Bounty Pack 3 and Takedown out now - along with Circle of Slaughter!

Ready to get your slaughter on, Vault Hunters? The Version 1.8 update is out now, bringing tons of new content to Kairos—including a Circle of Slaughter comeback, free for all Borderlands 4 players! Here's a high-level overview of what's on offer right now:

• Bounty Pack 3: A Zane to Kill For* is now available as paid DLC, with two distinct parts that you can purchase individually:
  • $5.99 USD for Bounty Pack 3: A Zane to Kill For (new narrative content and gear)
  • $5.99 USD for Bounty Pack 3: Vault Card 3 (new cosmetics and gear)
• If you own Borderlands 4 Deluxe Edition or Super Deluxe Edition on PlayStation 5, XBOX Series X|S, or Epic, you already own both parts, but you'll need to navigate to the storefront listings for these separate parts on your platform's storefront to redeem/download them.
• Takedown at Hadron Abyss** is here, free for all Borderlands 4 players! This is the ultimate endgame challenge as you fight your way through an underwater research station filled with mutated horrors and aquatic apex predators. For the raid's final showdown, you'll have to go toe-to-fin with the Child of Terramorphous.
• Circle of Slaughter mode is back, free for all Borderlands 4 players! See how long you can survive against waves of increasingly deadly enemies in this mayhem-fueled gauntlet.
• Cross-Platform Saves are live, letting you seamlessly continue your Vault Hunters' adventures across the different platforms where you own Borderlands 4 using your free SHiFT Account. Check out the dedicated Cross-Platform Saves Support page for more info.

In case you missed it, we've got tons of info on all of the above in the recent episode of the Gearbox DevCast; full details here. That's also where we shared a refreshed roadmap, namedropped the upcoming Bounty Pack 4: Murders & Acquisitions launching on July 30, and gave you all a look at Loveless the Hacker, will the newest Vault Hunter coming to Borderlands 4 as part of the paid DLC of Story Pack 2*** launching in early September. But for now, let's get into the surprise return of Circle of Slaughter!

Circle of Slaughter mode

Surprise, Vault Hunters: Circle of Slaughter is back! As part of our response to fan feedback asking for more Borderlands 4’s endgame content, we’ve reimagined the beloved mode from Borderlands 3 and amped it up for its Borderlands 4 debut. If you're tough enough to make it through this wave-based gauntlet mode, you'll have a chance at scoring Pearlescent and Legendary loot!

All players can challenge the Circle of Slaughter mode once they've completed the "Wrath of the Ripper Queen" main mission, which unlocks access to Moxxi's Bottoms Up! bar in Carcadia Burn. In a corner of the bar, you'll find Zane's personal collection of arcade cabinets, including the Silent Crisis: Time Scope 5 machine. Once you're ready to face off against waves of killer enemies, interacting with the Silent Crisis: Time Scope 5 cabinet will digistruct you into the Circle of Slaughter arena in the virtual world.

Every Circle of Slaughter run lasts up to five rounds, each with three waves of enemies; the third wave ramps up the difficulty by adding a boss encounter to the mix of incoming enemies. Should you make it through a round, you're presented with a classic risk/reward conundrum. You can cash out by stepping into the prize room, where loot cannons make it rain Legendary and possibly Pearlescent world drops (as well as drops from Bounty Pack 3: A Zane to Kill For, if you own it). Or you can bravely move on to the increasingly difficult next round for a chance at even more loot cannons, with the heartbreaking possibility that you could lose it all if you don't survive the next onslaught.

The choice is yours, but the Circle of Slaughter is designed to be a highly replayable experience, so you'll have infinite chances to chase new loot and push your build to see if you can make it all the way in one piece. 

Circle of Slaughter multiplayer mayhem

Whoops, you died in the Circle of Slaughter and left your co-op party to fend for themselves! Not to worry: death doesn't end the fun, as perishing in multiplayer simply places you in a penalty box so you cheer on your allies from the sidelines. But you're not just a passive spectator, thanks to a set of special switches in the penalty box that let you support or troll your fellow Vault Hunters. 

Give your co-op squadmates a boost of confidence with a cheerful burst of confetti! Cast your loyalties aside and rain down some fecal waste onto your friends to shame them for letting you perish! You can even deploy elemental barrels onto the battlefield, which can help or hinder your allies depending on your aim and comms callouts.

The most impactful switch of all in the penalty box will spawn a Badass enemy directly into the arena. If your still-in-the-fight squadmates successfully slay it, you'll be freed from the penalty box to immediately rejoin the fracas. If that Badass wipes out your party and ends the run without any loot to show for your efforts, you'll probably never hear the end of it... but true co-op villains revel in unforgettable infamy.

In keeping with Borderlands 4's jump-in, jump-out multiplayer, joining a friend's active Circle of Slaughter run will spawn you into the map if the run is between rounds, or into the penalty box if the squad is actively fighting a wave.

How to start Bounty Pack 3: A Zane to Kill For

Bounty Pack 3 arrives in two distinct parts that you can purchase individually: the new narrative content and gear of A Zane to Kill For, and the new cosmetics and gear of Vault Card 3. If you own Borderlands 4 Deluxe Edition, Super Deluxe Edition, or the Bounty Pack Bundle, you already own both parts of Bounty Pack 3 (A Zane to Kill For and Vault Card 3). 

If you own either part of Bounty Pack 3 on PlayStation 5, XBOX Series X|S, or PC via Epic, you'll need to navigate to the storefront listings for these separate parts on your platform's storefront to redeem/download the new content. You can also attempt to start the A Zane to Kill For mission (details below), which will open a direct link to redeem/download your owned Bounty Pack 3 content on your platform. If you own either part of Bounty Pack 3 on PC via Steam, restart your Steam client and this new content will be redeemed and downloaded automatically.

Once you own the Bounty Pack 3: A Zane to Kill For narrative content, you can start the mission by interacting with the arcade token on a Bounty Board. Just like the Circle of Slaughter, you'll need to finish the "Wrath of the Ripper Queen" main mission so you can visit Moxxi's Bottoms Up! bar in Carcadia Burn. Once you've unlocked access to the bar, you can find the mission-starting token on any Bounty Board in a major hub area, which will be marked on your ECHO map as a new mission.

How to start Takedown at Hadron Abyss

Just like the Raid Boss encounters against Bloomreaper or Subjugator and Thol the Invincible, Takedown at Hadron Abyss is designed as a monumental endgame challenge, so you'll need to beat the main campaign before you can take on this Takedown. 

If you think you're ready to face the horrors that await in the briny deep, you can start the Takedown at Hadron Abyss mission via any Raid Board found in Kairos' major hub areas.While it's not a requirement, we recommend that you be at least Level 50 before you delve into this highly difficult raid, as you'll need a strong build and well-honed skills to stand a fighting chance.

Just like the rest of Borderlands 4, the health and damage of all the enemies, midboss, and final boss that await in Takedown at Hadron Abyss will scale to your party's size and levels. But you should expect heavy resistance whether you take on this raid solo or in co-op, and solo challengers will have an especially difficult time dealing with the sheer volume of mobs in each encounter. If you want to ramp up the challenge even further, you can activate Mayhem levels or the one-life-only Hardcore mode; get the full details on these challenge modes in the Takedown at Hadron Abyss reveal article.

Here's a quick overview of the new loot on offer, with dedicated drops for both the midboss and Child of Terramorphous final boss:

• 1 new Pearlescent weapon:
  • Shark Bait (Tediore Shotgun): Damaging enemies applies stacks of Chum; when you build enough stacks, the enemy explodes for additional damage.
• 9 new pieces of Legendary gear:
  • Ishmael (Order Sniper Rifle): Fires harpoons that bleed the targets for additional damage over time.
  • Shoals (Jakobs Pistol): Critical hits deal splash damage, and Ricochets spawn damaging novas.
  • Marshall's Claw (Maliwan Sniper Rifle): Fires three projectiles in a five-shot burst, with Fire Rate increasing after each shot.
  • Swan Song (Daedalus Shotgun): Primary fire kills cause explosive cannonball projectiles to be fired from the underbarrel.
  • Fishward (Jakobs Assault Rifle): Hitting your target will spawn fish projectiles that drunkenly swim towards any nearby enemies, which grant a stacking damage increase to your next magazine when they score a kill.
  • Little Sister (Tediore Shield): When this shield is broken, it summons a drone that fires shots at nearby enemies when you land hits for a percentage of current weapon's damage.
  • Vitae (Jakobs Repkit): Critical hits will heal you for a set amount.
  • Ordinance (Tediore Grenade Ordnance): Throws a book-shaped grenade that spreads damaging pages as it travels.
  • Draupner (Order Heavy Weapon Ordnance): Fires multiple projectiles that spawn even more projectiles, which return back towards you whenever they hit an enemy, bounce off a surface, or travel for a set amount of time.
• 5 new Class Mods:
  • Each Vault Hunter has a unique Class Mod in the Takedown at Hadron Abyss loot table. When the sixth Vault Hunter, Loveless the Hacker, joins Borderlands 4 alongside Story Pack 2* in early September, a Class Mod unique to Loveless will also be added to this same pool of possible Takedown drops.