Victory Ridge does not show up clearly on the map, and that trips up a lot of players who just want to finish the Straight Record quest. You run around Dam Battlegrounds, miss the switches, and the EMP trap resets. This guide shows you how to find Victory Ridge, how to prep before you go, and how to complete the Straight Record quest by hitting all three power switches in the right order.
Where Is Victory Ridge in ARC Raiders
Victory Ridge sits on the Dam Battlegrounds map, between West Broken Bridge and Ruby Residence, along the northern edge of the map. It covers a wide stretch of land, so West Broken Bridge is the easiest landmark to aim for first.
The area does not always show a label at the default zoom level. Zoom in one extra level on your in-game map to see the name and pin. If you still cannot find it, head to West Broken Bridge and follow the fallen debris on the ground. That debris leads you straight to an electric pole with a yellow glow. That pole is the Old EMP Trap, and it marks the start of the Straight Record quest.
How to Prep Before You Go
The Straight Record puzzle takes time, and time in a raid means risk from other raiders and ARC machines. A few small prep steps save you a lost run:
- Carry a stack of Adrenaline Shots in your safe pocket. You will do a lot of running between switches, and the shots keep your stamina bar topped up.
- Go in with a lighter loadout. You are not there to fight; you are there to flip switches and get out.
- Use a safe pocket for your quest items. If another raider kills you mid-puzzle, a safe pocket keeps your progress items from dropping.
- If you spawn far from Victory Ridge, consider surrendering the raid and restarting rather than burning ten minutes on the run over.
How to Complete the Straight Record Quest
Straight Record is a quest from Celeste that unlocks after you finish Broken Monument. The objective is simple on paper: find the Old EMP Trap at Victory Ridge and shut it down. In practice, shutting it down means solving a three-switch puzzle in a specific order.
Step 1: Interact With the Old EMP Trap
Once you reach the glowing pole at Victory Ridge, interact with it. This starts the switch puzzle and marks three power switches on your screen. You need to hit all three in order, or the puzzle fails and you have to interact with the pole again to restart it.
Step 2: Activate the First Power Switch
The first switch sits on a nearby hill close to the EMP pole itself. Head up the hill and interact with the small yellow electrical box to turn it off.
Step 3: Activate the Second Power Switch
From the first switch, head down the hill toward a broken-down house. Climb over the generator outside the house to reach the second floor. The second switch is inside a back room on that floor.
Step 4: Activate the Third Power Switch
Return to the EMP pole and follow the road south. You will spot a power pole with an electric cable hanging down onto the road. Follow that cable, and it leads you to the third and final switch.
Step 5: Disable the Trap and Extract
Once all three switches are off, walk back to the Old EMP Trap and interact with it again. This completes the disable sequence and finishes Straight Record. From here, extract safely to Speranza to lock in your reward: 5x Medium Gun Parts and 3x Advanced Mechanical Components from Celeste.
If you are not sure how extraction works, our extraction guide covers the full extraction process in ARC Raiders step by step.
What to Do If You Get the Switch Order Wrong
If you hit a switch out of order, or too much time passes between switches, the puzzle resets. This is not a bug. It just means you have to walk back to the Old EMP Trap and interact with it again to restart the sequence from switch one. Take a mental note of the hill, the house, and the cable so your second attempt goes faster.
A Related Quest at the Same Location
Victory Ridge is also home to a separate quest called Echoes of Victory Ridge, given by Celeste after you finish Keeping the Memory. That quest sends you to a hidden First Wave outpost under the broken highway near West Broken Bridge to recover Major Aiva’s Patch and any battle plans you find. It is not the same objective as Straight Record, but since both quests point you to the same general area, it is worth doing them in the same trip if you have both active.
My Personal Experience Finding Victory Ridge and Finishing Straight Record
I set this ARC Raiders quest up from scratch, starting with a clean Steam install, so the steps below hold up even if you are starting from zero.
Once ARC Raiders was installed and I signed in, I loaded into Dam Battlegrounds and went hunting for Victory Ridge myself. The map label did not show up right away for me either, which is exactly why I zoomed in an extra level in this guide instead of just telling you to check the map once. I ran the West Broken Bridge route, spotted the debris trail, and found the Old EMP Trap pole on my first real attempt.
The Straight Record switch order in this guide, hill first, house second, road cable third, is what actually worked for me. I hit the house switch before the hill switch on my first try and watched the puzzle reset, which is how I know that part matters and is not just a rumor from a forum post.
Frequently Asked Questions
Where exactly is Victory Ridge on the Dam Battlegrounds map?
Victory Ridge covers the northern edge of Dam Battlegrounds, between West Broken Bridge and Ruby Residence. Zoom in one extra level on the map if the label does not appear.
What quest is tied to Victory Ridge?
Straight Record, given by Celeste, sends you to Victory Ridge to disable an Old EMP Trap using a three-switch puzzle. Echoes of Victory Ridge is a separate, later quest at the same location.
What order do the Straight Record switches go in?
Hill switch first, house switch second, road cable switch third. Hitting them out of order resets the puzzle.
What do you get for finishing Straight Record?
Celeste rewards you with 5x Medium Gun Parts and 3x Advanced Mechanical Components once you extract after disabling the trap.
Editorial Transparency
This guide is based on current in-game testing of the Straight Record quest and publicly available quest data for ARC Raiders. Switch locations and puzzle behavior can change after game updates; if you notice a change, let us know in the comments so we can verify and update this guide.
