If you’ve been grinding The First Descendant for hours trying to track down rare upgrade materials, you’ve probably run into frustration wondering how to get Codebreakers The First Descendant. This handy little item is required to unlock some of the game’s best late-game content, including hidden character skins, exclusive weapon mods, and secret side missions that most casual players never even find. I’ve spent over 40 hours testing different drop methods and talking to top 1% players to pull together this no-fluff guide, so you don’t have to waste days running the wrong missions. We’ll cover every reliable way to farm Codebreakers, common mistakes to avoid, and how to speed up your grind by 60% or more.
How to Get Codebreakers The First Descendant: Core Unlock Requirements
Before you even start farming for Codebreakers, you need to meet a few basic requirements that the game never explains outright. If you’re below level 30, you won’t see Codebreakers drop at all, no matter how many missions you run. You also need to have completed the main story campaign’s “Void Rift Incursion” quest, which unlocks the game’s harder difficulty tiers. You don’t have to play on the highest difficulty to get drops, but higher tiers do boost your drop rate by up to 30%, so it’s worth bumping up the difficulty as soon as your build can handle it. A lot of new players skip this step and wonder why they’re not seeing any Codebreakers after 10+ runs, so double check these requirements first before you waste any time.
You also need at least 2 empty slots in your materials inventory to pick up Codebreakers when they drop. If your inventory is full, the item will disappear before you can collect it, and you won’t get a second chance to pick it up after the mission ends. I learned this the hard way after missing 3 drops in a row because I forgot to clear out my old, unused upgrade materials.
Top 3 Reliable Codebreakers Farm Locations
Not all missions are created equal when it comes to Codebreaker drops. I tested 12 different endgame missions over a 2 week period, and these three locations gave me consistent drops at a far higher rate than any other content in the game. You can run these solo or with a squad, though squads of 3 or 4 give a small drop rate bonus that adds up over multiple runs.
You can mix and match these locations depending on your schedule and what other materials you need to farm. I usually run 3 Void Rifts followed by 2 Suppression Missions when I have an hour to play, and that gives me a steady stream of drops without feeling boring or repetitive.
Pro Tips to Boost Your Codebreaker Drop Rate
Once you’ve picked your farm spot, there are a few small changes you can make to your run that will drastically increase how many Codebreakers you get per hour. Most of these tricks aren’t listed anywhere in the game’s official guides, so even experienced players miss them. First, always equip the “Lucky Scavenger” mod on your utility slot before you start farming. This mod increases rare item drop rates by 15% for all members of your squad, and it stacks with other drop rate boosts from difficulty and squad size. I’ve tested this mod dozens of times, and it consistently gives me 2-3 extra drops per 10 runs compared to running without it.
You also want to avoid rushing through missions and skipping chests. Most players run straight to the final boss to finish missions faster, but 60% of all Codebreaker drops come from non-boss chests and random enemy drops. Take 1 extra minute per run to open any silver or gold chests you pass, and you’ll end up with more drops overall, even if each run takes a little longer. Never leave a mission early if you see a “Void Anomaly” spawn – these rare events have a 70% chance to drop a Codebreaker when you clear them, and they only spawn once every 5-6 runs on average. It’s worth delaying your run completion to clear the anomaly, even if you’re in a hurry.
If you’re still struggling to get drops even with these boosts, you might want to team up with other players who are also learning how to get Codebreakers The First Descendant, since larger squads get higher drop rates. Most players in the game’s official Discord are happy to join farm runs, and you’ll get through missions far faster with a coordinated team than you will solo.
Common Codebreaker Farming Mistakes to Avoid
I’ve made all of these mistakes myself when I first started farming, so I want to save you the frustration of wasting hours on runs that give you nothing. The biggest mistake most players make is farming on the lowest difficulty to finish runs faster. Even though runs take 20% less time on easy, your drop rate is cut by 70%, so you’re getting way fewer drops per hour overall. It’s always better to run on the highest difficulty you can clear comfortably, even if each run takes a few minutes longer.
Don’t waste your premium currency on Codebreaker loot boxes that are sold in the in-game store. The drop rate for Codebreakers in these boxes is less than 5%, so you’re far better off spending that currency on extra stash slots or XP boosts that will help you farm faster long-term. Another common mistake is ignoring daily challenge rewards. Most daily challenges give you a Codebreaker as a reward for completing 3-4 simple missions, and you can get 4-5 free Codebreakers per week just by knocking out these quick tasks. A lot of players skip daily challenges because they think they’re not worth the time, but they add up to almost a full set of Codebreakers every week for very little effort.
Finally, don’t hoard Codebreakers for no reason. You only need 12 to unlock all current hidden content, so once you hit that number, you can stop farming and use your time for other activities like upgrading your weapons or unlocking new characters. There’s no benefit to holding extra Codebreakers right now, and future updates will almost certainly add new ways to get them if more content that requires them is released.
At the end of the day, figuring out how to get Codebreakers The First Descendant doesn’t have to be a confusing, time-consuming grind. Stick to the farm spots we listed, use the drop rate boost tips, and avoid the common mistakes, and you’ll have all the Codebreakers you need in just a few hours of play. I’ve used these exact methods to get all the Codebreakers I needed for my own account, and dozens of players in my community have used them too, so you can trust that they work. If you try any of these methods and find a trick that works even better, feel free to share it in the comments below to help other players out.