Blitz Royale is Fortnite's fastest game mode, dropping 32 players into a small map packed with mythic weapons and pop culture crossovers.
It has a new map, faster rounds and mythic weapons that transform how you play—basically, there’s lots to learn. In this guide I’ll explain the fundamentals, including the Blitz Royale event schedule and get your started on your journey to a victory royale.
About Blitz Royale
What is Blitz Royale in Fortnite?
Blitz Royale is a no-building, 32-player battle royale on a mini Fortnite map. The play zone shrinks quickly, and rounds last roughly five to six minutes. You can play Blitz solo, in a duo, or in a squad of four.
Blitz Royale is defined by its speed, the abundance of top-tier weapons, and by its themed crossovers, such as with Stranger Things. It used to have medallions and boons that granted you special powers but Epic has removed them for now. They may return later.
Players begin each round with the same items, usually a bubble shield plus at least one weapon. This often changes day-to-day, but they're usually related to a time-limited Blitz theme, which is currently Stranger Things.
As you kill enemies or survive storm circles you improve your Blitz Level and at each level up you’re granted a high-level weapon (legendary, mythic, or exotic) weapon or item.
Blitz Royale schedule, Stranger Things event, and permanent mode
Blitz Royale was initially due to end on July 15, but it now looks like it’ll be a permanent mode: Epic CEO Tim Sweeney has all-but-confirmed it by reposting an X post by a Fortnite leaker, and other leakers say Epic has updated some seasonal quests for the mode to end in 2027.
The theme rotates regularly and changes the loot. Right now the theme is Stranger Things, and the map has completely changed into a half-normal, half-corrupted place called Hawkins, with four locations taken from the TV show, all littered with Easter Eggs.
Blitz Royale map and items
Blitz Royale map
The map changes often but right now it's called Hawkins, and it's all themed around Stranger Things.
There are four POIs: Library Landing, Hawkins Heights, Stranger Suburbs, and Gnarly Farms. These last two are in what's known as the Upside Down, and they're scary, corrupted locations covered in Mind Flayer tentacles (the Mind Flayer, a nightmarish creature from Stranger Things, is sometimes visible on the horizon).
Hawkins Heights is a dense residential area and has the Scoops Ahoy ice cream parlor from Stranger Things, Library Landing has one main building with some houses around it, Gnarly Farms is a sparse, rural POI with a few farm buildings, and Stranger Suburbs is, as the name suggests, a suburban residential area.
Blitz Royale weapons and items: starting gear, mythics, and llamas
There are too many weapons in Blitz Royale for me to go over every single one, but it’s important to at least understand how gear works in this mode, and how to get the best guns.
Everyone starts with the same loadout: right now you'll get bubble shields plus a weapon, which is either the Oni shotgun, the Spire rifle, or the exotic Shadow Tracker pistol, which pings players on your screen and tracks when after you hit them. You'll also get a third starting item: either peppermint sweets, which make you run faster, or thermal taffy, which gives you thermal vision, ideal for the map's darker areas.
There are multiple ways to get better items. The first, and most obvious, is from chests: alongside regular wooden chests you’ll find some rare (blue) chests and larger golden chests.
You can also get top-level gear from supply drops (three per round) or from llamas, either gold or silver, so keep your eye on your map for their locations. Their loot changes week-by-week.
Finally, you obtain either a weapon or item every time you gain a Blitz Level. This is often how you get the most powerful weapons in the game: every weapon you get this way is either legendary, exotic, or mythic. Basically, the best weapons in Fortnite.
Weapons from chests, drops, and levelling up are randomized, and the loot pool is massive, so the best way to learn your favourite weapons is to play, and play aggressively. I’d advise carrying a mid-range weapon like a rifle and a close-combat option, ideally a shotgun.
Right now, my favourite weapons are the Spire rifle for long-range fights and the Wrecker revolver up close, but most of the mythics and exotic weapons are worth carrying, so try them all out.
Blitz Royale rewards
You can earn three rewards from playing Blitz Royale. You get the Blitz Knight outfit if you earn 10 account levels or place in the top 10 players in 20 matches, the Blitz ‘Brella glider by winning three times, and the Blitz Wings back bling by winning five matches or earning five account levels.
Also, when you win a match you'll see victory wings appear behind you (these are not the same as the back bling). The more matches you win, the more elaborate those victory wings become.
Blitz Royale, like other modes, also has daily quests you can complete for XP.
Blitz Royale tips and strategy
Here are seven quick tips for getting better at Blitz Royale.
Learn a few drop spots
Your immediate priority should be opening golden chests. As you explore the map, learn a handful of locations that are dense with chests, and then consistently drop there. Explore the area to find other chests. Once you’ve done this a few times, you’ll have a couple of consistent 'rollout' options that reliably get you boons and powerful weapons within the first minute.
All-out aggression
Blitz Royale rewards aggression: the faster you kill enemies, the faster you’ll level up, and the faster you’ll get the best weapons. Because matches are so short, and restarts so fast, you can afford to get out of your comfort zone, which will help you improve your mechanics.
Don’t sleep on shield bubbles
You start each match with them, and they can save your life. Hold onto them, and know how to switch to them quickly and throw them down if you’re ambushed. There are plenty of online guides for improving at shield bubble fights: here’s a good, recent one.
Prioritise supply drops
Grabbing the high-tier loot inside supply drops can make you the most deadly player on the server, so check your map and head for them. Take care: other players will have the same idea, so peek at them from cover before you run into the open..
Mobility and two weapons is still a killer combo
In my Fortnite battle royale weapons and loadout guide I recommend carrying at least two weapons and a mobility item, and I think that same advice applies here. You need something for mid-range fights, and something for close quarters.
Mobility items are rarer, but will help you escape a sticky situation, or help you third-party other players as they fight each other.
Play cover
Some Blitz players like to sprint directly at their enemies and take them on in an even 1v1 duel, relying on their mythic weapon to pull them through. But remember the fundamentals of Fortnite: if you play around cover you’ll always have the upper hand. Look for rocks, trees, buildings, even the lips of hills. Fortnite’s third-person view is over your right shoulder, so favour the right side of whatever cover you’re using.
