How the workshop works
Your workshop in Speranza is where ARC Raiders turns loot into gear. You start with a basic Workbench, and six specialist stations unlock as you upgrade them: the Gunsmith, Gear Bench, Medical Lab, Explosives Station, Utility Station and Refiner. Each station's level decides which recipes you can craft there, so a blueprint you have learned can't be crafted until its station reaches the right level.
Every upgrade follows the same pattern. Level 1 asks for bulk common materials. Levels 2 and 3 ask for three things: a salvaged item you find in raids, a refined component, and a part taken from a specific ARC enemy. That last part is usually the bottleneck, because it means hunting one type of machine.
The tables below come from the community-maintained ARC Raiders wiki and MetaForge's hideout planner, checked again on 2 November 2026, after Update 2.3.0 (27 October 2026), which didn't change upgrade costs. Embark doesn't publish upgrade costs outside the game, so check the station screen in your workshop before you farm.
Gunsmith
The Gunsmith crafts weapons and weapon mods. It is the station most players want first, because it decides which guns you can build instead of buying or looting.
| Level | Materials | What it unlocks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 20 Metal Parts, 30 Rubber Parts | Starter weapons such as the Ferro, Kettle, Rattler and Stitcher, plus Mk. I mods |
| 2 | 3 Rusted Tools, 5 Mechanical Components, 8 Wasp Driver | Weapons such as the Venator, Osprey and Torrente, plus Mk. II mods |
| 3 | 3 Rusted Gear, 5 Advanced Mechanical Components, 4 Sentinel Firing Core | Weapons such as the Tempest, Equalizer, Bobcat and Jupiter, plus Mk. III mods |
| 4 | Needs the Outpost; listed as 3 Radial Press, 3 Magnetic Accelerator, 1 Emperor Modulator | Weapon Amplification |
Gunsmith 4 is newer than the other levels and depends on the Outpost, so treat its cost as provisional until you see it in your own workshop.
Gear Bench
The Gear Bench crafts augments and shields.
| Level | Materials | What it unlocks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 25 Plastic Parts, 30 Fabric | Combat, Looting and Tactical Mk. 1 augments, Light and Medium Shields |
| 2 | 3 Power Cable, 5 Electrical Components, 5 Hornet Driver | Mk. 2 augments and the Heavy Shield |
| 3 | 3 Industrial Battery, 5 Advanced Electrical Components, 6 Bastion Cell | Mk. 3 augments, such as Looting Mk. 3 Safekeeper and Tactical Mk. 3 Healing |
Medical Lab
The Medical Lab crafts healing, shield rechargers and revives.
| Level | Materials | What it unlocks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 50 Fabric, 6 ARC Alloy | Bandages, Herbal Bandages, Shield Rechargers and Adrenaline Shots |
| 2 | 2 Cracked Bioscanner, 5 Durable Cloth, 8 Tick Pod | Defibrillators, Sterilized Bandages and Surge Shield Rechargers |
| 3 | 3 Rusted Shut Medical Kit, 8 Antiseptic, 5 Surveyor Vault | Vita Spray and Vita Shot |
Explosives Station
The Explosives Station crafts grenades and mines.
| Level | Materials | What it unlocks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 50 Chemicals, 6 ARC Alloy | Light Impact, Seeker and Gas Grenades, Pulse and Gas Mines |
| 2 | 3 Synthesized Fuel, 5 Crude Explosives, 5 Pop Trigger | Shrapnel and Snap Blast Grenades, Jolt Mines and the Trigger 'Nade |
| 3 | 3 Laboratory Reagents, 5 Explosive Compound, 3 Rocketeer Driver | Wolfpack, Blaze Grenade, Showstopper, Explosive Mine and more |
Utility Station
The Utility Station crafts movement and support tools.
| Level | Materials | What it unlocks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 50 Plastic Parts, 6 ARC Alloy | Binoculars, Barricade Kit, Door Blocker, Li'l Smoke Grenade and flares |
| 2 | 2 Damaged Heat Sink, 5 Electrical Components, 6 Snitch Scanner | Smoke and Lure Grenades, Zipline and the Raider Hatch Key |
| 3 | 3 Fried Motherboard, 5 Advanced Electrical Components, 4 Leaper Pulse Unit | Snap Hook, Photoelectric Cloak, Powered Descender and Tagging Grenade |
Refiner
The Refiner turns raw materials into the components every other station needs. It is the station that makes the rest of the workshop cheaper to run.
| Level | Materials | What it unlocks |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 60 Metal Parts, 5 ARC Powercell | Mechanical and Electrical Components, Durable Cloth and Crude Explosives |
| 2 | 3 Toaster, 5 ARC Motion Core, 8 Fireball Burner | Advanced Mechanical and Electrical Components, ARC Circuitry, Antiseptic, Explosive Compound, gun parts and Mod Components |
| 3 | 3 Motor, 10 ARC Circuitry, 6 Bombardier Cell | Complex Gun Parts, Magnetic Accelerators and Power Rods |
Look at what the Refiner unlocks next to the station costs above. Mechanical Components (Gunsmith 2), Electrical Components (Gear Bench 2 and Utility 2), Durable Cloth (Medical Lab 2) and Crude Explosives (Explosives 2) all come from Refiner 1. Advanced components, Antiseptic, Explosive Compound and ARC Circuitry for the level 3 upgrades come from Refiner 2. Magnetic Accelerators for Gunsmith 4 come from Refiner 3.
Where the ARC parts come from
The enemy part in each level 2 and 3 upgrade is named after the ARC machine that drops it: Wasp Drivers from Wasps, Hornet Drivers from Hornets, Tick Pods from Ticks, Pop Triggers from Pops, Snitch Scanners from Snitches, Fireball Burners from Fireballs, Rocketeer Drivers from Rocketeers, Leaper Pulse Units from Leapers, Bastion Cells from Bastions, Bombardier Cells from Bombardiers, Sentinel Firing Cores from Sentinels and Surveyor Vaults from Surveyors.
That gives a simple rule for farming:
- Small ARC parts are a volume job. Wasps, Hornets, Ticks, Pops and Snitches are common, so the 5 to 8 parts a level 2 upgrade needs come from a few raids of hunting them on purpose.
- Large ARC parts take planning. Rocketeers, Leapers, Bastions, Bombardiers and Sentinels are tougher fights. Bring a squad, the right weapon and enough healing, and extract as soon as you have the part.
- ARC Alloy and ARC Powercells are ARC salvage. Loot destroyed machines for them, because you need them early for the level 1 Medical Lab, Explosives, Utility and Refiner upgrades.
Which station to upgrade first
There is no single correct order, but this one works for most players because each step makes the next one cheaper:
- Gunsmith 1 and Refiner 1. Gunsmith 1 gives you craftable weapons, and Refiner 1 makes the components four other stations need for level 2.
- Medical Lab 1. Crafting your own bandages and shield rechargers saves Coins every raid.
- Gunsmith 2. Hunt eight Wasps and you can build a Venator instead of buying one.
- Refiner 2. It unlocks the advanced components and ARC Circuitry that every level 3 upgrade needs, so it is the gate to the late workshop.
- The station your playstyle uses. Looters want the Gear Bench for Looting augments; aggressive squads want the Explosives Station; solo players often get the most from the Utility Station's Zipline, Snap Hook and smokes.
- Gunsmith 3, then the rest of level 3. Gunsmith 3 opens the strongest weapons, and the other level 3 stations follow once Refiner 2 is supplying components.
If you are deciding which recipes to learn while you upgrade, the ARC Raiders blueprints guide covers which blueprints pay off at each Gunsmith level. New players should also read the ARC Raiders beginner's guide for how raids, extraction and the stash fit together.
The Outpost and Research Station
Frozen Trail 2.0 added the Outpost, a new part of the workshop you unlock by completing a project, and a Research Station that sits behind it. Both run to four levels and ask for map-specific items such as Hand Drills, Calculators and Raider Logbooks rather than the materials above. They are still new, community costs are still being confirmed, and they aren't needed for any of the six core stations, so leave them until your core stations are at level 2 or 3.
Do workshop upgrades reset in an Expedition?
Embark hasn't published a full list of what an Expedition resets, and community sources aren't settled on workshop levels. What is confirmed is that Expeditions are opt-in. Before you depart, check the departure screen for what it lists as reset, and don't sink rare parts into an upgrade in the days before you plan to start one.
Saving time on the grind
Most of the workshop's cost is time: raids spent hunting one type of ARC for eight parts, or recycling junk for Metal Parts. Two habits cut it down:
- Recycle with a purpose. Before a raid, check which materials your next upgrade needs and pick up the salvage items that recycle into them.
- Keep the Refiner busy. Turning raw materials into components between raids means you aren't stuck when a station finally gets its ARC part.
If the grind is the part standing between you and the gear you want, BoostingXP's ARC Raiders workbench boost upgrades the stations you pick, one bench or all six, from their current level to the one you choose. The materials are farmed in real raids by hand, and anything left over stays in your stash.
FAQ
What do you need to upgrade the Gunsmith in ARC Raiders?
Gunsmith 1 needs 20 Metal Parts and 30 Rubber Parts. Gunsmith 2 needs 3 Rusted Tools, 5 Mechanical Components and 8 Wasp Drivers. Gunsmith 3 needs 3 Rusted Gear, 5 Advanced Mechanical Components and 4 Sentinel Firing Cores.
What is the max workbench level in ARC Raiders?
The Gear Bench, Medical Lab, Explosives Station, Utility Station and Refiner go to level 3. The Gunsmith has a fourth level that needs the Outpost.
Which workbench should I upgrade first in ARC Raiders?
The Gunsmith and Refiner. The Gunsmith gives you craftable weapons, and the Refiner makes the components the other stations need to reach level 2 and 3.
Where do I get Wasp Drivers?
From Wasps, the small flying ARC. Gunsmith 2 needs eight, so plan a few raids of hunting them.
Where do I get ARC Alloy?
It is ARC salvage, so loot destroyed ARC machines for it. You need six each for the level 1 Medical Lab, Explosives Station and Utility Station.
Do workshop levels reset with an Expedition?
Embark hasn't confirmed this in its patch notes. Check the Expedition departure screen, which lists what resets before you commit.
