Building a Library is one of the last quests in Arc Raiders' initial quest line, and Apollo gives it to you back at Speranza. He wants you to head into the Buried City and bring back three books from the Library: a romance novel, a detective novel, and an adventure novel. There are no quest markers pointing you toward any of them, the Library sits in one of the most contested areas in the game, and you need to extract with all three books in a single raid or start over completely.
This guide walks you through how to prepare, where each book is, and how to get out alive to turn the quest in.
Prerequisites and Quest Availability
Building a Library unlocks after you finish Apollo's previous quest, Espresso. Talk to Apollo at Speranza to pick it up, then deploy to the Buried City map.
Preparing Your Loadout
If you're just trying to get this quest done, you can deploy with a free loadout since Building a Library doesn't require any specific gear or consumables. Getting knocked down this way only costs you the books and your time, not any weapons or items you care about.
Squads should expect more player aggression, since groups tend to draw attention. Solo players can sometimes get by signaling friendly intentions to other raiders in the area. Everyone near the Library has something to lose, so cooperation isn't uncommon, but don't count on it.
Getting to the Library
You'll find the Library as a named POI in the northern section of the Buried City map, sitting just above Marano Park near the center of the area.
On your way there, watch out for ARC patrols around the wooded zone in the middle of the map. A Bombardier or Bastion is usually roaming this area. Spotter drones also fly around and will reveal your position to nearby ARC forces if they detect you, so try to avoid them as you approach.
All Three Book Locations
The Library has two floors, and the three books are spread across both of them. Each one sits on a small bookshelf (or book cart, depending on how you'd describe it). You interact with the shelf, the book drops to the ground, and then you pick it up manually to add it to your inventory. Make sure you actually grab each book after it falls. Just interacting with the shelf isn't enough.
Romance Novel (Ground Floor)
Stay on the ground floor after entering. Look toward the staircase leading up to the second floor. Near the base of the stairs along the wall, there's a small bookshelf filled with yellow books sitting next to a larger, mostly empty one. Interact with the small shelf to drop the romance novel, then pick it up off the ground.
Detective Novel (Second Floor)
Head up the staircase. On the second floor, keep moving along the wall to your right. You'll find another small bookshelf positioned between two larger ones against that wall. Interact with it, grab the detective novel from the floor.
Adventure Novel (Second Floor, Further In)
From where you picked up the detective novel, keep walking forward through the second floor and watch the left side. You'll see a smaller stairwell going down, and right next to it (near some bookshelves that have tipped over) is the last small bookshelf. Interact with it and pick up the adventure novel.
You should now have all three books: romance, detective, and adventure.
Extracting Safely
There's an extraction point right near the Library. A metro station entrance in the middle of Marano Park leads to the Northern Station train, and it's basically right outside the Library's front door.
Don't get careless on the way out, though. The metro station area can have roaming ARC Pods and Fireballs, and other raiders might be heading to the same extract. Move quickly and get on that train.
After you extract with all three books, head back to Speranza and turn the quest in to Apollo.
Rewards
Turning in Building a Library to Apollo gives you:
| Reward | Quantity |
|---|---|
| Explosive Mine | x1 |
| Jolt Mine | x1 |
| Heavy Fuze Grenade | x1 |
Quick Reference
- Pick up the quest from Apollo at Speranza
- Deploy to the Buried City map
- Travel to the Library POI (northern section, above Marano Park)
- Clear any Turrets inside the Library
- Ground floor, near the stairs: interact with the small bookshelf for the Romance novel
- Second floor, wall to your right between large shelves: interact with the small bookshelf for the Detective novel
- Second floor, further ahead on the left near fallen shelves and a stairwell: interact with the small bookshelf for the Adventure novel
- Exit the Library and extract via the metro station at Marano Park (Northern Station)
- Return to Speranza and turn in the quest to Apollo
Extra Tips
- There are no quest markers for this one. You need to know the book locations before going in, or you'll spend way too long searching in a dangerous spot.
- Getting knocked down means losing every book you've collected. Once you start picking them up, survival is priority number one.
- The Library area is a PvP hotspot. Other raiders are constantly around Marano Park and the surrounding buildings, so be ready for player encounters no matter what loadout you chose.
- Solo players can sometimes talk their way out of fights, since everyone nearby has progress and gear on the line. It works more often than you'd expect, but always be ready to fight or bail.
- Speed matters inside the Library. The longer you're in there, the more likely something goes wrong. Knowing where the books are beforehand lets you grab all three and get out fast.
- Check your inventory before heading to the metro station. Extracting without all three books means doing the entire raid again.