Dragon Rune Fortnite pickaxe glitch turns it into a pay-to-win cosmetic

Glitches don't always have to be an ethical problem. As it turns out, Fortnite is also susceptible to glitches. Like most video games under constant development, Fortnite also has its fair share of glitches. Shrewder players are quick to discover and exploit recurring glitches in Fortnite.

These glitches can vary in function and can differ when it comes to exploitation. While some glitches can enable players to farm an enormous amount of XP, others can render outfits and other cosmetic items helpful in certain ways. For instance, the Arm-y Guy emote from Chapter 3 Season 3.

One such glitch has turned a pickaxe into a pay-to-win cosmetic. Pay-to-win cosmetics in Fortnite are cosmetic items that not only justify their value but also have a glitch that can help a player perform better in the game.

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A new stealth melee weapon in Fortnite?

Dragon Rune Lance is an epic pickaxe present on page three of Chapter 3 Season 3 battle pass. The pickaxe can be acquired for seven battle stars and is a part of The Dragon Rider set. The pickaxe comes in two different style edits. Default in black and infiltrator edit in white. In appearance, it resembles any other lance but with electric sparks.

This pickaxe has a glitch. The pickaxe eliminates the noise in the player's footsteps whenever a player wields it. Unless the player is running. In cases where other players have the 'visualize sound effect' option enabled, the glitch cancels out the footstep icons, rendering the melee weapon stealth.

This glitch can help players go unnoticed and announce themselves rather pompously with stealth attacks out of nowhere. The glitch is impressive and makes this pickaxe a pay-to-win cosmetic. Since it's a glitch that disrupts normal gameplay, many players have reported this to Epic.

In a proactive move, Epic has disabled the pickaxe in the game. The move received mixed reactions from the community. While some opportunistic players were disheartened, most of the players welcomed the decision by Epic.

Without labeling it white, black, or grey, the event does cast a light on how players can benefit by being stealthy. In the future, Epic might explore some stealth options for players to make the game more exciting.

Events like this are common in Fortnite. The community proactively searches for any glitches that might exploit the game. However, there is always a fair share of opportunistic players who can exploit these glitches and get away with them.

Forums like Reddit and YouTube are filled with information on how to exploit glitches before Epic removes them. There is a teeming community of players and content creators who thrive on searching for glitches across the map and finding ways to exploit them.

Ethical problems or not, glitches are a regular part of any video game and will perpetually be. Ultimately, it depends upon the players and the community around the game and how they treat these glitches.