Blackwater Lake Reels Puzzle Solutions (BO7 Zombies)

The final step before the Ashes of the Damned boss fight in Black Ops 7 Zombies will take you to Blackwater Lake, where you will be tasked with interacting with a film projector and locating 4 distinct reels. These reels must be fired upon in a specific order, or else the step will fail, and you’ll receive a nasty jumpscare.

If you don’t know how to activate the film projector at Blackwater Lake, or need to know how to solve the reels puzzle by finding their correct locations, then we’ve got you covered. This step-by-step guide will take you through the final piece of the Ashes of the Damned puzzle to ensure you can face Veytharion for yourself.

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Ashes of the Damned Main Easter Egg Guide (BO7 Zombies)

Here’s a full step-by-step walkthrough of the main easter egg for Ashes of the Damned in Black Ops 7 Zombies so you can easily complete the quest!

How to Solve the Projector and Reels Puzzle at Blackwater Lake in Ashes of the Damned

After you have completed each of the rituals at the Vandorn Farm, Exit 115, and Zarya Cosmodrome, you will be within the final step of the Ashes of the Damned easter egg. To begin, you will want to once again shoot the clock tower at Ashwood with the DG-2 Turret from Ol’ Tessie, and then shoot the charged clock with the Necrofluid Gauntlet and reload to become imbued with purple energy. Now, make your way to Blackwater Lake and interact with the blue wisp at the dock, found by the Mystery Box when facing the Pyramid.

With the Necrofluid Gauntlet imbued with purple energy and the wisp interacted with, you can head inside the Cabin and enter the theater room. You will need to shoot the projector with the Necrofluid Gauntlet, and 4 distinct images will flash on the screen. You will need to memorize each of these locations in the order that they appear. The objective is to find and shoot the film reels within these locations, in the order shown by the projector.

All Reels Locations in Ashes of the Damned

After viewing the order of images in the projector room, you must now locate the film reels within each of these locations. Below, we’ll showcase each location and where you can find its corresponding reel.

Reel #1 – Fishing Hut

The image shown above is the Fishing Hut. The reel inside the Fishing Hut is found in the rafters of the ceiling, so look up and face west to locate the film reel.

Reel #2 – Front of the Cabin

The image above showcases the front of the Cabin. The front Cabin reel can be found upstairs and to the left of the gramophone where you activated power in Blackwater Lake. Face the east wall inside the Cabin’s upstairs area and look to the shelf beside a lamp, where you will find the reel you seek.

Reel #3 – Back of the Cabin

If your image corresponds with the one shown above, then that’s the back of the Cabin. The back of the Cabin reel can be found by jumping over the wooden railing by the Ammo Box, underneath the stairs when facing southeast.

Reel #4 – Toolshed

The image above showcases the Toolshed, noted for being an isolated shack to the left of the Cabin and close to the Pyramid. You can find the Toolshed reel on a shelf when facing the east wall, and it’s between two wooden boxes on the third shelf up.

How to Get the Hellion Horn in Ashes of the Damned & Start the Boss Fight

When you’ve shot the reels in the correct order, you can head upstairs into the Cabin in the bedroom where Speed Cola is located. There will now be a wisp by the bedside table, and interacting with it will cause the wisp to disappear. Now, you will need to summon Klaus and command him to interact with the locked box in the Speed Cola room. Klaus can be summoned for 2,000 Essence outside the dock in Blackwater Lake. Once you command him towards the box, he will stand by the dock with the Hellion Horn death whistle, and interacting with him will begin the final step before the boss fight.

Once you interact with Klaus, he will blow the Hellion Horn. Once the horn has been blown, 3 wisps will appear in the Monolith Forest, the area from Blackwater Lake to Janus Towers. You must drive Ol’ Tessie through this area and drive into all 3 wisps, and repeat this step through the Collapsed Tower (Janus Towers Plaza to Vandorn Farm), Grounded Ship (Vandorn Farm to Ashwood), and Lost Cabins (Ashwood to Blackwater Lake). Doing so correctly will teleport you to the boss room, but failing the step means you must try again next round.

Released

November 14, 2025

ESRB

Mature 17+ / Blood and Gore, Intense Violence, Strong Language, Suggestive Themes, Use of Drugs