Optimal Netunner start?

[Drewskie]

I've played many character builds before 2.0. I redid my stealth/pistol build after 2.0 and loved it even more, but netrunner always felt weak before and after. At least in the early portion of the game.

Should I be backing off on INT and lean more on Technical Ability or something until I have more options and cyberware? It seems like the best thing my quick hacks are doing is softening up my targets. I don't want to spend the game married to my Tab key and one shotting necessarily but I don't know what I'm doing wrong aside from perhaps needing to accept that it's not my cup of tea.

[Simple Man]

For netrunner from day 1 just hard focus the middle Int tree. It unlocks Overclock, some RAM (and health) regeneration, and up to 110% quickhack damage.

From there get a blue sonic shock, you can craft one in your early levels well before vendors have them in store. Sonic shock + overheat under overclock should be disabled target or just about.

Once you start opening up queues on the left side, long as you use a Raven cyberdeck, contagion alone will start wiping the whole area, akin to what we used to do in the early days, if the targets are just too big/mini-bosses, overheat on top of the contagion and they just detonate for absurd damage.

[Soul]

I know its usually recommended for netrunners to go Int and focus on it ASAP.... though I kinda went a different way.... it might not be "optimal" but here's what I like to do...

4 body, 3 reflexes, 6 Int, 6 Tech, 3 Cool.... usually how I start....

then I bring up Int to 9 then Tech to 9..... then finish off Int to 20....

reason for this is I like to grind skills for the extra perks super early... like before doing the bot mission with Jackie I like to run around and grind all skills up to level 15 for extra 5 perk points.... plus by time im done that and if I been scrapping everything... I can afford to upgrade or close to it a tier 3 cyberdeck to really get stealth up and running with sonic shock tier 3...

I like to level netrunner to level 15 first.... and when I get Tech to level 9 can switch skills to boost grenade recharge and such and level that one to 15.... then i'd switch skills around using body 4 for healing in combat and healing missing health, more enemies.... and skill up tech tree for healing item skills... that helps me with using blunt weapons to level solo to 15 and bladed weapons to level shinobi.... headhunter I dont really bother with since it levels up somewhat alongside netrunner decently... and once I have a tier 3 cyberdeck with sonic shock and all skills at least level 15 for extra perk point i'd do maelstrom and heist missions...

after the heist i'd do a couple of missions... like car in garage, meet takemura, and the funeral one where I get a motorcycle.... then I like to grind the skills up to 35 for an extra 5 more perk points... which by time im done I pretty much turned my tier 3 cyberdeck into a tier 5 cyberdeck....

before heist I like to do a loop around the area around the NCPD mission close to the Militech agent you can call.... enemies respawn if you loop it... after the heist I like to go to pacifica where you can reset the beach area enemies which are much closer together though not as many as the one in watson its much faster to pull off a loop.... but grinding to 15 isnt that much effort so watson is tolerable to run around and level up the first 15 levels just fine...

[DocBravo]

Contagion is awesome for groups and in part stun-locking them.
Since enemies scale to V's level then you can't get overpowered like prior V2.
Weapon choice is personal but when done right, you won't use one often.
You can focus on INT, best buffs for skills, higher Tier quickhacks and can take out groups of enemies without attacking.
I prefer cyberwear:
Provides good scanning effects at longer distances.
Faster upload, more quickhack damage/control.
Better movement.
Anything that increases RAM regen rate and reduces hack costs is a good choice.
There is a lot of choice in cyberwear.
For weapons, I try handguns with headshot bonuses and a good Tech Sniper rifle.

[Drewskie]

Solid tips, thank you all. Maybe I've always underestimated Sonic Shock. I'm hoping to spec out in smart weapons as well, as I'm pretty happy with the changes they made to them but I think I'll make sure my deck is up to the task first. I got a tier 2 right now but all my quick hacks are still tier 1, which is probably a big part of my problem. I am a little bit past the heist now, just roaming Japantown and Northside like the days of old. Even simple gigs for Regina are messing me up in ways I didn't expect. Granted, I'm on Very Hard.

[Soul]

Originally posted by Drewskie:

Solid tips, thank you all. Maybe I've always underestimated Sonic Shock. I'm hoping to spec out in smart weapons as well, as I'm pretty happy with the changes they made to them but I think I'll make sure my deck is up to the task first. I got a tier 2 right now but all my quick hacks are still tier 1, which is probably a big part of my problem. I am a little bit past the heist now, just roaming Japantown and Northside like the days of old. Even simple gigs for Regina are messing me up in ways I didn't expect. Granted, I'm on Very Hard.

yeah once you get a tier 3 cyberdeck... you can go to the netrunner vendor in Watson and she'll start selling both schematics AND the actual quickhacks for whatever level your cyberdeck is capable of.... its not level dependent for her shop.... just cyberdeck dependent...

tier 3 sonic shock allows you to cut off enemies from the network so there will be no chance of tracing even occuring on an enemy you use it on and its active....

also it kinda helps too... since on Int middle tree's embedded exploit rank 2 which you HAVE to take in order to reach Overclock.... means when an enemy is affected by a non combat hack your combat quickhack is 60% stronger... and since sonic shock is a covert quickhack... having something like overheat right after it will give it 60% damage boost... early game you can be quite dangerous just with sonic shock tier 3 and a rank 2 overheat...

plus if you use the Tetratronic Rippler cyberdeck its tier 3 version gives a damage boost when a non combat quickhack is qued right after a combat one.... so something like sonic shock, overheat, reboot optics combo would give overheat a 100% damage boost and be untraceable... its a 40% from the Rippler + the 60% from rank 2 embedded exploit skill...