Playing Iron Raider mode
2025-12-17 • gaming
Just wanted to share the way I'm playing Arc Raider. Pretty much sure a lot of people play it in similar ways ("gauntlet" style and etc) but I wanted to share the way I do it here.
(For a bit of context, I call it "Iron Raider" because I played a lot of Runescape, and there they have a "Iron Man" account hardcore mode with similar limitations)
I have only two rules for Iron Raider mode:
- Whenever I start a new map, I can't have ANYTHING stored on my stash. It has to be completely clean before every topside run. If I want to store something (e.g. resources to improve a workshop station), it has to go with me on my run.
- I can't buy anything with money. I can use seeds or trade my Free Loadout at the clinic.
This is obviously a self-imposing limitation but I'm enjoying a lot how the gameplay turns out. Before playing it like this, I was collecting a lot of gear and not using them, waiting for the "approppriate" time. The way I currently play now is:
- Got a wolfpack? Change my mission, lets use this shit to get at least a trial.
- Died? Time to decide if I use chicken resources to craft new gear with whatever I stored on my ass. Free Loadout means a CLEAN run everytime.
- Chicken is a GOAT playing the game like this. And trading seeds means I can use a spot in my backpack as "money" I'll use on the next run.
- Got better gear? Time to decide if I can grind a third workshop station level.
Basically I'm deciding things as I go, and I use most of the things I have because I pretty much don't have an option. Security Breach and the perk to craft items on topside also help a lot on surviving with bare minimum resources.
I'm honestly having a lot of fun, maybe because I'm a roguelike kind of guy and I like having to adapt to the situation, trying different objectives depending on how luck plays out. Also, a part of me feels like this makes a lot of the rewards MUCH more interesting - quests, trials and even creds are put to use right away so it helps me alot on keeping up whenever I invariably lose everything and start again.
I do NOT recommend playing like this if you get easily frustrated by campers, PvP and whatnot, because you WILL lose everything every now and then, with no stash to back you up. I like this social layer on the game but of course it's not for everyone.
