Key Takeaway
To get the Sign of Ruin, you must first buy the Blackstone Key DLC. Once you do, you’ll immediately be able to enter the Workshop on Blackstone Isle. Within the Workshop, you’ll be able to pick up the Sign of Ruin as well as the Arterial Engine.
In terms of function, the Sign of Ruin roughly increases the spawn rate of aberration by a whopping 300%. It’s definitely worth getting the Blackstone Key DLC if you want to find aberrations more easily—especially since the DLC is fairly cheap on most platforms.
Sadly, you can’t get the Sign of Ruin in DREDGE through in-game means—it’s only accessible through purchasing DLC. With that said, since the DLC is pretty cheap, it’s worth getting on most platforms if you’re a big fan of this game. We’ll even show you why!
Table Of Contents
DREDGE: How to Get the Sign of Ruin And What It Does Video Guide
What You Need to Do to Get the Sign of Ruin (00:15 in the Video Guide)
The DLC that you need to buy to get the Sign of Ruin (and the Arterial Engine) is called “Blackstone Key”. As you can guess from the name, it lets you get into the locked Workshop on Blackstone Isle. If you don’t get the Blackstone Key DLC (or the Digital Deluxe Edition of DREDGE), you’ll never get into the Workshop.
The Blackstone Key DLC is pretty cheap and worth getting for big fans of DREDGE. The DLC contains the same items on every platform and costs $4.99 USD. However, it’s more cost-efficient to buy the Digital Deluxe Edition.
The base game costs $24.99 USD while the Digital Deluxe Edition costs $26.99 USD. Due to only a two-dollar difference, you’ll save $3 by getting the Digital Deluxe Edition instead of getting the base game and then getting the DLC afterward.
How to Access the Sign of Ruin After Buying the Blackstone Key DLC (01:22 in the Video Guide)
At any point after getting the Blackstone Key DLC, you’ll immediately be able to enter the formerly locked Workshop on Blackstone Isle. Simply go inside and you’ll see the Sign of Ruin and the Arterial Engine ripe for the taking.
You can even install them both right away if you have the fishing and engine slots to do so. The Arterial Engine is far from the best engine in the game, but it’s still pretty useful in the early parts of DREDGE.
What the Sign of Ruin Does
The Sign of Ruin drastically increases how many aberrations spawn in DREDGE. But by how much, you ask? Well, we did two tests to figure that out.
In our first test, we spent one 24-hour cycle sailing around and looking for the green particles that guarantee aberration spawns without the Sign of Ruin equipped. When we did this, we only found two aberrations (02:56 in the Video Guide).
Afterward, we did the same test with the Sign of Ruin equipped. Following this test, we had six aberrations (10:09 in the Video Guide). Therefore, the Sign of Ruin roughly increases your chances of finding guaranteed aberration spawns by about 300%.
This saves you a lot of time when doing the pursuits that require to you catch aberrations. On top of that, it makes filling up the fish encyclopedia way easier. Plus, if you’re a big fan of DREDGE, you’ll be happy to know that the extra money helps out the developers a lot. May the blessings of the sea be with you, faithful fisherfolks.
