In Embark Studios' extraction shooter, landing your shots cleanly during intense PvPvE skirmishes separates successful Raiders from those who end up back in the lobby empty-handed. When it comes to full-auto recoil management, the Vertical Grip II Blueprint has quickly emerged as one of the most critical mid-tier modifications to secure. This uncommon blueprint unlocks a weapon attachment designed specifically to tame vertical kick, giving automated weapon platforms a tighter, more lethal bullet spread over distance.
Blueprint Overview & Tactical Metrics
The core benefit of learning and crafting this modification lies in its direct impact on weapon handling metrics. Unlike pure horizontal stabilizers, the Vertical Grip II addresses the sharp muzzle rise common in sustained fire. However, like many specialized attachments in the game, it requires weighing a direct performance trade-off against raw aiming speed:
Recoil Reduction: 30% Lower Vertical Kick
Handling Penalty: 30% Slower Aim-Down-Sight (ADS) Speed
Vendor Sell Value: 5,000 Credits (at Speranza)
Required Craft Bench: Gunsmith
While a 30% reduction in ADS speed might look daunting on paper, real-world weapon testing in the practice range demonstrates that the benefits are exponential during sustained fire. Because recoil accumulates per bullet, firing a full magazine from a high-rate-of-fire weapon without a grip results in severe vertical drift. With the Vertical Grip II equipped, the total vertical climb at the end of a 30-round burst is visually mitigated by roughly five head-levels, keeping your crosshairs locked firmly on an opponent's upper torso rather than drifting harmlessly into the sky.
Weapon Compatibility
This attachment can be equipped on a versatile selection of base weapon platforms, making its blueprint universally valuable regardless of your preferred playstyle:
Arpeggio: Keeps the baseline assault rifle incredibly stable during mid-range duels.
Ferro: Minimizes jumpiness during high-pressure tracking.
Venator: Complements a weapon that already lacks severe horizontal spread, forming a hyper-accurate laser.
Il Toro: Drastically flattens the violent upward kick of this heavy hitter.
Stitcher: A mandatory addition for this rapid-fire machine gun to suppress bullet climb during close-quarters sprays.
Farming Locations: Where to Hunt the Blueprint
Because blueprints in this environment rely heavily on randomized loot distributions rather than 100% guaranteed fixed drops, finding one requires targeting zones with high-density industrial and military containers. The community consensus highlights a definitive hot spot for farming this specific item.
The Stella Montes Staff Room Strategy
The most efficient farming circuit requires loading into a Stella Montes night raid. Once deployed, move rapidly toward the Staff Room located directly above the central loading bay—the area where the heavy Bastion unit typically patrols. This room contains a dense row of red lockers alongside several high-tier weapon crates. Due to the concentrated item tiering in this zone, players report a noticeably higher drop frequency for modification blueprints inside these specific containers.
The Loading Bay Clean-Up
If the Staff Room has already been looted or is too heavily contested, sweep the surrounding loading bay floor. Check all green toolboxes, pull-out metal drawer cabinets, and scattered cargo crates. If you manage to pull the item, immediately drag it from your main inventory into your Safe Pocket. This guarantees the item remains with you even if you die. From there, you can either walk to the nearby metro extraction point or safely open your settings menu and click "Surrender" to return instantly to Speranza with the item locked down.
The In-Game Economy and Secondary Markets
For players struggling against unfavorable drop rates, alternative acquisition methods exist outside of active deployment zones. If you do not wish to grind Stella Montes, you can purchase standard arc raiders items or acquire hard-to-find blueprints directly via third-party digital networks. Trusted alternative platforms like U4N, Gameflip, and eBay provide direct player-to-player delivery options where sellers join your lobby, manually drop the item, and guide you to a safe surrender extraction. Market data shows the item trading regularly between $0.35 on wholesale platforms up to $7.00 for instant-delivery listings on secondary marketplaces, saving players hours of repetitive RNG loops.
Crafting Requirements
Once you bring the blueprint back to Speranza and consume it at the vendor to permanently learn the recipe, you can craft the physical attachment at your Gunsmith workbench as many times as needed. The material requirements are highly accessible, ensuring that losing a modified weapon in a bad raid won't break your bank:
1x Vertical Grip II Blueprint (Consumed upon initial unlock)
Mechanical Components: Scavenged commonly from broken robots and industrial machinery.
Duct Tape: Found abundantly in domestic and office trash bins throughout the ruins.
Ultimately, balancing the 30% ADS penalty requires smart loadout building—such as pairing the grip with a lightweight stock to offset the slower aim time. Once configured correctly, the Vertical Grip II turns volatile automated weapons into precise surgical tools, giving you a massive mechanical advantage in your next drop.