Fortnite’s ascenders appeared during Chapter 3 all over the map. Players could use them to climb toward a floating ship and complete specific quests.
Ascenders are cable lines going up. If you approach these cables, you’ll see a “Zip-up” prompt, so you can “zip-up” by pressing and holding the Use button (“E” on PC).
Currently, the most prominent zip-line spawns whenever the Loot Island spawns. It means you can use it to reach the location, claim its Vault with two keys, or Claim its Capture Point to get the Overclocked Pulse Rifle.
What is Loot Island?
Loot Island is a floating island that appears at the later stages of the map. It spawns randomly towards the center of the island, commonly close to Megacity.
Moreover, it will spawn when about 15 to 20 players are remaining. That happens during the 4th Storm Location. You may even see the island spawn in real-time:
Once it spawns, you’ll have about five minutes to reach it and loot it before the storm covers it.
Once it appears, you’ll hear the spawn sound (like a thunder crackling) and see a blue icon appear on your interface.
The island also creates a blue icon on your map.
How to Use the Ascender?
The Loot Island spawns with several Ascenders. You can interact with these ascenders to reach the location.
To do so, simply approach the zip line and press and hold the Use button.
The zip-line will take you to the island’s surfaces immediately.
There’re other ascenders in the world that help you reach higher areas. Locations like The Citadel, Shattered Slabs, and Brutal Bastion have several ascenders.
One thing to note is that you can’t shoot or heal while zipping up. However, the ascender goes so fast that other enemies won’t be able to hit you, most likely.
That said, the ascenders are quite noisy. Nearby enemies will hear you use them just as you will hear nearby players using the zip lines.
There’re many ascenders across the map, and all of them work the same. For instance, you can zip up and zip down with the same button.
Lastly, the action says “Slide down” when it’s about going down the ascender.
In any case, our recommendation is to use the ascenders to take the high ground, escape, and move as quickly as possible.
What’s on Loot Island?
Loot Island is a good place to gear yourself up:
- It has two ascenders on the surface, so you can climb up
- It has an additional ascender to reach the house
- It has a main house with low-tier loot
- It has a Capture Point in front of the house. Claiming it gives you the Overclocked Pulse Rifle
- It has a Vault beneath the house within its wooden corridor. The Vault has a blue chest and two orange chests.
To go back to the surface, you can slide down on the Ascender or use the jump pad to fly and glide back to the island.
Here’s a video example:
