David Martinez in Cyberpunk: Edgerunners: Story, Sandevistan and Fate
The short version
David Martinez is the street kid at the center of Cyberpunk: Edgerunners, a student from Santo Domingo who becomes an edgerunner after his mother dies. He is voiced by Kenn in Japanese and Zach Aguilar in English.
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Why David hits so hard#
David is a kid trying to deserve what his mother gave up for him. Every reckless choice he makes after episode 1 is the same one: hold on to the life she paid for, even as it burns down. Fans nod at him because he never wanted to be a legend. He wanted to not let her down.
Who David is#
David is a teenager in Night City in 2075, enrolled at Arasaka Academy because his mother Gloria works as a paramedic and pays for it. He is talented, reckless, and always short of money. The series opens with him modding his visor to skip a paid academy update and crashing the school's system.
Cyberpunk.net describes him as a young edgerunner who pushes his chrome to the limit. That sentence is the whole story.
Spoilers The Sandevistan
Gloria dies at the end of episode 1 after a gang shooting, when the family cannot afford Trauma Team. David finds a military-grade Sandevistan in her things, a spinal implant that gives the user bursts of super-speed, and learns she had been selling cyberware from corpses to pay his tuition. He has the ripperdoc Doc install it.
Most people would go mad from that much chrome. David has an unusually high tolerance for implants, which is why Arasaka executive Mr. Tanaka takes an interest in him, and why Doc warns him not to push it.
The crew#
A netrunner named Lucy partners with him, then sells him out to Maine's crew over the Sandevistan. Maine, who knew Gloria and bought the implant from her, lets David in. The Edgerunners page has the full crew, and Rebecca is the other one to meet first.
Spoilers David's arc
After Maine's death David takes over the crew in 2076, wears Maine's cyberarms, and becomes a known edgerunner. The more chrome he takes, the less he sleeps and the more people he hurts. In episode 8 he kills an innocent lab worker during a breakdown.
Faraday forces David to install the Cyberskeleton, an experimental Arasaka exoskeleton, to save Lucy. In episode 10 he fights through Militech, Arasaka and MaxTac to reach Arasaka Tower, rescues Lucy, and is brought back from cyberpsychosis once by a kiss. Adam Smasher executes him after David stays behind to give Falco and Lucy time to leave.
Opinion: the show never lets David be a hero in the way he wanted. It lets him be useful to someone, once, and that is the most it allows.
How old is David#
David is 17 when the story opens in 2075 and 18 later in the series, per series creator Rafał Jaki (Reddit, Sep 14, 2022). The show itself never says so.
After the series#
David also gets mentioned in Edgerunners 2, which is set in 2078. The sequel's lead netrunner, D, was written to parallel him: both are cyborgs driven by revenge, handled differently. Edgerunners season 2 has what is confirmed.
Spoilers David in Cyberpunk 2077
There is a drink called The David Martinez in Cyberpunk 2077.
Fixer's notes#
At the table, a Solo with a Sandevistan fits him. R. Talsorian's 2024 Edgerunners Mission Kit is built on the series and uses the Cyberpunk RED rules. Tip for the GM: give the player a reason to say no to the next implant, and then watch them take it anyway.
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Questions people ask#
How old is David Martinez?
17 when the story opens in 2075 and 18 later in the series, as series creator Rafał Jaki has said. The show itself never says.
Who voices David Martinez?
Kenn in Japanese and Zach Aguilar in English.
What is David's Sandevistan?
A military-grade spinal implant that gives bursts of super-speed. He finds it among his mother's things and has the ripperdoc Doc install it. The Sandevistan page covers how it works.
Why can David handle so much cyberware?
He has an unusually high tolerance for implants, which is why Arasaka executive Mr. Tanaka takes an interest in him. A high tolerance only raises the ceiling, though, and Doc warns him not to push it.
Is David Martinez in Cyberpunk 2077?
Only as a nod: there is a drink called The David Martinez. He is also mentioned in Edgerunners 2, which is set in 2078.
Does David die in Edgerunners?
Spoiler: Yes. Adam Smasher executes him after David stays behind to give Falco and Lucy time to leave Arasaka Tower.