ARC Raiders Damage Types Explained — Physical, Energy & Elemental Damage

Damage Types Quick Reference

Physical (Kinetic) Damage — The Foundation

Physical or kinetic damage is the baseline damage type delivered by the majority of conventional firearms in ARC Raiders. Bullets, shot pellets, and kinetic projectiles all fall into this category. Physical damage is dealt consistently against all target types and is not subject to energy resistance mechanics. For Raiders in light or no armor, physical damage is the most efficient way to deal damage rapidly — the full listed damage value translates directly into hit point reduction.

The limitation of physical damage emerges against heavily armored targets. Armor in ARC Raiders is specifically designed to absorb and reduce incoming physical damage. A target wearing high-quality armor may reduce incoming physical damage by a significant percentage, meaning your weapon's listed damage output is not what the target actually experiences. Against ARC Heavies in particular — which feature thick plating — sustained physical fire from a standard weapon takes a much larger ammunition investment than an equivalent energy-damage engagement.

Physical damage remains the dominant choice for Raider-versus-Raider combat. Human-type opponents wearing armor are still more vulnerable to physical damage than ARC machines, and the weapon variety in the physical damage category is far wider than energy alternatives. For PvP loadouts, optimize for physical damage with high DPS weapons. For ARC-focused loadouts, consider supplementing with energy-capable weapons.

Energy Damage — The ARC Counter

Energy damage was designed with ARC machine combat in mind. The ARC forces rely on electromagnetic shielding, energy-based power systems, and conductive materials throughout their mechanical construction — and energy damage exploits all of these. Where physical damage is reduced by a Heavy's armor plating, energy damage partially bypasses or ignores the armor's physical resistance, delivering more consistent damage to the underlying system components.

The practical result is that energy weapons deal more effective damage-per-shot against ARC machines compared to their physical damage equivalents. Against shielded units specifically — ARC Heavies with active energy shields or certain elite unit variants — energy damage can directly damage or destabilize the shield itself, while physical damage is deflected. Stripping the shield with energy damage, then following up with physical damage once the shield drops, is an effective combined-arms approach in squad play.

Energy weapons tend to have different ammo types and scarcity compared to physical weapons. Energy ammunition or power cells are less commonly found in residential and basic industrial zones, but appear more frequently in ARC-controlled facilities and military caches. This scarcity means energy weapons reward planned use rather than constant fire. Reserve energy-damage weapons for ARC Heavy encounters and high-armored situations rather than burning their ammo on Crawlers that die just as easily to physical damage.

Physical vs Energy Damage by Target Type

Verdict: Use physical damage as your primary loadout for Raider PvP and general play. Add an energy-damage weapon specifically for ARC Heavy encounters and shielded units. The combination of physical for Raiders and energy for Heavies covers all major combat scenarios optimally.

Armor Interaction — Understanding Damage Reduction

Armor in ARC Raiders is fundamentally a physical damage mitigation system. Every piece of armor has a protection value that reduces incoming physical damage by a percentage or flat amount per hit. The higher the armor tier and the better the coverage, the more physical damage is absorbed. This is why filling all armor slots matters even for basic gear — every slot represents a body area where unmitigated damage is prevented.

Energy damage interacts with armor differently. Standard physical armor provides reduced or no mitigation against energy damage, depending on the armor's composition. This means that against energy weapons, wearing physical armor has diminishing defensive returns. Some high-tier armor incorporates energy resistance through specific materials or upgrades, but at the basic and mid-tier ranges, your physical armor is significantly less effective at stopping energy-based attacks.

The practical implication for players: when facing enemies with energy weapons, your armor provides less protection than it does against physical attackers. Be aware that ARC Drones may fire energy-based attacks, making them particularly dangerous even to well-armored Raiders. Factor energy threat levels into your armor upgrade decisions as you progress into zones with higher ARC activity.

Damage Type Application Summary

• Physical damage: use for all PvP encounters, general ARC units, and as your default damage type
• Energy damage: reserve for ARC Heavy encounters, shielded units, and Drones when energy ammo is available
• Explosive damage: use grenades and explosive tools for Crawler groups, fortified positions, and AoE denial
• Melee damage: use exclusively for stealth kills on isolated ARC units to avoid gunfire noise
• Mixed loadout approach: physical primary weapon + energy secondary for heavy encounters covers all scenarios
• Ammo scarcity matters: energy ammo is scarcer than physical — don't spray energy weapons on low-HP trash enemies