Reports from the First Week of the Chronos Protocol Tour

“Today we stand on the brink of a momentous occasion for all of humanity. As I speak to you, the scientists behind the Chronos Protocol, Miriam Harding and Dr. Evelyn Ibarra, are inside the building behind me speaking to the lawyers of two well-known corporations. Before the day is done, one of those corporations will be the proud owners of the Chronos Protocol and can begin integrating mind-mapping technology into their products.”

Last fall, we announced the Chronos Protocol Tour, a series of Android: Netrunner events across Europe and other parts of the world similar to our successful Plugged-in Tour across America. In these events, players compete for prizes exclusive to the Chronos Protocol Tour and vote between two new Corp identities, forever changing the future of Android: Netrunner. Reports from the Chronos Protocol Tour have flooded in, and it’s time to take a look at what tools Corporations and Runners from around the world have been using.

Today, we bring you the first five stops on the Chronos Protocol Tour!

Faraos Cigarer–Germany

The first weekend of Chronos Protocol Tour events saw lots of action, and Faraos Cigarer in Germany was up to the task. While multiple players traveled from as far away as Sweden and Aarhus, Germany, it was a local champion, Dan, winning the event with Andromeda and NBN: Making News.

While all factions were not equally represented, there was a clear shift from current trendsetters, Criminal and NBN, toward HB and Shaper, both of which took up almost half of the field. Not represented as widely as HB, NBN continued to work hard, with four of its six players in the top 8, including the two finalists. HB didn’t go quietly into the night, however, taking both third and fourth, as well as one more spot in the top 8. Jinteki: Replicating Perfection was the lone outcast in a sea of yellow and purple.

On the Runner side, it was Andromeda winning yet another tournament (as well as second-place), but Shaper was well represented with two Kate “Mac” McCaffrey decks and two Chaos Theory decks in the top 8. One Noise deck and one Gabriel Santiago deck rounded out the top 8 at sixth and seventh, respectively.

IQ Games Centre–Huddersfield, United Kingdom

The first Chronos Protocol Tour event in the United Kingdom took place at IQ Games Centre. A large number of newer players attended, which resulted in a relaxed and casual atmosphere that players enjoyed.

The eventual champion, Gary Kenyon, won with two identities that have toyed with success for many months, but are often overshadowed: NBN: The World is Yours and Noise.

HB was well represented in the field of players and showed it by making up half of the top 8. Weyland and NBN were roughly even, while Jinteki saw only one player make an appearance. On the Runner side, Criminal continued to dominate with sheer numbers; half of the field played a Criminal identity, and five of the top eight Runner decks were Gabriel Santiago or Andromeda. Shaper and Anarch still made a showing, however, appearing across a number of decks, and both factions had at least one deck in the top 8.

In addition to the prizes provided by FFG, IQ Games Centre gave out a Best Sportsman award that players enjoyed.

Leisure Games–Finchley, United Kingdom

The day after the IQ Games Centre stop, much further south, there was a Chronos Protocol Tour event held at Leisure Games in the London area. The event at Leisure Games added yet another two identities to the list of winning decks: Kate “Mac” McCaffery and Weyland: GRNDL.

All four Corp factions were well represented in the tournament. However, Jinteki continued to miss out on top spots, failing to put a deck in the top 8. Half of the top 8 was filled with NBN, but variety was prevalent, with six different identities among the top eight decks.

The Runner factions were slightly more lopsided. Shaper and Criminal decks both doubled the number of Anarch decks overall, but it was Criminal gaining control of yet another top 8 with five of the eight decks playing either Gabriel Santiago or Andromeda.

Ludo–Latvia

Our first stop in Latvia was at Ludo. The players there showed that they were not out just for a vote in Android: Netrunner’s future, but they were hungry for the Chronos Protocol playmats given away to the top eight players.

The winning Corp deck list was clearly an HB fast-advance deck, but the Runner list, utilizing the often-overlooked Whizzard, had a number of interesting pieces, including Keyhole.

The players at Ludo obviously didn’t believe in all the talk about Jinteki being underpowered, as a full third of the field arrived armed with mind games and enough net damage to flatline multiple Runners. HB made up over another third of the field. When the dust had settled, it was HB at the top, with four HB decks claiming first through fourth. The other four decks included two Jinteki decks (in fifth and sixth place) and one identity from each of the two remaining factions.

On the Runner side, all three factions were split evenly, each taking up a third of the field. That parity carried over to the top 8, with Criminal and Anarch both claiming three spots while Shaper took two. We again saw a wide variety of identities in the top eight Runner decks, with six different identities.

Gameforce–Eindhoven, Netherlands

Our final report from the first week is from Gameforce Eindhoven in the Netherlands. A number of excited players showed up ready to run servers and advance agendas, including a couple of Germans from across the border.

The winning decklists added another identity to the pool of winners: Rielle “Kit” Peddler.

While many of the Chronos Protocol events during the first week saw diverse metagames that explored beyond the beaten path, the field at Gameforce Eindhoven was all about NBN and Criminal, and both factions accounted for half of the Corp and Runner decks present.

NBN and Criminal players weren’t satisfied with just making a statement, however. They decided to hammer it home by putting five Criminal decks and six NBN decks in the top 8. GRNDL: Power Unleashed controlled the other two Corp slots, while a variety of identities took up the remaining three Runner spots, including a Reina Roja deck.

In the end, this Chronos Protocol tournament was all about the excitement of getting together to play. Many players expressed excitement for other large events in the future, such as Regionals.

A large thank you to Gameforce Eindhoven and all of the other game stores that ran Chronos Protocol Tour events over the first week, and we wish everyone that participated many more successful runs in the future!

The Vote

Countless prizes were given out, numerous runs were made, and an untold number of traps were sprung, but two things stand above the rest: the camaraderie displayed among players and the vote to decide the future of Android: Netrunner.

As reports filtered into FFG after the first week, it became clear that while players left happily with their prizes, they were thinking about the next chance they would have to play against their newfound friends and opponents. We can’t wait to hear about those events in the future, and encourage players to continue building ties between communities and countries!

During the first week, Jinteki jumped out to an early lead. While HB had some ground to make up, they still had lots of time to put the full force of their corporation behind this initiative. Were they able to do so and gain control of the Chronos Protocol? Or did Jinteki continue to sway Android: Netrunner players across the world with their subterfuge and cunning?

Stay tuned over the next two weeks to hear more about other stops along the Chronos Protocol Tour and find out which megacorporation gains the right to the technology of the future: mind-mapping!

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