[Updated] Fortnite 'Syndicate quests' not working (stuck on Stage 3), issue acknowledged (workarounds inside)

Here’s the crux of the article in video form:

New updates are being added at the bottom of this story…….

Original story (published on April 5, 2023) follows:

Every week, Fortnite players usually receive a new set of Syndicate quests. Completing these quests allows them to earn large amounts of XP points that can be used to level up the Battle Pass.

However, it seems that Fortnite ‘Syndicate quests’ from this week are not working or bugged as multiple players are getting stuck on ‘Stage 3’.

To complete Syndicate quests, players must meet the requirements for each ‘Stage’. For instance, the current Stage 3 challenge is ‘Survive storm phases carrying an epic weapon’.

But according to multiple reports, Stage 3 challenge does not complete even though players have met the requirement. Therefore, those affected cannot progress further.

Is the survive 3 storm phases with an epic weapon quest broken for anyone else? I play on PS4, I landed at the dueling grounds and got a sword, an epic weapon. I held onto this until I died in 9th place, that was way more than 3 phases and my counter didn’t go up at all. Am I missing something?
Source

Hello everyone, the quest „Survive storm phase while carrying a weapon of Epic rarity or higher“ is bugged. It will not advance, no matter how many storm cycles you survive with a epic weapon. Im currently playing on the Xbox Series X. It is the Stage 3 of 6 Syndicate quest.
Source

Apparently, the ‘trigger’ of the bug is having an ‘Epic’ rarity weapon (purple color) equipped when trying to complete the Stage.

Fortunately, the Epic Games team is already aware of the issue and working on a fix. However, there is no ETA yet.

We are investigating an issue preventing players from completing Stage 3 of this week’s Syndicate quests. We will provide an update when we have more information
Source

In the meantime, there are some potential workarounds you can try. First, it seems that if you change the ‘Epic’ rarity weapon to a lower rarity you will be able to complete Stage 3.

For instance, if you have an Epic pickaxe (purple), try changing it to a Rare pickaxe (blue) or an uncommon one:

Similarly, you can try the following:

there is a fix for stage three of the syndicate quest, equip the default harvesting tool then in match pick up an epic weapon and hold on to it
Source

Another alternative is to try to completing Stage 3 in a regular lobby instead of a bot lobby:

I just did it in a regular lobby, not a bot lobby, and it worked fine for me
Source

We will be monitoring the situation to update this story as the matter develops.

12:09 pm (IST): According to a redditor, the Egg Launcher is another of the weapons that will allow you to complete the ‘Syndicate quests Stage 3’ and continue progressing.

04:30 pm (IST): Here’s a potential workaround suggested by a YouTuber that might help you fix this issue. You can check it out here.

06:05 pm (IST): Although the workaround where changing the weapon to a lower rarity one has helped many, but there are still some who are stuck in Stage 3 despite applying it.

Those affected can try the other workarounds suggested in this article.

NOTE: You can also check the Fortnite bugs/issues tracker.

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