Everything you need to know about the Vault Cards and Diamond Keys included in the Director's Cut add-on for Borderlands 3!

The Director's Cut add-on for Borderlands 3 brings all new ways to play. In addition to a new raid boss, extra story missions, and behind-the-scenes footage, the Director's Cut also includes three Vault Cards: a new progression system with endless rewards. Each Vault Card offers unique Legendary gear, tons of new cosmetic items, and an all-new in-game resource: Diamond Keys.

What are Vault Cards and Diamond Keys, you ask? We've got you covered with this quick guide.

VAULT CARDS BASICS

There are a lot of layers to Vault Cards, but the premise is simple: playing the game with a Vault Card active gives you more loot and XP. To access them, you'll need to own the Director's Cut add-on, which is available for individual purchase or as part of Borderlands 3 Ultimate Edition or Season Pass 2.

When Director's Cut launches on April 8, you'll get immediate access to the first Vault Card: Fallen Heroes. Each of the three Vault Cards is built around a distinct theme, and Fallen Heroes offers items that pay tribute to some of the most beloved, gone-but-not-forgotten allies. We'll have more info to share on the subsequent Vault Cards later this year, but we're planning to launch all three by the end of 2021.

When multiple Vault Cards are available, you can choose which one is active while you play. Once activated, you'll see an additional progression bar on your HUD sitting just below your Vault Hunter's regular XP bar. Filling up your Vault Card progression bar works just like leveling up: it's all driven by how much XP you're gaining. By exploring the galaxy, wiping out baddies, and completing quests, you'll fill up your Vault Card progression bar in addition to your regular XP bar!

There are also new Daily and Weekly Challenges that'll give you an XP boost for both your Vault Card bar and your regular XP bar. They're all managed via a new tab in your ECHO Device, with three Daily Challenges and one multi-tiered Weekly Challenge to chase after.

Vault Cards pull from a pool of over 100 unique challenges, so you never know what you're going to get. Daily Challenges refresh every day at 9:00 AM PT / 12:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM UTC, and Weekly Challenges refresh on Thursdays at 9:00 AM PT / 12:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM UTC. Note that Daily and Weekly Challenges will be replaced at these times whether or not you've completed them, so if you see something that strikes your fancy, make sure you jump on it ASAP!

EARNING VAULT CARD REWARDS

So, you've activated a Vault Card and you've been diligently completing Challenges; how do you get its unique rewards? Enter Vault Card Chests. Each time you fill that bar and 'level up' your Vault Card, you'll score a Vault Card Chest unique to that Card.

These Chests will contain either: a piece of gear from the weekly loot pool, a cosmetic item from that Vault Card, Eridium, a Vault Card Key (which are rare), or a Diamond Key (which are super rare; more on those later). Because cosmetic items can only be collected once, Vault Cards have built-in duplicate protection—if you would've gotten a cosmetic item you already have, you'll get a Vault Card Key instead.

Vault Card Keys let you unlock the Legendary gear and cosmetics from the associated Vault Card. The gear scales to your character's current level, and you can preview the complete collection of loot via your ECHO Device. These items can be unlocked in any order you want, so you can get the loot you desire pronto.

Each Vault Card features a total of 28 unique rewards, including 24 themed cosmetics and four new pieces of Legendary gear! As an example of what to expect, here's a full rundown of the type of rewards featured in Vault Card #1, Fallen Heroes:

• 4 pieces of new Legendary gear (Sniper Rifle, SMG, Rocket Launcher, Shield)
• 4 Vault Hunter Heads
• 4 shared Vault Hunter Skins
• 4 ECHO Device skins
• 3 Weapon skins
• 4 Weapon Trinkets
• 2 Emotes
• 3 Room Decorations

There's no level cap on Vault Cards, so you can level them up with XP and continue to earn Chests indefinitely. Even after you've unlocked all of a Vault Card's unique loot, you can keep leveling it up to rake in the Eridium. And, just maybe, you'll be lucky enough to score a coveted Diamond Key…

DIAMOND KEYS

You may be familiar with Golden Keys, which you can score by keeping up with all things Borderlands on social media. Golden Keys unlock the Golden Chest near Marcus Munitions on Sanctuary III. When opened, the Golden Chest offers up a bunch of high-end gear appropriate for your level.

Diamond Keys take that even further by presenting you with not just a chest but an entire room full of tantalizing loot.

To use your Diamond Keys, visit the Diamond Armory, a new room located beneath the Bridge on Sanctuary III's upper deck. This room contains the alluring Diamond Chest with "Choose Wisely" inscribed on its front. On three nearby walls, you'll see neon symbols for Shields, Weapons, and Grenades. Activate the Diamond Chest with a single-use Diamond Key, and the shutters on those three walls will snap open, revealing a trove of exceptional items.

With so much sweet loot staring you in the face, you'll feel like a kid in a candy store. But take heed—once you've opened the Diamond Chest, the clock starts ticking. You'll have to scan through the available gear as quick as you can, because you can only take one piece of loot from each wall.

Once you've made your selections (or the timer runs out), the shutters slam shut, taking all those other lovely loot options with them. If you got so transfixed by one wall that you forgot about the others, you won't leave empty-handed; you'll receive a random item from the wall when time's up.

The fun's not over even when all the shutters are closed, as the Diamond Chest in the center of the room will power up to produce one last piece of gear that's guaranteed to be Legendary. So, to recap: each time you open the Diamond Chest, you get four items total, including at least one Legendary. With any luck, you'll score the kind of loot all Vault Hunters dream of.

FAQ

Now that you have an understanding on how Vault Cards and Diamond Keys work, here are answers to questions you might have about the finer details. If you don't see an answer to your question here, hit us up via @Borderlands on Twitter!

Can I buy Vault Cards individually?

At this time, Vault Cards can only be accessed by owning the Director's Cut add-on, and can't be purchased individually or separately.

When multiple Vault Cards are available, can I stack Vault Card Daily Challenges?

No, but each Vault Card will present three Daily Challenges, so when all three Vault Cards are available, you can complete up to nine Daily Challenges each day! Similarly, each Vault Card has its own Weekly Challenge, so you can complete a maximum of three each week. Note that you can only progress Challenges on the Vault Card you have active, so make sure you've activated the right one.

Is there a way to reroll Daily or Weekly Challenges?

Currently there are no plans to allow on-demand rerolling of Daily or Weekly Challenges, regardless of whether or not they've been completed. New Challenges will populate in your Vault Cards every day at 9:00 AM PT / 12:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM UTC for Daily Challenges, and Thursdays at 9:00 AM PT / 12:00 PM ET / 5:00 PM UTC for Weekly Challenges.

Is it possible to complete a Vault Card?

All you completionists should strive to collect all the items on each Vault Card, but Vault Cards will never technically be "completed" because they have no level cap, and will therefore always keep offering rewards. You can keep earning Vault Card levels even after you've scored all of that Card's gear to earn Diamond Keys, Eridium, and higher-level versions of the Card's gear.

Are Vault Card rewards only unlocked for my current character?

Nope—the rewards for Vault Cards are account-based, so you can redeem their rewards on any character. Vault Hunter Skins and Weapon Skins for each Vault Card will unlock on all of your characters. If you happen to get gear that would be perfect for a different character, you can transfer it with your bank aboard Sanctuary III just like any other drop!