Riven Tides is the second of two maps released in 2026 (Stella Montis was the first) and the last big map before the bi-annual update schedule kicks in. Embark's next map area, Frozen Trail, won't land until October. That means whatever you learn about Riven Tides now stays relevant for the entire summer. See the bi-annual update guide for the full schedule context.
The map is coastal and broadly horseshoe-shaped. The hotel sits at the center, the Stacking Yard south, the Port Authority east, and the Seabed wraps the northern and western coast. Four extraction zones in normal weather, six during Beachcombing.
The Four Zones of Riven Tides
Hotel Panorama Azzurro
Multi-floor luxury hotel · 8 of 11 keycards · highest gold/min
The crown jewel of Riven Tides. Four floors, eight keycard rooms, and a terrace extraction. Room 107 is the priority target — it spawns three guaranteed Lv.3 IL Toro shotguns and the Room 208 keycard sits inside its under-bed safe. Open 107 first, walk upstairs, clean out 208. That single chain can clear 40,000–80,000 vendor gold in a single raid. If you have a Hotel Keycard No. 107, every other plan you had for the raid changes.
- Floor 1 (Rooms 102, 103, 107, 113) — quick, low-tier rooms except 107 which is the highest-priority room on the map
- Floor 2 (Rooms 205, 208) — 208 is the biggest suite, contains the Avian Alarm-tied chemical drops added in 1.26.0
- Floor 3 (Room 311) — Hotel Keycard No. 311 is the Stage 4 reward from Avian Alarm, so this room is hard to reach without project progress
- Floor 4 (Room 404) — luxury suite, mid-to-high tier loot, occasional Aphelion Rifle drops
- Terrace extraction — generally quiet, fastest safe exit
Stacking Yard
Industrial cargo zone · Crane House · heavy-ammo loot
Industrial dock area south of the hotel. The Stacking Yard is where heavy-ammo weapons (Bettina, Torrente, Hullcracker), industrial materials (Bombardier Cell, Bastion Cell, ARC Motion Core), and the Crane House Keycard live. Less PvP than the hotel because the route in is exposed — most players choose hotel over Stacking Yard for first-five-minute drops. That makes the Stacking Yard one of the best mid-raid targets once the early skirmishes are over.
- Crane House — locked door at the top of the central crane gantry. Crane House Keycard drops in residential containers anywhere on the map.
- Heavy crate stacks — three rows of stacked shipping containers, each row has rotating loot. Containers near the dock edge usually have the best drops.
- Cargo dock extract — second-floor edge of the eastern container stack. Quick exit if you arrived via boat.
- PvP profile — exposed sightlines, snipers love the crane top. Bring a smoke or two.
Port Authority Building
Admin building · Classified Records · Secure Storage
Three-story brick admin building on the east side of the map. The Port Authority is where the Classified Records Keycard and the new Secure Storage Keycard (added 1.26.0) are used. Two locked rooms, both worth running. The Classified Records room contains the highest concentration of weapon blueprints on Riven Tides. The Secure Storage room (1.26.0) was Embark's response to the hotel-heavy meta — it adds high-tier loot to the building that previously felt underused.
- Classified Records room — locked, requires Classified Records Keycard. Best blueprint room on the map.
- Secure Storage room — locked, requires Secure Storage Keycard (1.26.0). Epic-rarity weapon spawns plus heavy-ammo crates.
- Admin desks throughout the building — the highest-rate drop zone for any Riven Tides keycard
- Helipad extraction — top floor, single ladder up. Easy to camp but quick to take if clear.
Seabed & Shoreline
Coastal flats · Beachcombing zone · Avian Alarm materials
The northern and western coastline of Riven Tides. Most of the time it's a transit zone — you cross the Seabed to get from hotel to Stacking Yard or to reach the northern extractions. During the Beachcombing event, that calculus flips completely. Beachcombing lowers the tide and reveals washed-up crates, half-buried supply boxes, and elevated spawn rates for Moss, Agave, and Red Coral Jewelry. If Beachcombing is active when you drop in, the Seabed is the single best place to spend the first ten minutes of the raid.
- Buoy cluster (north of Port Authority) — the bird trap location for Avian Alarm Stage 1. Loot density spikes here during Beachcombing.
- Shipwrecks (west coast) — three wrecked vessels with rotating loot. One always has a weapon case during Night Raid.
- Beachcombing crates — washed-up containers only visible when the tide is out. Contain Vaporizer Regulator, Canister, occasional Aphelion Rifle drops.
- North-coast extractions — two extracts active during low tide. Closed during high tide. Plan accordingly.
Avian Alarm community project runs until May 26
Riven Tides-exclusive project. Donate materials at Speranza to unlock Hotel Keycard 311, Anvil IV, and the Bird House backpack. Five stages, our live tracker keeps your progress in sync.
Open Avian Alarm TrackerMap Conditions on Riven Tides
Six map conditions rotate on Riven Tides. Knowing which one is active before you load in changes the whole raid. Check our live event timer for the next 24 hours.
Riven Tides Exclusive
Beachcombing
Lowers the tide. Reveals washed-up crates and Avian Alarm material nodes on the Seabed. Best farming condition on the map.
All Maps
Night Raid
Darkens the map. Boosts blueprint drop rates significantly. The best blueprint farming window on Riven Tides.
All Maps
Lush Blooms
Vegetation overgrowth. Great cover for hotel-to-Stacking-Yard transit. Organic materials spawn more frequently.
All Maps
Husk Graveyard
Increased Husk spawns. Riskier raids but excellent for Husk-drop materials and PvE quests.
All Maps
Uncovered Caches
Bonus hidden containers. On Riven Tides specifically, frequently drop Red Coral Jewelry and Vaporizer Regulator for Avian Alarm.
All Maps
Prospecting Probes
ARC scanning probes reveal resource hotspots. The Seabed and shoreline are usually the highest-density zones on Riven Tides.
New Weapons on Riven Tides
Four weapon families joined the loot pool with the Riven Tides update. Two of them matter for the meta. The full breakdown is in our weapon tier list.
Legendary · Battle Rifle
The first Legendary energy battle rifle in the game. Fires high-velocity energy rounds. Single tier (no I/II/III/IV variants). Sells for 27,500 coins. Best PvE backup, struggles against Renegade and Vulcano in PvP. Drops rarely from high-tier hotel rooms and beach crates during Beachcombing.
Epic · Heavy AR · A-tier
Epic heavy-ammo Assault Rifle, 4 tiers (I–IV). 14 base damage, 32 fire rate. Strong ARC armor penetration. Bettina I is crafted at Gunsmith III; higher tiers drop from Stacking Yard and Port Authority. The best PvE AR added in this patch — pair with a Renegade or Vulcano as your secondary.
Uncommon · Burst AR · B-tier
Uncommon burst-fire Assault Rifle, 4 tiers. Medium ammo, decent accuracy. Can kill with 2 chest + 1 headshot in a single burst. Solid budget pick that drops freely across Riven Tides containers.
Uncommon · Pistol · B-tier
Uncommon semi-automatic pistol, 4 tiers. Light ammo. Decent damage output and accuracy, can be fired as fast as you can pull the trigger. Weak against ARC armor plating — keep it as a backup, not a primary. Quick reload.
Best Loot Routes on Riven Tides
Hotel chain run (highest gold/min)
Drop hotel-side. Enter through the west or terrace stairwell. Pick up your Hotel Keycard No. 107 from a residential drawer on Floor 1 or kill a bot for it. Open Room 107. Grab three Lv.3 IL Toro shotguns and the Room 208 keycard from the under-bed safe. Walk upstairs to Room 208. Clean out the chemical drops and the weapon spawn. Extract via the terrace. Expected value: 40,000–80,000 vendor gold per raid.
Industrial run (Stacking Yard + Port Authority)
For heavy-ammo weapons and blueprints. Drop east. Loot the Port Authority admin desks for keycards. Hit the Classified Records room first (best blueprint room on the map). Cross to the Stacking Yard. Open Crane House if you have the keycard. Loot the container stacks. Extract via the cargo dock. Less gold than the hotel run but better blueprint odds.
Beachcombing run (event-only)
If Beachcombing is active when you load in, do this route. Drop near the north Seabed. Loot the buoy cluster (bird trap zone). Work the shoreline clockwise. Hit every washed-up crate. Pick up Moss, Agave, Red Coral Jewelry, and Vaporizer Regulator for Avian Alarm. Extract via the north-coast extracts before the tide returns. Best route for Avian Alarm completion and bonus blueprint odds on coastal containers.
Night Raid blueprint farm
When Night Raid is active, blueprint odds spike across the entire map. Skip the hotel — it's the most contested zone. Run the Port Authority + Stacking Yard loop instead. Use flashlights sparingly. Extract early — Night Raid attracts wandering raiders and the late-raid PvP gets ugly. See our blueprint farming guide for the full container priority list.
Common Mistakes on Riven Tides
- Burning Hotel Keycard 107 without checking the door first. If another raider beat you there, the door is unlocked and the loot is gone. You just wasted your best card.
- Extracting north during high tide.The two north-coast extracts only activate when the tide is out. If Beachcombing is not active and the tide is normal, both extracts are sealed and you'll be stuck looking for an alternate route.
- Ignoring the Seabed when Beachcombing is active. Most players auto-pilot to the hotel even when the best loot zone on the map is sitting uncontested on the shoreline. Always check the event timer before you decide your route.
- Climbing the Stacking Yard crane in the open. The crane gantry has zero cover and the surrounding rooftops have perfect sightlines. Wait for distractions before the climb.
- Saving Bettina I crafting materials when you have them.Bettina I is a Gunsmith III recipe and one of the best PvE ARs in the game. The mats you're hoarding for a "rainy day" are better spent crafting your second copy.
- Forgetting Hotel Keycard 311 is locked behind Avian Alarm.Room 311 is one of the better hotel rooms but the keycard only drops from Stage 4 of the project. If Avian Alarm is incomplete on your save, you cannot run Room 311 directly — finish the project first.
Get the live map and event timer in your pocket
901 markers on Riven Tides alone. Filter by keycard, breach room, weapon case, or extraction. Tracker for Avian Alarm. Push notifications when Beachcombing or Night Raid goes live.
Read Next
Keycards
All Riven Tides Keycards
Every keycard's drop locations, use doors, and expected loot. The deep dive on the hotel chain.
Live Tracker
Avian Alarm Project
Five-stage Riven Tides project. Ends May 26. Rewards include Hotel Keycard 311, Anvil IV, Bird House backpack.
News
Bi-Annual Updates & Frozen Trail
Why Riven Tides is the last monthly drop. What comes next in October 2026.
Tier List
Weapon Tier List
Where Aphelion, Bettina, Arpeggio, and Burletta sit in the May 2026 meta.
