Cyberpunk RED skill
First Aid
First Aid is a skill in Cyberpunk RED: Stopping the bleeding and keeping someone alive until a real Medtech can work.
Last reviewed
Key facts
- Stat
- TECH
- Category
- technique
Overview
First Aid is emergency stabilization: pressure on the wound, an airway kept open, a shot of whatever is in the kit, keeping somebody from dying in the next few minutes. It is not surgery and it is not treatment, it is the difference between a teammate who bleeds out in an alley and one who reaches a clinic. At the table First Aid matters more in Cyberpunk RED than in most games because characters go down fast. Hit points come to 10 plus 5 times the average of BODY and WILL rounded up, and a serious weapon eats a lot of that in one action. When someone drops, the crew has a very short window, and this is the skill that uses it.
How it works
Linked Stat: TECH Category: Technique Resolution: 1d10 plus TECH plus skill level against a DV based on how bad the injury is. A natural 10 rolls again and adds; a natural 1 rolls again and subtracts, and on a dying patient that matters immediately. Its limits: First Aid stabilizes, it does not repair. Someone at death's door needs a Medtech's Medicine ability or a proper facility. Your Death Save threshold is your BODY stat, so a physically tough character has more margin while somebody works on them.
Tips and playstyle
Best for: Everyone. At least two people in any crew should have it, because the one with the ranks is the one most likely to be down. Character concepts: A Medtech obviously, but also a Solo with combat medical training, a Nomad who learned it because help never came, a Lawman with a patrol kit. Synergies: Concentration keeps you working while under fire. Science backs it up with real biology, Cybertech matters when the patient is more chrome than flesh, and Drive Land Vehicle gets them to a clinic.
Frequently asked questions
Can First Aid bring someone back from the brink?
It stabilizes and buys time, which is often exactly what the crew needs. Real recovery takes a Medtech's Medicine ability or a clinic, so treat First Aid as transport insurance rather than a cure.
How many people should have it?
At least two. If only your medic carries it and your medic is the one bleeding, the skill you invested in is unavailable at the exact moment it matters.
Do I need a kit?
Yes, meaningfully. Working with improvised materials raises the DV, and given how quickly characters drop, a proper trauma kit is one of the better purchases a crew can make.