These Are the Best Places to Farm Steel Cables in Arc Raiders.

Background: Why Steel Cables Matter After the Frozen Trail Update

Arc Raiders: Frozen Trail is the latest DLC for this popular extraction shooter. It gives players a new map, weapons, ARC enemies, quests, map events, and loot to find.

Among the new materials, Steel Cables are one of the most important items for progression. All the new materials added are key to getting both your Outpost and new Research Workbench up and running. Steel Cables are heavily used when adding different sections to your Outpost and crafting Ziplines.

If you are struggling to locate this item, the best places to search are concentrated on the Pendola Pass map.

Development: The First Known Steel Cable Search Route on Pendola Pass

Steel Cables are a Rare-tier item found on the Pendola Pass map. Unlike the vast majority of materials in the game, Steel Cables are not classified under any specific item category. That can make hunting them down sound difficult, but they can be found quite consistently in specific spots.

The main recommended areas are:

• Cielo Sereno Observatory
• Railyard
• Railroad Junction

Cielo Sereno Observatory: The Most Consistent Steel Cable Location

Of these locations, Cielo Sereno Observatory is far and away the best and most consistent option. Despite being Technological and Exodus-focused, there are a surprising number of Steel Cables just lying around.

The observatory is located in the northeast corner of the map. When you arrive, you want to make your way inside and then into the maintenance tunnel system that runs under the floors.

Inside these tunnels, you will find numerous breechable steel boxes that typically have at least one Steel Cable inside. You should also check all the toolboxes and storage containers, as these also have a chance to spawn this material. It is not a guarantee, but a thorough search can usually yield between 2 to 3 Steel Cables.

This area is typically quite popular, so you may almost always find it picked over if you arrive late. If that happens, it is better to move to the other locations.

Combat risk is also a major factor. Cielo Sereno Observatory has a chance to spawn a Shredder inside and a Leaper patrolling the exterior. The combat nature of this point of interest makes it easy to get cornered and killed, so careful movement matters.

Railyard and Railroad Junction: Alternatives When the Observatory Is Taken

If Cielo Sereno Observatory is already looted, the Railyard and Railroad Junction offer useful fallback options.

At the Railyard, you want to make your way to the large building where all the trains are housed. Inside, you can find numerous crates and containers that can be looted. Some of them have a chance to spawn Steel Cables.

For this spot, it is better to stay away from the actual train cars. Those typically contain more residential items and valuables rather than the materials you need.

The Railroad Junction offers a different kind of access challenge. The main place to look is the building that has frozen doors. You can melt this away with fire-related weapons and grenades, but the ice can also be shattered by hitting it several times with your pickaxe.

Using the pickaxe is obviously slower, but it is a cheap way to get into these structures without wasting anything. Once inside, you will find a few breechable containers that have a chance to spawn Steel Cables.

Latest: Fallen Emperor Reliability and the Celeste Purchase Option

Some players have heard that the Fallen Emperor is a decent place to find Steel Cables. However, this has been quite inconsistent during testing. A lot of the best loot is also locked away inside the machine, which makes this not an easily repeatable strategy if you are specifically farming Steel Cables.

If you are not looking to find Steel Cables the old-fashioned way, you can actually just outright buy five of them a day from Celeste. The cost is 20 Seeds each.

This can be a good way to quickly get a bunch of Steel Cables in a pinch. The best approach is still to grab them while exploring Pendola Pass, but buying Steel Cables directly from the trader is a useful way to amass what you need to upgrade your Outpost.

Current Stage: How Players Should Treat Steel Cables Now

At this point, Steel Cables are a focused progression item rather than a general loot drop. The main search begins at Cielo Sereno Observatory, especially the maintenance tunnels under the floors. If that area is already picked over, the Railyard and Railroad Junction are the next practical stops. The Fallen Emperor is possible, but less reliable for repeat farming.

For players who need a steady supply, Celeste provides a direct daily route: five Steel Cables a day at 20 Seeds each. The fastest safe method depends on timing, map congestion, and whether you want to spend Seeds instead of risking combat at the observatory.