Lore Question: What Does the NCPD Actually Do?

[Gaber]

So I have been playing and getting into the lore of Cyberpunk a bit.

But, I keep getting the same question: How are all of these gangs, fixers, and mercs doing what they do? The NCPD must have the firepower and high level tech to get rid of any criminal right?

It really takes me out of the immersion of the story as a whole. Is there an answer? Corruption or apathy maybe?

[HamBunger]

the ncpd is kinda corrupt they hire mercs to do there dirty work like angelina jones does but
there are some arent corrupt i also encountered ncpd officers harassing a innocent civie so they are curropt sort of

[Gaber]

Originally posted by XxRAVENHEARTxX:

the ncpd is kinda corrupt they hire mercs to do there dirty work like angelina jones does but
there are some arent corrupt i also encountered ncpd officers harassing a innocent civie so they are curropt sort of

That's interesting... of course not every officer is gonna be a saint. However, I thought they would have to at least catch some fixers and gangs to uphold a little law.

[Lunitek]

I think it is corruption, it seems like everything is run by the corps, so they pay the police to stay out of it, so to say. (just an opinion)

[Greb]

They're there to accept bribes and kill people who threaten the status quo, obviously. And do low level police work like collecting dead bodies and arresting criminals like before, maybe some detective work too.

They function like your average police force today really, only with a bigger population to protect control and a smaller budget to do it with.

[ΛΞL™⚡]

NCPD is corrupt the game explains that they just exist to keep people in line so the corporations can do their business not to protect and serve.

[Mansen]

Police are police. You've got beat cops, traffic patrols and investigations.

Mtac/Maxtac is where things get interesting. This is basically SWAT but turned to 11 - These are typically reserved for people going berserk from their cyberimplants malfunctioning.

Do they have the firepower to fight entire organised gangs? Not really - But they don't in real life either. Corporations have their own internal "police", assassins and whatnot. They generally don't interact with police if they can avoid it.

It's easier to have someone taken out than sue for copyright.

[Gaber]

Thanks for the speculations guys. I already knew the immense power of the corporations but never connected it with the police. It actually makes a little more sense now. Corruption is a main theme of cyberpunk anyway right?

[Oneblock]

Also, there is a Dredd, Mega city feel to policing. Too much crime not enough cops; first come first served. Factor in corruption and privilege and I feel it fits the story and game aesthetic well.

[Mansen]

Originally posted by Oneblock:

Also, there is a Dredd, Mega city feel to policing. Too much crime not enough cops; first come first served. Factor in corruption and privilege and I feel it fits the story and game aesthetic well.

Yep - Definitely a lot of Dredd universe comparisons. Shortcuts are taken in investigations, less serious crime is largely ignored or at least down prioritized.

It's no wonder a lot of districts kind of self police within their communities.

[Gatchapod]

NCPD does deal with criminal activity, but posergangs are usually heavily chromed and carrying serious firepower. Tell me, would you want to go arrest Maelstrom, who are all on verge of cyberpsychosis and might shoot you because you breathe too fast?

Speaking of cyberpsychosis, MAX-TAC is technically part of NCPD, I believe, and they specialize in handling violent cyberpsychosis cases.

[Wrayday]

They shoot you if you get too close to them.... even when they are the quest giver :D

[Cat]

It's also worth noting that NCPD is stretched too thinly, so a lot of crime is ignored and civilians are allowed to carry arms and protect themselves if needs be.

[BonPadre]

Ever had in the small events in streets where you can shoot at gang members while they are obviously discussing with an NCPD person ?

If you start shooting the gang members, (which should be allowed as they are reported as criminals) the NCPD NPC starts to shoot back at you, just as he was part of the gang.

So yeah definitely corrupted, and the AI is nicely coded at that at least for that specific situation.

[ava]

"It really takes me out of the immersion of the story as a whole."
Yeah. Poor verisimilitude. A teleporting police force which only targets V. Meanwhile the same crimes go unresolved until V does them hours or months later. Sounds like corrupt police to me.

[Bahamut_A6M5]

Short and fast answer: they do what they can. More elaborated response: NCPD is poorly equipped (compared to the threats they face), poorly paid and vastly outmanned (they have a whole city to patrol and enforce law with limited effectives, while corpo police keeps the nice, clean districts, such as the downtown, for them).

Also, most corporations use certain gangs as strike teams for conducting their illegal activities without being linked to them (in 2020, Arasaka used the Ironsights, in 2077 they have switched to the Tyger Claws, for example). Other gangs have connections to mobs (biker gangs used to be employed by the Yakuza in 2020). And ironically, vigilante gangs used to be in league with the NCPD, which usually looked the other way when those gangs attacked or killed members from gangs such the Bloody Razors or the Red Legion (in CP 2077 have yet to learn about any vigilante gang and which other gangs they rival with).