Dragon’s Dogma 2: Best Archer skills and augments

Best Archer skills and augments in Dragon’s Dogma 2

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

Interested in the best Archer skills and augments in Dragon’s Dogma 2? Archers in Dragon’s Dogma 2 fire arrows at the speed of light, turning enemies into pin cushions from a comfortable distance. With a wide variety of trick shots at their disposal, along with a few nimble moves that involve kicking baddies in the face right before blasting an arrow into their jaws, Archers are nimble and quite a lot of fun, especially if you like dealing heavy damage while keeping yourself relatively free of harm.

There are a few things to watch out for if you take up the bow and arrow, especially as Archers are one of the few vocations in Dragon’s Dogma 2 to juggle some inventory management. In this guide, we’ve delved into the best Archer skills and augments, giving you the rundown on what you need to know to make your arrows fly fast and powerful.

• Dragon’s Dogma 2 Archer weapon skills
• Dragon’s Dogma 2 Archer core skills
• Dragon’s Dogma 2 Archer augments

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Dragon’s Dogma 2 Archer best weapon skills

Archers live and die by their bows. Unlike some other vocations, however, many of their weapon skills look fairly similar if you aren’t paying attention, and largely differ in the radius or number of arrows that are fired. There are also several skills that rely upon special projectiles filled with substances like fire or water which can adversely affect enemies.

Barrage Shot

Barrage Shot unleashes a swift array of shots in rapid succession. It looks cool, feels good, and really evokes the vibe of a swift-firing Robin Hood who never needs to waste a second fiddling with his quiver before sending off another missile.

Barrage Shot is best for keeping up the attack on a single target, and you’ll end up using this quite a bit on boss monsters. The more advanced form of this skill, Manifold Shot , ups the ante even further with a greater number of arrows fired each time.

Sweep Shot

While Barrage Shot is good for a single target, Sweep Shot sends arrows out in an arc that hits multiple foes. This technique comes in infinitely handy when you have an array of smaller enemies rushing you and need to send them scattering.

Cascade Shot , the higher level version of Sweep Shot, sends even more projectiles erupting outwards into your arrow arc. If you’ve ever played the arcade classic Contra , this is basically the Spread Gun… except pointier.

Dire Arrow

Unlike the other skills here, Dire Arrow cannot be used while moving, as it requires the Archer to position themselves closer to the ground and ready their bow. The windup time is long, but this shot will send smaller enemies flying while also taking out a nice chunk of a boss’ health bar. It’s nicely versatile, but since you’ll be vulnerable when you use Dire Arrow, be sure that your pawns are protecting you and keeping would-be attackers at bay.

Dire Arrow takes some time to set up, but when that bowstring goes twang, the impact is something fierce. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

While it’s not a necessity, you can combine Dire Arrow with the core skill Steady Shot to make your final shot even more powerful.

Keen Sight

Dragon’s Dogma 2 features a good auto-targeting system, and you don’t need to worry about missing when you take up the Archer vocation. For a tad more accuracy, however, Keen Sight will give you a first-person zoomed-in view at a target that’ll come in really handy for piercing them in vulnerable spots like the head. Be wary of your Stamina meter, which will go down as long as your bow is drawn in the zoomed-in view.

Exploding Shot

Unlike most other vocations, several of the Archer’s skills rely on trick arrows and are limited to however many of these items you have. Exploding Shot is the one I tend to use the most. It relies on Explosive Arrows, which are some of the earliest trick arrows you’ll come across, and does exactly what you think. Loose one in a minotaur’s back, and a few seconds later, that minotaur will go boom.

This saurian is about to feel the fierce heat from an Exploding Shot. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

That said, you may want to look into Tarring Shot , Drenching Shot , and Blighting Shot , each of which requires its associated arrow to use. Tarring Shot covers a foe in tar (making them more susceptible to fire), Drenching Shot covers them in water (making them more susceptible to ice and thunder attacks), and Blighting Shot hits them with the equivalent of poison (draining their health slowly).

Dragon’s Dogma 2 Archer best core skills

Core skills in Dragon’s Dogma 2 are defining abilities possessed by each vocation. The Archer’s core skills emphasis their dexterity, and let them set up even cooler shots by kicking off of enemies or upping the speed at which they draw their bow. Loose is the no-brainer core skill that you’ll start with, which lets you quickly let off an arrow as a light attack. Build off of Loose with the following options:

Leaping Punt

Propel yourself forward like a torpedo, kick a bad guy in the face, knock them off-balance while you catapault yourself backwards as well. That’s Leaping Punt in a nutshell. This is like a flashier version of Front Kick , which is another Archer core skill that’s perfectly fine but not as neat-looking. Ultimately, this is a great skill for mobility purposes and navigating your Archer out of a crowd.

Parting Shot

Parting Shot is the cherry atop the Leaping Punt sundae. This lets the Archer loose an arrow while performing Leaping Punt (or Front Kick), and is a beautiful little punctuation mark atop the deadly dance of combat.

Swift Nock

Swift Nock lets the Archer nock arrows with even more blazing speed. This skill works in tandem with Loose or Steady Shot, which I haven’t listed here as one of my favourites, but is still a great, viable option, especially if you’ve taken Dire Arrow, as described above.

Dragon’s Dogma 2 Archer best augments

All Vocations in Dragon’s Dogma 2 can pick from augments to passively boost their stats. Since playing as the Archer requires more pinpoint accuracy than other vocations, it’s not a bad idea to take advantage of the following:

Ambuscade

Catch your targets off guard with Ambuscade , which increases damage dealt by your arrows when enemies aren’t in a battle stance. Ever stuck a goblin in the back when it wasn’t looking? It’s satisfying.

Thanks to two archers with Ambuscade and Lethality (as well as backup assistance from a mage), this big lad doesn’t stand a chance. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

Lethality

Lethality deals increased damage whenever you hit a target’s vitals. Combine this with Keen Sight above to get headshots, lower body shots, and all the other shots in the places where it hurts most.

That concludes our study of the bow techniques that define the Archer’s best skills and augments. For more on tackling the wild world of Dragon’s Dogma 2 and becoming the legendary Arisen that all your pawns praise you as, keep your eyes on Rock Paper Shotgun as we delve into all the other Vocations of this epic adventure. You can start with our deep dive into the magickal ways of the Mage , the sword and shield tactics of the Fighter , or the shifty dagger action of the Thief . For more advanced vocations, check out our guide to the greatsword swings of the Warrior , the extreme magick of the Sorcerer , the Duospear slices of the Mystic Spearhand , the crafty illusions of the Trickster , the bow spell combos of the Magick Archer , or the many weapon skills of the Warfarer .

Dragon’s Dogma 2

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC

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All 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints and where to get them

These areas have the highest chance of giving you Blueprints

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Looking for more Arc Raiders Blueprints? It’s a special day when you find a Blueprint, as they’re among the most valuable items in Arc Raiders. If you find a Blueprint that you haven’t already found, then you must make sure you hold onto it at all costs, because Blueprints are the key to one of the most important and powerful systems of meta-progression in the game.

This guide aims to be the very best guide on Blueprints you can find, starting with a primer on what exactly they are and how they work in Arc Raiders, before delving into exactly where to get Blueprints and the very best farming spots for you to take in your search.

We’ll also go over how to get Blueprints from other unlikely activities, such as destroying Surveyors and completing specific quests. And you’ll also find the full list of all 75 Blueprints in Arc Raiders on this page (including the newest Blueprints added with the Cold Snap update , such as the Deadline Blueprint and Firework Box Blueprint), giving you all the information you need to expand your own crafting repertoire.

In this guide:

• What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?
• Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes
• Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders Blueprints obtained from quests Blueprints obtained from Trials Best Blueprint farming locations

What are Blueprints in Arc Raiders?

Blueprints in Arc Raiders are special items which, if you manage to extract with them, you can expend to permanently unlock a new crafting recipe in your Workshop. If you manage to extract from a raid with an Anvil Blueprint, for example, you can unlock the ability to craft your very own Anvil Pistol, as many times as you like (as long as you have the crafting materials).

To use a Blueprint, simply open your Inventory while in the lobby, then right-click on the Blueprint and click “Learn And Consume” . This will permanently unlock the recipe for that item in your Workshop. As of the Stella Montis update, there are allegedly 75 different Blueprints to unlock - although only 68 are confirmed to be in the game so far. You can see all the Blueprints you’ve found and unlocked by going to the Workshop menu, and hitting “R” to bring up the Blueprint screen.

It’s possible to find duplicates of past Blueprints you’ve already unlocked. If you find these, then you can either sell them, or - if you like to play with friends - you can take it into a match and gift it to your friend so they can unlock that recipe for themselves. Another option is to keep hold of them until the time comes to donate them to the Expedition.

Full Blueprint list: All crafting recipes

Below is the full list of all the Blueprints that are currently available to find in Arc Raiders, and the crafting recipe required for each item:

Note: The missing Blueprints in this list likely have not actually been added to the game at the time of writing, because none of the playerbase has managed to find any of them. As they are added to the game, I will update this page with the most relevant information so you know exactly how to get all 75 Arc Raiders Blueprints.

Where to find Blueprints in Arc Raiders

Below is a list of all containers, modifiers, and events which maximise your chances of finding Blueprints:

• Certain quests reward you with specific Blueprints .
• Completing Trials has a high chance of offering Blueprints as rewards.
• Surveyors have a decent chance of dropping Blueprints on death.
• High loot value areas tend to have a greater chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Night Raids and Storms may increase rare Blueprint spawn chances in containers.
• Containers with higher numbers of items may have a higher tendency to spawn Blueprints. As a result, Blue Gate (which has many “large” containers containing multiple items) may give you a higher chance of spawning Blueprints.
• Raider containers (Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, Medical Bags, Grenade Tubes) have increased Blueprint drop rates. As a result, the Uncovered Caches event gives you a high chance of finding Blueprints.
• Security Lockers have a higher than average chance of containing Blueprints.
• Certain Blueprints only seem to spawn under specific circumstances: Tempest Blueprint only spawns during Night Raid events. Vulcano Blueprint only spawns during Hidden Bunker events. Jupiter and Equaliser Blueprints only spawn during Harvester events.

Raider Caches, Weapon Boxes, and other raider-oriented container types have a good chance of offering Blueprints. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints have a very low chance of spawning in any container in Arc Raiders, around 1-2% on average. However, there is a higher chance of finding Blueprints in particular container types. Specifically, you can find more Blueprints in Raider containers and security lockers.

Beyond this, if you’re looking for Blueprints you should focus on regions of the map which are marked as having particularly high-value loot. Areas such as the Control Tower in Dam Battlegrounds, the Arrival and Departure Buildings in Spaceport, and Pilgrim’s Peak in Blue Gate all have a better-than-average chance of spawning Blueprints somewhere amongst all their containers. Night Raids and Electromagnetic Storm events also increase the drop chances of certain Blueprints .

In addition to these containers, you can often loot Blueprints from destroyed Surveyors - the largest of the rolling ball ARC. Surveyors are more commonly found on the later maps - Spaceport and Blue Gate - and if one spawns in your match, you’ll likely see it by the blue laser beam that it casts into the sky while “surveying”.

Surveyors are quite well-armoured and will very speedily run away from you once it notices you, but if you can take one down then make sure you loot all its parts for a chance of obtaining certain unusual Blueprints.

Blueprints obtained from quests

One way in which you can get Blueprints is by completing certain quests for the vendors in Speranza. Some quests will reward you with a specific item Blueprint upon completion, so as long as you work through all the quests in Arc Raiders, you are guaranteed those Blueprints.

Here is the full list of all Blueprints you can get from quest rewards:

• Trigger Nade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Sparks Fly”.
• Lure Grenade Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Greasing Her Palms”.
• Burletta Blueprint: Rewarded after completing “Industrial Espionage”.
• Hullcracker Blueprint (and Launcher Ammo Blueprint): Rewarded after completing “The Major’s Footlocker”.

Alas, that’s only 4 Blueprints out of a total of 75 to unlock, so for the vast majority you will need to find them yourself during a raid. If you’re intent on farming Blueprints, then it’s best to equip yourself with cheap gear in case you lose it, but don’t use a free loadout because then you won’t get a safe pocket to stash any new Blueprint you find. No pain in Arc Raiders is sharper than failing to extract with a new Blueprint you’ve been after for a dozen hours already.

One of the best ways to get Blueprints is by hitting three stars on all five Trials every week. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blueprints obtained from Trials

One of the very best ways to get Blueprints is as rewards for completing Trials in Arc Raiders. Trials are unlocked from Level 15 onwards, and allow you to earn rewards by focusing on certain tasks over the course of several raids. For example, one Trial might task you with dealing damage to Hornets, while another might challenge you to loot Supply Drops.

Trials refresh on a weekly basis, with a new week bringing five new Trials. Each Trial can offer up to three rewards after passing certain score milestones, and it’s possible to receive very high level loot from these reward crates - including Blueprints. So if you want to unlock as many Blueprints as possible, you should make a point of completing as many Trials as possible each week.

Best Blueprint farming locations

The very best way to get Blueprints is to frequent specific areas of the maps which combine high-tier loot pools with the right types of containers to search. Here are my recommendations for where to find Blueprints on every map, so you can always keep the search going for new crafting recipes to unlock.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Dam Battlegrounds

The best places to farm Blueprints on Dam Battlegrounds are the Control Tower, Power Generation Complex, Ruby Residence, and Pale Apartments . The first two regions, despite only being marked on the map as mid-tier loot, contain a phenomenal number of containers to loot. The Control Tower can also contain a couple of high-tier Security Lockers - though of course, you’ll need to have unlocked the Security Breach skill at the end of the Survival tree.

There’s also a lot of reporting amongst the playerbase that the Residential areas in the top-left of the map - Pale Apartments and Ruby Residence - give you a comparatively strong chance of finding Blueprints. Considering their size, there’s a high density of containers to loot in both locations, and they also have the benefit of being fairly out of the way. So you’re more likely to have all the containers to yourself.

Buried City

The best Blueprint farming locations on Buried City are the Santa Maria Houses, Grandioso Apartments, Town Hall, and the various buildings of the New District . Grandioso Apartments has a lower number of containers than the rest, but a high chance of spawning weapon cases - which have good Blueprint drop rates. The others are high-tier loot areas, with plenty of lootable containers - including Security Lockers.

Spaceport

The best places to find Blueprints on Spaceport are the Arrival and Departure Buildings, as well as Control Tower A6 and the Launch Towers . All these areas are labelled as high-value loot regions, and many of them are also very handily connected to one another by the Spaceport wall, which you can use to quickly run from one area to the next. At the tops of most of these buildings you’ll find at least one Security Locker, so this is an excellent farming route for players looking to find Blueprints.

The downside to looting Blueprints on Spaceport is that all these areas are hotly contested, particularly in Duos and Squads. You’ll need to be very focused and fast in order to complete the full farming route.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Embark Studios

Blue Gate

Blue Gate tends to have a good chance of dropping Blueprints, potentially because it generally has a high number of containers which can hold lots of items; so there’s a higher chance of a Blueprint spawning in each container. In my experience, the best Blueprint farming spots on Blue Gate are Pilgrim’s Peak, Raider’s Refuge, the Ancient Fort, and the Underground Complex beneath the Warehouse .

All of these areas contain a wealth of containers to loot. Raider’s Refuge has less to loot, but the majority of the containers in and around the Refuge are raider containers, which have a high chance of containing Blueprints - particularly during major events.

Stella Montis

On the whole, Stella Montis seems to have a very low drop rate for Blueprints (though a high chance of dropping other high-tier loot). If you do want to try farming Blueprints on this map, the best places to find Blueprints in Stella Montis are Medical Research, Assembly Workshop, and the Business Center . These areas have the highest density of containers to loot on the map.

In addition to this, the Western Tunnel has a few different Security Lockers to loot, so while there’s very little to loot elsewhere in this area of the map, it’s worth hitting those Security Lockers if you spawn there at the start of a match.

That wraps up this primer on how to get all the Blueprints in Arc Raiders as quickly as possible. With the Expedition system constantly resetting a large number of players’ Blueprints, it’s more important than ever to have the most up-to-date information on where to find all these Blueprints.

While you’re here, be sure to check out our Arc Raiders best guns tier list , as well as our primers on the best skills to unlock and all the different Field Depot locations on every map.

ARC Raiders

PS5 , Xbox Series X/S , PC

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