The Mantis Blades are the killer melee cyberware mod in Cyberpunk 2077. With them equipped, your punches are replaced with deadly blades that gib any choom unlucky enough to be in your way — and equipping the correct cyberware makes you even deadlier. When clearing bases full of hostiles, you can use a combination of quickhacks, Breach Protocols, and Mantis Blade (and cyberware) powers to easily clear the area. Even if you aren’t great at stealth, this build is unstoppable.
The only build more unstoppable than this one is the Nethacker build. They’re kind of like wizards, so there’s no comparing how killer they are. But if you’re looking for some up-close-and-personal action, the Mantis Blades build is one of the most effective in the game. And I know because I’ve been using it for hours of bloody fun.
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How The Legendary Mantis Blade Build Works
To deal maximum damage, we’re going to strike from the shadows and take advantage of two powers — bonus stealth damage and the Synaptic Accelerator cyberware which gives you slow-mo before being spotted.
With Mantis Blades and sneaking, you can approach every enemy and kill them before they alert anyone else in the area. Just use your strong attack and take cover before the slow-mo wears off. Use Ping to spot enemies and disable cameras — and use Breach Protocol to weaken everyone in the area. You can also use Reboot Optics to easily sneak up on an enemy that’s in your way.
When you’re spotted and enter slow-mo, sprint to the enemy and slice them to pieces. This still counts as a “Stealth” kill because you haven’t technically been spotted yet. You aren’t spotted until after the slow-mo period ends, making all of your attacks stealth attacks.
Legendary Mantis Blades Location
You’ll find a free set of Legendary Mantis Blades in the northwest City Center, Corpo Plaza — there’s a Cyberpsycho gig down an alleyway. On the right, there’s a marked chest that contains the Legendary Mantis Blades. You’ll need them if you don’t have a set already.
- Mantis Blades (Legendary)
- 197-240 Damage
- +106-129 Physical Damage
- 3.29 Attack Speed
- +20% Bleeding Chance
Equip the Mantis Blades with upgrades to enhance lethality further.
- Haming-8 Rotor (Legendary) Cyberware Mod
- Increases Mantis Blade attack speed by 45%.
And finally, you’ll want to equip another Cyberware — the Synaptic Accelerator for the Nervous System. Any will work, but the better versions will allow you to be even more effective.
- Synaptic Accelerator (Uncommon)
- Slows time by 30% for 2 sec, when you are detected by enemies. Cooldown 60 sec.
Next, you’ll want to take some specific perks and boost attributes to increase your damage output.
- Reflexes: Put most points into a Reflexes for this build.
- Roaring Waters: Strong attacks with Blades deal 30% / 40% / 50% more damage.
- Judge, Jury, Executioner: Increases damage with Blades by 50% against enemies with max health. Get this one later. Not required.
- Cool: The secondary attribute for this build is Cool. Put plenty of points here too.
- Strike From The Shadows: Increases your Crit Chance by 15% while sneaking.
- Assassin: Deal 15% more damage to human enemies.
- Intelligence: This is a minor attribute, but very effective. Get this Breach Protocol and use it for every encounter.
- Mass Vulnerability: Unlocks the Mass Vulnerability daemon, which reduces the Physical Resistance for all enemies in the network by 30$ for 3 min.
And finally, equip Ping and Reboot Optics to your Cyberdeck.
And that’s it! Now you’re a cyberdeck-enhanced killing machine. If you want to save yourself from getting spotted, equip the Memory Wipe quickhack, or just wait for the enemies to chill out and lose you. This build is insanely powerful, and it can wipe out bosses almost instantly. Individual enemies don’t stand a chance.