ARC Raiders · Guides

ARC Raiders Queen Boss Guide: Weak Points & How to Kill

Q: How do you kill the Queen in ARC Raiders?

Aim at her two listed weak points, the Core and the Leg Joints, because her armor is Heavy. Since the 2.0 update her higher tier loot sits in the leg pieces, so breaking legs pays twice. Explosives like the Hullcracker now hit armor plates over 50% harder.

Q: Where does the Queen spawn in ARC Raiders?

Only with the Harvester map condition active. That condition spawns a Harvester structure guarded by a Queen at a fixed location on each map. Without the condition, there is no Queen to find.

Q: What are the Queen's weak points in ARC Raiders?

The ARC Raiders Wiki lists two weaknesses, the Core and the Leg Joints. Her armor class is Heavy, so shots into plating do little until you reach one of those two.

Q: What attacks does the Queen have in ARC Raiders?

Mortar fire (2 to 5 mortars that burst into flames two seconds after landing), a laser beam that scorches the ground, and an EMP pulse or ground slam when you get close. She can also fire her laser into a node on the Harvester to electrocute everyone inside.

Q: What does the Queen drop in ARC Raiders?

Her loot table includes rare ARC materials, Complex Gun Parts and Magnetic Accelerator (Epic) and the Legendary Queen Reactor. The Harvester itself holds 1 to 3 Equalizer or Jupiter blueprints once you finish its core sequence.

Q: How much XP is the Queen worth?

The wiki lists +1000 XP for destroying her, +1000 XP for scavenging her core and +500 XP for scavenging a leg.

ARC Raiders Queen boss guide: her two weak points, every attack, the Harvester core sequence, and how the 2.0 update moved her best loot into the legs.

Jun 6, 202610 min readLast reviewed October 8, 2026By Dani TorresUpdated 11 days ago

Tagsarc-raiders embark-studios boss-guide guide 2026

A spider-legged ARC machine with a glowing red eye looms over a Raider crouched behind a wrecked car beside an abandoned bus

How do you beat the ARC Raiders Queen? (quick answer)

Fight her only when the Harvester condition is up, aim at the Core and the Leg Joints instead of her Heavy armor, and treat the legs as the prize: since 2.0, Embark moved her higher tier loot from the leg armor into the leg pieces. If you want the Harvester blueprints too, finish its three-core sequence while watching for its fire and electrical defenses.

Key takeaways

Spawn: only with the Harvester map condition, at a fixed location on each map.
Armor: Heavy. Weak points: Core and Leg Joints.
Attacks: mortar fire, laser beam, EMP pulse, ground slam.
2.0 loot change: higher tier loot moved from the leg armor to the leg pieces; armor still holds some loot.
2.0 explosives change: over 50% more damage against armor plates, around 30% less against fragile parts.
XP: +1000 destroy, +1000 core scavenge, +500 leg scavenge.

ARC Raiders Queen weak points and armor

The wiki's infobox for the Queen is short and useful: armor Heavy, primary attack Mortar Fire, abilities Laser Beam, Ground Slam and EMP Pulse, weaknesses Core and Leg Joints. Everything else about the fight follows from that. Shots into the dome plating are wasted effort; the damage has to land on a joint or the core.

A damaged spider-legged ARC Queen standing over a crashed vehicle in red dust, with an opening glowing on top of its body Image: "The Queen exposing her Core", ARC Raiders Wiki (arcraiders.wiki), screenshot by Fumiko, CC BY-SA 4.0

The 2.0 patch notes changed what the legs are worth. Embark "moved higher tier loot from the armor pieces of the legs to the legs pieces for Queen and Matriarch," explaining that "the armor plates are supposed to protect the legs, so it made sense to relocate the loot to the protected area." Armor pieces "can still contain some loot," but the better drops are now behind the plates, not in them.

The same patch reworked explosive damage against all ARC. Weapons like the Hullcracker "deal over 50% more damage against armor plates but around 30% less damage against more fragile parts." For the Queen that cuts both ways: explosives strip leg armor faster, but they are weaker once you are hitting exposed parts. For the rest of the roster's weak points, see the ARC Raiders enemy types guide and the machine type guide.

GODEEPER: The Matriarch got the same leg-loot change and shares the Queen's weak points. ARC Raiders Matriarch Boss Guide →

The Queen's attacks

The wiki describes four attacks:

Mortars: she fires 2 to 5 mortars "from the top of its dome" that land around a Raider and "explode into a fiery inferno two seconds after impact." Two seconds is your window to move off the marker.
Laser beam: fired periodically at a Raider in line of sight, leaving the ground "scorched and hot to the touch."
EMP pulse or ground slam: her answer when Raiders "try to get up close and personal." Hugging her legs invites one of the two.
Harvester node laser: if she is nearby while Raiders loot the Harvester, she can fire her laser "into a node atop the Harvester," which "electrocutes everyone inside."

That last one matters for positioning. Older versions of this guide told readers to fight from inside the Harvester for cover. The wiki documents two separate ways the Harvester itself punishes people inside it, so that advice is gone.

The Queen seen from behind, spider legs spread across red-lit sand with smoke rising near its feet Image: "The Queen from behind", ARC Raiders Wiki (arcraiders.wiki), screenshot by Fumiko, CC BY-SA 4.0

Step-by-Step

The Harvester is where the Queen lives and where the blueprints are. This is the core activation sequence as the wiki documents it.

1. Confirm the Harvester condition: the Queen and Harvester only appear when the Harvester map condition is active. It spawns the structure "at a fixed location on each map."

2. Collect three fusion cores: breach containers on the Harvester's upper level to gather them. One fusion core also spawns on the ground in the center of the Harvester.

3. Insert all three quickly: interact with the base of the central pillar and insert the three fusion cores "in quick succession." From this point the Queen becomes hostile and targets Raiders inside.

4. Watch for the Fire Discharge: a yellow warning light and sound announce it. The exterior venting doors open so you can escape, and the discharge "ejects all fusion cores out of the central pillar."

5. Destroy the twelve yellow targets: they need "an estimated 100 damage" each. Clearing every target on one side stops the fusion core perpendicular to that side from being ejected by the next discharge.

6. Loot the center containers: once all targets are down, containers open holding 1 to 3 Equalizer or Jupiter blueprints, plus Energy Clips and ARC items.

Tips for the Harvester and the Queen

Drop your shield for the Electrical Surge. The wiki says the Surge "only depletes the Shield of Raiders and stuns them," so it "can be completely negated by unequipping your Shield." It is triggered by the Queen herself, so killing her ends it.
The doors do not open for the Surge. Only the Fire Discharge opens the venting doors. Plan your exit around the fire warning, not the electrical one.
Scavenge legs, not only the core. The core is worth +1000 XP and a leg +500 XP to scavenge, and since 2.0 the leg pieces hold the higher tier loot.
Know what you are fighting for. The Legendary Queen Reactor appears in both her main and small debris lists, alongside rare ARC materials, Complex Gun Parts and the Magnetic Accelerator.
Bring explosives for armor, bullets for the core. That follows directly from the 2.0 damage rework above. Our ARC Raiders weapons tier list and best squad loadouts cover the gear side.

Interior of the Harvester, a dark metal chamber with a large central pillar and two fusion core slots at its base Image: "Harvester interior", ARC Raiders Wiki (arcraiders.wiki), screenshot by Atsuhiro, CC BY-SA 4.0

Embark's official enemy trailer, a short look at the ARC roster:

What players say about the 2.0 change

The loot move landed the day 2.0 went live, and the first reactions were about how it changes the fight. In the 2.0 patch notes thread, u/Debenham wrote that the old system meant "the incentive was to just damage it enough to get 3-4 cores at the most and run away," and that the change "will massively encourage everyone to actually fight the bloody thing."

u/AetherGhast103 replied with the likely new habit: "So now the meta will become to focus fire on the leg until it broke off, or kill it, its fair."

GODEEPER: The Queen fight is one part of the 2.0 update. The rest of what changed is here. ARC Raiders Frozen Trail: Everything in the 2.0 Update →

Our take

The Queen fight now rewards finishing what you start. Before 2.0, damaging leg armor and leaving with a few pieces was a known shortcut; now the good loot sits behind that armor, so a half-fight pays less. We removed several tactics from the earlier version of this guide, including fighting from inside the Harvester, because we could not trace them to a source and the wiki describes the Harvester attacking people inside it. If you find a reliable source for a specific damage window, we would rather add it than guess.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you kill the Queen in ARC Raiders? Aim at the Core and the Leg Joints, not her Heavy armor. Since 2.0 her higher tier loot sits in the leg pieces, and explosives hit armor plates over 50% harder.

Where does the Queen spawn in ARC Raiders? Only with the Harvester map condition active, which spawns a Harvester guarded by a Queen at a fixed location on each map.

What are the Queen's weak points in ARC Raiders? The Core and the Leg Joints, per the ARC Raiders Wiki.

What attacks does the Queen have in ARC Raiders? Mortars (2 to 5, igniting two seconds after impact), a laser beam, and an EMP pulse or ground slam up close. She can also electrocute everyone inside the Harvester through its node.

What does the Queen drop in ARC Raiders? Rare ARC materials, Complex Gun Parts, Magnetic Accelerator and the Legendary Queen Reactor. The Harvester holds 1 to 3 Equalizer or Jupiter blueprints.

How much XP is the Queen worth? +1000 XP to destroy, +1000 XP to scavenge the core, +500 XP to scavenge a leg.

ARC Raiders Matriarch Boss Guide: the other giant ARC with Core and Leg Joint weak points.
ARC Raiders Frozen Trail 2.0 Update: every change in the October 8 update, including the Queen loot move.
ARC Raiders Enemy Types Guide: the full ARC roster.
ARC Raiders Weapons Tier List: weapons for stripping armor and hitting cores.
ARC Raiders Best Squad Loadouts: gear splits for a team fight.
ARC Raiders Vaporizer Boss Guide: the flying laser ARC.
ARC Raiders Maps Guide: the maps where map conditions rotate.
ARC Raiders Extractions Guide: getting out alive with a Queen Reactor.

References

Was this guide helpful?

Keep reading

ARC Raiders Riven Tides Guide: Keycards, Puzzle and Loot

Guides · 7 min

ARC Raiders Machine Types: How to Kill Every ARC Unit

Guides · 10 min

ARC Raiders Turbine Guide: How to Kill the Aerial ARC

Guides · 8 min

ARC Raiders Augments Guide: Best Frames Ranked 2026

Guides · 9 min