ARC Raiders Frozen Trail moves old Raider Decks into a Legacy Pass

Frozen Trail changed more than the map

Embark’s 2.0 Frozen Trail update notes are dated October 8, 2026. The studio’s Help Center calls it the biggest update since launch and lists Pendola Pass, new map conditions, three new ARC enemies, two weapons and a redesigned Skill Tree among the headline additions. The Outpost and Research Bench, 22 new quests, weapon stencils and a new Reward Pass also sit in the same patch. That is why the progression change can get lost in a list dominated by new places to fight.

If your immediate question is about an old Raider Deck, the short answer is that it was moved into a Legacy Pass rather than deleted. The longer answer matters for anyone who has been earning unlocks across several decks: earned rewards stay granted, but future Reward Points go only to the pass currently selected. The update gives players a way to continue old progression; it does not say that all unfinished progress is automatically completed or that several passes can advance together.

Previously earned deck rewards stay; unfinished decks need selection

Embark says existing Raider Decks have been moved into the new Legacy Pass. Rewards a player had already unlocked are kept and appear as granted. The wording is useful because it distinguishes ownership from progression: an already-earned item remains earned, while the remaining levels still require progress. To continue a deck, set the Legacy Pass as the active pass. The game’s progression page is therefore the place to check both the selected pass and whether an item is already marked granted.

The choice is one pass at a time. Frozen Trail’s first Reward Pass contains 60 levels divided between Free and Premium tracks; the old decks are represented in Legacy Pass. Selecting one for progress means Reward Points earned afterward go there. A player who switches from Frozen Trail to Legacy should expect the selected destination to change, not a simultaneous double payout. Embark says this directly in the update notes, so it is the most useful point to verify before completing weekly objectives.

One balance question is still open in the official text. Embark says Cred was removed and replaced by Reward Points, but the notes do not explain whether an existing Cred balance was converted, expired or transferred at a particular rate. The new currency automatically applies to the active pass; that sentence does not establish what happened to every player’s previous balance. If an old total looks different after the update, check the in-game wallet or the support page rather than assuming a conversion ratio.

Feats now feed weekly milestones as well as pass levels

The update also revised Feats, the objectives that supply progression. Embark lists Easy, Medium and Hard tiers, awarding 15, 25 and 50 Reward Points respectively. Each tier adds one, two or three points of weekly-milestone progress. Three weekly milestones pay 250 Reward Points each, at four, eight and twelve milestone-progress points. That gives a Raider a concrete way to compare a short objective with a harder one, although the official notes do not say which Feats are quickest for a particular player or loadout.

There is a weekly ceiling on milestone rewards, not on playing. Embark says Feats can still be completed after the weekly milestones are done, but the major milestone rewards do not return until the weekly timer resets. Since Reward Points are routed to the selected pass, checking the active pass before chasing the last weekly threshold is more consequential than it was when decks were represented differently. If your goal is a specific Legacy cosmetic, a week of progress spent on Frozen Trail will not also move that old deck.

The new system is not a promise that a player can finish every track at the same pace. The announcement gives a currency amount and milestone schedule, but no completion-time estimate or universal value for each objective. A player who logs in briefly may make a different choice from someone completing several difficult Feats. Use the displayed objective values and the pass you actually want; don’t infer a finish date from the 60-level count alone.

Weapon stencils can be looted, and the Twitch window has dates

Frozen Trail adds 14 Weapon Stencils. Embark says eight can be found Topside, five are exclusive to the Frozen Trail Premium Pass and one is exclusive to DLC. A stencil is learned and then applied to compatible weapons using Stencil Parts, which can also be found Topside. The surprise for players who read “cosmetic” as permanent inventory protection is that a stenciled weapon can still be lost: if its owner is downed, another Raider can loot the weapon together with its stencil. The appearance change does not alter the extraction risk.

The update’s Twitch Drops were time-bounded: the Oxygen Respirator required at least 60 minutes of viewing, and the Mailbox required 120 minutes. Embark listed the campaign dates as October 8 through November 4, 2026. Eligibility can depend on the participating stream and account-linking requirements. The patch note names watch times and dates; it is not a guarantee that every stream or region qualifies.

PC Gamer’s October 18 hands-on feature offers a useful but narrower report on the update’s endgame activities. The writer described the Frigate and Fallen Emperor as cooperative raid-style challenges and said a PvP ambush after an extraction run made the payoff feel vulnerable. The same writer reported that their Reward Pass bug remained unresolved. That is one person’s account, not a published failure rate or proof every player has the same issue; it does show why progression bugs and loot risk should be checked in the live game instead of inferred from the patch headline.

Two other changes affect how a session feels

Players looking for Solo vs. Squads will find that option gone from matchmaking. Embark says it removed the setting while it reevaluates its role, because the studio wants a proper incentive to use the available matchmaking settings. The notes do not promise a return date. A solo player choosing a queue should therefore read the available options in the current client rather than rely on an older guide or assume the same solo-versus-team pairing is still selectable.

The Skill Tree now asks for more explicit choices at branch nodes. In the middle of a branch, a player picks one of two skills and can change that choice after resetting the tree. Near the end, two nodes each offer a choice among three skills, with up to two selections allowed after the required investment. Embark says further adjustments may follow as it watches how players use the revised tree.