Relics in Call of Duty: Black Ops 7 Zombies are earned only in Cursed mode: meet a Relic’s unique condition during a Cursed match, which opens a Relic Portal, then complete the Relic Trial behind it to unlock that Relic for good. Once unlocked, you switch Relics on before a Cursed match to make it harder, and running harder Relic tiers unlocks bigger in-match upgrades and rewards.
Here is how Relics work, how to reach Cursed, and how to unlock them, as of Season 06.
What Relics Are
Treyarch’s Zombies deep dive describes Relics as “archaic artifacts of great power,” each themed around a totem from Black Ops Zombies history. Activision’s patch notes name plenty of them, including the Teddy Bear, Golden Spork, Samantha’s Drawing, Valkyrie Helmet, Spider Fang, Gramophone and Blood Vials.
The twist is that Relics are not power-ups. Each one is a debuff modifier that makes your next Cursed match harder. Treyarch’s examples include a limit of four Perk-a-Colas and the removal of Ammo Caches. You accept that because running Relics unlocks stronger Relics and the mode’s unique rewards.
Relics are tied to maps, and Treyarch promised more for each map through the post-launch seasons. Activision’s patch notes show Cursed running on Ashes of the Damned, Astra Malorum, Paradox Junction, Totenreich and Rex Infernus. Once unlocked, a Relic can be switched on in Cursed matches on other maps too. The scale is large: a Season 06 title challenge asks you to finish every Main Quest with at least 18 Relics active.
How to Get Into Cursed Mode
Cursed is Zombies played old-school. You start with only a pistol, no Loadout weapons, no minimap and a points system inspired by Black Ops 3.
At launch Treyarch said you could not enter Cursed “until you’ve fulfilled certain criteria,” and launch-week player reports say it opened for everyone once the community finished the Ashes of the Damned Main Quest. Today it has its own Zombies playlists, Cursed Standard and Cursed Survival, and public Cursed matchmaking has been running since at least Season 03. Cursed Survival covers Vandorn Farm, Exit 115, Zarya Cosmodrome and Mars, with Ashwood added in Season 03.
Relics are unlocked on the Round-Based maps, so queue Cursed Standard on the map whose Relics you are after.
How to Unlock a Relic, Step by Step
- Start a Cursed match on the right map. Solo works, and so does a squad.
- Meet the Relic’s condition. Every Relic has its own requirement, usually a hidden side quest or a feat, and Treyarch warns they “can be unforgiving.” Some are tied to high rounds: Activision patched out a way to earn the Golden Spork before Round 60. Player guides sort Relics into three tiers whose trials open at Round 20, Round 40 and Round 60, and call them Grim, Sinister and Wicked.
- Find the Relic Portal. Meeting the condition opens a portal for that Relic, and Activision added an on-screen subtitle that announces when a Relic Portal unlocks.
- Complete the Relic Trial. Interact with the portal to start the trial. Trials can restrict which damage types count or disable certain tools, so read the objective before you commit.
- Switch it on next time. The Relic is now in your collection, ready to activate before your next Cursed match.
Two rules from Activision’s patch notes are worth knowing. Since a Season 03 update, a match checks every player in the lobby, and if one of them has met a Relic’s requirements, the challenge spawns for all. So a teammate who is further along can bring a Relic Trial into your match. Activision has also closed shortcuts, such as using the Time Out GobbleGum to open a portal or reloading a solo save after Round 60 to claim a Relic, so plan on earning each one properly.
What Higher Relic Tiers Earn You
Activision refers to Relic tiers by number (Tier I, II and III), and running more of them unlocks three late-game upgrades: Golden Armor, Pack-a-Punch IV and Ultra Weapon Rarity. Player guides say each tier opens one of them, with Golden Armor at Tier I, Ultra rarity at Tier II and Pack-a-Punch IV at Tier III.
There are rewards outside the match as well:
- Cursed Survival milestones. Each Survival map pays Ultra GobbleGums and XP for reaching its milestone round with Tier I and Tier II Relics, and a Relic Charm with 30,000 XP at Tier III, such as “Blood Vials” on Vandorn Farm and “Golden Spork” on Mars. Activision’s blog and patch notes list different milestone rounds, so check the challenge text in game.
- Prestige Master titles. Once you reach Prestige Master Level 100, “Aether Ruler” asks you to finish the Totenreich Main Quest with all Hard Relics from Totenreich and earlier maps active, and Season 06 added “Primordial Being” for the 18-Relic Main Quest runs. Both count toward the titles in our Prestige guide.
- Rogue Run. Since Season 05, a Curse Inducer tablet in the Astra Malorum and Ashes of the Damned Rogue Run playlists activates a random Cursed Relic, and Season 06 added bigger pedestal rewards as your Relic Tier climbs.
All that Cursed XP feeds your global level too, and any Weekly Challenge reward you miss while chasing Relics waits in the Armory next season. Zombies has been around since World at War in 2008, and our rundown of every Call of Duty game shows how far the series has come since.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you unlock Relics outside Cursed mode? No. Relics are unlocked only in Cursed matches. Rogue Run’s Curse Inducer can switch on a random Relic, but that does not add one to your collection.
Do Relics work on every map? Each Relic is unlocked on a specific Round-Based map, but once it is yours you can activate it in Cursed on other maps. Activision’s Totenreich challenge, for example, asks for Hard Relics from earlier maps to be active on Totenreich.
Can you play Cursed solo? Yes. Activision’s own challenges reference solo Cursed runs, and Cursed matches can be saved and resumed, though loading a save no longer lets you skip a Relic’s round requirement.
Why would a Relic Trial appear that you have not earned? Since a Season 03 update, if any player in the lobby has met a Relic’s requirements, the trial spawns for the whole squad. Activision’s note does not spell out whether finishing it unlocks the Relic for every player, so check your collection after the match.