When Call of Duty Black Ops 7 was released, the Call of Duty community was divided into three camps: The BO7 Campaign is awful, playing multiplayer like always, or trying out the latest version of CoD Zombies. When Call of Duty Black Ops 6 was released, it came with two Zombies maps, Liberty Falls and Terminus. At the time, Terminus was considered the largest Zombies map to date, but with the release of Call of Duty Black Ops 7, a new map potentially takes the throne. Although the Ashes of the Damned Zombies map may be one of the biggest, it also features some of the most steps for any Easter Egg.
With Season 1 of Black Ops 7 releasing, Treyarch has released the Directed mode for players to learn the steps of Ashes of the Damned when not taking on Astra Malorum. Although the Directed mode was created to help players learn and complete the Easter Egg steps, some players are still having difficulty with the Ashes of the Damned Easter Egg. So, below, we will be going over the steps you need to complete in order to complete the Ashes of the Damned Easter Egg.
Step 1: Turning on the Power
At the start of the game, players will need to work together to repair the truck in the starting area. Once you have saved up 2000 points or two players split the door, you will be able to find Tedd’s Head in the Server Room. Tedd’s Head can be found in a round compartment in the ground near the server in the center of the room. With the head acquired, you can use Tedd’s Head to fix Ol’ Tessie. Now, players can start driving around the map, knocking down walls, and turning on the power.
In order to turn on the power for Ashes of the Damned, you will need to turn on three generators; the three generators can be found at Blackwater Lake, Ashwood, and Vandorn Farm. At each of the three locations, you will find the generators covered with Infested orange spores. You will need to destroy all the infestation spores in 30 seconds, or else you will fail the process and have to wait until the next round to start again.
With the generator now free of all of its gunk, you can flip the power switch and provide power to the perk machines and traps in the area. The power switch for Blackwater Lake can be found in the house on the 2nd floor. The switch for Ashwood can be found right by the generator. Finally, the switch for Vandorn Farm can be found in the barn.
With the power on at Ashwood, you can now upgrade Tessie to have the Pack-a-Punch. If you are unable to clear the infestations at the Farm or at Blackwater Lake, you can rush to Ashwood to unlock Pack or use Semtex to help clear. If you use Hidden Power, that should help increase your gun’s damage as well. While you are at Blackwater Lake, make sure to grab the Jar of Spores inside the kitchen in the cabin.
Step 2: Getting the Widow’s Lantern & Bones & Ravenger Ritual Components.
With the Jar of Spores in your possession from Blackwater Lake, head over to The Farm and insert the spores into the dead horse. This process will take three rounds, so make sure to get some of the other components while you can.
While still at the farm, there is a corpse hanging in the center of the barn, cut off its foot on the right with a tomahawk, and then, when the foot drops to the ground, use a Molotov cocktail to sear off its flesh in order to get the bones component.
If you are still at the farm when the Ravenger round (Dog/Max Ammo Round) happens, make sure to use the trap to get the Ravenger’s Eyes; the first Ravenger killed by the trap should drop the component.
After the three rounds have passed, make sure to grab the Widow’s Lantern from the dead horse.
Step 3: Abomination Carcass Upgrade
After obtaining the Widow’s Lantern, Revenger’s Eyes, and the Bones, you will still need to get two other ritual pieces. The next two ingredients you will need to gather are the Hoard husks and the Powder of the Forgotten.
In order to get the Hoard Husk, you will need to upgrade Tessie once again; this time, you will need to obtain the Abomination Carcass. In order to get the Abomination Carcass, head to Exit 115 and open the door to Reba’s Diner, if you have yet to do so.
With the diner open, you will need to kill zombies inside and around the diner until a special zombie called the Cook appears. After killing the cook, he will drop the Freezer Key. The Cook only spawns while you’re inside the diner, but it can follow you outside the diner, so be careful because you may have to look around for the key if you kill it outside.
Once you have gathered the freezer key, head to the freezer in the diner to unlock it and find the Abomination Carcass. With the Abomination Carcass now in your possession, head back to Ashwood and install it in Tessie.
With Tessie upgraded, you will need to head out into the fog in between areas and look for a glowing purple plant (Overgrown Hoard Husk). Once you find the husk, you will need to use the Abomination Head beam attack from the truck to destroy it. Once it has been destroyed, you will need to get out of the truck quickly and grab it.
Step 4: Freeing Klaus & Getting the Necrofluid Gauntlet
In Directed mode, the last ritual piece you will need to get is Powder of the Forgotten. In order to get the Powder of the Forgotten, you will need to obtain the Necrofuild Gauntlet. In order to get the Necrofluid Gauntlet, you will need to complete multiple steps that involves freeing Klaus from his jail cell.
In order to free Klaus from his cage, you will need to take down Uber Klaus. In Directed Mode, Uber Klauss will spawn at Janus Tower Plaza on Round 7; if you are playing Standard, it will spawn on Round 8. Once it spawns, you will need to take it down in order to get the Stabilizer Chip. This can be a difficult task, so make sure to have a Pack-A-Punch weapon.
With the Stabilizer Chip in your possession, you can now free Klaus from his cage in Ashwood. Klaus can be found in the Sheriff’s Office next to Vulture Aid. On the lock to his cage, there will be a computer panel. You will need to install the Stabilizer Chip into the panel and wait for it to restart. In order to restart Klaus, you will need to hit him with two stun grenade explosions within rapid succession.
With Klaus unlocked, you can start the next step, head to Zarya Cosmodrome, and unlock the doors leading to the Support Systems underground. You will then need to command Klaus to interact with the Panel in the center area between the two stairs. Once he has, a scanner process will start, and you will have to stay still while enemies come towards you.
During this process, Klaus will defend you, but his health will go down. If Klaus runs out of health before you get to the Zarya Cosmodrome, you can call him in once again, but for a price. Once the scan is complete, you pick up the Aether Barrel.
With the Aether Barrel unlocked, you can begin the charging process. In order to charge the Aether Barrel, you need to charge it at three separate locations: Blackwater Lake, Ashwood, and Vandorn Farm generators. You will have to defend yourself while it charges, but it is for a fairly short amount of time.
Once you have filled up the first bit of the canister, you will need to then drive to the next location. This process is timed, so if you fail, you will have to start the process all over again. It is best to start at Blackwater Lake, go to Ashwood, and then finish at the Farm, since you will need to take the canister to the basement of the farmhouse.
Insert the gathered fluid into the dark cube to start the Necrofluid Gauntlet process. Next, you will need to know the three symbols needed to unlock the cube. In order to find out the three symbols, you will need to use the jump pad to jump to Janus Tower. As you do, you will see three symbols on the roofs in the farm area. Tell your teammates these symbols, or jump back from the Janus Tower plaza and input them yourself.
Whoever inputs these symbols will get the Necrofluid Gauntlet, but they will then need to complete the trial in order to escape the basement. Around the room, six green necrofluid blobs will appear. You must use the Necrofluid Gauntlet to shoot the green blobs and pull them back to the gauntlet; you achieve this by reloading after shooting them. Once you have completed this task, you should be free from the farmhouse’s basement.
Now that the Necrofluid Gauntlet is unlocked, allies will be able to get it out of the box. Now comes the last step to obtaining the Powder of the Forgotten. You will need the Wisp Tea perk that can be purchased at Zarya Cosmodrome or obtained through Perkaholic, On the House, or randomly through Soda Fountain Gobblegums; you can also obtain it through the Wisp Tea Side Easter Egg on Standard mode.
Once you have obtained Wisp Tea, you will need to kill zombies near the Tailor Shop in Ashwood. Once you have spawned a wisp, you will need to lead it over to the cursed mirror to cleanse it. With the curse lifted, your team will need to shoot the Necrofluid Gauntlet at the mirror, causing the Powder of the Forgotten to spawn.
At this point, you will have the five main components to create the potion for the ritual; in directed mode, you can only get these five components, but on standard, there is a sixth component.
The sixth component is obtained by killing a Zursa; a Zursa typically spawns on round 15. Once you have killed the Zursa, you will find a mysterious limb. If you do not want to wait til round 15, you can shoot three skulls with the Necrofluid Gauntlet at the Zarya Cosmodrome to spawn a Zursa Bear.
Step 5: The Blood Sacrifice Ritual (Serum)
Once you have gathered all the ritual components, you will need to head to Yuri’s lab at the Zarya Cosmodrome; the lab is in the building with the big red Communist star. Inside the lab, there will be a brewing stand with three symbols behind it. You will need to decipher which three components you will need to create the serum and start the Blood Sacrifice Ritual.
Once the components have been added correctly, the ritual will start, and the player who has taken the serum will drop down to 1/3 health and will be highly susceptible to damage. All players in the game will be teleported to the room, unless in the Tank Dempsy cutscene (Standard Mode). Players must survive in the small space against multiple enemies until the room fills with gas. Once the room has completely filled with gas, the ritual will be complete; if the person goes down, you will need to restart the process.
Step 6: Collecting the Keys & Freeing the Prism
After you have completed the Blood Serum Ritual, you will need to collect three keys in order to free the Prism from its chains. In Directed mode, the keys will be fairly easy to find, but in Standard mode, it will be a bit more difficult. The three keys can have three different spawning locations within each pathway. You will need to use the Necrofluid Gauntlet in order to collect the keys. Once you have gathered a key, you will face a debuff, so it is best to bring the truck and have another player drive you back to Ashwood. The keys can be gathered in any order.
The first key (Nightbird Key) can be found in the Orda Graveyard (Area between Ashwood and Exit 115) – The first location is to the right of a Janus tank after leaving Exit 115 towards Ashwood. The second possible location is in the middle between Exit 115 and Ashwood; if you look up on the hill on the left side (Exit 115 direction towards Ashwood) or the right-hand side (Ashwood to 115), you will see a Dinosaur skeleton that is lit up, the key will be in the Skeleton. The third possible location is in the dinosaur skeleton close to Ashwood.
The second key (Bruin Key) can be in the Crashed Rocket portion of fog between Ashwood and the Zarya Cosmodrome. The first potential location is on a ledge immediately to the left after leaving Ashwood. The second possible location is on the fallen radio tower near the break. The third and final location is outside of the Cosmodrome by the light near the Array. In Directed Mode, this key will be inside the fence near the entrance to the Cosmodrome coming from Ashwood.
The third key (Terrapin Key) can be found in the Grounded Ship portion of the map; this is the area between Ashwood and the Farm. The first possible location where the key can be found is at the front of the boat, next to a blue shipping container. The second location is a bit more difficult, with the key potentially being in a shipping crate on the deck. The third and final possible location is inside the bottom of the ship, where there is a walkway.
After collecting a key, make sure to return to the Prism in Ashwood and insert it each time. After all three keys are inserted, the Prism will open, and a cutscene will start.
Step 7: Slowing Down Time (The Clock Tower) & Four Artifacts
The Farm (Ritual of Terror)
After the cutscene has completed, there will be a DG-2 Turret Barrel where the Prism previously was. The DG-2 Turret Barrel is the last piece of equipment that you can install in Tessie. Once the DG-2 has been installed, you can start the next step. You will need to drive the truck to an angle where you can shoot the Clocktower with the DG-2 Turret Barrel. Once the Clocktower is charged, you will need to shoot it with the Necrofluid Gauntlet and recall the shot to charge the gauntlet with Time Essence. You cannot shoot the Necrofluid Gauntlet until you hit the required target. In Standard Mode, you will need to complete a task at the Cosmodrome, Blackwater Lake, The Farm, and Exit 115; in directed mode, the game will have you go to the Farm first.
At the farm, you will need to look at the clock to the left of the skeleton and see what time it is on the clock. Stand on the time it shows with the correlating scratch marks, and the skeleton’s head will start to rotate. Once it rotates to that time, you will need to shoot the Necrofluid Gauntlet at the skeleton’s head once his eyes turn red. Now that you have shot the skeleton, you will need to collect the four artifacts.
The first artifact can be found upstairs in the Farmhouse in the cabinet next to Stamina-Up; interacting with it will give you the Tasty-face artifact. The second artifact can be found in the cellar underneath the house. In the cellar, you will find a bathtub near the cube, interact with the tub, and you will get Ma’s Chalice. The third artifact can be found on the second floor of the Barn. Interact with the haybale opposite to Death Perception to find a mask called Junior’s Fun-Face. The fourth and final artifact can be found in the Garage. In the garage, interact with the cloth on the table to get Pa’s Pigsticker.
Now, with all four artifacts in your possession, you will need to place the four artifacts on the red circles around the farm. Once they have been put in the right place, you will need to interact with one and start the soulbox event. This task can be a bit difficult since you will need to defend all four without them being destroyed. If they are destroyed, you will have to progress a round and start again. Once the ritual is complete, smoke will arise, showing that you completed the task.
Lightning at Exit 115 (Ritual of Massacre)
After you complete the farm task, in Directed mode, you will be directed to Exit 115. Before you head to exit 115, you will need to grab another charge from the Clocktower; if the round has progressed, you will need to shoot the Clocktower once again with the DG-2. With the charge in possession, head to Exit 115 with Tessie (The Truck). You will need to wait until there’s lightning over the diner to start the next step. When lightning strikes over the diner, shoot the clock above the gas pumps to stop time. You will need to call in Klaus before shooting the clock in order to get everything done. Direct Klaus to stomp next to the car in the service station; this will cause a yellow light to come out of the car and flow into the zombie. Lead the zombie up to the Service Station’s roof and into the lightning.
As one player is leading the mechanic, another player can be ramming Tessie into the freight truck next to the dinner. This will free another soul, lead the trucker zombie to the gas station’s roof, and into the lightning. The third soul you will need to free is stuck in the cash register in the Diner. In order to free this one, you will need the perk, Melee Macchiato, and need to punch the cash register. Lead the waitress zombie to the Diner’s rooftop and lead it into the blue lightning.
If you run out of time, you will need to progress the round and start again. If you accidentally kill a zombie, you can wait til the next round for them to respawn. If the lightning disappears from the area, you can trigger it manually by shooting the sparking lamp posts with the DG-2. If done correctly, the storm will start again.
Cosmodrome (Ritual of Betrayal)
For this ritual step, you will need to charge the Necrofluid Gauntlet twice; luckily, you can get multiple charges from the clock tower within a given round. During this step, you will need to go to Zarya Cosmodrome and shoot the antenna dishes with the charged gauntlet. You will need to do this process twice. With both dishes slowed down, go inside the Control Room next to the Wisp Tea Perk. On the right-hand side of the room, you will see monitors flashing different symbols. You will need to figure out what symbols are being shown, revealing their hidden meaning.
Once you know what the word is, you will have to shoot the monitors to the left with their coordinating code. The monitors will rotate between different numbers; you will need to shoot the red button on the bottom right of the monitor when the proper number is shown. If you do the step correctly, a countdown will start, and the rocket launch protocol will start. If you fail, you will need to restart the process.
Blackwater Lake (Ritual of Guilt)
After you’ve completed the first three rituals, you will need to complete one more ritual, the Ritual of Guilt; this is the last ritual you will need to complete before the boss fight. In order to start the Ritual of Guilt, you will need to head over to Blackwater Lake. At Blackwater Lake, there will be a blue wisp on the dock near where the Mystery Box can spawn. Interacting with the wisp will lead it to the projector, turning it on. With the projector now on, you will need to go back to Ashwood and charge the Necrofluid Gauntlet once again. With the gauntlet charged, you will then need to go back to Blackwater Lake and shoot the projector.
After showing the projector with the charge, it will start to display four locations around the Blackwater Lake House. You will need to go to these four locations and shoot film reels in the area in order shown by the projector to complete the first part of the ritual. The fishing hut is to the left of the main house, and the reel is located near the dartboard on the shelf to the right. The boat house reel is in the broken boathouse to the right of the main house; the reel can be found in the rapters closest to the lake.
The back of the house’s reel can be found under the porch closest to the broken boathouse. Now, the final location shown can be a bit tricky; this reel will show the front of the house, but in reality, the reel is inside on the 2nd floor, close to where you turned on the power. If you screw up the order, you will need to wait around and start again.
Once you have successfully interacted with all four reels in order, you will need to call in Klaus. Upstairs in the bedroom where Speedcola can be found, there will be a jewelry box with a blue wisp above it. Interact with the jewelry box and then have Klaus get the item from the box. Once he has picked up the item from the box, he will head to the lake. If you interact with Klaus at the lake, he will start the voting menu.
Step 8: Rally and Preparation
Before you go into the boss fight against Veytharion Sepulcher, you will need to make sure that you are fully prepared; even on directed mode, the boss fight can be challenging, and the truck can be occasionally one-shot. In order to prepare for the fight, you should have at least Juggernog, Self-Revive, and a Stimpack (Self-Ress Pack); if you are not using a Raygun, then you will want to have your primary weapon to Pack-A-Punch level 3 and Orange Rarity (Legendary).
Once you are fully prepared, head back to Blackwater Lake and interact with Klaus; this interaction will cause a voting option to come up on screen. Accept the vote and prepare to complete a sprint rally. During this rally, you will need to drive through three souls (white fog) markers in each area in between the main parts of the map. For this rally, it is advised that you go through Monolith Forest first (Blackwater Lake to Janus Towers Plaza), the Collapsed Tower second (Janus Towers Plaza to Vandorn Farm), the Grounded Ship third (Vandorn Farm to Ashwood), and then the Lost Cabins fourth (Ashwood to Blackwater Lake).
If you have driven over all 12 soul fragments, you and your crew will be teleported to the arena, where you will have to take on the Veytharion Sepulcher boss fight.
The Boss Fight
The Veytharion Boss fight can be a bit challenging if you do not know how the fight works. The first task of the fight is to ram the truck into the boss over and over again to deal damage. The area that you will ram will cause its head to burst off, exposing a weak spot. If everyone is in the truck, it can be difficult to hit the critical spot, so having at least one person outside of the truck is advisable; additionally, this can be helpful if the truck takes a ton of damage and explodes.
After the Veytharion Boss has taken damage, it will start to shoot out missiles targeting the truck. You will need to use the truck’s boost to dodge these missiles. If the truck takes damage, you can look for green pods in order to heal the truck. If the truck takes too much damage, it will explode; if it explodes, you will need to repair it, but it can be dangerous, so watch out.
After the Veytharion boss takes enough damage, it will start to spin around in circles and become invulnerable. You will need to wait until a purple light lands on the ground, drive over it, and then ram the truck into the boss once again. You will have to repeat this process until it starts to ascend. At this point, you will need to unload on the boss and target its yellow underbelly. After a certain amount of time, the boss will come back down, and you will need to start the process all over again.
As the boss’s health gets lower, it will start to attack more rapidly, and there will be more zombies and even a bear attempting to kill you. If you run out of ammo, there is an ammo cache that you can buy ammo from; additionally, there are power-ups you can pick up scattered around the arena.
Once you have defeated the boss, a cutscene will play showing the fate of the player’s characters. If you are playing in directed mode, the game will end, and you will unlock some rewards. If you are playing in Standard mode, you will get the option to quit out or keep playing. If you want to unlock Cursed Mode, you will need to keep playing and interact with the mysterious box on the lake.
Need more help? Check out the two videos below.
