I used to treat ARC like background noise while I grabbed loot and moved on, but lately the machines are the whole raid. You'll feel it fast, especially once you start planning routes around rooftops and sightlines, not just exits. If you're tweaking your kit, it helps to think in terms of utility and recovery, not only DPS, and I've been comparing options against stuff like ARC Raiders Items to make sure I'm not walking in underprepared.

Firefly habits you can't ignore

The Firefly isn't "just another flyer." It watches you, waits, and then commits to that nasty dive the second it has a clean lane. A lot of players panic and sprint across open ground. Don't. That's how you get clipped and deleted. What actually works is boring: get inside real cover. Not a thin wall, not a fence. A building, a bunker, anything that forces it to lose line-of-sight. If you've got a Photoelectric Cloak, hold it until the dive starts. Pop it too early and you've wasted your best breath. And when you do return fire, be picky—its belly fuel tank is the gift. You won't always see it, but when you do, take the calm shot instead of mag-dumping.

Comet fights are about spacing and tempo

The Comet's the opposite problem. It doesn't "hunt" you like the Firefly; it punishes the squad for standing in the same postcode. If your team stacks up behind one bit of cover, the explosive pressure just rolls through you. So make a habit: spread wide, different angles, call your lanes. Then strip it. High fire-rate guns matter because you're trying to chew off side armor to reach the soft parts, and slow poke damage can leave you stuck in a long, ugly trade. Also, learn the tell for self-destruct. It glows, it whines, it dares you to be greedy. Don't take the dare—create distance first, then reassess.

Loadouts and team roles that actually help

These two machines basically force roles even in casual squads. One player can carry lure grenades and be the "reset button" for revives, especially when a Firefly is circling and you can't afford another dive. Another player should bring something built for sustained fire to peel Comet armor while the rest keep angles and clear adds. Solo, it's the same idea, just tighter: keep one tool for escape, one for control, and never start a fight in a place you can't break line-of-sight in two seconds.

Keeping raids profitable without getting cocky

Once you stop treating these encounters like random interruptions, they start feeling manageable, even satisfying, because you're making decisions instead of reacting. You'll still lose runs—everyone does—but you'll lose fewer to silly positioning and last-second greed. I've found it's easier to stay disciplined when I plan my resupply ahead of time and keep an eye on ARC Raiders Items cheap for the practical stuff that keeps a kit consistent between drops.