The downtime for Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4 has begun, and leaks have started to flood social media. While a lot of the content showcased will not be added to the game immediately, they will show up as the season progresses.
There's a lot of new content as well as some unsettling news for casual players. The competitive scene will also likely be shaken up.
From Brie Larson to the banning of Cronus Zen, here's every major change in Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4.
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Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4: Main patch notes
1) The Herald - Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4 antagonist
Formerly known as The Bloomwatcher, the antagonist is now officially called The Herald. As seen in the trailer, she will be taking charge of the island and turning everything into Chrome at will.
While her origins are still unknown, it can be speculated that she arrived through The Zero Point or via a reality rift caused by The Reality Tree. Her objective also remains unknown, but if she's anything like the Cube Queen, ruination will soon be upon the island.
2) Brie Larson as The Paradigm
As hinted by Donald Mustard a few hours ago, Brie Larson has been officially confirmed as The Paradigm in Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4. However, her story arc is unclear. She rifts into reality 6-5-9 via The Zero Point as Chrome begins to take over the island.
It can be speculated that she went to get help to save the island and defeat The Herald by the time the season comes to an end. Players will be able to obtain her by leveling up in-game and using battle stars to unlock her on the battle pass.
3) Sniper one-shot is back!
After months of backlash and pleading, Epic Games has finally re-enabled the one-shot mechanics for snipers in all playlists in-game. Here's what is written about it in the official blog post:
"Expert marksmen and trickshotters rejoice, because now one shot could be all it takes to send someone back to the Lobby. Keep your head on a swivel and — if your aim is on-point — one-shot opponents with certain Snipers once again."
On that note, here's the list of sniper-class weapons in-game and how they have been altered:
- Hunter Bolt-Action Sniper - damage and headshot multiplier increased
- Hunting Rifle - damage and headshot multiplier increased
- Automatic Sniper Rifle - damage and headshot multiplier increased
- Lever Action Rifle - damage and headshot multiplier increased
- Suppressed Sniper Rifle - damage increased
- Semi-Auto Sniper Rifle - damage increased
- Railgun - damage increased
- Bolt-Action Sniper Rifle - damage increased
- Heavy Sniper Rifle - headshot multiplier increased
- Storm Scout Sniper Rifle - headshot multiplier increased
- Boom Sniper Rifle - explosive damage increased
4) Herald Sanctum and Cloudy Condos
No antagonist or villain can ever set foot on the island without having a dedicated POI. This is the way it is, and it has been standard practice since the early days.
Having said that, The Herald has been given her own fortress POI called Herald Sanctum. From there, the dreaded Chrome will spread outward.
With Chrome spreading all over the island, loopers have managed to band together to create Cloudy Condos. This POI has a lot of verticality and will provide players with an excellent high-ground advantage in-game.
5) Battle Pass skin
The battle pass for Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4 Paradise looks amazing. Players will gain access to eight unique skins via battle pass this season. The skins are:
- Meow Skulls
- The Paradigm
- Twyn
- Gwen Stacy
- Lennox
- The Herald
- Grriz
- Bytes
More information about the battle pass and remaining cosmetics will become available once the downtime ends in a few hours.
On that note, here are some tweets showcasing the skins:
6) Slide Kick and Chrome-ify
Two new mechanics have been added to the game in Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4.
The first mechanic is an old one that has been revamped to provide more functionality. When players now slide in-game, they can knock back opponents when sliding into them. This will help provide some distance in combat.
The second mechanic is known as Chrome-ify. Players will be able to turn into Chrome blobs and become immune to fire damage. They'll also be able to move faster, gain immunity to fall damage, and air dash.
7) EvoChrome Shotgun and Burst Rifle
Two new weapons have been added to Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4 — EvoChrome Shotgun and Burst Rifle. Players will be able to acquire them via Chrome chests located on the island.
What's unique about these weapons is that they can be leveled up in combat. According to the official blog post, the more damage is inflicted on opponents in-game, the higher the weapon's rarity will become. They can go all the way from Uncommon to Mythic.
8) New items - Keys and Port-A-Bunker
Opening vaults in Chapter 3 has been an issue ever since the island flipped over. Although players managed to find creative ways to work around the issue, at times, it just wasn't enough.
To fix this problem once and for all, Epic Games is adding vault keys to Fortnite Chapter 3 Season 4. Players will be able to use them to open vaults with ease.
Speaking of armored vaults, another new item called Port-A-Bunker has been added to the game. As the name suggests, players will be able to summon a bunker in mere seconds to take shelter in.
9) Cronus Zen and Cronus Max banned
For some time now, certain hardware devices such as Cronus Zen and Cronus Max have fallen into the gray area of what's legal in Fortnite. While they are not hacking tools by any means, they do provide players with an edge in-game.
Well, it would seem that the developers have finally taken note of this and have decided to make it bannable. Those attempting to bypass these restrictions and use the device will be permanently banned from the game. Here's what the blog post says about it:
"Starting this season, players who use restricted devices that provide, or are intended to provide, a competitive advantage may receive an in-game warning. To continue playing, players must remove the hardware and restart Fortnite. Attempts to bypass this restriction will result in a permanent ban from Fortnite. Restricted devices include but are not limited to Cronus Zen and Cronus Max."
10) Lever Action-Shotgun is back in action!
When it came to stopping power at close range, the Lever Action Shotgun was a fan favorite in-game. Sadly, the weapon was vaulted at the start of Fortnite Chapter 3. Although the weapon's stats were tweaked in-game, the developers made no mention of it being unvaulted.
As luck would have it, the weapon is now back in-game and has been updated as well. The Lever Action Shotgun can be reloaded while aiming down sight. Even though headshot damage is reduced and capped, it's still a dangerous weapon in the right hands.