resource. It is written in bold at the
beginning of the type line.
- While inactive, a card is still considered a card of the type printed on
it, with the exception of facedown installed Runner cards. See section 8.1.4.
- Abilities can change a card from its
printed type to an agenda. See rule 10.1.3.
- Counters never have card types.
-
Subtypes
- Cards may have one or more
subtypes, which are written following the primary type. Subtypes are card descriptors that can
be referenced by card abilities. Cards that share a subtype often share a distinct
characteristic or ability.
- The subtypes region, console, and icebreaker have special
rules, discussed in sections 3.6.5, 3.8.5, and 3.9.5 respectively. Other subtypes have no
intrinsic rules meaning.
- In card text, subtypes are always referenced in bold text. If a
word or phrase that is also a subtype appears in a card’s text but is not in bold text, that word
or phrase does not reference the subtype.
- Some abilities reference cards by a lack of subtype, such as
“non-virus”. These abilities can only
affect cards that do not have the specified subtype, regardless of any other subtypes the cards do
have.
- A card has all of its subtypes at all times, even while inactive,
with the exception of facedown installed Runner cards. See section 8.1.4.
- Abilities can add or remove subtypes. The number of times a
card has, gains, and loses each subtype is tracked as a running total, but the result is binary: if the
total number of instances of the subtype exceeds the number of times it is removed, the card has that
subtype. Otherwise, it does not.
Example: The Runner plays Tinkering on a Wendigo hosting 1 advancement counter. Wendigo has two instances of code
gate, one printed and one from Tinkering, and has lost one instance of code gate from its own ability. Thus it is still a
code gate.
- If an effect requires a player to choose a subtype, that player must
choose a single subtype that has been printed on at least one card. If a player is required
to choose a subtype belonging to a specific card type, they must choose a subtype that has been printed
on at least one card with that type.
- Below is a list of all subtypes.
- The identity subtypes are Bioroid, Clone, Corp, Corporation, Cyborg,
Digital, Division, G-mod, Megacorp, Natural, Police Department, Stealth, and Subsidiary.
- The agenda subtypes are Ambush, Expansion, Initiative, NEXT, Psi,
Public, Research, Security, Sensie, and Source.
- The asset subtypes are Advertisement, Alliance, Ambush, Beanstalk,
Bioroid, Cast, Character, Clone, Corporation, Executive, Facility, Government, Hostile, Illicit,
Political, Psi, Region, Research, Ritzy, Seedy, and Transaction.
- The ice subtypes are AP, Advertisement, Ambush, Barrier, Bioroid,
Code Gate, Deflector, Destroyer, Grail, Illicit, Morph, Mythic, NEXT, Observer, Psi, Sentry, Tracer, and
Trap.
- The operation subtypes are Alliance, Black Ops, Condition, Current, Double,
Gray Ops, Illicit, Lockdown, Psi, Reprisal, Terminal,
Transaction, and Triple.
- The upgrade subtypes are Advertisement, Alliance, Ambush, Beanstalk, Bioroid,
Character, Clone, Enforcer, Executive, Facility, Hostile, Off-site, Orgcrime, Psi, Region, Ritzy,
Seedy, Security Protocol, Sysop, and Unorthodox.
- The event subtypes are Condition, Current, Double, Job, Mod,
Orgcrime, Priority, Run, Sabotage, Stealth, and Terminal.
- The hardware subtypes are Bomb, Chip, Companion, Console, Consumer-grade, Cybernetic, Gear, Link, Mod, Stealth, Vehicle, and
Weapon.
- The program subtypes are AI, Caïssa, Cloud, Daemon, Decoder,
Deva, Fracter, Icebreaker, Killer, Stealth, and Virus.
- The resource subtypes are Clan, Companion,
Connection, Directive, Genetics, Government, Job, Link, Location, Remote, Ritzy, Sabotage, Seedy,
Source, Stealth, and Virtual.
-
Text Box
- The TEXT BOX is the central area on a
card containing any abilities the card has. Abilities usually only apply when the card they appear on is
active. Rule 9.1.8 details exceptions.
- Many cards have italicised text written after their game text. This is
FLAVOR TEXT, and has no effect on the game or the function
of the card, nor can other abilities reference or interact with it.
- Some cards have italicised text in parenthesis. This is REMINDER TEXT, and has no effect on the game or the function of the card, nor
can other abilities reference or interact with it directly. Reminder text simply summarizes a rule that
may apply to that card text.
-
Card Types
-
Identities
- Each player starts the game with a single identity active in the play
area. See section 1.6.
- Some identities are double-sided. Only the front side of a double-sided
identity will have values for its minimum deck size and influence limit. Only the side of a double-sided
identity that is currently faceup is active at any given time.
- Identities are not installed.
- Only identity cards have minimum deck sizes and influence limits. These
values do not apply during the game; instead, they determine deckbuilding
constraints for decks associated with that identity. See section 1.4.
- Only Runner identities have a base link. This value is used
in calculating the Runner’s link value. See section 10.7.
- The Corp’s identity card is used to mark the location of HQ. See
section 4.3.8.
-
Agendas
Agendas represent valuable pieces of Corporate data. When the Corp advances and
scores agendas, it represents completion of critical Corporate projects. When the Runner steals agendas, it
represents their acquisition of secret Corporate data.
- The Corp may install agendas only in the roots
of remote servers. There can be only one agenda or one asset installed in
the root of any given remote server at a time. See section 4.6.8.
- Only agendas have advancement requirements and agenda
points. See section 1.17.
- An agenda’s advancement requirement is the minimum number of advancement
counters that must be on that agenda for the Corp to score it.
- The agenda points on an agenda contribute to a player’s
score while the agenda is in their score area.
- Agendas cannot be rezzed and are inactive while installed. Agendas are
active in the Corp’s score area. Agendas are inactive in the Runner’s score area unless the
agenda’s card text specifies otherwise. See section 4.5.
- Some agendas may be installed faceup or turned
faceup through card abilities. Faceup agendas are neither rezzed
nor unrezzed. If an agenda’s printed text directs the Corp to install it faceup, that agenda’s abilities are active while it is
installed.
- Some agendas modify the requirements for stealing or scoring them. These
abilities are always active, according to any restrictions or requirements specified. See section 9.1.8.
- Agendas can always be advanced. See section 1.18.
-
Assets
Assets represent various resources and connections at the Corp’s
disposal.
- The Corp may install assets only in the
roots of remote servers. There can be only one agenda or one asset installed in
the root of any given remote server at a time. See section 4.6.8.
- Assets are among the card types that have rez costs. They are installed
unrezzed and remain inactive until the Corp rezzes them by paying their rez costs during a paid ability
window. See section 8.1.
- Assets are among the card types that have trash costs. If the Runner
accesses an asset, they may pay the trash cost to trash that asset. See section 7.1.5.
- One asset, Lady Liberty, has the
subtype region and the text “Limit 1 region per server.” See section 3.6.5 for rules governing region cards.
-
Ice
Ice are sophisticated security systems that protect Corporate servers through a
variety of means. “Ice” has been suggested to stand for a variety of expressions, but is most
commonly expanded as “Intrusion Countermeasures Electronics”.
- “Ice” and “piece of ice” are synonymous.
- Ice are the only type of card installed protecting servers. Ice are not
installed in the roots of servers. See section 4.6.9.

- When the Corp installs a piece of ice, they must install it in the outermost
position protecting a server. See section
8.5.
- Ice are among the card types that have rez costs. They are installed
unrezzed and remain inactive until the Corp rezzes them by paying their rez costs. See section 8.1.
- Unlike assets and upgrades, ice can normally
only be rezzed while being approached during a run. See section 6.4.
- Ice are among the card types that have strength. An ice’s strength
determines which icebreakers are allowed to
interface with it. See section 3.9.5.
- Some ice have trash costs. If the Runner accesses an ice with a trash
cost, they may pay the trash cost to trash that ice. See section 7.1.5.
- Unlike assets, upgrades, and agendas, ice are not normally accessed while
installed. Encountering a piece of ice does not entail accessing that ice and does not give the Runner
an opportunity to pay its trash cost.
- Ice are the only Corp cards with install costs. The install cost of a
piece of ice is not a printed value but instead a calculated value based on the number of other ice
already protecting the relevant server. See section 1.16.5.
- Ice are the only cards with subroutines. See section 9.8.
-
Operations
- Operations are the only Corp cards that are played. Operations are never
installed. Playing an operation causes its abilities to become active, and once those abilities are
fully resolved the operation is trashed. See section 8.6.
- Some operations have the subtype condition. As part of their abilities, condition operations convert themselves into condition counters and
install themselves. A condition operation cannot be installed
by an install effect; it can only be installed through its own conversion ability. See rule 10.1.4.
- Some operations have the subtype current.
As part of their abilities, current operations prevent
themselves from being trashed until another current operation
or event is played or the Runner steals an agenda. When one of these occurs, the active
current is trashed during the next
checkpoint. See section
10.3.
- Some operations have the subtype lockdown. As part of their abilities, lockdown operations prevent themselves from being trashed until the start
of the Corp’s next turn after the operation is played. Once the Corp’s turn begins, this
effect expires and the operation is trashed during the next checkpoint, before any conditional abilities
marked pending at that time can be triggered. See section 10.3.
- Operations are the only Corp cards with play costs. An operation’s
play cost is the number of credits the Corp must spend to play the operation. See section 8.6.
- Some operations have trash costs. If the Runner accesses an operation with
a trash cost, they may pay the trash cost to trash that operation. See section 7.1.5.
-
Upgrades
- The Corp may install upgrades in the root of any
server. Upgrades are the only card type that can be installed in the root of a
central server.
- There is no limit to the number of upgrades that can be installed in
the root of a single server.
- Upgrades are among the card types that have rez costs. They are installed
unrezzed and remain inactive until the Corp rezzes them by paying their rez costs during a paid ability
window. See section 8.1.
- Upgrades are among the card types that have trash costs. If the Runner
accesses an upgrade, they may pay the trash cost to trash that upgrade. See section 7.1.5.
-
Regions
- Some upgrades have the subtype region.
All regions have the text “Limit 1 region per server.”
- The region limitation applies only
to cards with the subtype region that are installed or in the
process of being installed in the root of a server. It does not
apply to cards in central servers, and it does not apply to ice.
- The region limitation applies to all
cards as specified in rule
3.6.5b, regardless of the active or inactive state of those
cards.
- When the Corp installs a card with the subtype region into the root of a server that
already has a region, they must trash the already-installed
region. See section 8.5.
- The Corp cannot swap a region card
with a non-region card in another location if there is
another region card already installed in the destination
location.
-
Events
- Events are the only Runner cards that are played. Events are never
installed. Playing an event causes its abilities to become active, and once those abilities are fully
resolved the event is trashed. See section
8.6.
- One event, On the Lam, has
the subtype condition. As part of its abilities, it converts
itself into a condition counter and installs itself. This event cannot be installed by an install
effect; it can only be installed through its own conversion ability. See rule 10.1.4.
- Some events have the subtype current. As
part of their abilities, current events prevent themselves
from being trashed until another current operation or event
is played or the Corp scores an agenda. When one of these occurs, the active current is trashed during the next checkpoint. See
section 10.3.
- Events are the only Runner cards with play costs. An event’s play
cost is the number of credits the Runner must spend to play the event. See section 8.6.
-
Hardware
The Runner’s hardware are the physical tools at their disposal: the
computers, chips, and other machinery that make up their rig.
- “Hardware” and “piece of hardware” are
synonymous.
- The Runner installs hardware into the play area.
- Hardware are among the types of cards with install costs. The Runner
installs a hardware faceup and active by paying its install cost. See section 8.5.
- There is no limit to the number of hardware the Runner can have
installed.
-
Consoles
- Some hardware have the subtype console.
All consoles have the text “Limit 1
console per player.”
- If a player ever controls more than one installed console, all but the most
recently installed console are trashed. Trashing cards this way cannot be prevented.
- This limitation applies only to hardware with
the subtype console.
- This limitation applies only to active consoles. A player can have multiple copies of a console, and even different consoles, in their deck..
-
Programs
Programs are digital tools at the Runner’s disposal, primarily used as a
means of intrusion.
- The Runner installs programs into the play area.
- Programs are among the types of cards with install costs. The Runner
installs a program faceup and active by paying its install cost. See section 8.5.
- Programs are the only card type that have a memory cost. A
program’s memory cost is the number of memory units that program requires while it is
installed.
- Installing a program does not permanently consume memory. The
program claims its designated quantity of memory units until it becomes uninstalled, at which point
those memory units become available for use by other programs.
- When the Runner installs a program that would increase the total memory cost of
installed programs over their memory limit, they must trash one or more installed programs such that the
total memory cost of installed programs including the new program will not exceed their memory limit.
See section 8.5.
- If the Runner’s memory limit decreases below the total memory cost of
installed programs, or if the total memory cost of installed programs increases above the memory limit
for any reason other than installing another program, the Runner must trash one or more installed
programs such that the total memory cost of the remaining programs does not exceed their memory limit.
This occurs during the next checkpoint after the memory limit is exceeded. See section 10.3.
- A program’s memory cost is not a cost. It cannot be increased,
lowered, ignored, or otherwise modified by abilities that affect costs to install programs.
- Programs are among the card types that have strength.
- Programs with the subtype icebreaker have a printed numerical strength value. An icebreaker’s strength determines which ice it is allowed to
interface with. See section 3.9.5.
- Programs without the subtype icebreaker
do not have a strength value. A dash (–) is printed on non-icebreaker program cards in the place where strength is
printed on icebreaker program cards.
-
Icebreakers
- Some programs have the subtype icebreaker. Icebreaker programs have
strength and abilities that interface with ice.
- Paid abilities on an icebreaker that modify that icebreaker’s strength implicitly have a duration of “for
the remainder of the current encounter”.
Example: Corroder has the ability “1[c]: +1 strength.” Since no
duration is specified, this strength increase applies until the end of the current encounter.
- If an icebreaker’s paid
ability specifies another duration for modifying its strength, that modification lasts until both the
stated duration and the implicit encounter duration have expired.
Example: Gordian Blade has the ability “1[c]: +1 strength for the remainder
of this run.” This ability applies until the end of the current run, whether it is triggered during an
encounter or another step of the run. If the ability is triggered during an encounter that takes place
outside of a run, the strength increase applies for the duration of that encounter.
- If an icebreaker’s paid ability
modifies its strength outside of an encounter and does not specify another applicable duration, the
modification expires during the next checkpoint.
Example: If the Runner uses Corroder’s ability to increase its strength
outside of an encounter, it applies only until the next checkpoint.
- All icebreakers have abilities that
INTERFACE with ice, sometimes referred to as
“interface abilities”. These abilities are indicated by the “interface” flag
preceding the ability’s text.
- The Runner can only use an interface
ability during step
6.9.3b of an encounter, and can only choose the
encountered piece of ice and its subroutines as targets for the ability’s effects. See
section 1.15 for more information about targeting.
- The Runner can only use an interface ability on an icebreaker if the icebreaker has strength greater than or equal to the strength of the
encountered ice.
- If an interface ability specifies
that it affects a particular subtype of ice, then that ability can only be used on a piece of ice that
has the specified subtype. If an ability on an icebreaker does not specify a subtype of ice that it affects, that ability can be used on any
piece of ice.
-
Resources
Resources are a wide variety of connections and skills that aid the
Runner.
- The Runner installs resources into the play area.
- Resources are among the types of cards with install costs. The Runner
installs a resource faceup and active by paying its install cost. See section 8.5.
- There is no limit to the number of resources the Runner can
have installed.
- While the Runner is tagged, the Corp may spend [click] and 2[c] to trash
an installed resource as a basic action. See section 10.5.
-
Game Zones
-
General
- A ZONE is a place in which cards
and counters can exist during the game.
- There are 8 zone types: deck, hand, discard pile, score
area, play area, bank, set aside, and removed from the game.
- Each player has their own deck, hand, discard pile, and score area. All players
share the play area, the bank, the set-aside zone, and the removed-from-game zone.
- Each card in the game exists in exactly 1 zone at a time.
- Game rules and card effects can move cards and
counters between zones. See section 8.2 for rules on card
movements.
- If a facedown card or a card in a hidden zone would ever move to another zone
as part of an effect that requires that card to have a specific attribute, that card must be revealed
before being moved to the new zone. This does not apply to cards that
are being installed.
Example: When resolving Clone Suffrage Movement, the Corp chooses a facedown Fast Break in Archives. The Corp must
reveal the Fast Break before adding it to HQ, to demonstrate that it is indeed an operation, meeting Clone
Suffrage Movement's requirement.
- When a card is moved from one zone to another, the move is instantaneous. The
card is never in both zones at once, and it is never not in any zone at all.
- A card that is not in any zone is outside the game. Cards outside of the
game are distinct from cards in the removed-from-game zone, and cannot
affect the game. They can only be affected by abilities that explicitly bring in extra cards from
outside the game. See section
1.5.
- A PUBLIC zone is
one where cards are freely visible to both players unless they are
facedown. The play area, the bank,
the set-aside zone, the removed-from-game zone, and both players’ score
areas and discard piles are public zones. See section 1.21 for rules on card visibility and
section 8.1 for rules on the faceup and facedown status of a card.
- A HIDDEN zone is one
where cards are not visible to either player. Each player’s deck is a hidden zone.
- A SECRET zone is one
where cards are visible only to their controller. Each player’s hand is a secret zone.
- A LOCATION is a specific
position within a zone that an object can occupy. A DESTINATION is a location to which an object is to be moved.
- A card in a player’s deck has a location identified by how
many cards it is from the top of that deck.
- Some objects in the play area are in specific locations. See section 4.6.5.
- The location of a hosted object is its host card.
- All other objects are simply located in their zone and do not have a
more specific location.
-
Deck
- When the game begins, each player’s deck presented during
setup becomes their in-game draw deck.
- Decks must be kept facedown with their cards hidden from both
players. Neither player may look at the cards in any deck without being explicitly directed to do so by
a rule or card ability.
- Decks are ordered. The location of each card in a deck must be maintained
except when a player is explicitly directed to manipulate the cards in a deck by a rule or card ability.
See rule 4.1.7a.
- The number of cards in a deck is open information. Any player
may count the number of cards in a deck at any time.
- Cards in a deck are inactive.
- Each player’s deck has its own name as a means of
differentiating between the two.
-
R&D
R&D stands for Research and Development. It represents upcoming projects
and acquisitions the Corp will soon have at their disposal.
- R&D is the name for the Corp’s deck. It
is also one of the Corp’s central servers. See section 4.6.7.
- If the Corp must ever draw from R&D while it is empty, the
Runner wins the game. See section 1.7.
-
Stack
The stack represents the Runner’s untapped potential: future plans,
connections, and opportunities they have yet to
discover.
- The STACK is the name for
the Runner’s deck.
-
Hand
- A player’s HAND is the
zone in which they hold the cards they have drawn from their deck. Cards can be added to a
player’s hand by other rules and card abilities as well. During setup, each player draws a
starting hand. See section
1.6.
- A player’s hand is kept secret from their
opponent. A player may look at the cards in their own hand, but not at any of the cards in
their opponent’s hands.
- Hands are not ordered. A player may freely arrange the cards in
their hand in any order at any time.
- The number of cards in a hand is open information to all
players. Any player may count the number of cards in a hand at any time.
- Cards in a hand are inactive.
- Each player has a maximum hand size, usually five. A player may have any
number of cards in their hand at any given time, but during the discard phase of a player’s turn
they must discard cards from their hand until there are no more cards in their hand than their maximum
hand size allows. See section
5.5.
- Each player’s hand has its own name as a means of
differentiating between the two.
-
HQ
HQ stands for Headquarters. It represents the projects, staff, technology, and
other assets the Corp is authorized to deploy.
- HQ is the name for the Corp’s hand. It is
also one of the Corp’s central servers. See section 4.6.7.
- The Corp’s identity card represents their HQ server for the
purposes of gameplay. Ice protecting HQ is installed in front of the Corp’s identity card and
upgrades installed in the root of HQ are installed behind the Corp’s identity card.
-
Grip
The grip represents the Runner’s currently accessible thoughts, plans,
knowledge, potential social connections, and other intangible information that can be leveraged.
- The GRIP is the name for
the Runner’s hand.
- Suffering damage forces the Runner to
discard cards from their grip at random, and suffering brain damage also reduces the Runner’s
maximum hand size. The Runner flatlines and loses the game if they suffer more damage than they have
cards in grip or must discard down to a hand
size lower than zero. See section
10.4.
-
Discard Pile
- A player’s DISCARD PILE is the zone in which they place cards that have been trashed or discarded. Discard
piles start the game empty.
- Discard piles are not ordered. A player may freely arrange
the cards in their discard pile in any order at any time.
- The number of cards in a discard pile is open information. Any
player may count the number of cards in a discard pile at any time.
- Cards in a discard pile are inactive.
- Each player’s discard pile has its own name as a means of
differentiating between the two.
-
Archives
Archives represents the Corp’s internal record database of all scrapped,
abandoned, or discontinued projects, contracts, assignments, and other endeavors.
- ARCHIVES is the name for the Corp’s discard
pile. It is also one of the Corp’s central servers. See section 4.6.7.
- Cards in Archives can be either faceup or facedown. If a Corp card
is visible to the Runner when it is trashed or discarded, it is put in Archives faceup. If a Corp card
is not visible to the Runner when it is trashed or discarded, then it is put in Archives facedown.
Facedown cards in Archives should be oriented horizontally so that the Runner can easily see they are
present.
- The faceup cards in Archives are open information. Any player may
look through the faceup cards in Archives at any time. The facedown cards in Archives are visible only
to the Corp. The Corp may look through the facedown cards in Archives at any time, but the Runner cannot
look at them.
-
Heap
The heap represents what the Runner has lost: their old jobs, favours burned,
friends long gone, gear wrecked, and code erased.
- The HEAP is the name for
the Runner’s discard pile.
- The cards in the heap are open information. Any player may look through the
cards in the heap at any time.
-
Score Area
The score areas represent major accomplishments for each player in service
of their long-term ambitions. The Corp’s score area contains all large-scale projects they have seen
to completion. The Runner’s score area is a memorial to all such initiatives they have successfully
disrupted, exposed, or sold details of to the highest bidder.
- A player’s SCORE AREA is
the zone in which they place agendas they have scored or stolen. Section 1.17 details scoring and stealing
agendas. Score areas start the game empty.
- The agendas in a score area are open information. A player may
look through or count the agendas in a score area at any time.
- Score areas are not ordered. A player may freely arrange
the agendas in their score area in any order at any time.
- Agendas in the Corp’s score area are active.
Agendas in the Runner’s score area are inactive unless stated otherwise.
-
Play Area
- The PLAY AREA is the shared
active zone into which cards are played or installed. The play area normally starts the game empty except for each of the player’s identities.
- Section
1.5 details cases where an ability may cause cards to start the game in the
play area.
- The number of cards in the play area and where in the play area
they are located is always open information.
- Whether or not a card itself and its attributes are open information while
in the play area is determined by the card’s status. Cards that are faceup are open information
and can be examined by any player at any time. Cards that are facedown are secret information and can
only be examined by the player who controls the card. See section 10.2.
- Whether or not a card is active while in the play area is
determined by the card’s status.
- Identities start the game in the play area and are always
active.
- Generally, Corp agendas, assets, ice,
and upgrades are installed into the play area unrezzed and thus inactive. They are active while rezzed.
See section 8.5.
- Generally, Runner hardware, programs, and resources are installed into the play
area faceup and active. See section
8.5.
- Some Runner cards are installed facedown or turned facedown through card
abilities. This is distinct from the status of rezzed/unrezzed that Corp cards can have. Facedown Runner
cards are not active. See section
8.1.4.
- Operations and events are played into the play area faceup and are active for
the duration of their resolution before being trashed. See section 8.6.
- Some objects in the play area
are organized into specific orientations and/or locations.
- Corp cards are arranged into distinct servers. Agendas and assets are installed
in the roots of remote servers, upgrades are installed in
the roots of any servers, and pieces
of ice are installed horizontally
protecting servers. See section
4.6.6 and section
4.6.9.
- The Corp’s identity is used to indicate where in the play area HQ exists
for the purposes of installing upgrades in the root of HQ and ice protecting HQ. See section 4.6.7.
- The Runner’s identity, hardware, programs, and resources do
not have specific locations in the play area.
- There is no specific location in the play area for operations or events. They
are simply played into the play area, where they resolve before being trashed. See section 8.6.
- Each player has a credit pool, which is a location in the play area
where credits they control are kept.
- Counters other than credits have no specific location in the play area. Tag
counters are always controlled by the Runner, and bad publicity counters are always controlled by the
Corp. Other types of counters are either nonfunctional gameplay aids or appear only in host
relationships. See also section
1.9.
- Some cards can act as install locations for other cards while in the play area,
such that cards of a specific type can be hosted directly onto them during the installation process. In
this type of host relationship, both the host card and the hosted card are in the play area, but the
host relationship can affect certain aspects of either the card or the installation process. See
section 1.13.
- Some cards can host other cards without installing them. In this type of host
relationship, both the host card and the hosted card are in the play area, but the hosted card is not
installed and thus not active. See section
1.13.
-
Servers
- A SERVER is
a set of locations where the Corp installs
their cards into the play area and against which the Runner can initiate runs. Whenever a Corp installs
an agenda, asset, ice, or upgrade, they must choose a destination server for that card. See section 8.5.
- Once a Corp card is installed, it cannot be moved from its server
without explicit direction from a game rule or card effect.
- The two types of servers are central servers and remote servers. See sections
4.6.7 and 4.6.8, respectively.
- All servers can have ice installed protecting them. See section 4.6.9.
- All servers have a ROOT where cards can be installed. A central server’s root can contain any number of
upgrades, while a remote server’s root can contain 1 asset or agenda and any number of upgrades.
Assets and agendas cannot be installed in the root of a central server.
- All cards installed in the root of a server are kept in the same
orientation and location together. The order in which the cards are installed is open information, but
the type of cards installed in the root of a remote server should not be derivable from their
orientation or location.
- Only one region upgrade can be installed in the root of a server at a time.
See section
3.6.5.
- Some upgrades have restrictions limiting them to specific servers. See
rule 8.5.12.
-
Central Servers
- The Corp has three CENTRAL SERVERS at
all times. Each central server corresponds to one of the Corp’s zones: HQ corresponds
to the Corp’s hand, R&D corresponds to the Corp’s deck, and Archives corresponds to the
Corp’s discard pile.
- The Corp’s identity is in the play area to
indicate the location of HQ relative to other servers, but it is not in HQ, in the root of HQ, or
protecting HQ. The cards in HQ are held in the Corp’s hand. The upgrades installed in the root of
HQ are placed in a vertical orientation near the Corp’s
identity. The ice installed protecting HQ are placed in a
horizontal orientation in front of the Corp’s identity outwards towards the Runner.
- The Corp’s deck is placed in the play area to indicate the location of
R&D relative to other servers, but the cards in the deck are not installed. The cards in R&D are
the cards in the deck. The upgrades installed in the root of R&D are placed in a vertical
orientation near the deck. The ice installed protecting R&D are
placed in a horizontal orientation in front of the deck outwards towards the Runner.
- The Corp’s discard pile is placed in the play area to indicate the
location of Archives relative to other servers, but the cards in the discard pile are not installed. The
cards in Archives are the cards in the discard pile. The upgrades installed in the root of Archives are
placed in a vertical orientation near the discard pile. The ice
installed protecting Archives are placed in a horizontal orientation in front of the discard pile
outwards towards the Runner.
-
Remote Servers
- A REMOTE SERVER is the only type of
server that can contain an asset or agenda in its root.
- The Corp starts the game with no remote servers. The Corp creates a new remote
server by declaring it as the destination server for a card they are about to
install. There is no limit to the number of remote servers the Corp can have at
any given time.
- Cards installed in the roots of separate remote
servers are placed in a vertical orientation in a row
extending away from the central servers to indicate the locations of the
remote servers relative to other servers. The ice installed protecting each remote server are placed in
a horizontal orientation in front of any cards in the root
of that server, outwards towards the Runner.
- A remote server exists as long as there is at least one card in
the root of or protecting it. A remote server can be made up of only ice
protecting it, only cards installed in it, or a combination of both.
- During checkpoints, a remote server ceases to exist if there are no cards
installed in its root and no cards installed protecting it. If a server
ceases to exist during a run against it, then the run ends after
any currently open paid ability window closes. Unless the run has already been declared either
successful or unsuccessful, it is neither. See rule 8.5.8.
- The Corp card Earth Station: SEA Headquarters
and its reverse, Earth Station: Ascending to Orbit, both
have the ability, “Limit 1 remote server.” While this ability is active,
as long as a remote server exists, the Corp cannot create a new remote server. If at any time more than
1 remote server exists while this ability is active, the next checkpoint will force the Corp player to
choose 1 of those servers. The checkpoint will then trash all cards in the root of and protecting each
other remote server. See step 10.3.1e.
 Ice
are ordered within the play area. The location of a piece of ice is defined
by the server it is protecting and the number of other
pieces of ice between it and the server.
- If there is no other ice between the server and a piece of ice, that
ice is the innermost piece of ice. If there is no ice farther from the server than a piece of ice, that
ice is the outermost piece of ice. If there is only one piece of ice protecting a server, that ice is
both the innermost and the outermost piece of ice.
- If two pieces of ice protecting two different servers share the same
number of ice between them and their respective servers, those pieces of ice are considered to be in the
same position.
- When the Corp installs a piece of ice protecting a server, they must place it
in the outermost position protecting that server. See section 8.5.
- If the number of other ice between a piece of ice and the server changes, its
position will change accordingly, moving either closer or farther from the server. If this occurs
while that ice is being approached, encountered, or passed during a run, the
Runner’s position attacking the server changes in the same
way.
-
Bank
- The BANK is an
inactive zone shared by both players. It holds an unlimited supply of counters for use during
gameplay.
- Counters placed or loaded onto a card are taken from the bank
unless otherwise specified. Counters gained by players are taken from the bank unless otherwise
specified.
- Credits and other counters that are spent to pay costs return
to the bank.
- Counters that are not in a legal location return to the bank during
checkpoints. See section
10.3.
- Cards are never located in the bank.
-
Set Aside
- The SET-ASIDE ZONE is
an inactive zone shared by both players. It is used as a temporary holding space for objects being
affected by abilities.
- If an object is “set aside”, it is moved from its
current zone to the set-aside zone.
- An ability cannot see the set-aside zone unless it specifically
sets objects aside or refers to set-aside objects. Outside of these cases, cards moved into another zone
from the set-aside zone are treated as though they entered that zone directly from their location prior
to being set aside.
Example: The Runner is playing as Exile and plays Test Run, searching their heap
for a program. Although the program is set aside before being installed, Exile’s ability treats it as
though it were installed directly from the heap, and so Exile will draw a card.
- Cards found during a search are set aside facedown while the search
completes (in particular, while any deck that was searched is shuffled). See section 8.7.
- Some paid abilities with a trigger cost that uninstalls or forfeits the
ability’s source card need to refer to or act on that card’s hosted cards or counters. These
abilities set aside the hosted cards or counters as the trigger cost is paid. See rule 9.5.5.
- Cards set aside by a card ability are faceup unless the ability
specifically instructs that they be set aside facedown.
-
Removed from the Game
- The REMOVED-FROM-GAME ZONE is an inactive zone shared by both players. It is used to take cards out of any
player’s control until the end of the game.
- If a card is removed from the game, it is moved from its
current zone to the removed-from-game zone.
- Forfeiting an agenda removes it from the game. See rule 8.2.5.
- Cards that have been removed from the game are inactive. Their
abilities are inactive even if they fall under one of the exceptions that would normally apply to
inactive cards.
- A card that has been removed from the game cannot move out of the
removed-from-game zone or otherwise be interacted with.
- Cards that have been removed from the game are open information. Any
player may look through or count the cards that have been removed from the game at any time.
-
Turns
-
General
- A TURN is a duration of time during
which a player may take actions and is the first to receive priority to act during
priority windows.
- The Corp’s turn consists of three phases. During the DRAW PHASE, the Corp draws the top card of R&D into HQ; during the
ACTION PHASE, the Corp spends [click]s to perform actions; during the
DISCARD PHASE, the Corp discards until the number of cards
in HQ does not exceed their maximum hand size. Once the Corp’s turn ends, the Runner’s turn
begins.
- The Runner’s turn consists of two phases. During the ACTION PHASE, the Runner spends [click]s to perform actions; during the
DISCARD PHASE, the Runner discards until the number of cards
in their grip does not exceed their maximum hand size. Once the Runner’s turn ends, the
Corp’s turn begins.
- The beginning and end of each player’s turn are formalized as
particular steps of the turn timing structures.
- Trigger conditions related to a turn beginning are not met as the
turn timing structure opens. They are met at the timing step that indicates the formal beginning of the
turn.
- Trigger conditions related to a turn or discard phase ending are
met at the timing step that indicates the formal end of the turn. They are not met when the turn timing
structure later closes. The end of the turn and the end of the discard phase are the same.
- Some effects can occur before the “turn begins” step or after the
“turn ends” step of a turn. The player whose turn timing structure
is in progress is still the active player, and effects that apply during their turn are still
applicable, even though their turn has not yet formally begun or has already formally ended.
- Once the game begins, it is always one or the other player’s turn. There
is no time “between turns”.
-
Actions
- An ACTION is any paid ability
where the cost begins with a [click] symbol.
- Other costs can contain [click] symbols without denoting an
action.
Example: The ability “[click]: Gain 1[c] and draw 1 card.” on
Professional Contacts is an action. The ability “Lose [click]: Break 1 subroutine on this ice. Only
the Runner can use this ability.” on Eli 1.0 is not an action and is used during a paid ability
window.
- A player initiates an action by paying its cost in [click], as well
as any other costs associated with that action, during their action window.
- Once an action is initiated, it must be completed before the game can advance
to the next step or open another action window. If the effects of an action
initiate a timing structure, such as a run, players may use paid abilities,
rez cards, and score agendas as dictated by the priority windows of that nested timing structure, but
otherwise players cannot perform any of those voluntary effects while the action is resolving. See
Section 9.2 for more details about priority.
- If a timing structure is initiated during the resolution of an
action, that action is not complete until the new timing structure is complete and any further effects
of the initiated action following the completion of the new timing structure are resolved.
Example: The Runner takes the action “play an event”, playing
Stimhack. The action is not complete until the run initiated by Stimhack ends, the Runner suffers brain
damage, and Stimhack is trashed following its resolution.
- A conditional ability that meets its trigger condition due to a player taking
an action resolves after the action’s trigger cost is paid, before the effects of the action
itself. See rule 9.1.2a.
- Each player has several basic actions they can always
perform. The Corp’s basic actions are listed in section 5.2.7, and the Runner’s basic actions are
listed in section 5.2.8.
- A player can only take an action if its
effect has the potential to change the game state. See rule 1.2.5.
- A player can only take actions during the action phase of their
turn. If an effect directs a player to take an action outside of that player’s action phase,
instead that player does nothing.
- Some cards refer to players taking “the same
action” or “different actions”.
- Actions a player performs are the same if they are all the same basic action
or if all of those actions were initiated by the same ability from the same card.
- Actions a player performs are different if each of them is
initiated from a different basic action or card ability. Instances of equivalent abilities on different
cards are still different actions.
Example: The Corp, playing MirrorMorph: Endless Iteration, plays Hedge Fund as the
first action of their turn, then plays Lateral Growth. Even though two different cards were played, both
times the Corp used the basic action to “Play 1 operation from HQ”. Since their first two
actions were the same, the Corp will not be able to trigger the ability on MirrorMorph this turn.
-
Corp Actions
- The following BASIC ACTIONS are always available to the Corp during their action phase, in addition to any actions
provided by card abilities.
- “[click]: Gain 1[c].”
- “[click]: Draw 1 card.”
- “[click]: Install 1 agenda, asset, upgrade, or piece of ice from
HQ.” See section
8.5.
- “[click]: Play 1 operation from HQ.” See section 8.6.
- “[click], 1[c]: Advance 1 installed card.” See section 1.18.
- “[click], 2[c]: Trash 1 resource. Take this action
only if the Runner is tagged.” See section 10.5.
- “[click][click][click]: Purge virus counters.” See
section 10.1.2.
-
Runner Actions
- The following BASIC ACTIONS are always available to the Runner during their action phase, in addition to any
actions provided by card abilities.
- “[click]: Gain 1[c].”
- “[click]: Draw 1 card.”
- “[click]: Install 1 program, resource, or piece of hardware
from the grip.” See section
8.5.
- “[click]: Play 1 event from the grip.” See section 8.6.
- “[click]: Run any server.” See section 6.
- “[click], 2[c]: Remove 1 tag.” See section 10.5.
-
Draw Phase
- The draw phase is the first phase of the Corp’s turn. It includes
the formal beginning of the Corp’s turn and the Corp’s
mandatory draw.
- The MANDATORY DRAW is
a card draw performed by the Corp. It is not an action and does not cost [click].
- The Runner’s turn does not have a draw phase.
-
Action Phase
- The action phase is the first phase of the
Runner’s turn and the second phase of the Corp’s turn. It is the only timing structure in
which players can take actions, as discussed in section 5.2.
- During a player’s action phase, they must continue to take
actions until they have no more clicks or the phase is ended directly by a
card ability. The player may take actions in any combination and order as long as they pay
the appropriate costs. Once they have no remaining
clicks, the action phase ends.
- A player’s action phase can be forced to end by certain card abilities
(e.g. via the ability on a terminal operation or event). When
a player’s action phase is forced to end, the following occurs:
- The current step of the action phase ends, and all remaining steps
are skipped.
- Any currently open priority windows close, their associated abilities lose
their pending status, and the player with priority loses
priority.
- Any currently resolving actions or abilities cease resolving and are
considered complete.
- A checkpoint occurs, following which the game proceeds to the active
player’s discard phase.
-
Discard Phase
- The discard phase is the last phase of each player’s turn. It
requires the active player to discard cards until their maximum hand size is satisfied and includes the
formal end of that player’s turn.
- DISCARDING is the act by which a player
moves a card to their discard pile during their discard phase if they have exceeded their maximum hand
size.
- Cards discarded from HQ are always sent to Archives facedown,
regardless of whether they have been previously accessed by the Runner.
- A discarded card is not considered to have been trashed, and vice
versa.
- A player’s MAXIMUM HAND SIZE is the maximum number of cards that player can keep in their hand during their discard
phase.
- Players begin the game with a maximum hand size of five
cards.
- Each point of brain damage the Runner suffers permanently reduces their
maximum hand size by one card. See section 10.4. Other abilities can
modify a player’s maximum hand size directly.
-
Steps of the Corp’s Turn
- During the draw phase, the following steps occur in
order:
- The Corp gains their allotted clicks (default
[click][click][click]).
- A paid ability window occurs, in which players may use paid abilities, the Corp
may rez non-ice cards, and the Corp may score agendas. (P) (R) (S)
- The Corp’s recurring credits ([recurring]) refill.
- The Corp’s turn formally begins. Conditions
related to the turn beginning are met.
- The Corp performs their mandatory draw.
- The Corp’s draw phase is complete. Play proceeds to the
Corp’s action phase.
- During the Corp’s action phase, the following steps occur
in order:
- A paid ability window occurs, in which players may use paid
abilities, the Corp may rez non-ice cards, and the Corp may score agendas. (P) (R) (S)
- If the Corp has any unspent [click], the Corp takes an action.
Otherwise, skip to (d).
- Return to (a).
- The Corp’s action phase is complete. Play proceeds to the
Corp’s discard phase.
- During the Corp’s discard phase, the following steps
occur in order:
- The Corp discards one card at a time from HQ until the number of
cards in HQ is less than or equal to the Corp’s maximum hand size.
- A paid ability window occurs, in which players may use paid abilities and the
Corp may rez non-ice cards. (P) (R)
- If the Corp has any unspent [click], the Corp loses those [click].
- The Corp’s turn formally ends. Conditions related to the turn or discard phase ending are met.
- The Corp’s discard phase and turn are complete. Play proceeds to the Runner’s turn.
-
Steps of the Runner’s Turn
- During the Runner’s action phase, the following steps occur in
order:
- The Runner gains allotted clicks (default
[click][click][click][click]).
- A paid ability window occurs, in which players may use paid
abilities and the Corp may rez non-ice cards. (P) (R)
- The Runner’s recurring credits ([recurring]) refill.
- The Runner’s turn formally begins. Conditions related to the turn beginning are met.
- A paid ability window occurs, in which players may use paid
abilities and the Corp may rez non-ice cards. (P) (R)
- If the Runner has any unspent [click], the Runner takes
an action. Otherwise, skip to (h).
- Return to (e).
- The Runner’s action phase is complete. Play proceeds to the
Runner’s discard phase.
- During the Runner’s discard phase, the following steps
occur in order:
- The Runner discards one card at a time from the grip until the
number of cards in the grip is less than or equal to the Runner’s maximum hand size.
- A paid ability window occurs, in which players may use paid
abilities and the Corp may rez non-ice cards. (P) (R)
- If the Runner has any unspent [click], the Runner loses those [click].
- The Runner’s turn formally ends. Conditions related to the turn or discard phase ending are met.
- The Runner’s discard phase and turn are complete.
Play proceeds to the Corp’s turn.
-
Runs
-
General
- A RUN is a Runner’s attack
on a server. There are 6 phases used in the procedure of carrying out a run, described in sections
6.3 through 6.8. A run always begins with the
Initiation Phase. Section
6.9 contains the full set of steps carried out during each phase,
and should be referred to in conjunction with the sections discussing the phases.
- The ATTACKED SERVER is the
server the Runner is attempting to reach, usually to breach that server.
- The Runner announces the attacked server
in the initiation phase of the run.
- Card abilities can sometimes change the attacked server during the
run. This does not end the run, but it can affect whether or not certain card abilities or effects
apply.
- If an ability changes the Runner’s position, the attacked server and the
current timing step of the run could also change. See section 6.2.5.
- A few abilities change the attacked server directly, without
referring to the Runner’s position. These abilities do not change the current timing step of the
run.
Example: Sneakdoor Beta’s ability changes the attacked server from
Archives to HQ. The Runner does not need to encounter ice protecting HQ after resolving this ability.
- Many abilities modify the sequence of steps taken to resolve a run. Such
abilities can direct players to skip steps or phases, replace steps with other effects, move directly
from the current timing point to a new phase, or make other changes to the procedures explained in this
section. Heed the Golden Rules in section
1.2.
- Some abilities direct the Runner to approach or encounter a piece of ice as
part of moving them to that ice’s position. See section 6.2.5.
- One card, Code Replicator, directs the
Runner to approach the piece of ice in their position without first moving them to a new position. This
effect changes the current timing step of the run to step 6.9.2, the
Approach Ice Phase.
- An ability that directs the Runner to encounter a piece of
ice without first moving the Runner’s
position does not change the current timing point of the run, the
attacked server, or the Runner’s position. The effect of such an ability
is to resolve an Encounter Ice Phase independent of the current state of
the run. See section 6.5.9.
- Any time the current timing step of the run is
moved to a different phase of the run, except for an
instruction to end the run (See rule 6.1.4, below), no more steps in the
previously-active phase are carried out. If a paid ability window is open, players complete that window
normally. Then the active phase is complete and a checkpoint occurs. Finally, the game proceeds to the
new phase.
- If a condition refers to encountering a piece of ice
“after” an approach or passing a piece of ice “after” an encounter, then that
condition is only met by the indicated phases or steps occurring in direct sequence according to the
standard progression of the run.
Example: The Runner uses Inversificator to break the subroutine on a Mirāju
that is protecting Archives. When the encounter ends, Mirāju’s ability creates a replacement
effect so that the Runner moves to the outermost position of Archives instead of
passing Mirāju. Because the ice is not passed, Inversificator’s
ability does not meet its trigger condition. Later, the Runner encounters the same Mirāju again and
does not break its subroutine. When this encounter ends, the Runner passes Mirāju. Even though the
Runner has used Inversificator to fully break Miraju during an encounter earlier in the run,
Inversificator’s trigger condition is not met when the Runner passes Miraju because the Runner is not
passing it after the relevant encounter.
- To END THE RUN is to halt the
Runner’s progress toward the server. When an effect ends the run, the current phase of the run
ends without following any of its remaining steps, and before completing open priority windows. The game
immediately moves from the current timing point to step 6.9.6, the Run Ends Phase.
- JACKING OUT is the process by which a Runner
voluntarily ends a run. Jacking out follows the usual process for ending the run
as described in rule 6.1.4, but some card abilities function
differently depending on whether or not the Runner chose to end the run by jacking out.
- The Runner has the opportunity to jack out after passing a piece of
ice.
- If there is no ice protecting the server, the Runner has the opportunity to
jack out before approaching the server.
-
Position
- The Runner’s POSITION during a run is a measure of their distance from the server. The Runner’s
possible positions correspond to the positions of ice protecting the attacked server.
- The Runner does not have a position while they are not engaged in a run, nor do
they maintain their position from one run to the next. After a run
initiates, the Runner moves to the outermost
position of the attacked server, if it has any.
- The Runner progresses through the positions protecting a server
(and corresponding ice) in order. They approach, encounter (if the ice is rezzed), and pass each piece
of ice, then proceed to the next piece of ice moving inward, until they pass the innermost piece of ice
or the run is ended.
- Once the Runner leaves the position of the innermost piece of ice protecting a
server, they no longer have a position. This occurs at step 6.9.4d of the
Movement Phase. However, abilities can still move the Runner to a position later in that phase.
- During the Success Phase and the Run Ends Phase, the Runner has no
position and can no longer move to a position.
Example: The Corp uses Ganked! to force the Runner to encounter Cell Portal in the
middle of breaching a server. Since the run is already successful, resolving Cell Portal’s subroutine
will have no meaningful effect except to derez Cell Portal.
- Ice entering or leaving a position protecting the attacked
server can affect the Runner’s position.
- If a piece of ice is added to or removed from the attacked server in
a position outward from the Runner’s current position, nothing happens. The Runner will normally
not need to approach or encounter the new piece of ice to reach the server.
Example: During a run on R&D, Architect’s
subroutines resolve and the Corp installs a new piece of ice in the
outermost position protecting this server. The Runner does not approach that new piece of ice during this
run because they have already passed that position.
- If a piece of ice is added to the attacked server in a position
inward from the Runner’s current position, the Runner and each piece of ice outside of the new
ice’s position shift one space outward.
Example: During a run on a remote server, Howler’s
subroutine resolves, and the Corp installs a new piece of ice in the next inward
position protecting the server. The Runner will have to approach that new piece
of ice later in this run because they have not passed that position.
- If a piece of ice inward from the Runner’s position is
uninstalled or moved to another server, the Runner and each piece of ice outside of the departed
ice’s position shift one space inward. The Runner does not re-approach ice they have already
passed.
- Changes to the piece of ice in the Runner’s current
position can affect the progression of the run, but they do so differently during the Approach Ice Phase
than during the Encounter Ice Phase.
- If a piece of ice is uninstalled or moved to another position (protecting this
or another server) while it is being approached, the run moves to
the Movement Phase, all outward ice moves one position
inward, and the run continues. The Runner does not re-approach ice they have
already passed.
Example: The Runner has passed 1 piece of ice and is approaching the innermost piece of ice, which is a rezzed Himitsu-Bako. During
the paid ability window of the approach, the Corp uses the ability on Himitsu-Bako to add it to HQ. The Runner passes this position
and will approach the server next, while the other piece of ice protecting the server moves to the innermost
position.
- If a piece of ice is uninstalled or derezzed while it is being encountered, the
run moves to the Movement Phase. All
outward ice moves one position inward if the ice was uninstalled, and the
run continues. The Runner does not re-approach ice they have already passed.
- If a piece of ice currently being encountered moves to another position or is
swapped with installed ice in another position, the Runner remains
with the encountered ice and continues the run from that ice’s new position.
Example: The Runner encounters Bullfrog as the innermost piece of ice
protecting a remote server.  The Runner is now running on Archives and continues the run from
Bullfrog’s new position.
- If a piece of ice currently being approached is swapped with ice in
another position, the Runner remains in their current position and is now approaching the new piece of
ice occupying that position.
- If a piece of ice is uninstalled, derezzed, moved, or swapped
after it is passed, the Runner is not moved.
- During a run, abilities can move
the Runner directly to a position.
- If an ability instructs the Runner to move to a piece of ice in a different
position, the Runner’s position becomes the position corresponding to that ice, and the server
that ice protects becomes the attacked server. The current timing step
becomes step
6.9.2, the Approach Ice Phase, or step 6.9.3, the Encounter Ice Phase, according to
whether the Runner was directed to approach or encounter the ice.
- If an ability instructs the Runner to move to “the outermost
position” of a server, that server becomes the attacked server. If there is any ice protecting
that server, the Runner’s position becomes the position of the outermost such piece of ice, and
the current timing step becomes step 6.9.2, the Approach Ice Phase. If there is no ice, the
Runner ceases to have a position, and the current timing step becomes step 6.9.4, the Movement
Phase.
- If an ability instructs the Runner to move to a position during the Success
Phase, during the Run Ends Phase, or while there is no run in progress, instead the Runner does nothing.
See rule 6.2.2b.
- If an ability instructs the Runner to move to and approach a position they are
already approaching, instead the Runner does nothing.
-
Initiation
- The INITIATION
PHASE sets the parameters for the run and begins the
run.
- At the start of the Initiation Phase, the
Runner announces a server to be the attacked server.
- Some abilities state that the Runner “cannot run on” or