BO7 Ashes of the Damned Relics: All 9 and How to Unlock

Relics are Cursed Mode difficulty modifiers on the Ashes of the Damned Zombies map in Black Ops 7. There are nine of them — three Grim, three Sinister, three Wicked. They make the match harder, but stacking enough of them fills the Cursed Tier bar and unlocks some of the best endgame payouts in the mode (Golden Armor, Ultra-rarity weapons, Pack-a-Punch IV). This guide covers exactly what each Relic does, how to trigger its trial, and the order most players should grind them in.

Before any Relic unlock counts, you must complete the main Easter egg quest on Ashes of the Damned for that map. Relics cannot be equipped until the map’s quest is done. They also only exist inside Cursed Mode, and the trial progress is not saved through save-and-quit — the trigger and the trial have to happen in the same run. Plan one Relic per session.

How the Cursed Tier ladder works

Each Relic fills a different amount of the Tier bar: a Grim Relic is one-third of a tier, a Sinister is two-thirds, and a Wicked fills a whole tier. Once the bar crosses a threshold, that tier’s bonus becomes available to buy in the pre-game lobby:

Cursed Tier reached	Bonus	Reported in-game cost
Tier I	Golden Armor	45,000 Essence
Tier II	Ultra Weapon Rarity	8,000 Salvage (after a Legendary)
Tier III	Pack-a-Punch IV	100,000 Essence

You do not need to equip all nine in one match. Equip enough to hit the tier you want, confirm the modifiers, then launch. Earning all nine also completes the Reliquary Dark Ops challenge and its Calling Card — separate from the tier bonuses above. The companion map walkthrough in our Ashes of the Damned guide covers the zones and the main quest those triggers depend on.

The three Grim Relics (round 20, easiest)

These open at Round 20 and are the natural starting point because they don’t require a high-round Cursed run.

• Lawyer’s Pen — Shock Mimic props on the map. Light three red candles (Fog cabin, Ashwood Juggernog room, Farm house) with Napalm Burst or a Molotov, then take the portal by the Barn and clear the trial.
• Dragon Wings — Normal power-up drops disabled. From the Janus Towers Plaza jump pad, shoot the three purple portals mid-flight, then clear the Vandorn Farm trial.
• Teddy Bear — Round-start delay cut by 75%. Shoot ten hidden Mr. Peeks plushies with the Necrofluid Gauntlet while in Aether Shroud, then clear the Vandorn Farm trial.

The three Sinister Relics (Tier I, round 40)

These need a Tier I (or higher) Cursed run and a Round 40 trigger.

• Vril Sphere — Caps you at 4 Perk-a-Colas. In a Tier I game, reach Round 40+, kill a Doppelghast with the jump pad, then take the Zarya Cosmodrome portal.
• Focusing Stone — No Self-Revive Kits. At Tier I, Round 40+, do the Blackwater Cabin bar-bottle step, melee-kill a Zursa, and shoot the bottles in the order they flashed, then clear the Cosmodrome trial.
• Samantha’s Drawing — Your weapons swap every round (keeping rarity and Pack-a-Punch level). At Tier I, feed Chompy one gun of each rarity up to Legendary, then a Ray Gun on Round 40+, and clear the trial.

The three Wicked Relics (Tier II, round 60, hardest)

These are the endgame wall. All three require a Tier II Cursed run.

• Bus — Injured enemies regenerate if not quickly re-damaged. Tier II, reach Round 60, then finish a full round without firing or meleeing (the Saw Blade trap on a Ravager round is the common method). Portal opens at Blackwater Lake.
• Dragon — Ammo Caches disabled. Tier II, reach Round 60 and complete the Dust to Dust main quest in the same match, then take the Blackwater Lake portal. Only explosive damage works in the trial.
• Blood Vials — All Augments disabled. Tier II, Round 20+, answer the ringing red phone five times (it respawns every ten rounds), then clear the Blackwater Lake trial.

Which order to actually grind

Do the three Grim Relics first — they only need Round 20 and are self-contained. Move to the Sinister set once you’re comfortable reaching Round 40 in a Tier I run. Save the Wicked three for last: they demand Round 60 Tier II builds and specific Wonder Weapon or ammo-mod prep (the BO7 Augments guide explains which modifications help, since Blood Vials turns them off). Because trial progress never saves, finish the side objective and the trial in one sitting, and have armor, ammo, and Perks ready before you step through any portal.