Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 3: our coverage of the new Star Wars season's launch as it happened

And we're live!

Hello and welcome to my live coverage of the Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 3 launch. We’re now on the eve of release day, and there’s still plenty we don’t know about the imminent Star Wars-centric season. First off, let’s cover what we do know.

When does the current season end?

The current season of Fortnite is set to end tomorrow (May 2) at 2AM ET / 7AM BST, and 11 PM for PT (May 1). At this point, the game will move offline for scheduled downtime. At present, there’s no info on how long downtime will be, but it's worth noting that last season's switch over took five hours. Hopefully it'll be a little shorter this time.

So, Fortnite Galactic Battle?

Fortnite Galactic Battle is the next season of Fortnite, and it's entirely themed around Star Wars. From the looks of things, this will be a shorter season, with weekly narrative updates that culminate in a live finale.

The new Battle Pass skins have been shown off

So far, Epic Games has shown off five confirmed Battle Pass skins for Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 3. Poe Dameron, Wookie Team Leader, Resistance Evie, Emperor Palpatine, and General Grievous will all be up for grabs. As in previous seasons, I'm betting on there being variants for each too, perhaps a Clone Wars-style for Grievous? One can hope.

Grab a free Star Wars skin before the new Season begins

You can now connect your Epic and MyDisney accounts to earn a First Order Stormtrooper outfit to use in Fortnite. Follow these steps to do so:

• Sign into your Epic account. (You can do this from epicgames.com/id/login.)
• On your Account page, go to Apps and Accounts. (If you’re already signed in, go straight to Apps and Accounts!)
• Click “Connect” on the MyDisney Account option. You’ll be directed to the MyDisney website to continue the process. Not able to connect? Find more information on eligibility.
• Runs until August 31, 2025

That's no moon

If you drop into Fortnite now, as I just did, you'll spot a new addition to the skyline. The Death Star can be seen in the distance, signaling the arrival of the Empire and First Order.

Mace Windu finally joins Fortnite

Despite Fortnite having featured Mace's lightsaber before as a mythic weapon, the character has never actually been added as a skin. He'll be available in the store at some point during Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 3, hopefully alongside his purple lightsaber as a harvesting tool (we'll see).

What about Darth Jar-Jar?

Finally, Darth Jar Jar is officially canon, well... in terms of Fortnite canon, I suppose. He's seemingly not included in the Battle Pass, so I'm betting he'll be the bonus skin for this season. We'll have to wait and see.

There's still time

With less than a day left of Fortnite Lawless, you might want to make the most of the remaining hours and collect any Battle Pass skins you've yet to redeem. Tier 100 features Mortal Kombat's Sub-Zero, though honestly, I'm happy with having just earned Big Dill.

Grab The Vaultbrella

Speaking of making the most of Season 2 while it's still live, you can still pick up The Vaultbrella by getting a Victory Royale. Easier said than done, but worth giving a go while you wait for the Star Wars events to kick off.

Catch the first two episodes of Tales of the Underworld early

Be among the first to view the first two episodes of the new Star Wars: Tales of the Underworld animated series, exclusive to the Star Wars Watch Party island in Fortnite for the first 48 hours before it hits Disney+! The island goes live on May 2 at 10AM ET / 3PM BST / 7AM PT.

There's set to be five weekly updates to enjoy

Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 3 will run through until early June, making it a condensed season when compared to the last two. Each week, there's going to be an update that'll kick off new narrative elements, and shift the focus of the season. Here's the update schedule:

• Imperial Takeover – May 2, 2025
• The Pull of the Force – May 8, 2025
• Mandalorian Rising – May 22, 2025
• Star Destroyer Bombardment – May 29, 2025
• Death Star Sabotage – June 7, 2025

Signing off for a short break

I'll be taking a short break now, but I'll be back at 12PM ET / 5PM BST / 9AM PT to resume my live coverage of Fortnite Galactic Battle. There's still plenty to dive into, including the new map changes which tease the return of Vader Samurai.

Back like a Bantha

I'm back to resume duties on the Fortnite Galactic Battle live blog, and there's been a few reveals while I've been away. Let's dive back in with another look at General Grievous.

Let's take a look at the new map

Epic Games has already unveiled the new Fortnite map for Chapter 6 Season 3. Looks like there's four main changes, with Vader Samurai's Solitude, Resistance Base, Enclave Outpost, and First Order Base being the new main locations. That means it's time to say goodbye to Whiffy Wharf, Demon's Dojo, Shogun's Solitude, and Hopeful Heights.

All non-lightsaber weapons will be blasters

Thanks to a blog post recently posted on the main Fortnite site, we now know that all non-lightsaber weapons will be blasters. This likely means no ammo to pick up, though we'll have to wait and see. here's the full weapons list:

• Reliable DL-44 Blaster Pistol
• Heavy CR-2 Blaster (an SMG!)
• Close-range ACP Scatter Blaster and BARM-ST12 Scatter Blaster
• Close-to-medium range DLT-19 Blaster Rifle
• Long-range IQA-11 Marksman Blaster Rifle
• All-purpose A280-CFE Blaster Rifle
• (unvaulted) Highly accurate DC-15 Heavy Blaster Rifle
• (unvaulted) Empire standard Issue E-11 Blaster
• (unvaulted) First Order standard issue F-11 Blaster

Defeat Captain Phasma to earn a Mythic weapon

If you can infiltrate the First Order Base and defeat Captain Phasma in battle, you’ll be rewarded with the Mythic Captain Phasma’s F-11D Blaster and Phasma’s Blaster Medallion. The Medallion extends how long it takes a blaster weapon to overheat, and reduces its cooldown. With everyone else running standard blasters, this could really give you an edge worth seeking out.

Grab a bite at eAT-eAT

A couple of crashed AT-ATs will be repurposed into a food court as part of the new update. eAT-eAT could be a low-key drop spot, one that I'm betting will be filled with healing items at the start of every match.

Hunker down in the dunes

The new Enclave Outpost location is a very Mos Eisley-esque area, with an X-Wing that you can pilot, and a sandcrawler to explore. Be sure to check the underground hangars for more weapons that you can use to take down the First Order.

Infiltrate the First Order Base

The First Order Base is one of the largest POIs (points of interest) on the map, with a reboot van, and two main sections. You'll find Captain Phasma here, who drops a Mythic weapon and Medallion when beaten. You can sneak in by tracking down the utility shaft.

The return of Vader Samurai

Darth Vader Samurai debuted during Chapter 6 Season 1, and it's confirmed that he'll be back soon. A new POI called Vader Samurai's Solitude will pop up in the southwestern corner of the new map, where Shogun's Solitude previously was. It'll feature Vader Samurai as a mini-boss, similarly to how the Shogun works on the current map. Defeat his guards to call him out for battle.

Take to the skies

The Fortnite Galactic Battle announcement post mentions pilotable TIE Fighters and X-Wings, which should make for some epic dogfights. Even better, there's co-pilot seats for your squadmates, where they'll be able to control turrets to deal extra damage.

Unlimited Power

Force Lightning will arrive in Fortnite tomorrow, and you'll need to head through a portal and speak to the Emperor to get it. Force powers have been a mainstay for Star Wars-related Fortnite events for a while now, with everything from Force Push to Force Throw, which let you chuck big rocks at enemies for huge damage. Hopefully, Force Lightning will be worth seeking out. I'd love there to be a chain lightning effect to deal damage to multiple opponents at once.

STAR DESTROYER BOMBARDMENT

On May 29, players will be able to locate a single portal that'll appear once per match. Go through it and you'll be in the Control Room of a Star Destroyer, allowing you to turn the turbolasers on and unleash destruction from above.

Bye bye for now

I'm heading off for the night! I'll be back online at 3AM ET / 8AM BST / 12AM PT to resume my live coverage of Fortnite Galactic Battle's launch. The game will be in scheduled downtime at that point. Hopefully, we won't have to wait too long to drop into the new season.

Kicking things back off now Fortnite is offline for maintenance

Hello once again, and happy new Fortnite season launch day. We're now just hours away from Galactic Battle, with the game currently in downtime. No word on how long this will last, but fear not, I'll be keeping this live blog up to date, letting you know exactly when things go back online.

Is Fortnite down?

Yes, Fortnite is currently down. I just logged in, and was met with a "Servers not responding" error message. Don't worry, this is all to be expected, given Fortnite went into scheduled maintenance at 2AM ET / 7AM BST / 11PM PT.

New Sith skin

The main Fortnite Twitter account just posted a short video showing a new Sith skin set to come to the game. Could this be a variant of the Rebel Evie outfit already announced? We'll have to wait and see.

A full slate of new Force abilities

There's a handful of Force powers that'll be available once the new Fortnite season goes live. First up is Force Push, which will be rewarded from training with hologram Rey. Then there's Force Lightning, which will be taught by the Emperor. Force Saber Throw is dropped by Vader Samurai, who's a new mini-boss found at Vader Samurai's Solitude. On May 8, Mace Windu will arrive, and that's where you'll learn Force Pull. Finally, Darth Maul will teach the devastating Force Throw ability.

Resistance Base X-Wings

We've now gotten a look at the new Resistance Base POI. It's set amongst the trees, and features an underground hangar filled with loot. There's X-Wings here too, which can be flown, of course.

Gameplay trailer shows off dogfights and lightning powers

Imperial Takeover | Fortnite Galactic Battle Gameplay Trailer - YouTube

Watch On

The Fortnite Galactic Battle gameplay trailer just dropped, showing off the X-Wing and TIE Fighter battles that'll fill the skies over the new map. There's also a short clip featuring a Sith character performing dodges while holding a lightsaber, before unleashing Force Lightning.

Big updates to LEGO Fortnite

Captain Phasma is front and center in the new First Order LEGO Pass, which features both free and premium rewards. If you do want the extra items., it'll cost 1,400 V-Bucks, or available as part of Fortnite Crew.

Servers are still down

As of 4:10 AM ET / 9:10 BST / 1:10AM PT, Fortnite servers are still down, and have been for two hours. I'll be sat refreshing the loading screen for the next half an hour or so, and will update as soon as I get in.

Matchmaking error 1 Fortnite code popping up for many

Upon loading into Fortnite, you're likely to see a "Matchmaking error 1" code message pop up. This means that the game is unable to connect to Epic matchmaking servers, and is completely normal during downtime. There's not much you can do here, but I recommend restarting your game every 5 minutes to make sure everything is all refreshed for when serves go back online.

When will Fortnite servers be back online?

I'm still monitoring Fortnite servers using the official Epic Games website tool. In terms of when servers are likely to go back up? It's hard to say. Last season's switchover lasted around five hours, which is on the longer side of things, historically speaking.

My prediction is that downtime will last around three hours, meaning that things will be online at 5AM ET / 10AM BST / 2AM PT. This is based on how things have worked in the past, given that downtime is usually 2-3 hours on average. Of course, this could be a case where downtime lasts much longer than expected. I'll be sure to keep this page updated.

I can't wait to try the new Thermal Imploder

It's not all blasters and lightsabers in the new weapon loot pool. There's also a Thermal Imploder, which is likely to be very useful in build mode. It'll completely break apart nearby structures, handy for displacing opponents and drawing them from cover.

Three hours into downtime. Are Fortnite servers back up?

It's now 7AM ET / 10AM BST / 2AM PT, and Fortnite servers are still down for maintenance. If previous seasons are anything to go on, we shouldn't be waiting much longer. In the meantime, I'll be reading the full blog post again to see what's in-store for the new boss Medallions.

Fortnite new season update size

You've been able to pre-download the new update for a few hours now, so get on it if you haven't already. On PS5 Pro, my update was 20.819GB, though Xbox and PC users are reporting larger file sizes. I've just confirmed a 71GB update on my Series X, so it's looking like PS5 is the place to be for a smaller download.

Well, servers are still down

I expected Fortnite servers to be back online by now, given that we're now three and a half hours into downtime. It's looking like this could be on the longer end of seasonal updates, though that's to be expected given just how much is being flipped over into Star Wars content.

Chewie arrives on May 15

Chewbacca's Bowcaster arrives as part of a post-launch weekly update in Fortnite Galactic Battle on May 15. The Jawa Scatterblaster will also be added into the loot pool, which will hopefully be something like a shotgun.

Four hours of downtime for Fortnite's new season

Fortnite's next season just entered hour four of downtime. Good news though, the Epic Games server site is showing all systems as operational, so we'll be let in any minute.

Downtime is expected to end shortly, according to prominent leaker

A prominent Fortnite leaker has tweeted that they expect Fortnite downtime to end shortly. This comes from @ShiinaBR, who is very reliable for Fortnite leaks. Still, I'll wait for official confirmation from Epic Games before restarting and loading the game again.

Mandalorian Rising

Mandalorian warriors will take over the Fortnite Galactic Battle map on May 22. You’ll be able to recruit a Heavy, Scout, Supply, or Medic Mandalorian to your team, and gain a significant advantage over your opponents with the unvaulted Mandalorian Jetpack. The Amban Sniper Rifle and the new dual-wield WESTAR-34 Blaster Pistols will also be available, so keep an eye out for updates.

Fortnite Galactic Battle is still undergoing maintenance

As we near 5 hours of downtime, Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 3 is still yet to launch. Despite the official website showing servers as operational, I'm still getting the "servers not responding" error when trying to log in. Hopefully we'll get an update from Epic Games at some point, especially if there's been any slight delays to the timings.

Fortnite Chapter 6 Season 3 is now live

Fortnite Galactic Battle is now live! Jump into the new map now.

Dark-side Apprentice Evie us available in the Battle Pass

Apprentice Evie has two variants, one for light-side, one for dark. The dark side one is unlocked on page two of the Battle Pass, and has a hooded or unhooded version.

Hit-scan blasters are feeling great

Every weapon in the new Fortnite season is hit-scan, apart from the long-range IQA-11, and the DC-15 sniper. In my first match, I found the base blasters to be extremely accurate, though the overheating will take some getting used to.

Embrace the Light, or turn to the Dark

There's new Quests available that'll align you with either the Dark or the Light side of the Force. Pick TIE Fighters and spend time at First Order bases to level up your Dark alignment, or visit Resistance Bases and pilot X-Wings to side with the Light.

Lando and Luke skins in the Store

Dagobah Luke and Lando Calrissian lead the new Star Wars store offerings. I'll be getting my hands on that Yoda Back-Bling, personally.

X-Wings feel...slow

Having just tried out an X-Wing for the first time, I'm surprised at how slow they are. They deal serious damage, and can be landed easily, but for getting across the map, you might be better off in a fast car.

General Grievous arrives on May 15

We now know that General Grievous is the bonus Battle Pass skin, and that he'll arrive on May 15. As usual, there are bonus items associated with his mini battle pass, but these are currently greyed out. We'll likely learn more as we get a bit closer to May 15, though I'm really hoping there's a four-armed lightsaber twirling emote included somewhere.

Long-ranged engagements appear to be king

Unsurprisingly, given that most of the weapons are hitscan, but I'm already finding myself dealing damage to opponents from very long range indeed. Given the generosity of the overheat mechanic in place of having to reload, you can also fire off quite a few shots before needing to stop. We'll see how this develops in the meta, but Fortnite Galactic Battle could be one that focuses on gaining high ground and picking out targets from afar.

Vader Samurai defeated

I took down Vader Samurai in my last match, gaining Force Saber Throw as a reward. While being able to throw your lightsaber is undoubtedly cool, it does leave you very exposed to damage. Personally, I've found the other Force powers more useful, especially the Force Push that can be used to knock an enemy back and off of ledges.

And with that, my live coverage ends

Now that Fortnite Galactic Battle is live all across the world, I'll be heading off. Having played a few matches, I'm loving the new blaster-focused loot pool, and definitely think Captain Phasma's Mythic Weapon is worth seeking out each game. We'll have to see how the weekly updates go, but I'll definitely be playing regularly until the live finale on June 7. See you then!