ARC Raiders Shrouded Sky Update

The Escalation season continues to intensify in ARC Raiders, and the community's wait is finally over. The ARC Raiders Shrouded Sky Update officially launched on February 24, 2026, as the second major content drop of the year under Embark Studios' Escalation roadmap. Following Cold Snap and the Headwinds update, Shrouded Sky has been described as one of the biggest updates yet, introducing a dramatic Hurricane map condition, two new ARC enemies, a new free Raider Deck, expanded progression systems, and significant weapon balance changes.

The Shrouded Sky Update continues the evolving narrative of survival in ARC Raiders' mechanized wasteland. Since the game's launch on October 30, 2025, Embark Studios has maintained a consistent monthly content cadence, deepening the world's lore and expanding gameplay with every patch. Shrouded Sky is free for all players across PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.

What Is the Shrouded Sky Update

The ARC Raiders Shrouded Sky Update is a confirmed major content addition that launched on February 24, 2026, as part of the ongoing Escalation season. Embark Studios officially announced the update ahead of launch via a blog post on their official website, revealing the full suite of new features, including a new map condition, two new ARC enemy types, a new Raider Deck, and map changes.

Part of the Escalation Season

The Shrouded Sky Update is the second major update in the Escalation season, which spans January through April 2026. Embark CEO Patrick Söderlund confirmed in an interview with IGN that all maps will likely be touched during the roadmap period, with Shrouded Sky delivering the first major map update to Dam Battlegrounds. According to Embark's January 23 roadmap, the Escalation season emphasizes escalating ARC presence and increasingly volatile weather conditions across the Rust Belt.

Building on Recent Updates

The January 27, 2026, Headwinds update (patch 1.13.0) introduced solo versus squads matchmaking for players level 40 and above, the Trophy Display Project for ARC machine hunting, and the Bird City map condition at Buried City. The February 10, 2026, patch (1.15.0) brought back Cold Snap and launched the Shared Watch community event, which ran through February 24, the same day Shrouded Sky went live. These updates progressively escalated both the difficulty and the narrative stakes, building directly toward the conditions introduced in Shrouded Sky.

Confirmed Features

Embark Studios officially detailed all new content for Shrouded Sky ahead of its launch. Here is everything confirmed for the update.

Hurricane Map Condition

The headline feature of Shrouded Sky is a new Hurricane map condition, a permanent rotating condition that affects all four Rust Belt maps: Blue Gate, Buried City, Spaceport, and Dam Battlegrounds. Visibility fades, sound is swallowed by the wind, movement slows, and shields steadily drain beneath relentless gusts and flying debris, demanding entirely new strategies from every squad heading topside. The Hurricane also unearths new First Wave Raider Caches along the surface, offering a risk-reward incentive for Raiders willing to brave the storm's most dangerous conditions.

Embark's official description sets the tone: "Shani is blindsided by a Hurricane that engulfs the Rust Belt with ferocious speed and unrelenting force. Raiders have been caught in the howling, gnashing winds, the Tubes are at risk of flooding, and rumors quickly spread of new ARC prowling the surface among the fog."

Two New ARC Enemies

Shrouded Sky introduces two brand new ARC machine types to the Rust Belt:

• The Firefly, a floating nightmare: an armored flying machine that emits a jet of flame, burning Raiders to a crisp unless they move quickly or find cover
• The Comet, a spherical ARC machine and a larger variant of the Pop ARC, calmly patrols the surface until it comes across an unsuspecting Raider. Once it sees you, it locks on with a frightening focus before exploding with a seismic boom

Combined with the Hurricane's reduced visibility and movement slowdown, these enemies create a high-pressure situation that rewards careful loadout planning and strong squad communication.

New Raider Deck: The Surgeon

Shrouded Sky introduces a free new Raider Deck with the Surgeon theme, the third Raider Deck in the game, per IGN, available to all players who own the game, with no time restrictions. The Deck offers a range of rewards in return for Cred earned topside by completing Feats, and the Surgeon cosmetic is gradually unlocked by completing the Raider Deck, giving players a steady progression goal with each run. The Full Beard facial cosmetic is unlockable via the Surgeon Deck, while the Stubble Beard and Thick Moustache are also available for purchase in the in-game store from February 24. All players automatically receive access to the Stubble cosmetic when the update launches, as beards make their first appearance in ARC Raiders as a new facial customization category.

New Player Project: Weather Monitoring System

A new community Player Project launches with Shrouded Sky, running from February 24 to March 31, 2026. It tasks the Raiders with collecting and contributing specific materials from topside to help Speranza NPC Shani build a weather monitoring system. The five-stage project rewards Raiders with gameplay items, 250 Raider Tokens, and the Anemometer Backpack Charm upon full completion, tying progression directly to the Hurricane narrative.

Dam Battlegrounds: Controlled Access Zone

Dam Battlegrounds receives a map update with the addition of the Controlled Access Zone, a high-value loot area just waiting to be explored. Raiders will know they have arrived when they spot the Rocketeer chandelier, a new landmark that marks this premium contested space. Embark CEO Patrick Söderlund confirmed in a conversation with IGN that Dam Battlegrounds is the map players gravitate toward most, but still had room for improvement, making this addition a direct response to player engagement data.

Expeditions: Second Window and Catch-Up System

The second Expedition window opens February 25 and closes March 1, 2026. Shrouded Sky introduces a new Skill Point catch-up system for players who couldn't reach the full five Skill Points during the first Expedition, allowing up to ten total Skill Points to be earned across both windows. The required Stash value for maximum rewards has been lowered to three million Coins (600k per Skill Point), making the target more accessible.

Expedition 2 rewards include:

• 5 permanent Skill Points (stackable with Expedition 1 for a potential total of 10)
• Additional permanent Stash Space, expandable up to 24 extra spaces
• Evolution of the Patchwork outfit, with additional toggles and color variation
• New Scrappy outfit

The progression system also receives a major change across the board: PvP Feats have been removed entirely, and players can now reroll Feats three times per day for free. A few existing Feats were updated and new ones added to fill the gap.

New Cosmetic Sets

Shrouded Sky brings new cosmetic options to the in-game store. The Volare Set and Surgeon Set are both available from February 24, alongside a new Backpack Set and Raider Tool Set. The Devotee Set is coming soon after launch. These sets, alongside the new beard options tied to the Surgeon Raider Deck, give dedicated Raiders meaningful new ways to express their style in the Rust Belt.

New Field Craft Items

A brand-new field craft item, the Shaker instrument, is added to the game with this update. Additionally, Pop Triggers and Spotter Relays can now be equipped in quick slots, with the Spotter Relay gaining the ability to lure nearby ARC when deployed as a trap, and the Pop Trigger able to roll forward briefly before exploding.

Weapon Balance Changes

Update 1.17.0 includes the most comprehensive weapon rebalancing of the Escalation season so far, targeting both overperforming and underperforming weapons.

Nerfs 

Embark noted the Venator "is one of the highest performing weapons in the game right now" and was dominating PvP encounters despite previous nerfs in patch 1.3.0.

Buffs

The design intent for the Aphelion buffs was to make it feel "less bulky and a bit more nimble to use" in PvP, as it was intended to be a PvP-focused legendary weapon but couldn't keep up with other options.

The Shrouded Sky Narrative

ARC Raiders distinguishes itself in the extraction shooter genre through its narrative-driven content approach, and Shrouded Sky continues that tradition in a major way.

Escalating ARC Threat

The Escalation roadmap has been building toward a scenario where the Rust Belt grows "more overwhelmed" as the scale of the ARC threat escalates. The introduction of two entirely new ARC machine types, one airborne (the Firefly) and one ground-based (the Comet), directly advances this narrative by raising the mechanical threat level with enemies that exploit the Hurricane's reduced visibility and movement slowdown. The Shared Watch event that ran until February 24 reinforced this storyline by awarding merits exclusively for destroying ARC machines, reminding Raiders that cooperation against the machines is humanity's only path forward.

Preparing Raiders for Greater Challenges

With Shrouded Sky, Embark continues its design philosophy of progressively escalating difficulty. Cold Snap introduced environmental hazard management; the January 27 Headwinds update pushed individual skill with solo-vs-squad matchmaking; and Shrouded Sky now combines atmospheric chaos with new aerial and ground-patrol threats. By late February, players who have been engaged since January will have built the skills, gear, and ARC knowledge needed to tackle these more formidable encounters and will need all of it.

Shrouded Sky vs. Previous Updates

How to Prepare for Shrouded Sky

Optimize Your Loadout

The Hurricane's reduced visibility, sound suppression, and movement slowdown fundamentally change how Raiders engage topside across all four maps. Debris will light up your shield while degrading its protection, making cover-to-cover movement and shield management essential in every run. With the Stitcher nerfed across damage, headshot multiplier, and accuracy, and the Venator also toned down, this is a strong moment to experiment with alternatives. The Aphelion's significantly improved reload time, reduced recoil, faster shot cadence, and better ADS settle speed make it a considerably stronger PvP contender in the new meta. The Firefly's jet of flame from above punishes players caught in the open, so squad communication about aerial threats will be essential.

Engage With New Progression Systems

Take advantage of the Expeditions catch-up system to recover any missed Skill Points from the first window, with the updated UI making it easier to track your progress, and note that Expedition 2 closes on March 1, so time is limited. With PvP Feats removed and daily Feat rerolls now available three times per day for free, revisit your current Feat selection to ensure you're maximizing progression under the new system. Start earning Cred by completing Feats topside to gradually unlock the Surgeon cosmetics through the new Raider Deck.