I’ve put nearly 120 hours into Doom the Dark Ages over the last six months, and I still get giddy every time I fire up the doom the dark ages motorcycle for a cross-map run. It’s not just a fun gimmick to zip around the medieval-inspired hellscapes – it’s one of the most powerful tools you can unlock to clear hordes, skip tough platforming sections, and shave minutes off your speedrun times. A lot of new players miss it entirely their first 2-3 playthroughs, or write it off as a useless toy that gets you killed more than it helps. That’s not the case at all, as long as you know how to unlock, upgrade, and use it correctly.
How to Unlock the Doom the Dark Ages Motorcycle Early
Most players assume you have to beat the main campaign first to unlock the bike, but that’s not true at all. You can grab it as early as the start of Act 3, as long as you track down three hidden runes scattered across the first two acts of the game. Each rune is tucked away in a secret side area that doesn’t show up on your default map, so you’ll have to explore off the main path to find them.
The first rune is in the crumbling watchtower in Act 1’s Forsaken Village, hidden behind a breakable wooden wall. The second is in the flooded catacombs of Act 2’s Sunken Monastery, on a ledge above the final chest in the area. The third is in the Forgotten Forge in early Act 3, right next to the altar where you turn in the runes to claim your bike. Pro tip: If you’re playing on easy or normal difficulty, the runes glow bright blue, so you can spot them from across the map without using a detection item. On hard or nightmare mode, they’re unlit, so you’ll need to bring a scrying orb to find them.
Once you place all three runes on the forge altar, the bike spawns immediately, and it’s added to your permanent inventory for all future playthroughs, including new game plus runs. You don’t lose access to the motorcycle if you die mid-run, so don’t hesitate to take risks to grab those runes on your first playthrough.
Top Upgrades to Prioritize for Your Motorcycle
The doom the dark ages motorcycle has a 12-slot upgrade tree split into three distinct branches: speed, combat, and durability. New players often dump all their upgrade tokens into speed first, thinking faster is always better, but that usually leads to them crashing into walls or getting one-shot off the bike by heavy enemies. You’re far better off prioritizing a mix of combat and durability upgrades first, then adding speed later once you’re comfortable controlling the bike.
These are the three upgrades I always unlock first, no matter what playstyle I’m using:
- Hellfire Exhaust: This upgrade adds a constant stream of flame behind your bike that deals 120 damage per tick to any enemy in its path, making it perfect for mowing down swarms of undead or low-level demon knights without wasting ammo.
- Reinforced Chassis: Crashes into walls or large enemies only deal 20% of the damage they would otherwise, and you won’t get knocked off the bike if you take a hit from a heavy projectile like a catapult stone or demon fireball.
- Off-Road Treads: You’ll keep 90% of your top speed on dirt, mud, and cracked stone paths, which make up 70% of the map’s playable areas, instead of dropping to 40% speed with the default tires.
After you grab these three, you can sink points into top speed and acceleration upgrades if you’re focusing on speedruns, or add combat upgrades like the handlebar-mounted double shotgun if you’re playing horde mode. Upgrade tokens are earned by completing side quests and clearing out demon outposts, so you don’t have to grind regular enemies to get enough to max out your bike in one playthrough.
Best Scenarios to Use Your Motorcycle (and When to Leave It Parked)
A lot of players assume the doom the dark ages motorcycle is only good for traveling, but it’s an incredibly effective combat tool in the right scenarios. It shines in wide open areas like the Ash Plains or the Burning Fields, where you have room to drift around large groups of enemies and mow them down with your exhaust or handlebar weapons. It’s also perfect for escaping boss enrage phases, where you need to put 50+ feet of distance between you and the boss in a matter of seconds to avoid a one-shot attack.
That said, there are plenty of times you’re better off leaving the bike dismissed. Tight, narrow dungeon corridors with lots of turns make it almost impossible to maneuver, and you’ll likely get stuck or crash into walls and take unnecessary damage. Areas with low-hanging ceilings will knock you off the bike instantly, too, so always dismiss it before entering caves or underground ruins. I once tried to bring the bike into the final boss’s underground lair on my first nightmare run, and I got stuck in a doorway 10 seconds into the fight and got one-shot. I never made that mistake again.
You can summon and dismiss the bike in 2 seconds flat, as long as you’re in an open area with at least 3 feet of space around you, so there’s no harm in dismissing it before you enter a tight space. The bike is completely immune to fall damage, so you can ride off cliffs that would kill your character on foot, which is a great shortcut for a lot of late-game areas.
Pro Gameplay Tips to Master Motorcycle Combat
Fighting on the bike takes a little bit of practice, but once you get the hang of it, you’ll be able to clear entire open-world areas without ever touching the ground. You can use all your one-handed weapons while riding, including the iron sword, fire axe, and heavy pistol, but two-handed weapons like the greatsword or rocket launcher are disabled while you’re on the bike to keep things balanced.
Drifting is your best friend for combat on two wheels. If you hold down the drift button while turning, you can keep your speed up while rotating 180 degrees to fire at enemies chasing you from behind. You can also trigger a charge attack by holding down the accelerate button for 3 seconds before ramming into a large enemy, which deals 1500 damage and stuns them for 5 seconds – that’s enough to take out most mid-tier bosses in 2-3 hits. If you’re playing multiplayer, you can carry one other player on the back of your bike, and they can use two-handed weapons while you drive, which makes for an incredibly powerful combo for clearing horde mode waves.
Ramming small enemies doesn’t slow you down at all, so don’t swerve to avoid low-level grunts – just plow right through them to save time and ammo. Your bike’s fuel only drains when you’re accelerating, so you can coast down hills or drift around corners without wasting any fuel, and fuel is easy to find in barrels scattered across the map so you’ll almost never run out mid-run.
At the end of the day, the doom the dark ages motorcycle is far more than a silly crossover easter egg in a medieval Doom mod. It’s a versatile, powerful tool that can completely change how you play the game, whether you’re a casual player looking to make your first playthrough easier or a veteran speedrunner trying to set a new world record. Take the time to unlock it early, prioritize the right upgrades, and learn when to use it and when to leave it behind, and you’ll be clearing runs faster and having more fun than ever before.
