Cyberpunk 2077 changed what a build is. Before 2.0, you levelled five attributes, took whatever perks looked good, and stapled cyberware on until the shop ran out. Now cyberware has a capacity limit, perks are structured around specific weapon types, and the Relic tree from Phantom Liberty adds a fourth layer on top. A build is a real commitment again.
Attributes cap at 20. You get enough points to max two of them and get a third most of the way there. That is your build in one sentence.
Cyberware capacity is the actual budget
Every implant costs capacity. You start with a small pool and raise it with Edgerunner Artifacts scattered through the world and sold by ripperdocs.
This is the constraint people miss. The best implant in a slot is often the wrong choice because it eats capacity that two cheaper implants would use better. A Sandevistan that costs a third of your total pool needs to be earning that share.
Spend the early game buying capacity shards before buying implants. The implants will still be there.
Attributes, and what each one is really for
Body raises health and stamina and gates shotguns, LMGs and blunt weapons. It also unlocks the Adrenaline Rush line, which is the closest thing the game has to a "do not die" button.
Reflexes gates Mantis Blades, katanas, and the dodge-heavy perks. It carries the highest skill ceiling in the game and the shortest time to kill.
Technical Ability raises armour, unlocks tech weapons that shoot through walls, and gates the cyberware capacity perks. Almost every build wants some Technical Ability, which is why it is the most common third attribute.
Intelligence is quickhacks. It is a completely different game, closer to a puzzle than a shooter.
Cool is stealth, headshot damage, and Crouch damage. It pairs with everything and dominates nothing.
Sandevistan or Berserk or neither
The Relic tree from Phantom Liberty is built around these two, and picking one shapes the rest of your character.
Sandevistan slows time. It suits Reflexes builds with katanas or precision rifles, because slow time is worth most when your damage is front-loaded and accurate. The Relic perk that lets you finish enemies with a Sandevistan active makes this the strongest melee option in the game.
Berserk boosts damage and reduces recoil while making you tougher. It fits Body builds with shotguns and blunt weapons. Less flashy, considerably more forgiving.
Neither is legitimate. A netrunner running a cyberdeck instead of either operating system gives up the burst power for the ability to clear a room without entering it.
You cannot have both a cyberdeck and a Sandevistan. That is the single largest branch in the game.
Four builds worth the attribute points
Netrunner
Intelligence 20, Technical Ability 15 or so, the rest wherever. A Tier 5 cyberdeck, Overclock, and a quickhack loadout built around Contagion and Synapse Burnout.
You never fire a gun. You spread damage across a group through Contagion, then let it kill them while you walk in afterwards. Overclock lets you cast using health when RAM runs out, which is what turns the build from slow to genuinely fast.
Its weakness is bosses. A single high-health target with no crowd to spread through is where the netrunner feels worst, and it is worth carrying a tech pistol just for those fights.
Sandevistan Blades
Reflexes 20, Body 15, Technical Ability where it lands. Mantis Blades or a katana, Sandevistan, and every perk that extends its duration.
Activate, cross the room, everything is dead before time resumes. It is the most satisfying build in the game and it falls apart if you enter a fight without the Sandevistan charged, so the discipline is in retreating and waiting rather than in the fighting.
Shotgun Solo
Body 20, Technical Ability 15. Berserk, a tech shotgun, and the Adrenaline Rush line for a health buffer that regenerates in combat.
The build that ignores mechanics. You walk in, absorb the damage, and delete things at close range. It is the most beginner-friendly option in the game by a wide margin and it holds up on Very Hard.
Tech Sniper
Technical Ability 20, Cool 18. Charged tech rifles, which shoot through walls, plus Cool's headshot multipliers.
You will kill most enemies before the encounter starts, through cover they think is protecting them. Slow, methodical, and a completely different pace to everything else here. Bring a backup weapon for the fights that get close.
Lifepaths change dialogue, not power
Corpo, Nomad and Streetkid each open lines of dialogue and one early quest branch. They do not affect stats, perks, or anything you will care about in combat at level 40.
Pick the one whose opening you want to play. Nomad has the best introduction, Corpo the best dialogue later on, Streetkid the least of both.
Respeccing
You can refund perk points freely at any time. Attributes are a different matter: there is a single attribute reset available, and after that your points are where they are.
So spend perks recklessly and attributes carefully. That asymmetry is the opposite of what most games train you to expect.
If you want the ranked read on individual weapons and cyberware, the Cyberpunk 2077 tier list has it.
