Time is of the essence in this Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty mission. After the events of Firestarter, and if the player made the choice to help Reed capture Songbird, things went a little less than expected, and Songbird has gone full Cyberpsycho. The next Cyberpunk 2077 mission, Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos, leaves players with no time to mourn, as they need to get Songbird back.
Cyberpunk 2077: Firestarter Walkthrough (Help Songbird or Help Reed)
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty's Firestarter mission presents a choice to players that weave consequences depending on if they help Songbird or Reed.
Songbird has been captured by MaxTac, and as perhaps the most dangerous Cyberpsycho in existence, this secret mission just got a lot harder. Nobody ever wants to mess with MaxTac, as they’re essentially the Cyberpsychos that deal with Cyberpsychos. Yet, with no alternatives, it’s time for V and Solomon Reed to go all-in.
(Optional) Call a Netrunner
After completing Firestarter, players will need to call either Mr. Hands or a Netrunner. They will only have the option to call a Netrunner if they have progressed through some of the main story in Cyberpunk 2077. Considering these Netrunners are from optional side quests, not every player will have these Netrunners. However, if players want to know what happens if they call a Netrunner in Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos, here are the results:
- Carol Emeka – If players have completed the Aldecaldos side quest, they will be able to call Carol Emeka. She won’t help V hack MaxTac’s data fortress, but she will leave a random useful item in a stash location marked on the minimap, whether it’s Cyberware or a gun.
- Chang Hoon Nam – If players save Chang-Hoon from a Gig, they can call for his help in this mission. Although his services are free, it’s not worth calling him, as he will be irreversibly damaged from hacking MaxTac, and then forced to leave Night City for good.
- Nix – Nix is a friend of Rogue and will help the player if the player has helped him in the Afterlife. Nix easily hacks into MaxTac and will give V some classic Cyberware without consequence, so he’s a good choice.
- Sandra Dorset – Players might recognize Sandra Dorset, as she is the woman they saved from the Scavs in the first mission. After completing her side mission later in the game, players can call her and pressure her for a favor. She hacks MaxTac easily but requires a favor in return, in which players will send her data on MaxTac.
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Considering not every player has access to these characters in their playthrough, it’s best to follow the objective of calling Mr. Hands, due to the fact that it might not be worth the risk of MaxTac knocking on the door of these characters, especially if V has an affinity for them, and likes the fact that most of them owe them a favor. Alternatively, if players have 10 Intelligence, they can hack MaxTac themselves.
Call Mr. Hands
If players do not want to call a Netrunner, then they can use their phone to call Mr. Hands. In doing so, players need to ask him about the MaxTac convoy and ask for a special Netrunner. In exchange for his services, Mr. Hands needs a transaction of 15,000 Eurodollars. It’s an easy enough fee to cover, especially with all the Gigs and things to sell, so simply pay Mr. Hands to continue. He will then tell V to head to Kabuki in ten hours to meet his Netrunner.
Talk With Yoko
At the Kabuki Market, players can walk up the stairs into the Quickhack shop to talk to Yoko, a character they might remember from the main story of Cyberpunk 2077. She expresses that hacking MaxTac wasn’t easy, but she did so successfully. She will provide V with the datashard of the MaxTac transport truck holding Songbird, but she also asks V for a favor in return. Yoko and Mr. Hands want the coordinates of the dead MaxTac agents after V has finished with the convoy. In doing so, they will receive money. However, this is optional.
Meet Reed at the Abandoned Hotel
Send the data to Reed, to which he will then respond soon enough with an address. Players need to head near the West Wind Apartments in the bottom left of Pacifica. As players walk up the stairs to find Reed, they will have the optional choice to talk to Johnny about his take on the situation. Regardless, they can head through the hotel that is infested with 6th Street gang members, to find Reed talking with the leaders of 6th Street, as it turns out that 6th Street is the “fifth column of the NUSA”, and do their dirty work in exchange for cash and equipment.
Talk to the 6th Street Gang Member and Plant Traps
Following Reed outside, V will be directed to a 6th Street gang member controlling a drone. The 6th Street gang member explains that they can set up traps, or V can do it manually via the drone. It’s best to do it with the drone, and plant traps to better control the battlefield. Here’s what every trap does and which ones to use:
- Mines – Placing them on the roads will stop vehicles. Placing them on the stairs and hotel entrance will stop the convoy from infiltrating. It’s not worth using mines, as the vehicles are not going anywhere.
- Turrets – Spread them, which allows for more coverage to surround NCPD and MaxTac. Line them up to have suppressing fire from one side. Turrets are the best choice, and spreading them causes more confusion for enemies.
- Smoke Grenades – They can mess with MaxTac’s optics but also give Reed a harder time seeing the battlefield from his sniper position. It’s best not to use smoke grenades, as Reed’s sniper is imperative for the fight ahead.
- Positioning – This is a matter of preference, as choosing the terrace is safe and secure, meaning players have plenty of cover. Using the stairs is good for long-range battles, and the sky bridge is up close and personal to the danger. For this playthrough, V went with the sky bridge to better control the ground assault.
Start the Ambush
Once the traps are placed, players can exit from the drone and proceed to Reed. After a brief conversation with Reed and then Johnny via the Relic, players can move to their chosen position to start the ambush and wait for the convoy. At this point, they can text the coordinates to Mr. Hands as an optional objective.
Fight The NCPD
When the ambush starts, the vehicles will explode, and be trapped into a death zone. Players can then use their weapons to pick off the guards of the convoy. Facing their first assault, are a bunch of Night City Police Department cops, which players can easily take out with their weapons. They are also assisted by some NCPD bots, which will call for backup, but none arrive in Pacifica, so players should focus fire on these units and then head to the convoy that is holding Songbird.
Defeat MaxTac
As players open the MaxTac truck containing Songbird, 4 MaxTac members will hop out, and the real fight begins. Fighting MaxTac is like a boss fight, and each of them has unique abilities, AI pathing, and strengths that will make the fight harder than an ordinary boss battle or battle with the police. MaxTac is not to be trifled with, but luckily, V has renowned FIA agent Solomon Reed watching from above, who can help counter MaxTac’s attacks.
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When asking how to beat MaxTac, players need to watch for Reed’s laser sight on his sniper. Once Reed takes the shot at any of the four MaxTac soldiers, they will be vulnerable, as Reed will shoot their Cyberware to stun them. Players should only focus fire on the MaxTac official that has been shot by Reed, as most times, those not shot by Reed will dodge and dash through bullets and attacks.
The are a total of four MaxTac enemies. The first three, Faye Russo, Dallas Foster, and Asher Peterson will all play relatively the same and will try and fight V from close range. However, the fourth, Jasper Collins, is perhaps the easiest to kill and should be focused on first, as Jasper will hide behind cover and use Quickhacks on V’s Cyberware. During these moments, Jasper can be damaged without the use of Reed’s sniper.
Follow Traces Left By Songbird
With MaxTac defeated, Songbird will take control of the escort truck and will speed off on the roads. In doing so, she has left carnage in her wake, and Solomon Reed has been injured. Players have an optional objective to check on Reed, and they should do so, as it doesn’t offer much, but it’s a nice character moment to check on an ally.
Regardless of whether players have checked on Reed or not, they are going to want to run or take a vehicle to follow the roads of destruction caused by Songbird, in which they will end up at a crossroad with two cars that have collided. To the right, is a giant hole in the wall where the MaxTac truck rammed into, and thus, the Somewhat Damaged mission will start. Players can’t walk away and do something else, as the Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos and Somewhat Damaged quests are interlinked and must be completed one after the other.
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty is out now for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.