Star Citizen Arena Commander Guide: Modes, REC and Ship Rentals
Skip the trip to the spaceport and get straight into a race, swarm or dogfight. Choose your mode, try REC rentals and check the known loadout problems before changing components.
Arena Commander is where an evening can start with a dogfight instead of a journey to the spaceport. Choose a mode from the main menu, pick a suitable ship and get flying. It is also a good place to spend time with a cockpit you barely know, without turning your next contract into a flying lesson.
The choice of mode matters more than the size of your fleet. A quiet flight, a cooperative fight against waves of enemies and a duel with another pilot offer very different evenings. Start with the one you actually feel like playing.
Pick your evening
A little room to fly
Free Flight gives you space to explore and get comfortable. Classic Race swaps weapons for a course and a finishing line; it also has an offline option.
Bring a friend
Pirate Swarm and Vanduul Swarm support up to four players against AI opponents. They are the natural choice when you want to fight together.
Fight other pilots
Duel is one against one. Squadron Battle is team combat, while Battle Royale is a free-for-all. Pick according to whether you want a wingmate or everyone as a target.
Leave the cockpit
Control and Elimination bring first-person combat into the same module. Experimental modes rotate, so the menu can offer something different from your last visit.
A duel puts you alone against another pilot. If you would rather have friends on your wing, a swarm gives the group something to fight together. Pick whichever sounds more fun tonight.
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REC rentals: how to try another ship
Rental Equipment Credits, usually shortened to REC, are Arena Commander’s rental currency. Earn them in multiplayer matches; Free Flight does not award them. Match performance affects the amount received.
- Choose your game mode first. Ship availability depends on it.
- Open Vehicle Selection. Available rentals appear below your existing fleet.
- Select an eligible rental. Weapons, missiles and some components can also be rented.
- Use Vehicle Loadout to change a rented ship’s weapons and components, subject to the current bugs below.
Current rental guidance says Arena Commander rentals last for the patch cycle, despite displayed timers. They stay in Arena Commander: they do not become ships you can retrieve in the Persistent Universe.
PU rentals are separate. They use aUEC, have fixed component loadouts and run on a timer that continues while you are logged out. Do not rent in one mode expecting the ship to appear in the other.
Choose the match before the loadout
Free Flight and private matches allow the full flyable range, but ranked modes restrict some larger crewed ships. The mode’s selection screen is the useful answer to “why can’t I choose this ship?”; owning a hull does not make it eligible for every contest.
For a first evening, we would stay with a ship whose layout makes sense to you. An unfamiliar weapon setup is easier to enjoy when you already know where the ship wants your attention. Once you are comfortable, a rental gives you something new to look forward to without rebuilding the entire evening around it.
Two loadout problems in Alpha 4.10.2
Sabre Raven EX and Aegis Tiburon: changing the power plant in Arena Commander can leave their thrusters without power. Leave that component alone; there is no documented workaround.
Missing flight blades: Arena Commander’s loadout screen currently lacks some options available in the PU, including flight-blade customisation. This is a known issue, not a hidden menu you need to unlock.
Once you know which kind of flying you enjoy, our Ship Matrix can help you explore the wider fleet. For tonight, though, a familiar fighter and a mode you fancy are enough. There will always be another ship to try.