Arc Raiders Flickering Flames Event Complete Guide

Arc Raiders just dropped a fresh update, and topside has officially frozen over. The Cold Snap update shakes things up with a winter-themed map condition, new objectives, and a limited-time activity called the Flickering Flames event. Alongside the snow and harsher conditions, players get access to free rewards, event cosmetics, and a new progression path that revolves around scavenging and donating specific materials. If you’re jumping back in or trying to make the most of the event before it ends, this guide breaks down how Flickering Flames works, what you need to collect, and why it’s worth your time.

Arc Raiders Cold Snap Event

The Cold Snap event adds one of the biggest gameplay shifts Arc Raiders has seen so far by introducing a snow-covered map condition with real consequences. These frozen zones aren’t just visual flair — the brutal cold actively damages your Raider if you stay exposed for too long. Unlike normal weather effects, the freezing winds will slowly chip away at your health, turning the environment itself into a threat you have to manage.

To survive, you’ll need to move smartly between sheltered areas. When the cold starts to kick in, your Raider will give clear visual cues: shivering, rubbing their hands together, and gradually getting coated in snow. That’s your warning to get indoors fast. Stepping into a proper building allows your character to warm up, and you’ll know you’re safe once the snow on your Raider begins to melt away.

Not every structure offers real protection, though. Some rundown huts and open shacks don’t provide enough insulation to stop the damage. Always watch your character’s animations — if they’re still shaking from the cold, you’re not fully protected and your health will keep dropping. Managing exposure, choosing safe shelter, and planning routes carefully are key to staying alive during Cold Snap runs.

The Flickering Flames Project Explained

The Flickering Flames Project is the heart of the event and works a lot like an extended Expedition chain. Instead of a single objective, you’re asked to donate specific materials across multiple stages to help push the celebration forward. Many of these items are things you’ve probably ignored or sold dozens of times before, like Empty Wine Bottles or Plastic Parts, but during this event they suddenly matter. If you’ve been hoarding random loot, this is where it finally pays off.

Each phase has its own requirements, and you can only move on once everything is turned in. Here’s how the full project breaks down:

Step 1 requirements:
You’ll need 20 Candleberries, 5 Durable Cloth, 1 Empty Wine Bottle, and 25 Plastic Parts.

Step 2 requirements:
This step asks for 50 Candleberries, 3 Candle Holders, 1 Industrial Battery, and 3 Light Bulbs.

Step 3 requirements:
You must donate 60 Candleberries, 10 Duct Tape, 2 Film Reels, and 5 Snap Blast Grenades.

Step 4 requirements:
This stage requires another 60 Candleberries, along with 2 Coffee Pots, 10 Fireball Burners, and 2 Water Filters.

Step 5 requirements:
The final step needs 70 Candleberries, 2 Frying Pans, 7 Mushrooms, and 2 Music Albums.

One important thing to keep in mind is that every item you submit is gone for good. Once it’s donated, you won’t get it back, so make sure you’re not turning in something you desperately need for your loadout or crafting plans. That said, most of these materials don’t have many critical uses outside this event, so it’s usually safe to commit them. In return, each completed step rewards you with Merits, Raider Tokens, and useful items you can bring straight into your next raid, making the grind feel worthwhile rather than wasted.

Where To Find Candleberries in Arc Raiders

Candleberries are a brand-new, event-only material added specifically for the Cold Snap update, and you’ll need a lot of them if you plan to finish the Flickering Flames project. In total, completing every step requires 260 Candleberries, which sounds intimidating at first, but it’s much more manageable once you know where they come from.

A huge chunk of your total can be earned without even looting the map. By progressing through the Gathering Candleberries reward track, you can unlock up to 180 Candleberries just by earning Merits. Merits are gained naturally by playing the game, gaining XP, and completing stages of the Flickering Flames project, so this happens passively as long as you’re active during the event.

For the remaining Candleberries, you’ll need to head into Cold Snap maps. These berries only spawn when the Cold Snap condition is active. While exploring snowy areas, keep an eye out for small bushes with bright red berries sticking out of the snow. Each bush usually drops between one and three Candleberries, and they often appear in clusters, making them quick to farm once you spot the first one.

Raider Caches during Cold Snap runs are another reliable source. These almost always contain three to five Candleberries, which makes them well worth opening, even if it slows your run slightly. On top of that, rare baskets found around nature-focused points of interest can drop even larger amounts, making them some of the best spawns if you get lucky.

If you want consistent results, a few locations stand out. The area around the Hydroponic Dome Complex on Dam Battlegrounds is excellent thanks to its mix of open snow and natural cover. Marano Park in Buried City is another strong option, especially if you sweep the entire park instead of rushing through. On Spaceport, the small forest between Container Storage and East Plains Warehouse is surprisingly effective and often overlooked by other players.

Between reward track progress and smart routing on Cold Snap maps, collecting enough Candleberries is much easier than it looks, as long as you stay focused on snowy, nature-heavy areas and don’t skip Raider Caches along the way.

Gathering Candleberries Event Tracker in Arc Raiders

The last major piece of the Flickering Flames event is the Gathering Candleberries reward track, which is where a big chunk of your cosmetics and bonus Candleberries come from. This tracker has 25 total tiers, and progression is tied entirely to Merits, meaning you advance just by playing the game and earning XP.

Merits are awarded at the end of every run, with every 100 XP converting into one Merit. A solid raid where you pick up ARC loot, fight enemies, and extract safely can easily net you thousands of XP, so Merits stack up faster than they sound. This will naturally be your main source of progress, and you don’t need to grind anything special for it. Just playing normally during the event is enough.

On top of match XP, you can also earn large Merit bonuses by completing steps in the Flickering Flames project itself. Certain material donations grant instant Merit boosts, like turning in three Light Bulbs for 1,000 Merits. While this alone won’t finish the entire reward track, it’s a great way to speed things up and push through multiple tiers at once.

As you move through the tracker, rewards alternate between cosmetics, Raider Tokens, and Candleberries. Over the full track, you’ll earn a large supply of Candleberries, multiple Hi-Tech Hiker outfit variants and color options, emotes, face styles, and a Space Wrench Raider tool skin at the final tier. By the time you finish all 25 rewards, you’ll have unlocked every event cosmetic and collected enough Candleberries to cover most of the Flickering Flames project requirements.

The event runs for 27 days, which gives you plenty of breathing room. There’s no need to stress about optimizing Merit gains or grinding nonstop. As long as you’re actively playing during the event window, you’ll naturally earn enough Merits to finish the tracker. Your real focus should be on hunting down the specific materials needed for each Flickering Flames project step, since the reward track will progress on its own in the background.

Conclusion

The Flickering Flames event is a solid example of Arc Raiders doing what it does best: blending exploration, survival, and progression into a limited-time experience that feels rewarding without being overwhelming. Between the Cold Snap map condition, the new Candleberry material, and the multi-step Flickering Flames project, there’s plenty to work toward whether you play casually or grind hard. As long as you focus on smart looting, prioritize Residential and Nature-heavy areas, and manage your materials carefully, the event is very manageable within the time limit. With cosmetics, Raider Tokens, and unique rewards waiting at the end, Flickering Flames is well worth completing before the snow melts and the event disappears.