The Bush is a Legendary consumable in Fortnite: Battle Royale that wraps your character in a portable bush disguise. Originally added way back in November 2017 during Season 1, it was vaulted at the start of Chapter 2 and spent years out of the standard loot pool. It was recently unvaulted on February 9th, 2026, during Chapter 7: Season 1 — a move tied to the Super Bowl LX Halftime Show, which featured performers dressed as bushes.
Quick answer: The Bush disguises you as a bush and absorbs one instance of weapon damage before it breaks. It does not protect against explosions, Storm damage, or trap damage, and it does not regenerate once destroyed.
How the Bush works when you use it
When you pick up a Bush, it takes three seconds to apply. Once active, a bush model covers your character. You can still run, build, shoot, crouch, and do everything you normally would — the bush stays on you through all of it. When you aim down sights, the bush turns transparent on your screen only, so your view isn't blocked. Opponents still see the full bush model on your character at all times.
You can stack up to two Bushes in a single inventory slot. Since using one applies it directly to your character rather than occupying a weapon slot, there's essentially no inventory cost to wearing it.
Damage absorption and removal rules
The Bush has a health bar of 1, meaning it absorbs exactly one hit from a weapon before it's destroyed. When a bullet, shell, or sniper round strikes the bush, the projectile is absorbed, and you take zero damage from that shot. The bush then breaks and disappears. This makes it function like a one-time shield — a single sniper headshot that would otherwise eliminate you gets completely nullified if it hits the bush first.
There are important exceptions. The Bush does not block explosive splash damage from grenades, grenade launchers, or the area-of-effect portion of rockets. A direct rocket hit to the bush body will be absorbed, but the explosion radius still deals damage normally. Storm tick damage and fall damage will not remove the Bush at all — you can take storm damage repeatedly, and the bush stays on.
Stink Bombs deal their damage through the bush without removing it. Spike Traps also ignore the bush entirely, dealing full damage while the disguise remains intact. Essentially, the bush only blocks standard projectile hits that physically strike the bush model.
Where the bush blocks damage — and where it doesn't
The bush model doesn't cover your entire body. Shots that land on your feet or lower legs can pass through without hitting the bush, dealing normal damage while leaving the disguise intact. This means an opponent shooting at your feet with an assault rifle will chip away at your health without ever breaking the bush. Sniper shots aimed at your legs behave the same way.
For shotguns, a center-mass blast gets fully absorbed. But because shotguns fire multiple pellets in a spread pattern, pellets that hit outside the bush's coverage area — like your feet or the very top of your head — can still connect. In practice, a well-aimed body shot with a pump will do nothing except destroy the bush, which is why getting point-blank shotgunned while wearing one can feel so frustrating for the attacker.
Stealth versus combat value
The Bush was originally designed as a stealth item. Crouching while wearing one makes you look like a natural part of the environment, and in the right terrain, you can genuinely fool opponents who aren't paying close attention. Standing still in a grassy field or near other foliage is where the disguise works best.
But the damage absorption buff added in Update v7.40 during Chapter 1 Season 7 changed the item's practical value significantly. Because the bush blocks one full damage instance — including a sniper headshot — many players now treat it as a free extra shield rather than a hiding tool. You can peek aggressively, knowing the first shot that connects will be absorbed. It doesn't take up a weapon slot, so there's no downside to applying it immediately when found.
The tradeoff is visibility. The bush model makes your character noticeably larger and more conspicuous during fights. When peeking around structures, the bush sticks out and can reveal your position to attentive opponents. It also clips through thin walls and builds, potentially giving away your location when you're trying to stay hidden behind cover.
Practical tips for using the Bush effectively
- Always apply it immediately. Since it doesn't occupy a weapon slot and provides a free damage block, there's no reason to hold onto it unused.
- Avoid standing near structures while hiding. The bush model can phase through walls and builds, making you visible to nearby players even when you think you're concealed.
- Use it to survive sniper duels. The bush absorbs a full sniper headshot, which can save your life when you're exposed in the open or holding a long-range angle.
- Don't rely on it against explosives. Grenade launchers, grenades, and explosive splash damage go right through the bush without being absorbed.
Bush availability in current modes
The Bush is currently in the Battle Royale and Zero Build loot pools following its February 2026 unvaulting. It's also available in Creative and UEFN for custom game modes. You can find it as floor loot and in chests — it was removed from Supply Drops back in Chapter 1 Season 5 and hasn't returned to them since.
There's a known issue where the bush occasionally fails to block a shot that should have been absorbed. This bug has been documented across multiple versions of the item, though it was partially fixed in the Chapter 4 Season OG variant. Whether the current unvaulted version carries the same inconsistency remains something to watch for in your matches.
Despite its reputation as a meme item, the Bush is genuinely useful. A free one-hit shield that doesn't cost an inventory slot is hard to argue against, even if it does make you look a little ridiculous while cranking 90s.
