ARC Raiders patch 1.29.9 introduces a new trader, Ermal. Designed for endgame players, Ermal offers unique rewards for your high-value ARC drops. The patch also introduces a new grenade launcher and adjusts durability on several weapons, following player feedback.
Here’s everything coming to ARC Raiders in patch 1.29.9.
Everything included in ARC Raiders patch 1.29.9
Nomadic Envoy, Ermal
The new endgame trader is available in ARC Raiders from level 25 and offers unique rewards for high-value items. The rewards include extended Stash space (resets post-Expedition), Expedition Vault to carry up to five items through the Expedition, blueprints, cosmetics, and more.
Here are some of the items that you can trade with Ermal for rewards:
- Queen Reactor
- Matriarch Reactor
- Bombardier Cell
- Assessor Matrix
- Turbine Compressor
- Leaper Pulse Unit
- Bastion Cell
- Vaporizer Regulator
- Rocketeer Driver
Some rewards also require specific but less valuable items, like recyclables or Rubber Ducks. Embark added that for the first week, only a single Stash expansion and 5 Expedition Vault spaces will be available. This is to gather feedback and make any necessary price adjustments before adding more items to the shop.
The Rascal grenade launcher
The Rascal is the new grenade launcher available in the game and seems to be Hullcracker’s little brother. It’s lightweight, compact, and easy to carry, providing anti-ARC firepower when you don’t want to carry the Hullcracker.
Durability adjustments
Among multiple changes and bug fixes, patch 1.29.9 changes weapon durability. With the Riven Tides update, Embark has reduced durability for common, uncommon, and rare weapons, resulting in them breaking much sooner. In patch 1.29.9, individual weapons get weapon durability buffs.
Here are the weapons and their durability changes:
| Weapon | Shots to break (Tier I) | Lifetime increase |
|---|---|---|
| Ferro | 129 to 151 | +18 percent |
| Anvil | 150 to 188 | +25 percent |
| Canto | 667 to 784 | +18 percent |
| Osprey | 111 to 148 | +33 percent |
| Renegade | 175 to 269 | +54 percent |
| Torrente | 890 to 1113 | +25 percent |
| Bettina | 607 to 759 | +25 percent |
| Jupiter | 167 to 222 | +33 percent |
Balance changes
ARC
- Increased the granularity of ARC vision through bushes and smokes, rewarding strategic positioning. Raiders near the edge of cover are now easier to spot, while those deeper in foliage or behind smoke are harder to detect.
- Improved how ARC perceives sound in open outdoor spaces, while reducing their sensitivity to sounds in indoor environments and those passing through geometry.
Firefly
- Improved how the Firefly applies fire. The effect now matches the visuals more closely, and briefly grazing the flame no longer feels as punishing, reducing the sensation of being hit around corners.
Rocketeer
- When the Rocketeer shoots several missiles at once, they are now consistently spread out over a larger area to prevent unfair situations where multiple missiles hit the same location.
Gameplay
- Reduced the power cost of the Photoelectric Cloak from 10/s to 5/s.
Augment
- The Cloud of Renewal effect on the Tactical Mk. 3 (Healing) Augment has been changed to an AoE effect.
- The Cloud of Renewal healing has been increased from 20 to 45.
- The cooldown on Cloud of Renewal has been increased from 30s to 45s.
- Changed the shield capacity on Combat Mk.3 (Flanking) Augment to accept Medium Shields.
Weapons
- Bettina Base Fire Rate has been increased from 235 to 250.
- Weapon mods can now affect aim-down-sights transition speed for scoped weapons.
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Extended Barrel:
- Bullet Velocity Bonus has been increased from 25 to 30%.
- Increased the damage fall off distance by 15%.
- Renamed to Extended Barrel III.
- Added new mesh.
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Added 2 lower-tier variants:
- Extended Barrel I
- Extended Barrel II
For the full list of changes, check out the official ARC Raiders blog post.
