It's been almost six months now since Fortnite re-invented itself with the Chapter Two update, and Epic's insanely popular Battle Royale is still evolving. The latest update is 12.20, which comes in the middle of Chapter Two's second Season, and brings Spy Games and bug fixes, as well as a new mode of transportation never before seen in Fortnite.
The Choppa is the Battle Royale's first helicopter, and has been anticipated ever since it appeared in Season 2's promo. Players couldn't help but notice the helipads springing up over the Battle Island in the build-up to the 12.20 patch, and now fans know why. The Choppa is a multi-person vehicle able to quickly transport an entire squad across the map, but only if a player is lucky enough to find one.
Get to the Choppa!
There are eight helipads scattered across Fortnite's map, all of which have a chance of spawning a Choppa over the course of the game. At the moment these sites are highly contested, with some players jumping on them immediately to play with the new toy.
The first of the helipads can be found on the east side of The Rig, with another fairly nearby on the north-west side of The Shark Base. In Pleasant Park, the old soccer field has been transformed into a bunker, complete with a helipad, and another can be found in the center of The Grotto. Two more can spawn to the south of The Agency and to the east of Craggy Cliffs respectively, with the final two being found on The Yacht, and on the western side of The Mountain.
Black Hawk Down
The Choppa functions like most of the vehicles in Fortnite, with the player in the pilot's seat in sole charge of speed, height and direction. Pilots can adjust altitude, maneuver quickly and land on any reasonably flat surface. The Choppa is an obvious target from the ground, however, as it's both loud and easy to spot.
To help defend against anti-aircraft fire, four players can hang on to the Choppa and fire freely onto enemies below. Anyone taking up this position will be unable to jump off once the Choppa is in the air, so para-dropping a squad onto a key Point of Interest isn't possible. Instead, pilots will have to land their vehicle to let their squad disembark, potentially opening themselves up to ambushes and opportunistic Choppa thieves.
Fortnite is out now for iOS, Android, PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
