The “Building a Library” quest asks you to push into an urban point of interest, locate the library in the City Center, and make it back to base with your progress intact. It plays to ARC Raiders’ core loop: a 30-minute topside window, hostile machines, opportunistic Raiders, and the constant tension between grabbing one more item and getting out alive.

What “Building a Library” is in ARC Raiders

ARC Raiders frames progression around topside runs and story-flavored tasks from Speranza’s traders. Objectives range from scavenging to discovery. “Building a Library” sits in the discovery camp: reach the Library landmark in the City Center, complete the required interaction, and extract. Finishing pushes your broader progression forward — unlocking Codex knowledge, feeding trader questlines, and setting up better crafting options — but none of that matters if you don’t survive the trip home.

Prep the run: skills, carry, and workshop

Before you queue, make basic investments in survivability and mobility. Character levels award skill points you can spend on options like carrying more, moving faster, or getting stealthier. That flexibility matters in dense city blocks where line-of-sight changes quickly.

Use the workshop in your underground home to repair, craft, and upgrade weapons and gadgets. Upgrading the workshop itself unlocks better gear tiers over time. Bring utility that helps you reposition or break contact in streets and courtyards, and pack enough healing to stabilize after a bad engagement.

The Motivation • youtube.com
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Building A Library Quest Start

Starts at: 00:07

Getting to the Library in the City Center

Once you drop topside, pick the most direct route your spawn allows and keep your head on a swivel. The City Center is busy — tight alleys, open plazas, and sightlines that favor both ambushes and long angles. Expect ARC patrols along approach roads and near the landmark itself.

Environmental conditions can change the feel of the route:

  • Night Raids increase loot quality but raise ARC pressure.
  • Harvest Season boosts nature loot density off the beaten path.
  • Electromagnetic Storms and Hidden Bunkers inject unpredictability into otherwise familiar lines.
Tip: If you’re carrying high-value items before reaching the objective, consider offloading a portion into your safe pocket. It’s limited, but anything in it survives a death.

Handling ARC machines and rival Raiders

City Center fights are often third-party magnets. Keep engagements short and decisive:

  • Against ARC machines, focus fire and use cover transitions to avoid getting pinned in open streets.
  • Against Raiders, assume you’re not alone — keep angles tight, reposition after trading shots, and don’t tunnel on a downed opponent if you can extract clean.

Noise discipline matters near the landmark. If your loadout supports it, use quieter options to thin ARC patrols before committing to the Library interaction.

Extract without overextending

Once the Library objective is complete, flip your mindset from exploration to exit. You have three extraction styles:

  • Extraction elevators
  • Metro stations
  • Raider hatches (require keys but are safer)

Pick an extraction point that balances distance with risk. In cities, metro stations can be chokepoints; elevators are predictable; hatches trade key usage for lower exposure. If a nearby extract looks contested, reroute to a secondary option instead of forcing a fight at the finish line.

Failure costs all non-pocketed loot and materials. Success sends you back underground where you can sell, craft, or advance questlines.

Solo queue specifics and time pressure

Solo matchmaking generally places you against other solo players, making fair PvP encounters more common, but it isn’t guaranteed. Plan routes that minimize third-party risk and avoid lingering in loud, high-traffic zones after you’ve completed the objective.

Runs are time-bound at about 30 minutes topside. Watch the clock. If the Library is far from your spawn, don’t detour for minor loot. The quest turn-in isn’t worth much if the timer strands you short of an extract.

The Motivation • youtube.com
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Starts at: 01:26

How this quest ladders into progression

Back in Speranza, completing objectives like “Building a Library” adds to your Raider’s long-term track:

  • Codex entries expand your knowledge of ARC, characters, and locations.
  • Feats award Cred that unlocks rewards across Raider Decks, both free and paid.
  • Traders open more quests that flesh out the Rust Belt and provide material rewards.
  • Your workshop upgrades unlock stronger weapons, armor, and gadgets for future runs.

If you’re planning a cadence of urban quests, consider a skill build that leans into mobility and carry weight to capitalize on City Center loot density without slowing your exit.

Quick reference

Item Details
Primary objective Reach the Library landmark in the City Center and complete the interaction
Time limit ~30 minutes topside per run
Main threats ARC machines patrolling urban zones; other Raiders contesting routes and extracts
Conditions that change the run Night Raids (more loot, more ARC pressure), Harvest Season (nature loot), Electromagnetic Storms, Hidden Bunkers
Extraction options Elevators, Metro stations, Raider hatches (keys required, safer)
On death Lose carried loot and materials; keep items stored in the safe pocket
Post-raid actions Sell items, spend skill points, craft/repair/upgrade in the workshop, advance trader quests, progress Raider Decks and Codex

Expect more quest variety and zones to push into as the Rust Belt expands, new ARC machines arrive, and additional weapons and utility items roll out. Treat “Building a Library” as a template for urban PvPvE objectives: plan the approach, control noise, keep a flexible extraction plan, and let your workshop work for you run over run.