Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty review
Screenshot: CD Projekt

Best Cyber Assassin build in Cyberpunk 2077 2.0

Hacking from the shadows.

Buildcrafting in Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 is the core of what makes the gameplay so unique. It is possible to completely change the way the game is enjoyed with some simple tweaking. The Cyber Assassin build in Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 is all about silence and deadly efficiency. With the right routes and unlocks in the skill and perk tree, you can become the shadow of death.

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Cyber Assassin Cyberpunk 2.0

This build relies on the skill tree but also heavily on quickhacks. To be the Cyber Assassin, you need to be able to move around undetected but also strike from the dark. How you strike, whether it is nonlethal or lethal, is up to you. I will give a list of possible quickhack choices at the end of the skill tree list.

Reflex skill tree

Cyber Assasin Cyberpunk 2.0

Screenshot: PC Invasion

If you want to be working in the shadowy corners of the enemies’ lairs, you‘ll need to be dashing and dancing around in silence. The Reflex tree will help you stay unnoticed and stealthy.

Fill the center of the skill tree to unlock some outrageous aerial acrobatics that will leave you flying above and around the enemies in silence and with little to no stamina costs. The tree can provide slides, dashes, double jumps, and with the Arial Acrobat sub perk, some nice maneuverability while airborne. A Cyber Assassin never lets the enemies know where they’re coming from in Cyberpunk 2077 2.0.

The far right of the tree is dedicated to when things get up close and personal. No assassin is complete without their trusty blade. This Cyber Assassin build in Cyberpunk is much more focused on staying unseen and distant, but sometimes getting your hands dirty is necessary.

Climbing the right side of the tree will not only improve your ability to dash and dodge. The Flash and Thunderclap perk that links with the movement tree will help you dash towards enemies to quickly dispatch them whenever you may get spotted.

Intelligence skill tree

Cyber Assasin Cyberpunk 2.0

Screenshot: PC Invasion

To be a Cyber Assassin, you need to be smart. Unlike the Brawler build in Cyberpunk 2077, your smarts are what keep you alive, and your enemies the opposite of alive.

Put your perk points into the far right of the skill tree to become a master of quickhacks. Climbing this branch will reduce the cost of your quickhacks, and allow you to start stacking them. With this skill tree, you can start to create unseen devastation to both machines and people alike.

The Cyberpunk 2077 2.0 Cyber Assassins’ main arsenal is in their quickhacks. The right side of the Intelligence tree will give you the ability to almost endlessly use your quickhacks around a room before you are spotted. Make sure you have a decent arsenal of them in your quick deck.

The center of the Intelligence quick tree gives our Cyber Assassin some serious damage to the quickhacks in your cyberdeck. Working up the tree speeds up RAM recovery and adds huge damage to everything uploaded to the enemies’ poor brains.

With the unlocking of Overclock, it becomes possible to surpass your own RAM to the detriment of your health. Although this sounds like a bad deal, pairing it with Power Surge actually grants health back equal to 5x your max RAM, and Race Against Time increases quickhack damage equal to lost health.

Cool skill tree

Cyber Assasin Cyberpunk 2.0

Screenshot: PC Invasion

You can’t be a Cyber Assassin if you lose your cool, so this tree is the final essential focus for Cyberpunk 2077 2.0. Thrown blades and a little more movement bonuses will help your Cyber Assassin build stay above and beyond the fray.

As a standalone perk in the Cool skill tree, Killer Instinct will get you the drop on a lot of enemies without them ever knowing you were there. It allows you to strike from the shadows when out of combat, gain more, and see the potential damage. This will help you determine whether you can instantly kill someone and possibly allow you to dispatch an entire force without raising an alarm.

The right side of the Cool skill tree mostly focuses on providing more throwables and delivering higher damage. There is also the ability to spread contagion, but I think the star of the show goes to Pounce in this Cyber Assassin build. It allows you to perform finishers from a much further distance. This will pair perfectly with Going the Distance in the Reflexes tree to provide obscene distance for fatal takedowns in Cyberpunk 2077 2.0.

The final focus for Cyberpunk 2077 2.0’s Cyber Assassin is the center of the Cool Tree. This branch drives towards even further improvements to the movement of the build. It not only allows for bullet mitigation but also the chance to sprint while crouched.

Cyber Assassin quickhacks guide

The real core of the Cyber Assassin build is the quickhacks they have in the arsenal. Of course, everyone is different, but these are the ones I particularly enjoyed using.

  • Contagion – Simple, cheap, and effective. This non-lethal will spread through a crowd like a nasty cold. The upload is fast at only 2 seconds and can quickly incapacitate a crowd.
  • Synapse Burnout – A great way to cause some serious damage from the shadows. It has a relatively high cost but can really cripple even stronger opponents. As you level it up, it will even make enemies burst into flames and cause panic to surrounding foes.
  • Cyberware Malfunction – No doubt you’ll be hit with this one often. All the enemies’ cyberware needs a complete reboot leaving them vulnerable and unable to hack or move. Upgrading results in one piece of cyberware exploding and gives the quickhack the ability to spread.
  • Any of the ultimate quickhacks – If you can get your hands on these, you will be well on your way to becoming the perfect Cyber Assassin in Cyberpunk 2077 2.0. Each of them causes huge devastation and is a lot of fun to use.

Related: Should you start a whole new character for Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty?

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Author
Leo Gillick
Leo is a Freelance Writer for PC Invasion. He has a degree in English Literature and Film Studies and more hours buried into videogames than he cares to admit. He has worked extensively in the Videogame and Travel writing industry but, as they say, get a job doing something you love and you'll never work a day in your life. He uses his writing as a means to support indefinite global travel with the current five year plan seeing him through Latin America.