With so many cyberpunk-themed games and shows coming out, it’s only fitting to jump into the neon-soaked streets of Night City with Cyberpunk RED: Combat Zone!
Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone is a fast-paced, miniature skirmish game from Monster Fight Club. Set in the high-tech dystopia of the Cyberpunk RPG universe created by Mike Pondsmith, Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone opens up a new way for players to create stories and combat in the universe. Crafted by veteran tabletop game creators, Combat Zone uses the [RE]action Dice System for organic, free-flowing gameplay interactions; no rounds, no turns—the game just goes!
Monster Fight Club
Monster Fight Club sent us a copy of the Core Game to open, paint up, play, and review, and so we’d like to unbox this cyber-beast of a box and explore what’s inside. Time to plug in!
Unboxing the Cyberpunk RED: Combat Zone Core Game
The Cyberpunk RED: Combat Zone Core Game is a complete box that acts as a starter set and entry point into the game. It gives two players everything that they need to play, including figures, map, terrain, rulebook, dice, and more! The game has many factions (which are listed in the rulebook), so whether you’re using the Tyger Claws or Maelstrom from the Core Game, or any other Gang expansion pack, the rules are universal.
Cyberpunk RED: Combat Zone Core Game Contents
- 6x 32mm Maelstrom Gang minis (with bases)
- 6x 32mm Tyger Claws minis (with bases)
- 138x Maelstrom and Tyger Claws cards; 69 faction-specific cards, including character cards, objective cards, and gear cards (mini cards).
- 62x Core mini cards, including 22 program cards (for netrunner figures) and 40 Shared Market Gear cards (for campaign use)
- 22” x 30” Double-sided thick cardboard game board
- Multipart Combat Zone Cardboard Terrain Set, with plastic connector pieces.
- Plastic Container Terrain
- Rulebook
- Scenario Booklet
- Instruction Booklet for building the minis and terrain
- 10x [RE]Action Game Dice - Red, Yellow, Green, Purple, and Black
- 2x Limiter Range Rulers
- Game Tokens
- Extra bags for the punched out tokens
- Plastic Tray insert, to keep everything nice and organized!
The range rulers are very slim, and could definitely be upgraded for something a little more hardy.
Core Game Scenarios & Campaign
The rulebook is pretty robust, and covers everything you need to learn about the Cyberpunk universe and how to play the game, basic action abilities, card abilities, and how the flow of the game works. The rulebook also covers rules for campaign play, and how purchasing upgrades for your gang works between games.
A separate rulebook covers the scenarios, which has the map setup, special rules (if any), and win conditions. The booklet comes with 14 different scenarios, giving players more gameplay options than just a standard PvP game.
You can also go to the official website and download the official rulebook and scenario booklets to print and play at home.
Cyberpunk RED: Combat Zone Punch-Out Terrain
The punch-out terrain is a really nice inclusion to the box. For players who don’t have any terrain, or don’t have enough, the punch out terrain is of a really solid quality. They punch out cleanly, and the buildings have dual sides to them, so you have some options for building.
There are plastic corner pieces that allow the cardboard to slot in cleanly, making some really cool 3d terrain pieces. While you can customize and rearrange pieces, and even break them down for storage, it is our recommendation to keep the pieces assembled so as to not wear out the cardboard.
While the smaller pieces of terrain don't show up in the instruction guide, they're pretty straight forward to make with the remaining plastic joints. Plus, all of the terrain is modular anyway, so you can build the building ruins however you see fit.
In addition to the terrain, you get a plastic shipping cargo container as well, adding more variety to the gameboard. The container can be built and assembled without any glue. However, if you want to paint it up, you certainly can!
Alec Kozak
Even though punch-out terrain isn’t as eye-catching as plastic or 3D printed terrain, this terrain still looks great on the table and serves its purpose. The two-story buildings are sturdy and can very easily support a few pieces standing on them. For this size game board, this terrain helps fill it out nicely.
Cyberpunk Minis
The figures come in two bags, with a third bag that has bases. The weapons, heads, and other attachments are marked on the base of their sprue, so they’re not numbered like typical minis on a full frame. However, it’s pretty obvious what weapon goes to what figure when you start building them. Some figures have different build options, too, giving you some flexibility for customizing your gang.
All the figures come unassembled, so you will need model clippers and super glue. The instruction guide is for both the Tyger Claws and Maelstrom miniatures, and took maybe 20 minutes to build everything, allowing you to get straight to play right out of the box very quickly.
In our next article, we'll show you how you can paint up these minis!
Character, Objective, Upgrade, & Gear Cards
With over 200 cards included in the Core Box, it's a lot to sort through! Both the starting gangs have cards specific for their faction, including the character cards, objective cards, and upgrade cards.
Tyger Claws Cards
Maelstrom Cards
Additionally, there are some Program cards (the red, yellow, and green ones) and Shared Market cards (purple), the latter of which are used for campaign games. The program cards are used for upgrading your netrunner figures (these are figures with the netrunner keyword), giving them access to additional abilities that can have different effects on both allies and enemies. The Shared Market cards are cards that grain abilities to gangs and/or figures, which are acquired after each campaign game.
Next Steps into Night City
In an upcoming article, we’ll be covering how to build and paint both the Tyger Claws and Maelstrom Gangs in an easy-to-follow Learn to Paint guide. We’ll go through step-by-step on how to quickly paint up your crew and get them ready for street-level combat!
As far as skirmish game starter sets go, Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone looks to have a lot of replay value, especially with the campaign mode. The fast-paced gameplay seems to remove player-go-player-go gameplay, which can often be considered “clunky.” The [RE]Action dice system is one of our favorite gameplay mechanics out there, and so we’re just really excited to play the game. Overall, Cyberpunk Red: Combat Zone Core Box is a great gateway into the game!
Mark Julian
Have you played Cyberpunk RED: Combat Zone yet? Let us know! Don’t forget to follow GamingTrend for more Cyberpunk RED: Combat Zone news and reviews.
