Best Ricochet build - triple normal damage (Patch 1.63) - Cyberpunk 2077

By zanuffas
Last updated: 20 November 2022

This post will cover the best Ricochet build in Cyberpunk 2077. This is one of the three powers that weapons can have providing unique effects. Unfortunately, for a long time, the builds were not viable as the mechanic did not get much attention from the developers.

However, this changed as there were some new upgrades introduced that specifically improve the Ricochet effect.

Ricochet Build
Conclusion

Ricochet Build

This is a very interesting build that relies on Power weapons and their unique effect - ricochet. The build revolves around this mechanic and items that provide bonuses to it. I recommend this build for advanced players who want to challenge themselves. Why is that?

ricochet build instant kills cyberpunk 2077

The ricochet build is most effective when hitting enemies indirectly. This can be hard, especially when you are under heavy fire. But it all pays off, because with the weapons and upgrades you can do triple the normal damage.

Attributes

This section will cover starting attributes and how you should progress with them to the maximum level.

Starting the game

The beginning of the game is fairly simple:

Reflexes +3 - provides perks for Assault rifles and pistols
Body +2 - increases health and stamina. This will boost your survivability early on and allow you to sprint a little bit longer
Cool +2 - allows unlocking Cold Blood perk for bonus stats

Progression

Here is the recommended progression for attribute points in the major level milestones

ricochet build attribute points cyberpunk 2077

Level	Reflex	Body	Tech	Cool	Int
10	10	5	6	7	3
30	16	11	10	11	3
50	20	12	18	18	3

As we progress through the game, we concentrate on multiple attributes:

Reflexes - this is the main attribute that you will need. It will allow for improving Assault and Handgun perk trees.
Body - increases the survivability of the build and also unlocks some quality-of-life improvements in the Athletics perk tree
Technical Ability - this is an important tree as it will allow crafting the best Legendary weapons in the game. Moreover, the Engineer perk tree provides some improvements to Ricochet's weapons.
Cool - this attribute is all about offensive perks. They will greatly boost your damage, movement speed, and other important stats.

Perks

I think there is an important decision that you have to make with this build. Which weapons will you use:

Pistols/Revolvers - has a slower fire rate, but has a higher ricochet damage bonus
Rifles - SMGs or Assault Rifles - these weapons have a fast fire rate. However, they also have a lower ricochet damage bonus that can create some issues.

Once you decide on this here are the perk trees to go with

Handguns - Pistols or Revolvers

Engineer build Handguns cyberpunk 2077

Reflexes Level	Skill	Description
1	Gunslinger x3	Reduces reload time for Pistols and Revolvers by 25%.
1	High Noon x3	Increases Crit Chance with Pistols and Revolvers by 6%.
5	Desperado x3	Increases damage with Pistols and Revolvers by 10%.
5	Rio Bravo x3	Increases headshot damage multiplier with Pistols and Revolvers by 15%.
7	Long Shot Drop Pop x2	Increases damage with Pistols and Revolvers to enemies 5+ meters away by 25%.
9	Steady Hand	Reduces Pistol and Revolver recoil by 20%.
9	O.K. Corral	Deal 50% more damage with Pistols and Revolvers to enemies whose Health is below 25%.
9	Vanishing Point	Increases Mitigation Chance by 20% for 5 sec. after performing a dodge with a Pistol or Revolver equipped.
11	A Fistful of Eurodollars x2	Increases Crit Damage with Pistols and Revolvers by 30%.
11	From Head to Toe x2	Increases damage done to limbs with Pistols and Revolvers by 7/15%.
12	Acrobat	You can now perform dodges while aiming a Pistol or Revolver.
12	Grand Finale	The last round in a Pistol or Revolver clip deals double damage.
14	Attritional Fire	Firing consecutive shots with a Pistol or Revolver at the same target increases damage by 10%.
14	Wild West	Removes the damage penalty from Pistols and Revolvers when shooting from a distance. Now you can maximize your damage when fighting enemies from long distances with this Pistol build.
16	Snowball Effect	After defeating an enemy, the fire rate for Revolvers increases by 5% for 6 sec. Stacks up to 5 time(s).
16	Westworld	Increases Crit Chance for Pistols and Revolvers by 5% if fully modded.
18	Lead Sponge	Enables you to shoot with Pistols and Revolvers while dodging.
20	Brainpower	After a successful headshot with a Pistol or Revolver, Crit Chance increases by 7% for 5 sec.
20+	The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly	After a successful Crit Hit with a Pistol or Revolver, damage and Armor increase by 30% for 5 seconds. +1% per Perk level.

Assault - Assault rifles and SMGs

Assault rifle build assault cyberpunk 2077

Reflexes Level	Skill	Description
1	Bulletjock x3	Increases damage with Rifles by 10%.
1	Eagle Eye x3	Reduces time to aim down sight with Rifles by 50%.
5	Covering Killshot x2	Increases Crit Chance with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 8% when firing from behind cover.
7	Bullseye	Increases Rifle damage while aiming by 10%.
7	Executioner	Deal 25% more damage with Rifles and Submachine Guns to enemies whose Health is above 50%.
9	Duck Hunter x2	Increases Rifle and Submachine Gun damage to moving enemies by 10/20%.
9	Shoot, Reload, Repeat x2	Defeating an enemy with a Rifle or Submachine Gun reduces reload time by 20/40% for 5 sec.
11	Feel the Flow x2	Defeating an enemy with a Rifle or Submachine Gun reduces reload time by 20/40% for 5 sec.
11	Nerves of Steel x2	Increases headshot damage with Sniper Rifles and Precision Rifles by 10/15%. The Assault rifle build can still use precision rifles.
12	Hunter's Hands x2	Reduces recoil with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 10% when firing from behind cover.
12	Trench Warfare x2	Rifle and Submachine Gun damage increase by 10% when firing from behind cover.
14	Named Bullets	Increases Crit Damage with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 20%.
14	Skull Skipper	Each headshot reduces recoil with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 4% for 10 sec. Stacks up to 5 times.
16	Bunker	Increases Armor and Resistances by 15% while aiming with Rifles and Submachine Guns from behind cover.
16	Recoil Wrangler	Reduces recoil with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 5%.
18	In Perspective	Bullets fired from Power Rifles and Power Submachine Guns ricochet an additional 1 time.
18	Long Shot	Rifle and Submachine Gun damage increases the farther you are located from enemies.
20	Savage Stoic	Increases damage with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 35% when standing still.
20+	Punisher	After defeating an enemy with a Rifle or Submachine Gun, weapon sway is nullified and weapon spread does not increase for 10 sec. +0.2 sec. per Perk level.

Engineering

The perk tree provides one very important perk that greatly increases Ricochet's damage.

ricochet build engineering perk tree cyberpunk 2077

Tech Level	Skill	Description
5	Draw the Line	Preview bullets' ricochet trajectory when aiming with Power Weapons if Ballistic Coprocessor cyberware is installed.
12	Play the Angles x3	Ricochets deal an additional 50% damage.

Crafting

throwing knives build crafting tree cyberpunk 2077

Level	Skill	Description
1	Mechanic	Get more components when disassembling. Useful for crafting good gear
5	True Craftsman	Allows to craft Rare items
5	Scrapper	Automatically disassembles junk items. Great quality of life perk
9	Sapper x2 (optional)	Grenades deal 20% more damage. I do not suggest prioritizing this perk. Only put points here later in the game
11	Field Technician	Increases damage of crafted weapons by 10%. This will make your knives or katanas much stronger
12	Grease Monkey	Allows to craft Epic items
16	Tune-up	You can now increase the quality of your components.
18	Edgerunner Artisan	Allows crafting legendary items. Have in mind that I also recommend having a Crafting level of 12. This way you unlock many legendary Crafting specs.

Cool Blood

ricochet build cold blood perk tree cyberpunk 2077

Cool Level	Skill	Description
1	Cold Blood x3	After defeating an enemy, gain Cold Blood for 7 sec. and increase movement speed by 2%. Stacks up to 3 times. The duration of each additional stack is 1 sec. shorter.
7	Easy Out x2	While Cold Blood is active, increases ranged weapon damage by 20% to enemies within an area of 5m.
11	Collagulant	Stack of Cool Blood are removed one by one instead of all at once
11	Frozen Precision	Each stack of Cold BLood now increases headshot damage by 5%. Perfect choice for Knife Throwing on this Ninja build
12	Icy Veins x2	Reduces weapon recoil by 6% per stack of Cold Blood.
14	Cold and Calculating	Critical hits can now also add a stack of Cold Blood
16	Coldest Blood x2	Increases Cold Blood stack by 2
16	Critical Condition x2	Cold Blood will have its duration increased by 50%.
18	Immunity	Makes you immune to Bleeding, Poison, Burn, and Shock

Athletics

This perk tree is very important. It greatly improves the overall agility of the Ricochet build.

gunslinger build athletics cyberpunk 2077

Body Level	Skill	Description
1	Regeneration	Health slowly regenerates during combat.
7	Epimorphosis	Increases Health regen threshold from 60% to 65% in combat and to 100% out of combat.
11	Multitasker	Allows you to shoot while sprinting, sliding, and vaulting.
11	Divided Attention	Allows you to reload weapons while sprinting, sliding, and vaulting.

Ninjutsu

Although Ninjutsu relies on stealth it still provides a few good perks for load offensive builds

ricochet build ninjutsu perk tree cyberpunk 2077

Cool Level	Skill	Description
7	Assassin	Deal 15% more damage to human enemies.
9	Sniper x2	Increases headshot damage outside combat by 20%.
12	From the Shadows x2	Upon entering combat, Crit Chance increases by 20% for 7 sec.

Build tactics

Here are some recommendations for Ricochet build, that should help you better utilize this unique mechanic

It is not necessary to use Aim down sights

This sounds strange as you can only see the trajectory of Ricochet then? However, here is the most effective way to use it

ricochet build no scope cyberpunk 2077

Seems like, the Ricochet effect has an auto-targeting feature, that adjusts the path of the bullet if it is close to an enemy. This way you can just shoot to the ground close to the enemy.

Use the new Ricochet muzzles

These muzzles were introduced in recent patches and greatly improve the handling, damage, and recoil of Ricochet weapons.

ricochet muzzle cyberpunk 2077

You can purchase most of them in Second Amendment, Robert Wilson close to V's apartment. Have in mind, that may not appear instantly, and wait for 24 hours for the store to restock.

Assault Rifles vs Pistols

This is the main dilemma for the Ricochet build. Pistols and especially revolvers have a higher Ricochet damage bonus. However, they have a slower fire rate and smaller clips. This means that you can make fewer mistakes when shooting with them, but deal much larger damage.

Assault Rifles and SMGs have a high fire rate, but unfortunately, come with lower damage. I personally recommend trying out both weapons and deciding to which one you commit, before spending perk points on any of them.

Equipment recommendations

Ricochet build works with any weapons that are Power type. However, I would like to emphasize a few, that are best used with this mechanic. It is also important to use new muzzles introduced recently that greatly improve Ricochet effectiveness.

Pistols and Revolvers

Item	Description
Death and Taxes	A truly powerful weapon that deals electrical damage. It also releases two bullets that greatly improve the chance to hit with the Ricochet effect.
Crash	This weapon is a hit or miss. It shoots faster when holding the fire button. However, I do not prefer this mechanic
Doom Doom	The weapon requires some specific choices to be made early in the game. However, it is very powerful as it releases 4 projectiles.
Kongou	Has low recoil and a high rate of fire.

Assault Rifles and Submachine Guns

Item	Description
Problem Solver	This is a crazy Submachine Gun. It releases 1000 rounds per minute, making it a perfect choice for Ricochet build. Use it to instantly shred a group of enemies.
Moron Labe	Has a high fire rate and can dismember enemies. A decent choice for Ricochet build.

Weapon Mods

This is a very important part of Ricochet build. You need to equip one of the mentioned muzzles below for it to work. They will greatly boost damage output, making the bullets deal more damage than normal shots.

Item	Description
RC-7 Babaroga	Works only on pistols and Revolvers. Increases Ricochet angle, chance, and damage. Halves Crit Chance. The best option for pistols
RC-7 Zaar	Works only on Assault Rifles and Submachine Guns. Increases Ricochet angle, chance, and damage. Reduces spread and halves Crit Chance
RC-7 Strigoi	Works only on Assault Rifles and Submachine Guns. Increases Ricochet angle, chance, and damage. Also reduces recoil and halves Crit Chance.
RC-7 Ifrit	Works only on pistols and Revolvers. Increases Ricochet angle, chance, and damage. Also reduces recoil and halves Crit Chance.
Crunch	Increases damage
Neon Arrow	Reduces weapon reload time by 5%.

Armor mods

Mod name	Description
Deadeye	Although you will not concentrate on headshots, the mod provides a very high damage increase: +6% Crit Damage +15% Headshot Damage Multiplier
Bully	Gives +8% Crit Damage. Great for maximizing damage late in the game
Armadillo	I recommend this mod for maximum survivability It gives bonus armor. Try to get the Legendary or Epic variant
Fortuna	Gives a +4% Crit Chance.
Zero Drag	Increases movement speed. It can make the gameplay a bit more difficult as you may run through the enemies. But overall makes the experience even more enjoyable

Cyberware - Frontal Cortex

Slot	Item	Description
1	Mechatronic Core	Increases damage against drones, mechs, and robots
2	Heal-On-Kill	Restores health on kill.

Cyberware - Ocular System

Slot	Item	Description
1	Kiroshi Optics Mk.3	Enables to have additional upgrades for the ocular system. Try to get the highest rarity which is Epic. It provides 3 upgrade slots.

Mods

Mod name	Description
Trajectory Analysis	Increases headshot bonus damage by 25%.
Weakspot Detection	Increases Crit Chance by 2%.

Cyberware - Circulatory System

The problem with this cyberware is that you have low Body attributes. Due to this, you can only equip common rarity items.

Slot	Item	Description
1	Biomonitor	Instantly restores a large portion of health when it drops below a certain threshold.
2	Microgenerator	Releases Electroshock when health drops below 15%.
3	Bioconductor	All cyberware has lower cooldowns.

Cyberware - Immune System

Slot	Item	Description
1	Pain Editor	Reduces all incoming damage by 10%.
2	Shock-n-Awe	After taking damage, there is a 2% chance of releasing large electroshock that deals damage to nearby enemies. Unfortunately, you will be able to equip either common or uncommon variants.

Cyberware - Nervous System

Slot	Item	Description
1	Kerenzikov	You can now slow time when dodging or sliding.
2	Nanorelays	Increases Sandevistan and Kerenzikov duration
2	Reflex Tuner	Slows time when your Health drops to 25%

Cyberware - Integumentary System

Slot	Item	Description
1	Subdermal Armor	Provides flat armor increase. Try to obtain the highest rarity for the highest value.
2	Optical Camo	This is a bad boy. You will become invisible for a few seconds which you can use to take out enemies. Really neat cyberware for a stealth build
3	Heat Converter	Increases damage if you are burning

Cyberware - Operating System

Priority	Item	Description
1	Militech "Falcon" Sandevistan Mk.5	Has 60 seconds cooldown, but provides 20% Crit Damage and Crit Chance. Moreover, increases overall damage dealt by 15%.
2	QianT Sandevistan Mk.4	Has a very short cooldown of 15 seconds. However, provides a shorter time slow.
3	Dynalar Sandevistan Mk.4	Increases damage and Crit Chance by 15%. Has a 30-second cooldown.
4	Dynalar Sandevistan Mk.3	This epic rarity Sandevistan has 16 seconds duration. Also increases damage by 15%

Operating system mods

Mod name	Description
Heatsink	Reduces Sandevistan cooldown
Prototype Chip	While Sandevistan is active, increases Crit Chance by 5%. This is a decent choice. However, have in mind with Ricochet muzzles you will only get 2.5%.
Overclocked Processor	Increases duration of Sandevistan

Cyberware - Skeleton

Slot	Item	Description
1	Bionic Joints	Reduces recoil with ranged weapons
2	Synaptic Signal Optimizer	This cyberware greatly boosts overall health.

Cyberware - Hands

Slot	Item	Description
1	Ballistic Coprocessor	The legendary version gives +50% ricochet damage. A very powerful cyberware for Ricochet build

Cyberware - Legs

Slot	Item	Description
1	Reinforced Tendons	My personal favorite makes traversing much easier.
1	Fortified Ankles	Makes you float in the air. You can then easily target enemies in the area. Have in mind you will be exposed to them.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading this post on the Best Ricochet build in Cyberpunk 2077. I covered the recommended attribute, perk tree progression. Moreover, we deep-dived into gear recommendations for the highest damage options.

Feel free to leave a comment below!