Rally Point: Cyber Knights: Flashpoint is both worth playing, and worth waiting for a little longer

Cyber Cyber, turning fight

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Trese Brothers

Cyber Knights Colon Flashpoint does not lead with its best foot. This is easier to shrug off while it’s still in early access, but I will confess some relief when I read that the Trese Brothers (It’s pronounced “Trese”) nudged their estimated release date back to 2025. It needs a bit longer. But I’m about ready to start recommending it.

I’m a tad biased by my love for their previous Star Traders Colon Frontiers , an interest in mercenary management , and a wish for more turn-based tactics games that aren’t bloody XCOM again. That I have reservations about what CKF hasn’t yet nailed down is in part a symptom of high expectations. And because despite carrying over some design ethos from Frontiers, Cyber Knights is a very different kind of game.

You start out with too many decisions, too little context, and a brief tutorial mission in which your player character and crew break out of a lab where you’ve just learned to touch type, thus becoming a Cyber Knight according to my granddad when he again asks how to attach a youtube. It doesn’t really represent how most missions work, or dispel many assumptions. I sympathise to an extent, because CKF is rather unorthodox.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Trese Brothers

It’s not an XCOM. Instead of strict grids, you move at the exact angle and distance you choose, split freely between running and the noble crouch-jog, and shoot/act/move in whatever order you please. Turns depend on individual initiative rolls, and movement and lines of sight/aim are consequently far more granular (and a little unpredictable, as it tradition). It hasn’t the ballistic simulation focus of Silent Storm or Jagged Alliance either. Missed shots effectively evaporate on leaving the barrel, and though it uses a similar overwatch system , there’s none of Phoenix Point ’s limb-severing or headshotting. Character statistics are downplayed in favour of perk unlocks, but shootouts nonetheless feel like shootouts - raw firepower is your bedrock, giving open confrontations a more grounded atmosphere than the usual XCOMalong superpower metagaming.

This middle ground extends to stealth too. Cyber Knights is a heist game, but the paramilitary smash and grab kind. Your wee gang do mercenary work for cash and favours, mostly sneaking into street gang or corporate holdings to ransack cabinets or Do A Hacking. Time and direct detection by guard or device drive up a general alert level, activating aggressive defences and summoning more and worse guards. Tripping a motion sensor or rearranging a sentry will likely take a guard off patrol to investigate, maybe finding the body, or spotting you and opening fire. Each of those bring more alerts. Flashpoint is big on snowballing escalation, as everyone within earshot calls in a guard’s gunshot, then runs over to help. Your people return fire, setting off three, six, twelve more reports, pushing the alert over a threshold where more guards enter the level and call in the fresh bodies (moving bodies is on the “to do” list, though some perks already help).

With a stealth game I tend to assume that the ideal is to be invisible, that any alert brings shame upon my house. But these are not Invisible Inc. ’s artful dodgers. You’re a street gang, and though it’s not all that punk politically, CKF absolutely expects your cyberpunks to crack a lot of heads.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Trese Brothers

You’ll learn to exploit alarms. Step under a camera and splat the guard who comes to investigate. Have your soldier start blasting, raising a lot of security but drawing guards away so your unseen vanguard can ransack a cupboard. Excellently, guards can only raise alarms if they’re alive at the turn’s end. There’s no dedicated ambush button, but multiple path-predicting and initiative-manipulating perks, and anyone can delay part of their turn, allowing a sufficiently prepared team to loudly hammer multiple guards and get away with it. Which makes it frustrating that it’s not always clear exactly where some potential alarm came from.

It’s also possible, through hacking, to dial alert back (and scrape out more loot) via a detailed minigame. It’s engaging enough, but a little lacklustre in terms of drama or effect on the wider mission. Occasionally it causes mini-sieges as everyone protects your hacker for several turns while they open a door, or tempts you into risking more exposure to root out those last valuable files. Kicking up a high alert like this isn’t as devastating as it seems, though. Causing enough chaos raises “heat” back at base, which in extremes can draw bounty hunters into invading subsequent jobs, but building the right facilities and laying low a while cools it off.

The design goal is, I think, to represent stealth as vital, but not the entirety of your tactics. If you’re feeling spicy you can hit a job loud, counting on speed and firepower over waiting for the sentry to chase the shiny penny. Almost all gunfights should feature rolling, repositioning, moving towards a target or shooting your way out before reinforcements catch up. Rather than a stealth/combat binary there’s room for degrees of both, sometimes simultaneously.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Trese Brothers

Points gained as characters level can add a perk to their repertoire, enhance an earlier one, or instead go on the attribute bonuses that link each perk on each class’s unique, somewhat non-linear tree. Classes determine not just which attributes can go up, but add different bonuses on top. A soldier’s +1 to Will raises her hit points, but the sniper’s Will raises critical hit chance instead. Between dozens of perks and easy multiclassing, there’s more room for designing the utra-optimised, the ready for anything, or the chaotic obscure trick shot characters the longer you play. This means you can build a weird and messy team even before adding cybernetic implants or crafting advanced weapons. Those implants are disappointingly numerical at present, though future ones will apparently include grafted weapons. No word yet on the skull gun.

Characters define how CKF plays off the job, too, as you gradually build up an empty headquarters. There’s no strategic map here, no bulletin board or exclamation mark hats. Instead, you have underworld contacts. As with Star Traders, contacts offer services, rise or fall in influence, and carry personality traits, loyalties, and liabilities. Your every job comes from a specific person offering money or favours, or calling one in. Refusing an obligation might burn the bridge and alienate their friends, and there’s no guarantee a rising star you’ve backed won’t get got. Many have relationships with someone on your own team, too, who have their own loyalties and pasts.

It’s intended, I think, to paint a world like Bloodnet or even Gothic : a favour economy where trust matters more than money. This is literally true to an extent, as favours can be called in for unbuyable access to services or assistance on important jobs. Meanwhile, your base has no running costs, as your people take a pirate-style cut of contract payouts instead. So far though, this side is lacking. There’s little room to define your team’s vibe or ideology, and your Cyber Knight often comes across as kind of a dick. In principle, all your team will have some history, so new hires mean deciding who you’re willing to cross, which favours you’re willing to pay back. In practice I saw little difference between factions or their opinions, and I couldn’t be proactive. Job offers are clearly generated from relationships, but I can only wait for them to come in, with (almost) no ability to create my own opportunities, offer someone an olive branch, or poison someone’s olives.

Image credit:Rock Paper Shotgun/Trese Brothers

Certain base facilities can generate hacking jobs or new recruits, and I love that to sell anything your own team will pop up with a lead or request to help out a relative or get an old enemy off their case, meaning you get your pick of any interested buyers. But there’s little sense of the world beyond your base, or even where your base is. Some traits make you safe or unwelcome in gang territories, but those territories could be on the moon for all I know. I can’t court alliances, or take any kind of stance except by the inaction of letting a job expire. It’s only fair to admit that its many subplots (recalling Vagrus ) are incomplete in both length and number, as is the contact/faction relationship system.

I should also admit that CKF is too sturdy to qualify as “janky”. Production values are not the studio’s strongest suit, and the jump to their first 3D game has cost some visual style. “Budget charm” is the phrase I want to lean on, but its levels do little to stir the imagination, and its dialogue is fine. Even the (incomplete) fashions lean into an unmoving chunky Soldier Guy / neon spandex duality. It’s thankfully not po-faced, edgy, or smugly ironic, but lacks the defining vibe of being cheesy or melodramatic or intense, or just… something , you know? This is not a world I think about when I’m not playing, or even very much when I am. The small crews and cyberpunk setting ought to lend your character more fire, more humanity (or disturbingly less).

Cyber Knights Flashpoint plays well enough by now to override those disappointments, and to recommend with the usual early access and “ambitious design on a budget” caveats. It’s all but certain to keep improving too, with months before 1.0 and a stalwart dev team who still regularly update their older games. I have not fallen for it the way I fell for Frontiers, but my feelings have grown steadily warmer the longer I’ve spent with it. It may not be the revolution, but then cyberpunk never quite does get there, does it?

Cyber Knights: Flashpoint

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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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