Fortnite tends to think a bit more out of the box than most battle royale titles when it comes to its diverse arsenal of weapons. While the game has previously featured bow-and-arrow type weapons in the form of Cupid's Crossbow, Bows (and their many variants) were added in the current Fortnite season as a long-range replacement to Sniper Rifles.
Epic Games' popular free-to-play battle royale is currently about halfway through its Season 6. The new season, dubbed "Primal," has seen a number of changes to the game's meta, including the addition of fauna such as chickens, wolves, and more recently dinosaurs. Season 6 has also introduced a primal weapon crafting system particularly conducive to bows, allowing players to upgrade their Primal and Mechanical Bows into things like the Primal Flame Bow, Mechanical Shockwave Bow, and more. Now, Fortnite is adding another new one to the game with the Grappler Bow.
How to Get the Grappler Bow in Fortnite
Adding the new weapon via an update today, Fortnite's new Grappler Bow is unique in the fact that it's the only bow that can't be crafted. The Grappler Bow is classified as an Exotic, and therefore can only be purchased from one particular NPC. Players will want to make sure they're stocked up on Gold Bars, as the new Exotic doesn't come cheap. They can follow these steps to secure the Grappler Bow in their inventory:
- Drop in to Stealthy Stronghold, located in the northwest area of the map
- Land towards the center where the stone ruins are located
- Locate and talk to Tomb Raider's Lara Croft
- Pay 500 Gold Bars in exchange for the Grappler Bow
The Grappler Bow is a pretty powerful weapon, dealing 89 damage per shot with a headshot multiplier of 2.5x. But what really sets it apart from the rest of Fortnite's bows is in the name - its grappling ability. A drastic improvement from the grappling gun from seasons past, the Grappler Bow has the ability to grapple onto virtually everything, even opponents. In addition to being able to instantly scale heights or close distances during a fight, grappling prevents players from taking fall damage, no matter the drop distance. This could prove to be an indispensable mechanic for players, so much so that there's a chance some may consider having it removed from competitive playlists, as they similarly did with another Exotic weapon.
The Grappler Bow isn't the only weapon Fortnite has recently introduced to the game. Earlier this month, Epic Games added the Recycler Gun. The Recycler has the ability to suck up practically any material and, as the name suggests, recycle it into ammunition. The recycled material will turn into explosive rounds called "junk bombs." The type of material won't impact the lethality of Recycler shots, so players can vacuum up just about anything they see. While the Recycler doesn't have an Exotic class like the Grappler Bow, players can attempt to get their hands on a Mythic version of the weapon, but only if they can defeat the Spire Assassin.
The addition of the Grappler Bow adds a whole new level of strategy, especially for competitive players. Given that it was just released today, Stealthy Stronghold will be filled with gamers trying to nab the Exotic Bow. Taking advantage of something like the unlimited heal glitch may be the difference between a quick elimination and a victory royale.
Fortnite is available now on PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.