Leveling in The First Descendant means feeding two separate tracks: Descendant XP for your character and proficiency XP for your weapons. With 12 module slots on Descendants and 10 on weapons, plus the option to run Crystallization Catalysts multiple times per slot, you end up leveling the same gear over and over. Picking the right mission decides whether that takes minutes or hours.
Quick answer: Run Kuiper Mine Blockade for the fastest Descendant XP (level 1 to 40 in about 6–7 minutes), and Albion Resource Defense to max all three weapons in the same window. Use Karel’s Mothership if you want both at once.
What changed with XP sharing in Season 4
Season 4 adjusted how weapon XP is distributed. All equipped weapons now gain the same amount of progress, even the ones you are not holding. That single change is why weapon-focused farms are so efficient now: you can bring three guns that all need leveling and finish them together in one run instead of cycling through them one at a time.
With Ultimate Hailey arriving on September 17, knowing where to grind means you can prep her modules and weapons without a long slog. The setup below applies to almost every farm on this list.
- Activate an XP booster before you start the run.
- Equip External Components that carry XP multiplier mods.
- Bring strong area-of-effect clear so waves die quickly.
You know a farm worked when the equipped item hits its cap: a Descendant stops gaining levels at 40, and each weapon shows maxed proficiency in your loadout.
Best XP farms compared
| Mission | Best for | Clear time |
|---|---|---|
| Kuiper Mine Blockade | Descendant XP | 6–7 min to 40 |
| Albion Resource Defense | Weapon XP (all 3) | 6–7 min |
| Infiltration Operation: Hard (400%) | XP plus materials | Multiple runs |
| Sigma Sector Dropoff Operation | Fast Arche XP, endgame loot | 2–3 min |
| Karel’s Mothership (Normal) | Character and weapons together | 30+ min |
The fastest farms by goal
Kuiper Mine Blockade for Descendant XP
Kuiper Mine Blockade is the top choice when you only care about character levels. The enemies here are not demanding, so a booster and XP multiplier mods carry you to level 40 in roughly 6–7 minutes. Each wave you clear pays out more XP than the last. The catch is that it grants no weapon XP, so bring guns with strong area clear, like the Thundercage, to keep the waves dying fast.
Albion Resource Defense for weapon proficiency
Albion Resource Defense is the same round-based defense format, but it feeds weapon XP instead of Descendant XP. Thanks to equal XP sharing, you can max all three weapons at once in about 6–7 minutes with a booster and multiplier-mod External Components. Here you want an AoE Descendant doing the clearing rather than strong weapons. Loot is minimal, so only run it when you are not trying to farm materials.
Infiltration Operation: Hard (400%) for XP and materials
If you want XP without giving up loot, run Infiltration Operation on Hard at 400%. These missions hand out upgrade and crafting materials alongside a large XP payout. Expect to complete them several times even with a booster to fully cap a Descendant and weapons. The 400% difficulty rotates daily and is only active on two missions at a time, so check which one gives more XP before committing.
Sigma Sector Dropoff Operation for speed
Sigma Sector has two High-risk missions that both give similar Descendant and weapon XP. The per-run amount is not huge, but you can finish either in 2–3 minutes, which makes the throughput excellent. It is also the best place to chase endgame items, including Descendants like Serena, Dia, and Raven, and each run adds 1,500 Arche XP. The short clear time makes it the fastest way to build up Arche XP.
Karel’s Mothership for character and weapons together
Karel’s Mothership is the new mega-dungeon added in Season 4, and it is the one place that takes both your Descendant and your weapons from 0 to 40 in a single run. With just an active booster, everything equipped maxes out by the end. The trade-off is difficulty: even on Normal the run is brutal, with multiple boss fights, and going in unprepared can stretch it past 30 minutes.
Match the farm to the track you need. Split your Descendant and weapon leveling between Kuiper Mine Blockade and Albion Resource Defense when you want speed, and save Karel’s Mothership for a full loadout reset when you have a build that can survive it.
