Fortnite update 42.40 downtime: servers go offline at 4 a.m. ET on Oct. 15 for the Honey and Obsession Sprites

Fortnite goes offline for update 42.40 on Thursday, Oct. 15. Epic Games scheduled the downtime from 4 a.m. to 5:30 a.m. ET, or 8 a.m. to 9:30 a.m. UTC, and turned off matchmaking half an hour earlier, at 3:30 a.m. ET. When the servers come back, Fortnitemares gets two new Sprites: the Honey Sprite and the Obsession Sprite.

When are Fortnite servers back up? Epic’s server status page gives a window, not a minute. The downtime started right on time at 4 a.m. ET, which is 1 a.m. PT, 9 a.m. in London and 10 a.m. in Berlin, and it’s scheduled to end at 5:30 a.m. ET, or 2:30 a.m. PT. Epic’s status page marked the maintenance as in progress at 4 a.m. ET and hasn’t posted an update since. Your platform has to download the 42.40 update before you can drop in again.

Don’t be surprised if it runs late. Update 42.30 on Oct. 1 had exactly the same window, and Epic marked it complete at 6:31 a.m. ET. Update 42.20 on Sept. 17 wrapped up at 5:53 a.m. ET, and 42.10 on Sept. 3 at 6:44 a.m. ET. Across the last three updates, that’s anywhere from 23 to 74 minutes after the window closed.

What’s in Fortnite update 42.40. The new content Epic has dated for Oct. 15 is a pair of Sprites. The Honey Sprite sends bees after enemies who damage you, a nasty surprise for anyone who starts a fight and doesn’t finish it. The Obsession Sprite lets One Wish Willow help you collect other Sprites.

They join the Fortnitemares crew you can already find in the new Pumpkin Chests around the Island. The Spooky Dash Sprite gives you dash charges that refill over time, the Vampire Sprite heals you as you deal damage, the Deer Sprite makes melee hits stronger, and the Dumpster Dive Sprite turns a hiding spot into food that restores extra health. Epic said more Sprites would arrive through the month, including the last community-made winners of its Design a Sprite contest.

Epic hasn’t posted full notes for 42.40 yet. Outfits also keep landing in the Shop through October, from A Nightmare on Elm Street, Black Clover, Hollow Knight, 99 Nights in the Forest, Hazbin Hotel, The Purge, Obsession, Slender Man, Beetlejuice, Predator: Badlands and Universal Studios' Halloween Horror Nights.

Fortnitemares 2026 runs until Nov. 1, with Freddy Krueger waiting in the Nightmare Neighborhood and Five Nights at Freddy’s animatronic bosses roaming the map. The season around it, Chapter 7 Season 4: Override, went live on Aug. 20, and Epic hasn’t announced when it ends. Everything Epic has said about the next season is on our next Fortnite season page.

This page is updated as soon as Epic brings Fortnite back online and posts the 42.40 update notes.