Rifts
What a rift is, where one opens, and how to close it by bringing down its anchor — and gates.
In short
- Go in, loot, close it: bring down whatever holds the anchor.
Holes of the Cascade still open, and the big ones lead into worlds the war ruined. An overview is in "Rifts and bosses" on the Dark Zone page on the site.
What a rift is
A rift is a portal into another world damaged by the Wormhole War. You can enter it, gather loot and defeat the creature holding its anchor to close it.
A gate — a small burrow with waves: whoever stands to the last wave closes it
- Opens: You are told the layer and roughly where
- Open for hours, rarely days — and growing
- Go in and take the loot
- Defeat the dweller holding the anchor
- The anchor falls: The portal closes; everyone returns with their loot
- The registry announces the names
- Time runs out: The rift turns, throws everyone out — and what is left comes through
- A gate — a small burrow with waves: whoever stands to the last wave closes it
Where they open
When a rift opens you will be told — in which layer, and roughly where. Most open past Wall Sina; one on this side of it is news for the whole server.
Why go in
For the loot: the best in this world is on the other side. The armouries of dead armies, gear nobody on Earth can make, what those worlds hold and ours does not.
Close it, because an open rift grows, and it stays open for hours, rarely days. When its time runs out it throws out whoever is still inside, and the first time anybody stands near its frame, what is left over there comes through — onto outposts, onto oil fields, up to the wall.
The anchor
A rift is closed only from the far side: its anchor, the place where the hole holds on to that world, is held by the strongest thing in it. Bring that down and the anchor falls, the hole collapses, and everybody inside is thrown back to the frame they walked in by, with whatever they carried.
The registry announces every player who was inside when the anchor fell. This records the expedition's participants; it is not a court decision.
Gates
A gate pearl opens a gate: it has no recipe, and one pearl opens one gate. Throw it and stand in the ring: the waves come to you, and leaving the ring loses. The chest the gate leaves pays for the fight; the Heart's gate is never announced.