ARC Raiders A First Foothold: Blue Gate Quest Guide

Somewhere in Embark's design document, someone wrote "teach the player the new map" and someone else wrote "give them no waypoints." Both got their way. The result is A First Foothold, a fetch-and-fiddle quest that drags you to all four corners of a map built to kill you scenically. Below is the full ARC Raiders quest guide so you can stop squinting at hillsides.

 If you want to survive the machine threat and bring back the best salvage, you obviously must read the following:

• ARC Raiders Geiger Counter Locations
• ARC Raiders Trials Season 5 Guide
• A First Foothold: ARC Raiders Guide

(Lock and load, keep your eyes on the sky, and don't let the ARC catch you slippin'!)

Unlocking the Quest

You don't get handed this one for free. The Blue Gate unlock requirements ask for eighteen completed raids across any other map first, because Embark wants you thoroughly humbled before introducing new ways to die. Once that's done, Apollo greets you at Speranza and dumps the quest in your lap, describing four locations with all the precision of someone giving directions from memory of a dream.

You do not need to finish all four objectives in one raid, and you do not need to extract afterward for progress to save. Run a loadout you won't cry over losing.

Objective 1: Stabilize the Observation Deck (Ridgeline)

The observation deck Ridgeline objective sits on the eastern edge of the map, hugging the perimeter. Aim your marker roughly over the "ne" in "Ridgeline" and walk the tree line until a wooden deck appears, looking exactly as unstable as the quest implies. Walk up, interact with the front, done. No climbing, no combat puzzle, just a deck that was apparently held together by optimism.

Objective 2: Enable the Comms Terminal (Olive Grove)

Apollo describes this one as "near the Olive Grove," which is the developer equivalent of a shrug. In practice, the comms terminal Olive Grove objective sits roughly between Olive Grove and Highway Collapse, on a small worktop platform. The terminal itself is an obnoxious yellow box you cannot miss unless you are actively trying to. Flip it on. Congratulations, comms are restored, presumably to broadcast more bad news.

Objective 3: Rotate the Satellite Dishes (Church Roof)

North of the Data Vault, between Pilgrim's Peak and the Village, there's a church that has seen better centuries. Climb the scaffolding along its side to reach the roof, then interact with the dish. This stretch of Blue Gate is comparatively peaceful, meaning you'll only run into a stray Raider or two rather than a squadron of ARC hardware trying to introduce you to the concept of death.

Objective 4: Fix the Raider Structure (Trapper's Glade)

The last stop sits south of the Trapper's Glade text on your map, tucked into dense tree cover just below Raider's Refuge. You'll spot a battered structure flying a red-and-green flag. Climb it, interact with the roof, and nail the plates down. This area is thick with ARC patrols, including the Bombardier, so sneaking is not optional flavor text, it's a survival requirement.

All Four Objectives at a Glance

Rewards

Completing the quest and reporting back to Apollo earns you a small pile of grenades, the game's way of saying "here's something to throw at the problem next time."

• 3x Shrapnel Grenades
• 3x Snap Blast Grenades
• 3x Heavy Fuze Grenades

Not a fortune, but decent extraction shooter rewards for an afternoon of hiking across a hostile nature preserve.

Tips For People Who Enjoy Living

1. Start with whichever objective is closest to your drop point. Wandering the whole map in one raid is how you meet the Bombardier personally.
2. Two objectives per run is realistic. Four in one raid is possible but rushed, and rushed usually means dead.
3. None of the four steps require extraction, so treat this as a side errand on raids you're already running for loot.
4. The Trapper's Glade structure is the riskiest stop. Save it for a raid where you're already geared for a fight, not your first drop of the day.
5. Bring a free loadout. Losing gear to an Apollo quest errand is an insult you don't need to add to the injury.