Weapon Tuning & Gear Guide

Weapons and gear are the second pillar of operator power in Arknights: Endfield. While operator levels matter early game, weapons and gear become equally important late game for min-maxing damage and survivability.

Weapon System Overview

Every operator equips one weapon that determines:

• Base attack stats
• Damage type (Physical, Heat, Electric, Cryo, Nature)
• Weapon skills (active or passive bonuses)
• Stat growth through weapon leveling

Weapons have rarity tiers (3-Star to 6-Star) and can be leveled and tuned similarly to operators.

Weapon Leveling

Weapon EXP Materials: Arms

All three rarities of Arms items provide weapon EXP:

• Basic Arms: 100 EXP
• Intermediate Arms: 500 EXP
• Advanced Arms: 1,000 EXP

Where to farm:

• Protocol Space: Weapon EXP (near Core AIC Area)
• Event rewards
• Daily/weekly missions

Alternative method: Use duplicate low-tier weapons as EXP fodder:

• 3-Star weapons = 500 EXP
• 4-Star weapons = 1,500 EXP

Note: 5-Star and 6-Star weapons should never be used as EXP fodder—convert duplicates to weapon enhancement materials instead.

Weapon Tuning (Promotion System for Weapons)

Like operators, weapons have level cap brackets that require tuning (weapon promotion) to progress.

Tuning Brackets

At each bracket cap (20, 40, 60, 80), you must tune your weapon to continue leveling.

Tuning Materials: Cast Die & Heavy Cast Die

Cast Die (Tuning 1 & 2)

Required for tuning weapons at level 20 and level 40 brackets.

Where to farm:

• Protocol Space: Weapon Tune (near Originium Byproduct Processing Center)
• Event shops

Heavy Cast Die (Tuning 3 & 4)

Required for tuning weapons at level 60 and level 80 brackets.

Where to farm:

• Protocol Space: Weapon Tune (higher difficulties)
• Event shops (limited quantities)
• Deep Dive rewards

Note: Heavy Cast Die requirements spike dramatically at level 80+. Tuning a weapon from 80 to 90 is one of the most expensive upgrades in the game.

Rare Ores (Tuning Requirement)

Like operator promotions, weapon tuning requires Rare Ores found in the open world.

Kalkonyx (Level 20 Tuning)

Required: 3x Kalkonyx

Locations:

• The Hub: West of Woodland Fringes on ridge
• Originium Science Park: North above Research Center and south beyond Kohl Plant

Spawn: Up to 6 per location
Respawn: Every 24 hours

Auronyx (Level 40 Tuning)

Required: 5x Auronyx

Locations:

• Originium Lodespring: East of Logistic Area
• Originium Lodespring: South of Logistic Area

Spawn: Up to 6 per location
Respawn: Every 24 hours

Umbronyx (Level 60 Tuning)

Required: 5x Umbronyx

Locations:

• Jingyu Valley (Wuling): Various Rare Ore deposits

Spawn: Up to 6 per location
Respawn: Every 24 hours

Wulingstone (Level 80 Tuning)

Required: 8x Wulingstone

Locations: High-level Wuling zones (exact locations TBD at launch)

Spawn: Up to 6 per location
Respawn: Every 24 hours

Gear System

Operators can equip gear (armor/accessories) for additional stat boosts and set bonuses.

Gear Slots

Each operator has multiple gear slots:

• Helmet
• Armor
• Accessory 1
• Accessory 2
• (Additional slots may unlock at higher levels)

Gear Attributes

Gear provides Primary Attributes and Secondary Attributes:

Primary Attributes (Main Stats):

• ATK (Attack Power)
• DEF (Defense)
• HP (Health Points)
• CRIT (Critical Hit Rate)
• CRIT DMG (Critical Damage)

Secondary Attributes (Sub-Stats):

• Randomly rolled additional bonuses
• Can include ATK%, DEF%, HP%, elemental damage bonuses, etc.

Rarity affects stat ranges: Higher rarity gear has better base stats and more secondary attributes.

Gear Essences (Set Bonuses)

Gear belongs to different essence sets. Equipping multiple pieces from the same set activates set bonuses.

Example sets:

• 2-piece bonus: +10% ATK
• 4-piece bonus: +20% ATK, +15% Critical Hit Rate

Strategy: Mix and match gear to activate multiple set bonuses or go all-in on one powerful 4-piece set.

Gear Farming

Primary source: AIC Factory Production

You craft gear using materials produced in your base. This requires:

1. Mining ores (Originium, Amethyst, Ferrium, Cuprium)
2. Processing ores into refined materials
3. Running production chains to craft gear components
4. Assembling final gear pieces

Secondary sources:

• Boss drops (rare)
• Event rewards
• Deep Dive completion rewards

Note: High-tier gear (5-Star and 6-Star) requires Cuprium Ore from Wulong region, which unlocks mid-to-late game.

Weapon Priority Strategy

Which Weapons to Level First

Tier 1 Priority:

• 6-Star weapons for your main DPS operators
• Signature weapons (weapons designed specifically for certain operators)

Tier 2 Priority:

• 5-Star weapons for secondary DPS
• Universal weapons that multiple operators can share

Tier 3 Priority:

• 4-Star weapons for support operators
• Niche weapons for specific strategies

Don't:

• Don't level 3-Star weapons past level 20—they're placeholder gear only
• Don't spread weapon materials across too many weapons early game

Weapon Tuning Breakpoints

Like operator leveling, not all weapon levels provide equal value.

Critical breakpoints:

• Level 20: First tuning unlocks weapon skills or significant stat boosts
• Level 40: Major damage increase
• Level 60: Weapon skills upgrade or unlock new effects
• Level 80: Endgame scaling, required for Deep Dives

Recommendation:

• Get your main DPS weapon to level 40 before upgrading secondary weapons
• Get your primary weapon to level 60 before pushing any other weapon past 40
• Only push to level 80+ when tackling endgame content

Gear Optimization Strategy

Early Game Gear

Goal: Equip anything that provides stats

Priority:

• Craft basic gear from your AIC
• Equip whatever you get from story rewards
• Don't worry about set bonuses yet

Don't:

• Don't waste resources optimizing gear before Authority Level 30
• Focus on operator and weapon levels first

Mid Game Gear

Goal: Start building 2-piece set bonuses

Priority:

• Farm Amethyst Ore from Originium Lodespring
• Craft 4-Star gear with useful primary attributes
• Aim for 2-piece set bonuses on your main DPS

Don't:

• Don't chase perfect secondary attributes—they're RNG-based and not worth the investment yet
• Don't craft 5-Star gear until you have stable Ferrium Ore income

Late Game Gear

Goal: Optimize 4-piece set bonuses and secondary attributes

Priority:

• Farm Cuprium Ore from Wulong region
• Craft 6-Star gear with optimal primary attributes
• Chase 4-piece set bonuses for your main DPS
• Re-roll secondary attributes for better sub-stats

Don't:

• Don't expect perfect gear immediately—RNG takes time
• Don't neglect support operator gear—survivability matters in endgame content

Optimal Weapon & Gear Path

Progression Timeline

Authority Level 1-20:

• Level main DPS weapon to level 20
• Equip basic gear from story rewards

Authority Level 20-40:

• Tune main DPS weapon to level 40
• Craft 4-Star gear with 2-piece set bonuses

Authority Level 40-60:

• Tune main DPS weapon to level 60
• Tune secondary DPS weapons to level 40-60
• Craft 5-Star gear with 4-piece set bonuses

Authority Level 60+:

• Tune primary weapons to level 80+
• Craft 6-Star gear with optimized secondary attributes
• Min-max for Deep Dives and hardest content

Weapon & Gear Efficiency Tips

Sanity Management

Daily Sanity priority for weapons/gear:

1. Protocol Space: Weapon Tune (when approaching tuning levels)
2. Protocol Space: Weapon EXP (only if you have excess Sanity)
3. AIC farming (farm ores, not Protocol Spaces—ores have no Sanity cost)

Why: Rare Ores and gear materials come from the open world (no Sanity cost). Only farm Protocol Spaces when you need Cast Die or Heavy Cast Die.

AIC Optimization for Gear

Key setup:

• Unlock electric mining rigs ASAP for passive ore generation
• Build production chains: Ore → Refined Material → Gear Components → Finished Gear
• Prioritize Amethyst and Ferrium mining for mid-game gear
• Upgrade to Cuprium mining for endgame gear

Don't:

• Don't ignore AIC—gear progression is impossible without it
• Don't delay electric mining rig upgrades—you lose passive income

Rare Ore Farming

Daily routine:

• Farm Rare Ores every 24 hours from fixed locations
• Stockpile ores even if you don't need them immediately
• Plan weapon tuning around ore availability

Pro tip: Farm ores for the next tuning bracket while working on the current one. By the time you reach the next bracket, you'll already have the ores ready.

Common Weapon & Gear Mistakes

FAQ