ARC Raiders Solo Friendly Lobbies: How Update 1.36 Matchmaking Cuts PvP While You Grind

TL;DR — Update 1.36.0 changed ARC Raiders matchmaking so your Solo, Duo, and Trio playstyles are now tracked separately. In plain terms: if you quest quietly when you play alone, the game now tries to drop you into calmer Solo lobbies — so you can grind Expedition damage, Trials, quests, Projects and Supply Runs with far less chance of getting third-partied. Then you swap to a Trio and get the sweaty PvP you actually want with friends. This guide explains exactly how the new system works, how to make it read you as a "friendly" solo player, and where a carry still makes sense when the grind wall is the real problem, not the PvP.

Key takeaways

• What changed (July 7, 2026): Update 1.36.0 now tracks your playstyle separately for Solo, Duo, and Trio rounds — no more blending across squad sizes.
• Why it matters: you can run friendly, low-PvP Solo rounds for Expeditions/Trials/quests, then switch to aggressive Trio for PvP — just by changing squad size.
• It's a chance, not a guarantee. ARC's playstyle matchmaking (community shorthand: "ABMM") gives you a higher probability of similar lobbies, and your reputation shifts gradually — one aggressive round won't reset it.
• This is not a PvE-only mode. There are no safe servers; topside always carries risk. Friendlier ≠ empty.
• Best use: stack your grind objectives (100k Expedition damage, Trials points, Projects) into Solo rounds now that they're calmer.

What actually changed in Update 1.36.0?

Before this patch, ARC Raiders used a single matchmaking read on you regardless of whether you queued Solo, Duo, or Trio. That blend caused the exact frustration the community complained about for months: a player who quests peacefully alone could get shoved into competitive lobbies the moment they touched a squad — and vice versa.

Update 1.36.0 splits that read into three independent profiles. Straight from Embark's patch notes:

"We now track your playstyle separately for Solo, Duo, and Trio rounds, and match you accordingly."

And the payoff line the devs used to describe it:

"You'll be able to go from friendly questing and plant-picking in Solo rounds to adrenaline-fueled PvP Trio games (if that's how you usually play in those respective cases), by simply changing your squad size."

So each mode keeps its own matchmaking history. If you loot-and-extract solo but push fights in a trio, the game now understands those are two different versions of you and matches each accordingly. (Source: arcraiders.com — Live Update 1.36.0.)

The three things Update 1.36.0 shipped together

System	What it does	Why it matters for grinding
Solo/Duo/Trio playstyle tracking	Separate matchmaking read per squad size	Calmer Solo rounds for objectives
Trials Season 5 "Prove Your Mettle"	New season, July 7 → Sep 30, 2026, The Scorta outfit	Fresh weekly Trials points to farm
The Fourth Expedition (July 7–21)	5 damage tiers up to 100,000 topside damage	Big grind that friendly Solo lobbies make safer

ARC Turbine loot was also increased in this update, and a limited ARC Raiders × THE FINALS crossover runs July 9–30. But the matchmaking split is the change that quietly reshapes how you should farm this season.

How does the friendly-lobby matchmaking work?

This is the part players get wrong, so let's be precise. ARC's playstyle matchmaking — the system the community calls ABMM ("aggression-based matchmaking") — does not create binary lobbies. Embark has been explicit that there is no "PvE-only server" and no guaranteed "friendly server." Instead:

• Every player sits on a continuous scale based on how they actually behave.
• The system gives you a higher chance — never a promise — of matching with Raiders whose recent playstyle resembles yours.
• Your reputation shifts gradually over many rounds. One kill does not reclassify you, and patches do not wipe your history.
• Since 2026, defending yourself is no longer weighted the same as starting a fight, and low-activity rounds carry less weight.

What Update 1.36.0 added on top of that is the squad-size split. Before, your "friendly solo" behavior and your "sweaty trio" behavior were averaged into one muddy score. Now they're separate, so your calm Solo history actually earns you calmer Solo lobbies instead of being dragged up by your trio aggression.

Bottom line: friendlier is a probability, not a safe zone. You will still meet ARC machines and the occasional aggressive Raider. Topside always carries risk — the change just tilts the odds toward the experience your Solo behavior has earned.

How do I get placed in friendly Solo lobbies?

You don't flip a switch — you build a reputation. To make the system read your Solo profile as low-aggression:

• Queue Solo for objective runs. The whole point of the split is that your Solo history is now its own thing. Do your calm grinding while genuinely solo.
• Avoid opening fights on players. Prioritize looting, questing, and extracting. Defending yourself when pushed is fine — it's no longer weighted like aggression — but don't hunt Raiders.
• Be consistent over many rounds. Reputation moves slowly. A weekend of loot-and-extract Solo runs shifts your Solo read far more than any single match.
• Don't expect your Trio habits to leak in. You can absolutely be a killer in Trio now without poisoning your Solo lobbies. That's the feature.
• Extract to bank progress. Trials points and most objectives only count when you successfully extract — friendlier lobbies help you actually make it out with the run banked.

What to grind in your friendly Solo rounds

Now that Solo is the calmer mode, front-load these objectives there:

• The Fourth Expedition damage tiers: 5,000 / 10,000 / 30,000 / 50,000 / 100,000 cumulative topside damage. A full clear pays 750 Raider Tokens + 5 blueprints (each guaranteed rare or better). Damage on ARC machines counts — you don't need PvP to hit it. (Source: arcraiders.com — The Fourth Expedition.)
• Trials Season 5 "Prove Your Mettle" runs July 7 → September 30, 2026 and rewards The Scorta outfit. Weekly objectives (Trials unlock at Level 15): damage specific ARC with certain weapons, absorb Pop explosions, plus returning challenges. Best score per challenge is kept, and you must extract to bank it. (Source: arcraiders.com — Trials Season 5.)
• Projects, quests and Supply Runs — exactly the "questing and plant-picking" the devs named as the friendly-Solo use case.

When is a carry actually the smart move?

Friendly lobbies fix the PvP problem. They don't fix the time problem. The Fourth Expedition's top tier still demands 100,000 topside damage, Trials still wants thousands of points per challenge, and blueprint farming still means grinding the right ARC units on the right map conditions. If the wall is hours, not gank squads, that's where skipping the grind pays off.

A few honest, high-value shortcuts:

Where a boost or top-up beats raw hours:

- ARC Raiders Blueprints — from $0.99 — 60+ blueprints, unlock rare weapons, fast & secure delivery.

- ARC Raiders Materials — from $0.02 — all rarities, instant delivery, trusted.

- All ARC Raiders services — leveling, boosts and more.

Use friendly Solo lobbies to clear the safe grind, and a top-up to clear the slow grind. That's the efficient split.

Does this replace the old aggression-based matchmaking?

No — it extends it. The underlying playstyle-reputation system (ABMM) has been live since Embark's May 2026 matchmaking notes. Update 1.36.0 didn't remove it; it made it squad-size-aware. So everything that was true before still holds:

• Similar lobbies are more likely, not guaranteed.
• End-of-round surveys do not decide your next lobby.
• There is no crossplay-based "safe" toggle and no PvE-only queue.

The 1.36.0 change simply means the system now judges your Solo, Duo, and Trio selves on their own merits — which is exactly what makes deliberate friendly-Solo grinding viable this season.

FAQ

What is a "friendly lobby" in ARC Raiders? It's shorthand for a Solo round where the matchmaking has read your playstyle as low-aggression and tried to place you with similar Raiders, so there's less PvP pressure. It is not a PvE-only or guaranteed-safe server — topside always carries risk. Update 1.36.0 made this far more reliable by tracking your Solo playstyle separately from Duo and Trio.

How does Update 1.36.0 change matchmaking? It tracks your playstyle separately for Solo, Duo, and Trio rounds instead of blending them. Embark's patch notes state: "We now track your playstyle separately for Solo, Duo, and Trio rounds, and match you accordingly." That lets you quest calmly in Solo and still push aggressive PvP in Trio without one affecting the other.

Can I turn on a PvE-only mode in ARC Raiders? No. Embark has repeatedly confirmed there is no PvE-only server and no guaranteed friendly server. The matchmaking only shifts probabilities toward players with a similar playstyle. Friendlier Solo lobbies are the closest thing, but ARC machines and the occasional aggressive Raider can still show up.

How do I get friendlier Solo lobbies fast? You can't force it instantly — reputation shifts gradually. Queue Solo, prioritize looting/questing/extracting over starting fights, and stay consistent across many rounds. Defending yourself when attacked no longer counts against you, so you don't have to die on principle.

Do I still need to grind for the Fourth Expedition? Yes. Friendly Solo lobbies reduce PvP, but the objectives still take time — the top Expedition tier needs 100,000 cumulative topside damage. Friendlier lobbies make that grind safer, not shorter. A blueprint or materials top-up is the lever for the time cost.

Does switching to Trio ruin my friendly Solo lobbies? No — that's the whole point of Update 1.36.0. Your Trio aggression is now tracked separately from your Solo playstyle, so you can be a sweaty trio player and still get calmer Solo rounds.