Free battle pass, skins, and nerfs hit Fortnite in patch 7.40

Epic Games is showing Fortnite fans a lot of love this Valentine’s Day.

The 7.40 patch has dropped with a number of surprises. In addition to the usual bug fixes and balance tweaks, Epic is giving players the opportunity to earn free skins and even a free Season 8 Battle Pass.

The centerpiece of the patch is a set of 13 Overtime Challenges. Completing each challenge gives various rewards including experience and skins for current Battle Pass owners, but anyone that manages to cash in on all 13 by February 27 will receive the Battle Pass for free, opening the door for a plethora of new cosmetics and emotes in the spring.

In addition to the new challenges, the content teased at the start of the Share the Love event has been added to the game. Included are the free wrap reward for users of Support-a-Creator feature, a giftable Heartspan Glider, and unlockable styles for the Trog, Powder, and Onesie skins.

There are also a hefty number of balance tweaks for serious players to pour over.

The biggest change is a nerfing of the X4 Stormwing, which will no longer be able to smash through structures or large objects. The biplane has delighted some by giving them the opportunity to take to the air, but frustrated others with its ability to effortlessly slice through trees, rocks, and buildings with a properly timed boost. Though it will remain a fun tool and an effective means of staying out of the storm, this ends its run as the most powerful melee weapon in the game.

Rocket launchers were nerfed and made considerably more rare. The weapon will now be exclusively available through air drops, and has received a substantial increase to its reload time.

A series of macro changes to buildings are also planned. Turbo Build delay will be decreased by .1 second, allowing for quicker construction. Editing will also receive a boon, with players finally able to crouch while in edit mode.

The weapon rotation has received two key changes. A new medium ammo weapon, the infantry rifle, has been introduced with common, uncommon, and rare variants. Additionally, grenades have been vaulted and replaced with clingers.

Creative Mode saw new toys added, while Save the World received a new weapon of its own in the yeoman sniper rifle. Finally, a number of bug fixes and UI improvements were also added to the game.

There is plenty more included in 7.40, so make sure to check out the full patch notes on the official Fortnite website.