Fortnite’s Treasure Hours are revealed as Epic buffs drop rate of elusive Pirate Shop Token

Fortnite’s Treasure Hunters mini season is underway, ahead of the launch of Chapter 8 in December.

It was always going to be difficult to follow up last year’s immensely successful The Simpsons-themed mini season, but Epic Games seems to have pulled it off.

That’s thanks to a little gold coin no one can stop talking about: the Pirate Shop Token.

The Pirate Shop Token is one of the rarest items ever to be included in a Fortnite loot pool; those who do pick it up gain 28 days of free access to the game’s item shop.

Those 28 days of access are to be split across two 14-day periods, with the second 14-day period to be taken in 2027.

Lucky treasure hunters will get to claim every skin, backbling, emote, and pickaxe available during those 28 days for free, so you can see why everyone is desperate to get their hands on the coin.

Fortnite’s Pirate Shop Token: What is the drop rate?

Epic Games

As for just how elusive the Pirate Shop Token is, well, Epic Games has finally confirmed the item's drop rate after much speculation from players.

There’s a one in 137,500 chance that the Pirate Shop Token will spawn in any given chest in a normal match.

There’s no variance in the drop rate throughout the day; it remains the same except during Treasure Hours - more on those shortly.

Fortnite players can also currently find weekly gold outfits, although these aren’t getting quite as much attention as the Pirate Shop Token.

These too are found in chests in matches, as are weekly vehicles, decals, pickaxes, backblings, jam tracks, and loading screens.

Outfits are certain to turn the most heads, as very few players will end up with these golden skins, given that they’re even rarer than the Pirate Shop Token.

There’s a one in 1,562,500 chance a chest will spawn the weekly gold outfit. For the weekly gold vehicle or decal, you’re looking at one in 7,813.

The weekly gold pickaxe or backbling has a one in 568 chance, followed by the jam track having a one in 391 chance, and the weekly loading screen having a one in 272 chance.

The only way to improve your chances of finding any of the above items, and that’s to make use of Treasure Hours.

READ MORE: Fortnite confirms major shake-up as players to get extra free V-Bucks at the cost of less skins

When are Fortnite’s Treasure Hours going to be held?

During Treasure Hours, the drop rate of Pirate Shop Tokens, the weekly gold outfit, and the weekly vehicle and decal are due to be increased.

The first set of Treasure Hours has already been held but there are more on the way, as confirmed by fortnite.bot:

• Saturday November 14, 7pm - 9pm GMT / 2pm - 4pm EST
• Sunday November 15, 2am - 4am GMT / Saturday November 14, 9pm - 11pm EST
• Saturday November 21, 7pm - 9pm GMT / 2pm - 4pm EST
• Sunday November 22, 2am 0 4am GMT / Saturday November 21, 9pm - 11pm EST
• Saturday November 28, 7pm - 9pm GMT / 2pm - 4pm EST
• Sunday November 29, 2am - 4am GMT / Saturday November 28, 9pm - 11pm EST

During Treasure Hours, the drop rate of the Pirate Shop Token is guaranteed to increase by 1.5x, while the weekly gold outfit drop rate will increase by a whopping 7.5x.

The weekly vehicle and decal round out the Treasure Hours buffs with a drop rate increase of 10x.

These are minimum drop rates, as Epic Games has already confirmed that drop rates may increase further.

For example, during the previous weekend’s Treasure Hours (November 7 and 8), the drop rate of the Pirate Shop Token doubled while the weekly gold outfit increased by 10x, so it’s worth keeping an eye on FortniteStatus communications.

There’s no quick fix to getting your hands on these coveted items, but to stand your best chance, play often, search every chest, and make use of Treasure Hours.

Our best tip? Gather your friends. A squad can cover more ground than a solo player, and if a squad member unearths the Pirate Shop Token, the entire group reaps the benefits.