Arc Raiders Beginner Guide 2026 — Everything You Need to Know
Quick Answer
Arc Raiders is a PvPvE extraction shooter. Drop in, loot materials and weapons, survive ARC machines and other players, then extract safely. Never bring your best gear on early runs. Holster your weapon with H (or Triangle/Y on console) to sprint faster. Prioritise Stamina and Health Regeneration with your first skill points. Don't sell your free loadout augment — trade it at the clinic instead.
Step-by-Step Guide
Understand the Core Loop
Every raid in Arc Raiders follows the same structure: deploy from Speranza, loot the surface (the Rust Belt), survive ARC machines and other Raiders, then extract safely using an extraction beacon. Die with a custom loadout and you lose everything — your gear and your loot. Free loadouts are replenishable with no permanent loss. The entire game is built around one decision: do you push deeper for bigger rewards or extract now with what you have?
Never Bring Your Best Gear Into Early Raids
This is the biggest mistake new players make. When you are learning maps, enemy patterns, and extraction points, you will die — a lot. Dying with rare weapons and valuable augments is just throwing resources away. Use free loadouts or cheap gear for your first 20-30 extractions. Save your rare weapons for events, squad runs with friends, or when you are confident in the maps. Treat every early raid as a learning experience where the goal is survival and map knowledge, not maximum profit.
Master Movement — Holster Your Weapon
Press H on PC (Triangle on PS5, Y on Xbox) to holster your weapon. This gives you significantly faster sprint speed than running with a gun out. This is one of the most important mechanics the game does not explain clearly. Always holster when moving between locations. Only draw your weapon when you are actively engaging an enemy. The speed difference is substantial and can be the difference between reaching extraction in time or not.
Spend Your First Skill Points on Stamina and Health
It is tempting to invest early skill points into damage, but for new Raiders survival is the only priority. Spend your first five levels almost exclusively on Stamina and Health Regeneration. Being able to sprint for a few extra seconds to escape a Snitch or a Leaper is worth far more than a small damage increase. As you progress, look at Conditioning skills that reduce stamina costs and Utility skills that improve healing. Mobility is king in the current 2026 meta — faster vaulting and reduced fall damage are extremely useful in vertical maps like Buried City.
Do Not Sell Your Free Loadout Augment
The free loadout augment you receive early on — do not sell it at the vendor. Take it to the clinic and trade it instead. You will get significantly better value and can potentially upgrade to something more useful for your playstyle. Trading at the clinic also gives you a slot for a safe pocket, which is essential during raids. The safe pocket lets you store one item that stays with you even if you die — always keep your most valuable loot there.
Use Arc Power Cells as Emergency Shield Charges
Arc power cells do not need to be crafted into anything specific. You can use them directly during a raid to charge a portion of your shield in emergency situations. Keep one in your quick use bar at all times early in the game. The game does not explain this clearly but it is one of the most useful early survival tools available to new Raiders.
Learn How to Deal With Other Players
When you see another Raider as a beginner, your instinct is to shoot first. Resist that urge. Shooting on sight as a beginner will get you killed more often than it pays off. Try communicating — a simple voice line or mic message like 'friendly' can turn a dangerous encounter into a profitable partnership. Other players can help you take on ARC bosses, share loot, and escort you to extraction. You will get betrayed occasionally and that is part of the game. But the value of cooperation far outweighs the losses. Note: Arc Raiders has a matchmaking system that adjusts to your aggression level — consistently aggressive players are placed in more hostile lobbies.
Know When to Extract
Greed kills more Raiders than ARC machines. If you have loot worth extracting, extract. Do not push deeper when you are already loaded. Use the in-game stash value display added in Patch 1.22.0 to see your current total stash value without leaving the game. Set a mental threshold before each run — for example, extract as soon as your stash value reaches 20,000 RC — and stick to it. Use the Stash Calculator at arcraidertools.com to plan your thresholds before dropping in.
Pro Tips
- ▸Holster your weapon with H (PC) / Triangle (PS5) / Y (Xbox) for significantly faster sprint speed.
- ▸Spend first skill points on Stamina and Health Regeneration — not damage.
- ▸Never bring rare gear into your first 20-30 raids. Learn maps with free loadouts.
- ▸Trade your free loadout augment at the clinic — never sell it at the vendor.
- ▸Arc power cells can charge your shield directly mid-raid — keep one in your quick use bar.
- ▸Birds on the map scatter when players pass nearby — use them to detect other Raiders.
- ▸Even when knocked down and crawling, you can still activate an extraction console and escape.
- ▸Sound matters — avoid sprinting near enemies, slamming doors, or stepping on glass unnecessarily.
- ▸Prioritise stash expansion early — multiple veteran players report regretting delayed stash upgrades.
- ▸ARC machines are damaged most efficiently by hitting their blue weak points after staggering them with Impact weapons.