ARC Raiders is a PvPvE extraction shooter from Embark Studios, the team behind The Finals. The rule that will decide your first hours is simple: if you die in a raid, you lose everything you’re carrying. This guide is about getting out of a raid alive before you start worrying about weapon stats. For what’s changing in the game right now, see update 1.45.0, which removes the Cred currency and launches the fifth Expedition.
How a raid works
Each mission lasts thirty minutes at most and gives you four jobs that compete for your time:
- collect valuable loot: weapons, materials, tech,
- complete faction contracts,
- survive fights with ARC robots and other players,
- reach an extraction point and get out.
The fourth one is the only one that counts. A full backpack you can’t get out with is worth zero. A fan of the Raiders beyond the game too? The GamersTogether shop has officially licensed ARC Raiders merch – t-shirts, posters and mugs.
| Mode | Description | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Solo | alone against everyone | experienced players |
| Duo | team of two | ideal start |
| Squad | team of three | highest chance of success |
Watch out: more players also means more enemies. We explain why in the respawn timer table.
Risk and reward: what you lose and what you keep
Dying in a raid means losing the loot you’re carrying. Here’s what stays with you:
- Permanent skills. Unlike Tarkov, you keep your skill progress even after death.
- Your stash. Whatever you stored in Speranza is safe.
- Map knowledge. The most valuable thing you’ll gain in your first hours.
That gives you the first rule for new players: take gear into a raid that you won’t mind losing until you know where the extractions are.
Speranza: your home base
Speranza is the underground colony where humanity hides from ARC. Between raids, this is where you:
- build your loadout and prepare for the next run,
- trade with NPCs,
- craft gear from the materials you’ve collected,
- take contracts from factions,
- upgrade your workshop and buildings, which is where most of the loot you bring back ends up.
The surface of Calabretta and the main locations
Up top, ARC robots and other players roam. The maps range from dark tunnels under a dam to open desert flats:
- The Dam: a dam with a dark underground, close-quarters fights.
- Spaceport: a spaceport with giant spider robots.
- Buried City: a buried city in southern Calabretta.
ARC robots: who to fear
| Type | Threat level | Tactics |
|---|---|---|
| Surveillance Drone | low | take it out quickly and quietly, or it draws attention |
| Rollerbots | medium, high in a swarm | don’t make noise, use EMP |
| Spider Bots | high | use their wrecks as cover |
| Bastion (giant tank) | very high | only with coordination and special grenades; drops excellent loot |
What they all have in common: they react to noise and movement and they have weak spots, namely vulnerability to EMP and gaps in their armor. Shooting an unarmored spot saves both ammo and time.
Five rules for your first ten raids
- Find your extraction before you start looting. Knowing where to run is worth more than one extra crate.
- Don’t get dragged into fights with players. Winning gets you their backpack, losing costs you yours, and the odds are against you until you have gear.
- Listen. ARC and players both make noise. In an extraction shooter, sound tells you more than the minimap.
- Carry EMP. Against rollerbots and drones, it’s the cheapest solution you have.
- Leave earlier than you want to. Most losses happen in the last five minutes, when players are heading for the same extractions.
FAQ
You lose what you’re carrying in the raid. Permanent skills and the contents of your stash in Speranza stay, so you don’t lose your progress as such.
Thirty minutes at most. In practice, though, most players extract earlier, because the risk grows the longer you stay on the map.
In a duo. Solo is for experienced players and a three-player squad is the safest, but a duo gives you the best balance between staying calm and actually learning something.
Not at the start. They’ll kill you in a few hits. Once you have a team and grenades, they drop some of the best items in the game.
The interface and subtitles aren’t available in every language. You’ll find the details in our article on languages in ARC Raiders.
Information verified as of 7 September 2026. The mechanics are stable, but specific numbers and enemy behavior change with patches. Also useful next: the respawn timer table, what the Assessor Matrix is for, and whether you can gift skins (spoiler: you can’t, and there’s a scam built on that). The full section is at ARC Raiders.