The First Descendant: Arche Tuning System explained

The Arche Tuning System in The First Descendant allows you to improve the damage of Descendants and the weapons they use. Introduced during the second season, this feature helps you min-max a build by activating passive nodes, granting various buffs. While most of the buffs are minor, they can stack and provide massive improvement to your build.

Here’s everything to know about Arche Tuning and its benefits.

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How to unlock Arche Tuning in The First Descendant

Arche Tuning can be unlocked by progressing the main story (Image via Nexon)

Arche Tuning will be available after completing the Into the Storm mission in the story campaign, following which, all of your Descendants can access the Arche Tuning board. Once you unlock it, access it through Prime Hands or find it beside your inventory.

Within the board, you’ll find several passive nodes with different effects:

• The top right side of the board can help improve MP issues and increase a Descendant’s skill critical hit rate or damage.
• The bottom right side focuses on improving HP and defense.
• The top left focuses on improving weapon damage and ammo economy.
• The bottom left is for enhancing the multi-hit ability of a weapon, along with nodes for increasing resistances and shields.

You cannot activate passives randomly (Image via Nexon)

While the board contains some powerful nodes, there are also a few restrictions on using them. The first is the limited number of points to unlock passives. You can acquire a maximum of 40 points and use them to unlock Standard, Rare, and Ultimate nodes.

The second restriction is that you can only activate adjacent nodes, with every Descendant starting in the middle of the board. It helps prevent certain characters from being too strong. However, the game does give you the option to respec the points freely and try different builds.

You can reset the entire tree or individual nodes, depending on the requirement. Additionally, the Arche Tuning board can also save up to three presets. Use them to save different layouts for different builds.

Note: The passive node layout on the board remains the same for every Descendant.

Mutant Cell slots within the Arche Tuning board

Mutal Cell Slot and Box (Image via Nexon)

In addition to the passive nodes, the Arche Tuning Board contains Mutant Cell Slots across all corners of the board. They are used to equip a Mutant Cell that grants various conditional buffs to Descendants, but first, you need to unlock them.

To unlock a Mutant Cell Slot, you must acquire the adjacent passive node and use 100 Fission Accelerant, which is only available by completing the High-risk Sigma Sector missions. The same mission also has a chance to reward a Mutant Cell Box, which allows you to choose the desired mods inside.

An example of a Mutant Cell is Tech Dimension Tuning. This cell grants you 4.7% skill power when using a Tech skill or 5.6% skill cost reduction when using a Dimension skill.

If you wish to swap the Mutant Cell, you'll need ARC Genetic Scissors, which are also a reward for completing the High-risk Sigma Sector missions.

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How to level up Unique Arche Factor in The First Descendant

High-risk Sigma Sector missions are the best place to farm Arche EXP (Image via Nexon)

Now that you know about the Arche Tuning board and what it does, you must level up your Unique Arche Factor. By completing missions that grant Unique Arche Factor EXP, you can level up the Descendant’s Arche and acquire points to spend on passive nodes.

The fastest way to reach Level 40 on the board is by completing the High-risk Sigma Sector missions. Each run can take around five minutes and provide 1,500 EXP.

Other missions granting Unique Arche Factor EXP:

• 400% Dungeons: 300 EXP
• Void Erosion (Normal): 300 EXP
• Sigma Sector (Normal): 750 EXP
• Void Vessel (Hard): 750 EXP
• Axion Plains Battlefield missions: 1,100 EXP
• Sigma Sector (High-risk) daily missions: 4,000 EXP for each zone

Completing the daily missions will grant you High Valve Relic, which can be exchanged at Reina in Albion to acquire Arche EXP boosters. Additionally, Descendants of the same group, such as Sharen and Ultimate Sharen, share the Arche Tuning progress.

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Check out other articles for The First Descendant:

• The First Descendant: Exterminator build guide
• The cost for The First Descendant's eight-man raid? Last-gen console support
• The First Descendant: Storm Hanger boss guide
• Wall Crasher boss guide for The First Descendant