The Foundation's Rift Rifle is one of Fortnite Chapter 7 Season 2's most unusual weapons. It fires teleportation rifts. Not metaphorically — you charge the shot, pull the trigger, and wherever that bullet lands, a rift opens up. That's a real escape hatch you can place anywhere on the map, or a trap you can drop on an unsuspecting enemy. There's only one per match, so if you want it, you need to move fast and earn it.
Where to find The Foundation NPC in Fortnite
New Sanctuary is the only place to start this process. The POI sits near the bottom right corner of the Chapter 7 Season 2 map, and that's where The Foundation (Reforged) NPC patrols. He wanders inside and around the large triangular building at the center of the location.
Land at New Sanctuary straight from the Battle Bus. Since only one Foundation's Rift Rifle exists per match, being the first player to hire The Foundation is the entire game.
Because NPCs in Fortnite can only be hired by one player per match, anyone else who arrives after you has already lost their shot at this weapon. Speed matters here.
How to get The Foundation's Rift Rifle
The process has three distinct stages. None of them are complicated, but skipping ahead or arriving underprepared will cost you the weapon.
Get the foundations hire screen
Step 1: Farm 750 Gold Bars
Hiring The Foundation costs 750 Gold Bars. If you drop directly into New Sanctuary, loot the chests, Rare Chests, and Safes scattered around the POI — they all grant Gold. Cash registers and eliminated players also drop it. Getting to 750 before another player hires The Foundation is the real pressure here.
Other players will be racing to hire The Foundation too. Prioritize looting for Gold over looting for weapons when you first land.
Step 2: Hire The Foundation and accept the challenge
Once you have 750 Gold, interact with The Foundation and select the Hire option. He'll join you as an ally and immediately trigger The Foundation's Challenge: eliminate 3 opponents with him by your side. Progress tracks in the upper left corner of the screen.
Step 3: Get 3 eliminations
The 3 eliminations don't need to be consecutive — just 3 total while The Foundation is active as your hired ally. Targets can be enemy players or hostile NPCs like the Ice King and Dark Voyager Echo, which gives you some flexibility if the lobby is quiet.
Once you hit the third elimination, The Foundation drops the Rift Rifle at his feet, automatically marked on your screen so you don't miss it even if he's wandered off a bit.
Get the foundations rifle reward
What does The Foundation's Rift Rifle actually do?
The Rift Rifle is an Exotic variant of the Vector 7 DMR (the standard Rift Rifle available in Rare through Legendary rarities from regular loot). The Exotic version does everything the base DMR does, plus one thing that changes how you play entirely.
Tap the fire button (R2/RT/Left Click) and it fires a standard DMR shot. Hold the fire button and the weapon charges up. Release it, and the bullet spawns a rift exactly where it hits. Walk into that rift and you're launched into the sky directly above it.
That means you can:
- Create an instant escape route from a losing gunfight
- Reposition above an enemy who thinks they have you cornered
- Rift a chasing player into the sky if they walk through it
The charge mechanic slightly reduces the weapon's effective fire rate compared to standard DMR variants, but the Exotic tier compensates with higher damage output.
A 71-damage DMR with a 1.75x crit multiplier is already a strong weapon by Chapter 7 Season 2 standards. The rift mechanic is the bonus on top, not a crutch.
What makes the Exotic different from the standard Rift Rifle?
The standard Vector 7 DMR (called the Rift Rifle in loot pool terms) drops from chests at Rare, Epic, and Legendary rarities. It's a solid DMR with no special mechanics. The Exotic version — The Foundation's Rift Rifle — adds the charge-to-rift ability and comes with higher base damage than the Legendary version of the standard DMR.
The Exotic also only exists as a single copy per match, which makes it a 1-of-1 weapon. Once the player holding it gets eliminated, it drops and becomes available for anyone to pick up, so there's a second window to grab it if you missed the initial challenge.
For more weapons, strategies, and season guides, browse more guides on GAMES.GG.