Cyberpunk RED role
Lawman
Lawman is a role in Cyberpunk RED: Badge-carrying officer who can call in the one thing edgerunners cannot: official backup.
Last reviewed
Key facts
- Ability
- Backup
Overview
A Lawman holds a badge in a city that treats law as a service tier. That might be NCPD or a corporate security arm. What matters is that an organization stands behind you and can be persuaded to send people. At the table the Lawman is the crew's authority and its escape hatch. Backup turns a losing engagement into a survivable one, and the badge opens scenes, records, and morgues that would otherwise need a break-in plan. It also makes you the person everyone assumes is bought, because in Night City the honest cop and the bought cop wear the same uniform.
How it works
Role Ability: Backup Backup Description: Call in support from your agency when a situation goes bad. Rank determines the quality and size of what arrives, from a nearby patrol unit to a full tactical response. Rank: Starts at 4 at creation and caps at 10. Each new rank costs Improvement Points equal to that rank times 60, and it ignores the creation cap of 6 on ordinary skills. Key Skills: Handgun and Shoulder Arms because you will be shot at, Perception and Interrogation for the actual job, Streetwise for the half of the city that will not talk to a uniform. Typical Equipment: Badge, issued sidearm, body armor, restraints, patrol vehicle, and agency access to records and comms.
Tips and playstyle
Best For: Groups that want friction inside the party, and players who enjoy having rules the rest of the table does not. Playstyle: Build REF and COOL, keep a real combat skill, and remember Backup takes time to arrive: call it early or not at all. Decide before session one how bent your Lawman is, since that answer shapes every illegal thing the crew does in front of you. Character Concepts: Burned-out NCPD detective, corporate security lieutenant on loan, county sheriff chasing a case into the city, internal affairs officer working undercover.
Frequently asked questions
What shows up when I call Backup?
It scales with rank and with where you are standing. Low rank in a covered district gets a patrol car; high rank gets a tactical unit. In the Combat Zone the response is usually slower and smaller than you wanted.
Can a Lawman run with criminals?
That tension is the point of the role. Most tables agree on a line the character will not cross and let the campaign push at it. Nothing stops you mechanically, but getting caught costs the badge and the ability with it.
Does the badge work outside my jurisdiction?
It carries weight as a symbol but not as authority. You can still intimidate and open doors, but Backup will not come, which is why sensible Lawmen work close to home.