The Canto is the Rare submachine gun half of r/ArcRaiders is suddenly chasing — a cheap-to-craft, easy-to-use SMG that PC Gamer flatly calls "a new rare-quality alternative to the Bobcat." The catch: its blueprint doesn't drop from normal loot. It only lives inside First Wave Caches, and those only exist when one specific map condition is active. If you've been cracking lockers run after run with nothing to show, you're farming the wrong containers. This guide front-loads the exact answer — where the Canto blueprint drops, how to make the caches spawn, and what it costs to craft — then breaks down whether the Canto is worth your loadout slot.
TL;DR — Canto blueprint quick answer
- Where it drops: First Wave Caches only. The blueprint does not roll from regular lockers or drawers (arcraiders.wiki).
- How to make caches spawn: First Wave Caches only appear while the Hurricane map condition is active — load into whichever map currently has Hurricane and hunt raider-cache markers.
- How to find them fast: Listen. First Wave Caches give off a distinct electric ticking / pulsing hum from the dirt — most get cracked in the first few minutes of a match, so move fast.
- No-RNG path: The Canto blueprint is also a guaranteed reward from the "Collision Course" quest (arcraiders.wiki).
- Craft: Learn-and-consume blueprint → build Canto I at a Gunsmith 3 bench for 2× Advanced Mechanical Components, 5× Magnet, 3× Medium Gun Parts (arcraiders.wiki).
- What it is: Rare, fully-automatic Medium-Ammo SMG — 6.5 damage, 56.7 fire rate, 18-round mag, 1.75× headshot multiplier, sells for 7,000 Coins.
- Shortcut: Don't want to gamble Hurricane runs? You can grab ARC Raiders blueprints directly and skip straight to crafting.
What is the Canto in ARC Raiders?
The Canto is a Rare-tier, fully-automatic submachine gun that feeds on Medium Ammo — the same ammo pool as your mid-tier rifles, which is a big convenience win for a sidearm-class SMG. It's positioned as the budget cousin of the Bobcat: similar close-range role, far cheaper to obtain and craft.
Here's the full stat line, pulled straight from the ARC Raiders Wiki:
| Stat | Canto (base / Canto I) |
|---|---|
| Rarity | Rare |
| Type | Fully-automatic SMG |
| Ammo | Medium Ammo |
| Magazine | 18 rounds |
| Damage | 6.5 |
| Fire rate | 56.7 |
| Range | 51 |
| Stability | 39.4 |
| Headshot multiplier | 1.75× |
| Reload time | 2.5s |
| Weight | 4.0 |
| Durability (I/II/III/IV) | 784 / 871 / 980 / 1120 |
| Sell value | 7,000 Coins |
| Mod slots | Muzzle · Underbarrel · Medium-Mag · Stock |
The Canto's identity is dependability over flash. Community guides describe it as feeling "more forgiving than Bobcat when fights get messy" — the trade-off is real kickback that you'll want to tame with a Padded Stock in the Stock slot. With a 1.75× headshot multiplier and a fast 56.7 fire rate, controlled bursts to the head are where it earns its keep in solo PvP.
Where do you find the Canto blueprint in ARC Raiders?
The Canto blueprint only spawns inside First Wave Caches. This is the single most important thing to understand, because it changes how you farm it. You can run a hundred Residential lobbies cracking lockers and never see it — it simply isn't in that loot pool.
First Wave Caches are special, time-gated containers, and they only appear while the Hurricane major map condition is active. So the farm is a two-step gate:
- Find the map with Hurricane active. Map conditions rotate, so check the current rotation (community event timers track when Hurricane is live on each map) and load into that one. The Canto blueprint was added in the Flashpoint update, so it's still the rarest thing in the cache loot pool.
- Pick a high-density map. Dam Battlegrounds has the highest First Wave Cache density, while Blue Gate is the community-favorite farm — both give you more caches per run than the average map.
- Hunt raider-cache markers and listen. First Wave Caches are buried and announce themselves with a distinct electric ticking / humming pulse coming up from the dirt. Once you learn that sound cue you'll spot them far faster than reading the map alone.
A key warning: these caches get looted within the first few minutes of a match. Other raiders know exactly what's inside, so the first wave of players (hence the name) sweeps them immediately. If you load in slow and cautious, they'll be empty by the time you arrive.
How do you farm the Canto blueprint efficiently?
The blueprint is not guaranteed from any single cache — it's a Rare drop, so volume is the whole game. Here's the efficient loop:
- Run a "naked" or low-gear loadout. Bring minimal kit — just some Adrenaline Shots to keep you sprinting. You're going to die or surrender fast and repeat, so don't sink value into runs you'll abandon. This keeps each attempt cheap.
- Beeline the caches, skip the fights. Your goal is cache volume, not kills. Sprint between markers, crack everything fast, then extract or just surrender and requeue for the next run.
- Safe-pocket the blueprint the instant you find it. Drop it into your Safe Pocket immediately — that protects it even if you die before extracting. Then you can extract normally or surrender and reset.
- Prioritize the first-wave window. Land early and move aggressively toward markers — being first to the cache is the difference between a blueprint and an empty hole.
- Stack it with the quest. The ARC Raiders Wiki also lists the Canto blueprint as a reward from the "Collision Course" quest, so progressing it is worthwhile insurance against bad cache RNG.
Realistically, expect this to take a chunk of runs — community farmers report around 1–2 hours of cache-hunting per blueprint, and one guide bluntly notes the grind "can take hours of repetitive runs with no guarantee of a drop." If you'd rather skip the gamble entirely, a blueprint unlock service gets you straight to the bench.
How do you craft the Canto once you have the blueprint?
The Canto blueprint is learn-and-consume — you read it once, it's permanently added to your craftable list, and the paper is gone. To build Canto I you need a Gunsmith Station at Level 3 and the following materials (arcraiders.wiki):
| Material | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Advanced Mechanical Components | 2 |
| Magnet | 5 |
| Medium Gun Parts | 3 |
Those are reasonable mats compared to Legendary blueprints — the Magnets are the only mild bottleneck, and they're cheap to source. Crafting higher tiers (Canto II → IV) bumps durability up the 784 / 871 / 980 / 1120 ladder and improves handling, so most players settle on a tier they can comfortably re-craft after each loss. Short on components? You can top up ARC Raiders materials instead of farming them.
Is the Canto worth crafting?
Yes — for a Rare, it punches above its price. The Canto is one of the easiest new guns to get real value from because the craft is cheap and the Medium-Ammo feed means you're not juggling a niche ammo type. The honest weakness is recoil: it has serious kickback that makes it harder to control than its damage suggests, so it rewards a Padded Stock and controlled bursts over full-auto spray.
If you're a solo PvP player who wants a reliable, replaceable SMG you won't cry over losing, the Canto is one of the better picks in the current meta — "strong because it is dependable," not because it's flashy. For squad players who already run a Bobcat or a stronger AR, it's a solid budget backup rather than a main.
Canto vs Bobcat: which SMG should you run?
The Canto is explicitly framed as the Rare alternative to the Bobcat. The practical split:
- Pick the Canto if you want a cheap, easy-to-craft SMG for solo runs and don't want to risk losing an expensive gun. Lower investment, very forgiving to lose.
- Pick the Bobcat if you've got the resources and want the higher ceiling in sustained close-range fights.
For most mid-progression raiders grinding the Trials and rank ladder, the Canto is the smarter daily-driver — you can re-craft it endlessly without feeling the loss.
Want to skip the Hurricane grind?
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- ARC Raiders Blueprints — from $0.99 — 60+ blueprints · unlock rare weapons like the Canto · fast & secure delivery
- ARC Raiders Materials — from $0.02 — all rarities · instant delivery · trusted
Frequently Asked Questions
Where is the Canto blueprint in ARC Raiders? It only drops from First Wave Caches, which appear exclusively while the Hurricane map condition is active on a map. It does not roll from normal lockers, drawers, or weapon cases. You can also earn it as a guaranteed reward from the "Collision Course" quest.
What are First Wave Caches and how do I find them? They're buried, time-limited caches that spawn only during Hurricane conditions and give off a distinct electric ticking / humming sound from the ground. They're called "First Wave" because the opening rush of players loots them within the first few minutes — land early and move straight to them.
What does it take to craft the Canto? A Gunsmith 3 station and the learned blueprint, plus 2× Advanced Mechanical Components, 5× Magnet, and 3× Medium Gun Parts to build Canto I. Higher tiers cost more but raise durability and handling.
Is the Canto good in ARC Raiders? For a Rare SMG, yes — it's cheap, easy to craft, and dependable, feeding on Medium Ammo. Its main flaw is noticeable recoil, so run a Padded Stock and fire in controlled bursts. It's positioned as a budget alternative to the Bobcat.
Can you buy the Canto blueprint instead of farming it? You can't buy it from an in-game vendor, but you can grind the Hurricane caches, complete "Collision Course," or use a blueprint unlock service to skip the RNG and go straight to crafting.
Stats and recipes verified against the ARC Raiders Wiki. Weapon balance can shift with patches — always double-check the in-game blueprint tooltip before committing materials.
