The plan to save Songbird is underway with Firestarter, one of the most intense Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty missions. In this mission, players are tasked with making a choice that heavily determines the outcome of the expansion’s path going forward, and potentially the ending of Cyberpunk 2077, so prepare for consequences no matter what path V and Johnny go down.
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Now that the Cassel Netrunner twins have been successfully neutralized and impersonated, it’s time for V and Alex to make their way to Hansen’s secure compound, where they will meet the man in the flesh for some spy activities. However, things don’t just stop with a chat, and danger looms on every word, and later, on defining actions.
Drive to the Stadium
Now that V and Alex are in the bodies of Aymeric and Aurore, respectively, they will need to drive to the EBM Petrochem Stadium where Hansen has his base of operations. Players should be careful when driving here, as they do not want to draw too much attention to themselves by running people over or crashing the very nice ride that they have.
Alex, as Aurore, will go over a few pointers with V, as this will be their first time impersonating someone as an FIA spy. All they need to do is follow the instructions and waypoint until they arrive at the stadium, where they will be tasked with parking their vehicle.
Follow Alex
As players get out of the car, they can hit right on the D-Pad for a dossier on Aymeric. This goes over Aymeric’s traits, with notes on his personality and life that will assist in making impersonation far easier. Players can get this dossier up at any time whilst they walk with Alex and Hansen’s right-hand man, Murphy.
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Murphy will lead Alex and V through the Barghest base, which seems to be stocked for a war. Players can choose to converse with Murphy as they make their way to Hansen’s private lounge. If they do or don’t, it does not matter. The only conversations that matter are the ones to be had with Hansen.
Talk to Hansen
As players arrive to meet the Colonel and leader of Dogtown in the flesh, they are going to be tasked with talking to him whilst they wait for Songbird. Hansen is a suspicious man, so naturally, he will ask Aurore and Aymeric questions about their lives and desires. Since it’s V behind Aymeric’s face, players will need to respond to Hansen with the following dialogue options to avoid suspicion and death:
- We are in no hurry.
- I do not waste energy.
- We won heaps of Eddies. (If the twins won big at the roulette table in the You Know My Name quest.)
- Your stadium is impressive.
- A Porsche 911.
- [Don’t take the drink.] (The dialogue option doesn’t matter, as long as players refuse the alcoholic shot.)
- Can I see your knife?
- I don’t remember.
Choosing all of these dialogue options in this order will help to lower Hansen’s guard, and he will not grow suspicious of the fact that he is talking to the two FIA agents that he is currently hunting. This means that players can progress forward, where Alex will be left with Hansen whilst V goes down to the lab with Songbird to connect to the mainframe.
Help Songbird or Help Reed?
It’s a good idea to create a manual save at this point, as players have a choice to make, as players will be asked if they should help Songbird or help Reed. They can either activate the ICEbreaker and help Reed capture Songbird, or they can finish up at the mainframe and help Songbrid escape. Both of these outcomes drastically change the main missions in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, and throw players on a different path for unique endings to the DLC, base game, and the characters within. It’s vital that players make the choice they want going forward. Do they want to help Songbird or Reed? In typical Cyberpunk 2077 fashion, there are dire consequences for either option, but this Phantom Liberty Firestarter mission guide will cover both outcomes.
Outcome 1: Help Songbird Escape
If players decide to help Songbird escape, then they will proceed as normal. Songbird will take the important data from the mainframe, and V will give Alex the signal to kill Hansen. Alex succeeds in her mission and kills Hansen, and Songbird takes control of the Stadium’s defenses, effectively shutting it down. Alex will see that V and Songbird have defected, but she cannot do anything about it, so she runs away.
Players are then tasked with escaping the Stadium, and they can do so rather easily. As players take to the exit gate, there are plenty of weapons like the Overture revolver and Kyubi rifle. Alternatively, players can stealth through this segment with Songbird’s help, as she can activate helicopter blades or robots to help the fight. Once players enter the room with the helicopter blades, they are going to want to jump up the scaffolding to the right to find the green unlocked door where they first met Hansen. Inside, they will be able to pick up Hansen’s iconic gun. However, this has been reportedly glitched and locked for many players.
Escape the Stadium
Heading up the stairs after the destroyed helicopter, players can pick up their weapons from the locker that they left them in. They will then need to head past the next gate, where Murphy and some Hansen goons will be waiting near the Panzer tank. Players can kill him for his unique Murphy’s Law club weapon. It’s best to just go guns blazing during this segment, as there are far too many guards to encourage stealth, and it adds to the tension of escaping.
Players need to fight their way out of the Market and then out of the Stadium. Songbird will direct V down a corridor through a maintenance shaft. It’s worth noting that if they instead decide to take a right and go down to the Garage elevator, they will be instantly killed by Reed, which is a fun easter egg to note. Regardless, down the maintenance shaft is the way to the sewers and two innocent civilians. Ignore the workers below, and take out the drones.
Now, players just have to follow through the sewer, where they will come out of Dogtown into the Badlands. So Mi will be driven off to a safe location in a car, and V will have to wait a few in-game hours or days for Songbird to send a signal to begin the Killing Moon mission.
In choosing to help Songbird escape in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, players have opened the path to a new main mission quest chain, and a different ending.
Outcome 2: Help Reed Capture Songbird
If players decide to help Reed capture Songbird, then they will activate the ICEbreaker to neutralize her. However, Songbird gets suspicious that something is up, and she lets Hansen know that he is standing beside Alex, not Aurore. Alex is killed by Hansen, who lifts her off her feet and rips her face off. This violent death is just the beginning, and So Mi counters the ICEbreaker by desperately reaching beyond the Blackwall to become perhaps the most powerful Cyberpsycho to ever live. When players wake up from this attack, Songbird is gone, but a trail of destruction follows. It’s time to get up, grab a weapon by the gate, and run.
Escape the Market
Songbird has killed many of Hansen’s soldiers, but more of them have come from the Black Sapphire, so V will have a fight on their hands as they try and escape. Luckily, they can find their weapons just past the destroyed helicopter, up the stairs, and in the room with the fallen-over lockers. With their weapons returned, it’s time to mobilize and shoot anyone and everyone that dares get in V’s way as they follow through the trail of destruction left by Songbird.
Fight Hansen
After successfully making it to the exit of the Stadium, a grenade will roll through the gate. Hansen with a few soldiers will burst in, and begin a pretty intense boss fight with the leader of Dogtown. Fighting Hansen is no joke, so players will want to aim for the max level. Hansen is as ruthless as he is determined to kill V. At 100% health, Hansen will jump to high ground with his gun, so players should keep cover from behind the statue at the back middle of the room, and fire long-range shots at his head.
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Once Hansen reaches 70% health, he will continue through the remainder of the fight with his knife. Hansen can dash and dodge and has the ability to throw his knife into V to stun them and start a finishing move. If players are caught too close to Hansen, he will perform powerful attacks that could easily kill V. The best way to beat Hansen is to keep distance and utilize dashing and dodging to keep to high ground. Have plenty of healing items at the ready, and try to use powerful long-range weapons so that Hansen doesn’t get too close with his knife. At 1% health, Hansen will succumb to his injuries and fall to his knees. From here, players have a choice to kill Hansen or not.
Should You Kill Kurt Hansen Or Not?
When players have defeated Hansen, he will wait for his fate on his knees. Regardless of whether players kill Kurt Hansen or not, it makes no difference in terms of gameplay, as Hansen will not come after V after their fight. However, killing him could be what he deserves. After all, he’s a criminal, a dictator, and one who just murdered Alex. If players kill Hansen, Solomon Reed will thank them for avenging Alex. Players will also get a cool kill animation, where they will take Hansen’s iconic knife, Fang, and stab him through the face with it.
If players decide to let Hansen live, then they can still get the same loot as if they had killed him. After taking Hansen’s iconic loot, they can take the essential access shard from his body. It’s up to the player to determine the fate of Kurt Hansen, but for this playthrough, Hansen was killed by V, to both avenge Alex and make it easier for Mr. Hands to take control of Dogtown.
Escape With Reed
Now that players have defeated Hansen and taken the access code for the gate, they want to proceed forward and down to the Garage floor in the elevator. In doing so, some drones will appear, but players can quickly shoot all three of them to run through to the garage, where Reed will arrive in his car. Ignoring the enemies and heading straight into the car, Reed will speed off and escape the Stadium.
Songbird has gone full Cyberpsycho, and perhaps has lost herself to a rogue AI. Reed will use his vehicle to follow MaxTac, who have arrived in Dogtown to deal with the threat. Players will watch MaxTac detain and take Songbird away, and then they will begin the Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos mission, in which they need to call a Netrunner. If players have 10 Intelligence, then they do not need a Netrunner.
In choosing to help Reed in Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty, players have opened the path to a new main mission quest chain, and a different ending.
Should You Help Songbird Or Help Reed?
It’s the player’s choice at this point to help Songbird or Reed. Cyberpunk 2077 often presents moral dilemmas where there is no wrong answer, just the ones that players want to take. Even Johnny Silverhand tells V that he has no idea what to do in this situation, as he trusts both parties involved, and knows they are telling the truth. It’s best to create a save file before making this decision to see the two endings or follow who is the most honest. After all, is V doing this to be a hero, or to survive?
Cyberpunk 2077: Phantom Liberty is out now for PC, PlayStation 5, and Xbox Series X|S.