Cyberpunk RED skill
Concentration
Concentration is a skill in Cyberpunk RED: Holding focus on a task while the world around you is actively trying to stop you.
Last reviewed
Key facts
- Stat
- WILL
- Category
- awareness
Overview
Concentration is the skill for staying on task under pressure. It is what keeps a Tech soldering a connection while rounds come through the wall, keeps a Netrunner working while the building alarm screams, and keeps anyone doing careful work in a place where careful work is not welcome. At the table it is a support skill that turns other skills from theoretical into usable. Almost every heist has a moment where somebody has to finish something slow while everyone else buys them time, and Concentration decides whether that person finishes. It keys off WILL, so it is the rare non-combat skill that rewards mental toughness rather than intelligence or dexterity.
How it works
Linked Stat: WILL Category: Awareness Resolution: 1d10 plus WILL plus skill level against a DV set by how bad the distraction is. A natural 10 lets you roll again and add, a natural 1 makes you roll again and subtract. When it is called: The GM asks for Concentration when noise, pain, fear, or interruption would realistically break a task, usually before or alongside the roll for the task itself. Failure normally means lost progress or a penalty rather than an outright disaster.
Tips and playstyle
Best for: Techs, Medtechs, and Netrunners, who all spend fights doing slow work while somebody else handles the shooting. Character concepts: A field medic who finishes the stabilization anyway, a Tech disarming something on a timer, a demolitions specialist working under fire. Synergies: It backs up whatever your slow skill is: Cybertech, Electronics and Security Tech, First Aid, or Demolitions. High WILL also feeds your hit points, which are 10 plus 5 times the average of BODY and WILL rounded up.
Frequently asked questions
When would I roll Concentration?
Whenever the GM decides the environment would break your focus: gunfire nearby, an alarm, an injury, a countdown. It is usually asked for on top of the roll for the task, not instead of it.
Is Concentration worth points for a combat character?
Less so, since shooting does not require it. It earns its place for characters whose contribution is a slow task that the rest of the crew is protecting.
Does high WILL make up for a low rank?
Partly. WILL caps at 8 and adds directly to the roll, so a WILL 7 character with no skill still clears easy DVs of 9 fairly often. For anything harder you need the ranks.