Shadowfist Deck: Über Tech by Daniel Griego

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Home > Decks > Decks: Über Tech (World Championship multiplayer winner at GenCon 2008)
[posted 23 Aug 2008; updated 30 Mar 2009]

Originally posted to the Shadowfist Forum on Yahoogroups on 23 Aug 2008 by Daniel Griego. Republished with permission. If you're a member of the group, you can read the original in the archive and the follow-up message too.

Daniel Griego won the World Championship multiplayer tournament at GenCon 2008 with this deck.

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Über Tech
by Daniel Griego (61 cards) 

5 DNA Mage
5 Test Subject

1 Buro Scientist
1 Arcanotechnician
2 Vivisector

1 Jessica Ng (Promo)
1 Napalm Belcher
2 CHAR
1 Tunneler Drone
1 Destroyer Drone
1 General Gog
1 Thing With a 1000 Tongues
2 Noriko Watson (Promo)
1 Marauder Lord

3 Dangerous Experiment
2 Rise of the NeoBuro
2 Aerial Bombardment
2 Neutron Bomb
1 Abominable Wave
3 Information Warfare
2 Pocket Demon
1 Satellite Intelligence
1 IKTV Special Report
2 Orbital Laser Strike

1 BuroMil "Savage"
1 Havoc Suit

1 CAT Tactics
1 Supercomputer

1 Creche of the New Flesh

1 Möbius Gardens
1 Stone Spirals
2 Proving Ground
2 City Park
1 Whirlpool of Blood
2 Smiling Heaven Lake
2 Dragon Graveyard

Most tournament winners will tell you that luck has a great deal to do with the timing and potential to win. Jan might tell you that intuition and reading your opponents has a lot to do with it.

I try to start with a simple theme and let the cards develop and build off that theme while hoping that they come together in a cohesive synergism that somehow works.

This one started with the want for a strong tech-oriented deck.
Every single character in the deck is a tech character.
All but the most necessary of non-character cards are tech cards.
Admittedly, much of the construction was made up of me thinking, "what are the best tech cards, let's throw them in."

Most players can tell you the best way to use most of the cards in the deck. Play big character, attack, sacrifice to vivisector, play new big character with new power, attack, rinse, repeat. Dangerous Experiment at end of opponent's turn, do it again during yours, etc.
Satellite Intelligence and CAT Tactics were both efforts on my part to bring back some lesser-used cards. Both had spectacular moments of success during the tournament, one time each, but you take what you can get.
Buro Scientist is one of the most underused, underrated scientists in the game. I almost never see it played and it almost always ends up doing SOMETHING for me with Satellite Intelligence, Havoc Suit, Abominable Wave, or BuroMil "Savage."
To continue to get the most out of your Orbital Laser Strikes and the Havoc Suit, substitutions should still provide that tech (Assault Drones and Conversion Drones work, Conversion Drone also give you Thing food). Other substitutions could include Raptor Squad (made better with Buro Scientist), Marauder Gang, and Arcanomoth (always a good late-game choice).
Dangerous Experiments can be swapped out slightly for another IKTV Special Report or Pocket Demon if need be, but I'd definitely keep at least one, preferably two.
Almost every single site in the deck drives home the dominant goal of the deck: Get out the big guns and run the board. It's no accident that there is exactly one 3-cost character in the deck. I love utility characters, but this is a meat and potatoes deck all the way through.
Tragically, though, the deck is rather predictable as few of my opponents were ever surprised with anything I ever did, save perhaps a well timed Aerial Bombardment or Satellite Intelligence. The Dangerous Experiment/CHAR combo is as old as Daedalus, I'm a sucker for the classics, I guess.
As a personal preference, I don't play with Nerve Gases or Imprisons. I fully recognize their usefulness and resounding awesomeness, but I hate them. I hate Imprison, especially. With the fiery passion of a thousand suns, I hate Imprison. I hate when they're played on me and I don't want other players to feel that same sense of hopelessness I feel when I spend 6 power on a Monarch only to have one power and one resource simultaneously clog my hand, deny my resources, take out my hitter, and blow my power on a failed attack. So yeah, that's my rant on Imprison.

Anyway, it's not a terribly complicated deck, but I had a good time playing it.

[writeup by Daniel Griego]

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