All Swords Ranked Worst to Best in Cyberpunk 2077 2.0

[@Emopfreg]

Errata is so fun to use, not only is the design amazing, but the pyromania aspect is awesome too!

[@spiraljumper74]

I found a set of clothes that goes amazingly well with it. The black leather crystal jock bomber jacket, the one with the red LED collar. FUCK tank top (for the red highlights), maelstrom leather riding pants (not the military-cut ones) for the punk chain and skull aesthetics, and red leather high tops with red laces. Pair with a military occuset for more glowing red lights or the gold and black motorcycle helmet for fashion on the go. It’s just, insanely drippy for a streetkid samurai and looks PERFECT with Errata. I know it’s silly and you didn’t ask but I just love the fashion in this game okay?

[@Emopfreg]

@@spiraljumper74 doesn’t matter if i asked that’s genuinely really cool, ima see if i can seek out this set. Thanks dude !

[@thepromman]

@@spiraljumper74 Thanks for the fit idea, also love fiddling around with different outfits and being able to hot-swap clothes really adds to the rpg experience. I have a stealth fit for sneaking missions, a barghest uniform for airdrop attacks, a casual fit for dogtown, a casual fit for NC, and a fit where i dress to the nines for clubs/special occasions.

[@spiraljumper74]

@@theprommanHaha same! I’ve got my neon-kitsch motorcycle outfit with helmet for when I wanna feel like I’m right outta Hotline Miami, my tacticool infiltrator set, an Officer K cosplay (my current V looks kinda like Gosling with a permanent broken nose and black eye), a nomad-style badlands outfit for when V’s trying to impress the GF’s family, and of course a fancy suit and tie number for meeting with important clients and doing jobs in Corpo Plaza or Westbrook. Since Phantom Liberty dropped and graced us with so much new fashion I tend to “actually wear” in my equip slots a really cool, casual-tactical outfit that makes V look a bit like Jason Todd’s Red Hood. Throw on the red arasaka combat hood and red ballistic mask and he’s a dead-ringer. You’re absolutely right about it adding to the rpg experience, I love games that allow you to customize fashion to this extent and save outfits. I always spend a ton of time trying to “look right” for the situation. Did the same thing in RDR2.

[@waifu_png_pl6854]

@@spiraljumper74 i love fashion too. i have a less futuristic, more down to earth red weapon inspired look myself. red biker shades, timeworn trench coat, white knotted tank top (like the one judy wears), durable custom printed jeans (red with fuck corpo shit decal) and steel toe boots. it goes so well with red weapons like the sasquatch hammer and fenrir gun. i def gotta try out your outfit it sounds awesome

[@TrollSakk253]

I love using Scalpel. The high Critical Chance when using Sandevistan, the electrical damage and how cool the katana looks makes this my favorite sword in the game!

[@spiraljumper74]

I really dislike the look of the “3D printed katana model” so it’s a matter of taste I suppose. No doubt it’s the most efficient blade for any sandy build though.

[@styrfry]

Same here, Scalpel is my #1 and should be anyone's #1 if they use Sandevistan as well. Errata is fun too and has an amazing look but I don't like burn as much as I like shock. As for Byakko, the attack speed this thing offers is completely redundant and useless unless you are wailing on something like VH MaxTac. Also the video creator never talks about the side effects of swinging Byakko at 0 stamina, which you will be at constantly. You will begin to miss attacks a lot more, and you'll be unable to sprint or dash. You can see this right after 29:47, as he runs out of stamina he misses several attacks despite swinging nonstop.

[@BL00DYME55]

Agreed, surprised at how low he placed it in the list as it's easily a #1 Katana (long as you're using Sandy)

[@irinaantonova9053]

I have a build that has base 50 crit chance which makes sandy hits guaranteed crits

[@legitku7611]

@@styrfryI prefer to use berserk, it works well with byakko

[@FF18Cloud]

Butcher's Cleaver somehow became my favorite weapon in 2.0... kinda liked how it continued to get bloody looking after each fight

[@Wheatthin21]

Same here, the finishers as well are brutal.

[@viniqf]

Byakko is too broken. My Katana Sandevistan build is completely unstoppable and can handle infinite hordes of MaxTac officers. Makes it feel like V is the strongest character in the Cyberpunk universe, and by far, too.

[@angel8fingers]

Hush your mouth with your blasphemy. Please for the love of all things nova, my choom; don’t give CDPR a reason to nerf anything else. Preem build though, I employ the same!

[@SuryaGupta-te7fq]

gorilla arms are slept on, quake and savage fling are just too good around multiple enemies. Just like byakko you can pair gorilla with sandevistan and just stay in one spot killing maxtac on very hard for as long as you like

[@tylersynopsiys236]

@@angel8fingersFr it’s literally my favorite build paring blades with the apogee I dont really use guns I use the agou axe and the byakko along with the fang just in case I miss

[@angel8fingers]

@@SuryaGupta-te7fq I’m a huge fan of G arm cyberware as well choom!

[@spiraljumper74]

I use the errata because it pairs with my favorite fashion well, and because once you get the apogee build online, you can pretty much use whatever and still do amazing. Like the Scalpel is probably the most efficient sword in the game but it’s ugly so who cares? Although Byakko’s blade storm is really stylish, gotta say. It’s definitely giving that Strider Hiryu, thousand cuts per second feel.

[@skarlock5257]

One thing to mention about the xmod chainsword. If you charge up the attack, even a little bit, it executes a straight down slash attack that will almost always hit the head. That specific angle is pretty nice for getting very reliable head shots with bonus damage from the charge attack.

[@negative6442]

Machetes have this too!

[@Rwdphotos]

And if you have the leap talent, put in two airstrikes and you get a guaranteed crit with a massive crit damage bonus and better armor pen than other blades. You should be able to oneshot most mobs with it even with just a tiny amount of charge on the heavy, but heavily armored skull mobs will require either more chargeup or another followup hit.

[@davidduncan5897]

Music from Wild Hunt during the Black Unicorn review? Sam... you're just the best. Keep winning.

[@ozxcvbnm7143]

Contagion bombing with Errata is so stupidly funny that i ditched my stealthrunner build the moment i was blessed by the knowledge that i can turn Maxtac into an explosive piñata.

[@crazyrice33]

An easy way to proc the Satori unsheath passive is to put Nehan on slot 1 and Satori on slot 2 (or slot 2 then 3). You can throw nehan and you will automatically switch to satori but without drawing it. So throw Nehan then hold left click to attack from the holster with Satori. You kind of need to get the distance right because if you get too close you will pick up Nehan and this won't work.

[@spiraljumper74]

It’s kinda cool that this requires a very spacing focused playstyle to play optimally. While Byakko encourages spamming cuts like an anime samurai, this is much more Akira Kurosawa, one cut one kill in terms of theme.

[@s3eriousbl9ck26]

All you have to do is Run Slash. When you run I think V sheathes the sword automatically and pulls it out once you stop.

[@dankerbell]

​@@spiraljumper74yes but haemorrhaging more than makes up for it, especially because byakko is more about cutting down waves of adds and if you're doing something like maxtac fighting where you have chunky bois mixed in, you need to be able to slap them down and get bonus healing from it since you can't just kill them in a single swipe like you can with everyone else

[@camarofan2008]

Idea for a ranking vid, all fixers ranked. By personality, gigs, rewards etc. We all know who be last but be interesting to see others opinions on the different fixers.

[@KILLTHEREDDITOR]

Who’s last lol

[@spiraljumper74]

You talking about Regina because of the useless neofiber? Because Watson has some of the best gigs in the game. That first district def got a decent amount more handcrafted attention than others, except like, Dogtown now.

[@Conscientious_Objector7104]

@@KILLTHEREDDITORI’m pretty sure they were talking about Dex.

[@mkmfan3197]

​@@spiraljumper74neo fibre? Lol which version of the game are you on? She gives you one of the most mandatory cyberware irrespective of builds. Axoltl. Possibly the only fixer after Wako to give you end game level item

[@spiraljumper74]

@@mkmfan3197 Yeah man I didn’t replay from the start for Phantom Liberty. I have a master save just before the heist with tens of thousands of crafting materials, millions of eddies, and enough perk points to get started on whatever build I want. So I haven’t gotten Regina’s reward in several patches. Cool that she gives you an axlotl now. Must be hard to find the cyberware space for it on a low level character though.

[@grey3247]

Interested in the pistol rankings given how the Malorian was changed with 2.0 and 2.02

[@GreazedPanther]

That's the video I want most.

[@blakerogers9600]

Changed in a bad way?

[@Solvernia]

​@@blakerogers9600 well one bad change is the super cool fire melee now expends every round in the magazine

[@tjh_n1446]

@@Solverniajust wait till you got 1 bullet😈

[@eliteshadowboii]

@@Solvernia does a shit ton more damage now though

[@tiernanpearson6508]

Jinchu maru is one of my favorites because using sandevistan and optical camo allows the camo to last super long and if you have an infinite sandevistan build it means you can keep optical camo for almost a minute.

[@RedEyes_Penitence]

Bleed doesn't matter on katanas because the last blade perk guarantees it anyway. That's why the shock/burn katanas have an advantage over the others.

[@s3eriousbl9ck26]

Exactly

[@argentumlunaris]

Dope video! I mostly use Gwynblaidd for the aesthetic lol but Black unicorn and Scalpel seem to get me the best results damage wise with my build.

[@fredtott4684]

I'm actually thinking of making a Ciri looking type V with a Gwynblaidd build just for the fantasy of it (I don't have mod here but I'll try to be as close as possible). The Sandy would make her more accurate based on her mastery of time.

[@thepromman]

I overall agree with your ranking, but I think something to consider is how these blades fit into overall builds, not just how they perform for the standard katana build. This is because weapons like Errata, Scalpel, and Jinchu-Maru change cyberware you need to equip, and skill perks like Shinobi lvl 60, which gives 40% crit chance during Sandy use, change build reqs as well. Between 20 reflex, the solo skill that gives 10% crit chance for enemies within 3m, and Shinobi lvl 60, you're already sitting at 70% crit chance. We usually would use apogee sandy (14%) and stabber (20%) for crit chance, since Byakko doesn't have any crit-chance-boosting effects. This doesn't include any bonuses from Reflex-attuned cyberware. However, when using errata, say with a thermal projectile launcher build, you don't need to build any crit chance. This means you can free up cyberware capacity by not using Stabber, using Falcon Sandy instead of Apogee sandy (since 20 Reflex gives stamina back on dismemberment) which costs 5 less cyber capacity AND increases ALL damage during sandy use by 10%, whereas Apogee only increases headshot damage. It also opens up alternate playstyles - want to be a cyber ninja? No worries, equip a cyberdeck instead and still do crit dmg with katana 100% of the time. This also could mean easier boss fights with the regular katana, since the Chimera mod for melee causes death after the enemy reaches 50% hp; use Errata to deal a ton of damage quickly, then switch to a regular katana with the Chimera mod to finish off the boss. Since katana is so popular with the 2.0 update (may have been before as well, idk since i started playing at 2.0), it might be worth to put out a couple build videos where you build around the strengths of unique katanas instead of using the same build to evaluate each one, to see how you can maximize the iconic benefit. May even be cool (but will require a lot more grinding, been looking for a 5++ katana and knife with two empty mod slots for over 40 hours) to test the regular katana at 5++ with chimera mod and the increased finisher chance. Unrelated note - I noticed you have well below 300 cyberware capacity, whereas most people report they stop finding cyberware capacity shards after reaching 320-340 capacity (with Edgerunner). Have you not found any shards? Or is this a pre-2.0 save (heard post-2.0 saves find many more shards).

[@spiraljumper74]

Fantastic post. I second the vid idea. I’d love to see alternative blade builds, I’m totally guilty of only ever using the David special for mine, uncreative hack that I am.

[@Vesarra]

One of the biggest uses for the Errata is in Berserk builds. Biodyne Berserk gives +20% crit chance, and an absurd +100% critical damage boost. But without the bonus crit chance from Shinobi (which only applies when using Sandevistan) you need to spend a ton of cyberware capacity to reach max crit. Reflex for 20%, Cockatrice eyes for 35%, Stabber for 15%, Berserk for 20% and the +10% against enemies within 5 meters from Solo will get you there. But that means sinking 44 cyberware capacity into the eyes and stabber. Errata, by comparison, requires none of that, saving you a ton of cyberware capacity for usage in other areas.

[@thepromman]

@@Vesarra For sure - I currently use throwing knives so stabber stays on, but I very much prefer Oracle eyes since I reach 100% crit without it anyways. It's highly recommended by a lot of builds, but quite a few builds don't need it at all - cyberninja, pistol stealth (lvl 5 silencer gives 100% crit chance when undetected), cool lvl 20 headshots for revolvers, precision rifles, snipers, etc. I need more capacity atm for survivability so I've been thinking about removing knives from the build and going with silenced pistols / revolvers and katana when going loud. There's also the benefit that you can pull off a lot more pistol shots than you can throw knives for situations you need to take out more than one enemy quickly to avoid detection.

[@ShadoThati]

I've been enjoying a playthrough with a cocktail stick/netrunner build using the optical camo alongside control quick hacks to allow you to maintain stealth as well as using increased cyberware duration effects to allow an optical camo to last a full 28 seconds currently. Is it faster than just going stabby with byakko (no), it isn't but it's a very different fighting style to a lot of other katana builds focused on moving from cover to cover and abusing reboot vision to maximize it's effects.

[@ignacioredero8162]

Excelente comentario, le diré que yo me quede de tope en 336 (contando con Edgerunner) y hace semanas que no aparece ni una sola ampliación de cyberware. (Versión 2.1 y estoy jugando la expansión actualmente)

[@stuffedbutterfly9586]

i was really surprised by Tsumetogi's placement, that thing is a 1 shot decapitation MACHINE

[@stuffedbutterfly9586]

you can kill all 4 maxtac with just spamming the heavy attack on all of them at the same time while in sandevistan and obliterate all of them in seconds

[@dante1287]

And so can the byakko

[@ggoose11224]

LOVEJOY PROFILE PIC!!! theyre my favourite band :DDD

[@nooneyouknow13]

Yeah, Tsumetogi really shines when you're a full 20 into reflex and have slaughter house.

[@den1011000]

Did I understand correctly that Tsumetogi wiith a Slaughterhouse perk allows you to apply shock and bleeding at the same time? if that's the case, it's better then Byakko, I think

[@vareos9874]

personally i think mantis blades are kinda underrated due to the relic perk being actually insane on them. being able to leap a 40m distance is absolutely huge and even allows you leap upwards to enemies who are standing on a highground you wouldnt be able to get to even with a double jump. of course the blades that are ranked higher in this video are even stronger than the mantis blades but i genuinely think having an extra sword slot that gives you insane movement is absolutely worth it especially if you dont have perks available to get the most out of the gorilla arms. + they will always get some extra points for just being fun to use with their own unique animations and finishers

[@SamBram]

So what you're saying is Anakin Skywalker would have won if he'd had a pair of Mantis blades?

[@vareos9874]

@@SamBram absolutely xD

[@buckyhurdle4776]

When I think of Cyberpunk I think of the Mantis Blades. They're a classic

[@dankerbell]

well the ranking is technically 2.0 not pl since not everyone has that

[@Thebignerd221]

Byakko with the militech berserk cyberware and the berserk blade build that i made is ridiculously op the speed paired with the infinite stamina with berserk is amazing

[@SmokersTars]

Your videos really are a amazing supplient to my 100% run I'm currently on. Ive built myself into a spectre cyberdeck build and got all cybers into that, and due to that i have not touched a melee weapon since 1.6 (I mostly enjoyed gorillas tbf). A lot of really fun ideas for future characters from those lists!

[@SlothinAintEasy]

I want to thank you. This helps with making my gray fox cyber ninja build

[@drakengarfinkel3133]

I use Satori and Nehan together. I know it’s not “optimal,” but the throwing knife /katana combo is so much fun. I also love the lore detail of using two centuries-old blades forged in the age of the Old Empire

[@jiffypoo5029]

Extra Bleed effects can be extremely powerful for survivability. If you upgrade 4 or 5 of your cyberwear pieces for health regen from killing bleeding enemies along with heal on kill, bleed effects basically make you immortal.

[@PhO3NiX96]

@@beowulf_of_wall_st Thing is you take hits from distance, not only melee

[@saprone8885]

I believe it is smarter to put % melee damage on cyberware. Katana's have a high damage scaling. Enemies, mainly with higher health pools, will be easier to kill meaning you will take less damage in return. The combination of Axolotl and Sandi Apogee make melee builds incredibly durable and practically immortal. Except against MaxTac and that is why you want % melee damage. Most other enemies won't be a threat in an optimised katana build anyway.

[@jiffypoo5029]

@@saprone8885 I have 40% heal from killing bleeding enemies from 5 peices of cyberware that also include + headshot, + melee or + crit. Every kill gives me 50% health bar.

[@jiffypoo5029]

@@PhO3NiX96 I''m playing as a melee netrunner. Using reboot optics, cripple movement/finisher combo regen with additional regen from heals from killing bleeders bonuses and heal on kill.

[@saprone8885]

​@jiffypoo5029 You do what you think is fun. I don't think it is optimal though. It will struggle against MaxTac, because your health regen relies on killing enemies and that is the hardest part with these guys. I have a video where I take on 3 MaxTac groups. You will see what I mean.

[@baddecisionsoff-roading3243]

Yep. Need this info. Thanks bro!

[@AtomicSpaceWizard.]

Played a run with Errata and a thermal projectile launcher, and had an absolute blast.

[@plaguenplay3516]

not to be that guy, but aren't thermal grenades better without investing into projectile launcher?

[@rhyspritchard7354]

Making a Space Marine/ Sister of Battle Build is really good fun using the Hypercritical as a Boltgun stand in, the Seraph pistol, Incendiary grenades and a Cut-o-Matic to become a righteous bastion of the Emperor's Holy Wrath

[@doughnutlord2073]

I love the new content I missed your cyberpunk videos

[@Stiggandr1]

@Sam Bram You don't have to constantly sheath Satori. It triggers the bleed > hemorrhage effect if you start sprinting, and do a sprint strike as well.

[@EtherealRune]

Byakko requires just a specific build to work properly without going out of stamina and losing it's momentum. Yes, it's definitely fun to swing this thing around once you get going, but for general use I'd definitely prefer the Errata at first and then a bit later the Scalpel, because you can use it at every point in the game and it'll never let you down due to it's Bleed and Shock covering both types of enemies and it's synergy with Sandevistan.

[@AGuy-vq9qp]

With maxed out skills you can’t run out of stamina in sandevistan. (Well you can, but it doesn’t affect your attack speed at all)

[@jeanlou3]

The issue with Errata, scalpel, and many others is that maxing crit chance is pretty easy. Apogee plus max reflex skill gets you close, and with cyberware attune ent you can get pretty much to 100. So you are better investing in damage or speed ( or better yet, a kneel! Shotgun)

[@MessiGoat-em9jf]

Exactly

[@Droidsbane]

I just like that if you preview the Errata using the right trigger (or whatever button is used on PC to preview weapons) in either the backpack or weapon selection menu, the Errata's flavor text is "Well worth the wait", a little inside joke for people who saw it in previews of the game

[@klocper]

Quick Witcher lore fact. The focus mode special effect on Gwynnbleid is probably a reference to the Geralt’s infamous feat of strength which got him the nickname of the Butcher of Blaviken.

[@anosvoldigoat3351]

It's funny how the top 3 katanas can be obtained so early on in the game 😂. Great video btw sam ❤

[@valeon7303]

Cocktail stick, optical camo, and sandevistan is actually a fun combo. Active camo, go in, hit everh enemy once or twice, and exit sandevistan. Its basically the trope of "swordsman does something fast and a bunch of enemies drop dead seconds later". Granted, I'm having more fun just throwing people off of skyscrapers with berserk right now and haven't played a lot with the new katanas but its certainly fun!

[@Dimencia]

Still not really a fan of Byakko, because even if you do have a squishy target to kill first, lots of low-damage fast attacks means lots of stamina cost. With most of the swords here, stamina isn't a concern and almost never runs dry, but in your clips it was constantly running out with Byakko Considering bleeding is kinda useless because things die too fast, and your crit chance is already 100% (or close to it) by lategame, I think Tsumetogi makes the most sense as the 'best', for having such a high base damage and even more powerful strong attacks ontop of it. The others generally only have very situational advantages that you won't get most of the time, and basic attacks seem to take much longer and more stamina to kill than just spamming strong attacks on even a normal katana, so a weapon that buffs them is great Nice video though, I hadn't seen a lot of these

[@SamBram]

Glad you enjoyed the video! A big aim with these rankings is to also lay out all the key info for each item. So even if everyone fundamentally disagrees with my ranking (fair enough), they're still getting value from the video

[@AlucardsBlood69]

I hate that they nerfed Satori so much, that 250% crit damage on a crit focused build was so devastating.

[@DavidSmith-zf5tb]

Agreed. I LOVED the look of it with that crit damage.

[@verysoft1042]

Great video as always. I saw you comment on a reddit post about the Cyberpunk Iceberg and would love to see you make a video on that.

[@jordankomsky7564]

Jinchu-Maru is actually a very underrated katana. If you are running a cool down based build with axolotl and also quantum tuner it means you can have optical camo up a lot which with Jinchu-Maru is guaranteed critical hits and enemies don't miss you a lot (even more if combined with sandevistan). When you consider sandevistan making optimal camo last longer and be more efficient and Jinchu-Maru dealing more damage to tough enemies in top of the guaranteed crits I think it's probably only behind Byako in terms of DPS and doesn't require a kill first to setup. Very easy to take out maxtac like this. Plus with axolotl, quantum tuner, and the final perk in the coop skill progression granting optimal camo charge it gives you a build that can do a ton of damage with the katana to maxtac, which also has a very reliable retreat/reposition option where you can then use focus/deadeye to do great pistol/revolver damage until you have sandevistan/optimal camo charge for another all in. Using malorian arms pistol, either headhunter or blue fang knife, and Jinchu-Maru together is a very powerful build when heavily invested into cool and reflexes. Plus it also has high stealth and mitigation chance

[@LonewolfOfSD]

Another great video and I look forward to my third playthrough as a melee character since Phantom Liberty. FYI, your video shows Black Unicorn as number 9, but it is placed between number 11 (Cocktail Stick) and number 10 (Jinchu-Maru).

[@SamBram]

I was waiting for someone to notice that. I clocked it after uploading. Not quite sure how I switched those numbers in the edit

[@BasicandBizarre]

Just finished my fist-and-swords playthrough using Gwynbleidd and had an absolute blast. Walking into the Smasher fight, putting away my pistol and drawing my witcher sword. "Steel is for men...silver is for monsters" then absolutely rocking his world. I like to think that Geralt would be proud.

[@dan_chen]

I love the errata for the fact that it looks good with the red netrunner suit. Zipping through the battlefield with sandy and a red theme outfit slicing and burning everything feels cool as hell

[@Burberrydalive]

...how does that even matter when you can't even see the suit lol. Not even the sleeves...

[@fermarcruz8542]

My favorite (before the 2.0 upgrade) was Satori (that +550% crit damage was so damn sweet) but I am not sure after the 2.0 update.

[@doriangrayest]

sure is useful in that stage of the game, the hemorrage lifesteal is awesome

[@jamesdaly5295]

yeah Nehan/Satori combo is awesome! Amazing how many people cant figure out how to use them correctly so they choose button mashing one of the other katans!

[@1lazydemon1]

You've missed the best katana - regular one with 2 empty clots where you put 2 Tier 5 Cyclones and that beast slices faster than Byakko and it works in single target. Such katana is really hard to find, but you can complete Cyberpsycho Sighting: Phantom of Night City after lvl 40 and you'll get Tier 5+ katana with two Tier 4 Cyclones already installed

[@OmegaBlack999]

What??!! They STACK?!! That's awesome.. thanks.

[@DDxRaptor]

I love Scalpel, not only because of the 50% crit chance boost it gets when using the Sandy, but also because of its' 30% chance for shock damage, coming in extremely handy against mechs, robots, drones, but also if you come across enemies that can resist damage quick hacks. This plus the lightning blue drip makes this easily the best blade in the entire game for me. Byakko might turn you into a human blender, but Scalpel + Sandevistan will turn you into a human lightning storm.

[@NickDaShootah]

I use Jinchu maru with optical camo and the apogee sandevistan to maximize the time I spend invisible clearing whole rooms. It’s my favorite way to use it

[@logan7159]

As a first time blades user trying a Valentino's styled build it's nice knowing that machetes are actually kinda viable. And better than any of that, they're the kind of viable that doesn't require any weird loop/set up to get going so I can just fall into my own flow

[@Personell101]

Aren’t thermal and shock blades improved further with the slaughterhouse perk? That way you can stack bleeding on top of another status.

[@CtheBernwickle]

17:31 yes, running around with swords In my arms does in fact make me feel badass, but one of the reasons I like them is the backwards jump slash you do when blocking and attacking at the same time, combined with the mitigation chance while in mid air, is a great way to escape engagement with enemies when your health is low, all the while probably killing whatever was immediately in front of you

[@di11_9]

One thing I highly recommend is actually the tier 20 getting guaranteed bleeds with every attack even deflects and with a base katana putting cyclone and bleedout is insanely good because bleedout gives 100% guaranteed crits to bleed. The tier 20 also works on tsumetogi so you can proc bleed and shock im like 99% sure.

[@DefactoOverlord]

I've been enamored by Mantis Blades ever since that E3 2018 demo showcase. Pistol+Mantis Blades have been my main build since the game came out.

[@Wheatthin21]

I’m running a shotgun/mantis blades build myself and it works super well.

[@manroexo]

Sam is honestly doing God's work with these videos, what a lad

[@gkky_]

To call Jinchu-Maru "reasonably okay" makes me depressed

[@GameWithDave]

Great ranking video as always Sam, but my number one with my sandevistan build is the Scalpel it just cuts through anything on very hard.

[@SamBram]

Yeah like I said it's quite possibly better suited for bosses! The cutting speed of Byakko is unmatched though

[@selectionn]

hard to beat cutting through 20 enemies in 10 seconds with byakko though.

[@GameWithDave]

@@SamBramfair point I will stick to my glitch guides 🤣 love the ranking videos come a long way mate well done.

[@SchnauzerPower17]

I cry every time I see a melee finisher animation. Ever since I started playing they’ve been bugged😢 they look amazing too!!! Also Errata is my fav sword LOOKs wise- Byakko is my favorite practical sword

[@gladesucks7907]

The Office reference was probably the single most unexpected Easter egg I’ve ever found. It felt like genuine whiplash because there is no ties between this game and the show, just a random “number one heart surgeon”

[@cerberusserberus8488]

Didn't mention but I think there was footage in the video. Sticking the lightsaber into someone affected by contagion looks pretty dope

[@SofaKingWashed]

tbh, I'd argue that any Tier 5++ katana with 2 mod slots, one being the Chimera core mod beats any of the iconic swords. Still, thanks for all the effort you put into testing everything in these vids.

[@SamBram]

You're probably not wrong. It tough ranking the items that can be modded any which number of ways so I decided to cover what you can do with it whilst ranking it mostly as though it were unmodded

[@beforelifewaschaos]

Hello Cyberpunk Explainification Man™ ! I have to play 1.63 on PS4 until my PC is fixed, but i inhale every Video you post, love that content and the Game so much! Bye Cyberpunk Explainification Man™! 😄

[@mongodellango4732]

I’m playing a no cyberware build and so far I’m finding black unicorn exceptionally powerful. It will probably be my go to weapon for Oda. It’s saved my skin many times just by being so easy to spam. Going from bullet deflect straight into fast swings is really effective too especially when my stamina is completely out.

[@neandrewthal]

Byakko was my favorite previously because it was the only Katana you could leap with. Now that lots of them do that it's amazing they gave it completely unique perks that make it still the best.

[@danielschlipphak1512]

A note on tsumetogi, this is one of the best weapons in a hybrid build where you use katanas as gap closers and finishers. In my current build the stun from empty plus a leap attack sets up a finisher each time and is very strong. But it’s bad for wildly swinging away.

[@dylanwarner6035]

Woot another one, waiting on the smg one

[@chrisperry4014]

I FOUND KNEEL! I was reveling over the Byakko-blended corpses of the BD editors in the Gig: “Dirty Biz”, when I decided it was time to clear the building of loot. I found it on an isolated locker in the corner of a collapsed stairwell where a sliver of the wall just large enough for the locker had remained. I was level 52, I completed most of the gigs and NCPD dispatches to grind level and eddies before tackling the main quests on hard difficulty, then switching to very hard somewhere around the middle of act 2 to increase challenge and reward. I also get legendary story items because of this, so going into phantom liberty will be very rewarding, I suggest doing this to at least upgrade your gear to the best level possible in order to get more legendary drops and story rewards if you’re looking for mods like these for the heavily optimized builds that we see in this video.

[@arandumendez9557]

In my first 2.0 run I used a standard katana with 2 mod slots (random loot from tygers) with 2 legendary cyclone mods. It was ridiculous how fast v swung that thing, it would melt through bosses.

[@Harry-fy3te]

Yep this is the best melee weapon imo

[@venivediicommented4046]

Wow I didn't think to double up on those mods with the cyclone, genius!!! Thank you I'll try that soon

[@djsalad5752]

A small note about the MaxTac effectiveness to gauge a build, I had the best luck with using a sandevistan, optical camo, and Mancinella. I was able to take down the entire MaxTac team in Jinguji on very hard without heals or cover (because there practically isn't any in there). It's kinda unbeatable for certain encounters because of the damage you can deal and how long the stealth bonus still applies after attacking (when sandevistan is active). Basically when sandevistan runs out you just activate optical camo and hide, then reactivate it and keep firing like normal. With sandy you can line up only headshots to capitalize on the poison damage further. I also am using the Lexington XMOD-2 with Firecracker and Pinpoint as a backup, which with the Run 'N' Gun perk removes stamina cost for hip-firing with pistols.

[@joekerwildeDBJ87]

Scapel is great to have with Tech weapons & if you have unlocked the Tech weapon pulse charge attack (fire just before full charge & sends a shock wave to multiple targets). I'm using it alongside Lizzie & the Widow Maker in a Sandeviston build & the joy of blasting someone with an electrical charge, setting them on fire or poisoning them in the process just to then charge in & hack n slash n zap is absolutely crazy 😀

[@pietromoopy2010]

Mantis blades do not benefit from ANY speed increases whether perks or micro rotors, they also do not lose speed when stamina is depleted. They have to be bugged which will probably never get fixed unfortunately. If they worked properly, they would probably be top tier.

[@waffletrader7876]

A space marine build would be amazing

[@Creative_Clouds_]

Yeah agreed, Sam is clearly a 40k fan too, it'd be nice to see that shine through in a video.

[@drunkenpumpkins7401]

There is a mod on Nexusmod that allow Satori's (and Nehen) life steal to trigger whenever a second bleed is inflicted. Playing with Satori this way is really, really fun (and still balanced), even the original pairing with Nehan is still good.

[@EdgeSky]

what is it called?

[@drunkenpumpkins7401]

@@EdgeSky Satori And Nehan Hemorrhaging For All Bleeding

[@SneakybeakyScrub]

theres a cyberpsycho guaranteed to drop a katana with all its mod slots filled with cyclone and depending on your level you can get it to drop at atleast tier 5+, and it actually looks normal too instead of like a toy. its the tyger claw related one near ararsaka tower that has cloak and sandevistan

[@richarddodd1111]

I agree with the order of the top 3 weapons. Byakko is versatile enough no matter what operating system you use, while Scalpel has the edge if you use Sandevistan. However, I think peak katana play is when you combine the Errata with the Biodyne Berserk and the Revulsor cyberware. The Biodyne, as well as giving you 30% faster melee attack speed, also gives you a bonus 100% crit damage which is insane for a blade that can land guaranteed crit hits on burning enemies. And the Revulsor allows you to enjoy the effects of Sandevistan without actually having it equipped in your OS, so you essentially get the benefit of both Berserk and Sandevistan at the same time. It's still no Tinker Bell which has a 20% chance to one-shot anything including MaxTac, but you can still slice and burn through MaxTac very quickly with this combo, even more so if you use the Technical Ability perk Chipware Connoisseur to cycle through the options and stack as many bonuses to melee damage as you can get your hands on!

[@DangerDave157]

I can't believe Black Unicorn doesn't get more love. Being able to ignore any stsmins makes it fantastic during long encounters or against bosses.

[@C0MR4D3C0WB0Y]

If I remember, Wakakko was a character introduced in Cyberpunk Red. She made her name on pen and paper back in the 2040’s.

[@Kami-hx5hz]

Great video! Waiting for more tierlists like shotguns and pistols 👍

[@fredtott4684]

I've been stumbling upon your channel for a while for the amazing content. Do you think you could do a Blunt weapon Ranking as well? That'll be awesome.

[@SamBram]

Glad you enjoy the channel! I'm planning rankings for all the classes of weapons so yes. I'll have a blunt one made at some point hopefully this year

[@tristenroscoe7485]

I love using the Errata with thermal monowire on my current cyberdeck build, lmao. Couple those with the overheat quickhack and suddenly you're setting everyone and everything on fire.

[@R_C32]

Think the basic katana might be a lil low. Even without the finisher mod, you can put cyclone + severance and it’ll basically be a byakko you can use in 1v1 boss fight situations (I.e. cyberpyscho gigs), and have a added effect of instant killing anything below 50% hp.

[@twinarcher8123]

Just got the dlc yesterday, got a brand new character, having fun so far. Turns out my aim with throwing knives if much better than my aim with guns, dont know why though. Hoping to see what kind if build i have by the end of the game.

[@MrKarkos]

I just finished my second play through as a ninja and went with the black unicorn and throwing knives..and it was so much fun. Now last play is gonna be a berserk nomad.

[@69dm]

*Jinchu-Maru is by far the best katana in the game.* 100% crit chance during optical camo that you can switch on and off, means that if you control it - it's literally only-crits sword. Additionally, playing with optical camo gives you 50% evade bonus, so you won't simply die if your sandivestan on cooldown. And for the cherry on cake - all attacks with Jinchu-Maru will always deal double damage against enemies with twice the user's current Health + the last strike of 3-hit combo also deals double damage (but usually it never comes to 3rd hit even on hardest difficulty). In comparison to Byakko, they both incredible powerful, but Byakko is good ONLY against multiple enemies, when Jinchu-Maru is perfect for any event.

[@TheFroBro11]

Was testing this today. When you combine it with the optical camo relic perk, enemies have no idea where you are you crit them all

[@HarryBuddhaPalm]

I put the Scalpel at number 1. It's just as good as the Byakko against crowds but it's better against bosses. It does Shock damage AND bleeding which makes it great against mechs and Adam Smasher and it's crit chance is incredible with a Sandevistan. I did "Don't Fear The Reaper" on Very Hard with it and I was taking out the robots in one hit (I had the cyberware that boosts damage to mechs and bots) and I demolished the two giant mechs in just a couple of hits. I took Adam Smasher out before he even called in his first set of goons.

[@OmegaBlack999]

Interesting considering Smasher has a resistance to Shock damage. That bleed effect must work really great on him. Shock and bleed is my favorite buff combo, I must admit. Oh how I love slicing through robots with it, lol.

[@HarryBuddhaPalm]

@@OmegaBlack999 I think they changed him in the last update. I'm pretty sure he didn't have the resistance to shock damage before but I could be wrong.

[@masterchief2064]

"I can't show you the finishers for the Cut-o-Matic but I can show you the blade lodged in the decapitated head of John Blum where you would be able to find it"

[@Maestro-de-nada]

There's a back alley near the Yinglong reported criminal activity point with a lot of Valentino and normal orange machetes. From the nearest fast travel terminal, just before the alley to the NCPD mission there's an entrance to a garage courtyard where you get the tech harness, to the right are some buildings surrounded with a black fence, the alley is filled with valentino dead corpses and blade weapons. There's a shard too.

[@lewisabbott2137]

wtf I literally searched for this EXACT video on your channel earlier 😭

[@tixie4738]

Scalpel was my favorite weapon and I used it thought out the entire game

[@HPLouise]

I’m surprised that a regular katana with double cyclone mods is not ranked 1st. Its attack speed bonus is Byakko on cracks, going up to 70% (Byakko only gives 17.5%) without the need of killing an enemy first.

[@nosky9296]

the byakko+sandy are so op that maxtac were deployed but didnt dare to approach me lol

[@harrisondunn5376]

True sandi is probably the best for a blade but using berserk with them is so fun. Trying to decide whether to use Errata along side a thermal projectile launch system, which I’d use at the beginning of combat then switch on berserk. Or the Byakko because the berserk already gives you more attack speed and stacked with the byakkos effect would be insane

[@s3eriousbl9ck26]

Go with Firecracker on anything with high fire rate. I use it on LeXMod2 and it produces fire quite often. I went for headshot damage to make it versatile but I can see the value in increasing its explosion damage to make it even more potent against groups

[@markmikolay9019]

One thing I noticed that Flash and Thunderclap has over the in built jump attack of Errata and other swords, is the ability to jump attack from mid air, which imo justifies that perk point even with those weapons.

[@oniononion775]

I like the cleat cleaver. It has them slasher villain vibes and wrecks surprisingly hard. (I play on hard)

[@mertozden94]

Witcher sword is also available for looting in one of the tyger claws gigs where you raid their temple, its in the middle.

[@azraphon]

Byakko, unquestionably named in tribute of the best captain of the Court Guard Squads, given its theme of fast attacks!

[@seanmcclure]

Militech Berserk plus any iconic sword equals the slaughter of an entire district in minutes.

[@irrelevantotaku]

Jinchu maru isnt best used with normal optical camo, it's best used in an apogee sandevistan build. This makes it exclusively do crits for the duration of your sandy, and the duration of your sandy is almost infinite if used right.

[@Lesminster]

I love running with Errata, since I'm abusing Overheat like crazy ;) Overheat everything, then go in. Couple slashes ends most of your typical daily brawls ;) Netrunning Samurai build is just soo much fun.

[@spiraljumper74]

Kukri could’ve been awesome if it was throwable. Also I love the look of the legendary razor in Dogtown, so much fun to use on a motorcycle with its legendary revolver companion.

[@desmondmckinson5044]

I found that if you throw nehan then deflect bullets with Satori, you get the hemorrhaging effect.

[@brandedswordman]

I love your videos mate.

[@itschoke]

7:02 I’ve gotten like 4 slice em up mods from vendors back to back lmfao, I didn’t think they were that rare

[@maleniagoddessofvision8811]

Good stuff bro 👍

[@oceanbytez847]

The one thing i really like about mantis blades came into play at cloud. In a place where i otherwise would have lost my main form of fighting going the peaceful route, i instead kept my mantis blades and had them to be able to do my prefered fighting style. This was a massive boon for me. It is worth noting that at the time my mantis blades were purchased at 2+ and my Katana was just a 1+ or 2 iirc so i was already maining them until i could find a better Katana.

[@Lichdemonz]

Flash and Thunderclap actually increases the leap distance for blades that already have it - at least, that's what I've noticed.