Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer: How to play with friends

Here’s how to use Lobbies, Link Parties, and Squads in Monster Hunter Wilds

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

Wondering how to play with friends via Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer? Ever since the earliest Monster Hunter games, the series has always been at its finest when you’re collaborating with friends to take on massive opponents together. Monster Hunter Wilds continues this grand tradition, but the game’s multiplayer modes are unfortunately convoluted and unexplained.

Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer is split into following main systems: Lobbies , Link Parties , and Squads . It’s important to note that none of these systems are mutually exclusive - you can be in a Lobby, a Link Party, and a Squad all at the same time. In this guide, we’ll peel away the mystery and reveal all the details about Monster Hunter Wilds Lobbies, Link Parties, and Squads , along with some additional info on Crossplay and Hunter IDs.

• How to unlock multiplayer in Monster Hunter Wilds
• What are Lobbies
• How to join Link Parties
• How to join Squads
• Crossplay and Hunter IDs

How to unlock multiplayer in Monster Hunter Wilds

To start playing multiplayer, you’ll first need to defeat Chatcabra , the toad-like monster at the start of the game. Once Chapter 1-2 commences, you’ll talk with your fellow hunters in the Expedition Command tent. When this scene is finished, all of Monster Hunter Wilds’ multiplayer options become available from the in-game menu.

Once this meeting between hunters wraps up, multiplayer will open. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer: Lobbies

Here’s the basic info on Lobbies :

• Lobbies are Monster Hunter Wilds’ default online system
• Lobbies are good for interacting with random folks or getting assistance on specific quests

Lobbies resemble an MMO, placing you into a 100-person server full of other random hunters. You can summon allies to your aid via SOS Flares or post/join quests they’ve set up by chatting with Alma, who takes on the role of the Quest Counter that’s existed in Monster Hunter since the very first game.

As long as you’re starting Monster Hunter Wilds with an internet connection active, you’ll be taken to a Select Lobby menu whenever you start the game. Here, you can join a recommended Lobby, search for a specific Lobby, make a Private Lobby, or simply play in Online Single Player mode if you’d rather skip all of this faff. (Online Single Player mode is basically solo mode, keeping you separate from the Lobby system, though you can join a Lobby whenever you like from the in-game menu. You can also pause the game in this mode, which you cannot do while in a Lobby.)

You’ll be most familiar with Lobbies, since they are the default upon starting a game. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

Lobbies are a good way to feel connected with the wider world of folks playing Monster Hunter Wilds, especially because you can see random people running around in your Base Camps. If you want to always play with the same group of friends, however, a Link Party is the better option.

Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer: Link Parties

Here’s the basic info on Link Parties :

• Link Parties let you play with up to four specific people
• Link Parties are good for completing quests with people you already know, but you’ll need to create an Environmental Link if you want to explore the world together freely

Link Parties allow you to easily complete story missions and quests with up to four companions. Instead of an MMO, imagine this as you and your pals playing locally. In order to set up a Link Party, start a game normally, log into a Lobby or Online Single Player mode, and navigate to the Communication section of the menu, and then to Link Party .

Here, you’ll be able to form a Link Party with whoever you like, whether they be randos or friends. Once you’re in a Link Party with someone, whenever they post a quest, you can join it from the Quest Counter.

How to set up a Link Party in Monster Hunter Wilds

Navigate to the Communication section of the menu, and scroll down to Link Party . Here, you can invite someone from whatever Lobby you’re in, or search for someone via their ID. Another player does not need to be in the same Lobby with you to join your Link Party, and vice versa.

If you’d rather invite a specific person on your Steam friend list, go to the Invite a Friend menu option. This will open up the friend list and let you send an invite. You can also look at any invitations you’ve recieved by going to Invitation List .

The Link Party menu will list all of the players you’re currently linked with. In this screenshot it’s just me, because I have no friends. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

Link Parties have dedicated chat, and quest invitations will be sent out to all members of the Link Party whenever a member begins a quest. You can easily play through story missions or complete quests via Link Parties, though you’ll need to keep pace with the other members of your Link Party. In other words, if you haven’t encountered a certain monster in the campaign just yet, you can’t join your friend’s quest for it.

Link Parties also do not allow you to freely explore Base Camps or maps with your companions unless you are completing the same quest. To do so, you’ll need to set up an Environment Link.

How to set up an Environment Link in Monster Hunter Wilds

You can invite folks in your Link Party to an Environment Link . This is a special mode that lets you roam around a locale with others, gather items, and farm monsters at will. However, you cannot play through story missions or use the Quest Counter in this mode.

Basically, this is the equivalent of an Expedition from previous Monster Hunter games, and an option you should take if you mainly just want to run around in the world with your friends.

Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer: Squads

Here’s the basic info on Squads :

• Squads let you play with a specific group of up to 50 people
• Squads are a good way to play with a recurring group who can’t fit in a Link Party

Squads are reminiscent of Guilds in MMOs, and are exclusive groups that can fit up to 50 members. If you’ve got too many friends to form a single Link Party, form a Squad instead.

To make or search for a Squad, navigate to the Menu and choose Info and Manage Squads . Each Squad has its own Lobby and its own dedicated chat, and you can join the quests of fellow Squad mates easily from the Quest Counter.

Squads are guilds under another name, and you can even make a cute little emblem for anyone who wants to join. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

Monster Hunter Wilds multiplayer: Crossplay and Hunter IDs

Monster Hunter Wilds does indeed have Crossplay, letting you group up with players on different platforms. This is enabled by default, but you can find it in the Options menu.

If you’re playing on PC and want to group with someone on console, you’ll need their Hunter ID . This is the number listed under your character name whenever the game starts, or on your in-game Hunter Profile. When you’re in a Lobby, you can search for the Hunter IDs of players by opening the Menu and navigating to Communication , and then to Member List .

A glimpse of various players’ Hunter IDs. I’ve crossed out every one but mine, but you get the idea. |Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Capcom

That concludes our look at how to play Monster Hunter Wilds online with your buddies. For more on every aspect of this expansive game, see our Monster Hunter Wilds walkthrough hub , which contains guides to all of the main campaign missions as well as everything from the best starting weapons to how to acquire Layered Armor . And if you need a list of all monsters in Monster Hunter Wilds , we’ve got you covered as well!

Monster Hunter Wilds

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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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