Risk of Rain Returns: How To Unlock Ancient Scepter

The Ancient Scepter is a rare item that you will first have to unlock to get in a run in Risk Of Rain Returns.

One of the hardest-to-acquire items in Risk Of Rain Returns is the Ancient Scepter. A lot of players have a hard time acquiring it because there’s no straight way to acquire it. You have to end the game at a specific difficulty level using a specific character.

Key Takeaways
  • To unlock the Ancient Scepter, players need to beat the game at Monsoon difficulty using Mercenary.
  • The Mercenary is unlocked after you beat the game five times.
  • The Ancient Scepter upgrades the fourth ability of each character.

How To Unlock Ancient Scepter

The Ancient Scepter is one of the rarest items in Risk Of Rain Returns. But before you can use it, you must unlock it first. For that, there is a certain requirement that you must complete.

To unlock the Ancient Scepter, you must unlock the Mercenary first. You will have to beat the game five times. That means facing the final enemy five different times. That is good because later on, you will get to utilize your experience with the final boss.

Risk of Rain Returns.
Pre-requisite settings to get the Ancient Scepter. [Image by the Author]
Once you have defeated the Providence five times, you will get the Mercenary. With the Mercenary unlocked, the true challenge starts. You will have to beat the Risk Of Rain Returns at Monsoon difficulty, the highest difficulty. Only after you have done that the Ancient Scepter is unlocked.

Ancient Scepter risk of rain returns.
The Ancient Scepter unlocked. [Image by the Author]

Using Ancient Scepter 

The Ancient Scepter ‘Upgrades the fourth ability’ of any character with it. It is a powerful item that will enhance the already powerful special ability. If you’re having difficulty finishing the game with a specific character, then using the Ancient Scepter is the way to go.

Here are all the upgrades that you get with the Ancient Scepter:

Character NameBefore Ancient ScepterAfter Ancient Scepter
CommandoSuppressive Fire: Fire rapidly, stunning and hitting nearby enemies for 660% damage.

Point Blank: Take out your shotgun and fire, hitting nearby enemies for 6x100% damage.
Suppressive Barrage: Rapidly stuns and deals 10x60% damage to nearby enemies.

Lead Shot: Shotgun attack for 8x100% piercing damage to nearby enemies.
EnforcerCrowd Control: Launch a stun grenade, stunning enemies in a huge radius for 250% damage. Can bounce at shallow angles.

Disperse: Fire three shotgun blasts for 3x300% damage. More effect on larger enemies. Fires downwards when used airborne.
Tear Gas: Now the gas grenade knocks back enemies in a circle while dealing 250% damage.

With the Ancient Scepter, the shotgun deal 3x350% damage while knocking back and stunning enemies.
BanditLights Out: Take aim for a headshot, dealing 500% damage. If this ability kills an enemy, the Bandit's cooldowns are all reset to 0.

Standoff: Take aim for a headshot, dealing 500% damage. If this ability kills an enemy, gain 1 temporary stack of Standoff. Standoff stacks increase damage by 50% each and last 15 seconds.
Assassinate: The ability now deals 2x500% damage

Quickdraw: When you get the Ancient Scepter, the Bandit will deal 2x600% damage.
HuntressCluster Bomb: Fire an explosive arrow for 320% damage. The arrow drops bomblets that detonate for 6x60% damage.MK7 Rockeye: The explosive arrow now deals 10x80% damage.
HAN-DFORCED_REASSEMBLY: Apply great force to all combatants for 500% damage, knocking them in the air.

Disassemble: Tear combatants apart for 5x90% damage, scaling with attack speed. Can move slowly while casting.
UNETHICAL_REASSEMBLY: The ability will stun, shock and knock up enemies now.

DISMANTLE: On top of all effects, the ability will burn enemies for 20% damage over time.
EngineerAuto Turret: Drop a turret that shoots for 3x100% damage, inheriting all your items. Hold up to 2.

V.0.2 Prototype Laser Turret: Drop a turret that charges up over 8 seconds and fires for 1200% damage per hit, inheriting all of your items. Fragile, rapidly damaging itself while firing.
Auto Turret Mk. 2: The turrets now last 30 seconds, and Engineer can hold up to 3 turrets.

V.0.5 Beta Laser Turret: The Ancient Scepter allows you to hold two turrets.
MinerTo The Stars: Leap into the air, hitting enemies below for 3x180% damage. Costs 20% heat and incurs no cooldown while Scorching.Starbound: The damage is increased to 5x180% and the heat cost is reduced to 15%.
SniperSpotter: SCAN: Send your Spotter out to analyze the most dangerous enemy, increasing critical strike chance against it by 100%.Spotter: ISOLATE: The Spotter can now slow down targetted enemy.
AcridEpidemic: Release a deadly disease, poisoning enemies for 100% damage per second. The contagion spreads to two targets after 1 second.Pandemic: If any enemy is killed by Pandemic, it now heals the Acrid.
MercenaryEviscerate: Target the nearest enemy, attacking them for 6x110% damage.

After-Image: Focus briefly, channeling energy into an after-image. All attacks are doubled for 3 seconds. Stacks twice.
Massacre: Upon killing an enemy with the ability, the Mercenary will now refresh the duration and jump to the nearby enemies.

Between Time: The attacks are quadrupled for five seconds.
LoaderM440 Conduit: Place a lightning rod. After placing two, lightning surges between them, dealing 80% damage per second for 9 seconds.M700X Discharge Conduit: The Lightninig rods now enemies that are hit at first.
CHEFSecond Helping: Prepare a master meal, boosting the next ability cast.

Cook: Rapidly prepare meal out of customers for 6x80% damage. Slain customers become tasty temporary meal items. Cannot crit.
Full Course Meal: The Chef can boost two abilties.

Buffet: The Chef will now deal 12x80% damage.
DrifterSalvage: Consume a large amount of scrap to spawn 4 temporary items.Recover: Now the ability will spawn 6 temporary items.
ArtificerFlamethrower: Burn enemies in front of you for 10x80% damage and ignites them for 20% damage over time.Incinerator: The enemies will be burnt for 12x100% damage and the damage over time is increased to 30%.
PilotAirstrike: Dash backwards, leaving a bomb that knocks enemies into air for 150% damage. Can trigger multiple times. If airborne, dash upwards and drops a bomb directly below instead.Air Raid: The bomb now deals 185% damage and stuns the enemies hit.

These are all of the upgrades that you get with the Ancient Scepter. The Artifact of Command is another interesting part of Risk Of Rain Returns. Read about it to check how to acquire it and use it. There are 14 different Artifacts; learn How to Unlock all Artifacts in Risk Of Rain Returns.

There is a Secret Character called Robomando that you can unlock. And no, I am not talking about Acrid. While at it, check out the Risk Of Rain Returns Tier List and Best Builds.

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Zohaib Abdullah is a Guides Writer on eXputer who’s been obsessed with FPS and RPG titles from a young age. He is constantly looking for new games to play, although you can mostly find him falling back on Skyrim. He has several years of experience writing for video games. Learn a bit more about Zohaib's gaming journey on his Steam profile.

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