Cyberpunk 2077: Best Iconic Melee Weapons

Key Takeaways

• The best melee weapons in
  Cyberpunk 2077
  have unique perks and designs that add a fun twist to combat.
• Some iconic melee weapons can only be found in specific areas, adding a scavenger hunt element to gameplay.
• From katanas to hammers, each melee weapon offers a different playstyle and strategy for players to explore and enjoy.

Cyberpunk 2077‘s base game holds many incredible weapons, but by far the most diverse and often silly set has to be melee weapons. The best melee weapons in Cyberpunk 2077 often have a quirk to them, an interesting perk or design that will make players chuckle, or feel like the coolest merc in Night City as they take on Arasaka and the rest of the corpos out to stop them and Johnny Silverhand for taking what they want.

Cyberpunk 2077‘s best melee weapons often belong to iconic weapons that can only be found in specific areas and ways, rather than as random loot drops. Some iconic weapons can be missed, so it’s best to keep an eye out for these weapons and discover the true potential of a melee-wielding warrior.

Updated on October 2, 2024, by Jake Fillery: All melee weapons in Cyberpunk 2077’s base game provide players with intense creativity and power in the palm of their hands. Thanks to a bounty of updates including 2.1, Cyberpunk 2077 has 20 iconic melee weapons that can be used for varying effects and iconic modifiers. Whether it’s based on visuals or power, Cyberpunk 2077’s best melee weapons offer incredibly impacting bonuses, and unique methods of obtaining them.

20 BFC 9000

How To Get: Looted from Hugo Selvig at The Dam Viewpoint, Rahnco Coronado

For players who missed out on Meredith Stout’s raunchy romance and her vibrating melee weapon, there’s the BFC 9000. This friendly melee weapon is just like the original, with a few visual tweaks and a new iconic modifier. It’s an inappropriate weapon designed for some immature giggles, but it definitely does the job of providing blunt force to the enemies of Night City.

19 Tsumetogi

How To Get: Looted from Hiromi Sato in the Pisces Side Job

The cutting blade belongs to one of the leading members of the Tyger Claws, Hiromi Sato. This golden hilt for a violent blade is a custom-made marvel that can strike down any foe, Tyger Claw or otherwise. The bonus of electrical damage can aid in shocking enemies, and heavier attacks deal more damage than the standard katana.

18 Blue Fang

How To Get: Purchased From the Melee Weapon Vendor in Jackson Plains

A throwing knife with a neurotoxic that coats the blade, while still a prototype, the Blue Fang can serve V well thanks to its iconic modifier that will stun enemies for almost 5 seconds. Blue Fang is fun for those with a build for throwable weapons, but its slow return time might make it a tad finicky compared to other choices.

17 Stinger

How To Get: Gifted From Mitch During I’ll Fly Away Side Job

Saying goodbye to the best choom one could know is hard, and in Mitch’s case, that was Scorpion. Yet, Scorpion can be honored in death due to the fact that his motorcycle and blade are now in V’s possession. Using them wisely, V has something that is small but deadly, and it works great with a build with stacking effects since the blade both poisons and bleeds.

16 Nehan

How To Get: Looted From Saburo Arasaka In “The Heist”

A weapon of great potential, added with the release of Update 2.0. Nehan synergizes perfectly with the Iconic Katana, Satori, where a thrown hit from this weapon can cause Bleeding. If an enemy is already Bleeding from Satori, then Nehan will instead cause hemorrhaging. This is a great stat found with Nehan, as hemorrhaging will drain enemy Health, exchanging it, allowing for players to regenerate their own.

Nehan is the weapon of Saburo Arasaka, so Johnny Silverhand might see the hilarious irony in using the weapon of his most hated enemy against his own forces. Corporations will fear the potential of V who wields a deadly throwing knife, especially with the right Perks.

15 Gold-Plated Baseball Bat

How To Get: Picked Up From Denny’s Pool In “Second Conflict”

​Few Baseball Bats have the iconic status such as this one. Not only is it plated in gold, but it’s also used by Denny herself, the iconic band member of Samurai. Luckily for V, Denny is prone to losing her head, and throws the baseball bat in rage, allowing them to swipe it up before she can register it. After all, she’s more concerned about her pool being filled with cement.

As for the weapon itself, the Baseball Bat hits slowly, but extremely hard, and the fact the weapon can apply Bleeding and Stun makes it a hard-hitting self-serving monster, where every person V comes across will suffer blunt force trauma.

14 Errata

How To Get: Found In The Forge In The Electric Corporation Power Plant In “Disasterpiece”

A​​​​​​ Katana that blends the classical with the futuristic, Errata deserves attention for its glowing heat emitted from the harsh edge of the blade. With its iconic modifier, players are able to grant themselves more damage to those who are Burning due to the guarantee of Critical Hit. Not only that, but the weapon also has a 10% increased chance to inflict Burn in the first place.

Errata is a rather funny weapon for its purpose, as it wasn’t actually in the base game until the release of 2.0, making its tagline “It was worth the wait.” more of a fourth-wall-breaking ode to that fact.

13 Byakko

How To Get: Found Inside V’s Stash After Completing “Professional Widow”

Byakko is another iconic katana, but one that has been collecting dust on Wakako’s desk for a reason. It’s a cool katana, but not one that demands usage for the best katana builds. The stats are average at best, and the modifier can still be useful, even with the revamp of movement provided to players thanks to 2.0 and beyond.

With the iconic modifier, players are able to leap towards enemies, allowing them to strike far faster than normal. This rapid flurry of attacks provides players with further vicious enhancements, and every slash and cut will be violent and bloody.

12 Cocktail Stick

How To Get: Found Inside The Clouds Dressing Room In “Automatic Love”

A bright pink katana that used to belong to Evelyn Parker, players can wield the Cocktail Stick in her name to skewer their enemies within Night City. With an average attack speed and decent damage per hit, the Cocktail Stick is a good enough katana, but the Iconic Modifier is best reserved for players who have a flair for stealth, as to see any effect from it, they will need Optical Camo as one of their Cyberware upgrades. However, causing Bleeding is great, as it can stop enemies from dodging and dashing, as well as dealing at least 4% damage to their total health over time.

11 Cottonmouth

How To Get: Found On A Table Within Fingers’ Clinic During “The Space In Between”

What better way to stick it to the disgusting ripperdoc, Fingers, than to wield his cane in battle? V can pick this melee weapon up and swing it around, and whilst it may not be lethal, it sure will leave plenty of bruises. It’s a weapon that is often underestimated due to its slow attack speed, but its stellar damage per hit makes it a weapon worthy of a Night City merc, especially when the tip of the weapon deals both Electrical and Chemical damage, adding both Shock and Poison to unsuspecting enemies.

10 Satori

How To Get: Found In Saburo Arasaka’s AV On The Rooftop Landing Pad In “The Heist”

Satori is a truly intensive weapon, and extremely rare, as players can easily miss it during the panic of Act One’s “The Heist”. Finding this weapon on Saburo’s personal AV whilst looking for a way out of the penthouse, players might be impressed by its competent swing speed, but even more impressed with its iconic modifier, which allows players to leap toward enemies, even if they are far away. This can lead to some great melee encounters, where players can easily catch up to foes wielding guns, showing that it’s not always wise to bring a gun to a sword fight.

9 Jinchu-maru

How To Get: Looted From Oda Sandayu’s Body In “Play It Safe”

A superior bout of damage to other katanas, the Jinchu-maru already shows promise for the best Cyberpunk 2077 melee weapons. Even the iconic modifier itself is worthy of acclaim, as players can continue to slash at their foes with guaranteed critical hits on the last hit.

Even greater still, the use of Optical Camo can grant a promise of critical hits and the ability to leap towards targets, ensuring no one escapes the cyberpsycho wielding this. The extra damage against Elite enemies is always a cherry on top.

8 Sasquatch’s Hammer

How To Get: Looted From Sasquatch’s Body During “I Walk The Line”

Talk about a weapon with high risk and high reward, this iconic hammer from the leader of the Animals faction is going to require plenty of perks in Body due to how heavy it is to wield. Sasquatch’s Hammer is the heaviest weapon in the game, and players will feel that with each slow swing, and the fact that their movement is greatly reduced. It’s a good idea to bring plenty of armor for a fight with this one, and although that might not be for everyone, the fact that it has a knockdown chance of 30% for Fast attacks, 50% for Strong Attacks, and a damage multiplier of 220%, it’s definitely worth wielding for the tanks out there.

7 Tinker Bell

How To Get: Found Within Edgewood Farm’s Control Room In “The Hunt”

The Tinker Bell cannot be denied for being one of the creepiest items in the game thanks to its implication of use on vulnerable youths, but that doesn’t mean V can’t turn it into a force for good against the horrors of Night City, prodding at enemies with this electric weapon that deals Physical and Electrical damage. Whilst the damage reduction may not be impressive, the fact that it can non-lethally knock out targets, leaving them in a vulnerable state, means it’s well worth the misfortune of having to repeatedly poke them with it.

6 Black Unicorn

How To Get: Automatically Added To V’s Stash When Linking Account To GOG

A weapon taken from The Witcher series sounds like a no-brainer when it comes to using, and the Black Unicorn might tickle plenty of fancy for fans of CD Projekt RED’s fantasy world, and especially new players since the weapon itself can be acquired as soon as they access V’s Apartment’s Stash, but only if their account is linked to GOG.

When low or out of Stamina, players can still attack wildly, and fast, allowing constant opportunity for violence, and they will never be forced to slow down their rampage due to a lack of stamina, because this katana simply has no patience to wear out.

5 Butcher’s Cleaver

How To Get: Found Within Rolland’s Butcher Shop After Placide Uses It In “M’ap Tann Pelen”

Placide might not be the nicest character in Night City, from his behavior towards V and his decapitation of a chicken, but at least he leaves behind a Butcher’s Cleaver, a weapon that can only be grabbed in this scene and never again. The weapon itself is somewhat mediocre, but the iconic modifier allows it to shine thanks to its bloodthirsty nature, in which players can attack faster with less stamina if they cause their enemies to have the Bleeding effect.

4 Caretaker’s Spade

How To Get: Found Within The Central Area Of The Arasaka Tower Jungle Floor In “Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door”

A reference to the creepiest encounter in The Witcher 3‘s Hearts of Stone expansion, the Caretaker’s Spade comes to Cyberpunk 2077, and whilst those in Night City might not know about the Caretaker, players might shudder in remembrance of this monster when they find it. The saddest part about this weapon is that it’s heavy, and can only be found in the final mission path, meaning players can only use it after they have completed the main mission when there’s not a lot left to do in Night City. However, the iconic modifier means that players can siphon health from their enemies, which keeps them as seemingly immortal mercs.

3 Scalpel

How To Get: A Reward For Completing “Big In Japan”

An easy-to-obtain iconic weapon in Cyberpunk 2077, the Scalpel has a default damage modifier to add Electrical and Shock damage to foes. However, to make the weapon really shine, players should be using a Sandevistan. The ability to seemingly slow time to a stop should already prove why it’s so useful, but with the Scalpel, players can increase the damage output of their katana, forcing enemies into submission as they are cut to ribbons before they can even register what’s happened to them.

2 Headhunter

How To Get: Purchased From Melee Weapon Vendor In West Wind Estate With Patch 1.6

A throwing knife is a great way to increase V’s expanding arsenal, and it’s a weapon that will require a touch of skill to use effectively. Players can throw this knife into enemies, which will mark them, essentially giving them a death sentence, as they will receive 200% more damage for the next hit. This can be used greatly in stealth, as players can hit an enemy twice and automatically have the Headhunter knife return to them, allowing for them to prey upon their next victim.

1 Sir John Phallustiff

How To Get: Found On The Bed After Sleeping With Meredith Stout In “Venus In Furs”

A crude weapon that needs no introduction, players can get their hands on Sir John Phallustiff if they side with Meredith Stout and end up having a one-night stand with her in Act Two. A parting gift can be found on the bed, just be sure to wash it, or wear gloves, as this rude weapon will certainly embarrass the wielder and whoever is unfortunate enough to get hit in the face with it. It’s a funny weapon, and an effective one, as the increase Crit and Stun Chance is (of course) 69%, allowing for V to literally dominate over their enemies.