This guide will show you how to complete the main job “Firestarter” from Cyberpunk 2077’s expansion Phantom Liberty! The walkthrough details each step you must take and the possible outcomes.
Table of contents
How to unlock “Firestarter”
Firestarter is a main job in Cyberpunk 2077, maybe the most important in the Phantom Liberty expansion. To unlock it you simply have to play through the main story.
More precisely, “Firestarter” will begin immediately after “I’ve seen that face before”. Said mission requires you to kidnap the netrunner twins that were at the Black Sapphire and impersonate them. You will be Aymeric and Alex is going to be Aurore, Reed will be nearby.
Firestarter Walkthrough
After getting rid of the twins and acquiring their car, it’s time to head to the stadium where Kurt Hansen and Songbird are awaiting.
Head to the stadium and meet Kurt Hansen
Together with Alex, head to the Petrochem Stadium, it’s a short drive. The car will be scanned and then you’ll be given access to the parking lot inside the stadium.
There are two Barghest troopers guarding the entrance. They must confirm that Kurt is waiting, after a few seconds, Murphy will come out and escort both you and Alex inside.
Kurt Hansen is a cautious man, all weapons must be stored inside a locker before meeting the guy who runs Dogtown. Do not forget about this locker.
It’s always useful to get some extra information. Murphy reveals that this is the core of Kurt Hansen’s operation, every important transaction happens here.
Kurt Hansen is waiting for the two netrunners who will sell him the access codes to the mysterious neural matrix. It’s important to stay in character, remember that you’re impersonating Aymeric.
Before getting to business, Songbird must do some final preparations. In the meantime, you must have a small chat with Kurt Hansen.
Impersonate Aymeric
Kurt Hansen didn’t get here by underestimating the people around him, both potential allies and enemies.
It’s important to choose your words carefully so that the story you tell matches Kurt’s impression of Aymeric. The netrunner brother always keeps himself composed, he only talks when necessary so pick the option that reflects this.
He’ll mention the fact that the brothers spend some time gambling at the Black Sapphire during the “You know my name” mission. Answer him depending on if you won or lost the credits during the last round.
All the relevant information about Aymeric can be displayed in the left corner when pressing “V” (on PC). I have a pretty bad memory so it’s super useful to be able to see it while having the conversation with Kurt.
The topic of cars is briefly mentioned, Aymeric is passionate about classic cars so mention the Porsche 911. I know nothing about cars but considering that the year is 2077 it only makes sense that this model is considered a “classic”.
Kurt offers Vodka to the twins, but Aymeric doesn’t drink a drop of alcohol. Even when playing roulette at the Black Sapphire he was drinking water.
More small talk will continue for a few seconds. This time you won’t have more than one option.
Prepare to make your move with (or without) Songbird
After checking Kurt’s knife, Songbird will announce that everything is ready. Alex will stay with Kurt while you and Songbird go downstairs to retrieve the Neural Matrix.
Songbird communicates with V through the Relic, you can see her construct and obviously her physical body.
Just follow Songbird’s lead, she’ll make everything sound as casual as possible while also informing you of the “arrangements” she has made.
It’s time, chaos is about to unleash regardless of what you do. However, you still have control over the outcome.
The remaining segments of this guide are heavy spoilers about the main Phantom Liberty story.
Should You Betray Reed or Betray Songbird (Minimal Spoilers)
This crucial decision will determine the outcome of the rest of the main storyline in Phantom Liberty, giving you access to completely different missions with distinct genres that focus on different elements of the story. Each mission takes place in a separate dedicated area that you cannot access outside of this mission.
Each of these settings features multiple unique Iconic Items, and you will not be able to purchase the other mission’s Iconics afterward from Herold, the Black Market Vendor in Dogtown. Check out our dedicated Phantom Liberty Iconics Guide for more information.
It’s about as close to being a Point of No Return as you can get without actually locking you out of the game once the mission ends. Your choices during these missions will determine which game ending you’ll have access to.
I think Nomad and Corpo V each align better by betraying specific characters, while Streetkid V could easily justify betraying either of them, though it would probably be more reasonable for them to make different choices than Nomad or Corpo V during their subsequent missions.
Betray Songbird
If you choose to side with Reed, deploy the ICEbreaker, and betray Songbird, you’ll end up with the missions “Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos” and “Somewhat Damaged“. The latter mission switches up the whole genre of the game to survival horror.
As someone who hates scary movies, I was able to handle it, but you might want to consider betraying Reed if survival horror isn’t your cup of Nicola.
The story takes place at the Cynosure Facility deep beneath Dogtown and focuses on the Blackwall, and the rogue AIs that lurk beyond. I think betraying Songbird is a more fitting option for a Corpo V, especially one that is pro-NUSA, disagrees with Johnny, or is otherwise very cold and calculating. You’ll get access to some of the most unique Iconic items in the game.
Betray Reed
If you choose to side with Songbird, you’ll end up with the mission “The Killing Moon”, which retains the genre of the rest of the game. As far as main story missions go, it’s quite combat-heavy, on par with Nocturne Op55n1.
The story takes place at the spaceport, NCX – Night City International and Translunar! It’s jam-packed with all the action and spectacle you could want while fighting your way to freedom, though you can be stealthy for much of it if you prefer.
I think betraying Reed is a more fitting option for a Nomad V, especially one that is anti-NUSA/government, agrees with Johnny, or otherwise reciprocates friendliness, support, and trust.
Pick A Side (Major Spoilers)
The time has come for you to pick a side. Songbird wants to grab the Neural Matrix and run away from everyone so that you and her can find the supposed cure. Reed’s intention is to take her back to the NUSA so she can be judged for treason.
This is arguably the most important decision of Phantom Liberty as it will change everything. Take a few seconds to decide.
What happens if you side with Songbird
After choosing to betray Reed, you must give the signal to Alex. This will start everything, get ready.
Alex eliminates Kurt Hansen without any effort, but as soon as that happens the alarm gets triggered. Time to get out of here, Alex gets really mad once she realizes what’s happening.
There’s a container near the gate where you’re heading, it has some guns that are vital for your escape. It has both melee and ranged weapons, there’s something useful no matter what build you have.
Eliminate the Barghest troops
Having Songbird at your side comes with some extra perks. For example, you can activate bots or get the rotor of a fallen helicopter spinning. None of these options will eliminate all the enemies, you still need to shoot your way out.
Remember to retrieve your weapons from the locker. It would be a tragedy to lose everything after so many hours invested in this game.
There are more things that can be used to your advantage, like the turret of a Panzer tank or some parked cars. Pick whatever you like.
Murphy, the guy who escorted you and Alex is also in this area. Once he’s defeated make sure to pick “Murphy’s Law”, his iconic weapon. As you might have guessed, we have this item included in our complete guide to all new Iconic Items in Phantom Liberty.
Go upstairs and continue to the next section of the stadium, more enemies are waiting.
Songbird can hack one last thing before exiting the stadium. The Minotaur is always my choice but it will remain in its place, despite its legs it won’t move.
Watching Songbird use a gun is a little funny considering her extreme hacking capabilities. It might not appear so but she’s actually useful with it.
Before reaching the stadium gate one final enemy will try to stop you. He’s heavily armored but nothing that a few good place headshots can’t solve.
Escape the stadium
Follow the objective on the map until you find these crates blocking an entrance, move them and continue.
It will lead you and Songbird to a tunnel. This is a very linear part of the mission, don’t worry about looking around a little bit, you won’t get lost.
After walking for several feet, two workers will inevitably spot you and Songbird. This doesn’t affect the outcome of anything, you could leave no witnesses or spare them. It’s up to you.
Shortly after that, drones will be patrolling another tunnel that you must go through. Eliminate the first two, a few more will show up but none of them really pose a threat. Take them down and move on.
You’re almost there, just a final tunnel. You can relax now, no more enemies will appear.
Kick the sewer grate, there’s a small camp filled with people but none of them are hostile. The faster you get out of here the better.
It’s time to split up until things cool up a little. Songbird called one car for each, she’s clearly in bad shape but it’s too late to back up. The next time you hear from her will be before doing The Killing Moon job.
What happens if you side with Reed
If you betray Songbird things will play out differently. She’ll notice that something’s up after the codes are introduced.
In this scenario, Kurt kills Alex. She might not be a main character but this isn’t easy to watch.
Songbird is confused about your decision, but that doesn’t stop her from reaching the Blackwall to create as much chaos as possible.
She blames everything on you and then walks away while you’re lying on the ground. The plan failed, time to get out of here.
Shoot your way out
There’s no extra help this time, which means that there are more enemies to deal with.
None of them are particularly strong but if many survive for an extended period of time they will overwhelm you. Find some cover and take a few of them down before continuing. You’ll have to repeat this process for pretty much every section of the stadium.
Just like when siding with Songbird, before exiting the stadium’s gate you’ll also face a last enemy. But this won’t be as easy.
Colonel Kurt Hansen shows up to finish the person that betrayed you. Prepare your best weapons because Hansen is a tough guy and he will put up a good fight.
I wouldn’t recommend using anything like a sniper or precision rifle. The Colonel fights with melee weapons, even if you manage to create some space he can throw his knife from afar and with extremely high accuracy. It took me a few tries before I figured out that the best choice was to also use a melee weapon. This way you can block and counter some of his attacks.
After defeating Hansen, you can loot the Iconic Items he carried. And don’t forget to pick up all other new Iconic Items in Dogtown and Phantom Liberty!
Reach the garage
Go to the hall and enter the first door that you see, then take the elevator to the garage level.
This area is guarded by a few drones that don’t pose any serious danger. Eliminate them and open the gate.
Reed will show up in his car, many Barghest troops will swarm the area in a matter of seconds so get inside as soon as you can.
Plan the next phase of the plan
What happened at the stadium is just the beginning, Songbird has gone into cyber-psycho mode and MaxTac has been deployed in Dogtown. She’s labeled as an Omega-class threat, they won’t take any chances with her.
The only thing you can do is watch MaxTac capture Songbird. With Alex dead and this result, Reed is everything but happy.
He contacts Rosalind Myers but she’s not going to help in any way. This is Reed’s problem (and yours) to solve, the next step is to contact a capable netrunner to get all the information about the convoy that’s transporting Song and hopefully, find a way to rescue her.
Story Achievements
There are four different endings to the Phantom Liberty Story in Cyberpunk 2077. You can unlock them starting with the big choice during Firestarter – to side with Reed or help Songbird.
Two of the achievements are a result of you siding with Songbird, the other two – from siding with Reed. In any case, you will have to make a manual save right before you go down to the Relic where Songbird is waiting for you. From here until the end, and until you unlock the achievements, you have two totally different paths.
Check our complete guide to all Phantom Liberty Achievements for instructions on how to earn the following:
| Side with Reed | Side with Songbird |
|---|---|
 King of Cups |  King of Wands |
 King of Pentacles |  King of Swords |
Firestarter Mission Walkthrough
Walkthrough for the Firestarter mission from Cyberpunk 2077's Phantom Liberty expansion with easy-to-follow step-by-step instructions on how to start the mission, what choices to pick and the concequences to follow.
Instructions
Main Mission
- Go to the Petrochem Stadium to meet Kurt Hansen. A guy called Murphy will escort you and Alex inside, before meeting the Colonel all the weapons inside a locker.
- Have a brief conversation with Kurt while Songbird does the final preparations. It's important that you use Aymeric's available information to be as convincing as possible.
- Go with Songbird, Alex will stay with Kurt. You can talk with Songbird through the Relic. The time has come to pick a side, betray Reed or Songbird.
Siding with Songbird
- Take the weapons located on a crate near the entrance.
- Eliminate all the Barghest troops, Songbird can hack multiple things that will be helpful to get rid of all your enemies.
- Don't forget to retrieve your weapons from the locker.
- Grab Murphy's iconic weapon after defeating him in the room where the tank is stationed.
- Reach the stadium's gate.
- Find the crates that are obstructing a small metal gate and open it.
- Continue to the tunnels, and destroy the drones patroling them.
- Get out through the sewer grate, two different cars are waiting for you and Songbird.
Siding with Reed
- Songbird goes completely mad after your betrayal and Kurt kills Alex. Grab the weapons from the crate near the entrance.
- In this scenario, more enemies will appear and hacking objects to aid you will not be an option.
- Take your weapons from the locker.
- Continue until you reach the stadium's gate.
- Kurt Hansen will appear, he fights with melee weapons. He moves very fast and can throw them from a very long distance with extremely high precision, I recommend also using a melee weapon to fight back.
- Get to the elevator and go down to a small storage area.
- Exit this area and rush to Reed's car before the enemies swarm the area.
- Witness as MaxTac captures Songbird.
- Talk with Reed about the next phase of the plan.
Notes
If you are an achievement hunter, use our Phantom Liberty Endings guide to find out how you can unlock all four of them, plus the new ending available for the base game.
