A new event in Arc Raiders is now live, focusing on cooperation among players. Called “Shared Watch,” this event encourages players to work together to destroy the ARC in order to earn special cosmetic rewards.
Unlike the Flickering Flames event, there are no specific projects or unique materials to gather this time. However, players can still earn unique rewards and some solid Epic-tier blueprints for their efforts. If you enjoy PvE gameplay, here’s everything you need to know about the new Shared Watch event.
### How to Earn Merits
The main way to progress in this event is by earning Merits. You gain Merits by dealing damage to ARC enemies, destroying them, or assisting in their destruction. It doesn’t matter what map or event you’re playing—any ARC kill or damage counts toward your event progress.
Killing other Raiders, looting, or completing quests does not contribute to your Merits. To maximize your rewards, focus solely on damaging or eliminating ARC enemies. For example, during a Matriarch event, using a Hullcracker earned me over 200 Merits upon extraction. That amount is roughly four levels’ worth of rewards on the event tracker, making boss fights like Matriarch or Harvester efficient ways to rank up quickly.
If your resources are limited, aim to destroy smaller ARC enemies such as Wasps, Fireballs, and Hornets. While this may slow down your progress, it will still contribute toward unlocking rewards.
### Shared Watch Event Rewards
By completing the entire event tracker, you can earn up to 21 different items. Rewards include a new outfit called Slugger, a hat for Scrappy, two Epic blueprints, and Raider Tokens. Rewards are unlocked sequentially based on Merits, so grinding is necessary to access certain items like the Scrappy hat.
Here’s a breakdown of some of the rewards and the Merits required:
| Order | Merits Needed | Reward |
|———|—————-|————————————-|
| 1 | 50 | Slugger (outfit) |
| 2 | 100 | 20 Raider Tokens |
| 3 | 150 | Vita Spray |
| 4 | 200 | Tactical MK. 3 (Healing) Blueprint |
| 5 | 250 | Grenades (Slugger Variant) |
| 6 | 300 | Baseball (Backpack Charm) |
| 7 | 350 | 20 Raider Tokens |
| 8 | 400 | Grey Yellow (Slugger Color) Variant |
| 9 | 450 | Snaphook |
| 10 | 500 | Hand Signals (Emote) |
| 11 | 550 | 20 Raider Tokens |
| 12 | 600 | Chest Piece (Slugger Variant) |
| 13 | 650 | 20 Raider Tokens |
| 14 | 700 | Sport Face Paint Blue (Face Style) |
| 15 | 750 | Blue Glow (Slugger Color) Variant |
| 16 | 800 | Vita Spray Blueprint |
| 17 | 850 | 20 Raider Tokens |
| 18 | 900 | Headgear (Slugger Variant) |
| 19 | 950 | Acoustic Guitar |
| 20 | 1,000 | 20 Raider Tokens |
| 21 | 1,050 | Batting Helmet (Scrappy Cosmetic) |
Players need to earn Merits in sequence to unlock these rewards. Grinding through a boss fight is a quick way to accumulate a large amount of Merits at once.
### Cold Snap Map Event Returns
While there is no new map event tied directly to Shared Watch, the Cold Snap event from Flickering Flames is back. It takes place on every map except Stella Montis and transforms the environment into a harsh blizzard, making visibility difficult and adding a frostbite mechanic.
To avoid frostbite, players can stay indoors or in structures with walls and a roof. Frostbite appears as snow on your character model, which melts away once you’re out of the cold. Keep this in mind when navigating open areas like Blue Gate, where large open spaces are common.
Additionally, Candleberries are back but serve no real purpose this time. They aren’t used in crafting, and collecting them doesn’t provide any benefits other than selling for money in Speranza. You can also make and throw snowballs, but these actions aren’t tied to any quests or crafting recipes, so they can be ignored.
The Cold Snap event will run until February 24th, giving players plenty of time to participate and earn rewards.
