ARC Raiders XP Guide: How to Level Fast and Dominate at Launch

Hey, Raiders, Elias here from RivalSector.com. The ARC Raiders Server Slam is behind us, and the full launch is breathing down our necks on October 30th. I spent the entire test weekend grinding the rust belt, dodging mechs, and figuring out the most efficient ways to level up. If you’ve played any extraction shooter, you know the launch-day race is real. Getting those early levels, unlocking better gear from Traders, and filling out your Skill Tree is the key to establishing yourself in Speranza and surviving topside.

The progression grind in ARC Raiders feels rewarding, but it can also be a brutal climb if you do not know what you are doing. I saw so many new players running straight at PVP, dying, and complaining about their XP gains. They are missing the point. ARC Raiders rewards smart, objective-focused gameplay, not just raw aggression.

So, how do you get ahead of the pack? How do you farm XP fast to unlock those beefy skill upgrades and new weapon blueprints? I have broken down the entire XP-gaining meta for you. This is your ultimate guide to hitting the level cap fast.

Your Number One Priority: Quests Are King

I cannot be clearer about this. If you want to level up fast, you must focus on Quests.

In Speranza, our underground hub, you will find various Traders. These NPCs are not just vendors, they are your primary source of massive XP boosts. During the tests, I found that completing a single quest often gave me more XP than three or four successful extraction runs combined. We are talking thousands of XP for early quests, and I saw some later-game quests reward tens of thousands.

Here is my strategy: Before I even think about heading topside, I visit every Trader and load up on every available quest. These quests will dictate my entire raid.

• Need to collect 3 ARC power cores? I am now hunting mechs, not players.
• Need to visit a specific location at the Dam? I am planning my route there immediately.
• Need to deliver an item? I am focusing on a “get in, get out” stealth run.

These quests “double-dip” your XP gains. You get all the XP from your in-raid actions (looting, killing) plus a giant bonus check when you return to Speranza and turn in the quest. Do not leave the hub without a full log of quests. This is the single fastest way to level.

The “Loot Everything” Metagame for Consistent Gains

This next tip is the most consistent and reliable way to gain XP. It might sound boring, but it is incredibly effective: Loot everything.

I mean everything. Every crate, every box, every locker, every dead ARC bot. Here is the secret: In ARC Raiders, you get a flat amount of XP just for the act of searching a container. It does not even matter if it is empty.

During the Server Slam, I was getting around 200 XP for a standard container and 250-500 XP for looting downed ARC bots or player stashes. This adds up incredibly fast. On a 20-minute run where I did nothing but loot containers and avoid all conflict, I could easily walk out with several thousand XP just from scavenging.

This is the perfect low-risk, high-reward strategy for all players, especially if you are playing solo. While the “chad” players are busy fighting each other and risking their gear, you can be a “rat,” silently moving through compounds, opening every container, and building a massive XP pool. Remember, you keep your base XP even if you die (though you lose the extraction bonus), so every container you open is permanent progress.

Farming ARC: Your Walking XP Banks

Those ARC machines roaming the surface are not just obstacles, they are your personal XP farms. The PVE in ARC Raiders is a genuine threat, but it is also a predictable one. Unlike human players, bots have patterns. Learning them is key to easy XP.

Here is a quick breakdown of how I approach PVE for XP:

• Small Bots (Ticks, Pops): These are free XP. They go down in a few shots and give a small but instant XP reward. Do not ignore them, pop them as you move.
• Medium Bots (Troopers): These are your bread and butter. They are tougher but drop valuable parts and give a solid chunk of XP for the kill.
• Large Bots (Bastions, Behemoths): This is where the big money is. Taking down a large mech is a challenge, but the XP reward is huge. The real bonus comes after the kill. You can scavenge multiple parts from their giant corpses, and I was getting 500 XP per part. Taking down one Bastion and scavenging it clean could net you thousands of XP.

My advice: Bring gear specifically to hunt ARC. EMP grenades are your best friend. They stun bots, letting you hit their weak points. Aiming for glowing red components always deals bonus damage. A good PVE-focused run, where you clear out a high-density ARC zone and then extract, is often more profitable and far safer than hunting players.

The Great XP Table: Where Do Your Points Come From?

To put it all in perspective, I have built this table based on my experiences in the test. The exact values might change at launch, but the proportions should be similar. This shows you where you should be spending your time.

As you can see, quests and scavenging are the undisputed champions of consistent XP. PVP is a high-risk gamble. You might get a kill, or you might get third-partied and lose 20 minutes of progress. For pure leveling, stick to PVE and objectives.

The Golden Rule: Survival is the Ultimate Multiplier

Finally, let’s talk about the most important rule of any extraction shooter: You must survive.

Dying topside is a disaster for your XP farm. While you get to keep the base XP you earned from looting and kills, you lose two critical things:

1. All the loot and gear you found.
2. The massive “Return Safely” XP bonus.

This extraction bonus acts like a multiplier on your entire run. A successful 20-minute raid where you extract can be worth double or triple the XP of a 20-minute raid where you die at the very end.

This is why I constantly tell my squad to play smart, not hard. Do not get greedy. If your inventory is full of quest items and valuable materials, do not push that last fight. Just get to an extraction point. A short, successful run is always better than a long, failed one. Learn the extraction point locations, know your escape routes, and always have a backup plan.

Your Launch Day Grind Plan

So, let’s put it all together. You want to be level 20 before your friends? Here is my personal launch-day plan.

1. Hub Check: Log in, immediately go to all Traders, and accept every single quest.
2. Gear Up: Build a cheap, effective loadout. Focus on PVE. Bring ammo and medical supplies.
3. Deploy Topside: Pick a landing zone that is close to your first quest objective.
4. Loot and Move: As you move to your objective, loot every single container you see.
5. Objective First: Complete your quest objective. If it involves killing ARC, do it efficiently.
6. Scavenge More: After the objective is done, fill the rest of your inventory by looting.
7. Extract Safely: As soon as your quests are done or your bag is full, leave. Do not risk it.
8. Turn-In and Repeat: Return to Speranza, turn in your quests for that massive XP payload, and start all over.

This loop-Quests, Loot, Survive-is the key.

The launch of ARC Raiders is going to be a huge moment, and I am stoked to dive back in. The race to the top is on, but with this guide, you will be well on your way.

What’s your launch-day strategy? Are you focusing on PvE, or going straight for player blood? Let me know your plans in the comments below. For more in-depth guides, hardware breakdowns to achieve the best framerate, and everything ARC Raiders, stay locked to RivalSector.com and check out our Gaming Insights category for tips on surviving in ARC Raiders.

See you topside, Raiders. Elias out.