Contagion
| Contagion | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Class | Combat Quickhack |
| Tier | Tier 2 |
| RAM Cost | T2 5 / T3 6 / T4 9 / T5 12 |
| Upload Time | T2 3 / T4 2 s |
| Duration | T3 7 / T4 8 s |
Contagion poisons one enemy and then jumps to the enemies standing nearby. A single upload can damage a whole group over time. It works best against human enemies who bunch up behind cover or around a corner. It suits an Intelligence build that wants to soften a crowd before the shooting starts. At higher tiers it also turns into an explosive combo with fire. Contagion is an early to mid game quickhack that every netrunner vendor sells from Tier 2 onward.
Effect
Contagion is a combat quickhack. V uploads it to one enemy, and a virus makes their cyberware leak toxins. The leak deals poison damage every second for the duration. The virus then spreads to other enemies within a short range of the first target. At Tier 2 it can reach two more enemies. From Tier 3 it can reach four.
The poison stacks on the same enemy. A target can carry two stacks at once, so a second upload adds more damage. The Iconic variant raises the limit to three stacks.
Contagion is meant for groups. It has little effect on mechs, robots, drones and turrets. Combat quickhacks such as Short Circuit work better against machines.
Tier 4 adds an explosion. If a Burn or Overheat effect hits an enemy affected by Contagion, the leaked toxin detonates. The explosion removes Contagion from that enemy. Tier 4 also shortens the upload. Tier 5 adds 15% damage for each new enemy the virus spreads to. The last enemies in the chain therefore take the most damage.
The RAM cost rises sharply at the upper tiers. Tier 5 costs more than twice as much RAM as Tier 2.
How to Get Contagion Guide
- Buy Contagion or its crafting spec from any netrunner vendor.
- Breach Access Points with Breach Protocol for a chance at quickhacks.
- With Phantom Liberty, watch netrunner stock and enemy netrunner drops for the Iconic variant from around level 51.
Contagion Map Location
The map shows the netrunner vendor in Kabuki, one of the netrunner vendors that sell it.
Contagion map location:
Map credit by Map Genie.
Crafting Spec
Netrunner vendors sell the Contagion spec. The spec lets V craft Contagion in the crafting menu. Every spec in the game is listed on the Crafting Specs page.
Upgrades
Contagion comes in Tiers 2 to 5, plus an Iconic variant. Tier 3 doubles the number of enemies the virus reaches. Tier 4 adds the explosion with Burn or Overheat and a faster upload. Tier 5 adds damage for each new enemy in the chain. The Iconic variant keeps every Tier 5 effect and adds a third stack.
Netrunner vendors sell Contagion and its crafting specs. Higher tiers need quickhack components of the matching tier to craft. Breach Protocol on an Access Point can also reward quickhacks. Enemy netrunners can drop quickhacks and specs as well. The Iconic variant needs Phantom Liberty. Netrunners begin to offer Iconic quickhacks at around level 51, and their stock rotates. Enemy netrunners can drop the Iconic crafting spec too. Crafting the Iconic variant takes Tier 5 quickhack components.
Character Builds
Contagion belongs in an Intelligence build. Spillover gives quickhacks a chance to spread to one more target while Overclock is active. Overclock itself lets V keep uploading with too little RAM, paying with Health instead. Copy-Paste spreads a quickhack to the allies of an enemy netrunner who is targeting V. Contagion then reaches even further through the group.
System Overwhelm adds quickhack damage for each different quickhack and damage over time effect on the target. Contagion counts as a damage over time effect, so it raises the damage of the quickhacks that follow. Embedded Exploit adds quickhack damage against enemies affected by Control or Covert quickhacks. A Control quickhack in the queue before Contagion therefore makes the poison stronger. Icepick lowers the cost of Combat quickhacks such as Contagion against those same enemies. Speculation recovers RAM when a Combat quickhack finishes an enemy.
Overheat is the natural partner from Tier 4. Contagion spreads the poison first. Overheat then sets one target on fire and sets off the toxin. Any other source of Burn works the same way. Detonate Grenade gets cheaper for a short time after an enemy explodes this way. Proximate Propagation lowers RAM costs the closer V stands to the target.
Select a Build
Quickhacks do most of the damage, chained from cover before enemies find the character. Contagion goes on first and Overheat sets it off, and Cyberware Malfunction stacks make Short Circuit hit harder. Overclock spends Health in place of RAM, and a smart weapon finishes anyone left standing.
Attributes: Body 16, Reflexes 15, Technical Ability 15, Intelligence 20, Cool 15.
The perks, cyberware and weapon mods for this build are listed below.
| Name | Image | Level | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adrenaline Rush | 
|
Body 15 | More Health and the Adrenaline Rush mode |
| Calm Mind | 
|
Body 15 | Adrenaline lasts longer before it decays |
| Juggernaut | 
|
Body 15 | More speed and damage during Adrenaline Rush |
| Acquisition Specialist | 
|
Intelligence | Wider Smart reticle and lock kept through reloads |
| Encryption | 
|
Intelligence 4 | Quickhacks are harder to trace |
| Eye In The Sky | 
|
Intelligence 4 | Highlights cameras and makes camera quickhacks cheaper |
| Optimization | 
|
Intelligence 4 | Faster RAM recovery |
| Proximate Propagation | 
|
Intelligence 4 | Cheaper quickhacks at close range |
| Subordination | 
|
Intelligence 4 | Control quickhacks last longer on enemies at full Health |
| Warning: Explosion Hazard | 
|
Intelligence 4 | Stronger explosions from hacked devices |
| Counter-A-Hack | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Counter quickhacks on enemy netrunners through walls |
| Data Recycler | 
|
Intelligence 9 | RAM back from queued quickhacks after a kill |
| Embedded Exploit | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Quickhacks hit harder on controlled enemies |
| Feedback Loop | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Faster RAM recovery for each queued quickhack |
| Hack Queue | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Queue two quickhacks on one enemy |
| Icepick | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Cheaper Combat quickhacks on distracted or controlled enemies |
| Precision Subroutines | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Smart weapon accuracy scales with max RAM |
| Recirculation | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Smart weapon kills restore RAM |
| Siphon | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Monowire hits recover RAM |
| Speculation | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Combat quickhack kills recover RAM |
| System Overwhelm | 
|
Intelligence 9 | More quickhack damage for each effect on the target |
| Blood Daemon | 
|
Intelligence 15 | Health back for each queued quickhack on a kill during Overclock |
| Overclock | 
|
Intelligence 15 | More quickhack damage and the Overclock mode |
| Power Surge | 
|
Intelligence 15 | Overclock heals on activation |
| Queue Acceleration | 
|
Intelligence 15 | More RAM and cheaper device quickhacks |
| Queue Prioritization | 
|
Intelligence 15 | Faster upload for the first quickhack in a queue |
| Race Against Mind | 
|
Intelligence 15 | More quickhack damage at lower Health during Overclock |
| Sublimation | 
|
Intelligence 15 | RAM recovery heals during Overclock |
| Target Lock Transfer | 
|
Intelligence 15 | Wider Smart reticle and locks kept on swap |
| Queue Mastery | 
|
Intelligence 20 | A longer quickhack queue that can be locked |
| Smart Synergy | 
|
Intelligence 20 | Instant lock and more damage during Overclock |
| Spillover | 
|
Intelligence 20 | Quickhacks spread during Overclock |
| Air Dash | 
|
Reflexes 15 | Dash in midair |
| Extended Warranty | 
|
Technical Ability 15 | Cyberware effects last longer |
| License To Chrome | 
|
Technical Ability 15 | Stronger cyberware, more armor and a Skeleton slot |
| Name | Image | Slot | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Monowire | 
|
Arms | Arm whip that hits several enemies from a distance |
| Thermal Monowire | 
|
Arms | Monowire that deals Thermal damage and can burn |
| Heal-On-Kill | 
|
Circulatory System | Health on each kill |
| Kiroshi Sentry Optics | 
|
Face | Scanning highlights cameras and turrets |
| Ex-Disk | 
|
Frontal Cortex | More max RAM and faster uploads |
| Smart Link | 
|
Hands | Turns on Smart weapon tracking |
| Optical Camo | 
|
Integumentary System | Near invisibility for a few seconds |
| Reinforced Tendons | 
|
Legs | Double jump |
| Kerenzikov | 
|
Nervous System | Slows time when aiming during a slide or dodge |
| Tetratronic Rippler | 
|
Operating System | Cyberdeck that raises quickhack and weapon damage |
| RAM Recoup | 
|
Skeleton | Damage taken restores RAM |
Quickhacks such as Contagion and Cyberpsychosis spend the RAM first, and Overclock then spends Health for more. The Thermal Monowire finishes enemies up close, and a CHAR Incendiary Grenade sets groups on fire. The Prototype: Shingen Mark V smart SMG covers longer range.
Attributes: Body 20, Reflexes 20, Technical Ability 20, Intelligence 16, Cool 5.
The perks, cyberware and weapon mods for this build are listed below.
| Name | Image | Level | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adrenaline Rush |
|
Body 15 | More Health and the Adrenaline Rush mode |
| Optimization |
|
Intelligence 4 | Faster RAM recovery |
| Carhacker | 
|
Intelligence 4 | Unlocks quickhacks for vehicles |
| Eye In The Sky |
|
Intelligence 4 | Highlights cameras and makes camera quickhacks cheaper |
| Subordination |
|
Intelligence 4 | Control quickhacks last longer on enemies at full Health |
| Proximate Propagation |
|
Intelligence 4 | Cheaper quickhacks at close range |
| Embedded Exploit |
|
Intelligence 9 | Quickhacks hit harder on controlled enemies |
| Speculation |
|
Intelligence 9 | Combat quickhack kills recover RAM |
| Hack Queue |
|
Intelligence 9 | Queue two quickhacks on one enemy |
| Siphon |
|
Intelligence 9 | Monowire hits recover RAM |
| Icepick |
|
Intelligence 9 | Cheaper Combat quickhacks on distracted or controlled enemies |
| Data Recycler |
|
Intelligence 9 | RAM back from queued quickhacks after a kill |
| Overclock |
|
Intelligence 15 | More quickhack damage and the Overclock mode |
| Sublimation |
|
Intelligence 15 | RAM recovery heals during Overclock |
| Power Surge |
|
Intelligence 15 | Overclock heals on activation |
| Finisher: Live Wire | 
|
Intelligence 15 | A Monowire Finisher that restores Health and RAM |
| Queue Acceleration |
|
Intelligence 15 | More RAM and cheaper device quickhacks |
| Queue Hack Root | 
|
Intelligence 15 | Cheaper quickhacks when the queue mixes categories |
| Blood Daemon |
|
Intelligence 15 | Health back for each queued quickhack on a kill during Overclock |
| Queue Prioritization |
|
Intelligence 15 | Faster upload for the first quickhack in a queue |
| Aerial Acrobat | 
|
Reflexes 15 | Better control in midair |
| Air Dash |
|
Reflexes 15 | Dash in midair |
| Tailwind | 
|
Reflexes 20 | Stamina from air dashes and double jumps |
| License To Chrome |
|
Technical Ability 15 | Stronger cyberware, more armor and a Skeleton slot |
| Extended Warranty |
|
Technical Ability 15 | Cyberware effects last longer |
| Cyborg | Technical Ability 15 | Shorter cyberware cooldowns with every slot filled |
| Name | Image | Slot | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Thermal Monowire |
|
Arms | Monowire that deals Thermal damage and can burn |
| Biomonitor | 
|
Circulatory System | Uses a Health item when Health runs low |
| Self-ICE | 
|
Frontal Cortex | Blocks an enemy quickhack |
| Chitin | 
|
Integumentary System | Extra Health regeneration |
| Reinforced Tendons |
|
Legs | Double jump |
| Adreno-Trigger | 
|
Nervous System | Faster movement when combat starts |
| NeoFiber | 
|
Nervous System | More mitigation chance and strength |
| Revulsor | 
|
Nervous System | Slows time at low Health with full speed |
| Militech Paraline | 
|
Operating System | Cyberdeck with Smart weapon bonuses |
Overclock goes on first, then a round of quickhacks, then Adrenaline Rush, then more quickhacks. Smart weapons such as the Ba Xing Chong and the Yinglong clean up whatever is left. Body perks keep the character standing while Overclock drains Health.
Attributes: Body 20, Reflexes 20, Technical Ability 18, Intelligence 20, Cool 3.
The perks, cyberware and weapon mods for this build are listed below.
| Name | Image | Level | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adrenaline Rush |
|
Body 15 | More Health and the Adrenaline Rush mode |
| Eye In The Sky |
|
Intelligence 4 | Highlights cameras and makes camera quickhacks cheaper |
| Optimization |
|
Intelligence 4 | Faster RAM recovery |
| Proximate Propagation |
|
Intelligence 4 | Cheaper quickhacks at close range |
| Hack Queue |
|
Intelligence 9 | Queue two quickhacks on one enemy |
| Embedded Exploit |
|
Intelligence 9 | Quickhacks hit harder on controlled enemies |
| No Escape | 
|
Intelligence 9 | Shooting a target keeps its Smart lock |
| Precision Subroutines |
|
Intelligence 9 | Smart weapon accuracy scales with max RAM |
| Icepick |
|
Intelligence 9 | Cheaper Combat quickhacks on distracted or controlled enemies |
| Speculation |
|
Intelligence 9 | Combat quickhack kills recover RAM |
| System Overwhelm |
|
Intelligence 9 | More quickhack damage for each effect on the target |
| Recirculation |
|
Intelligence 9 | Smart weapon kills restore RAM |
| Data Recycler |
|
Intelligence 9 | RAM back from queued quickhacks after a kill |
| Feedback Loop |
|
Intelligence 9 | Faster RAM recovery for each queued quickhack |
| Queue Acceleration |
|
Intelligence 15 | More RAM and cheaper device quickhacks |
| Overclock |
|
Intelligence 15 | More quickhack damage and the Overclock mode |
| Target Lock Transfer |
|
Intelligence 15 | Wider Smart reticle and locks kept on swap |
| Terminal Velocity | 
|
Intelligence 15 | Faster Smart rounds after a kill |
| Targeting Prism | 
|
Intelligence 15 | Lock on to more targets at once |
| Race Against Mind |
|
Intelligence 15 | More quickhack damage at lower Health during Overclock |
| Power Surge |
|
Intelligence 15 | Overclock heals on activation |
| Blood Daemon |
|
Intelligence 15 | Health back for each queued quickhack on a kill during Overclock |
| Queue Hack Root |
|
Intelligence 15 | Cheaper quickhacks when the queue mixes categories |
| Sublimation |
|
Intelligence 15 | RAM recovery heals during Overclock |
| Queue Prioritization |
|
Intelligence 15 | Faster upload for the first quickhack in a queue |
| Queue Mastery |
|
Intelligence 20 | A longer quickhack queue that can be locked |
| Spillover |
|
Intelligence 20 | Quickhacks spread during Overclock |
| Smart Synergy |
|
Intelligence 20 | Instant lock and more damage during Overclock |
| Acquisition Specialist |
|
Intelligence | Wider Smart reticle and lock kept through reloads |
| Air Dash |
|
Reflexes 15 | Dash in midair |
| Cyborg | Technical Ability 15 | Shorter cyberware cooldowns with every slot filled | |
| License To Chrome |
|
Technical Ability 15 | Stronger cyberware, more armor and a Skeleton slot |
| Extended Warranty |
|
Technical Ability 15 | Cyberware effects last longer |
| Name | Image | Slot | Effect |
|---|---|---|---|
| Biomonitor |
|
Circulatory System | Uses a Health item when Health runs low |
| Blood Pump | 
|
Circulatory System | A Health item that heals over time |
| Heal-On-Kill |
|
Circulatory System | Health on each kill |
| Ex-Disk |
|
Frontal Cortex | More max RAM and faster uploads |
| Smart Link |
|
Hands | Turns on Smart weapon tracking |
| Nano-Plating | 
|
Integumentary System | Chance to block incoming bullets |
| NeoFiber |
|
Nervous System | More mitigation chance and strength |
| Feen-X | 
|
Skeleton | Faster RAM recovery when RAM runs low |
Lore
The in-game description asks a pointed question. Most alloys used to build cyberware contain traces of toxic metals such as lead, cadmium and mercury. Safeguards keep those metals out of the bloodstream, but the text says those safeguards can be broken. Contagion is the program that breaks them. It makes the toxic substances inside an enemy's own cyberware leak out.
Notes
- The Tier 4 explosion removes Contagion from the enemy who blows up, so the poison stops on that target.
- Contagion has little effect on mechs, robots, drones and turrets.
Quickhack Categories
All Combat Quickhacks
Every combat quickhack is listed below.
| Name | Image | RAM | Upload | Perks | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Contagion | 
|
T2 5 / T3 6 / T4 9 / T5 12 | T2 3 / T4 2 | Icepick, Speculation, Queue Hack Root | |
| Overheat | 
|
T1 3 / T2 4 / T3 6 / T4 7 / T5 9 | 2 | Icepick, Speculation, Queue Hack Root | |
| Short Circuit | 
|
T1 3 / T2 4 / T3 5 / T4 7 / T5 10 | T1 1.5 / T3 1 / T5 0.5 | Icepick, Speculation, Queue Hack Root | Dogtown |
| Synapse Burnout | 
|
T3 10 / T4 14 / T5 16 | 3 | Icepick, Speculation, Queue Hack Root, Overclock | Kabuki |