Cyberpunk RED skill
Demolitions
Demolitions is a skill in Cyberpunk RED: Placing, disarming, and improvising explosives without becoming part of the blast.
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Key facts
- Stat
- TECH
- Category
- technique
Overview
Demolitions is controlled destruction: setting charges that open a wall without dropping the building, calculating a safe distance, disarming something somebody else set, and building a device from materials that were not sold for that purpose. At the table it is a high-consequence skill in both directions. It is the fastest way through a reinforced door and the fastest way to lose the entire crew, and it comes up in defusing as often as in placing. Cyberpunk RED plots frequently involve people who use explosives casually, which means the crew needs somebody who can look at a device and know whether to work on it or run. Failure here is rarely a simple lack of progress.
How it works
Linked Stat: TECH Category: Technique Resolution: 1d10 plus TECH plus skill level against a DV set by the complexity of the device and how much time you have. A natural 10 adds a further roll; a natural 1 subtracts one, and a failed roll on a live device is exactly as dangerous as it sounds. Materials and consequences: Explosives are expensive, regulated, and traceable, so acquisition is part of the planning. Blast effects do not distinguish between targets and everything else nearby, which makes safe distance a calculation rather than a guess.
Tips and playstyle
Best for: Techs, ex-military characters, and crews whose jobs involve getting into hardened structures. Character concepts: A former combat engineer, a Tech who builds breaching charges to order, a Nomad who clears roads, a gang bomb-maker. Synergies: Science, particularly chemistry, backs up the theory. Concentration keeps you steady while defusing, Basic Tech covers the mechanical side of a device, and Heavy Weapons shares the same instincts about blast radius.
Frequently asked questions
What happens if I fail a Demolitions roll?
Depends what you were doing. A failed placement wastes the charge or misplaces the blast; a failed disarm on a live device usually detonates it. This is one of the few skills where a bad roll is immediately lethal.
Can I make explosives myself?
Improvised devices are part of the skill, and GMs commonly raise the DV and make the result less predictable. Chemistry under Science helps, and so does having somewhere safe to work.
Is Demolitions worth points?
In a heist or corporate-infiltration campaign, yes, because reinforced doors are a recurring obstacle. In a purely social or investigative game it will rarely see use.