The Amplified Anvil is the fifth-tier version of the Anvil hand cannon, added with the Frozen Trail update in ARC Raiders. Amplifying the gun turns it blue, raises its maximum durability, and opens a short upgrade tree with two exclusive branches: X-Rounds and Anvil Splitter. The X-Rounds path adds an explosive compound to each shot, which is what makes the weapon so effective against armored ARC machines.
Quick answer: X-Rounds adds +5 base damage and 33% increased damage against ARC Armor, in exchange for more recoil, slower projectiles, and a reduced headshot multiplier. It cannot be combined with Anvil Splitter, so pick one and commit.
What the Amplified Anvil is
The base Anvil is a single-action hand cannon that fires Heavy Ammo from a six-round magazine. In Frozen Trail its rarity moved from Uncommon to Rare, so amplifying it now requires an Amplification Module Mk. III. Socketing that module splices ARC internals into the frame, pushes the weapon past its normal tier IV ceiling, and changes its model. The change is permanent and cannot be undone.
Amplifying the gun first grants Amplified Durability, which raises the maximum durability to 200. From there the tree splits into two mutually exclusive upgrades. The old Anvil Splitter tech mod was removed from the game in this update and folded into the amplification tree as one of those two choices.
X-Rounds vs. Anvil Splitter
Each branch rewrites how the gun behaves rather than simply raising its numbers. X-Rounds keeps the Anvil as a single hard-hitting shot but adds explosive damage tuned for armor. Anvil Splitter turns every round into a four-projectile spread, trading single-target punch for coverage.
| Modifier | X-Rounds | Anvil Splitter |
|---|---|---|
| Projectiles | 1 | +3 per shot |
| Base damage | +5 | −70% per projectile |
| ARC Armor damage | +33% | — |
| Headshot multiplier | −10% | −40% |
| Recoil | +30% vertical and horizontal | — |
| Bullet velocity | −50% | — |
| Dispersion | — | −30% base, −90% recovery, +40% ADS |
X-Rounds is the pick for players who grind ARC, because its explosive compound lines up with Frozen Trail’s reworked explosive-damage formula that now hits armor plates harder. Anvil Splitter spreads weaker shots over a wider area and suits closer-range fights where precise headshots matter less. The same X-Rounds research also feeds the Bettina and Kettle, so the work you do here carries over if you amplify those weapons later.
Unlocking X-Rounds through research
X-Rounds is gated behind the Embedded Blast Engineering research project at the Outpost Research Station. The project asks for specific ARC parts and a combat objective before it will complete, so having the materials alone is not enough.
- 5 Rocketeer Drivers plus 3 Fossilized Linings and an Amplification Module Mk. III
- Deal 1,000 damage to Fireflies, Hornets, Surveyors, and Fireballs with Impact Grenades
- Research reward: the X-Rounds amplification for the Anvil, Bettina, and Kettle
The research objective tracks a progress bar that blocks the unlock until you have actually dealt the required grenade damage, even if every other material is already in your stash.
Amplified Anvil stats
Here are the figures for the amplified weapon as it sits before you pick a branch. The Amplified Durability node alone lifts the gun’s ceiling well above a standard tier IV Anvil.
| Attribute | Value |
|---|---|
| Category | Hand Cannon (Amplified) |
| Ammo type |  Heavy Ammo |
| Magazine size | 6 |
| Firing mode | Single-Action |
| ARC Armor penetration | Strong |
| Critical hit multiplier | 2.5x |
| Increased fire rate | 75% |
| Reduced dispersion recovery | 18.75% |
| Max durability | 200 |
| Weight | 5 kg |
| Sell value | 20,800 Coins |
| Required module |  Amplification Module Mk. III |
How the X-Rounds Anvil performs against ARC
In raid combat, the explosive rounds chew through armored flyers and heavy units far faster than a standard Anvil. The slower bullet velocity means leading moving targets takes practice, but the payoff against armor plating is clear.
Against a Rocketier, a thruster breaks in roughly five to seven direct hits, and the whole unit goes down in about 14 to 15 shots. Smaller flyers fold much faster.
A Firefly’s front armor and thruster can break together with one well-placed shot, and both Fireflies and Hornets typically die in two shots. Heavier units need more patience.
Vaporizers take about six direct shots to knock out a single thruster, and roughly nine to eleven to destroy the full machine. Those numbers show where the 33% armor bonus pays off most: on the heavily plated enemies that soak ordinary rounds.
Durability and repairing with Amplified Fragments
Amplified weapons carry 200 durability but burn through it quickly, and they are repaired with Amplified Fragments rather than the Anvil’s usual gun parts. One standard repair action costs 21 Amplified Fragments and restores 50% of the bar.
Fragments come from recycling Amplification Modules. Any mark from Mk. I through Mk. V breaks down into seven Amplified Fragments each, so spare modules you cannot use become repair stock. If you die topside with an amplified gun, it stays lootable and arrives in another Raider’s hands at around 10% durability, meaning they get a single fight out of it before needing fragments of their own.
You will know the amplification worked when the Anvil’s icon shifts to blue, its model changes, and the upgrade tree appears with Amplified Durability already applied. From there, researching Embedded Blast Engineering and applying X-Rounds turns a reliable medium-range hand cannon into a dedicated ARC-cracker built around explosive damage.
