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MissionsupportingSide missionModerate

Dancing on a Minefield

A Badlands gig in Cyberpunk 2077 that sends V through a heavily mined area to reach a stranded vehicle and complete Dakota Smith’s recovery job.

RoleOptional Badlands gig focused on careful exploration, mine detection, and extraction.
Statusavailable as an optional mission
Importancesupporting
RewardPayment from Dakota Smith after the job is completed.
TimeShort mission, depending on how carefully the minefield is crossed.
  • Mission typeSide mission
  • RegionBadlands
  • Primary hazardLand mines
  • Quest giverDakota Smith
  • Combat focusSituational
  • Traversal focusHigh

The source pack does not provide verified mission numbering, reward amounts, completion time, or a confirmed missable-objective status.

Key takeaways

Keep the approach deliberate. The mission’s defining hazard is the minefield, not a named boss encounter.

  • Scan before moving Use V’s scanner to inspect the route ahead instead of sprinting across apparently empty ground. Mines are easiest to manage when they are identified before V is already standing beside them.
  • Treat the terrain as the encounter The minefield changes how the objective should be approached. Cover, combat speed, and ordinary stealth habits are less important than choosing a safe path and avoiding unnecessary movement.
  • Plan the exit as well as the entry Reaching the objective is only half of the job. Keep track of the route used to enter so the return journey does not become an avoidable failure.

Dancing on a Minefield

Dancing on a Minefield is an optional gig in Cyberpunk 2077 that turns a vehicle recovery into a hazardous traversal mission.

The job is associated with Dakota Smith, one of the fixers operating in the Badlands. Rather than sending V into a conventional building or a straightforward enemy camp, the gig places the main danger on the ground itself: a minefield that must be crossed before the recovery objective can be reached. The mission therefore rewards patience, scanning, and route planning more than speed.

The central challenge is identifying and negotiating the mines scattered through the approach. V can use the scanner to inspect the ground and should avoid treating the open terrain as safe simply because no enemies are immediately visible. Mines can turn an otherwise controlled approach into a sudden combat or survival problem, so a careful player should scan ahead, move in short sections, and keep a recent save available before entering the most dangerous area.

Once the objective in the minefield has been reached, the job becomes an extraction rather than a prolonged story sequence. The gig is useful as a compact introduction to environmental hazards in the Badlands, particularly for players who are accustomed to solving outdoor encounters with weapons alone. Its main outcome is the completion of Dakota Smith’s contract and the associated payment; no major branching storyline is reliably documented for this mission.

Where this sits

Fixer assignmentDakota Smith offers the job
Minefield approachScan and cross the hazardous terrain
Recovery objectiveReach the stranded target
ExtractionLeave the danger area and report completion
  1. ●Dakota Smith’s gigside-missionThe mission is an optional fixer assignment in the Badlands.

Dancing on a Minefield is best treated as a self-contained Badlands gig rather than a major main-story mission.

Requirements

The gig becomes available through Dakota Smith’s Badlands fixer work. No special weapon, cyberware, or attribute requirement is reliably documented.

  • RequiredAccess to Dakota Smith’s gigsV must be able to receive Dakota Smith’s assignment in the Badlands.
  • RecommendedA way to scan the environmentThe normal scanner is useful for detecting and assessing hazards on the route.
  • OptionalHealing and healing itemsThese are useful precautions because a mine can cause sudden damage and disrupt the approach.

Objectives

  1. Travel to the minefield in the Badlands.Follow the gig marker until the mined approach is reached.
  2. Cross the minefield safely.Scan the ground, identify hazards, and use a controlled route instead of charging through the open area.
  3. Reach the recovery objective.Continue through the hazardous zone until the vehicle or other assigned target is reached.
  4. Leave the minefield and complete the contract.Retrace the safe route where possible and finish the fixer’s assignment.

Walkthrough

  1. 01

    Reach the minefield

    Travel to the marked Badlands location

    Use the mission marker to reach the area assigned by Dakota Smith. Before entering the final approach, replenish health and ammunition and consider making a manual save, because a mine can cause a sudden failure of an otherwise successful run.

    Location: Badlands

  2. 02

    Find a safe route

    Stop before entering the minefield

    Do not sprint directly from the road or open approach toward the objective. Pause at the edge, activate the scanner, and inspect the ground in front of V so the first section of the route is understood before movement begins.

    Location: Edge of the minefield

    TipShort movements make it easier to identify which section of ground caused trouble if a mine detonates.

  3. 03

    Cross the hazard zone

    Advance by scanning each section

    Move forward in small increments and scan again whenever the terrain changes or visibility becomes poor. Avoid assuming that a clear patch remains safe after V turns around or crosses to a different side of the approach.

    Location: Minefield

    Watch outA fast sprint can carry V into several hazards before there is time to react.

  4. 04

    Reach the vehicle or assigned target

    Reach the stranded recovery target

    Continue toward the objective marker while keeping the safest visible route between V and the target. The mission’s recovery objective is positioned beyond the dangerous approach, so reaching it may require a longer route than the most direct line.

    Location: Within the minefield

    TipThe safest route is more important than the shortest route; do not cut across untouched ground merely to save distance.

  5. 05

    Complete the recovery action

    Secure the objective

    Interact with the assigned vehicle or recovery target when the prompt appears. If enemies or environmental complications interrupt the interaction, deal with the immediate threat first and return to the target rather than wandering away from the marked area.

    Location: Recovery site

  6. 06

    Leave the hazard zone

    Retrace the cleared route

    Leave through the path used to enter whenever possible. The return trip is still dangerous, and reaching the objective does not make the surrounding mines harmless.

    Location: Minefield exit

    Watch outDo not assume that the extraction route is safe simply because V has completed the interaction.

  7. 07

    Complete the gig

    Finish Dakota Smith’s contract

    Once V is clear of the minefield, follow the remaining objective marker and allow the fixer’s job to resolve. Check the journal afterward to confirm that the gig has been completed and that its payment has been issued.

    Location: Badlands

    Checkpoint

Mission mechanics

The minefield is the mission’s defining mechanic. Mines are environmental hazards rather than ordinary enemies, so they do not invite the usual loop of entering combat, taking cover, and clearing a room. The scanner is the most important tool because it lets V examine the route before committing to the next movement.

The safest rhythm is to scan, move a short distance, stop, and scan again. This is slower than sprinting but gives the player time to recognize the edges of dangerous ground and react to a newly identified mine. Players using vehicles or fast movement should dismount before the final approach, since speed reduces the time available to respond to hazards.

Combat preparation still matters, but it should support traversal rather than replace it. Healing items can recover from mistakes, while stealth or ranged weapons may help if hostile NPCs are present around the recovery area. Neither approach removes the need to manage the mines, and a successful fight does not automatically make the ground safe.

What works and what does not

Strengths

  • The mission gives the Badlands a hazard-driven encounter that differs from a standard enemy camp.
  • The scanner has a clear practical purpose and rewards deliberate exploration.
  • The compact structure makes the gig easy to complete without committing to a long narrative chain.

Weaknesses

  • A mine detonation can feel abrupt when the player has not scanned the terrain carefully.
  • The mission provides less conventional combat variety than a multi-room assault or named boss encounter.
  • The return trip can become repetitive if the player does not preserve a clear route through the minefield.

Best uses

  • Complete it when already travelling through the Badlands.
  • Use it as practice for reading environmental hazards with the scanner.
  • Approach it with a cautious build or adequate healing supplies rather than relying only on burst damage.

Mission checklist

  • Accept or activate Dakota Smith’s gig.Confirm that Dancing on a Minefield is the active journal objective.
  • Travel to the marked Badlands site.Prepare health and ammunition before entering the final approach.
  • Save before crossing the minefield.A manual save reduces the cost of an accidental detonation.
  • Scan the ground before each movement section.Do not rely on the apparent emptiness of the terrain.
  • Reach the recovery objective.Follow the safer route even if it is not the most direct path.
  • Complete the interaction at the target.Return to the objective if an interruption breaks the interaction.
  • Leave through the cleared route.The mines remain dangerous during extraction.
  • Verify completion and payment.Check the journal after the fixer assignment resolves.

Failure conditions

  • V is killed by a mine detonationThe minefield can inflict sudden damage, especially when V sprints or crosses an unscanned section.
  • V is killed during an encounter near the recovery targetIf hostile NPCs are present, the gig can still fail through ordinary combat death after the minefield has been crossed.
  • V abandons the active objectiveLeaving the marked area or travelling too far away can interrupt progress and require returning to the mission zone.

On failure

No verified source confirms the exact automatic checkpoint locations. Save before entering the minefield rather than relying on an unverified checkpoint.

Rewards and drops

  • Fixer payment
    Completing the gig provides the payment associated with Dakota Smith’s contract; the exact amount is not verified in the source pack.
  • Loot from the mission area
    Any ordinary items found around the approach or recovery site depend on the player’s exploration and are not treated as a guaranteed mission reward.

Characters in this mission

Aftermath

A completed fixer contract

The mission resolves as a completed Dakota Smith gig after V reaches the recovery objective and leaves the minefield. No verified source indicates that it produces a major story branch or a lasting character outcome.

Trivia

  • The mission’s title refers directly to its central traversal problem: moving through a mined area without triggering the hazards.
  • Unlike many gigs that emphasize infiltration or open combat, this assignment makes environmental awareness the primary skill.
  • The Badlands setting supports the mission’s open-air design and leaves the player responsible for choosing how cautiously to approach the objective.

Relationships

Locations

  • BadlandsTakes place inThe mission is set in the Badlands.