The Pickup

The Pickup is a main job in Cyberpunk 2077.

V and their ally Jackie are hired to find and retrieve an experimental military-grade drone - the Flathead - for Dexter DeShawn.

Walkthrough
If V chooses to see Meredith Stout first, they discover that she is in charge of investigating what happened to the ambushed convoy. Stout has detained Anthony Gilchrist under suspicion of leaking corporate information the Maelstrom gang. If V convinces Stout to help retrieve the Flathead, Stout will offer to provde a €$10,000 credchip to V for buying the drone, although V can refuse to take it. Unbeknownst to V at the time, the chip is infected with malware, but if V has a Corpo background, they can perceive this. At any point after accepting the chip, V can attempt to remove the malware from it.

Either way, V meets up with Jackie at the All Foods Plant where the Maelstrom gang is hiding, where they will briefly discuss the plan. None of the choices you make at this point make any difference to the way the quest plays out. After entering the hideout, the player may decide to immediately begin killing its members, or proceed with a non-violent approach. The choices made after entering the hideout lead to one of four mutually-exclusive endings.


 * 1. A peaceful transaction

This occurs if the following conditions are met:
 * V doesn't take the chip from Meredith Stout
 * V does not point a weapon at, nor attack any of the Maelstrom gang members after entering their hideout
 * When Jackie refuses to sit down, V asks him to do so
 * V pays Royce with €$10,000 of their own cash

V obtains the Flathead, and is led peacefully from the premises by Dum Dum.


 * 2. Instant death

This occurs if the following conditions are met:
 * V doesn't take the chip from Meredith Stout
 * V does not point a weapon at, nor attack any of the Maelstrom gang members after entering their hideout
 * When Jackie refuses to sit down, V asks him to do so
 * V either doesn't have €$10,000 in cash, or takes too long to reply to Royce when he asks how you're going to pay

Royce simply shoots V in the head. Game over.


 * 3. Battle with Militech

This occurs if the following conditions are met:
 * V takes the chip from Meredith Stout
 * V does not point a weapon at, nor attack any of the Maelstrom gang members after entering their hideout
 * When Jackie refuses to sit down, V asks him to do so
 * V pays Royce either with the chip, after removing the malware, or their own cash

After what seems like a hassle-free transaction, Militech operatives will enter the hideout and start attacking the Maelstrom gang members. After escaping, Anthony Gilchrist will appear at the end of the mission, acknowledging that they are now even for saving one another's lives.

This occurs in all other cases
 * 4. Battle with Maelstrom

V will have to fight off the Maelstrom members in Royce's office, before they can locate and retrieve the Flathead. They will then have to escape the building, battling Royce once they leave, unless he was already killed, or you manage to sneak past him. Meredith Stout will appear at the end of the mission, and tell V and Jackie that they may be partners again in the future.

In most cases, it is also possible to find and free Brick. Once you're in the clear, it's time to close the deal with DeShawn at the Afterlife.

Journal Entry

 * Know what I like about your run-of-the-mill gangoons? They know what they like. Cash, sex, power… maybe just the sight of their enemies' blood. Real rays of sunshine, they are. But these Maelstrom cabrones… shit, never can be sure. They look at you with those creepy-ass toaster faces and you can't get a read of 'em, got no clue what twisted thoughts are racin' through their processors. You ask me, that's why biz with Maelstrom never turns out pleasant. But… sometimes there's just no gettin' around it. Let's grab that spiderbot, yeah? Make Dex proud.
 * If V meets with Meredith Stout:
 * A Militech corpo-cunt lost an arms shipment, and if she doesn't find it, she'll be paddling up shit-creek with stumps for hands. I'm betting it's not even about the weapons - Militech could lose a tank and it'd make no difference to them. It's about principles. One thing's for damn sure - someone's taking the fall for this.
 * If V fights Militech:
 * Every corp has a Gilchrist. First he steals from them, turns a fat profit on the goods, lies about it, narrowly avoids the chopping block, gets rid of all witnesses, makes someone else take the fall from him, and to top it all off - he gets a promotion. Can't help feeling sorry for the Maelstrom gonks in this scenario… but only a little.
 * If V fights Maelstrom:
 * Turns out Meredith Stout will do anything to stay in the corp's good graces. Unfortunately that means her "colleague" might get demoted… or worse. All in all, Militech recovered their property, putting the Maelstrom freaks in a shittier mood than usual. A day like any other in Night City.

Objectives

 * Call Militech agent Meredith Stout. [Optional]
 * Meet with the Militech agent. [Optional]
 * Talk to the Militech agent. [Optional]
 * Meet with Jackie.
 * Talk to Jackie.
 * Go to the gate of All Foods.
 * Use the intercom.
 * Talk with Maelstrom via the intercom.
 * Get to main production floor of All Foods.
 * If you attack the Maelstromers from the start:
 * Defeat Maelstrom.
 * Enter the elevator with Jackie.
 * Go to Royce's office.
 * If you remain friendly:
 * Get in the elevator.
 * Wait with Jackie in the elevator.
 * Talk to the Maelstromers.
 * Sit on the couch.
 * Talk to the Maelstromers.
 * Take the Flathead.
 * Talk to the Maelstromers.
 * If you didn't take the credit chip from Militech and paid with your own cash:
 * Take the elevator down with Dum Dum.
 * Follow Dum Dum.
 * Leave the premises of All Foods.
 * Follow Jackie.
 * Talk to Jackie.
 * Call Dex.
 * Talk to Dex.
 * If you took the credit chip from Militech and either paid with the chip with the malware removed, or your own cash:
 * Pass through the maintenance tunnel.
 * Turn on the production line to clear passage.
 * Escape from All Foods.
 * Defeat the Militech agents
 * Follow Dum Dum
 * Escape from All Foods.
 * Leave the premises of All Foods.
 * Talk to Anthony Gilchrist
 * Talk to Jackie.
 * Call Dex.
 * Talk to Dex.
 * If you become hostile after meeting Dum Dum:
 * Defeat the Maelstromers.
 * Talk to Jackie.
 * Find the case containing the Flathead.
 * Open the case.
 * Talk to Jackie.
 * Take the Flathead.
 * Pass through the maintenance tunnel.
 * Turn on the production line to clear passage.
 * Escape from All Foods.
 * Sneak past Royce. [Optional]
 * If you fail to sneak past Royce:
 * Defeat Royce and his crew.
 * Escape from All Foods.
 * Leave the premises of All Foods.
 * Talk to Meredith Stout.
 * Talk to Jackie.
 * Call Dex.
 * Talk to Dex.