Dark Aether

A prologue to Black Ops Cold War where special forces confront the Dark Aether's expansion.

The Dark Aether serves as a critical expansion to the Call of Duty: Vanguard Zombies mode, developed by Treyarch in collaboration with Sledgehammer Games. This narrative thread acts as a direct prologue to the story established in Black Ops Cold War. Unlike standalone events, this dimension's influence is woven into the cooperative gameplay starting at launch with the map "Der Anfang". The storyline focuses on the emergence of special forces facing threats that bridge World War II and the early Cold War era. Players encounter unique mechanics like the Altar of Covenants, allowing for randomized buffs every round to build diverse combat strategies.

Quick Facts

First major appearance: Call of Duty: Black Ops Cold War
Connection: Prologue to Black Ops Cold War

Lore & Background

The Dark Aether storyline in Vanguard is explicitly considered an expansion of the narrative introduced in Black Ops Cold War. The mode integrates classic Zombies gameplay items such as perks and the Pack-a-Punch machine alongside new elements like Essence and Salvage currencies. A defining feature is the Altar of Covenants, which permits players to purchase randomized buffs each round, fostering variety in combat builds. Post-launch updates expanded this lore significantly; a main quest for story progression was added to "Der Anfang", introducing additional objectives and new Covenants. The narrative arc continued into February 2022 with the addition of the map "Terra Maledicta" during Season 2. By April 2022, the story expanded further with classic round-based maps, beginning with a remake of "Shi no Numa" from Call of Duty: World at War in Season 4.

Reader's Guide

Players enter the Dark Aether narrative through "Der Anfang", utilizing mechanics inherited from Black Ops Cold War such as Essence and Salvage currencies. To engage with the story, players must complete specific objectives added in post-launch updates, including a main quest line for progression on this map. The Altar of Covenants is essential for adapting to these challenges, offering randomized buffs every round. Season 2 brought "Terra Maledicta", providing new environments and objectives within the same narrative framework.

For those seeking classic gameplay experiences, the introduction of round-based maps in April 2022 offered a return to traditional survival formats. The first of these was "Shi no Numa" (Season 4), followed by "The Archon" in Season 5. Completing these maps allows players to experience the full scope of Vanguard's contribution to the Dark Aether saga, which concludes with the final map release.