Unlocking every ending in Cyberpunk 2077 requires completing specific side quest chains before entering the point of no return at Embers during Nocturne Op55N1. The secret solo assault depends entirely on selecting seven exact dialogue choices during Chippin In rather than reaching a 70 percent relationship score with Johnny Silverhand.
Unlocking the Secret Solo Raid
Bypass the central relationship percentage icon in the main menu, as it serves purely as a decorative tracker. Accessing the secret solo assault path, known as (Don’t Fear) The Reaper, depends strictly on selecting specific dialogue choices at the Northside Badlands oil fields during the side job Chippin In.
Navigate through the dialogue tree at Johnny’s grave marker by choosing these options in order:
- Inscribe initials, then select The Guy who Saved My Life
- Nah, fucked that up too.
- What do you want from me?
- OK. But as second chances go, this is your last.
- You were a real dick in the beginning.
- When you said you let down your friends…
- Yeah, I’ll call Rogue.
After selecting these options, complete the follow-up side job Blistering Love. Proceed through the main story until reaching Nocturne Op55N1 at Embers. After meeting Hanako and waking up in Viktor Vector’s clinic, go to the rooftop balcony above Misty’s Esoterica with Johnny.
When Johnny asks who you want to team up with, highlight the dialogue option to ask Rogue for help, but do not press any button. Leave the game unpaused on this menu for five minutes in real-time silence. Johnny will offer a solo raid on Arasaka Tower. Select the option to hear the plan, then choose to execute the assault.
Health Decay Mechanics and Survival Build
Manual saving is disabled immediately upon entering Arasaka Tower during the secret ending run. Dying at any point during this mission forces the credits to roll instantly, treating the outcome as a suicide.
Patch 2.0 introduced a continuous maximum health reduction mechanic simulating V’s body collapsing under Relic strain. The maximum usable health H(t) at any given point in the mission follows a step-decay formula based on baseline max health H(0) and elapsed time t in seconds:
H(t) = H(0) x (0.75 – 0.01 x floor(t / 45))
Here, floor(t / 45) is the elapsed time in seconds divided by 45 and rounded down to the nearest whole number. Entering the lobby immediately reduces maximum health capacity by 25 percent. Every 45 seconds of active gameplay thereafter strips an additional 1 percent of V’s baseline health. At exactly 3,375 seconds (56 minutes and 15 seconds), maximum health reaches zero, resulting in automatic death.
This decaying health ceiling causes cyberware like the Biomonitor to enter an infinite loop. The Biomonitor continuously attempts to heal V whenever health drops below 50 percent, draining all healing charges without ever restoring V to full capacity.
To survive this sequence, reconfigure V’s build around Damage Mitigation rather than raw health pools. Equip the Defenzikov and Kerenzikov Boost Systems alongside Neofiber and Spring Joints cyberware. This combination provides a 100 percent Mitigation Chance and an 80 percent Mitigation Strength during sliding or dashing, reducing incoming damage by 80 percent regardless of max health drops.
Fighting Adam Smasher in Patch 2.1
Patch 2.1 overhauled Adam Smasher with four distinct phase mechanics that require specific counter strategies:
- Sandevistan Phase (Above 80 percent HP): Smasher activates a custom Sandevistan frame, moving at extreme speeds and dodging standard hitscan weapons. Activate V’s Sandevistan to match his speed, or use smart weapons with fast lock-on capabilities.
- Exposing the Core (80 to 50 percent HP): Smasher rips off his damaged chest plate, exposing a central cybernetic core that takes guaranteed critical damage. The Vulnerability Analytics Relic Perk highlights this point automatically.
- Reinforcement Phase (50 to 30 percent HP): Smasher loses an arm, retreats to upper catwalks, summons heavy Arasaka reinforcements, and fires mortar barrages. Move immediately into the sheltered alcoves beneath the catwalks to block mortar blast zones.
- Cluster Missile Barrage (Below 30 percent HP): Smasher drops to the arena center and launches full-arena missile salvos that destroy cover. Sprint directly to the outer boundary walls of the chamber where missile density is lowest.
Complete Ending Pathways and Outcomes
Every ending branches from Misty’s rooftop in the base game or from Phantom Liberty and the choice to side with Solomon Reed in Dogtown.
| The Devil | None | Trust Arasaka and take omega-blockers | V assists Arasaka and chooses between the Secure Your Soul engram contract or returning to Earth to die within months |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Star | Complete Panam questline through Queen of the Highway | Call Panam and take omega-blockers | V leaves Night City alongside Panam and the Aldecaldos in search of a cure |
| The Sun | Complete Rogue questline through Blistering Love | Give Johnny control and take pseudoendotrizine | V becomes the head of the Afterlife and accepts a solo heist on the Crystal Palace space station |
| Temperance | Complete Panam or Rogue questline | Select Panam or Rogue path, then give V’s body to Johnny in Mikoshi | Johnny retains permanent control of V’s body while V enters cyberspace with Alt |
| The Tower | Complete Phantom Liberty and side with NUSA | Call Solomon Reed from the rooftop | NUSA surgeons remove the Relic, curing V but leaving them unable to use combat cyberware |
| (Don’t Fear) The Reaper | Chippin In dialogue sequence and Blistering Love | Wait 5 minutes on the rooftop menu | V storms Arasaka Tower alone without allied casualties |
| Path of Least Resistance | None | Choose to put this all to rest and toss the pills | V ends their life on the balcony, ending the story immediately |
Missable Iconic Weapons and Map Coordinates
The black market vendor Herold Lowe inside the EBM Petrochem Stadium in Dogtown sells missed quest weapons for 110,000 Eddies. However, his system excludes items located in regions of Night City that remain open and accessible to V.
| Weapon Name | Weapon Class | Location or Quest Lock | Acquisition Method |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prejudice | Power Assault Rifle | For Whom the Bell Tolls | Behind the bar counter in the Afterlife after Rogue clears out patrons |
| Pride | Power Pistol | Knockin on Heaven’s Door | Looted from Rogue’s body near the gate after defeating Adam Smasher |
| Caretaker’s Spade | Blunt Melee Hammer | Knockin on Heaven’s Door | Leaning against a rock near a bonsai tree in Arasaka Tower upper atrium |
| Genjiroh | Smart Pistol | Play It Safe or North Oak | Ground floor office desk inside the Arasaka Mansion compound in North Oak |
| Ba Xing Chong | Smart Shotgun | Post-Game Ebunike Vault | Adam Smasher’s vault at Watson docks using the Access Token retrieved from his body |
| Blue Fang | Iconic Throwing Knife | Badlands Melee Vendor | Purchased for 110,000 Eddies from the Melee Weapon Vendor east of Tango Tors Motel in Jackson Plains |
| Headhunter | Iconic Throwing Knife | Pacifica Melee Vendor | Purchased from the Melee Weapon Vendor near the West Wind Estate fast travel terminal |
| Lexington X-Mod2 | Power Pistol | Shoot to Thrill | Score at least 40 target hits at 2nd Amendment in the Megabuilding H10 atrium |
Progression Softlocks and Workarounds
A common issue during the solo assault on Arasaka Tower is the Elevator Door Glitch. After looting the Access Token from the heavy guard in the main lobby, the central elevator doors may stay locked because the combat state fails to clear. On PC, align the crosshair directly over the elevator panel, press Alt + Tab to exit the window, then Alt + Tab back in to force the interaction prompt to refresh. On console, open Settings -> Controls and increase the Controller Inner Deadzone by 0.05 to trigger an analog recalibration.
During the Aldecaldos side quest We Gotta Live Together, Cassidy’s target shooting challenge suffers from hitbox desynchronization that causes accurate shots to register as misses. Activate a Sandevistan before starting the challenge to slow time and align hitboxes with target visuals. Alternatively, equip the Microgenerator hand cyberware so reloading releases an EMP blast that shatters all target bottles instantly.
To bypass the Adam Smasher boss fight during the secret ending, reach the upper atrium area adjacent to the arena entry doors before dropping into the mainframe lower core. Using an out-of-bounds positioning mod or teleport tool to step through the locked double doors next to the arena restores cellular connection. Open V’s phone and call Solomon Reed directly to trigger the extraction sequence for The Tower ending, sending V straight to NUSA medical services without fighting Smasher.
Updated: Jul 29, 2026 04:47 pm