The massive 2.0 update completely overhauled how progression works in CD Projekt Red’s hit RPG. Among these is the Cyberpunk 2077 Engineer Skill, a progression track entirely dedicated to maximizing the potential of your tech-based gear. If you need quick information about this skill, follow the provided information:
- The Focus: Unlike Netrunning, this track focuses strictly on hardware. It improves your cyberware, explosives and Tech weapons.
- Key Rewards: Essential for all builds. Reaching Rank 60 unlocks +15 Cyberware Capacity, 2 free Perk Points and a massive 30% boost to all Cyberware stats.
- Fastest Grind: Spam grenades on cooldown, craft ammo/gear, main a Tech weapon and use Technical Ability to force open locked doors.
If you want to know exactly what rewards await you and the most efficient ways to reach maximum rank, this guide breaks down everything you need to know about the Cyberpunk 2077 Engineer Skill.
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All Cyberpunk 2077 Engineer Skill Bonuses Explained
To get every single passive bonus this tree has to offer, you will need to push your Engineer proficiency all the way to rank 60. Progression rewards are distributed at every five-level milestone. You can track your current standing at any time by navigating to your Character menu and opening the Skill Progression tab.
Even if you prefer a stealthy or melee-focused build, you should not ignore this tree. The extra survivability and cyberware upgrades are universally helpful. Here is every passive bonus you will earn as you climb the ranks:
- Rank 5: Boosts your total Armor by 15.
- Rank 10: Expands your Cyberware Capacity by 5.
- Rank 15: Rewards you with 1 free Perk Point.
- Rank 20: Enhances explosives by granting grenades a 10% larger blast radius and 10% bonus damage.
- Rank 25: Adds another 25 points to your Armor.
- Rank 30: Further increases your Cyberware Capacity by 10.
- Rank 35: Grants a second free Perk Point.
- Rank 40: Buffs electric batons and charged Tech weapons by increasing their chance to inflict a Shock effect.
- Rank 45: Makes all Health Items 15% more effective when healing.
- Rank 50: Amplifies every single Cyberware stat modifier by a massive 30%.
- Rank 55: Upgrades Bolt shots to deal 10% extra damage and carry a 40% higher chance to burn targets. Additionally, Chain Lightning will now set enemies on fire.
- Rank 60: Unlocks a powerful passive effect where you occasionally unleash an EMP blast while the Fury state is active.
How to Level Up the Engineer Skill Fast
Earning experience for this specific tree requires you to actively use technology-based items and weapons. Basically, any action tied to the Technical Ability attribute will feed into your Engineer XP.
Reaching the coveted rank 60 takes time, but you can speed up the grind significantly by weaving these five fail-proof methods into your gameplay loop:
Craft Different Types of Equipment
The fastest way to increase your Engineer skill is by crafting items such as weapons, clothing ammunition, and upgrading Iconic weapons.
Keep in mind that creating quickhacks also grants experience toward your Netrunner skill.
Your progress depends on the crafting components you have available. While high-tier recipes and upgrades can quickly consume rare materials, you can steadily earn Engineer experience by repeatedly crafting ammunition for your weapons whenever you have enough resources.
Invest Points in Technical Ability
One of the easiest way to earn large chunks of Engineer XP is by bypassing locked doors and manually overriding tech systems out in the world. To do this, you need to meet specific stat checks. Pumping your core points into the Technical Ability attribute allows you to hack more environmental obstacles. This strategy guarantees massive spikes in your skill progression.
Spam Your Grenades in Every Fight
In the 2.0 era of the game, explosives are no longer limited by how many you have in your inventory. They now operate on a cooldown recharge timer. Because they are practically limitless, you should throw them in every single firefight. Both dealing damage and securing kills with explosives will steadily progress your rank.
Main a Tech Weapon
Whenever you defeat enemies using Tech weaponry, you earn experience for this tree. While the XP payout per kill is not quite as massive as overriding a high-level security door, the sheer amount of combat you face in the game means this method adds up incredibly fast over time.
Hunt Down Engineer Skill Shards
As you explore the dangerous streets of Dogtown and the greater Night City area, keep an eye out for collectible data shards. Engineer Skill Shards come in five different tiers and offer instant progression boosts. They can be found randomly hidden inside loot containers or dropped by defeated enemies. Make sure you are thoroughly looting your surroundings after a heavy firefight.
Cyberpunk 2077
