ARC Raiders Expedition 1 (Archive)
Archived summary of Expedition 1 dates, rewards, stash thresholds, and stage structure from this site's bundled data - for history and comparison with current cycles.
Expedition 1 is completed in our expeditions.json snapshot. Use this page for timeline and economy context,
not live turn-ins.
It is also the cycle most players still point to when they explain why the Expedition system changed so quickly. The first version asked for the harshest stash target, had no catch-up safety valve, and created the loudest round of community feedback.
Key dates (site data)
| Milestone | Date |
|---|---|
| Project start | 2025-10-30 |
| Signup open | 2025-12-11 |
| Departure window | 2025-12-17 - 2025-12-22 |
| Reset | 2025-12-22 |
Those dates line up with the broad launch-era memory, although some references place the final departure closer to the Dec 23-29 range depending on region and interpretation of the cutoff. Treat late-December timing as approximate unless you are reading an original client screenshot.
Economy knobs (site data)
| Knob | Value |
|---|---|
| Stash sell value for max skill points | 5,000,000 coins |
| Max skill points (this departure) | 5 |
| Max stash slots (reward text) | 24 |
The critical number was the skill-point curve: 1,000,000 stash value per skill point, or 5 million for the full five. That is why Expedition 1 is still remembered as the hardest version of the system.
Stages captured in archive references
Our JSON only preserves partial stage detail, but historical community and editorial archives generally describe Expedition 1 like this:
| Stage | Commonly cited historical requirement set |
|---|---|
| Stage 1 - Foundation | 150 Metal Parts, 200 Rubber Parts, 80 ARC Alloy, 15 Steel Springs |
| Stage 2 - Core Systems | 35 Durable Cloth, 30 Wires, 30 Electrical Components, 5 Cooling Fans |
| Stage 3 - Framework | 4-5 Light Bulbs, 30 Batteries, 10 Shredder Gyros, 1 Exodus Module |
| Stage 4 - Outfitting | 5 Humidifiers, 5 Advanced Electrical Components, 3 Magnetic Accelerators, 3 Leaper Pulse Units |
| Stage 5 - Load Stage | 250k Combat, 100k Survival, 180k Provisions, 300k Materials |
| Stage 6 - Departure | Manual sign-up and shared cutoff |
We label that table as historical on purpose. It is useful comparison material, but it is not a live automated checklist.
Rewards (as recorded)
Permanent (text from JSON): 24 extra stash slots, Patchwork Outfit, up to 5 Skill Points.
Temporary: 5% XP boost, 6% Scrappy materials boost, 60% Repair value increase.
The broader reward set most players remember includes:
- Expedition 1 Indicator icon,
- the base Patchwork Raider outfit,
- Scrappy Janitor Cap,
- +12 stash slots on top of the starting account baseline,
- and 0-5 skill points depending on final stash value.
There was also no catch-up mechanic. If you missed the skill points in Expedition 1, they were simply gone until later developer changes softened that stance in Expedition 2.
Why the reaction was so rough
Community reaction to Expedition 1 was shaped almost entirely by the 5 million max-reward threshold. Many players liked the prestige fantasy itself, but the strongest shared feedback was that the economy target for full rewards was simply too high for normal accounts.
Embark later acknowledged that directly with messaging along the lines of “We’ve heard your feedback about the required Stash value for maximum rewards being too high.” That line matters because it explains exactly why Expedition 2 lowered the curve to 3 million and introduced catch-up.
If you want the shortest possible summary of Expedition 1, it is this: the prestige idea landed, the reward fantasy worked, and the economy target was overtuned.
Compare
- Expedition 2
- Expedition 3 (active checklist)
- Compare tool for raw table view