SegmentNextWalkthrough
Pandora's side missions are where Borderlands 2 keeps its best writing and a good share of its best gear. Some are handed to you at a bounty board; others only start when you shoot the right thing or pick up an ECHO recorder that nobody told you about. This guide organises our Borderlands 2 quest pages: the side mission walkthrough by region, the two recorder hunts that people miss entirely, and the DLC quest that pays a legendary pistol.
Side missions, region by region
Our side missions walkthrough works through the bounty boards of Arid Nexus, The Highlands, Southern Shelf, Frostburn Canyon, The Fridge, Sanctuary, Three Horns Divide and Valley, The Dust, Tundra Express, Bloodshot Ramparts and Bloodshot Stronghold, with objectives and rewards for each mission.
| Mission | Where it starts | What it asks | Reward |
|---|---|---|---|
| Get to Know Jack | The Fyrestone Bounty Board | Five of Jack's ECHO journals: north Fyrestone near Bonehead 2.0, the Fyrestone Bus Stop roof, and three in Arid Nexus Boneyard, one of them carried by a Rakk you have to shoot down | A blue or standard sniper rifle, money and XP |
| Hungry Like the Skag | The badlands | Kill skags in the marked areas for four gun parts in order: stock, barrel, sight, chamber | The assembled weapon |
| Best Mother's Day Ever | Old Cranky's Pond, during Hidden Journals | Take Taggart's chest east of Overlook into the lair, clear it out, then set the chest down on the rock ledge at its centre to open it | Love Thumper shield, 2,903 XP |
| Arms Dealing | Overlook Bounty Board, after Bright Lights, Flying City | Collect five of Zed's packages and post them in five mailboxes inside the time limit; take a Light Runner from a Catch-A-Ride and do not stop to fight | 137 dollars, 1,305 XP, a blue relic or green shield |
| Hyperion Contract 873 | Bounty board | Kill 100 bandits, with bonus objectives for 25 fire, 25 corrosive, 2 shock and 25 explosive kills | 683 dollars per bonus objective, 5,319 XP, a blue talking sniper rifle |
| Stalker of Stalkers | Sir Hammerlock or the Overlook Bounty Board | Kill 15 stalkers as you pass through the chapters | A green shotgun or shield, money and XP |
| Clan War: End of the Rainbow | After Reach the Dead Drop | Tail the Bag Man from the bar at a distance, kill him for Bagman's Key, then raise the platform south of the river | Pot O' Gold shield |
The pattern across the whole list is that the bounty board tells you the objective and not the trick. Arms Dealing is a driving mission disguised as a delivery, Hyperion Contract 873 pays several times over if you carry four elements rather than one, and Best Mother's Day Ever cannot be finished until you have carried a chest across a map.
The two ECHO hunts
Both of these are collectible quests that start themselves, and both are easy to leave half-finished.
Handsome Jack Here
Our Handsome Jack Here guide covers the four audio logs, and the mission begins on its own while you fight from the gate of Liar's Berg down to the harbour. Rewards are 63 dollars, 80 XP and a pistol.
Hidden Journals
Talk to Patricia Tannis and you get four Lost ECHOs to find, which fill in the Vault Hunters' backstories and pay Badass Rank along the way. Our hidden journals guide has the route: the wagon by Frothing Creek Mill east of the Highlands-Hyperion bridge, where you shoot out what is holding the ramp; the boat at Old Cranky's Pond, guarded by a Pyre Thresher that spawns as you reach the hut; the electrified room past the constructor at Aggregate Acquisition, which needs its fuse box shot first; and the room of broken girders under Blake Bridge.
Two warnings from that page. If the third recorder is unreachable because the back door failed to open, save, quit and reload. And the last one sits close enough to the far wall that it can be swallowed if you loot carelessly around it.
Commander Lilith and the Fight for Sanctuary
The free DLC bridges Borderlands 2 and Borderlands 3, and it hides a legendary Dahl pistol behind an optional quest. Our Hector's Paradise guide walks it: reach Chapter 5, The Cost of Progress, then take Echoes of the Past, which sends you through the Dahl Mine to the Mt. Scarab Research Center.
Three ECHOes have to come back to the safe in the Observatory Room. One waits inside a Test Candidate Detention cell once the room is cleared, another sits on the body slumped over the Experimentation Room's meat grinder, and the third is along the walkway below the ladder out of the Observation Deck. Melee the locker, hand all three in, and Hector's Paradise is yours: a shock pistol with a blade for melee damage and extra shock damage in iron sights at the cost of accuracy.
The same DLC ends at a raid boss. Our bosses guide covers Haderax the Invincible, and the Captain Scarlett treasure hunts are in our items guide.
Frequently asked questions
Are side missions worth doing on a first run?
Yes. Several pay unique gear, including the Love Thumper and Pot O' Gold shields, and the XP keeps you level with the story rather than under it.
Can I miss the ECHO quests?
You can walk past them. Handsome Jack Here starts by itself in Liar's Berg, and Hidden Journals only appears once you have spoken to Tannis, so neither one announces itself on a bounty board.
Do I need the DLC for Hector's Paradise?
Yes, but Commander Lilith and the Fight for Sanctuary is free, and the pistol comes from an optional quest inside its fifth chapter.