There are dozens of items in Risk of Rain 2 and it can be difficult to keep track of them all. Sometimes, descriptions of an item that appear during a run don't make sense, but that's why we are here to help.
This guide is here to help you understand the Rusted Key. New to Risk of Rain 2, this item can be a little confusing. Prior to the 2021 Anniversary Update, this item functioned quite differently. With the update though, the key became a bit simpler to use. Read below to learn about the Rusted Key.
What Does The Key Do?
Before using the Rusted Key, you have to unlock it. The unlocking achievement is fairly easy, though. To gain access to this item, you will have to complete Keyed Up by defeating a teleporter boss within 15 seconds. This can easily be done solo or with others, if you have damage boosting items and a few Armor-Piercing Rounds.
When picking up the Rusted Key, you will see the description, saying, "Gain access to a Rusty Lockbox that contains a powerful item."
Essentially, the Rusted Key allows to you get items without purchasing them from a chest or sacrificing money at a shrine. Holding a Rusted Key will spawn one lockbox that will appear on the next stage. For example, if you and a partner both grab a key on stage one, then there will be two lockboxes on the second stage. Unlike other items, this item will disappear after you open a lockbox.
The lockboxes can be difficult to find since they are dull in appearance and often blend into the environment. Fortunately, you can easily spot them during a teleporter event. If the lockbox is outside of the teleporter zone, then it will appear locked, surrounded by orange tendrils. Try to look around the map during the teleporter event if you aren't holding a Rusted Key.
Item Rarity
Before the Anniversary Update, players would have to stack Rusted Keys to increase the rarity of the item inside the lockbox. Thankfully, this is not the case anymore. A lockbox will hold an item similar to large chests. Basically, you have an 80% chance to get an uncommon (green) item, and a 20% chance to get a legendary (red) item.
Holding multiple keys will not increase the rarity, however, it will give you more opportunities to open lockboxes in different stages. Remember, only one lockbox will spawn per stage for each person holding a key. This means that if you do not have a key, but a friend does, you can open their lockbox.
When the Artifact of Sacrifice is enabled, lockboxes will still appear. This artifact will get rid of chests and enemies will drop items instead. Technically, lockboxes aren't chests, so they will still remain on the map when this artifact is active.
The Rusted Key is pretty straightforward and can be incredibly useful at times. Since lockboxes only contain uncommon or legendary items, it's wise to have a few keys at all times. Legendary items are hard to come across, and often cost a lot of money. With a Rusted Key, you basically have a free chance to get a powerful item.