Arc Raiders Skill Tree Guide for New Players and Expeditions
The Arc Raiders skill tree is one of the most important long-term progression systems in the game. Whether you are brand new and trying to figure out which perks are actually worth investing in, or you are an experienced raider preparing optimized builds for expeditions, understanding how to efficiently allocate skill points makes a massive difference in survivability, mobility, looting speed, and overall raid success.
This guide fully breaks down the current Arc Raiders skill tree, explains recent system updates, and provides the exact order of skill point investment that offers the strongest overall value for both early and late game. While skill choices are ultimately subjective, the path outlined here prioritizes stamina management, looting efficiency, and quality-of-life improvements that consistently outperform other options across all playstyles.
Important Skill Tree Updates You Need to Know
Before diving into the build itself, there are several recent updates to the skill system that fundamentally change how players can approach their builds.
Skill Tree Reset System
Arc Raiders now includes a full skill tree reset option. Players can reset individual skill points for 2,000 ARC Raiders coins per point. If you have all 76 skill points unlocked, a full reset currently costs 152,000 coins, with the price scaling as you unlock more points.
This change removes the fear of making “wrong” choices early on. You can now experiment freely, test new perks, and adjust your build for expeditions or PvP without permanently locking yourself into inefficient paths.
Recent Skill Adjustments
Two notable skills were recently adjusted:
• Effortless Roll now provides greater stamina cost reduction when dodge rolling. This has not been extensively tested yet, but it is expected to significantly improve mobility-heavy builds.
• Comic Stroll now applies while moving during ADS (aiming down sights). Since ADS counts as walking, this allows stamina recovery while aiming, making it far more practical than before.
Both of these changes further reinforce stamina management as one of the most valuable mechanics in Arc Raiders.
Core Philosophy Behind This Build
The overarching goal of this skill tree path is simple:
• Maximize stamina uptime
• Improve movement and traversal
• Loot faster and more efficiently
• Gain access to free gear and crafting options
• Reduce friction during PvE, PvP, and extractions
Early game power comes from stamina perks, not combat stats. Mid-game dominance comes from looting speed and carry capacity. Late-game value comes from conditioning, shield mobility, and high-impact utility perks.
You will also gain up to five additional skill points by participating in expeditions. These bonus points are addressed at the end of the guide.
Levels 1–11: Early Game Stamina Foundation
The first 11 levels are all about movement efficiency and stamina control, which are vastly more impactful early than niche combat perks.
Skill Choices
• Nimble Climber (1 point initially)
• Marathon Runner (5 points)
• Useful Lungs (5 points)
Nimble Climber will eventually be maxed out later, but for now, only one point is needed. The real focus here is Marathon Runner and Useful Lungs, which dramatically improve stamina regeneration and sprint duration. The difference is immediately noticeable when traversing maps, climbing terrain, and repositioning during fights.
For early gameplay, these perks outperform almost everything else in the tree.
Levels 12–26: Looting Speed and Tree Progression
At this stage, the priority shifts toward unlocking deeper parts of the survival tree while improving looting efficiency.
Skill Choices
• Agile Croucher (1 point initially)
• Revitalizing Squat (1 point)
• In-Raid Crafting (1 point)
• Looter’s Instinct (5 points)
• Silent Scavenger (5 points)
• Agile Croucher (final 2 points)
Agile Croucher improves crouched movement speed and becomes more valuable later. Revitalizing Squat is situational and requires being motionless while crouched, making it underwhelming, but it is required for progression.
In-Raid Crafting is genuinely useful, allowing you to craft bandages and shield rechargers during raids.
The real stars here are Looter’s Instinct and Silent Scavenger. Faster looting speeds (roughly 20–25%) and reduced noise while looting provide both PvE and PvP advantages. When combined, these perks significantly reduce the time you spend exposed during loot interactions.
Levels 27–37: Looter’s Luck Power Spike
This is where the build hits its first major power spike.
Skill Choices
• Suffer in Silence (1 point)
• Looter’s Luck (5 points)
• Broad Shoulders (5 points)
Suffer in Silence slightly reduces noise while injured and is mostly taken as a gateway perk.
Looter’s Luck is arguably the best perk in the entire game. It allows you to reveal multiple ARC Raiders items at once when looting containers, bodies, and ARC drops. When paired with Looter’s Instinct, you will fly through loot containers at unmatched speed.
Broad Shoulders increases carry capacity by 2 kg per point, granting a total of 10 kg at max rank. This directly translates into higher profit per raid and fewer painful inventory decisions.
Levels 38–43: Encumbrance and Stamina Synergy
Skill Choices
• Good as New
• Stubborn Mule (5 points)
Good as New slightly improves stamina recovery while under healing effects, which is a consistent quality-of-life boost.
Stubborn Mule reduces stamina penalties while over-encumbered. While you should avoid being over-encumbered, this perk outperforms alternatives in this section and is extremely helpful during extraction-heavy raids.
Levels 44–48: In-Raid Crafting Expansion and Security Breach
Skill Choices
• Traveling Tinkerer
• Raider Scraps (1 point)
• Agile Croucher (final points)
• Security Breach
Traveling Tinkerer expands in-raid crafting to include grenades, traps, and herbal bandages, enabling strong “free loadout” runs.
Security Breach, despite past nerfs, remains one of the most valuable perks in the game. It allows access to security lockers that function like oversized weapon crates. While purple weapons are rarer than before, green and blue weapons, grenades, and mod components remain extremely common.
For free loadouts and early gearing, this perk is unmatched.
Levels 49–63: Conditioning Tree and Shield Mobility
This phase transitions into the conditioning tree, which focuses on movement, stamina, and equipment handling.
Key Picks
• Proficient Pry (5 points) – 30% faster breaching
• Use of the Weight (5 points) – Massive improvement to medium and heavy shield mobility
• Fight or Flight (3 points)
Use of the Weight is critical once you begin running heavier shields, allowing jogging instead of walking when weapons are stowed.
Fight or Flight restores stamina when taking damage. While not game-changing, it consistently provides clutch value in fights.
Levels 64–66: Resource Efficiency and Weapon Weight
Skill Choices
• Survivor Stamina
• A Little Extra
• Loaded Arms
A Little Extra is an underrated perk that grants random crafting resources when breaching containers. Over time, this provides a steady stream of rare materials like springs and ARC circuitry.
Loaded Arms reduces equipped weapon weight by 50%, making it invaluable for carrying heavy weapons and extracting with more loot.
Levels 67–71: Emergency Mobility
Skill Choice
• Unburned Roll
This perk grants a free dodge roll after shield break. While situational, it can be the difference between escaping ARC units or surviving PvP encounters.
Levels 72–75: Mobility Tree Finishers
Skill Choices
• Nimble Climber (finish)
• Carry the Momentum
• Crawl Before You Walk
• Vigorous Vaulter
Vigorous Vaulter is particularly impactful. Vaulting is no longer slowed while exhausted, allowing fast escapes even at zero stamina. This perk is invaluable in both PvE and PvP situations.
Final Skill Points and Expedition Bonuses
If you did not participate in expeditions, you should have 2 remaining points, which are best placed into Fight or Flight.
If you completed expeditions, you may have up to 7 spare points. Recommended options include:
• Three Deep Breaths for faster stamina recovery after ability use
• Finishing Fight or Flight
• Investing in Raider Scraps
• Experimental picks like Mind Sweeper, though it remains situational
Final Thoughts
This skill tree path is designed to maximize efficiency, survivability, and profitability across all content in Arc Raiders. It emphasizes stamina management, looting speed, and movement—three pillars that consistently outperform raw combat bonuses.
With the new reset system in place, experimentation is encouraged. However, if you want a proven, optimized foundation that works from your first raid through endgame expeditions, this progression path is one of the strongest and most reliable approaches currently available.
MMOexp ARC Raiders Team