Skip to main content

Fortnite season 4 week 9 challenge guide: Where to land at Sharky Shell

One of this week’s trickier Fortnite challenges is for landing at a mysterious new location called Sharky Shell and finishing within the top 25. For season 4 week 9, Fortnite has some new, Halloween-themed areas, one of which is Sharky Shell. The game doesn’t tell you where this spot is located, but we’ve got the scoop on where to find it and how to outlast the competition (or at least finish within the top 25).

For this challenge, there are a lot of little things you should know — like how to safely stay away from other players, how to get the challenge to register (it doesn’t unlock right when you reach the 25th spot, surprisingly), and of course, where to find Sharky Shell. In this guide, we’ll cover all of that. Here’s how to land and Sharky Shell and finish within the top 25 in Fortnite.

Recommended reading:

Recommended Videos

Finding Sharky Shell

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Sharky Shell is a new area in Fortnite, located on an island to the north of Coral Castle — at the northwestern section of the map. After the season 4 week 9 update goes live, this area will be grayed out and you must visit it to uncover it on the map. The image above shows its exact location. Since this location is home to a new challenge, it’ll be quite busy — meaning you shouldn’t stick around. Some players have reported being able to stay hidden at that location for the duration of the match, but we didn’t have much luck with that method — especially with the storm coming in. Players kept finding us and eliminated us out before reaching the top 25.

While landing at Sharky Shell, try to survey the area to get a sense of how many players are there. You should also do your best to land by some loot so you can stock up — just in case things get hairy. And make sure you’ve got visualize sound effects turned on (found within the audio settings), so you know if there are chests and other players nearby. Once you land, you’ll get credit for completing part one of the challenge (but note that you must land here and reach top 25 within the same match).

Placing within the top 25

Image used with permission by copyright holder

As soon as you land at Sharky Shell, make sure the game gives you credit for it, then stock up on gear, and get out. Depending on how the storm is moving, you should adjust your path accordingly. Make your way inward and try to stay away from enemies. We managed to take refuge at Tony Stark’s hidden laboratory to the east of Stark Industries. There are numerous low-traffic hiding spots you can hang around — just try not to engage with enemies until you’re sure you’ve reached the top 25. With the new Halloween update, the map is covered in a thick fog, making it easy to stay hidden from enemy players. Use this to your advantage.

Remember, you can keep track of how many enemies are left by checking the counter in the top right, below the map. The game will also notify you when you’ve reached the top 25. Stay hidden until this notification pops up. After you’ve reached the top 25, you can go out and engage with other enemies, but remember, the challenge won’t be complete just yet. To get the challenge to register, you’ll need to die (or reach first place, which is hard) and turn into a shadow — then die once more.

Spawning as a shadow

That’s one of the new features added to Fortnite as part of its Halloween seasonal event. When you die, you respawn as a shadow, which is an enhanced being that has special powers like the ability to jump farther and enhanced melee damage. At this point, you can wreak havoc on the remaining players. After you get eliminated as a shadow, you’ll gain credit for completing the challenge. If you reference the video below, you can see the process, but note that the game did not notify us that the challenge was complete after we got eliminated.

Instead, we had to visit the Map Challenges sub-menu under Battle Pass to make sure it counted. In other words, don’t be alarmed if the game doesn’t notify you that you’ve completed the challenge. To make things easier, coordinate with your team and make sure they know you’re going for the challenge. That way, you can ensure that your squad won’t rush out and get themselves killed before reaching top 25.

Joseph Yaden
Joseph Yaden is a freelance journalist who covers Nintendo, shooters, and horror games. He mostly covers game guides for…
The best places to land in Fortnite (Chapter 6, Season 1)
Fortnite Chapter 6 key art

Survival is key in Fortnite, and it all starts by picking the best starting location. Even if you're a looper who's been around for each and every season, your likelihood of grabbing that coveted Victory Royale can be gone in a snap if you start off on the wrong foot -- whether it be on a mountain with no loot or a hot drop that could send you back to the lobby in no time.

As part of Fortnite Chapter 6, Season 1, a new Japanese-themed island has arrived with new points of interest (POIs) that change the game significantly. However, with these spots, which one is best comes down to your skill and preference. With that in mind, here are the best places to land in Fortnite for the OG sweats, beginners, and everyone in between.
The best places to land in Fortnite
Before jumping into the list, you must understand the basics of what makes a good landing spot. Sure, any location with decent loot and lots of chests might serve you well, but there's more to that. Is that spot often contested by other players in the lobby? Can you farm mats easily? Is it close to other POIs? Is it too far from the Storm Circle? These recommended landing spots all have their fair share of consistency and the best loot that you'll need. They also have some quirks that make them the best depending on your playstyle.
Nightshift Forest

Read more
Fortnite OG is bringing back the shooter’s original map for good
Four Fortnite characters standing side by side in the original Fortnite OG season.

Fortnite OG, a limited-time mode that brought back the original island from all the way back in Season 1, is coming back to the game -- for good this time.

Epic Games announced in a post on X that Fortnite OG is "combing BACK and is here to stay" starting December 6. That means players can experience the original map and loot starting with Chapter 1, Season 1 from all the way back in 2017, when Fortnite was less of the pop culture metaverse juggernaut it is today.

Read more
Fortnite Chapter 2 Remix Battle Pass: How to get all skins and rewards
Fortnite Remix key art

Fortnite Battle Passes are always a hot seller among the player community, not just for the premium content it offers them, but also because it's a great value for those who rarely purchase V-Bucks to buy Item Shop skins.

Battle Passes are a great economic alternative to players looking for free skins in exchange for XP and also some free V-Bucks so they can buy the next one for the following season. The previous season's pass was full of Marvel stuff, with iconic heroes and villains that fans could get.

Read more