How to Easily Farm Merits in Arc Raiders Shared Watch Event (March 2026 Guide)

Updated by Sunny Kaushik
February 11, 2026
Gaming

Arc Raiders has taken the extraction shooter genre by storm, blending high-stakes PvPvE action with a unique community progression system known as the Shared Watch Event. If you’ve been dropping into the exclusion zone and wondering why your progress seems slower than your squadmates, you’re likely missing the optimal strategies for farming Merits.

In this comprehensive guide, I will walk you through exactly how to farm Merits efficiently, maximize your contribution to the Shared Watch, and reap the rewards without spending hours grinding aimlessly. Whether you are a solo player or running with a full squad, these strategies will ensure you hit your targets in March 2026.

What Are Merits and the Shared Watch Event?

Before we dive into the “how,” let’s quickly cover the “what.” In Arc Raiders, Merits serve as a specialized currency or point system specifically tied to the Shared Watch event. Unlike standard loot or currency, Merits directly contribute to a server-wide or community goal. When the community collectively banks enough Merits, the Shared Watch meter fills, unlocking free rewards, cosmetics, or lore entries for everyone participating.

This creates a unique dynamic: you want to farm as many as possible, but dying means losing them before you can bank them.

Quick Overview: Merit Farming Basics

Aspect	Details	Difficulty
Source	Looting, Kills, Objectives	Low
Risk	Lost on death if not extracted	High
Best Method	Squad Coordination (Shared Proximity)	Medium
Key Mechanic	Banking at Extraction Points	Essential
Event Type	Community Progression (Shared Watch)	Time-Limited

Arc Raiders: How To Farm Merits for Shared Watch Event Easily?

Farming Merits isn’t just about killing every enemy you see; it’s about efficiency. The Shared Watch event rewards consistent extraction and objective play over reckless aggression. Here is the step-by-step process I use to maximize my Merit haul every raid.

Step 1: Preparation and Loadout

You don’t need the best gear to farm Merits, but you need the right gear. Since the goal is volume and speed, mobility is key.

Backpack Choice: Always prioritize a larger backpack. Merits often take up space or are represented by high-value loot items you need to carry. If you run out of space, you leave Merits behind.
Weapon Selection: Bring a versatile mid-range weapon (like an Assault Rifle or DMR). You want to engage Raiders (AI) quickly without spending all your ammo, but you also need the range to disengage from enemy players (PvP) if necessary.
Consumables: Bring at least one healing injector and a shield battery. Surviving a random sniper shot is the difference between banking 500 Merits and losing everything.

Step 2: Understanding Merit Sources

During the Shared Watch Event, Merits can be acquired through three primary vectors. To farm “Easily,” you need to balance these based on your skill level.

High-Value Loot Containers: Specific chests, often marked by the event icon on the map, contain Merit bundles. These are high-priority targets.
Raider Eliminations (AI): Killing the mechanical enemies drops small amounts of Merits. In groups, this adds up fast.
Player Kills (PvP): Eliminating other players yields a percentage of the Merits they were carrying. This is high risk but high reward.

Step 3: The “Loot & Scoot” Route

The easiest way to farm Merits is to avoid the main conflict zones initially. Here is the route I recommend:

Spawn on the Flanks: Avoid dropping into the center “Hot Zone” immediately. The chances of dying early to a third-party are too high.
Target POIs with Event Markers: Open your map. The Shared Watch Event will highlight specific Points of Interest (POIs). These locations spawn event-specific chests.
Clear AI Quickly: Use silent takedowns or coordinated fire to clear the Raider AI guarding these chests. Do not prolong fights; loud gunfire attracts other players.
Grab and Go: Once you secure the event loot, move. Do not linger to loot every single trash item. Prioritize the Merits and high-value trades.

Step 4: The Squad Advantage (Proximity Bonus)

This is a mechanic many players miss. The Shared Watch Event has a hidden multiplier: Proximity Bonusing.

When you and your squad mates are within 50 meters of each other, any Merit earned by one member provides a small bonus (roughly 10-20%) to nearby teammates. This effectively creates Merits out of thin air.

Strategy: Stick together. If you split up to “loot faster,” you actually lose out on the bonus multiplier. A squad of three sticking together will farm significantly more Merits than three solo players combined.

Step 5: Banking Strategy – The “Half-Bank” Method

The biggest mistake I see players make is waiting until the last possible extraction to leave. They get greedy, fill their bags, and then get ambushed at the extraction point.

Use the Half-Bank Method:

Fill your inventory to roughly 50-60% capacity (or once you have a substantial stack of Merits).
Head to the nearest extraction point, even if it’s early in the match.
Extract and bank the Merits.
Re-drop: Since extraction is quick, you can often re-queue and drop back into a different area of the map within minutes.

This method guarantees profit. It is far better to extract with 300 Merits three times than attempt to extract with 1000 Merits once and die.

Advanced Tips for Maximizing Shared Watch Progress

Once you have the basics down, these advanced strategies will separate the beginners from the pros.

Focus on “Raider Spires”

During the Shared Watch Event, specific world events called Raider Spires or Convoys spawn. These are dynamic events that move across the map.

Why Farm Them? These events drop significantly more Merits than standard looting.
The Strategy: Approach these events late. Let other players or AI fight the initial wave. Sweep in during the final moments to secure the objective and loot the chest. This conserves resources and minimizes risk.

Use the Environment for Ambushes

If you enjoy PvP, the best way to farm Merits is not by hunting players, but by hunting loaded players.

Camp Extraction Zones: This is risky, but if you position yourself overlooking a popular extraction point (like the Spaceport or the Junkyard), you can spot players waiting for the chopper.
Identify Targets: Look for players with full backpacks (visual indicators like large bags) or those moving sluggishly.
The Trade-off: Remember, if you die, you lose your gear. Only engage if you have a clear advantage.

The “Shared Watch” Meter Tipping

Keep an eye on the global progress bar. As the Shared Watch meter fills, the game often introduces modifiers—such as “Increased Merit Drop Rate” or “High Threat Zones.”

Wait for Modifiers: If the community is close to a milestone, wait for the server announcement of a bonus modifier before grinding hard. This is the definition of “easy farming”—getting more for the same effort.

Common Mistakes to Avoid

I’ve lost countless Merits to simple errors. Learn from my mistakes so you don’t have to.

Over-encumbrance: Pick up only what you need. If you are overweight, you cannot run. If you cannot run, you cannot escape a third-party fight.
Ignoring Audio Cues: The Shared Watch Event often has unique audio cues when a high-value target spawns nearby. Wear headphones!
Fighting for the Sake of Fighting: In a farming run, every bullet spent is a cost. If a fight isn’t over loot or Merits, avoid it. You gain nothing by eliminating a naked player.

Merits Farming: Solo vs. Squad

Your approach changes slightly depending on your group size.

Feature	Solo Strategy	Squad Strategy
Playstyle	Stealth & Scavenging	Aggression & Control
Looting	Hit small POIs, avoid fights	Clear large Event POIs
Extraction	Call in cheap extractions	Defend extraction zone
Risk	High (easy to get overwhelmed)	Lower (revives available)
Efficiency	Low (no proximity bonus)	High (multiplicative bonuses)

If you are solo, I highly recommend playing at night or on low-population servers to maximize your loot time. If you are in a squad, coordinate your “ping” markers to ensure everyone is looting the same body simultaneously to speed up the process.

FAQ’s

Do I lose my Merits if I die?

Yes. Merits are a “soft” currency while in the raid. They are only permanently added to your account (and the Shared Watch total) once you successfully extract. If you die, the Merits you collected in that raid are dropped and can be looted by other players.

Can I transfer Merits to other players?

No, you cannot directly trade Merits. However, you can drop loot that you intend to sell for currency later. Merits tied to the event are character-bound upon extraction.

Is the Shared Watch Event permanent?

As of March 2026, the Shared Watch is a seasonal community event. It has a start and end date. Once the community fills the meter, the rewards are distributed, and the event typically concludes or resets for the next season. You should farm Merits now before the event ends!

What is the max Merit cap per run?

There is no hard cap on how many Merits you can carry, but you are limited by your inventory space and the loot available on the map. The most I have personally extracted in a single run was roughly 2,400 Merits, but that required a fully upgraded backpack and clearing a high-threat zone.

Do Merits carry over between seasons?

Generally, event-specific currencies like Merits do not carry over. They are usually converted into a small amount of standard currency or removed entirely at the end of the event. Make sure to spend them or contribute them to the Shared Watch before the season ends.

Conclusion

Farming Merits for the Shared Watch Event in Arc Raiders doesn’t have to be a chore. By prioritizing event-specific loot, utilizing the squad proximity bonus, and extracting often using the “Half-Bank” method, you can easily top the leaderboards and unlock all the seasonal rewards.

Remember, the name of the game is extraction. It doesn’t matter how many Merits you pick up if you don’t make it to the chopper. Gear up, stick with your team, and I’ll see you in the extraction zone.