With the official launch of ARC Raiders Frozen Trail just three weeks away, the development team offered a first look on September 23rd, revealing more details about the update. The team describes Frozen Trail as the largest update in the game's history since launch. It brings a massive amount of new content and includes significant upgrades to core game mechanics, among other features. Based on the first look and other known information, we've put together a preliminary preview of Frozen Trail. Let's see how the new content compares to community speculation and satisfy your curiosity! New map Pendola Pass and environmental mechanics Previously, there was speculation that the new map accompanying the update would also be named Frozen Trail (much like Riven Tides). However, the first look revealed that the new core map is officially named Pendola Pass. Located north of Rust Belt, this is a brand-new, unexplored region where Raiders have yet to set foot; it is currently the largest map in ARC Raiders. Early impressions suggest a diverse range of terrain. The map features expansive open-field battlegrounds, tight indoor close-quarters combat zones, and areas with significant verticality, all designed to enrich and add fun to the combat gameplay. To tie in with the frozen theme, the team designed a mechanic for Pendola Pass called Flash Freeze. Unlike standard map conditions that trigger at set times, Flash Freeze occurs randomly during a match and is temporary. More specifically, Flash Freeze is a sudden, extreme cold snap. Once it hits, it deals intense freezing damage or inflicts other debuffs over a short period. To avoid these effects, you must quickly find and enter indoor facilities scattered across the map for shelter. If you are forced to remain outdoors, you should equip specific ARC Raiders items to provide extra protection against the cold. Core ARC vehicle: Frigate High above Pendola Pass map, a massive patrolling ARC vehicle known as Frigate will appear. It is currently one of the largest ARC vehicles in the game. As it is a vehicle, Frigate is not a standard enemy that will directly attack you. It is a massive warship that both you and ARC forces can board; it conceals both enemies and abundant loot. To profit from ARC Raiders Frigate, you must forcibly board the vessel, solve puzzles, navigate holographic exploration routes, and prepare to face various types of ARC enemies, both old and new. Given the incredibly rich loot hidden inside Frigate, fierce PvP battles are inevitable alongside PvE encounters. Deciding whether to cooperate to clear the objective or turn against one another presents an intriguing choice. In other words, Frigate is less of a standard enemy and more of a micro-map designed around a warship vehicle. While the first look didn't go into detail, rumors and datamining suggest Frigate may appear on multiple maps, rather than being restricted solely to Pendola Pass. Three new ARC enemy types In addition to Frigate vehicle, Frozen Trail update introduces three new ARC enemy types: Bully, Skulker, and Hydra. Bully is a heavily armored ground unit that combines the mobility of Leaper with the heavy machine-gun firepower of Bastion. Preliminary analysis suggests its weak point is its legs; hitting them makes the unit more likely to stagger. Skulker is a smaller, more agile ARC unit equipped with a burst-fire turret on its back. Thanks to its compact size, it excels at staying concealed during combat, requiring you to remain vigilant and eliminate it quickly. The third new enemy type is Hydra. It normally remains in a retracted, disc-like state but unfolds during combat to reveal three pairs of gun barrels. This grants it multi-target locking capabilities, allowing it to engage multiple Raiders simultaneously. Personal base expansion: Raider Outpost Previously, ARC Raiders lacked a dedicated base for your character; there was only a rudimentary Raider Den based on Speranza, which offered limited functionality and storage for furniture. Frozen Trail update upgrades this Den into an Outpost, designed to provide a highly customizable, personal space. Here, you can explore the game's lore, manage character progression and assets, craft and arrange furniture and decorations, and even expand the facility with additional, interesting functional modules. More importantly, Outpost will feature a new research bench alongside the existing crafting system, allowing you to upgrade weapons to Ascended tier, essentially a Level 5 upgrade. New gear and crafting system upgrades To craft these Level 5 weapons using the new Ascended Weapons mechanic, you must complete specific challenges at Outpost's research bench and expend rare materials to unlock unique upgrade paths for specific pieces of gear. These upgrades go beyond simple stat boosts; they represent comprehensive functional enhancements. For instance, Burletta can be modified for fully automatic fire, while Renegade can be fitted with a scope. However, note that not all existing gear is compatible with Ascended system. Upon the launch of ARC Raiders: Frozen Trail, support will be available for 15 weapons, with the eligible roster expanding over time. Additionally, Frozen Trail introduces two brand-new weapons: Stiletto and Banttom. The former uses light ammo and offers superior range and shield-breaking capabilities, while the latter delivers higher lethality at close range and features a unique hip-fire animation. Beyond performance enhancements, ARC Raiders is introducing a weapon skin system for gear customization. Be warned, however: if you are defeated by another player, your gear, along with its skin, will be confiscated by the enemy. Other new items ARC Raiders: Frozen Trail also significantly expands the game's tactical movement and interaction options. New additions include a throwable grappling hook that adheres to surfaces, enabling climbing, rappelling, and swinging across gaps. There is also a zipline launcher for creating connections between two points, as well as a cable grenade that can grab nearby heavy objects to slam into the ground or forcibly pull enemies out of cover. Further additions include playable musical instruments and an in-game camera feature, previously announced at Gamescom 2026, which supports selfies and various standard photography settings. Raider Decks overhaul The removal of Cred system a few weeks ago signals a major overhaul of the game's progression and reward systems by ARC Raiders development team. This first look reveals that the game's battle pass system is evolving into a new three-tiered structure: a free Legacy Pass based on Raider Decks, a standard Free Pass, and a Premium Pass. Additionally, there is a higher-tier Collector's Pack. More than just a first look Beyond what was shown in the first look, ARC Raiders development team will host a Q&A livestream later this Friday to address player questions regarding Frozen Trail, and perhaps reveal even more details. It is safe to say that, starting this week, the momentum ARC Raiders lost over the past six months could quickly return. How will Frozen Trail ultimately perform? Let's wait and see!

Exiles, following the fixes for Ritual in Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5c, the focus of our mapping strategies has shifted. The pricing anomalies that previously plagued many players have been resolved, making Ritual a high-profit choice once again! Additionally, factors such as map tier, Tablet strategies, and Wisp mechanics have altered our farming routes. Changes Following Ritual Fix A key change regarding Ritual in Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5c is the fix for an issue where the price of Deferred items could be updated multiple times within the same zone. Previously, every time a player re-rolled Favour, the cost of an item could increase again. This forced players to repeatedly defer the same item, and sometimes the price would even display a red circle indicator despite returning to its base value. With last week's patch fixing this bug, the price of Deferred items now remains stable within a single map. Even with over twenty re-rolls, there is no need to continuously defer the same item, allowing Ritual gameplay to flow much more smoothly. Moreover, this change has had a ripple effect on Path of Exile 2 gameplay: we no longer need to rely solely on Tablets that boost Tribute; simply stacking monster density or pack size now yields excellent results. With current Ritual farming methods, we can earn an average of 90 to 110 PoE 2 Divine Orbs per hour. Even without Omen drops, currency returns are more stable than before. For players looking to generate returns in the game using Rituals, the barrier to entry has been significantly lowered, making this an excellent time to farm for profits. Map Tier The shift in map tier selection is primarily aimed at increasing Omen drops within Ritual encounters. Level 79 maps - which performed exceptionally well in the previous PoE 2 league - no longer hold the advantage and may even be a poor choice currently. While Level 80 maps perform adequately, Level 81 maps offer significantly better returns. Practical testing shows that Level 80 maps yield approximately 30 Omens over six hours, whereas Level 81 maps produce about 22 Omens in just three hours - a clear increase in efficiency. Since Omens are a major source of profit from Ritual mechanic, Tier 81 maps have naturally become the primary target for Ritual farming strategies. Consequently, it is currently more worthwhile for players to build their Ritual farming setups around Tier 16 maps, using conditions like Irradiated, Corrupted, or Cleansed to boost the map level by +1, effectively raising them to Tier 81. City maps can be paired with extra re-rolls; since re-rolls directly determine how often Ritual Favour refreshes, they dictate your chances of seeing high-value Ritual items. While Tier 82 maps might offer greater potential, the associated costs are too high to make them a worthwhile target for dedicated farming, so they are unlikely to become a mainstream farming strategy in PoE 2 in the short term. Consistently upgrading Tier 16 maps to Tier 81, while leveraging city maps and reroll mechanics, represents the most practical mapping strategy for Ritual farming right now. Doryani's Science For Doryani's Science configurations, common notable combinations include Evolutionary Pressure, Disengaged Safeties, Improved Calibration, and Careful Procurement. If you prefer running Corrupted or Cleansed maps, you can swap Careful Procurement for Volatile Connection. The goal of this setup is to improve Waystone quality, increase monster density, and enhance the map run itself, thereby indirectly boosting Favour gain and item quantity within Rituals. Tablet Regarding Tablets, the most valuable modifiers to target are those that increase the spawn chance of Omens; you can usually stack this modifier twice on a single Tablet. Other modifiers - such as Magic Monsters, Rare Monsters, Effectiveness, Waystone spawn chance, and Experience - are also useful; they boost the map's overall returns, which makes Ritual rewards more lucrative. Additionally, as previously mentioned, Path of Exile 2 Patch 0.5.5 removed the requirement to use Tablets that increase Tribute, allowing for greater freedom in Tablet selection. Wisps While Wisps are not part of Ritual mechanic itself, they can stack with Rituals, serving as a valuable supplement to the farming strategy. On average, Wisps can yield 2 to 3 additional Divine Orbs as raw drops per map, alongside items like Fracturing Orbs, Orbs of Annulment, and Chaos Orbs. Even if Ritual in a map don't spawn Omens, Wisps can still provide substantial currency returns; you can view this as a dual source of income running simultaneously. Furthermore, if you accumulate 10,000 of a specific Wisp type, the map will yield massive drops - potentially even 10 to 15 Divine Orbs in a single run. Even with Sacred Wisps, hitting the 10,000 mark can result in a haul of 15 Divine Orbs from one map. You can place a Sacred Bloom on the map; its effect spreads to connected maps and towers. By following Wisp trail upon entering the map and turning whenever you encounter a new trail, you can usually reliably stack the count to 10,000. While the returns from this farming strategy are excellent, you may have to contend with performance issues: as Wisp count rises, your frame rate will drop significantly - potentially to as low as 20–30 FPS - regardless of your hardware specifications. In short, Ritual farming experience is smooth following recent fixes; by combining it with specific map tiers and modifiers that boost Omen spawn chance, you can efficiently generate currency in PoE 2.