ARC Raiders Expedition 5 Departs Sept 29: 3M Stash, 60 Slots

Expedition 5 closes on September 29, 2026 and there is no Last Call this time, so if you want the final +12 stash slots and the last Zenith piece before Expeditions pause until early 2027, you have to manually sign up inside the window and hit your value threshold — and the community-documented figure for all five Skill Points is around 3,000,000 in combined stash value and coins, which is why a lot of Raiders top off with ARC Raiders Coinsfrom $2.99 instead of trying to loot the last 400k in two panicked nights.

I've departed on every Expedition since launch, and the pattern is always the same: people spend three weeks farming, then lose the rewards on a technicality. Completing your Caravan does not count as signing up — you still have to manually sign up once the window opens, and this catches people every single Expedition. Read the checklist below before you do anything else.

What changed for Expedition 5

As of Update 1.45.0 (September 8) and Store Update 1.46.0 (September 15), here's the state of play:

• The window opens September 8 at 11:00 UTC and closes September 29 at 08:00 UTC — extended from two weeks to three.
• There is no Last Call and no late sign-up window after the deadline. Miss September 29 and you miss the Expedition entirely.
• Quest resets are now opt-in — you can keep your quest progress instead of starting over — and because the Hullcracker Blueprint was locked behind that quest line, Embark says it'll be obtainable other ways.
• After September 29, Expeditions are paused until early 2027.

Field note: the three-week window feels generous until you realise it's the only one you get for months. There's no "I'll catch the next one in October." There isn't a next one.

Why it matters more than a normal wipe

This departure is the one that tops you out. The +12 stash spaces matter most to long-term players, and after five Expeditions the permanent Expedition stash increase hits its maximum of 60 spaces. If you've completed all five, the Zenith Outfit unlocks fully, and the Skill Point bonus caps at 15 total with catch-up tied to stash value. The consecutive stacking buffs also, unusually, persist through the announced pause instead of lapsing.

There's a safety net for anyone mid-Caravan: partially completed Caravans aren't simply lost — when the system resets they convert into Ermal Vouchers, usable on Ermal offers or sellable for Coins. Useful, but it's a consolation prize, not the stash cap.

The numbers: what a full departure actually costs

Skill Points are bought with stash value, and coins count toward that value. Per the community wiki, earning all 5 Skill Points in the current cycle takes 600k per point — 3,000,000 in stash value and coins combined — while previously missed points can be reclaimed at 300k each, for up to 3,600,000 if you're catching up on two. Verify the live figure on your own Expedition screen before you commit; Embark has adjusted thresholds between cycles more than once.

Path	Value needed	Deadline	What you walk away with
Full departure, 5 Skill Points	~3,000,000	Sept 29, 08:00 UTC	+12 stash (60 cap), Zenith complete, 5 points, buffs
Departure + catching up 2 missed points	~3,600,000	Sept 29, 08:00 UTC	Above, plus reclaimed points (cap 15)
Partial Caravan, no sign-up	—	—	Ermal Vouchers on reset
Skip entirely	—	Next chance early 2027	Keep your current Raider and stash

If you want the full breakdown of what stash expansion costs across a Raider's life, our stash expansion cost guide has the per-tier math.

The departure run plan

1. Check your Expedition screen first. Confirm your exact stash-value target and how many catch-up points you're eligible for. Points can only be reclaimed for Expeditions you actually participated in.
2. Sign up now, not on the 28th. Everyone who signs up during the window departs when it closes — signing up early costs you nothing and removes the single most common failure point.
3. Finish the Caravan stages. Committed items can't be retrieved, so don't feed it gear you still need for farming runs.
4. Farm value, not sentiment. High-density loot runs beat hoarding cheap parts. Trinkets, blueprints and stacked mats carry the value; clutter just eats slots.
5. Clear the Expedition challenge, then decide on the opt-in quest reset. Keeping quest progress is the right call for most returning players.
6. Let the clock do the rest. Departure is automatic at close.

What to bring on value runs

• A repaired mid-tier weapon you can afford to lose — not your best kit
• Two heals plus one revive item; a failed extract is pure value loss
• Free backpack space for ARC parts and trinkets, which sell well per slot
• A decided extract before you land, and a hard turnaround time

The deadline stack right after it

September 29 isn't the only date on the board, and the overlap is where people get burned. The Ascending the Mountain Raider Project went live September 8 and closes October 5, 2026. Its late stages are the painful ones — Sentinel Firing Cores, Sensors and Vaporizer Regulators, with Stage 4 alone asking for 30 Sensors plus 15 Advanced Electrical Components. Critically for anyone departing: departing resets your inventory, and because project rewards land on stage completion, it's worth leaving an easy contribution unfinished if you're about to depart.

Then there's currency. Cred stays usable until October 8, after which leftovers expire, with a replacement reward system arriving alongside Frozen Trail. Our breakdown of the Cred expiry and Frozen Trail deadlines lays those out in order. And the big one: Frozen Trail arrives October 8 with a new map, a new ARC Operation, new ARC and the Outpost.

One honest caveat on Trials: Embark's September 15 store post calls it the final week of Trials Season 5 with a September 22 cutoff for the Scorta Set, while some trackers still list the season as running to September 30. When sources disagree, trust the in-game timer.

Field note: if you're departing on the 29th, treat Sept 22–28 as cleanup week. Cash out, finish what you can, and go into the wipe light.

What to expect next

Expect a quiet stretch, then a big one. 1.45.0 was the last full Live Update before October 8, with a smaller patch still planned in between, and Embark has confirmed Expedition 5 is the last of 2026, with the system returning in 2027 with major improvements aimed at the biggest player pain points. That makes this departure a genuine one-off: lock in the 60-slot stash now, or sit on your current Raider until next year.

Closing the value gap the honest way means a lot of repetitive loot runs — 3M in stash value is real hours, and most of it is hauling trinkets to an extract you've used a hundred times. If you'd rather spend the last week of the window actually playing raids instead of grinding a number, our ARC Raiders Coinsfrom $2.99 service can top off the difference before the September 29 cutoff.