Borderlands 4's first seasonal event is set to be the litmus test for the game's post-launch content, which means the recently announced Horrors of Kairos will set the tone for what players can expect from seasonal events going forward. While the Borderlands series is no stranger to kicking things off with a Halloween event, Borderlands 4's Horrors of Kairos has to live up to the expectations set by Borderlands 3's Bloody Harvest event. The deck already seems to be stacked against the Horrors of Kairos, as it misses the opportunity to add an obvious Halloween-themed feature.
Announced during the Borderlands 4 PAX Australia panel, the Horrors of Kairos seasonal mini-event is set to begin on October 23 and run through November 6. Horrors of Kairos will be a free update for all Borderlands 4 players, though the first paid DLC Bounty Pack—How Rush Saved Mercenary Day—was also detailed during the panel and is set for release on November 20. The content of the Horrors of Kairos event should get Borderlands 4 players in a sufficiently spooky mood, but it feels lacking in the cosmetics department without one Vault Hunter-specific head.
All Features Confirmed for Borderlands 4's Horrors of Kairos
- "Gourd Your Loins" Jack-o-Lantern head for all Vault Hunters
- "Hex Appeal" Weapon Skin
- "Murmur" Legendary Tediore Assault Rifle
- "Skully" Legendary Order Grenade
- Seasonal weather variant for World Bosses
The stars of the Horrors of Kairos event are the two new Legendary weapons for Borderlands 4 players to discover. The Murmur Legendary Tediore Assault Rifle executes weakened enemies, with a guaranteed crit on enemies with less than 35% health, and the Skully Legendary Order Grenade launches projectiles as it seeks out the nearest target. Both of these weapons will have the chance to drop from Borderlands 4's world bosses, which feature the new seasonal blood rain weather condition.
In terms of cosmetics on offer during the Horrors of Kairos event, players can obtain the Gourd Your Loins head usable by all Vault Hunters and the Hex Appeal skin for all weapons. The Gourd Your Loins head fits with the Halloween spirit of the event as a Jack-o-Lantern with a hatchet stuck in it, but Borderlands 4 misses a prime opportunity to give each Vault Hunter their own unique seasonal head to personalize the player's Horrors of Kairos experience.
These cosmetics will be distributed via SHiFT codes for Borderlands 4 players to redeem.
Borderlands 4's Horrors of Kairos Event is Missing an Obvious Cosmetic
Vex is Borderlands 4's poster child for spooky season, given that she is portrayed as a witch in her introduction as Borderlands 4's playable Siren. As such, it would have been a no-brainer to give Vex a witch hat cosmetic for a Halloween event like Horrors of Kairos, to really lean into her witchy, goth aesthetic. While the Gourd Your Loins head is a fine cosmetic, adding a witch hat for Vex feels like such an obvious addition that it would have made more sense for each Vault Hunter to get a unique Halloween-themed head, such as a medieval executioner hood for Amon, a mad scientist for Harlowe, and scarecrow for Rafa to go along with a witch hat for Vex.
Vex Gets the Short End of the Stick in Horrors of Kairos
With the inevitable nerf to Vex's Infinite Bleed build set to hit the Vault Hunter particularly hard, fans of the Siren will be taking a one-two punch in the coming weeks. Not only will Vex players likely lose out on her best build option with the October 16 patch set to address unintended interactions with her Bloodletter skill, but the missed opportunity to give the Siren a witch hat cosmetic as a consolation prize during the Horrors of Kairos event is sure to pile on disappointment for Vex fans. This Halloween event would have been the perfect time to add a witch hat cosmetic for Vex, and without it, it's unclear if Borderlands 4 players will ever see this head added to the game.
Borderlands 4
-
OpenCritic Reviews
- Top Critic Avg: 82 /100 Critics Rec: 88%
- Released
- September 12, 2025
- ESRB
- Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Sexual Themes, Strong Language, In-Game Purchases, Users Interact
- Developer(s)
- Gearbox Software
- Publisher(s)
- 2K
