After more than 20 attempts, one ARC Raiders player is close to giving up on the Frigate altogether.
In a Reddit post, u/slimeyellow describes getting nowhere with the puzzle despite repeatedly trying to make progress. The bigger frustration isn't the ARC machines or the encounter's difficulty. It's the other Raiders. Players who initially seem friendly sometimes turn hostile, others ignore the ARC defenders, and downed teammates often have nobody nearby carrying a Defibrillator.
Bringing a good loadout has started to feel like a gamble. You can spend the raid fighting machines and helping strangers, only to get shot in the back when you're distracted or weakened.
It's one player's experience, not proof that every Frigate lobby is hostile. But similar complaints have appeared in other community discussions. Players describe strangers rushing for containers, ignoring the main objective, and leaving before the group has a chance to finish the encounter.
The Frigate is supposed to be a major cooperative challenge. In public lobbies, getting people to agree on what they're actually there to do can be harder than fighting the machines.
Why the Frigate Puzzle Falls Apart With Random Teammates
Introduced with the Frozen Trail update on October 8, the Frigate is a large airborne ARC vessel that appears as a map condition. Raiders board it using Reclaimer drones, then work through its interior while dealing with ARC defenses and progressing toward the cargo.
The problem is that several parts of the route reward coordination rather than individual skill.
The central lift requires players to operate controls at different positions. Further inside, the Power Core sequence uses multiple activation panels that need to be handled together before Raiders can expose and destroy the cores. The team also has to deal with enemies and environmental hazards along the way.
That makes a disorganized group particularly vulnerable.
Imagine two Raiders trying to activate a section of the puzzle while the rest of the lobby searches containers or waits somewhere safer. The players handling the objective have fewer people available to cover them. They take more incoming damage, spend more ammunition, and may have to stop progressing just to survive.
A coordinated group can divide those responsibilities. A random lobby may never establish them in the first place.
And unlike a normal fight where players can simply separate and pursue different targets, the Frigate's progression depends on getting through specific stages. One person wandering off can slow everyone else down.
Why Some Players Loot the Frigate and Leave
There is a practical reason some Raiders don't bother completing the full puzzle: they can find valuable materials without reaching the final cargo.
The Frigate contains Breach & Search containers along its hull and interior sections. These can provide materials such as Frigate Inductors and Amplification Modules. A player looking for a specific upgrade material may be able to get what they need from an accessible container and extract without completing the entire sequence.
That changes the incentives inside a public lobby.
A Raider who needs a Frigate Inductor for Research Station progression may care more about searching the available containers than helping destroy every Power Core. Someone else may be trying to reach the Cargo Pod. A third player may simply want to survive with whatever they've already collected.
All three approaches make sense from an individual extraction perspective. They don't necessarily work together.
The problem is especially clear when players rush the same containers. By the time someone decides to help with the objective, the nearby loot may already be gone. Others may have extracted, leaving the remaining Raiders to fight through the ship with fewer people.
This is why some players describe the Frigate as a loot race rather than a cooperative event. The encounter asks for teamwork, but players can still make progress toward their own goals without committing to the full clear.
Where to Find Frigate Inductors Without Completing the Puzzle
For players who mainly want the Frigate Inductor, understanding the container locations can save a lot of time.
Frigate Inductors are found in Breach & Search containers aboard the Frigate. Look for the round breachable hatches built into the exterior hull and accessible sections of the ship. The item is not guaranteed in every container, so you may need to search several.
The important point is that you don't have to finish the Power Core sequence or release the Cargo Pod just to obtain one.
A practical approach is:
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Board the Frigate using a Reclaimer drone.
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Check the accessible outer walkways and hull hatches.
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Breach and search the containers you can reach safely.
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Check your inventory when you find a Frigate Inductor.
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Move it into your Safe Pocket before continuing, if you have room.
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Extract rather than risking the item in a fight you don't need to take.
The Frigate Inductor is a Legendary Topside Material used for the Research Station Level 4 upgrade. It is therefore worth prioritizing if you're still working toward that progression milestone.
Other useful materials, including Amplification Modules, can also appear in Frigate containers. Just remember that container contents are not guaranteed. Finding an Inductor on one run doesn't mean the same hatch will contain another on your next attempt.
For players who only need the material, this focused loot route can be more practical than depending on strangers to complete the entire event.
Is Bringing an Expensive Frigate Loadout Worth It?
This is where the encounter becomes particularly frustrating for Raiders who want to complete the full objective.
A serious attempt can consume a lot of ammunition and healing supplies. Tough ARC enemies require sustained fire, and players who push deeper into the ship need enough resources to survive the next section. Weapons suited to fighting armored ARC, along with useful defensive equipment, can make the difference between steady progress and a failed run.
But a strong loadout cannot compensate for a group that refuses to cooperate.
If you're the only person fighting ARC while everyone else searches containers, you'll carry more of the combat burden. If you go down, there may be nobody prepared to revive you. And if a supposedly friendly Raider turns hostile, the equipment you brought for the encounter becomes another potential loss.
That's why some players have started using cheaper loadouts for public Frigate runs. Losing an inexpensive setup is easier to accept than losing a valuable weapon, ammunition, shields, and medical supplies in a lobby that never had a realistic chance of finishing the puzzle.
It also creates a frustrating cycle: players bring less equipment because they don't trust the lobby, but the encounter becomes harder when fewer Raiders are prepared to fight.
For anyone restocking after repeated failed attempts, the cost of replacing weapons and supplies becomes part of the decision. Searches for ARC Raiders Items and replacement gear are not just about progression; they are also about deciding how much another risky run is worth.
Can You Complete the Frigate With Random Teammates?
Yes. Random matchmaking doesn't make a successful run impossible.
One player described finally completing the Frigate after a long series of failed attempts. A random teammate helped explain the puzzle, several other Raiders joined the fight, and the group managed to release the Cargo Pod. The player even described the final extraction as one of their most enjoyable experiences in a game.
That story is a useful counterpoint to the complaints. Some public lobbies do come together, and a few people willing to communicate can make a significant difference.
If you're trying to complete the full encounter with strangers, a few habits can improve your chances:
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Communicate early. Use proximity chat to explain which objective you're attempting and ask for help with specific controls.
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Bring a Defibrillator. Don't assume someone else will have revive equipment when a teammate goes down.
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Carry enough ammunition and healing supplies. The ship can turn into a prolonged fight when ARC enemies aren't dealt with quickly.
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Avoid your most expensive loadout while learning. Get familiar with the route before risking equipment you can't easily replace.
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Watch what the group is doing. If everyone is rushing containers and nobody is progressing the puzzle, adjust your expectations before committing more resources.
If you're mainly after an Inductor, you may not need to commit to the full objective at all. If you want the Cargo Pod, however, a premade group or a public lobby with clear communication is a much better starting point.
What Update 2.3.0 Changed on the Frigate
Embark made several Frigate-specific changes in Live Update 2.3.0 on October 27.
The update added visual hatches to make puzzle progress easier to read. It also introduced clearer audio cues around Power Core vents and hatches, helping players recognize progression, completion, and destruction states.
There were other changes too:
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Raiders can now ping the Frigate from long range as it enters the area.
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Loot distribution was adjusted so areas farther inside have a higher chance of higher-tier rewards.
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The cargo gate was updated.
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Collision issues that allowed players to enter or hide inside parts of the ship were fixed.
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Memory usage was reduced, and stability was improved to lower the chance of crashes while exploring the cargo hold with larger groups.
The loot adjustment is particularly relevant to the cooperation problem. If players have a better reason to push deeper into the ship, the full encounter becomes more attractive than simply searching the first containers and leaving.
Clearer puzzle feedback also makes it easier for unfamiliar teammates to understand what is happening.
Still, these are gameplay and technical improvements, not a guarantee that public lobbies will become more cooperative. Players can still disagree about whether to fight, loot, revive, or extract.
Is the Frigate Still Worth Running?
For players who enjoy large group encounters, the Frigate remains an interesting challenge. When strangers communicate and work through the puzzle together, the result can be genuinely rewarding.
But if you're repeatedly losing expensive gear because teammates won't help, there's no reason to treat every run as an obligation to complete the entire ship.
Need a Frigate Inductor? Search the breachable containers and secure the material before taking unnecessary risks. Want the Cargo Pod? Bring friends when possible, communicate early, and make sure the group has enough equipment to survive the deeper sections.
The Frigate isn't impossible with random teammates. It simply asks for more cooperation than public matchmaking can reliably provide.
And until more Raiders decide that finishing the puzzle is worth their time, some runs will continue to end with a few empty containers, a depleted loadout, and an unfinished objective.
