If you’re ready to take the wasteland by storm with a shotgun, robot arm and armored car, then you’ll want to choose Cyberpunk 2077’s Nomad lifepath.
With all the bright lights, fast cars and action going on in Cyberpunk 2077‘s Night City, it’s easy to forget about the desert surrounding it and its Mad Max-like inhabitants. Referred to most often as Nomads, these heavily armed camps and convoys roam the areas between the cities of the West Coast.
Much like how everything else in the Cyberpunk world started, the Nomads came to be after the Market Collapse of 1993. Millions of families across America lost their jobs and homes, and after the MegaCorps took power, there weren’t enough opportunities for people to get by. This led many families to band together to form caravans that used the open road as their home. While these clans first started out as a few hundred families, by 2077 there are approximately seven million people living in various Nomad Nations.
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Because virtually all Nomads in a clan are related by either blood or marriage, they are extremely loyal and dutiful to each other and the clan as a whole. For all intents and purposes, these Nomad tribes are whole communities on wheels, with members taking roles as doctors, teachers, farmers and other functions to ensure their continuity through the generations.
With chaos and danger lurking all over the country, Nomads often look to arm themselves with MegaCorp supplies. This involves raiding corporate facilities for the military grade weapons and vehicles they manufacture. As you can guess, many corporations don’t take kindly to Nomads and often label them as criminals who steal their property. Because of this hardline stance, corporate mercenaries from Militech and Arasaka will often get into skirmishes and shootouts with Nomads whenever their paths cross.
Ironically, despite their lifestyle, Nomads are often seen maintaining old world values from before the Collapse, with values toward community, solidarity and work ethic among its members. Unlike the rest of the U.S., where traditional burials for those who die are outlawed, Nomads still engage in the practice. While many see a life in either a corporation or a criminal gang as a way to make ends meet, Nomads are not above honest work that can help out others along the line.
In the area surrounding Night City, two Nomad clans dominate the Badlands: the Aldecaldos and the Wraiths. The first Nomad clan to be created, the Aldecaldos was started by Juan Aldecaldo, a man whose family was hit hard by the Collapse in Los Angeles. After losing his job, his home and his two children, Juan became leader of a group of families that eventually made their way to Mexico City. When Juan died, control of the Nomad nation went to Santiago, who would take on the name Aldecaldo in honor of its founder.
When they returned to U.S. soil, this clan became one of the largest and most influential in the country. They also became allies to Johnny Silverhand, a legendary figure of the Cyberpunk world. By 2077, are over 10,000 Aldecaldo clan members across the country, with around 500 roaming the badlands of Night City. They primarily find work escorting travelers or acting as laborers for farms that supply the city with crops. However, some deal with criminal gangs by running weapons, drugs and other contraband.
Rivaling the Aldecaldos are the Wraiths, also known as the Raffen Shiv. Unlike most other Nomads who operate in the grey area of the law, the Wraiths completely ignore the law, fully engaging in raiding and pillaging small towns, corporate convoys and even other Nomad clans. Though they sometimes take mercenary work, they have developed a reputation for being unreliable and untrustworthy, breaking their contracts with organizations and keeping the supplies they transport.
Their leader is nicknamed Dogkiller, a psychopath rumored to wear clothing made of human skin. It is unknown how or when the Wraiths were formed, but it’s believed they consist of members from other Nomad Nations that were exiled for their violent and sociopathic behavior.
At the start of Cyberpunk 2077, players will able to choose from one of three life paths. This includes the option of playing as a Nomad who left their clan behind for a new life in Night City. Unlike the other paths players can take, those with the Nomad background prefer to defy the structure set up by the corporations and the gangs, putting higher value towards freedom, integrity and a genuine drive to do good. If these ideals and this lifestyle appeals to you, then you’ll want to play the game as a Nomad.
