Why Unexpected Initiative Feels So Weird
Unexpected Initiative is one of those Arc Raiders quests that feels more confusing than it needs to be. On paper it is simple. Tian Wen wants you to bring back fertiliser and a water pump. In practice the quest forces you to collect these items from specific spots in Buried City during a single run, even if you already own them from earlier expeditions.
That is the annoying part. You might have fertiliser sitting safe in your stash and a spare water pump tucked away, but the quest will still refuse to complete until you follow the exact steps that Tian Wen gives you. You must visit both marked locations, grab the quest specific versions of each item and then extract safely.
Because of this it is usually not worth wasting a safe pocket on these quest items. The game will not let you cheese the objective with materials you already have. Instead focus on surviving the route and getting both items in one clean run. A free loadout is often a better fit so you do not cry over lost gear if things go sideways.
The good news is that once you know where to go the whole thing is more about navigation than puzzle solving. Here is how to get both items fast and get out before the Raiders or the environment ruin your day.
Step One: Grab Fertiliser at Grandioso Apartments
You can technically do either objective first, but starting with the fertiliser lines up nicely with how the quest lists it and sets you up for the water pump next door.
Your first destination is the Grandioso Apartments in the west side of Buried City. You are aiming for the rooftop, not the lower floors. Getting there usually means finding the lift shaft that lets you zipline up, then cutting across between buildings and taking stairs the rest of the way.
Once you reach the roof, you are looking for small rooftop garden spots. The fertiliser can spawn in more than one place on this rooftop, so do a quick lap instead of fixating on a single corner.
- Check the southernmost corner of the rooftop.
- If it is not there, check the northeast corner.
In both spots you are hunting for orange terracotta plant pots packed with soil. These are easy to miss if you sprint past them, so slow down and scan for the yellow interaction icon floating above the pots. That icon is your confirmation that you have found the right planter.
Interact with the pot. This action does not instantly give you the quest item. Instead it causes the fertiliser to drop onto the ground nearby. A lot of players forget this part and leave empty handed.
- Interact with the pot.
- Look around for the fertiliser that drops.
- Pick it up and slot it into your inventory.
Once the fertiliser is in your bag, you are halfway done. Do not extract yet. The water pump is close enough that it makes sense to hit it immediately while you are already in the area.
Step Two: Find the Water Pump at Piazza Roma
Your next stop is Piazza Roma. What you want specifically are the rooftops of the two large apartment buildings just north of Grandioso Apartments and slightly south of the Piazza Roma label on your map. In other words you are moving only a short distance north from where you grabbed the fertiliser.
Again your target is the top of the buildings. Look for routes that let you zipline upwards, then follow stairways and walkways until you reach the actual rooftop gardens.
Just like with the fertiliser, the game gives you more than one potential spawn location for the water pump on this roof.
- Check the northwest corner of the rooftop.
- If it is not there, try the southeast corner.
This time your landmark is a lot bigger and easier to spot than a pot. You are looking for a chunky glass tank set into a planter bed. It has a motor bolted onto it with a hose running into the soil. Once again a yellow interaction icon gives away the correct object.
Walk up and interact with the tank. When you do, the water pump will pop off and land nearby. As with the fertiliser make sure you actually pick it up. The quest will not advance just because you pressed the interact button.
With the water pump safely in your pack you now have everything Tian Wen asked for: fertiliser and a pump gathered from the official quest locations in a single trip.
Escape and Turn In The Quest
At this point the only thing left is to survive long enough to get home. You are already near one of the most convenient exits in the area. Piazza Roma has a metro station close by. If it is active during your run it is usually the fastest and safest way to exfil.
Check your map or HUD to confirm that the station is online. From the rooftop head down carefully instead of swan diving into every fight between you and the exit. You already did the hard part by collecting both items, so play it safe on the way out.
Once you manage to extract, return to Speranza and hand over the fertiliser and water pump to Tian Wen. That will finally tick off Unexpected Initiative and free you up to focus on other Buried City quests like Field Depots, Field Crates or the more exploration focused tasks.
Unexpected Initiative feels clunky the first time through because the quest does not care about what is in your stash, only what you pick up in that single official run. But once you know the two rooftops, the multiple spawn spots and the nearby metro exit it becomes a quick checklist. Hit Grandioso Apartments for fertiliser, hop to Piazza Roma for the water pump, then sprint for the station and cash it all in.
Original article and image: https://www.pcgamer.com/games/third-person-shooter/arc-raiders-unexpected-initiative/
