The Icebreaker update dropped for Escape from Tarkov and the path to the new map is not spelled out anywhere obvious. The Boreas questline is the key, and it starts much earlier than most players expect. Here's the full breakdown of every step, every branching path, and how to get aboard regardless of your trader history.
What is the fastest way to start the Boreas questline?
Battlstate Games confirmed two entry points into the Boreas storyline. The first requires Intelligence Level 3 in your Hideout, which is a significant investment and completely out of reach if you've recently prestiged. The second is far more accessible and skips the Hideout requirement entirely.
Head into Ground Zero and look for a newly added ship poster. The poster spawns in multiple spots across the map, but the most consistent location is near the main staircase inside the central Terragroup building. Once you've found it and noted what it says, extract and head back to the main menu.
If you're struggling to find the poster on your first raid, run Ground Zero as a Scav to scout the Terragroup building without risking your gear.
Escape From Tarkov Guide: How to Get to Icebreaker
With the poster found, open your Trader menu and visit Mechanic. Start a conversation with him and bring up what you discovered. He'll fill in the context and hand you your first objective.
How to complete the early Boreas tasks
Step 1: Repair the radio tower on Woods
Mechanic sends you to Woods, specifically to the Scav Bunker in the top-left corner of the map. Bring a Toolkit because you'll need it to perform a repair job on the radio tower there. Complete the repair, extract, and report back to Mechanic.
The Scav Bunker area on Woods sees regular PvP traffic. Consider running this task during off-peak hours or with a loadout you're comfortable losing.
Step 2: Find the shipping documents on Lighthouse
After the radio tower repair, Mechanic points you toward Lighthouse. Your target is the rail station north of the Water Treatment Plant. Inside the main hangar building of the railway station, you'll find the shipping documentation sitting on a table. Grab it and bring it back to Mechanic.
Once Mechanic has the documents, he tells you that reaching Icebreaker requires vehicle access. That's where the questline branches.
Which route should you take to reach Icebreaker?
At this point you have two trader options: Prapor or the BTR Driver. Your prior quest history with each trader determines exactly what you'll need to do. The table below lays out every scenario.
Prapor can help you leave Icebreaker, but he cannot get you there. You still need the BTR Driver's cooperation to actually reach the map regardless of which path you pursue with Prapor.
BTR Driver path details
If you completed the BTR taskline and stayed loyal to the BTR Driver, this is the cleanest resolution. Go back to your Hideout, open the trader interface for the BTR Driver, and the transit option to Icebreaker unlocks immediately. Players who sided with Skier instead will need to hand over ammo as a peace offering before the Driver cooperates.
For players who skipped the BTR taskline entirely, expect to run an elimination task clearing enemies in Smuggler territory before the Driver agrees to help.
Prapor path details
The Prapor branch revolves around helicopter oil found on Reserve. Three spawn locations are confirmed: near the helicopter in the barracks area (check around forklift trucks), in the long corridor under the back of Black Bishop, and in the cargo section of the railway station. Which of these you need depends on your history with The Ticket quest.
Tips for getting through the Boreas taskline efficiently
- Bring a Toolkit into your Woods raid specifically for the radio tower step. Forgetting it means a wasted raid.
- The helicopter oil on Reserve has three spawn locations. Check all three if the first is empty, as only one needs to be found.
- If you're deep into other questlines, the Stealing the Stolen quest guide covers stash mechanics on Woods and Customs that overlap with areas you'll pass through during the Boreas chain.
- Players working the Prapor branch who also need to spend time on Woods should check the large barn location guide for Woods since the Backup Plan quest area sits in the same general region as the Scav Bunker.
- The BTR Driver path is faster if your relationship with him is already in good standing. If it isn't, the Prapor route is more predictable since the helicopter oil spawns are fixed.
The Boreas taskline is still being fully mapped by the community as of today, May 25, 2026. Some later steps may have additional requirements that get documented as more players push through. For the latest on everything happening in this extraction shooter, keep checking back as the community works through the remaining steps.