How To Survive The 'Cold Snap' In ARC Raiders (And Why You Should Light Yourself On Fire)
Winter has arrived in ARC Raiders, and unlike the festive season in other games, this one wants you dead.
The new "Cold Snap" condition is deceptive. It isn't just a visual filter; it is a hard survival mechanic that will drain your health faster than a sniper in Speranza. Thanks to some brave testing by community member Newbietoallofthis over on the subreddit, we now have a clear understanding of exactly how the freeze works, and the desperate measures required to beat it.
The Snow Is The Killer
The first thing you need to understand is that the temperature isn't killing you, the exposure is. The moment you step out from under a roof (even if it´s a half open shack), a hidden timer starts ticking.
The 90-Second Rule
According to community testing, you have roughly 1 minute and 30 seconds of unsheltered exposure before you start taking damage. This might vary slightly depending on your initial warmth, but 1:30 is the safe bet.
Watch your Raider. When they start shivering and gasping, you are in the danger zone. Once that invisible timer hits zero, you take direct health damage until you die or find cover.
Roofs Are King, Walls Are Useless
This is where the game logic gets a little video-gamey. You might think hiding behind a wall to block the wind would help. It does not.
The only thing that matters is overhead cover.
Good Cover: Inside buildings, under parking garage roofs, field depots. Basically, if the snow can't hit your head, the timer resets.
Bad Cover: High walls, open-air ruins.
The Trap: Be careful with "passthroughs," like the ones on the Dam. Players are reporting that some of these structures don't count as "roofs" in the game's code. Always check if your character stops shivering to confirm you are safe.
When In Doubt, Burn Yourself
This is the most ridiculous and helpful tip in the entire guide. If you are caught in the open with no roof in sight, you have one extreme option: Fire.
But here is the catch: Standing near a fire does absolutely nothing. You can't just warm your hands by a self improvised campfire (Aka a blaze grenade thrown on the ground) like a Boy Scout. To reset the freeze timer, you have to actively take fire damage.
The Pyromaniac's Trade-off
Throw a fireball burner and roll directly through the flames.
The Cost: You will take Shield damage (and potentially some health).
The Benefit: It instantly resets your "Cold" timer, giving you another 90 seconds to run.
It sounds counterintuitive to hurt yourself to save yourself, but freezing damage attacks your Health directly, while fire eats your Shield first. It is a worthy trade if you are miles from home. Alternatively, if you have a teammate with a flamethrower, as they can spray you to warm you up without the self-damage, which is finally a valid reason to bring a flamethrower to a raid.
Stay warm, Raiders. And if you can't stay warm, at least stay on fire.