What's New in 1.42.0
Headline Additions
- Phantom Targets Event & Part 2 Raider Project — hunt glitched Wasps, commit parts, earn Merits
- Anomalia Outfit — free unlock on the Merit rewards track
- Tick Hunter Set — now available on all storefronts
- Regional Map Condition Scheduling — conditions offset by matchmaking region
- Anti-Cheat & Fair Play update — third-party software warning, economy-exploit sanctions, teaming work in progress
- New Twitch Drops — Car Freshener & Ceramic Vase
- Rubber Duck Design Contest winners — coming to the Raider Den in a future update
Phantom Targets Revealed: Glitched Wasps
Part 1 of the project was all triangulation — antennas, thrown ARC parts, fire and launcher damage. 1.42.0 is the payoff. Shani has pinned the phantom readings on a new Wasp variant: they fly irregular patterns, emit noises regular Wasps don't, and carry tech nobody in Speranza can identify. They're swarming toward one location, and she needs Raiders to bring the wreckage back.
"These ARC units are exhibiting behavior she's never seen before: emitting strange noises, flying in irregular patterns, and carrying unidentifiable tech. They're all swarming towards one location."
In-raid, the new Wasps are easy to spot once you know the tells. They sound different, they move erratically, and they still go down about as fast as a regular Wasp — this isn't a new boss, it's a loot variant. Early runs on Dam Battlegrounds (the swamp in particular) suggest most or all Wasps on a map can be glitched during the event, which is good news for farming. First Wave Wasps do not appear to drop the new parts, so don't waste time harvesting those wrecks expecting Glitched ARC loot.
The parts themselves are the whole loop. You extract with them to bank Merits, then commit what the project needs from the project screen. Surplus can be sold or recycled — Glitched ARC Circuitry in particular recycles into Exodus Modules and ARC Alloy, which makes wasp hunting a legitimate materials run even after you've filled the commit slots.
Glitched Part Values
- Power Converter — Common, 10 Merits / 640
- Transmitter — Uncommon, 15 Merits / 1,000
- Phased Array — Rare, 25 Merits / 2,000
- Light Ring — Epic, 50 Merits / 3,000
- Circuitry — Legendary, 100 Merits / 5,000
Part 2 at a Glance
- Stage 4 — commit 10 of each common/uncommon/rare glitched part + Advanced ARC Powercells
- Stage 5 — commit 10 Light Rings and 10 Circuitry (the real grind)
- Stage 6 — deal damage to flying ARC with Fireworks
Full Stage Guide
We already have the complete Part 1 + Part 2 walkthrough — commit amounts, Merit values, farming notes, and the Anomalia track — in our Phantom Targets Project guide.
This is the first proper event since Embark killed monthly content drops, and it reads like a narrative on-ramp to Frozen Trail. Glitched ARC carrying unidentifiable tech, swarming toward one location, while Shani is already chasing an unprecedented signal from beyond the mountains? That's not a coincidence. If you haven't finished Part 1 yet, do it now — Part 2 is the actual hunt, and the Merit track is how you get the free skin.
The Anomalia Outfit & Merit Track
The event adds a 21-reward Merit track. You earn Merits by extracting with glitched ARC parts or by simply earning XP, so every raid contributes even if the Wasps elude you. The headline unlock is the Anomalia outfit at 2,400 Merits — toggleable headgear, and it's completely free. The track keeps going after that, topping out at a face style at 3,000 Merits.
Project completion also pays out loaded weapons and blueprints from the later stages, including a Kanto III, Volcano III, the Fireworks blueprint, a Crash Map blueprint, and Anvil gear. Don't dump extra glitched parts into the commit dialog past the 10-each requirement — once they're in, they're gone, and you still want Merits plus recycle value from the surplus.
Regional Map Condition Scheduling
This is the sleeper feature of the patch, and it might be the one that changes how you queue. Until 1.42.0, map conditions ran on a single global schedule. If Night Raid Blue Gate was up, it was up for everyone. Starting now, conditions are offset by region so they line up with each region's peak hours.
"Starting with 1.42.0, Map Conditions will have their schedule offset based on regions, instead of a single, global schedule. This way, it'll be less likely to miss out on a map condition regardless of where you are."
The Map selection screen now shows a Region label for your current matchmaking region — that's how you tell which schedule you're on. Switch region in settings and the available conditions change with it. Early checks after the patch went live:
- North America — Buried City with Prospecting Probes
- Europe — Blue Gate Night Raid, plus a Matriarch
- Asia — Harvester on Buried City, Electrostorm, and Night Raid
Those snapshots will have rotated by the time you read this — the point is that three regions can be running three different highlights at the same moment. Embark's map-condition tracker on the official site now reflects the regional split. In-game, the new Region label on the Map selection screen is the source of truth for whatever lobby you're about to join.
Yes, you can region-hop for the condition you want. If Europe has Night Raid and you'd rather take the ping than miss it, the setting is right there. I wouldn't build a whole playstyle around it — peak-hour alignment is the actual design goal, and hopping into a high-ping lobby for a Matriarch is a trade a lot of players will make once and then forget. But as a catch-up tool for a condition you keep missing on your home region? That's a genuine upgrade over the old global clock.
Tick Hunter Set Is Live
Wishlisted since Store Update 1.40.0, the Tick Hunter bundle is now on all storefronts. It ships with 2,400 Raider Tokens plus:
- Tick Hunter outfit — Red, White, Green, and Black, with optional head/face Tick pieces
- Field Telephone backpack
- Tick Trophy backpack charm
- Spider Tattoo face style
The white shoulder-pad look is the one that stood out in the dressing room — clean, almost gladiator-coded once you layer the hip armor. The Tick Trophy charm is the piece most people will notice in a lobby.
Fair Play Follow-Up
Embark published a longer anti-cheat note than usual. The short version: they are still treating cheats, third-party "advantage" software, and economy exploits as a top priority, and the last few weeks produced a wave of bans against recently popularized cheating tools (working with Anybrain and Denuvo).
Third-Party Software
The studio's line is blunt. A lot of tools advertised as duplication helpers or account-level shortcuts do not do what they claim, and downloading them is how you lose the account and leak personal data. Enable 2FA or passkeys on every external account tied to your Embark ID. Never share credentials — "no matter how many ducks they offer."
What's Actually Being Actioned
- Cheating software — large numbers of accounts using recently popularized tools have already been sanctioned
- Serial cheaters — work in progress on making new accounts harder to obtain so bans stick
- Economy exploits (duplication and similar) — detection has improved, sanctions are ongoing
- Teaming / matchmaking abuse — several initiatives in flight; Embark says they'll share more when those are ready. This is the griefing-groups-forcing-lobbies problem, especially in some regions and time slots
The economy-exploit language is going to make some legitimate players nervous — dropping farmed gear to a friend or an alt has been a gray area the community has been asking Embark to clarify. If you got hit and you weren't duping, that's worth raising on the official Discord rather than assuming the system can't tell the difference. The 2FA reminder is the part everyone should actually do today.
Rubber Duck Contest Winners
The Discord popular vote locked in three finalists last Thursday: gekko.rar, im_AshCheeks, and nassguhl. Embark is already working on bringing those ducks in-game — they'll land in a future update, not this one. Eventually you'll be able to fill the Raider Den with community-designed ducks. As rewards for a cosmetic contest go, that's a pretty good prize.
Twitch Drops
A new drop campaign is live with the Car Freshener and Ceramic Vase. Link your Embark ID to Twitch and watch a participating stream to unlock them.
Content & Bug Fixes
Audio
- Refined indoor footsteps: scuff sounds removed, better distance audibility, updated occlusion and concrete cues
- Clearer, more natural footsteps through foliage
- Unique footsteps on plastic cloth and tarp
- Distinct firing sounds for all Tier 3 magazine upgrades
Gameplay
- The Snitch can now call in a Rocketeer, and can also call a Firefly + Hornet duo. Snitch Scanners should be unaffected
- Queen and Matriarch stomp attacks should no longer hit through walls or from farther away than intended
- The Photoelectric Cloak now works against Turbine lightning and Matriarch missiles
- Spawn protection added to the Surge Coil Trap so it doesn't tag you on spawn
- You can now rebind Quick Wheel slots
- The Dolabra, Hullcracker, and Rascal now deal damage correctly in the Practice Range
Two of these are bigger than they look. Photoelectric Cloak vs Matriarch missiles and Turbine lightning is a real survival tool, not a tooltip clarification — if you already run the cloak, this patch just made it worth the slot. And the Snitch calling a Rocketeer (or a Firefly/Hornet pair) means you do not ignore a screaming scanner the way you used to. Shoot it or leave.
The Queen/Matriarch stomp-through-walls fix has been in enough patch notes that I'll believe it when I stop getting flattened through a doorframe. Fingers crossed this is the one that sticks.
Map, Performance, Stability, UI
- Repositioned a Buried City zip line that couldn't be used
- Improved UI texture streaming cache (memory and reliability)
- Several crash fixes and stability work
- Project tiles no longer show "Part X completed" on projects that don't have parts
- Spelling / localization pass across multiple languages
- Clearer matchmaking error messages
- Claiming a completed project quest from the logbook now opens the associated project page
- Region label added on the Map selection screen
Known Issues
A few things Embark is still tracking after 1.42.0:
- Xbox Series S crashes are still under investigation
- PC crashes tied to Windows Update KB5121003 — check Embark support and the official Discord for the current workaround while a fix is in progress
- Epic users may suddenly lose keyboard input — disable overlays, or alt-tab out and back in
- Sticky notification dot on the Projects tab
- Throw animation can fail when detonating a Trigger 'Nade immediately after throwing
- Weapon-swap animation can look broken if you swap right after vaulting
- Player animations can break if you interrupt a Baron Husk search
- Shredders still float to the ceiling in some Hidden Bunker rooms; Leapers can still jump through the ARC Turbine
- Merit items taken into a raid can wrongly show a Merits icon
- Shots taken while riding ARC may not register
- Some doors let flashlight beams pass through
- Clipping on the Triumph, Reaver, and Azimuth outfits
- Old Ermal offers may appear available in Acquire and Craft (visual only)
If you're heading into Phantom Targets Part 2, start with the full project guide — and if the glitched-Wasp story is going where we think it is, keep October 8 on the calendar. Our Frozen Trail breakdown covers the map, the Outpost, and the new ARC Operation.
See you Topside, Raiders.
— Arc Raiders Hub