As you may have heard, The Ninja Scot and Dr. Telek R'Mor have decided to do a one-page review of every card in Holodeck Adventures.  That's right, all 131 cards!  Better set aside lots of reading time for this…  (DTRM is doing evens and TNS is doing odds)  The opinions, of course, are those of the authors :-)

25) Cybernetics Expertise
Incident – Seeds or plays on table.  Your androids report for free if Cybernetics present (one android per turn per Cybernetics skill), and may report to your personnel who has Cybernetics x2.  Also, once each turn, you may exchange a card from hand for an android in your discard pile.

        Out goes the rule about Cybernetics’ built-in skill of reporting androids for free and in comes the card form.  Personally, the card version is worth the seed slot if androids are the way to your future.

        As with the old rule, you get to report one android for every Cybernetics skill you have in play to wherever they can normally report which is now just another free reporting device.  However, now you can report them wherever you have Cybernetics x2, which only Dr. Soong has naturally (Although you could get it rather easily with Reflection Therapy and anyone with Cybernetics) which helps if you’re far away from your facilities (or if they’re blown up).  The last portion of the card is also quite useful, a card play-less action to place a card in the discard pile for an android, a less costly Res-Q for any android.  While this last portion can’t be used until after your card play phase, you can however use it after an android dies on your turn, thereby bringing them back before your next turn when they can report for free to your Cybernetics personnel again.

        While this is all nice and good, it would’ve been better a couple of expansions ago.  Sure, it’s nice to get all of those potential androids to report for free but nowadays, lots of places are available to report for free – Home Away From Home, Sodality/Hunt/Kazon Collective, Headquarters, Time Locations and that’s not even counting DQSS, does it matter about the androids?

        Frankly, it all depends on Dr. Soong – With his ability to reprogram Soong-Type Androids and Lal at his disposal, plus now able to have them report to his location as well as report two for free, it would sound like he’s wonderful.  The problem is that the androids that do report there aren’t the greatest as far as skills go.  Both Lal and the universal Soong-Type Androids have natural Computer Skill and Youth but, while Lal can pick which two skills present that she’d like, that’s not that great in a mainly android deck.  There are only so many skills available that androids have. Their main strength lies in Classification dilemmas – Scientific Method, Ferengi Infestation, Hanonian Land Eel, Maglock, just for some examples.  With Dr. Soong’s ability to alter those Soong-Type Androids’ alterable classifications at a whim, these dilemmas are easily resolved.  Otherwise, there’s so many free reports with high skills and classifications but those are only once per turn, whereas with Cybernetics, there can be a great deal of personnel reported each turn.

Combo – Dr. Soong + Dr. Korby + Lal + Sherlock Holmes + Ruk + Telak + Juliana Tainer + Cybernetics Experience – Telak reported via Defend Homeworld, play Dr. Soong as your card play, then report everyone else for free (Lal will need Cybernetics) That’s all on turn 1 and each turn, you’ll be able to report up to 5 androids a turn with Sherlock to help refresh your hand as much as androidly possible.