Crimes 2.0 Guide (Emforus)
Source: Emforus [2535044], thread t=16385729. Karma 25,097. Wiki Contributor. Updated January 2025.
Core Mechanics
Crime Experience (CE) and NNB
CE is a hidden counter that affects all crimes. NNB (Natural Nerve Bar) starts at 15 and grows with CE, no cap (highest known: 105). NNB is the visible indicator of CE level. CE increases from successes, decreases from crit fails.
More advanced crimes = more CE per nerve spent. Doing 100N in Search For Cash gives less CE than 100N in Disposal.
Crime Skill (CS)
Per-crime skill, 1 to 100. More CS = better success rates, unlocks new outcomes. Not linear: CS50 is 25% of the way to max, CS80 is 50%, CS91 is 75%.
Outcomes
- Success (green): Gain CE and CS, +1 to crime chain
- Failure / soft fail (yellow): No CE/CS loss, chain halved
- Critical Failure (red): CE and CS drop by 10x expected gain, chain resets, may hospitalize/jail you, demoralization applied (reduces future gains until cleared by successful crimes)
Unique Outcomes
One-time rewards, bigger CS gain (5x normal), some unlock merits. Require specific CS thresholds or items. Average ~30 attempts to trigger. Look for the star under the crime button.
Crime Chain
Hidden stat. Builds on successes (+1), halves on fail, resets on crit. At high chain, bonus up to +20% CE and CS gain. Low nerve crimes (Graffiti, Hustling) are good for building chain before nerve-heavy crimes.
Progression Bonus
Stacks from multiple sources, caps around 40-55%. Increases CS and CE gain rate: - Merits: Crime Progression (up to +10%, 1% each) - Faction: Criminality branch up to +10% for 2.0 - Federal Judge city job: +5% permanent - Bachelor of Psychological Sciences education: +10% - Crime Enhancer (per crime): +5% - Company perk (see below): up to +15% per crime, or +10% all crimes (Amusement Park)
Profitability Ranking ($/N)
| Crime | $/N | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Disposal (dead bodies, abandon) | ~18k/N | Best raw cash, only appears every ~3 days |
| Disposal (dead bodies, burial) | ~12.5k/N | |
| Scamming (advanced) | 8-12k/N | Needs email addresses farmed first |
| Cracking (best jobs) | 8-10k/N | Depends heavily on BFS of rig |
| Pickpocketing (cyclist) | ~10k/N | Cyclist gives xanax ~1/15 attempts, 90% success, 3% crit |
| Cracking (average) | 5k/N | |
| Hustling (maxed) | ~3k/N | Good for CE building, not great income |
| Shoplifting | variable | Security down = much better, pharmacy + Cyber Force best for profit |
| Burglary (industrial) | up to 30k/N | Very volatile item drops |
| Card Skimming | ~few k/day passive | Set and forget, $/N scales with details collected |
| Forgery | 3-5k/N (CS75+) | Future crime speculation potential |
| SFC | 300-700/N | Starter crime only |
| Bootlegging | ~250/N | For medals, not income |
Best Companies for Crime Progression
| Company | Why |
|---|---|
| Pub | +50% alcohol effect, +15 max nerve at 10* = most nerve per day, best for heavy grinding |
| Meat Warehouse | 50% reduction in CE/CS lost on crit fail (down to 5x not 10x), +10 max nerve. Great for dangerous crimes |
| Amusement Park | +10% progression bonus ALL crimes, +10 max nerve. Best all-rounder for CS gains |
| Nightclub | +15% Illicit Services progression (Disposal) at 3* |
| Software Corp | +15% Cybercrime progression (Cracking) at 7* |
| Car Dealership | +15% Fraud progression (Scamming, Card Skimming, Hustling) at 7* |
| Furniture Store | +15% Theft progression (SFC, Shoplifting, Pickpocketing, Burglary) at 5* |
| Theater | +15% Counterfeiting progression (Bootlegging, Forgery) at 7* |
| Candle Shop | 2N per JP |
| Game Shop | 1N + 5E + 50H per JP |
Recommended New Player Path (CE Building)
- Start with Graffiti (safest, any NNB). Max it and grind to ~5,000 vandalism offenses
- Set up Card Skimming passively in bus station while doing other crimes
- Move to Hustling (best CE per nerve for this level, 35 NNB). Max it
- Do Disposal daily alongside Hustling once CE is comfortable
- Once both maxed, start Cracking (the 2.0 equivalent of 1.0 arsons)
- Backtrack remaining crimes for honor bars
Individual Crime Summaries
Search For Cash (SFC)
NNB: Any | CS100 nerve: 6,000 | Category: Theft Starter crime, $300-700/N. Best location: highest opportunity rate (usually subway weekdays, junkyard/trash weekends). Junkyard gives early crime components.
Bootlegging
NNB: Any | CS100 nerve: 7,000 | Category: Counterfeiting ~$250/N. Best for Counterfeiting medals via the online store trick (1 DVD sold = 1 offense). Requires Computer Science education courses to unlock online store.
Graffiti
NNB: Any | CS100 nerve: 8,000 | Category: Vandalism Up to ~1k/N at max with paint mask. Safest early CE builder. Best crime for chain building and demoralization removal.
Shoplifting
NNB: 20 | CS100 nerve: 10,000 | Category: Theft Profits vary. Keep notoriety under 60%. Best profit: pharmacy and Cyber Force. Security down = much better loot. Gun shop for special ammo.
Pickpocketing
NNB: 20-25 | CS100 nerve: 10,000 | Category: Theft Avoid cops until CS100 (high crit). Cyclists = xanax drops (~6-7% chance), very consistent income at max skill. JARVIS script recommended.
Card Skimming
NNB: 30 | CS100 nerve: 1,000-10,000 | Category: Fraud Passive crime. Install skimmers in bus station / post office, leave for weeks. Collect at 500-1,000 details minimum. Gas station = safest but slowest. Never leave active skimmers when going offline for extended periods. Merit: Zero Liability = collect 250+ details at once (trivial).
Burglary
NNB: 30-35 | CS100 nerve: 16,000-20,000 | Category: Theft Keep confidence 40-60% minimum for ~90% success. Industrial = best loot (crime components, premium consumables). Destroys crime chain, do NOT mix with other crimes you're grinding. Residential = best CS gain but terrible profit.
Hustling
NNB: 35 | CS100 nerve: 6,000 | Category: Fraud ~$3,000/N at max. Best Fraud medal grinder (2N/attempt). Hire pickpocket + shill for extra income. When a mark has a heart = their fave game, exploit them. Best crime chain builder after Graffiti.
Disposal
NNB: 35-40 | CS100 nerve: 5,000-6,000 | Category: Illicit Services Daily crime, time-gated. Dead body jobs (CS75+) = ~$18-20k/N but appear every ~3 days. Do every day alongside other crimes. Best method depends on job: follow common sense (abandon = cheapest, dissolve = unique merit).
Cracking
NNB: 40 | CS100 nerve: 20,000-25,000 | Category: Cybercrime Best consistent income at high level ($5-10k/N). Needs 4 CS education courses (Computer Science bachelor, ~5 weeks total). Higher BFS rig = more efficient. JARVIS script and Prompt Helper script recommended.
Forgery
NNB: 40 | CS100 nerve: 20,000 | Category: Counterfeiting $3-5k/N at CS75. Items may increase in value for future crimes (hoard Birth Certificates, License Plates, Prescriptions, Travel Visas, Bank Checks, Passports).
Scamming
NNB: 40 | CS100 nerve: 30,000-35,000 | Category: Fraud Most nerve-heavy crime. $8-12k/N at top level. Needs email addresses from Scraper/Phisher (months of passive farming). Do CS edu courses first. Good marks on advanced scams can net $1-2M per attempt.
1.0 vs 2.0 Summary
| Aspect | 1.0 | 2.0 |
|---|---|---|
| Raw cash | Better (hacking FBI ~7M/day) | Worse overall |
| Merits | Fewer, more nerve to get | More merits, cheaper |
| OC access | Disadvantaged under OCs 2.0 | Better OC access |
| Progression | Single meta crime (arsons) | Broader, more even |
| New players | Auto-placed on 2.0 | Start here |
Useful Tools
- torn.report (Nerve page) = track crime success rates, chain bonus, money earned
- YATA = general stats
- Torn City Park Discord = Torn Watch bot, SFC opportunity rates and shoplifting security status pings
- OutcomeDB userscript = contributes data to Emforus's guides
- Display Crime Chain userscript = shows chain value on crime page
- JARVIS (Pickpocketing) = mark safety info, target recommendations
- JARVIS (Disposal) = best method recommendations per job
- Shoplifting Watcher = pings when security is down
- Cyclist Alert = pings when cyclist appears in pickpocketing
- Cracking Prompt Helper = assists with character guessing
- Burglary Sorter = recommended casing amounts per target
Related
- Money Making Overview
- Director and Employee Handbook
- Which Company to Join (VYNICAL)
- My Stats and Analysis