Quick answer: Season 26 "Beware the Blood Moon" launches on September 15, 2026 alongside The Slasher update. It introduces a multi-week horror event themed on the Pint-Sized Slasher, new S.C.O.R.E. rewards (Batty Skirt, Blood Moon Power Armor Paint, Creepy Cultist Well, Blood Moon Weather Control Station), and the brand-new Legacy Seasons system — which lets you simultaneously chase past-season rewards from Season 4 "Cold Steel" alongside the current season. Any unused Season 25 tickets convert to Gold Bullion at reset, but you get better value spending them on the scoreboard first (75 tickets = 100 Gold Bullion vs. the 1:1 reset rate).
Season 25 "Appalachia Under Siege" closes on September 15, 2026. Everything you worked toward — your ticket stash, your rank — resets when the maintenance window opens. What comes next is one of the most feature-packed updates Fallout 76 has ever shipped: a murder mystery that unfolds over multiple weeks, 80+ weapons unlocked for legendary crafting, a Gen 9 console performance boost, and a dual-season structure that lets veteran and returning players chase old rewards at the same time.
This guide covers every confirmed detail: what's in Season 26, how The Slasher event works week by week, how Legacy Seasons function, and what to do with your remaining tickets before the clock runs out.
When Does Season 26 Start — and How Long Does It Run?
Season 26 "Beware the Blood Moon" goes live on September 15, 2026, tied to The Slasher update. Per Bethesda's official season overview, the new season is expected to run roughly 91 days — placing its conclusion sometime in December 2026, when the next update cycle is expected to begin.
Bethesda officially designates its seasons by both name and number. "Season 26: Beware the Blood Moon" is the name direct from Bethesda's own news article, not a community label.
At reset on September 15:
- Season 25 ticket progress is wiped; unclaimed season rewards are no longer available through the board
- Unused tickets convert to Gold Bullion — but at a better rate if you spend them on the board first (see the ticket section below)
- The Season 26 board becomes active immediately after maintenance
What Is The Slasher Event and How Does It Work?
According to Bethesda's official announcement, The Slasher builds on a piece of Fallout lore players already know — the Pint-Sized Slasher, an infamous Pre-War serial killer. The event's premise: a string of grisly crimes in Appalachia shares an eerie resemblance to the Pint-Sized Slasher's old work. Is the legend actually back, or are Slasher-worshipping copycats to blame?
The Slasher is described by Bethesda as "a first of its kind update for Fallout 76." The horror story rolls out through multiple weeks of layered content — each new layer intensifies the situation:
- Breaking News broadcasts — Emergency broadcasts push weekly updates on the investigation, revealing new leads and advancing the story
- Slasher cultist infestations — Slasher-worshipping fanatics now show up at Infestation locations across the map; clear them out to progress
- Grave-digging activities — New environmental interactions let players unearth clues in unmarked graves
- New Daily Ops challenges — Additional ops tied to the Slasher event run alongside the standard rotation
The event culminates in a confrontation with "the Pint-Sized imposter" himself. Clear him out and you have a shot at two new rewards: a unique Power Armor set and the Super Slasher, a new weapon added with this update.
"The Slasher is coming, his blade shining bright / And the Blood Moon is rising to welcome the night."
— u/beammeup__scotty, r/fo76, September 14, 2026
What Are the Season 26 S.C.O.R.E. Rewards?
Bethesda confirmed the following Season 26 rewards in its official season overview article (fallout.bethesda.net):
| Reward | Type |
|---|---|
| Batty Skirt | Outfit/cosmetic |
| Blood Moon Power Armor Paint | Power Armor cosmetic |
| Creepy Cultist Well | C.A.M.P. decoration |
| Blood Moon Weather Control Station | C.A.M.P. object |
The season board also features player icons and title customization options, with the expected mix of Atoms, Caps, Perk Coins, and utility items on the bonus pages.
Bonus page rewards (verified fallout.wiki):
- 100 Atoms — 250 tickets
- 5 Basic Repair Kits — 75 tickets
- 5,000 Caps — 75 tickets
- 100 Gold Bullion — 75 tickets
- 10 Legendary Modules — 75 tickets
- 5 Lunchboxes — 75 tickets
- 3 Mystery Bobblehead Boxes — 75 tickets
- 25 Perk Coins — 75 tickets
- 3 S.C.O.R.E. Boosters — 75 tickets
- 10 Stamps — 75 tickets
How Do Legacy Seasons Work?
Legacy Seasons are one of the headline system changes shipping with Season 26. Starting now, Bethesda will run one past season alongside the current season — giving players a second track of rewards to chase using the same ticket pool.
Key rules (from the official Legacy Seasons FAQ at bethesda.net):
- Same tickets, two boards — No new currency. Every ticket you earn can go toward either the Season 26 board or the Legacy Season board, your choice.
- Linear legacy unlocks — Current season rewards unlock in any order; Legacy Season rewards must be claimed in sequence from page one.
- Veteran skips — If you claimed a reward when the season originally ran, it shows as already claimed, letting you jump ahead to the next reward immediately.
- A few new rewards added — Bethesda has included a handful of new items in the Legacy Season that were not in the original run.
- Game boards excluded — The original game board for each returning season is not available as a legacy reward (Bethesda considers these commemorative items for those who were present at the time).
- Season length — The Legacy Season runs for the same duration as the current season.
The first Legacy Season is Season 4: "Cold Steel" (Armor Ace and the Power Patrol). If you missed Season 4 originally, this is your first chance to earn Armor Ace cosmetics and the Power Patrol set. Bethesda's long-term plan is to rotate new Legacy Seasons each cycle; which season returns next was put to a community vote in August 2026 on the Bethesda Discord and r/fo76.
What's on the Q4 2026 Fallout 76 Calendar
Bethesda released the official Q4 2026 community calendar alongside The Slasher announcement. Confirmed events running through Season 26 include seasonal challenge periods, Double Mutations, Caps-a-Plenty bonuses, Mischief Night, and Spooky/Holiday Scorched events. A Fallout 76 anniversary event is also planned later in the season, alongside Double XP and Treasure Hunter weekends.
This is the densest event calendar Fallout 76 has seen in several seasons, meaning there will be consistent opportunities to earn bonus XP and accelerate your Season 26 ticket progress without relying on Fallout First.
How to Spend Your Season 25 Tickets Before Reset
Your unused Season 25 tickets do not disappear at reset — they convert to Gold Bullion. But there's a catch:
Scoreboard rate: 75 tickets = 100 Gold Bullion Reset rate: 1 ticket = 1 Gold Bullion
Spending tickets on Gold Bullion before the season ends gives you a 33% better return. If you are sitting on a stack of tickets and have no specific rewards left to claim, buy Gold Bullion from the scoreboard rather than letting them auto-convert.
Priority for remaining tickets (community consensus, r/fo76):
- Specific season rewards you still want before they leave (highest value)
- S.C.O.R.E. Boosters — spend now; these roll into Season 26 and help you progress faster (especially useful for the dual-season Legacy system)
- Gold Bullion (75 tickets each on the board)
- Perk Coins, Legendary Modules
- Caps (lowest value, caps are easy to farm)
Note: Scout Banners and Superb Baits are reportedly not available in Season 26 (community-sourced from r/fo76 — Bethesda has not confirmed this officially). If those matter to you, claim any remaining stock now.
What Does the Gen 9 Console Performance Boost Include?
The Slasher update includes a significant technical upgrade for console players. Bethesda confirmed that Xbox Series S/X, PS5, and older console generations will receive:
- Better frame performance and stability
- Improved visual fidelity
- A foundation for platform-specific optimizations the team can apply going forward
PC players are unaffected by this specific upgrade, but the underlying optimizations may improve server-side stability across all platforms.
How Does Unique Weapon Crafting Work in The Slasher Update?
Also shipping with The Slasher: unique weapon crafting, which lets players change legendary mods on any of the game's 80+ uniquely named weapons at a workbench. Until now, legendaries were fixed on named weapons. This opens up significant build customization for named weapons like The Fixer that were previously locked to whatever legendary effects they spawned with.
Bethesda did not specify the full crafting cost or resource requirements at launch; exact costs will be available in-game from September 15.
What Does Season 26 Mean for Your Build?
Two changes in this update affect active builds directly:
Legendary mod swapping on named weapons — The Fixer is now rerollable. Stealth Commando builds that farmed a poor-legendary Fixer can finally fix it at the workbench rather than grinding Purveyor Murmrgh or the Encryptid event for a better roll. This is the single biggest QoL change for endgame players who rely on named weapons.
Gen 9 boost on console — If you play on PS5 or Xbox Series S/X, expect smoother frame rates in high-density events like Eviction Notice, Rad Rumble, or the Gleaming Depths Raid. Heavy Gunner builds that run Miniguns or Gatling Plasmas in Power Armor will benefit most from the improved frame stability. Frame performance has been the most common console complaint in r/fo76 for the past several seasons.
If you're coming back to Fallout 76 for Season 26, check out our Commando Build Guide or Bloodied Build Guide for full loadouts going into the new season.
FAQ
When does Season 25 end? Season 25 "Appalachia Under Siege" ends on September 15, 2026. The game goes into maintenance roughly two hours before the daily reset on that date; all Season 25 progress, ticket accumulation, and rank locked at that point.
What happens to my unused Season 25 tickets? They convert to Gold Bullion at a 1:1 rate. However, if you spend them on Gold Bullion via the scoreboard before reset, you get 100 Gold Bullion per 75 tickets — a significantly better rate. Spend them now if you can.
Can I work on both Season 26 and the Legacy Season at the same time? Yes. You use the same tickets for both. There is no separate currency or separate ticket pool. Spend tickets on whichever board's rewards you want in whatever order you want.
What is the Legacy Season? It's a re-run of Season 4, "Cold Steel" (Armor Ace and the Power Patrol). Starting with Season 26, Bethesda will include one past season alongside the current season so players can chase rewards they missed. Veteran players who already claimed all the Season 4 rewards have their items marked as claimed and can jump directly to the new additions.
What is The Slasher? The Slasher is the new seasonal event in Season 26. It's a multi-week murder mystery themed on the Pre-War Pint-Sized Slasher urban legend. Each week unlocks a new layer — new clues, new culprits, new broadcasts. The event ends with a boss confrontation and rewards a unique Power Armor set and the Super Slasher weapon.
Does unique weapon crafting work on all weapons or only named ones? Only uniquely named weapons — Bethesda confirmed 80+ of them. Standard legendary weapons with random names are unaffected; you need a specific uniquely named weapon (like The Fixer or the Cremator) to access the legendary mod change at the workbench.
