ARC Raiders Phantom Targets Part 2 reveals the mysterious Wasps behind Shani’s signals in Update 1.42.0

The mystery behind ARC Raiders’ Phantom Targets is beginning to unravel. Live Update 1.42.0 has arrived Topside, launching the second part of the Phantom Targets Raider Project and revealing that the strange signals Shani has been tracking originate from erratic Wasps behaving unlike anything she has previously encountered. These ARC machines are producing unfamiliar sounds, moving through the sky in irregular patterns and carrying technology that Shani cannot identify — and, more worryingly, they all appear to be converging on the same location.

Embark Studios has showcased the new phase through the Phantom Targets | ARC Raiders video, continuing a storyline that originally began with Store Update 1.40.0 on August 4. During Part 1, Shani detected discrepancies in surveillance data and asked Raiders to repair malfunctioning Cargo Elevator antennas so that the signals could be triangulated, while additional objectives encouraged players to experiment with unconventional ways of fighting ARC units. Part 2, released on August 18 with Update 1.42.0, finally identifies what those phantom readings represented but deliberately stops short of revealing why the affected Wasps are behaving this way or what awaits at their destination.

The Phantom Targets storyline is also attached to a broader event featuring the earnable Anomalia Outfit, while Update 1.42.0 makes several changes outside the project itself. Regional Map Condition scheduling is being introduced to better align special conditions with local peak playing hours, Embark has provided another update on anti-cheat and exploit enforcement, new Twitch Drops are available, ARC behavior has been adjusted and a number of persistent gameplay issues have been addressed.

Phantom Targets started as a surveillance anomaly rather than a conventional mission

The first half of Phantom Targets deliberately gave players very little information about what they were actually searching for. Shani had detected inconsistent surveillance readings across the Rust Belt but could not determine their source, so Raiders were effectively deployed as field investigators rather than being given a clearly identified ARC target to destroy. The opening objectives involved repairing faulty antennas positioned above Cargo Elevators to improve Shani’s ability to triangulate the signals, followed by tasks that pushed players toward using less conventional methods against ARC machines.

That structure made Phantom Targets different from a straightforward combat assignment. The project was built around accumulating information across several stages, with the mystery itself serving as the progression hook. Embark had already confirmed on August 4 that this was only the first half of the operation and that Part 2 would arrive alongside Update 1.42 on August 18, giving the initial project a deliberate stopping point rather than resolving the anomaly immediately.

The timing also benefited from changes Embark had made to Raider Projects shortly before Phantom Targets began. Live Update 1.39.0 improved previews for multi-phase projects, expanded quest and step descriptions, made reward tiles more consistent, restored the ability to review completed stages and standardized project timers. Projects were also grouped more clearly in the interface, making a multi-stage investigation such as Phantom Targets easier to follow as it developed over several updates.

With Part 2 now active, the investigation has moved from detecting something unusual to understanding what that unusual behavior actually means.

Shani has traced the phantom readings to a group of erratic Wasps

The most important revelation in Update 1.42.0 is that the phantom targets are Wasps, but these are not behaving like the ARC units Raiders normally encounter Topside. According to Shani’s findings, the affected machines are emitting strange noises, moving through irregular flight patterns and carrying technology she cannot identify. Even more suspiciously, they are not simply wandering independently: the Wasps appear to be gathering and heading toward a single destination.

That last detail turns what could have been explained as malfunctioning ARC behavior into a much larger question. One damaged Wasp flying unpredictably could be dismissed as a defective machine. Multiple units exhibiting comparable abnormalities while transporting unfamiliar technology and moving toward the same point suggests some form of coordination, external influence or purpose that Shani has not yet deciphered. Embark has not publicly explained what is waiting at that location, and the official update intentionally frames discovering that answer as the next stage of the investigation.

The presentation is particularly effective within ARC Raiders because the ARC remain fundamentally mysterious. Raiders may understand how individual machines attack and how to dismantle them efficiently, but familiarity with their combat behavior does not necessarily translate into understanding the intelligence, infrastructure or purpose behind them. Phantom Targets exploits that distinction by taking one of the more recognizable airborne ARC units and making its behavior suddenly unfamiliar again.

Wasps are no longer simply another threat players identify, prioritize and shoot down. For the duration of this project, they are evidence.

Part 2 turns ordinary Wasps into targets worth actively investigating

That narrative shift also changes how players are encouraged to perceive a familiar enemy. Extraction shooters rely heavily on repeated encounters with established enemy types, and over time experienced players naturally reduce those enemies to predictable gameplay problems: recognize the unit, understand its attack pattern, determine whether fighting it is worth the ammunition and continue toward the objective.

Phantom Targets temporarily disrupts that familiarity. The strange Wasps are valuable precisely because they are behaving differently and carrying objects that do not fit the normal pattern. Instead of treating every Wasp purely as an obstacle between a Raider and valuable loot, the project gives players a reason to actively seek out these abnormal machines and examine what can be recovered from them.

That structure fits naturally with the extraction loop. Information found Topside is only useful if the Raider survives long enough to bring the results back to Speranza, meaning investigation and survival remain intertwined. A player may locate the ARC connected to Shani’s mystery and successfully engage them, but other Raiders, additional ARC machines and the extraction itself can still turn that progress into another costly trip.

The result is a story objective that does not need to temporarily replace ARC Raiders’ central mechanics. Phantom Targets instead gives familiar actions — exploring, fighting ARC, collecting unusual materials and returning safely underground — a new narrative purpose.

The Anomalia Outfit gives the investigation a substantial cosmetic reward

The second phase is accompanied by a new Phantom Targets event with the Anomalia Outfit available to earn. Embark identifies the outfit as one of the headline rewards associated with Update 1.42.0, positioning it alongside the continuation of the Raider Project rather than placing all of the new event content inside the premium store.

That distinction is useful in an extraction game where long-term progression comes from several overlapping systems. A temporary mystery can provide narrative motivation, while an exclusive or event-linked cosmetic gives players a visible objective beyond simply completing another set of project stages. The Anomalia name also fits the central theme particularly well: the entire operation revolves around anomalous ARC behavior that existing surveillance systems initially struggled to identify.

Update 1.42.0 does contain separate paid content. The Tick Hunter Set, previously announced in Store Update 1.40.0 and released on August 18, includes the Tick Hunter Outfit in red, white, green and black variants, the Field Telephone backpack, Tick Trophy backpack charm, Spider Tattoo face style and 2,400 Raider Tokens. It is therefore important to distinguish the commercially sold Tick Hunter bundle from the Anomalia reward tied to Phantom Targets.

For players interested primarily in progressing through gameplay rather than adding another store bundle to their collection, Phantom Targets provides the more relevant August objective.

The event shows why multi-part Raider Projects work particularly well for ARC Raiders

Phantom Targets demonstrates one advantage of Embark’s Raider Project system: an event does not need to reveal its entire premise on the first day. Part 1 gave players incomplete information and practical investigative objectives, while Part 2 uses the results of those efforts to alter the situation. Shani now knows what generated the phantom signals, but identifying the Wasps immediately raises another mystery surrounding their technology and destination.

That pacing is better suited to an evolving extraction game than presenting every narrative development through a static quest description. Players who participated in the opening phase were effectively involved in generating the information that now drives the second, while newcomers can still understand the basic progression: unexplained signals were discovered, Raiders helped triangulate them, and the source has now been identified.

The improved Project interface introduced in Update 1.39.0 appears designed specifically to support more of this type of multi-stage structure. Embark added clearer previews for multi-phase projects, descriptions for individual steps, more consistent reward presentation and the ability to revisit completed stages. Those may look like minor interface changes in isolation, but they become increasingly important when projects are used to tell stories over several weeks rather than functioning as short one-session checklists.

Phantom Targets is consequently not just another collection of objectives. It is an example of how Embark can use Raiders themselves as participants in an unfolding investigation without separating that storyline from the normal Topside experience.

Update 1.42.0 also changes when players encounter Map Conditions

The largest systemic change outside Phantom Targets is Regional Map Condition Scheduling. Before Update 1.42.0, Map Conditions followed a single global schedule. Embark is now offsetting those schedules by region so that special conditions better align with the peak playing hours of players in different parts of the world. The official Map Condition tracker has also been updated to reflect the regional system.

The reasoning is straightforward. A global schedule inevitably means that some conditions appear at convenient times for one region while repeatedly falling during work, school or sleeping hours elsewhere. Because Map Conditions alter the circumstances of a raid and can influence what players are trying to accomplish during a particular session, repeatedly missing them because of timezone differences creates unnecessary friction.

Regional scheduling does not make every condition permanently available, nor does it remove the rotating nature of the system. Instead, it changes when the rotations occur so that the opportunities are better distributed around actual regional activity. Embark is asking players to provide feedback through its Discord and says it will make adjustments based on how the new scheduling behaves in practice.

For an event such as Phantom Targets, where players are already being encouraged to head Topside with specific goals, reducing the likelihood that desirable Map Conditions repeatedly appear at inconvenient local times should make planning those sessions more predictable.

Snitches have become considerably more dangerous in the same update

Update 1.42.0 also modifies the threat posed by Snitches. These ARC units can now call in a Rocketeer, while another possible response allows them to summon a Firefly and Hornet duo. Embark notes that Snitch Scanners should remain unaffected by the change.

That is potentially significant because Snitches are dangerous primarily through escalation. Their function is not simply to deal direct damage but to turn a manageable situation into a much more complicated encounter if the Raider fails to control them quickly. Adding Rocketeers, Fireflies and Hornets to the possible reinforcements increases the range of threats a failed Snitch engagement can generate and makes ignoring one more consequential.

The change also fits thematically alongside Phantom Targets. Part 2 puts renewed attention on airborne ARC behavior, while the general sandbox update simultaneously gives several flying and ranged machines additional opportunities to enter encounters through Snitch reinforcement calls. The two systems are separate, but players hunting strange Wasps may discover that the broader ARC ecosystem has become less predictable at exactly the same time.

Queen and Matriarch stomp attacks finally receive an important fix

One of the more welcome combat fixes concerns the Queen and Matriarch. Embark had acknowledged during Store Update 1.40.0 that players were reporting stomp damage passing through walls or connecting from distances much greater than intended. Update 1.42.0 implements the promised correction, fixing cases where those attacks could hit through geometry or from excessive range.

The Photoelectric Cloak has also been expanded so that it now works against Turbine lightning attacks and Matriarch missiles, while Surge Coil Traps receive spawn protection to prevent them from affecting players immediately as they enter the map. The Dolabra, Hullcracker and Rascal have also been corrected so they deal damage properly inside the Practice Range.

Individually, these are relatively focused changes. Collectively, however, they target situations where the expected rules of combat were not being respected. An attack traveling through a wall, a defensive item failing against a threat it should reasonably counter or a weapon behaving differently in the Practice Range makes learning the game less reliable. For an extraction shooter where losing an encounter can also mean losing carried equipment, predictable mechanical behavior matters considerably more than it would in a consequence-free respawn environment.

Footstep audio receives another round of refinement

Sound remains one of the most important information systems in ARC Raiders, and Update 1.42.0 includes several audio adjustments. Indoor footsteps and general movement have been refined by removing some scuff sounds, improving audibility at longer distances and updating occlusion and concrete-surface cues. Movement through foliage has been adjusted to sound clearer and more natural, while plastic cloth and tarp surfaces now receive unique footsteps. Tier 3 magazine upgrades also have differentiated firing audio.

These changes matter because audio in an extraction shooter is not simply atmospheric. Hearing another Raider through a structure, identifying movement through vegetation or distinguishing how close someone is without exposing yourself visually can determine whether a player chooses to engage, hide or abandon a route entirely. Excessive or inaccurate footstep noise can generate false information, while overly quiet movement can give nearby opponents advantages they should not possess.

Embark has repeatedly adjusted ARC Raiders’ soundscape through previous updates, and 1.42.0 continues that work rather than treating audio as a finished system. The result should be particularly noticeable indoors, where occlusion and material differences can make it difficult to determine whether another player is in the same room, on the opposite side of a wall or moving above or below the listener.

Embark is continuing its campaign against cheats, economy exploits and forced teaming

Live Update 1.42.0 also comes with another substantial Fair Play update. Embark says it has continued improving detection alongside Anybrain and Denuvo Anti-Cheat, resulting in action against a large number of accounts associated with recently popularized cheating software. The studio is also working on ways to make permanent sanctions more difficult for repeat offenders to circumvent by simply obtaining new accounts.

Enforcement is not limited to conventional aim or information cheats. Embark says its ability to detect accounts involved in what it classifies as economy exploits has improved, allowing sanctions to be issued more quickly. The studio is simultaneously developing initiatives aimed at teaming and broader matchmaking abuse, including situations in which groups attempt to force themselves into the same lobbies and grief other players.

Embark has also warned against third-party software that claims to provide account-level or in-game advantages. Beyond the possibility of a ban, unofficial software can expose personal information or account credentials. The developer recommends enabling two-factor authentication or passkeys on external accounts connected to an Embark ID and explicitly warns players not to share their credentials.

This is especially important for ARC Raiders because its persistent inventory and progression systems make account compromise potentially more damaging than losing access to a single match. Weapons, resources, cosmetics and long-term progression all sit behind the same account ecosystem.

New Twitch Drops and community-created rubber ducks round out the update

Update 1.42.0 also introduces another pair of Twitch Drops: the Car Freshener and Ceramic Vase. These sit alongside the event, gameplay changes and store additions as smaller collectible incentives for players following ARC Raiders content outside the game.

Embark has also announced the winners of its Rubber Duck Design Contest. Community voting selected creations from gekko.rar, im_AshCheeks and nassguhl, and the studio says all three designs are now being developed for inclusion in a future update. No release date has been announced yet, but the intention is to allow players to eventually display the winning community-created ducks inside their Raider Dens.

The contrast between mysterious ARC anomalies and decorative rubber ducks is fairly representative of ARC Raiders’ wider tone. The world above Speranza remains hostile and capable of killing a Raider within seconds, while the underground social and personalization systems continue giving players increasingly strange objects with which to make that survival space their own.

Several known technical issues remain after 1.42.0

Not everything has been resolved with the latest patch. Embark is continuing to investigate crashes on Xbox Series S, while PC players may encounter crashes associated with Windows Update KB5121003. Epic Games Store users can also experience a sudden loss of keyboard input, with Embark currently recommending that affected players disable overlays or try alt-tabbing away from and back into the game.

Other known problems include a persistent notification dot on the Projects tab, animation issues when rapidly detonating a Trigger ’Nade or swapping weapons immediately after vaulting, Shredders occasionally floating to ceilings inside Hidden Bunker rooms, Leapers jumping through ARC Turbines and some shots failing to register correctly while players are riding ARC. Clipping issues also remain on the Triumph, Reaver and Azimuth outfits.

None of these problems prevents Phantom Targets Part 2 from launching, but they are worth keeping in mind for players returning specifically because of the new event. Update 1.42.0 contains stability improvements and several crash fixes, but Embark itself is clear that additional technical work remains ongoing.

Phantom Targets has answered one question only to create a much bigger one

The most effective thing about the new phase is that Shani’s investigation has technically succeeded without resolving the actual mystery. Raiders now know that the phantom signals belong to abnormal Wasps, but that answer immediately generates several more important questions. Why are these units making noises Shani has never heard before? What is causing their erratic movement? What exactly is the unidentified technology they are carrying? And, above all, why are all of them converging on the same place?

Embark has not supplied those answers in the Update 1.42.0 notes, and that restraint appears deliberate. Phantom Targets Part 1 was about locating the source. Part 2 turns that source into another problem to investigate. The project consequently preserves the uncertainty that made the original surveillance anomaly interesting instead of ending the storyline the moment its first secret was uncovered.

That also gives players a reason to view familiar ARC enemies differently. A standard Wasp is understood. An erratic Wasp carrying unidentified technology is not. In a world where Raiders already spend much of their time recovering fragments of a civilization and machine ecosystem they only partially understand, the distinction matters.

For now, Shani needs more evidence, the strange Wasps are still moving toward their destination and Raiders have another reason to risk their equipment Topside.

Whatever is waiting for those machines has not been revealed yet.

And that may be the most important Phantom Target of all.