Prizes and Art for the 2026 Summer Showdown
by ManintheMoon
I’m so excited to announce the third annual Summer Showdown! For this Showdown, I pulled out all the stops and commissioned six new alt-arts from my favorite community artists.
The Summer Showdown will take place on May 23rd, 2026
This time of year has a special place in my heart; spring is coming to an end and summer flowers are starting to bloom, marking the beginning of a truly wonderful time of year where I live, in the Pacific Northwest. I’ve brought some of that personal excitement about the transition of the seasons into the commissions for this event. This article showcases the art and gives me an opportunity to share a bit more about the wonderful artists I have the immense pleasure of working with.
Early Registration Prize
The first prize you can earn for the event is Valentine de la Rosa's Loup. Valentine did such an amazing job last fall with MuslihaT. After that project finished up, I sent her a list of IDs I wanted alt-arts for and Loup drew her attention most. We workshopped the piece for a few months and I’m super thrilled with how it turned out. It’s one of the more edgy cards I’ve produced, but I think it really captures Loup’s wild party animal side. How can I get this fantastic Loup, you might ask? Well, this one is simple: if you buy your ticket during the first 48 hours, Loup will be included as a free bonus! Any Patreon members also get this Loup included with their prizes, regardless of when they buy their ticket. Here is a little more about the artist:
Loup by Valentine de la Rosa
Valentine de la Rosa is an illustrator and artist working out of Seattle, Washington. Aside from her day job as a wageslave, she's been pursuing art as a passion and as a freelancer for the last 5 years using Procreate and CSP as tools of the trade. With a start in the furry fandom, Valentine's style focuses on unique and colorful character designs, which translated naturally to the flashy and queer futurescape of Netrunner.
What inspiration do you draw on for your art?
I like to look to my peers and friends for inspiration, and particularly to other transfem artists. I know a lot of artists, and follow a ton on my socials, and it's a really gratifying experience getting to see the way their style differs from mine, how they might approach a given scene or character design differently from the way I would. I feel like I spend a ton of time studying other people's art lmao, just admiring the swoop of one character's shoulders or the folds in their clothes or whatever else.
Socials/website links:
itch
tumblr
discord: @polychromaic
Participation Prizes
Whenever you get a Showdown ticket, there is a collection of participation prizes to choose from. Prizes for this event feature art by Cat Shen, Scott Uminga and V4lvi_.
Tucana by Cat Shen
Cat Shen or kysra is a VFX professional and prolific Netrunner artist. As one of the spikiest artists in our community, Cat can often be found at the top tables of East Coast North American events. Their art is as beautiful as their netrunner decks are deadly! Cat uses a blend of pseudo realism and intricate detail to create spectacular scenes that fit perfectly into the unreal world of cyberspace. You’ll often find animals sneaking their way into Cat’s art, as drawing creatures of all types is a particular passion of theirs.
Socials/website links:
Instagram
Make Playing Cards Pack
Audrey v2 by Scott Uminga
Scott Uminga is a multidisciplinary artist, digital illustrator, bookstore worker, coffee drinker, and chip muncher based in Toronto. They love playing with cats and dogs, staying up late to read manga or play video games, and changing their hair colour every couple months.
What inspiration do you draw on for your art?
I’m inspired by many things and many artists, but I think what moves me as of late is looking at my past works, and seeing where I can adventure further into the worlds I’ve created. Sometimes I just look at the shapes and brushes I’ve created over the years and think of narratives or daydream scenes from them.
When it comes to commissions, I like to imagine and place myself in the scene and depict what I think would be a great view for me.
Whatever the inspiration, I always want to create illustrations that feel right to me (physically, emotionally, mentally or psychologically) in the moment.
Socials/website links:
Artstation
scottuminga.com
Instagram
Muse (participation) and Hannah (2 wins) by V4lvi_
Check out the APAC Showdown announcement to read more about V4lvi_ and his work!
Socials/website links:
Instagram
Placement Prizes
3 wins (or played final round of swiss): Stained Glass Dragon Esâ by Aleksandra Simonović
Working with Aleksandra Simonović is always a joy! We have had a bunch of fun bringing together this mix of almost opposing themes and styles to create archetypal scenes with dragons to embody the raw power of our favorite runners. The mythical dragons and the stained glass style are almost at odds with the cyberpunk setting, but Aleksandra is truly masterful at bringing it all together. In this scene the dragon representation of Esâ destroys (with fire) the mining equipment Ob employs to ravage the arctic landscape xi loves so much. Seeing the dump truck from Extract getting burned to a crisp seems fitting with the new SBL.
4 wins: Nico Campaign by Kira L. Nguyen
In this piece you can see the Nico model biroids in a display window as part of the Poétrï Luxury Brands shopping center. Kira does such an amazing job of blending light and detail to create powerful, vibrant art that fits perfectly into the Cyberpunk world of Netrunner. If you manage to win these Nico Campaigns, you can line them up with your Poétrï from the APAC showdown to create one seamless art from the futuristic streets of Malaysia.
5 Wins: Summer Showdown Key
The Summer Key can be used to redeem special prizes when you register for the next two Showdowns! Here’s a look at one of the prizes you can unlock with your Key during the 2026 Showdown series:
AugustusCeasar’s Ultimate Showdown Champion Card: Slash and Burn Agriculture by Matheus Calza
6 Wins: Foil Anemone
I originally created this Anemone as a prize for Cascadia 2025. The art features an undersea scene by James M. Somerville. The original art is from the late 1800s and available as part of the public domain. I fell in love with this art and I’m thrilled to present the foil version as one of the top prizes for the 2026 Summer Showdown.
A prize for 7 wins will be added if we have over 180 players! Check out the ABR page for more details and to see the top cut prizing.
For more general information about prizing for this year's Showdown series, check out our article on Everything You Need to Know About the 2026 Showdowns!