People keep loading into ARC Raiders like it’s a footrace. Ultra-light kit, max mobility, praying they can circle-strafe a Bastion forever. You can’t. Not when it matters. If you’re still sorting your stash and checking ARC Raiders Items, do yourself a favour and plan around damage first, movement second, because the big ARCs don’t care how quick your boots are when your shots barely dent the plating.

Why light guns feel good right up until they don’t

Light weapons are comfy. They track well, they reload fast, and they make you feel in control when you’re cleaning up scouts or little trash mobs. Then a Rocketeer steps out, or a Bastion rolls the corner, and the whole vibe changes. You dump a mag, the health bar shrugs, and now you’re stuck doing that awkward dance where you’re sprinting, reloading, and pretending the fight is “under control” while your team gets pinned. The issue isn’t your aim. It’s the math. You need punch, not just uptime, and that usually means committing to Medium or Heavy ammo if your goal is actually deleting ARC armor.

The two workhorses most squads trust

If you want the simple answer, it’s these: Renegade and Anvil. The Renegade’s the one I’d call “all-around,” but in a real way, not marketing fluff. It hits hard, stays accurate when you’re not perfectly settled, and it doesn’t feel like you’re wrestling your recoil every time you peek. Against heavy units, that steadiness matters more than people admit. The Anvil is the opposite personality. Less finesse, more brute force. It’s the gun you bring when you’re tired of long fights and you want the ARC to start backing up right now. It’s weighty, yeah, but the time it saves on a Bastion is the kind of time that keeps you alive.

Strong backups when you can’t get the top picks

Can’t snag those two? You’re not doomed. Hull Cracker is a nasty answer to armor, especially when you’re shooting under pressure and you need every hit to count. It feels made for cracking problem targets, not just farming easy ones. Betina is another reliable choice when you want something that still hits like it means it, but handles a bit nicer depending on your playstyle. And yeah, the Venator has its place. The burst can tidy up weaker threats. Just don’t fool yourself into thinking it’s your “Bastion solution,” because that’s where it tends to run out of steam.

Loadout habits that actually keep you standing

Bring the gun that ends the fight, then build the rest around surviving the reloads and repositioning. That’s the loop. Pick angles where you can reset, don’t chase damage into open ground, and call targets like you mean it. When your squad stacks on a heavy hitter and focuses fire, even scary units start looking manageable. If you’re trying to gear up for that kind of run, it helps to lock in a plan early and buy ARC Raiders Items that support heavy-ARC takedowns without turning every match into a desperate loot scramble.