So, I got my roommate this game for Christmas, because we decided we needed something for two players to play in the evenings. Got a few cheap expansiosn from ex-players too, but we haven't opened them yet.

After a dozen or two games with the core, most factions paired against each other, I think, we have come to one problem:

The Runner almost always wins.

By always I mean something like 3/4 of the time, no matter the combination of factions and who plays them. Often it feels like there was nothing the Corp could have done to prevent it.

We are reasonably comfortable we're doing the rules right, but it just seems, well, the corp can never cover their *** enough. Early game, the Runner always has an avenue to attack that the corp hasn't had time to install ICE on yet. RnD, HQ, anything. Doesn't usually do all that much, but then they can also just build.

Late game, the opposite problem. We've never seen an arrangement of ICE that a determined runner can't get through. Never. Maybe they have to take a turn to bunker resources, but there never seems to be enough time for the Corp to score anything before the runner gets in. The runner always gets an opportunity to run at least once on an agenda before the corp can advance it enough, and usually one run is all they need. And of course, the Corp is on a ticking clock, waiting for their deck to run out. (Never happened so far.)

Are there maybe any good strategy guides for the corp out there? Should we just delve into our expansions and deckbuild more?

Your assessment is correct: Early and Late game are favoring the runner.

By ANR standards, there are 3 phases to the game:

- Early game: The Corp didn't protected all it's servers. It favors the Runner, who can get "free" runs, on unprotected servers and allows him to pressure the Corp economically by forcing it to rez as much ICE as possible

- Mid Game: The Corps has ICEd all it's servers and runner's does not have his full rig on the table ( Missing critical Icebreakers or essential economy cards or console) This favors the Corp as there will be servers the runner can just not access. This is where the corp will try to score as much agendas as possible and win the game

-Late game: The runner has his full rig and in some rare cases is barely interested in drawing anymore. Favors the Runner side again. The longer the game will go the better the Runner's chances to win.

The whole's Corp strategy is to make the early game phase a short as possible and the Middle game phase as long as possible. How? Economy denial, tag punishment, damage, rig destruction etc...

Playing the Corps requires usually more planning than playing the runner when you are a new player because you have to take ownership of the flow of the game, and that's something you need to learn. If you let the runner do whatever he wants and just try to defend yourself passively by placing one piece of ICE after another, you will lose. And this is why pieces of ICE and Upgrades that have effect that cannot be shut down by just paying a bunch of credits are powerful. These will hit the runner way harder in late game than a regular credit tax.

I think the easiest Corp to pick to work on that is Jinteki, due to the multiple trabs and bluff aspect. In the end, all corps have tools to scare the Runner, but Jinteki has the biggest ones. The Runner must be scared to run. The fact he has an option in the turn structure just before accessing the cards in a server to Jack out is telling something. Get him fall on an Obokata Protocol , or he gets his share of Snare! . He will start to be very careful before running, which means he will take longer to prepare, and in turn leave you more space to score your agendas. It's all about offering the runner to choose between 2 bad choices.