Flickering Flames is back in ARC Raiders, and it hits a lot harder this time. If you care about unlocking event rewards and not wasting evenings, you have to treat your time like it is as valuable as any ARC Raiders Items drop in the game. The loop is simple on paper – stack Merit, grab Candleberries – but once you are in a live lobby with other squads buzzing around, it very quickly turns into a question of how efficiently you move rather than how long you stay online.

Smart Routes, Not Headless Runs

Most players just sprint off in the general direction of the objective marker and then wonder why they come out with weak rewards. You will get more out of a 20‑minute session if you plan a rough path before you even leave the drop zone. Look for areas where Candleberries spawn in clusters and build a loop around those spots instead of hiking from one lonely node to the next. Avoid obvious PvP choke points unless you actually want a fight, because a drawn‑out gun battle feels cool but ruins your Merit per minute. If you are in a squad, splitting up a little to cover nearby spawn points works well, as long as you stay close enough that two players can collapse and help if someone gets ambushed.

Picking Missions That Actually Pay

Not every contract is worth your time when you are chasing event progress. You will see plenty of missions that look interesting but give mediocre Merit for the effort. If your team can aim and you are comfortable pushing aggression, combat‑heavy missions usually give the best return because constant enemy waves mean constant scoring. When you are solo or just not in the mood to sweat, lean into exploration and collection tasks instead. Those runs feel slower but they are safer, and you spend less time respawning or jogging back to your gear. Keep an eye on any Merit multipliers or bonus conditions that pop up on the mission screen, because stacking those with a good route can quietly double what you walk away with.

Using Your Squad Properly

Team coordination changes the whole event from "random chaos" to "free progress." If you are not already on voice chat with your friends, you are leaving value on the table. A simple role split works well: one player focuses on clearing mobs and watching flanks, one scouts ahead for the next objective or cluster of Candleberries, and one handles the actual pickups and interactions. That way no one is half‑doing three things at once. Use in‑game pings to tag high‑value loot or dangerous patrols, and call your rotations out loud so nobody gets left behind farming a dead area while the rest of the team has already moved on.

Loadouts, Movement And Staying Alive

Movement speed and mobility perks matter more in Flickering Flames than most people expect. Anything that lets you sprint longer, climb faster, or reposition quickly will translate directly into more Merit and more Candleberries grabbed before the timer dies. Do not go full glass cannon though; you cannot farm if you are stuck on a respawn screen. A couple of survivability tools – shields, self‑sustain, or damage reduction – make messy fights less punishing and keep the run going. Use the environment to your advantage by dragging enemies through hazards or tight choke points to save ammo and time. When you line up routes, missions, squad roles, and a mobile loadout, the event starts to feel less like a grind and more like a smooth run where you are quietly stacking rewards and walking away with piles of cheap ARC Raiders gear.