February 24, 2026 is when Speranza stops feeling like a place you've memorised and starts feeling like a threat again. The Shrouded Sky update drops a full-on hurricane over the Rust Belt, and it's not a "wow, nice visuals" kind of storm. It messes with how you move, how you fight, and what you risk. Before you even plan your loadout, it's worth checking what counts as essential ARC Raiders Items, because running your comfy kit in this weather is how you end up crawling back to the Tube with nothing.

What The Storm Changes

Up top, sightlines are basically gone. You'll try to line up a clean shot and realise you're aiming at haze, not a target. Wind shoves at you, scraps and debris cut across routes you used to sprint through, and the Tubes don't feel "safe" when flooding is always on your mind. The funny part is how quickly you adapt. You stop chasing long-range fights and start listening—footsteps, shields cracking, a weapon swap behind a wall. The storm makes stealth feel real again, but it also punishes panic. If you can't keep calm, you'll burn ammo at shadows and give away your position for free.

Loot That Bites Back

The big temptation is the First Wave Raider Caches. Everybody's going to talk like they've got a "route" for them, but you'll find out fast: it's more like gambling with better odds if you're disciplined. You're juggling exposure, timing, and whatever the weather throws at you, all while other crews are thinking the same thing. The smart play isn't brute forcing every contact. It's picking fights that end quickly, using the fog to slip past, and knowing when to back off even if the cache is right there. If you've been bored lately, this is the update that fixes that—by making mistakes expensive again.

New Threats And A Community Push

On top of the weather, ARC is rolling out machines that sound designed to make you hate open ground. The Firefly is an armoured flyer that turns cover into your only plan, because getting caught in the open is just asking to melt. Then the Comet shows up like a patrol toy until it locks in, and that hum starts. It's not a fair fight; it's a "move now" problem. Meanwhile Shani's asking the community to haul specific materials for a weather monitoring system, and yeah, it's grindy, but it also feels like the first time everyone's chores actually tie back into the world. If it helps predict disasters, I'm in—nobody wants to get blindsided twice.

Progression, Style, And Where To Risk It

If you're the type who lives for checklists, the free Surgeon Raider Deck is the clean hook: topside feats earn Cred, and the cosmetics lean into that precise, steady-hands vibe with a Jekyll-or-Hyde choice. It's also nice that facial hair is finally a thing, because even stubble makes your Raider look like yours. And if you head to the Dam Battlegrounds, the Controlled Access Zone is the new "don't wander in by accident" spot—marked by that huge Rocketeer chandelier and stacked with resistance. Go prepared, go light, and if you're planning to buy ARC Raiders gear for the run, do it because you've got a plan, not because you think the storm will be forgiving.