Borderlands 4's 53 activities and 98 side missions

Exactly how much there is

The Borderlands 4 base game, no DLC, has 25 main missions, 98 side missions, 53 activities and 340 collectibles by the map counter — there are a few more the counter does not track.

Two silver trophies ask you to sweep all of that: Ruler of Everything wants the 53 activities and Grassroots Campaigner wants the 98 side missions.

The good news is twofold. Nothing is missable, and most missions can be replayed. And once the story is done you can start another class straight at level 30 on the post-story progress: the main missions come pre-completed, but side missions and activities respawn, so you can replay everything immediately with a new character.

The bad news is how content is discovered: everything gets marked within roughly a hundred metres as you unfog the map. That sounds convenient until you realise that if you do not walk near it, it does not get marked. There is no master list in the game telling you what you are missing or where.

The 53 activities, by type

The activities are not scattered at random: they are six types repeated across the four maps. Knowing how many there are of each turns "I am one activity short" into a specific search, because the game groups them by type and you only have to compare.

The 98 side missions and the three details that hide them

The 98 side missions spread across the four maps, and each map subdivides into zones. These are the sub-areas where missions start:

The Fadefields — Coastal Bonescape, The Howl, Hungering Plain, Idolator's Noose and Dissected Plateau. The Howl is by far the busiest in the game.

Carcadia Burn — Lopside, Grindstone of the Worthy, Tonnage Peel and Ruined Sumplands. Ruined Sumplands holds the entire Electi questline.

Terminus Range — Cuspid Climb, Stoneblood Forest and The Low Leys. The Low Leys is this region's densest sub-area.

Dominion — Carcadia District, Terminus District and Fades District.

Three details make the count come up short:

The Fades District does not exist until main mission 19. Its five side missions — the Old Raymond, Old Lads and Old Tricks chain, plus One Gassy Issue and One Slimy Issue — cannot even be seen before you reach Plan Z. Sweep Dominion before that mission, call the map done, and you are five short.

Some missions start in several places. Exit Through the Rift Shop can be started at Hungering Plain, Ruined Sumplands, Cuspid Climb or The Low Leys. Ready to Blow starts at The Howl or Idolator's Noose. No Place Like Home, at The Howl or Hungering Plain. It is the same mission: doing it in one place does not leave the others outstanding.

Several are chains in disguise. To the Limb It has Redux and Couples Therapy; Electroshock Therapy has a second session; Price of Freedom and Bad Seed have follow-ups; the Mob line runs to four. Calling the first one done and walking away stops the rest from appearing.