PEAK: How to Unlock the Rule Zero Badge and Free the Scoutmaster’s Soul

The Rule Zero Badge is the hidden reward attached to PEAK’s secret ending, and earning it means releasing Scoutmaster Myers from the orb that traps his soul. There is no combat involved. Instead, the whole sequence hinges on gathering four Scout Gems across the biomes, converting them into a single item at the top, and then finishing one last climb through a hidden area.

Quick answer: In a single run, pick up all four Scout Gems (Tenacity in SHORE, Initiative in ROOTS, Generosity in ALPINE, Ambition in GLOOM), carry them to THE PEAK, bestow them on the Stone Scout to create Scout’s Honor, then commune with it and climb out of NADIR through the gate back to THE PEAK.

What you need before you start

All four gems must be collected during the same run and carried all the way to the summit. Bring a Backpack so you can store every gem safely without dropping one during a fall or a swap. Losing a gem means the run cannot complete the ending.

Note: Each gem doubles as a usable Scout Amulet with its own effect, but activating those effects during the climb has caused players to take heavy damage at the statue later. If your goal is the secret ending, keep the gems stored and do not use them.

All four Scout Gem locations

Every biome leading up to THE CITADEL holds one gem. Each sits with a stone statue of a Scout and is marked by a beam of blue light above it, so scan for that glow as you climb. There is only one gem per biome.

Gem	Biome	Where to look
Scout’s Tenacity	SHORE	Beneath the campfire at the top of the mountain
Scout’s Initiative	ROOTS	Inside a collapsed tree trunk with a blue light; climb through it
Scout’s Generosity	ALPINE	In the center, under the ledge of the snowy mountains
Scout’s Ambition	GLOOM	On the left side, tucked underneath a tree

In SHORE, climb to the campfire at the top of the mountain and grab Scout’s Tenacity from beneath it. Store it in your Backpack right away.

Descend from SHORE into ROOTS and head forward until you reach a collapsed tree trunk with a blue light shining out of it. Climb through the trunk to reach Scout’s Initiative.

Work your way through ALPINE and aim for the center of the biome. Scout’s Generosity waits underneath the ledge of the snowy mountains.

On entering GLOOM, keep to the left side. Scout’s Ambition is tucked safely underneath a tree, completing your set of four.

Bestow the gems at the Stone Scout

With all four gems in your Backpack, reach THE PEAK. Rather than lighting a flare to leave, head down the grassy mountain toward the back to find the Stone Scout statue, which is holding a pink Strange Gem.

Pick up the Strange Gem from the statue, then hold your four Scout Gems. One at a time, use the Bestow prompt to place each gem onto the stone sash until all four slots on the front of the statue are filled.

With all four Scout Gems placed and the Strange Gem still held, select Bestow on the Strange Gem. It glows with colorful particles, shifts to purple, and transforms into the Scout’s Honor item.

Tip: If activating the statue deals heavy damage instead of producing Scout’s Honor, it is tied to having used the amulet effects earlier in the run. Complete a clean run without triggering any of the amulets to avoid this.

Commune with the soul and escape NADIR

Scout’s Honor is the key to the hidden area. Communing with it drops you into NADIR, a desolate void of floating debris where the final climb plays out.

Hold Left-Click on Scout’s Honor to Commune. A bright flash transports you to NADIR, where scattered Explorer’s Luggage can supply useful items such as a Glider for the gaps ahead.

Take the stairs upward until you reach the giant stone hand holding an orb with a ghostly figure inside. This is the Scoutmaster’s Soul. Interact with the bubble to release it, and the soul will begin following you like a dead Scout.

Scoutmaster's Soul commune prompt in NADIR

Leave NADIR the same way you exit any biome, by heading up. Climb the staircases and fragmented terrain, grab hanging chains, and ride the anti-gravity bubbles that launch you higher.

At the top you will reach a glowing gate. Interact with it to warp back to THE PEAK and start the final cutscene, which frees the Scoutmaster.

How to confirm you earned the Rule Zero Badge

Passing through the gate plays the secret ending cutscene, in which the freed soul restores the skeletal Scoutmaster and the two of you are rescued. Once the climb wraps up, the hidden Rule Zero achievement unlocks. You can verify it in your Passport under the Accolades menu, where the Rule Zero Badge appears with the description “Free the Scoutmaster’s soul.”

If the badge does not register, the most common causes are missing one of the four gems, dropping a gem before reaching the summit, or triggering the damage at the statue by having used an amulet effect during the run. Complete a fresh run with all four gems stored and untouched, and the ending will trigger cleanly.