The Flickering Flames event has dropped a real chill on Arc Raiders, and if you have been queuing up lately you have probably noticed it the moment you hit a Cold Snap mission and start thinking about ARC Raiders Items rather than just survival. Candleberries are the big thing right now. You need 260 of these red berries to clear all five stages of the Candleberry Banquet project, and that grind unlocks Raider Tokens, blueprints for the Red Light Stick and Snap Hook, and the Bettina III weapon that everyone is testing in raids. It sounds like a lot, and it is, but once you get into a rhythm the runs start to feel pretty efficient.
Why Candleberries Matter
Players focus on the event tracker, but the berries are not just a seasonal currency. You can craft candles for lighting when a zone is darker than you expect, and you can cook Candleberry teas or stews that give buffs and a bit of extra health, which helps a lot when a fight goes wrong and you are stuck outside. The main thing is learning to read the mission screen. Only runs with the Cold Snap modifier can spawn Candleberries. Look for the snowflake icon, load in, and keep the frostbite bar in mind. When the ice creeps in around the edges of your screen and your health starts slowly ticking away, duck into a building, a dome, or any structure that gives shelter before pushing further.
Best Farm Zones During Cold Snap
Most players end up at Dam Battlegrounds first, and it is still one of the best places if you have time. The Hydroponic Dome Complex in the north is usually packed with berry bushes, but that also means more Raiders, more noise, and more third parties. If that is too sweaty, swing down to the south side. The Scrapyard and the Wreckage areas have fewer people most of the time, plus lots of indoor pockets to reset your frostbite timer. The Buried City is another strong option. Check around the Church Ruins, Plaza Rosa, and then loop the Outskirts. A good route through those spots can easily get you 40 to 60 berries in a few raids when the spawns are kind.
Loot Sources People Often Miss
Candleberry bushes are obvious, but a lot of value comes from small containers that people sprint past. Wicker baskets and fruit baskets can sit in awkward corners, hang on walls, or hide behind debris, and each one can drop up to five berries. Raider caches are worth checking even if you are full on ammo, because they can spit out extra Candleberries on top of the usual loot. Downed Arc Couriers are the same story. If you see a crashed courier site, clear the bots, loot the crates and the body, then move on. The trick is balancing greed. When you are solo, it is usually smarter to work the edges of a map, scoop up 15 to 25 berries, and head to extraction instead of chasing one more fight and losing the whole loadout.
Playing Safe And Using Your Haul Well
Once you have a stash going, treat Candleberries the same way you treat other limited resources: some go into the Candleberry Banquet bar, some into survival crafting, and some sit in reserve for the next tough raid where you know you will need extra food and light. If you are planning longer sessions, you will quickly feel how rough repeated Cold Snap runs can be, so rotate missions and avoid burning out on one map. A lot of players also like to buy game currency or items in RSVSR first, then top up with their own farming, which can make it easier to experiment with builds and then focus your time on Cold Snap missions that feed into the event and the gear chase linked to rsvsr ARC Raiders Items.
