Ashes of the Damned hides some genuinely game-changing side easter eggs, and the permanent Double Points unlock is legitimately one of the best. We’re talking about permanent point multipliers for every melee kill for the entire game. No timer, no expiration—just unlimited double income on one of the easiest ways to generate points.
The catch? You need to win a melee-only boss fight against an HVT Zursa bear. It sounds intimidating, but the setup is manageable with proper preparation. I’ve run this easter egg multiple times across different rounds, and once you understand the mechanics, it becomes a reliable way to accelerate your early-game progression and farm resources you’d normally spend precious essence on.
Let’s walk through exactly what you need to do.
What You’re Actually Getting
Before diving into the steps, understand what permanent Double Points actually means for your gameplay.
The Benefit: Every melee kill you score—knife strike, axe swing, any melee damage—generates double the points you’d normally earn. This is permanent. It stacks with other point-generation mechanics. In early rounds where point economy is tight, this essentially doubles your essence income from melee combat, making it trivially easy to afford perks, upgrades, and Pack-a-Punch early.
The Equipment: You’ll be earning the Claw Talisman, an equipment piece that grants this buff once equipped. Once equipped, you never unequip it. The benefit is passive and always active.
The Trade-Off: You need to complete a boss fight using only melee weapons. No guns allowed. This requires preparation, decent armor, and understanding the fight mechanics. But it’s entirely doable by Round 5-10 if you rush preparation.
Step 1: Acquire Death Perception Perk
Your first task is unlocking Death Perception, a perk that reveals enemy footprints and trails on your map.
Location: The Barn at Vandorn Farm
Navigate to Vandorn Farm and locate the Barn building. Purchase Death Perception from the perk machine. Cost varies, but this is a necessary investment. You’ll use this perk specifically to track bear pawprints, which are invisible without it.
Why This Matters: Without Death Perception, you literally cannot see the bear trail. The footprints are invisible to the naked eye. This perk is non-negotiable for progressing.
Step 2: Navigate the Fog Roads and Locate the Bear Trail
Once you have Death Perception, it’s time to hunt for the bear.
The Fog Roads: Travel to one of two fog road sections:
- Crashed Rocket Road – Connects Ashwood to Zarya Cosmodrome
- Orda Graveyard – Connects Ashwood to Exit 115
Either fog road works; the bear spawns in one of them each game. Enter the fog and activate Death Perception to see the environment better.
Finding the Pawprint: Look for a glowing bear pawprint, typically appearing closer to the Ashwood gate entrance. These are distinct from the fog and become visible with Death Perception active. The first pawprint is your entry point.
Following the Trail: Once you spot the first pawprint, interact with it. This triggers a trail of additional pawprints extending through the fog. Walk forward and systematically interact with each successive pawprint. Think of it as breadcrumbs—each interaction progresses you toward the boss spawn.
The Cutscene: After interacting with the final pawprint, a cutscene triggers showing a Zursa bear attacking you. You’ll transition to the boss arena where the actual fight begins.
Step 3: Prepare for the Melee-Only Boss Fight
This is critical: when you spawn into the boss arena, immediately pick up all your equipment and weapons scattered around the arena.
Important Mechanic: Picking up your equipment restores your Perks and Armor, even if the HUD suggests you don’t have them. Don’t trust what the screen displays—the equipment pickup is what actually matters. Collect everything available.
What You’re Picking Up:
- Perks (they’ll be reactivated once equipment is retrieved)
- Armor plates (crucial for surviving the fight)
- Any weapon upgrades or Pack-a-Punch benefits you brought in
Critical Rule: Do NOT use any ranged weapons during the fight. You can pick them up for the benefits they provide, but the moment you fire a gun, the easter egg fails. This is melee-only combat.
Step 4: Defeat the HVT Zursa Bear With Melee Only
Now begins the actual boss fight. The Zursa bear is an elite version of the standard Zursa enemy—more aggressive, more durable, and more dangerous. You have one job: eliminate it using only melee attacks.
Combat Strategy:
- Strafe and Circle: Don’t stand still. Keep moving around the bear, staying out of its charge attacks
- Melee Timing: Strike when the bear finishes attack animations. Patience wins this fight
- Use Armor: Your armor plates absorb damage. Don’t panic when they break; you have multiple plates
- Maintain Distance: Keep slight distance between you and the bear to anticipate charges
- Crowd Control: If perks or field upgrades provide defensive abilities, use them to survive longer
Round Recommendations: Lower rounds mean lower boss health and damage output. Attempting this by Round 10 is ideal. You want enough time to prepare (perks, armor, upgrades) without the Zursa becoming an absolute tank.
Health Management: Focus on sustaining longer than dealing massive damage. Melee kills are slower, so embrace attrition. Land consistent hits, avoid major damage, and the bear will eventually fall.
Step 5: Claim the Claw Talisman
Once you eliminate the Zursa bear with melee damage, the reward triggers.
The Bear Explodes: Upon defeat, the bear visibly explodes (cinematic moment). A black orb floats upward into a nearby chest.
Interact With the Chest: Walk to the chest and interact with it. The Claw Talisman pops out as your reward.
Equip the Talisman: Pick up the Claw Talisman. Once equipped, it immediately activates. Permanent Double Points is now active for every melee kill for the rest of the game.
Optimization: Speed-Running the Setup
Want to unlock Double Points as fast as possible? Follow this optimized preparation strategy.
Start With Toxic Growth Field Upgrade: Begin your match with the Toxic Growth Field Upgrade ready. This is the key to fast preparation.
Spray Plants in Janus Towers Plaza: Once your Field Upgrade charges, activate it on the green plants in Janus Towers Plaza. Use a fumigator spray (available in early rounds) to trigger the plants. They burst open, dropping:
- Weapon Rarity upgrades
- Mystery Perks
- Pack-a-Punch tiers
The Results: Using this method, you can secure purple-rarity upgraded melee weapons and mid-tier Pack-a-Punch by Round 10. We’ve personally obtained Purple Tier 2 Pack-a-Punch knives this way, which makes the melee boss fight substantially easier.
Timeline:
- Rounds 1-5: Accumulate essence, purchase Death Perception, locate the bear trail
- Rounds 5-10: Trigger Toxic Growth, farm weapon upgrades, prepare armor
- Round 10-12: Spawn HVT Zursa, defeat it melee-only, claim Claw Talisman
Tips for Success
Don’t Rush: Early rounds are preparation time. Spend rounds 1-10 farming essence and upgrades rather than attempting the boss fight immediately.
Armor Is Everything: Prioritize armor acquisition. Multiple armor plates keep you alive; melee weapons don’t. Pack-a-Punch your knife/melee weapon once, not multiple times—extra points go toward armor and perks instead.
Respect the Charge: The Zursa bear’s charge attack is its most dangerous move. Learn the animation and position yourself to avoid it. Healing perks matter more than offensive power here.
Perks Over Weapons: Grab Quick Revive, Jugger-Nog, and Speed Cola before attempting the boss. Perks keep you alive; weapons are secondary.
Don’t Panic: If you take heavy damage, back off and let armor regenerate. The fight has no timer. Patience is your advantage.
Post-Completion Strategy
Once you have the Claw Talisman equipped, your point generation changes fundamentally.
Melee-Focus Playstyle: Prioritize melee kills over gun kills in early rounds. The double points make it trivial to farm essence. Use knives on weak zombies, save guns for elites and bosses.
Essence Farming: With double melee points, you can afford every perk, Pack-a-Punch tier, and upgrade in the first 5-10 rounds. This accelerates your progression dramatically.
Objective Flexibility: Early rounds become about resource farming rather than survival. This frees you to pursue side easter eggs and challenges you’d normally skip due to essence costs.
Related Guides to Enhance Your Ashes Gameplay
Permanent Double Points is just one piece of Ashes of the Damned mastery. Explore these complementary guides:
- Complete Ashes of the Damned Walkthrough – Full easter egg progression
- Ashes Main Easter Egg Guide – Boss fight strategies
- Best Ashes of the Damned Loadout – Weapon and perk optimization
- How to Farm Essence Guide – Additional point-farming methods
- All Perk Locations in Ashes – Find every perk machine
- Best Training Spots in Ashes – Zombie herding locations
- Unlock Augments Research Guide – Enhance your abilities
Common Mistakes to Avoid
Picking Up Weapons, Then Using Them: You can pick up ranged weapons (it restores perks), but firing them fails the easter egg. Collect them, ignore them.
Attempting Too Early: Don’t try the Zursa fight before Round 5-10. The bear is too healthy and damaging in early rounds. Prepare first.
Forgetting to Equip the Talisman: After claiming the Claw Talisman from the chest, you must equip it. It doesn’t activate automatically until you select it as active equipment.
Not Picking Up Equipment in the Arena: Your perks and armor won’t activate unless you physically pick up your equipment when you spawn in the boss arena. Don’t overlook this step.
Panic Rushing: The Zursa fight rewards patience. Don’t sprint at the bear. Strafe, circle, and strike when safe. Attrition is your strategy.
Final Thoughts
Permanent Double Points is one of the best early-game advantages in Ashes of the Damned. The setup requires planning and execution, but it’s entirely achievable by Round 10 with proper preparation. Once you have the Claw Talisman equipped, your essence economy transforms. You’re no longer grinding points in early rounds; you’re farming resources at double efficiency.
This easter egg exemplifies what makes Ashes of the Damned so rewarding—skill-based rewards that meaningfully change how you play the map. Master this guide, execute the strategy, and you’ll unlock a permanent advantage that accelerates your progression for the entire game.
Your melee game just got a whole lot more profitable.
