Borderlands 4: Plan Z walkthrough

Plan Z is one of the last missions of Borderlands 4, and follows a particularly tragic incident. Now that several of your closest allies have been dealt with by the Timekeeper, you’d think we would stop, take a break, and consider what’s happened. Absolutely not, we’re getting right back to work so the Timekeeper can be stopped once and for all. Once you’ve completed Means of Ascent, this mission will automatically be picked up.

It’s not incredibly lengthy, but it will set up your ultimate siege of the Timekeeper’s domain, which is what we’ve been after this whole time. If you’ve been wondering what happens in Plan Z in Borderlands 4, here’s everything you need to know.

Plan Z complete walkthrough in Borderlands 4

Mission information

Starting Location: Carcadia District
Quest Giver: Zadra
Unlock Requirement: Complete Means of Ascent
Recommended Level: 35+ (35-40)
Estimated time to completion: About 40 minutes

Mission objectives

Pick up Zadra’s ECHO Log, Reach Ascension Tower, reach Data Dump
Reach Ascension Tower, Access Computer, Enter Password, Downloading Zadra’s data cache
Reach Ascension Tower, Go to Ripper encampment, Upload Command Script, Script upload in progress
Open Ascension chamber, Enter Ascension chamber

1) Pick up Zadra’s ECHO Log, Reach Ascension Tower, reach Data Dump

Once you have control of your Vault Hunter again in Borderlands 4, you can start Plan Z by picking up Zadra’s ECHO Log. It turns out, she had a feeling something like this might go down, and left you a parting gift, at the Data Dump. That makes it our very next location to head to. When you try to leave Zadra’s HQ, Order troops will immediately attack you, but it’s not a huge group.

Next time, on Borderlands 4 (Plan) Z: The Vault Hunters get revenge for their fallen comrades! (Image via 2K Games)

In my case, they were level 40, and I was level 37, so this is a very high level mission; come prepared. It also introduces a new enemy type, the Menacer. It’s a large floating vehicle that can deal a massive amount of damage in short order.

Get ready to see several more of these as you progress through the last few missions of Borderlands 4. Since you can’t use vehicles right now, you’re going to have to run to the Data Dump, but it isn’t far away; use ECHO-4 to guide you.

There are several enemy packs on the way; Creeps and Order minions in particular. The Order, for example, is already waiting for you at the Data Dump Cafe. That’s right, it’s an internet cafe!

2) Reach Ascension Tower, Access Computer, Enter Password, Downloading Zadra’s data cache

That's right, an internet cafe. Why not? (Image via 2K Games)

After killing the Order troops and entering the Data Dump Cafe, you’ll see a computer with a glowing keyboard. Access the Computer, and after a few moments, you’ll come up with the password: Everything Breaks. Enter the Password, and wait for Zadra’s data cache to download.

It won’t take very long to download the data, so I guess the internet signal is really quite good in Dominion. Thankfully, you don’t have to fight while the data is downloading.

However, Zadra left us every bit of information we need about the Timekeeper, and a way to break into his Ascension Tower in this part of Borderlands 4’s Plan Z. If we want to lift the lockdown on the city though, we need to head to a nearby Ripper Encampment.

3) Reach Ascension Tower, Go to Ripper encampment, Upload Command Script, Script upload in progress

It's time to doublehack their maineframes (Image via 2K Games)

Conway informs you that, for this part of Borderlands 4’s Plan Z mission, you need to upload a Command Script at a nearby Ripper Encampment. Follow ECHO-4’s quest marker, and make your way to this nearby encampment.

There’s lots of Order soldiers in the way though, so fight them or get past them, it’s up to you. The Order packs on the way are infuriating, and you can expect to see more Meancers. When you finally reach the Ripper encampment, they’re in a heated battle with the Order minions. That means of course, you have to fight both.

Conway is going to do some hacking, but first, you need to get to the pod and Upload the Command Script. It’s that green glowing object in the screenshot above. Just get to it and interact with it; the enemies don’t have to be defeated first. You can also expect quite a few Badasses here, so it’s a heated fight.

Once the script is uploaded, just keep fighting and staying alive while the Script upload progresses. It’s nice and slow, naturally, so you’re going to have to push hard through the named Order enemies, and various Badasses that show up to help out.

Thankfully they aren’t all super powerful, so you’ve got chances to hit a Second Wind or two. Once the Script completes, the door ahead opens so you can progress; take the time to obliterate the last few enemies, though. You’re going to need the exp.

4) Open Ascension chamber, Enter Ascension chamber

You've got a lot of grueling fights ahead, so be ready (Image via 2K Games)

Enter the next room and press the button on the console. The last steps of Plan Z in Borderlands 4 is to open the Ascension Chamber and enter the Ascension Chamber. Use the ECHO-4 to set a course, and follow it.

There are fairly small, but dangerous Order packs along the road to the Ascension Chamber though, so make sure you’re ready for it. When you reach the courtyard ahead of the Ascension Chamber, you’ll have Order forces in the way again. You’ve been here before, though.

Defeat the Pinheads, Warheads, and other Order troops that bar your path, until everyone has been deleted. It’s not a huge group, thankfully. Before you can get too close, a stronger group will show up, as you get up the steps.

Be persistent, and you'll get to the end (Image via 2K Games)

In fact, the closer you get, the stronger the enemy groups get. I died a few times on the way up the path to the Ascension Tower, due to the sheer strength of these groups. Plenty of Badasses and large enemies are here to stop you. Don’t give up, and take your time, to push through these groups.

Make sure you have a high-strength Shield, that will definitely help. I had to upgrade mine before I moved on. Once you get to the Ascension Chamber, you just need to enter it, which means you need to fight off a few more groups of enemies.

When you get to the energy symbol at the top of this area, grab it with your Grapple, and throw it onto the nearby green symbol. All you have to do now is go inside, and begin The Timekeeper’s Order. Your rewards are XP, Cash, and a Shotgun.

Check out our other Borderlands 4 guides and features

About the author

Jason is an Esports and Gaming journalist at Sportskeeda holding an amazing 11 years of experience under his belt. Having put out 4000-plus articles and amassing over 15 million reads for Sportskeeda, he is among the company’s most experienced writers. Jason holds a Bachelor's degree in English from UNC Pembroke and was inspired to become a gaming journalist very early on in life after reading Nintendo Power.

Jason is a jack of all trades when it comes to gaming journalism. He’s a key writer in Sportskeeda's MMO department, but he also likes to help out in other categories, like streamers, RPG, card games, and whatever else is needed. A solo gamer at heart, Jason's favorite titles include Earthbound and Dragon Warrior.

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Edited by Jason Parker