ARC Raiders update 1.15.0 focuses on co-op play with the new Shared Watch event, brings the Cold Snap map condition back into regular rotation, and tweaks a few key systems like the Trailblazer Grenade and weapon handling. The patch runs alongside a limited-time event window from February 10 to February 24, 2026, giving you new rewards for fighting ARC instead of other raiders.
| What changed | Before 1.15.0 | After 1.15.0 |
|---|---|---|
| Trailblazer Grenade vs heavy ARC | High damage to all | Less vs Leaper/Bastion |
| Trailblazer wall penetration | Damaged through walls | Blocked by geometry |
| Cold Snap availability | Limited event only | Regular rotation |
| PvP Merit gain (Shared Watch) | N/A | Zero Merits awarded |
| Reconnect stability | Frequent failures | Improved handling |
If you just want the essentials: Shared Watch makes all topside visits an ARC-focused activity where you earn Merits only from damaging and destroying ARC enemies, while Cold Snap permanently re-enters the outdoor map rotation with frostbite damage and higher loot value as its main risk–reward hook. On top of that, Embark has fixed long-standing issues like reconnect problems, inaccurate end-of-round screens, and inconsistent weapon cycling.
Shared Watch Event – How It Works
Shared Watch is a co-op event that runs from February 10 to February 24 and affects every topside run you take during that window. The core rule is simple: only actions against ARC earn you Merits, and PvP kills give you nothing for the event track.
How to earn Merits quickly
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Queue for topside runs during the Shared Watch period (February 10–24).
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Prioritize fights with ARC patrols, bosses, and objectives over hunting other players.
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Focus on consistent damage, assists, and kills on ARC units to generate XP and Merits.
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Stay alive long enough to clear multiple encounters in one run instead of extraction rushing.
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Cash in your accumulated Merits on the event reward track between runs.
You earn Merits by gaining XP from damaging, destroying, or assisting on ARC kills, which lines up neatly with the things you’re already doing if you play aggressively topside. Because PvP doesn’t help here, it’s finally safe to ignore raider fights and just grind machines if you’re chasing cosmetics and tokens.
Shared Watch rewards and track
The Shared Watch track is a linear chain of 21 rewards, each unlocked in 50 Merit steps, for a total of 1,050 Merits if you want everything. Rewards alternate between cosmetics, useful items, and premium currency, so even partial progress feels worthwhile.
| Merit total | What you’re working toward* |
|---|---|
| 250–400 | Early Slugger grenade variants, backpack charm, and Raider Tokens. |
| 500–800 | Emotes, more Raider Tokens, Slugger chest and color options, healing and Vita Spray blueprints. |
| 900–1,050 | Slugger headgear, Acoustic Guitar, big chunk of Raider Tokens, Batting Helmet Scrappy cosmetic. |
*Exact order and naming follow the in-game Shared Watch track and may vary slightly if Embark tweaks the event in future reruns.
From a practical standpoint, you can complete the full track in a few focused sessions if you run with a squad that commits to farming ARC spawns instead of chasing PvP.
Cold Snap Map Condition – Risk, Reward, and Weather
Cold Snap returns as a permanent map condition in the rotation for outdoor maps after first appearing as a limited-time event. Whenever it’s active, your topside run takes place in harsh winter weather with reduced visibility and a survival timer tied to frostbite.
What Cold Snap changes
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Frostbite damage: Staying exposed to the snow for too long slowly drains your health, forcing you to find shelter, heat, or move quickly between cover.
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Visibility and atmosphere: Snow, wind, and darker lighting make long-range spotting harder, which affects both ARC engagements and ambushes.
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Loot incentives: Cold Snap offers increased loot value on topside, rewarding you for braving the conditions and pushing deeper into dangerous areas.
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Fun extras: You can collect Candleberries again and even throw snowballs, though these are no longer tied to a separate event track.
Cold Snap is one of the few conditions where your survival tools matter as much as your DPS; loadouts with healing, mobility, and quick extraction options feel much safer here than slow, greedy builds.
Gameplay Changes – Trailblazer Grenade and Weapons
Update 1.15.0 also reins in some problem tools while nudging them toward clearer roles.
Trailblazer Grenade changes
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No more damage through walls: Explosions are now properly blocked by solid geometry, so you can’t cheese enemies (or players) through cover.
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Damage tuning by target size: The grenade now deals more damage to small enemies but less to big ones like the Leaper and Bastion.
In practice, this shifts Trailblazer into a crowd-control and add-clear option rather than a universal answer to heavy ARC units. If you were relying on it to chunk bosses, you’ll need to lean harder on your primary weapons or team combos.
Weapon handling fix
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Weapon cycling: Inconsistent weapon swapping when using non–mouse wheel keybinds has been fixed, so keybind-based cycling should now feel reliable.
This sounds minor, but if you play on custom bindings or controller layouts, smooth cycling can be the difference between a clean fight and a failed extract.
Bug Fixes and Known Issues
Embark has quietly shipped a good set of stability and progression fixes alongside the headline content.
Key fixes in 1.15.0
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Reconnect reliability: Improved handling when trying to rejoin a match after disconnecting.
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Match intro: Fixed cases where the starting tunnel scene would not play correctly.
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Trial rewards: Fixed a bug where Trial objective rewards could fail to grant because of a timeout; partial rewards now still grant when earned.
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End-of-round screen: Fixed incorrect displays of Merits, XP, and live event points after a round.
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Crafting interruptions: Fixed crafting jobs that would sometimes cancel unexpectedly.
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Platform icons: Fixed players sometimes seeing the wrong platform icon next to their name.
Issues still on the radar
The 1.15.0 notes also list several known issues that are not fully resolved yet.
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Occasional reconnect failures despite the new improvements.
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Player animations breaking if you interrupt a search of the Baron Husk mid-animation.
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Certain containers not being interactable in some instances.
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Ziplines placed on destroyed ARC parts not displaying properly.
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Scrappy “Batting Helmet” and “Slugger” outfit not showing correctly in some event previews.
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“Blindsided” achievement not always triggering on the first try.
From a player perspective, this patch doesn’t magically fix every annoyance, but you should notice fewer lost rewards and a smoother loop between crafting, queuing, and extracting.
How This Patch Changes Your Play
If you log in during Shared Watch, your best move is to treat ARC as your main objective and other raiders as a distraction. Focusing on ARC kills not only feels safer under Cold Snap conditions but also speeds up your progress along the Shared Watch reward track.
One useful way to think about 1.15.0 is that it temporarily turns ARC Raiders into more of a PvE-first extraction shooter, with PvP sitting in the background unless someone forces a fight. That’s especially good if you mainly enjoy the atmosphere, loot pathing, and survival tension instead of sweaty PvP chases.
In real matches, the most successful squads in this patch window are likely to be the ones that route their runs around dense ARC spawns, plan quick shelter hops during Cold Snap, and save Trailblazer Grenades for clearing swarms instead of bullying bosses.
