Direct answer: if you want one practical PvE gun in ARC Raiders, start with Bettina for a general ARC run, Hullcracker for a dedicated anti-ARC objective, or Anvil when you need a cheaper medium-range weapon you can replace. Bettina has the best evidence for a flexible high-end PvE rifle: Embark described it as the highest-performing PvE weapon at its rarity in the 1.7.0 notes, excluding Hullcracker, and later pushed its fire rate to 250 RPM. Hullcracker has stronger ARC specialization, but it cannot fight human Raiders and carries a heavier launcher-ammo and replacement-cost commitment.
That is the useful answer to “best gun,” not a permanent universal ranking. ARC Raiders is still a PvEvP extraction game, so the best PvE weapon is the one that solves the ARC target without making the extraction or the inevitable human-fight fallback impossible. The tiers and builds below are a checked-date editorial ranking, based on official balance notes plus current public weapon-card data checked on July 29, 2026. Patch 1.39.0 did not publish a weapon rebalance, but it did correct inconsistent Wolfpack and Seeker damage and still lists a Practice Range exception for three experimental weapons; re-check the live card before risking a rare gun.
The PvE tier list is a job ranking, not a damage promise
Use the table as a starting filter. “S” means the weapon has a clear PvE job and evidence that supports its placement; it does not mean every player, map, ARC type, or ammo stock produces the same result. The community-maintained weapon pages are useful for current card fields, but they are not an official DPS leaderboard.
| Tier | Weapon | First pick when… | Range lane | Ammo / replacement pressure | Stop or swap when… |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| S specialist | Hullcracker | Large ARC and armor-focused objectives | Short-to-medium; target-focused | Launcher Ammo; Epic/Gunsmith 3 and blueprint route | A Raider can appear, launcher ammo is scarce, or you need a reliable human-fight weapon |
| S flexible | Bettina | General ARC pressure with PvEvP fallback | Medium; sustained fire | Heavy Ammo; Epic and expensive enough to protect | You cannot carry enough Heavy Ammo or the fight demands a cheaper kit |
| A high-cost | Equalizer / Jupiter | Endgame ARC targets and deliberate weak-point work | Medium-to-long; Jupiter favors sightlines | Energy Clips; Legendary, cannot upgrade, high material gate | The blueprint, Queen Reactor, ammo, or replacement cost is not justified |
| A specialist | Rascal | Lightweight anti-ARC firepower | Short-to-medium; one-shot lane | Launcher Ammo; Rare, one-round break-action | You need range, fast follow-up shots, or human-fight coverage |
| A budget | Anvil | Medium-range ARC farming and learning | Medium; deliberate shots | Heavy Ammo; Uncommon, Gunsmith 1 route | You are clearing close rooms or cannot land single-action shots |
| A precision budget | Ferro | Long sightlines and weak-point shots | Medium-to-long; precision lane | Heavy Ammo; Common, low-cost craft route | A close fight or repeated reloads will decide the room |
| B hybrid | Tempest | Mixed ARC and Raider encounters | Medium-to-long; automatic fire | Medium Ammo; Epic; protect the replacement | The target is heavily armored and Moderate ARC penetration is not enough |
| Conditional | Dolabra | Close-to-medium ARC work with a skilled user | Short-to-medium; hipfire or focused beam | Energy Clips; Legendary, cannot upgrade | You need a reliable training-range test, long-range consistency, or low replacement cost |
The most important split is specialist versus flexible. Hullcracker, Rascal, Equalizer, and Jupiter are easier to justify when the objective is explicitly an ARC target. Bettina, Anvil, Ferro, and Tempest are safer choices when the map can turn into a player fight. This is why “highest ARC damage” and “best gun for the raid” are different questions.
The lower rows are deliberately conditional rather than a claim that every weapon has been measured on one live DPS test. The Ferro card supports its Common rarity, Heavy Ammo, Strong ARC penetration, and one-round precision role; the Tempest card supports its automatic Medium Ammo profile and Moderate ARC penetration. Use those fields to validate the lane against the current client card before treating the editorial tier as a purchase or crafting priority.
Choose the weapon by ARC target and fallback route
For routine ARC farming: start with Anvil or Bettina
Use Anvil when the goal is a quest item, component run, or small ARC clear that does not justify an expensive launcher. Its public card lists Strong ARC Armor Penetration, 40 damage, a six-round magazine, and a 5.0 weight. Those fields explain the route: it hits hard at medium range but is single-action and awkward when a Raider closes the gap. Pair it with cover, a close-range fallback, and an exit route that does not require winning a prolonged room fight.
Use Bettina when you expect multiple ARC targets or want one weapon that remains useful after a third party appears. The current public card lists Heavy Ammo, Strong ARC Armor Penetration, 22 rounds, 16 damage, and a 250-RPM base fire rate. The official 1.26.0 notes increased its damage against ARC armor and reduced dispersion; 1.29.0 then raised the base fire rate from 235 to 250. The earlier Cold Snap 1.7.0 notes describe Bettina as the highest-performing PvE weapon at its rarity, excluding Hullcracker. Those changes support a high PvE placement, but they also explain the cost: heavy ammo and durability are part of the decision.
Build: Bettina with a recoil or dispersion mod, enough Heavy Ammo for the actual objective, one human-fight fallback, and smoke or another disengagement tool. Do not spend all of the bag on ammunition if the objective item still needs a safe pocket or extraction space.
For a dedicated ARC objective: use Hullcracker or Rascal
Hullcracker is the clearest specialist. It uses Launcher Ammo, has Very Strong ARC Armor Penetration, and only detonates when hitting ARC. That makes its job unambiguous against machines, but it is not a reliable primary weapon for a human Raider fight. Its public card lists a five-round magazine, 7.0 weight, Gunsmith 3 crafting, and a blueprint requirement. The official 1.3.0 notes also say explosive damage against larger enemies was rebalanced so Hullcracker shots need more precision. Treat it as a target tool, not a point-and-click boss answer.
Rascal is the lower-weight alternative. Its public card lists 4.0 weight, a one-round break-action magazine, 75 damage, and Very Strong ARC Armor Penetration. The official 1.29.0 notes describe it as a compact anti-ARC launcher for players who want firepower without carrying Hullcracker. The tradeoff is range and reload pressure: the card lists 28.3 range and a single round, so missing or being pushed by a Raider is expensive.
Build: put the launcher on the player whose job is to break the ARC target, while another squad member carries human-fight coverage and a recovery route. If solo, carry the launcher only when the target, cover, and exit are already known. Leave when the machine is down and the relevant loot is secured; do not let “the weapon is good against ARC” turn into a second room clear with no fallback.
For bosses and weak points: reserve Jupiter or Equalizer
Jupiter is a precision endgame pick. Its public card lists 60 damage, Very Strong ARC Armor Penetration, a five-round magazine, and Energy Clips. The same page describes its projectile as penetrating ARC armor and damaging targets in its path, including weak spots such as a Bastion core. That makes it attractive for deliberate weak-point work, not casual farming. It cannot be upgraded, and its blueprint route is tied to high-end ARC content, so losing it is a progression decision as much as a combat decision.
Equalizer is the sustained-fire alternative: 50 rounds, a fully automatic beam, Very Strong ARC Armor Penetration, and the Experimental trait. It also cannot be upgraded and its public crafting row requires a Queen Reactor. Use it when the team has the target, ammo, and extraction plan to justify the cost. A legendary label alone is not a reason to deploy it into an ordinary material run.
The current official known-issues list says Dolabra, Hullcracker, and Rascal do not damage Practice Range training dummies. That is a test limitation, not evidence that these weapons do no ARC damage. Use live ARC targets or the current in-game card to validate the weapon; do not throw away a rare gun because a dummy stays at full health.
Four PvE builds that survive the extraction part
Budget ARC clear
Run Anvil + a cheap close-range fallback. Use Anvil from cover, focus on exposed weak points, and avoid taking it into a room where a reload or weapon swap is likely. This route is for learning ARC behavior, quests, and routine materials. If the fallback is missing, the weapon is not a complete budget build; it is only a damage source.
General-purpose PvE
Run Bettina + utility for disengagement. Choose this when the raid has both ARC work and a meaningful chance of a human fight. Reserve Heavy Ammo before adding optional loot, and use an attachment that fixes the actual failure—recoil, dispersion, or reload—not the attachment with the highest tier label. Extract once the objective and one useful replacement are secured.
Dedicated boss squad
Run Hullcracker or Rascal on the ARC-damage player, then give a teammate the flexible gun. The damage player calls the target and conserves launcher rounds; the flexible player watches approaches, revives, and handles a Raider push. If the squad cannot name who covers the human approach, downgrade the kit to Bettina, Anvil, or Ferro.
Precision weak-point route
Run Jupiter or Equalizer only for a planned high-value target. Jupiter rewards accuracy and line-of-sight discipline; Equalizer rewards sustained access to Energy Clips. Both are poor “just go see what happens” choices because they cannot be upgraded and have high replacement stakes. If the target or exit is uncertain, bank the weapon and use a cheaper test run.
The pre-raid weapon check
Before queueing, answer these five questions:
| Check | Pass condition | Wait or change when… |
|---|---|---|
| Target | You can name the ARC type, weak point, or quest objective | The plan is only “farm PvE” |
| Penetration | The current weapon card supports the target’s armor requirement | You are inferring performance from rarity or a PvP tier list |
| Ammo | You can fund the opening magazine, one correction, and the route out | The weapon consumes a scarce ammo family you cannot replace |
| Fallback | You can respond to a Raider, revive, or disengage | Hullcracker/Rascal is the only answer in a mixed-threat raid |
| Extraction | The bag has space and the exit is plausible after the ARC fight | The build needs one more room to “pay for itself” |
If any line fails, use the cheaper weapon or wait. The biggest PvE mistake is optimizing damage while ignoring replacement and extraction risk. In an extraction round, the weapon is not secured until you successfully leave with it; a dead target does not remove the loss condition.
Sources and version boundary
The official Riven Tides 1.26.0 patch notes support the Bettina ARC-armor and dispersion changes. The official Cold Snap 1.7.0 notes support the same-rarity PvE performance statement. The official 1.29.0 patch notes support the Bettina fire-rate update and Rascal’s anti-ARC role, while the official 1.3.0 notes support the larger-ARC explosive-damage adjustment. The official Live Update 1.39.0 is the current checked patch boundary.
Weapon cards were cross-checked against the maintenance wiki pages for Bettina, Hullcracker, Rascal, Anvil, Ferro, Jupiter, Equalizer, and Dolabra. The wiki is a public reference, not a guarantee that every live card or balance value will remain unchanged.
This page does not claim an official all-weapon DPS ranking, fixed kill times, guaranteed drops, or a PvE-only matchmaking mode. Recheck the weapon card, ammo stock, map condition, and current patch before deploying a rare gun.
FAQ
What is the best gun for PvE in ARC Raiders?
Bettina is the best general-purpose starting answer from the checked public evidence. Hullcracker is better described as the best specialist for a dedicated ARC objective, while Anvil is the better budget route for medium-range learning and routine farming. The correct choice changes when the raid needs a human-fight fallback, a different ammo family, or a cheaper replacement.
Is Hullcracker better than Bettina for ARC Raiders PvE?
Hullcracker has Very Strong ARC Armor Penetration and is purpose-built for machines, but its projectiles only detonate on ARC. Bettina has Strong penetration, automatic fire, and a better chance of remaining useful when another Raider arrives. Choose Hullcracker for a declared ARC job; choose Bettina for mixed-threat extraction.
Is Anvil good for killing ARC?
Yes, when the fight is at medium range and the player can land deliberate shots. Its Strong ARC Armor Penetration and high damage make it a credible budget option, but its single-action firing and slower close-range handling are hard limits. Bring a fallback rather than pretending the Anvil covers every room.
Why does my Hullcracker, Rascal, or Dolabra fail on training dummies?
The official 1.39.0 known-issues list records that these three weapons do not damage Practice Range dummies. That test limitation should not be converted into a PvE tier downgrade. Validate them against an appropriate ARC target and recheck the current patch notes.
Should I use a legendary weapon for normal ARC farming?
Usually wait unless the target justifies the weapon. Jupiter and Equalizer have strong ARC penetration, but their blueprint, ammo, upgrade, or replacement constraints make them poor default farming guns. Use Bettina, Anvil, Ferro, or another replaceable route until the objective and extraction line justify the risk.
