ARC Raiders Best Skill Tree Guide (PvP, PvE and Solo Paths)

TL;DR: Max Marathon Runner first, every build, no exceptions

Every Raider draws from the same shared skill tree. There is no class to pick, so the "best skill tree" is really a question of order: which points you spend first. The order that wins on every build is the same opening, then a fork by how you play.

• First points, always: Marathon Runner to 5/5, then Youthful Lungs. This is the universal Mobility opener.
• PvP: Mobility front-load, then push Conditioning for sustain in firefights.
• PvE and looting: Mobility opener, then drive the Survival branch to its capstone, Security Breach.
• Solo: Mobility plus enough Survival self-sufficiency to live without a squad, with light Conditioning for clutch moments.

Spend Coins to respec only when you commit to a new path. It costs 2,000 Coins per point, so a full swap adds up fast.

How the skill tree actually works

You earn one skill point per level, up to 76 at the level 75 cap. Each completed Expedition then grants a permanent +5, so a player who has run an Expedition is working with around 81 points rather than 76. That extra headroom is what lets a committed build reach a branch capstone without gutting its core.

The tree splits into three branches. Mobility covers movement, climbing, stamina, vaulting, and dodging. Conditioning covers sustain, melee, breaching, and surviving the downed state. Survival covers looting speed, stealth, and carry capacity. Skills are ranked, not single-purchase. Most run from rank 1 to rank 5, and you buy them one rank at a time, so a 5/5 skill eats five of your points across its five ranks. The capstone unlocks are the exceptions: those are single-rank, all-or-nothing buys.

Two gates control depth. Putting 15 points into a branch opens its second tier. Reaching 36 points in a branch unlocks that branch's capstone. Those thresholds are the same for every player and every path, which is exactly why your point order matters more than any single perk.

Why Marathon Runner is the first pick on every build

item:marathon-runner cuts the stamina cost of moving. That sounds modest until you account for how much of ARC Raiders is spent sprinting between cover, climbing out of a fight, or repositioning around a patrolling ARC. Stamina is the resource that gates all of it. When moving costs less, you sprint longer, you reposition more often, and you are not caught flat-footed when a squad pushes you. It is the single most impactful skill in the game, and maxing it to 5/5 before anything else is the one rule that holds across PvP, PvE, and solo play.

item:youthful-lungs is the natural follow-up. It raises your max stamina, so the bigger pool stretches even further once Marathon Runner has lowered the drain. Together they form the spine that every loadout hangs off, and they are the reason the splits below all start the same way.

The PvP path: Mobility into Conditioning

PvP rewards aggression backed by sustain. You want to win the opening exchange and then stay standing through the trade. Lead with the Mobility opener, then bend the rest into Conditioning. For a full loadout to pair with this point order, see our PvP Brawler Build Guide.

A workable split lands around Mobility 50 / Conditioning 20 / Survival 6. Order it like this:

1. Marathon Runner 5/5
2. Youthful Lungs 5/5
3. item:carry-the-momentum, which lets sprinting cost no stamina for a moment after a sprint dodge roll. Free repositioning mid-gunfight.
4. item:loaded-arms for weapon handling under pressure.
5. item:effortless-roll for cheaper, faster dodges.
6. item:used-to-the-weight and item:fight-or-flight to round out sustain.

Used to the Weight is the keystone that makes this path hit above its weight. It cuts a shield's movement penalty by up to half, which turns the item:heavy-shield from a liability into a viable pick for a combat build. Pair it with Fight or Flight, which feeds you stamina back when you take a hit, and you get a Raider who keeps moving through the exact moments other players freeze.

The PvE and looting path: drive Survival to Security Breach

When the goal is loot throughput rather than kills, the Survival branch pays for itself. The endgame target is Security Breach, the Survival capstone at 36 branch points, which opens Security Lockers and their high-value locked loot. The full looting kit that builds on this tree lives in our Pure Looter Build Guide.

A looter split runs around Mobility 30 / Conditioning 10 / Survival 36. Order:

1. Marathon Runner
2. item:looters-instincts, maxed, so containers reveal their contents in seconds instead of leaving you exposed mid-search.
3. item:broad-shoulders for carry capacity, so a good run does not force you to leave loot behind.
4. item:looters-luck for a chance at double reveals and better quality.
5. item:in-round-crafting so you can build ammo and utility topside without burning a trip home.
6. item:security-breach to cash in the whole investment.

If you want a more balanced raider who fights when cornered but still looks for the locker, shift toward Mobility 36 / Survival 20 / Conditioning 20. That version drops the Survival capstone but keeps Looter's Instincts maxed and adds Carry the Momentum for cleaner escapes.

The solo path: self-sufficiency over specialization

Solo play punishes any gap a squad would normally cover. You have no one to revive you, watch your flank, or carry the extra loot. The solo tree leans on Mobility for escape and Survival for independence, with just enough Conditioning to clutch a fight you could not avoid. Our Solo Stealth Build Guide carries this point order into a complete solo loadout.

Aim for roughly Mobility 36 / Conditioning 26 / Survival 14. Order:

1. Marathon Runner
2. Used to the Weight, so you can run a heavier shield and still move.
3. Fight or Flight for stamina sustain when a fight finds you.
4. Looter's Instincts to keep your time in the open short.
5. In-Round Crafting so you resupply without a teammate's stash.
6. item:silent-scavenger to loot without drawing the next squad to your position.

Silent Scavenger is the quiet workhorse of solo play. Noise is what gets a lone Raider third-partied, and looting quietly buys you the seconds you need to grab and go.

Build: 62b03367211e

Treat the splits as a map, not a recipe

The exact point counts above are guidance, not gospel. What is fixed is the priority order: Marathon Runner first, Youthful Lungs second, then commit hard to the one branch your playstyle needs. The gates at 15 and 36 points reward commitment over spreading thin, so a build that reaches a capstone almost always beats a build that dabbles in all three branches.

Skill-tree mechanics are current as of version 1.33.0 Forgotten Relics. No patch through this version has touched skill values, so the order here holds whether you are leveling your first Raider or respeccing a veteran for a new role.