Phantom Targets rewards players who treat a raid as a controlled experiment rather than another loot run. The project asks you to investigate signals, upgrade antennas, and damage ARC enemies with unusual tools, so your normal combat build may be less important than your preparation. Before spending valuable materials on a temporary objective, check your available ARC Raiders BluePrints and decide which equipment can be replaced with cheaper options without weakening your long-term progression.

Why Phantom Targets Changes Your Loadout

Unlike a standard donation project, Phantom Targets measures specific interactions during raids. That distinction matters because a powerful weapon cannot automatically solve every requirement. ARC parts, elemental damage, energy weapons, and launcher ammunition each push you toward a different setup, while the project advances one stage at a time.

The first part began with Update 1.40, and Part 2 became available with Update 1.42 on August 18. Players should therefore verify the active objective in the Raider menu before every deployment. Completing a raid with the wrong damage type can waste time, ammunition, and extraction opportunities, especially when the required item is difficult to replace.

Start With the Safest Progress

The opening task requires three upgrades on antennas positioned above Cargo Elevators. These extraction structures appear on Dam Battlegrounds, Spaceport, and Riven Tides. Reaching the roof and interacting with the antenna is usually a lower-risk objective than testing combat items, making it a sensible first priority when you want reliable progress.

One confusing behavior is that the interaction may still appear available after an upgrade. That does not necessarily mean the action failed. Check the Phantom Targets progress screen instead of repeating the interaction and exposing yourself to unnecessary danger.

Open the Raider menu and select Projects before entering a raid.
Confirm the current stage because later objectives remain locked until the active one is completed.
Choose a map where the required structure or enemy encounter is easy to reach.
Check the project counter after extracting instead of relying only on visual interaction feedback.

Use ARC Parts With Control

The combat stages ask you to test items such as Pop Triggers, Wasp Drivers, and Leaper Pulse Units against ARC enemies. These tools do not behave like conventional firearms, so open terrain often makes them inefficient. A target can move away, the item can bounce into an unhelpful position, or another enemy can interrupt the test before meaningful damage is dealt.

Enclosed spaces are generally better because they limit enemy movement and make repeated attempts easier to manage. Community experience also suggests that Shredders and other predictable ARC targets can be useful practice targets. This approach is slower than simply clearing a combat zone, but it reduces wasted parts and gives you more control over the required damage.

Plan Around Cost and Risk

Later stages introduce fire damage, energy weapons, launcher ammunition, and requirements involving flying ARC. Bring only what the current objective demands. Expensive gear is rarely justified for a single test, particularly when a low-cost loadout can complete the same interaction. For airborne targets, areas with restricted ceilings or predictable flight paths are preferable because they reduce missed shots and uncontrolled engagements.

Reserve useful ARC parts instead of selling or recycling every unusual item.
Carry one objective-specific tool while keeping the rest of the loadout practical for survival.
Separate farming runs from project runs when the required equipment is costly.
Return to Speranza and claim available rewards before beginning the next stage.

What Part 2 Means for Progression

Part 2 continues the investigation and should be checked directly in the Projects menu. Avoid planning around early datamined requirement lists, since placeholder items discussed by the community were not guaranteed to match the live objectives. Phantom Targets is most valuable for players willing to adapt their route and preserve resources, not for those trying to force every stage into one high-risk raid. Keep your inventory flexible, compare the project cost against your normal farming goals, and use u4gm ARC Raiders BluePrints as a reference when deciding which long-term crafting options are worth protecting.