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How progression works in ARC Raiders
Progression has several tracks, so “making progress” does not mean only raising your Raider’s level. Experience contributes to levels, and levels grant skill points for the Conditioning, Mobility, and Survival branches. You can distribute points among those branches to shape a build rather than follow a single fixed path. Embark’s Game progression help article describes these as the core skill-tree branches.
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Other systems support that character development. Trader quests can reward weapons, gear, materials, and experience. The workshop lets you craft gear, weapons, utilities, medical items, and components; recipes can be found topside. Daily Feats earn Cred. These systems make progression useful in more than one way: experience develops your Raider, while quests and crafting can help supply equipment and resources for later runs.
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What each progression path does
- Experience and levels: build character levels and award skill points.
- Skill branches: spend points across Conditioning, Mobility, and Survival to shape a build.
- Quests: complete trader objectives for rewards that can include weapons, gear, materials, and experience.
- Workshop and recipes: craft equipment and support items; recipes are found topside.
- Daily Feats: earn Cred through the daily task system.
That distinction matters when deciding what a run is for. After extractions, experience contributes to leveling and skill points, while collected materials and recipes can support crafting. Quests and Feats are separate objectives rather than synonyms for leveling. The game’s progression guide explains the available tracks, but does not establish a universal best order for completing them; choose based on whether you want to develop a skill build, pursue a quest reward, or gather what you need for crafting.
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What happens to your gear when you are knocked out?
If your Raider is knocked out while topside, you lose the gear and items carried on that run, except for what is in the Safe Pocket. Embark’s Your first raid guide states that all other loadout gear and items scavenged during the run are lost. The rule concerns what you brought into or found during that raid; it does not say that your entire account inventory is deleted.
The practical risk is therefore tied to what you carry into a raid and what you collect before extraction. Equipment you take topside is not automatically protected merely because it is part of your usual loadout. Likewise, finding an item during a run does not secure it for your account: the guide says scavenged items are also at risk if you are knocked out. Plan around the possibility that a run ends without extraction, rather than treating carried gear as safe until you choose to abandon it.
What the Safe Pocket protects
The Safe Pocket is the exception to the knockout-loss rule: items in it are retained when other carried gear and scavenged items are lost. The cited official guide does not define its capacity, slot restrictions, or every item that can be placed in it, so do not assume that any particular item qualifies without checking the in-game interface. The reliable takeaway is the boundary the guide specifies: Safe Pocket contents are excluded from the stated loss; other items carried during the raid are not.
How a Free Loadout changes the risk
A Free Loadout lets you go topside with random basic equipment at no cost, reducing the value of the gear you risk on that attempt. The trade-off is less room to bring loot back. It is an option for trying again when you would rather not put your own gear on the line, not protection for a normal loadout. Embark describes that choice in the same first-raid guide.
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Use the choice to match the purpose of the run. If you are willing to risk your current kit for a specific objective, take the loadout that makes sense for it. If the cost of another knockout is the main concern, the Free Loadout offers a no-cost way to re-enter with basic random equipment, while limiting how much loot you can carry back. The guide does not promise that a Free Loadout makes a raid safer or guarantees a successful extraction.
Does gear affect matchmaking?
Embark’s public explanation of matchmaking does not describe gear as a basis for placing Raiders into a lobby. Instead, its May 20, 2026 explanation says the system considers how players engage with other Raiders—not what they do with a downed player’s gear afterward. It frames the system’s goals as fairness and unpredictable encounters, and says squad size is prioritized where possible. Read the developer’s matchmaking explanation for its account of those goals.
This is not a complete technical description of the hidden matchmaking algorithm. Embark says it tries to pair players with a similar likelihood of succeeding, but does not publish a full formula or promise exactly who will be in a given lobby. So the most accurate answer is limited: the public explanation discusses Raider-to-Raider engagement and squad size, not post-knockout gear behavior, and does not establish that your equipment determines your match. It also does not guarantee a lobby with a particular playstyle, threat level, or outcome.
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A dated PvE matchmaking-toggle test
As of October 13, 2026, the official ARC Raiders site advertises a PvE matchmaking-toggle beta test running from October 13 through October 20, 2026. That is a dated test, not evidence of a permanent mode or an enduring matchmaking option. Check the official ARC Raiders site for the test announcement and current availability; do not assume the toggle remains after the stated period.
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How to troubleshoot a slow or missing match
If matchmaking takes unusually long or does not find a game, Embark’s Matchmaking Troubleshooting guide recommends checking crossplay and region/server selection first. When playing in a party, the most restrictive player’s Crossplay setting applies to the group, so checking only your own setting may not resolve the issue.
- Check Crossplay for everyone in the party. Crossplay being off is a common cause of slow queues. If grouped, identify the party member whose setting is most restrictive; that setting applies to the party.
- Check matchmaking region and server choice. Embark recommends Automatic server selection. If a specific region was selected, try the recommended Automatic option.
- Sync your device clock if the issue involves maps or conditions. Embark recommends this when you cannot find a match or can join standard maps but not map conditions.
These are troubleshooting checks, not guarantees that a queue will immediately resolve. The help article does not identify a single cause for every failed search. Work through the settings that the guide names, especially party crossplay and region selection, before concluding that the matchmaking system has assigned you an unusual lobby.
What resets when you start an Expedition?
An Expedition is a separate, voluntary reset, not the same thing as losing a raid. It unlocks at level 20 and lets you choose when to reset much of your character-linked progress. Embark’s Expedition Project help article describes an eight-week cycle: seven weeks to prepare, followed by a week when finalization is available. If you miss that window, the article says you can keep working toward the next finalization window.
The Expedition article lists what is reset and what carries over. Keeping those categories separate is important: an Expedition deliberately clears progression that an ordinary knockout does not, while several account and long-term records remain. The rules below are the ones stated in that help article; check later game updates for the exact current departure window.
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| Reset when departing | Carried over |
|---|---|
| Level | Cosmetics and purchased items |
| Skills | Raider Tokens and Cred |
| XP | Raider Deck progress |
| Inventory and stash items | Codex entries and unlocked maps |
| Crafting progress | Bonuses from earlier Expeditions |
The same help article says Expedition completions can provide unique cosmetics and account buffs for the following cycle. Consecutive completions increase the buff up to a limit. That makes Expedition a long-term choice with both a reset cost and stated carry-over rewards—not a required step for ordinary progression. Consider whether you want to give up the listed level, skills, XP, items, and crafting progress before choosing to depart.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Keep the three systems distinct
For day-to-day decisions, separate the consequences of a raid knockout, matchmaking, and Expedition departure. A knockout puts the gear and items carried on that run at risk, with the Safe Pocket exception. Matchmaking has developer-described goals and factors, but no published guarantee of a particular lobby or complete formula. An Expedition is a voluntary reset with its own defined reset and carry-over lists. Knowing which system is involved helps you decide whether to protect an item, adjust queue settings, or postpone a major progression choice.
Frequently Asked Questions
How does progression work in ARC Raiders?
Experience contributes to levels, and levels grant skill points for Conditioning, Mobility, and Survival. You can distribute those points across the three branches. Progression also includes trader quests, workshop crafting with recipes found topside, and daily Feats that earn Cred; quests can reward weapons, gear, materials, and experience.
Do you lose your gear when you die or get knocked out?
Embark’s first-raid guide describes the loss condition as being knocked out while topside: all carried loadout gear and items scavenged during that run are lost except what is in the Safe Pocket. This applies to the raid’s carried items, not your entire account inventory.
What does the Safe Pocket keep?
Items in the Safe Pocket are the exception to the stated knockout loss. The reviewed official guide does not specify the pocket’s capacity, slot restrictions, or which individual items qualify, so check the in-game interface rather than assuming a particular item can be stored there.
Does gear affect matchmaking in ARC Raiders?
The public matchmaking explanation does not say that your gear determines your lobby. Embark describes a system seeking fairness and unpredictability, with squad size prioritized where possible, and says it considers how Raiders engage one another—not what they do with a downed player’s gear afterward. It does not publish a complete algorithm or guarantee a particular lobby.
What resets when you do an Expedition?
At level 20, you can choose to depart on an Expedition. The help article says level, skills, XP, inventory, stash items, and crafting progress reset. Cosmetics and purchased items, Raider Tokens and Cred, Raider Deck progress, Codex entries and unlocked maps, and prior Expedition bonuses carry over. The article describes an eight-week cycle with seven weeks to prepare and a finalization week.
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A Free Loadout supplies random basic equipment at no cost, but gives you less room to bring loot back. It reduces the value of the equipment you risk; it does not protect a normal loadout or guarantee a safer raid or successful extraction.
What should I check if matchmaking is taking too long?
Check whether Crossplay is off, and remember that in a party the most restrictive member’s Crossplay setting applies. Check region and server selection; Embark recommends Automatic. If you cannot find a match or can join standard maps but not map conditions, the troubleshooting guide also recommends syncing your device clock.
Is the PvE matchmaking toggle a permanent mode?
The official site advertised a PvE matchmaking-toggle beta test for October 13–20, 2026. That is a dated test, not evidence that the toggle is a permanent mode; check the official site for current availability.
The Bottom Line
Bottom line: Levels, skills, quests, crafting, and Feats are separate progression paths. A topside knockout risks your carried gear and scavenged items except for Safe Pocket contents; a Free Loadout lowers the cost of re-entering but limits return space. Matchmaking details are not a promise of a specific lobby, while Expedition is a voluntary level-20 reset with clearly listed losses and carry-overs.
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