ARC Raiders has 45 skills across three branches: Mobility, Conditioning and Survival. You earn 75 points from levelling and up to 5 bonus points for 80 in total, so you cannot take everything. Good early picks are Marathon Runner and Youthful Lungs for stamina, then In-Round Crafting for self-sufficiency in the field.
How the skill system works
Skills make you harder to kill, faster and better at looting rather than hit harder. Most skills have five levels. Because points are limited, your first choices shape your Raider for many hours. These numbers reflect the game at the time of writing and can change with patches.
The three branches
- Mobility: stamina use, sprinting, climbing and vaulting. Core picks include Marathon Runner, Youthful Lungs and Nimble Climber.
- Conditioning: weight, carry capacity and hazard resistance. Includes Used to the Weight and Broad Shoulders.
- Survival: field crafting, looting speed and stealth. Includes In-Round Crafting and Looter's Instincts.
A balanced baseline is about 35 points in Mobility, 22 in Conditioning and 18 in Survival. Adjust it to your playstyle.
What to take first
Stamina
Marathon Runner lowers stamina cost while moving and Youthful Lungs raises your stamina pool. Putting at least 15 points into Mobility before branching out makes every raid easier, because escaping is worth more than a little extra damage.
Staying alive
Used to the Weight reduces the movement penalty from shields. Fight or Flight kicks in stamina regeneration when you are close to death.
Less downtime
In-Round Crafting lets you make bandages and ammunition mid-raid, so you can stay out longer. Proficient Pryer and Looter's Instincts shorten the time you spend exposed at containers.
Builds by playstyle
| Build | Focus | Best for |
|---|---|---|
| Solo Survivor | Mobility and sustain | Solo players who avoid long fights |
| Squad Support | Team utility and survival | Co-op squads covering each other |
| Aggressive Raider | Combat efficiency | Confident fighters |
| Loot Runner | Speed and economy | Players who extract fast |
For a solo build, max Marathon Runner and Youthful Lungs, add Nimble Climber, In-Round Crafting, Used to the Weight and Fight or Flight, and avoid extended fights. In a squad, coordinate with teammates so you do not all take the same skills.
Respecs
You can reset the tree from the Raider menu, at a cost of 2,000 coins per skill level, which makes a full reset expensive. Expeditions also reset progression, so do not pay for a respec if one is coming. Aim to build correctly the first time.
Once your build is set, read how extraction works to use it well. Our ARC Raiders cheat is separate from the game's own systems.