It took almost a month for a new Fortnite update to arrive since Epic Games employees were on holiday vacation, but players were finally graced with a new patch today.
Fortnite’s latest v11.40 patch introduced a new mechanic, Sidegrading, which allows players to upgrade their Assault Rifles to Heavy Assault Rifles in exchange for materials.
At time of writing, only Assault Rifles are available for Sidegrading.
To Sidegrade an Assault Rifle into a Heavy Assault Rifle, players must interact with a Weapon Upgrade Bench, pictured below.
Once players interact with the bench, they’ll be prompted with Sidegrade options.
If a player has an Epic Assault Rifle, for example, they can turn it into an Epic Heavy Assault Rifle for 20 wood, 20 brick, and 20 metal. Players can also upgrade the rarity of their weapon from Epic to Legendary for 200 wood, 200 brick, and 200 metal.
Heavy Assault Rifles have been vaulted since patch v11.00, so many players are excited to take advantage of the powerful AR.
Fortnite fans have until Feb. 15 to wait for the next season, which means players have less than a month to complete their challenges.