Badges in Drain the Lake are the quickest way to bank Gems, the currency you need to buy stronger buckets. There are 18 badges total, and most of them unlock on their own as you fill buckets, drain the lake, and push deeper toward your lost phone. A handful require you to hit specific milestones, and one path leads to a free Legendary bucket.
Quick answer: Progress through the game normally to trigger checkpoint and drain-count badges, then open the BADGES booth in the lobby and click Claim on each unlocked badge to collect its Gems. Unlock 10 badges and join the official Roblox group to earn the Ancient Bucket.
All 18 badges and their Gem rewards
Each badge grants a fixed number of Gems based on how hard it is to earn. The table below lists every badge, exactly what triggers it, and the reward you claim afterward.
| Badge | Requirement | Gems |
|---|---|---|
| First Drop | Drain your first bucket | 10 |
| Plunge | Take a swim in the lake | 10 |
| Shark Bait | Get caught by the shark in the lake | 20 |
| Lucky Find | Find 10 chests | 40 |
| Sunken Secrets | Reach the Shipwreck checkpoint | 40 |
| Bucket Brigade | Drain 100 buckets | 60 |
| Deep Dive | Reach the Cavern checkpoint | 60 |
| The Mines | Reach the Mineshaft checkpoint | 75 |
| Fire Below | Reach the Molten checkpoint | 90 |
| Sunken Riches | Find 100 chests | 110 |
| Water Works | Drain 1,000 buckets | 110 |
| Ancient Ruins | Reach the Lost City checkpoint | 110 |
| Fully Trained | Unlock everything in the skill tree | 110 |
| Into the Abyss | Reach the Abyss checkpoint | 125 |
| Find My Phone | Unlock the phone ending | 140 |
| Bucket List | Unlock all buckets in the game | 140 |
| Bottomless Treasure | Find 1,000 chests | 140 |
| Ocean’s Worst Nightmare | Drain 10,000 buckets | 150 |
How to claim badge rewards in the lobby
Meeting a badge requirement unlocks it, but the Gems are not automatic. You have to visit the BADGES booth and claim each one by hand.
Badges 0 / 18 Collected.Claim button in its details panel. The Gems are added instantly, the button changes to Equip, and the badge status switches to Owned.You know a claim worked when your Gem total at the top of the screen goes up and the badge no longer shows a Claim button. Claiming First Drop and Plunge together, for example, moves the counter from 5 Gems to 25.
The 10 easiest badges for the free Ancient Bucket
Unlock any 10 badges and join the official Drain the Lake group through the game’s Roblox page, and you receive the Legendary-rarity Ancient Bucket for free. This bucket gives +10% token earnings and digs up higher-tier Gems, and it shows a Claim Only status in the Buckets shop until you meet both conditions.
The fastest 10 to reach that threshold are the low-difficulty progression and encounter badges:
- First Drop
- Plunge
- Shark Bait
- Lucky Find
- Sunken Secrets
- Bucket Brigade
- Deep Dive
- The Mines
- Fire Below
- Ancient Ruins
Note: Plunge and Shark Bait are the two you can grab on demand without grinding. Swim out into the lake to earn Plunge, and let the shark catch you to earn Shark Bait. The rest fall into place as you drain buckets and reach the checkpoint zones on your way down.
What to spend Gems on
Gems are the main currency for buying new buckets at the BUCKETS booth in the lobby. The default Bucket has no bonus, so upgrading changes how fast you fill, how much you carry, and how many tokens you earn per drain. Some buckets are Gem purchases, while others come only from wheel spins or Robux.
| Bucket | Rarity | Cost |
|---|---|---|
| Plastic Bucket | Common | 200 Gems |
| Metal Bucket | Uncommon | 500 Gems |
| Magnet Bucket | Rare | 1,200 Gems |
| Golden Bucket | Legendary | 2,000 Gems |
Because the higher-value badges pay out 110 to 150 Gems each, clearing the full list of 18 gives you enough to buy several upgrades outright. Claim every badge as soon as it unlocks, prioritize capacity and speed on your first bucket purchases, and use the free Ancient Bucket to boost your token earnings while you push toward the deeper checkpoints and the phone ending.
