Smart Weapon Builds (Patch 1.63) - Cyberpunk 2077

This post covers the best Smart weapon builds in Cyberpunk 2077. These types of weapons are able to target enemies automatically and then release homing rounds.

Although not perfect this allows the wielder to shoot in quite a wide area and not need to target the enemy precisely.

There are multiple Smart weapons in the game that allow for different approaches to be used.

 

Smart Weapons Build - Pistols and Rifles

This build is a variation of the Smart Weapons build that works with Pistols, revolvers, assault rifles, sniper rifles, etc.

Attributes

In this section, I will cover what main attributes of the build needs.

Starting the game

• Reflexes +3 (for Rifles and Pistols)
• Cool +3. It will allow you to increase the effectiveness of Cold Blood
• Technical Ability +1

Progression

This option will concentrate on these smart weapon choices:

• Sniper Rifles
• Assault Rifles
• SMG
• Pistols
• Revolvers

Level	Reflex	Body	Tech	Cool	Int
10	10	5	6	7	3
30	16	7	12	13	3
50	20	11	20	17	3

• Reflexes 20. The main tree relates to pistol damage and effectiveness.
• Technical Ability 20. This tree will allow crafting legendary weapons.
• Body 11. The main point is to get the Multitasker perk. It will allow shooting while sprinting, sliding, and vaulting. This will greatly improve Smart weapon build agility.
• Cool 17. We put points here to maximize the effectiveness of Cold Blood and all the bonus stats we get

Perks

I will only suggest the most important perks for this build. Otherwise, you can pick any other ones that improve things related to your game style.

Handguns (if you go with a pistol or revolver)

We take all the perks in this tree. They all improve damage, handling, and other stats related to Smart Pistols

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	Rio Bravo x3	Increases headshot damage multiplier with Pistols and Revolvers by 15%.
5	Desperado x3	Increases damage with Pistols and Revolvers by 10%.
7	On the Fly x2	Reduces the draw/holster time for Pistols and Revolvers by 50%.
7	Long Shot Drop Pop x3	Increases damage with Pistols and Revolvers to enemies 5+ meters away by 25%.
9	Vanishing Point	Increases Mitigation Chance by 20% for 5 sec. after performing a dodge with a Pistol or Revolver equipped. By default, Mitigation grants a chance to reduce any damage taken by 50%.
9	O.K. Corral	Deal 50% more damage with Pistols and Revolvers to enemies whose Health is below 25%.
11	From Head to Toe x2	Increases damage done to limbs with Pistols and Revolvers by 15%.
11	A Fistful of Eurodollars x2	Increases Crit Damage with Pistols and Revolvers by 30%.
12	Grand Finale	The last round in a Pistol or Revolver clip deals double damage.
12	Acrobat	You can now perform dodges while aiming a Pistol or Revolver. This will greatly boost Smart Weapons Pistol build agility
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.
16	Westworld	Increases Crit Chance for Pistols and Revolvers by 5% if fully modded.
16	Snowball Effect	After defeating an enemy, the fire rate for Revolvers increases by 5% for 6 sec. Stacks up to 5 times.
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 (going with Smart Rifles)

This includes these weapons:

• Smart Assault Rifles
• Smart SMG
• Smart Sniper Rifle

Reflexes Level	Skill	Description
1	Eagle Eye x3	Reduces time to aim down sight with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 50%.
1	Bulletjock x3	Increases damage with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 0%.
5	Covering Killshot x2	Increases Crit Chance with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 8% when firing from behind cover.
7	Bullseye	Increases Rifle and Submachine Gun damage while aiming by 10%.
7	Executioner	Deal 25% more damage with Rifles and Submachine Guns to enemies whose Health is above 50%.
9	Shoot, Reload, Repeat x2	Defeating an enemy with a Rifle or Submachine Gun reduces reload time by 40% for 5 sec.
9	Duck Hunter x2	Increases Rifle and Submachine Gun damage to moving enemies by 20%.
11	Nerves of Steel x2 (optional)	Skip it if you do not use Sniper Rifle
11	Feel the Flow x2	Reduces reload time for Assault Rifles and Submachine Guns by 20%.
12	Trench Warfare x2	Increases Rifle and Submachine Gun damage by 10% when firing from behind cover.
14	Named Bullets	Increases Crit Damage with Rifles and Submachine Guns by 20%.
16	Bunker	Increases Armor and Resistances by 15% while aiming with Rifles and Submachine Guns from behind cover. A very important defensive perk for Smart Weapon build. It will ensure your survival in longer gunfights.
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.

Athletics

This perk tree provides some essential perks for Smart Weapon build, like reloading during sprints.

Body Level	Skill	Description
1	Regeneration	Health 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.

Crafting

This perk tree is essential for Smart Weapons build. It will ensure that you have the best  Smart weapons.

Technical Ability Level	Skill	Description
1	Mechanic	Gain more components when disassembling.
5	True Craftsman	Allows you to craft Rare items.
5	Scrapper	Junk items are automatically disassembled.
11	Field Technician x2	Crafted weapons deal 10% more damage.
12	Grease Monkey	Allows you to craft Epic items.
16	Tune-Up	Allows you to upgrade lower-quality components into higher-quality ones.
18	Edgerunner Artisan	Allows you to craft Legendary items.
20	Cutting Edge	Improves damage and all damage-related stats of crafted weapons by 5%.

Engineering

Technical Ability Level	Skill	Description
9	Lock and Load x2	Increases Smart weapon reload speed by 10%.

Ninjutsu

We invest minimally into this tree, to get some benefits that will help to better utilize Smart Weapons build

Cool Level	Skill	Description
7	Assassin	Deal 15% more damage to human enemies.
7	Strike From The Shadows	Increases Crit Chance by 7% while sneaking
12	From the Shadows x2	Upon entering combat, Crit Chance increases by 20% for 7 sec.
16	Hasty Retreat	Temporarily boosts movement speed by 50% for 5 sec. when detected by an enemy.

Cold Blood

This perk tree is very important. Not only does it provide a bonus to offensive stats it also increases armor and health regeneration with stacks of Cold Blood

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.
9	Rapid Bloodflow x2	Increases Health regen inside and outside combat by 10% per stack of Cold Blood.
11	Frozen Precision	Increases headshot damage by 5% per stack of Cold Blood.
11	Collagulant	Stacks of Cold Blood are removed one by one, not all at once.
14	Cold and Calculating	Landing a Crit Hit has 50% chance of applying a stack of Cold Blood.
14	Pain is an Illusion	While Cold Blood is active, reduces damage taken by 5%.
16	Critical Condition x2	Increases duration of Cold Blood by 50%.
16	Coldest Blood x2	Increases max stack amount for Cold Blood by 2.

Build tactics

This section has some tips for how to play Smart Weapon build. I will go through each of the main weapon categories.

Handguns - Pistols and Revolvers

The build is fairly simple and relies on hiding behind the covers to shoot enemies effectively. I think it takes some practice to correctly pull it off.

The main point is to wait until the weapon targeting system picks up the enemy. Once you hear a "click" sound you can start shooting.

Pistols have a high headshot multiplier due to the Handguns perks. So check that the automatic targeting system picks up enemy heads.

Another important aspect is to use dodging. Lead Sponge is a unique perk that allows shooting while dodging. If you have Kerenzikov equipped this will slow time and allow you to better pick enemies.

Sniper Rifle - Ashura

The one and only Smart Sniper rifle. Unfortunately, it has only 1 round per clip. Due to this, you need to use it correctly not to be overwhelmed.

Mainly I suggest using it when you are entrenched well and enemies cannot surround you. The low fire rate makes you extremely vulnerable to multiple enemies.

Assault Rifles

I think this is a general pick that is worthwhile in most situations. These weapons deal adequate damage, have a good fire rate, and have large magazine sizes.

Submachine Guns

I would pick these weapons based on certain conditions. SMG like Yinglong is effective against drones. Divided We Stand has a large targeting area and multiple targets. This allows spraying bullets without putting much effort.

Smart Weapons Build - Shotguns

Going with Shotguns requires a bit different approach to stat allocation. The main one is that we will need an Annihilator perk tree. It can be found under the Body attribute.

Attributes

This section will cover the main attributes of the Smart Weapons Shotgun build needs.

Starting the game

• Body+3. This will maximize Shotgun damage. Moreover, it will provide plenty of survivability options, like sprinting reload, more HP and armor
• Cool +3. It will allow you to increase the effectiveness of Cold Blood
• Technical Ability +1

Progression

Level	Reflex	Body	Tech	Cool	Int
10	3	11	6	8	3
30	3	17	14	12	5
50	3	20	20	19	9

• Body 20.
• Technical Ability 20
• Cool 19
• Intelligence 9. We put some points here to unlock better Cyberware for larger Crit Chance and Crit Damage

Perks

I will only suggest the most important perks for this build. Otherwise, you can pick any other ones that improve things related to your game style.

Annihilation

Body Level	Skill	Description
1	Hail of Bullets x3	Shotguns and Light Machine Guns deal 10% more damage.
5	In Your Face x2	Reduces the reload time of Shotguns and Light Machine Guns by 30%.
7	Dead Center x2	Increases damage to torsos from Shotguns and Light Machine Guns by 20%
7	Bloodrush x2	Increases movement speed in combat by 10% while carrying a Shotgun and Light Machine Gun.
9	Bulldozer	Increases Crit Chance with Shotguns and Light Machine Guns by 5%.
9	Mongoose	Increases Mitigation Chance by 25% while reloading Shotguns and Light Machine Guns.
11	Massacre x3	Increases Crit Damage with Shotguns or Light Machine Guns by 30%.
11	Momentum Shift x3	Defeating an enemy using a Shotgun or Light Machine Gun increases movement speed by 20% for 10 sec.
12	Heavy Lead	Shotguns and Light Machine Guns knock back enemies with more force.
12	Skeet Shooter	Deal 15% more damage to moving targets using Shotguns or Light Machine Guns.
14	Unstoppable	Dismembering an enemy using a Shotgun or Light Machine Gun increases the fire rate by 10% for 8 sec. Stacks up to 3 times.
14	Manic	When entering combat using a Shotgun or Light Machine Gun, your movement speed increases by 20% for 10 sec.
16	Speed Demon	You deal more damage the faster you're moving.
18	Poppin' Off x2	Shotguns have a 50% higher chance of dismembering enemies.
18	Hit the Deck x2	Increases damage to staggered and knocked-down enemies from Shotguns or Light Machine Guns by 20%.
20	Biathlete	Weapon spread from Shotguns and Light Machine Guns does not increase while moving.

Athletics

Body Level	Skill	Description
1	Regeneration	Health slowly regenerates during combat.
11	Like a Butterfly	Dodging does not drain Stamina.
11	Multitasker	Allows you to shoot while sprinting, sliding, and vaulting.
11	Divided Attention	Allows you to reload weapons while sprinting, sliding, and vaulting.
16	Cardio Cure x2	Health regenerates 25% faster as you move. As this Smart Shotgun build relies on moving this perk is very useful.
18	Steel Shell	Increases Armor by 10%.
20	The Rock	Enemies cannot knock you down.
20	Indestructible	Reduces all incoming damage by 10%.

Crafting

This perk tree is very important for Smart Weapons build. It will ensure that you have the highest tier and damage Smart weapons.

Technical Ability Level	Skill	Description
1	Mechanic	Gain more components when disassembling.
5	True Craftsman	Allows you to craft Rare items.
5	Scrapper	Junk items are automatically disassembled.
11	Field Technician x2	Crafted weapons deal 5/10% more damage.
12	Grease Monkey	Allows you to craft Epic items.
16	Tune-Up	Allows you to upgrade lower-quality components into higher-quality ones.
18	Edgerunner Artisan	Allows you to craft Legendary items.
20	Cutting Edge	Improves damage and all damage-related stats of crafted weapons by 5%.

Engineering

We take a single perk for better Smart Weapon handling

Technical Ability Level	Skill	Description
9	Lock and Load x2	Increases Smart weapon reload speed by 10%.

Ninjutsu

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.
16	Hasty Retreat	Temporarily boosts movement speed by 50% for 5 sec. when detected by an enemy.

Cold Blood

This perk tree is significant. Not only does it provide a bonus to offensive stats it also increases armor and health regeneration with stacks of Cold Blood

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.
9	Rapid Bloodflow x2	Increases Health regen inside and outside combat by 10% per stack of Cold Blood.
9	Defensive Clotting x2	Increases Armor by 8% per stack of Cold Blood.
11	Frozen Precision	Increases headshot damage by 5% per stack of Cold Blood.
11	Coolagulant	Stacks of Cold Blood are removed one by one, not all at once.
14	Cold and Calculating	Landing a Crit Hit has a 50% chance of applying a stack of Cold Blood.
14	Pain is an Illusion	While Cold Blood is active, reduces damage taken by 5%.
16	Coldest Blood x2	Increases max stack amount for Cold Blood by 1/2.
16	Critical Condition x2	Increases duration of Cold Blood by 25/50%.
18	Immunity	Grants immunity to Bleeding, Poison, Burn, and Shock when at least 4 stacks of Cold Blood are active.

Build tactics

Although shotguns generally have a wide shot, smart shotguns don't suffer from this weakness. Due to this, you can start shooting instantly, once the target has been acquired.

Of course, due to perks like Speed Demon, your damage increases the faster you are moving. So for the best effect, it is wise to constantly sprint

Equipment recommendations

Here is the list of Equipment that I recommend getting for Smart Weapons Build

Weapons

As you can guess we will mainly be using Smart Weapons. Early in the game, they may underperform. However, once you unlock some iconic or get legendary versions the game will become much easier.

Pistols

This build will mainly use smart pistols. And there are quite a few of them.

Unfortunately, they do not deal a large amount of damage so you may need to be more careful on high-difficulty encounters.

Priority	Item	Description
1	Genjiroh	This is probably the best smart pistol. It releases multiple bullets from one shot.
2	Chao	Kang Tao themed pistol. It is available throughout the game in multiple occasions.
3	Skippy	Although it is not very powerful it is a great weapon early and mid-game. It also comes with unique effects and quest, that I definitely suggest trying
4	HJKE-11 Yukimura	The base smart pistol that you can use.

Assault Rifles

Priority	Item	Description
1	Divided We Stand	Iconic smart assault rifle. Has a special effect that it can effectively shoot at multiple targets
2	D5 Sidewinder	Smart Assault rifle. Base version and abundant throughout the game

Sniper Rifles

Priority	Item	Description
1	Ashura	A very powerful weapon. Unfortunately, it only has 1 ammo per magazine. So make that one shot count

Submachine Guns

Priority	Item	Description
1	Prototype: Shingen Mark V	Works against 3 targets.  Moreover, the bullets explode, making it a very powerful weapon.
2	Yinglong	Legendary Smart Submachine Gun. Can apply EMPs and deal bonus electrical damage.
3	G-58 Dian	Another good smart weapon option. I prefer it to TKI-20 Shingen
4	TKI-20 Shingen	Fires in 3 round bursts. A simple Smart Submachine Gun.

Shotguns

Priority	Item	Description
1	Ba Xing Chong	A crazy powerful shotgun, that releases explosive rounds. Being a smart weapon it feels like cheating when using it. Unfortunately, it can only be obtained by the end of the game.
2	DB-4 Palica	Double Barrel Smart Shotgun. Similar to the lower option, pick your preference.
3	L-69 Zhuo	This is the base weapon that I recommend getting if you plan on using Smart shotguns.

Weapon Mods

Item	Description
Crunch	Increases damage
Neon Arrow	This upgrade is perfect for Ashura Sniper Rifle due to 1 shot clip
Penetrator	Increases Crit Chance
Pacifier	Increases Crit Damage
Vendetta	Increases headshot damage by 10%.
Phantom	Increases rate of fire by 5%.

Armor Mods

Mod name	Description
Deadeye	+6% Crit Damage +15% Headshot Damage Multiplier
Fortuna	Increases Crit Chance by 4%
Bully	It gives an 8% Crit Damage bonus
Armadillo	Provides bonus armor. Good for increased survival

Cyberware

This section will cover the recommended cyberware for Smart Weapons build.

Cyberware - Frontal Cortex

Heal-On-Kill will not be equipable with Smart Shotgun build. However, due to 9 Intelligence, this build can equip some intelligence-related cyberware for better Critical stats

For Smart Weapons build with assault rifles, sniper rifles, and pistols, the intelligence-related cyberware will not work

Slot	Item	Description
1	Heal-On-Kill	This item provides a certain percentage of health after each enemy that you kill. The effectiveness increases with the cyberware rarity
1	Limbic System Enhancement	Increases Crit Chance
2	Visual Cortex Support	Increases Crit Damage
3	Mechatronic Core	Increases damage against drones, mechs, and robots

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.

The ocular system recommended mods:

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

Cyberware - Circulatory System

Slot	Item	Description
1	Biomonitor	Instantly restores a large portion of health when it drops below a certain threshold.
2	Bioconductor	You can now activate Kerenzikov, Biomonitor and Second Heart more often. Cannot be equipped if you do not have at least 12 Body.
2	Microgenerator	When your Health drops to 15%, release electroshock that deals damage
3	Second Heart	Another great option, especially early in the game when you may die often. It provides a second chance before you die. Unfortunately, will only work with Smart Shotgun build due to the 16 Body requirement.

Cyberware - Immune System

Slot	Item	Description
1	Shock-n-Awe	Release electroshock when being hit. Has a certain activation chance.
2	Pain Editor	Reduces all the damage that you receive by 10%.

Cyberware - Nervous System

You can wear 2 pieces of cyberwar for the Nervous System. Try to get the highest Rarity of the mentioned item

Slot	Item	Description
1	Kerenzikov	You can now slow time when dodging or sliding.
2	Synaptic Accelerator	When you are detected slows time. Do not use with Sandevistan
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

One of the operating systems I recommend is Sandevistan. Use it if you have high Reflexes, for Smart Assault or Pistol builds.

Priority	Item	Description
1	Militech "Falcon" Sandevistan Mk.5	Provides 20 Crit Chance and 35% Crit Damage while Sandevistan is active. The effect lasts 18 seconds. Enough for most of the encounters.
2	QianT Sandevistan Mk.4	Gives a 15% critical chance and a 15% damage dealt increase while Sandevistan is active.
3	Dynalar Sandevistan Mk.4	Increases damage and Crit Chance by 15%. Has a 30-second cooldown.
4	Dynalar Sandevistan Mk.3	I recommend getting the Epic version early as possible as it will greatly improve your gameplay.

Operating system mods

Mod name	Description
Heatsink	Reduces Sandevistan cooldown
Prototype Chip	While Sandevistan is active, increases Crit Chance by 5%.
Neurotransmitters	While Sandevistan is active, increases Crit Damage by 15%.
Overclocked Processor	Increases duration

For Smart Shotgun build go with the Berserk operating System. It scales best with the Body and provides weapon damage, armor, and health

Priority	Item	Description
1	BioDyne Berserk Mk.4	Provides 25% weapon handling improvement and 5% armor bonus. Unfortunately has 60 seconds cooldown. Also provides 20% more ranged damage.
2	BioDyne Berserk Mk.3	Improves weapon handling by 25% and gives a 15% more damage bonus.
3	Zetatech Berserk Mk.5	This Berserker operating system improves weapon handling by 20% and armor by 10%. The good thing about it is that it only has a 30 seconds cooldown.
4	BioDyne Berserk Mk.2	Rare version, that improves weapon handling by 25% and gives a 10% damage boost. Comes with 60 seconds cooldown

Here are the berserk mods that I recommend for Smart weapon build:

Mod name	Description
Devastating Berserk	While Berserk is active, increases Crit Chance
Chained Berserk	Reduces Berserk cooldown
Sharpened Berserk	While Berserk is active, increases Crit Damage
Focused Berserk	While Berserk is active, reduces weapon sway

Cyberware - Skeleton

Slot	Item	Description
1	Bionic Lungs	Increases stamina
2	Synaptic Signal Optimizer	Increases Health. This makes the Smart Weapons shotgun build much more sturdier as you can equip Legendary tier.

Cyberware - Hands

Slot	Item	Description
1	Smart Link	Allows you to use the smart-targeting module in Smart weapons. Epic and Legendary options also give bonus Crit Damage.

Cyberware - Legs

Slot	Item	Description
1	Reinforced Tendons	My personal favorite makes traversing much easier.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading this post on the best Smart Weapon builds in Cyberpunk 2077. The post offers two distinct alternatives that can be used on any type of ranged weapon.

Feel free to leave a comment below!