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- Embed this noticeTHING 2: NETRUNNER IS AN ECONOMIC GAME.
I know how alluring the cyberpunk theme and the ice-icebreaker interactions are. Because of that, and especially if you come from a history of other "dudebasher" card games, you're likely to assume that your path to victory is getting enough countermeasures (ice or icebreakers) to dominate your opponent.
And, look, I don't mean to dull the magic, but I think to get better, you have to recognize that #Netrunner is, first and foremost, about two resources: clicks and credits. Everything else is just dressing on top of that.
Understanding this can help you orient yourself to more skillful plays. It's common for new Runners, for instance, to refuse to run servers with multiple pieces of unrezzed ice. "What if it's something nasty?", they fret, and they draw cards, hoping they can find something that keeps them safe.
What they often fail to realize, however, is that by not running, they're giving a significant economic advantage to the Corp, and that's what wins games.
Think about it: you need agendas to win. To get them, you'll need to run servers. Meanwhile, the Corp wants you not to run—not only to keep you out, but also because rezzing ice costs money, and they want to use those credits to advance their cards. If you choose not to run, that's awesome for the Corp. They paid next to nothing just to install their unrezzed ice, and it's scaring you off! Best of all possible worlds.
As the Runner, you have one and only one basic action that offers you economic interaction with the Corp, and that's your basic run action. So use it. Call the Corp's bluff. Force them to choose between ponying up the credits and letting you in. It won't always go your way—see Thing 1 above, about giving up on perfect security—but it will at least be more effective economic denial than sitting back and installing cards.
And as the Corp, think long and hard about each credit you spend. My classic example is PAD Campaign. It costs 2 credits to rez, has a trash cost of 4 credits, and gives you 1 credit each turn.
If you install and rez a PAD Campaign, then also install and rez a Palisade in front of it, you will not see a net profit from that server for five turns. Why would you do that?
Netrunner is an economic game. Yes, it will suck to lose a PAD Campaign you spent 2 credits on, but for the Runner to trash it normally, that will cost them 4 credits! You spent 2, they lost 4. You will likely emerge from that in a stronger position than if you fooled yourself into spending a fortune rezzing and protecting the asset.
No matter which side you're playing, the cards in your deck are more than just what they say. They're all pieces to be used in the economic battle that is Netrunner.