How Baldur’s Gate 3 might have brought back Candlekeep, the library fortress where Baldur’s Gate began

Keeping it lit with Adam Smith

Image credit:Beamdog

Videogames and especially role-playing games are chock-full of sheltered upbringings that go tits up. Innocent times and places like the prologue for Baldur’s Gate , which unfolds in the vast, fortified monastery of Candlekeep (beware spoilers from this point on).

BioWare’s first ever RPG opens with your unsuspecting Chosen One learning the ropes from the old sage Gorion. There are fetchquests that take you around the enormous citadel, bits of combat training to do, cosy formative chinwags to have with characters like your childhood friend Imoen. But it’s not to last, of course: Gorion is murdered, and you must rove the Sword Coast in pursuit of his killer. When you return to Candlekeep later in the game, this once-proud bastion of learning has been filled with doppelgangers of Gorion and other acquaintances, a parade of chatbots waiting to stab you in the back.

For a while, Larian thought about rebuilding Candlekeep in Baldur’s Gate 3 , which begins many years later. And who better to take us through those plans, as we reckon with the acquisition of Gamer Network and the departure of our incredible deputy editor Alice Bell , than an old friend of RPS - one of the site’s own former sages, Baldur’s Gate 3 ’s lead writer and our deputy editor till 2019, Adam Smith.

I spoke to Adam about Candlekeep following a characteristically illuminating and uncorporate presentation about Baldur’s Gate 3’s writing at this year’s Digital Dragon’s conference in Krakow. Some highlights from that presentation: “the sausage of sadness”, a Larian term for when dialogue writing leads the player into a dead-end, and an audience participation element in which Adam asked people to decide whether various Baldur’s Gate 3 romance scenes qualify as sex from the perspective of Youtube content guidelines, which amongst other things is the first time I have seen the other kind of sausage screened at a videogames conference, to say nothing of cunnilingus and whatever the hell Gale is doing in this scene .

Adam had many additional insights of the sexalicious persuasion when I spoke to him later. Brace yourselves for them once I have worked out what to do with them. In the meantime: the question of Candlekeep in Baldur’s Gate 3. “I had a bunch of ideas for it,” Adam explained. “I think that it’s a good setting, partly because it’s going back to where it all began. So that was always compelling. But also because you get an academic dungeon, and there’s something interesting about that kind of library dungeon. It’s vast, you know, within the lore. And the idea of having this place where you need to go to do research or something, or you need to go down into it. And then you also say, well, this is where the Bhaalspawn was raised - you know, it’s very, very attractive.”

Image credit:Wizards of the Coast

I’m a fan of enormous, sinister archives myself. I’m pretty sure I own enough books to fill a dungeon of at least three levels, though one would be stocked exclusively with crumbling GSCE poetry anthologies. So why isn’t Candlekeep in Baldur’s Gate 3?

“The biggest problem was that geographically, it’s on the way to Baldur’s Gate,” Adam continued. “So it’s like, are we going to stop on the way there? Are we going to go in and then come back out again, how are we going to position it like that? The game went through a lot of different variations - one of them had you go into Baldur’s Gate, and then come back out again. And then pacing-wise, it was a problem, because you have the escalation of Act 2 and the climax there. And then we’re like, OK, do we, what do we want to do now? And actually, what we wanted to do was get to the city.”

“Do you remember all the stuff, all the crazy shit that you put in there?” Vincke asked Adam. “Yeah, yeah, there was a lot of crazy shit,” said Adam. “There was the seer of the Far Realms. Yeah, I remember it all. Yeah.”

“Because you were being very vague,” Vincke pressed, journalistically. To which Adam responded: “Well, remember what I said about recycling your darlings.”

(“Recycling your darlings” is the redemptive Smith version of the popular creative mantra “Kill your darlings”, aka ideas you love but which are fundamentally impractical and absorbing too much time and attention. During his Digital Dragons presentation, Adam illustrated this with an image of a massive pile of corpses. I can’t remember if this was before or after he screened the illithid romance scene, which it turns out isn’t even real sex in the eyes of Youtube. Sorry, illithidshippers.)

Thanks to Vincke’s intervention, our musings on Candlekeep were able to continue. “The thing is, if you read the lore on Candlekeep, and actually, Wizards released a book called Candlekeep Mysteries, while we were in development - we got an early copy of that,” Adam went on. “And it’s like, any world that’s full of knowledge is full of forbidden knowledge, and that’s very interesting to me instantly. So there’s a place in the Forgotten Realms, or the D&D universe, I should say, called the Far Realms. And some of the lore says that’s where the mindflayers began - it’s the cosmic horror place, you know.

“So I had this whole idea that you’d have this seer, who’s sitting at the bottom of Candlekeep, who is basically staring into the Far Realms, you know, and has gone completely insane, and you have to go down there and find out what he’s seen. I still think it would have been very cool. It’s just the pacing for me.”

“It’s a game in its own right,” suggested Vincke, journalistically.

“Probably, yeah,” Adam continued. “But once you’ve got to the that key point in Act 2, we could have had a much more dense game after that, but I think that we would have exhausted people. And you know, there’s a point where it becomes like, well, is this content for the sake of content? I hate the word ‘content’, but you know - is it actually adding to the story and the journey I’m on, where I am in my adventure? You can have too many climaxes. They’re exhausting as well. I’m not talking about sex again.”

Larian have now washed their hands of D&D. They’re not making Baldur’s Gate 4 , nor are they plotting any further major additions to Baldur’s Gate 3. This seems a tragedy - it’s hard to imagine anybody devising a better D&D adaptation in the near-future, but it’s equally hard to complain when you think about how much BG3 gives you, without (for my money, anyway) overstuffing the pudding. As Alice B wrote in our review , “in BG3, there’s no baggy excess, but there’s also nothing wasted, whether that be space for a joke in a description of some boots, or the chance to give one entirely optional boss his own song about kicking your ass on the soundtrack - which many players won’t even hear!”

Still, if Larian do return to D&D at some stage, I can well imagine them cracking the lid on Candlekeep and perhaps, unearthing that maddened seer from the bottom of the labyrinth. “It’s where the Baldur’s Gate story began,” Adam concluded. “So it’s always going to be in your head, you know?”

Disclosure: Former RPS deputy editor Adam Smith (RPS in peace) now works at Larian and is the lead writer for Baldur’s Gate 3. Former contributor Emily Gera also works on it.

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Baldur’s Gate III

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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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