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Arknights: Endfield progression stops being about your reroll the moment you clear the opening missions — from there, the thing actually slowing you down is Sanity, Authority Level, and how you spend both. This guide picks up exactly where “how do I start” ends and covers what to open, what to level, and where the map’s exploration system fits into your resource income. It’s written against Version 1.4 (live since July 16, 2026); Hypergryph patches this game on a fast cycle, so treat specific thresholds as accurate for now and expect some numbers to shift in later updates.
TL;DR
- After the reroll, Sanity and Authority Level — not your operator lineup — decide how fast you actually progress.
- Sanity has no overflow, so spending it daily matters more than banking a “good” roster.
- Wuling and other later regions run on separate resource pools from your starting area, so finishing one region doesn’t carry material progress into the next.
- Closing out a region’s collectibles is a real currency source (Orundum, gear materials), not a side quest you can skip.
- Don’t dump premium currency into emergency Sanity refills or pull without a banner plan in your first few days — both choices get worse, not better, as you level.
What Actually Gates Progression After the Reroll in Arknights: Endfield
Arknights: Endfield is a real-time 3D RPG developed by Hypergryph and published by Gryphline, and it officially launched worldwide on January 22, 2026, as a spinoff of Hypergryph’s 2019 tower defense game Arknights. Once you’re past the reroll decision, the game hands you two account-level metrics that matter more than any single operator: Authority Level, your account level, and Exploration Level, tied to story and trial completion. Authority Level gates almost everything — story chapters, equipment blueprints, character level caps, and premium currency sources, which is why a strong reroll stops mattering much after the first week: you can only push operators as far as your account-wide gates allow.
Sanity is the resource that turns Authority Level into materials: it’s the stamina system that gates progression through Protocol Spaces, instanced missions that reward operator experience, promotion materials, weapon materials, and skill upgrade items. It regenerates at a fixed rate of 1 point every 7 minutes and 12 seconds, and critically, the game doesn’t feature an overcapping system — any regeneration past your current cap is lost forever, making daily Sanity spending crucial for progression. Players start with a max Sanity of 125 but can raise it to a total of 360 by climbing Authority Level.
| Resource | What It Gates | How You Get It |
|---|---|---|
| Authority Level | Story chapters, blueprints, level caps, premium currency sources | Missions, exploration, daily commissions |
| Sanity | Protocol Space runs and most farmable materials | Passive regen, capped by Authority Level |
| Orundum | Gacha pulls for operators and weapons | Chests, Aurylenes, events, commissions |
| Origeometry | Emergency Sanity refills | Premium currency; conversion cost rises with each daily use |
| Operator / weapon materials | Elite Level promotions, skill ranks, weapon tiers | Protocol Space, exploration, AIC Quota Exchange, Arsenal Issue |
What to Open, What to Level, and What Order to Play Endfield's Content
Early Endfield doesn’t explain its own pacing well. When you first start, the game doesn’t explain how Sanity works — you have to complete story missions through Through The Haze, which unlocks the first Protocol Space and lets you spend Sanity as you wish. Before that point, there’s genuinely nothing to farm, so rushing dialogue is correct. After it unlocks, the priority flips: side content becomes the thing that keeps the story moving. The game doesn’t tell you explicitly that you’re about to hit a wall — it’s a soft lock, and the design wants you to stop rushing the narrative and actually engage with factory building and exploration instead.
Step-by-Step: Early Progression Walkthrough
| Stage | What It Opens | Where Players Usually Stall |
|---|---|---|
| Early Valley IV story | Base combat loop, first Protocol Space | Not realizing Sanity spending is locked until a specific story beat |
| Mid Valley IV, side content | AIC factory, Elite Level access, gear crafting | Story soft-locks behind Authority Level and players don't know exploration raises it |
| Wuling unlock (Authority Lv. 43) | New region, new operators, a second resource pool | Arriving under-leveled since Valley IV materials don't transfer |
| Version-specific Wuling sub-areas | Extra Orundum, gear materials, later story chapters | Missing the trigger quest since these are gated behind version-specific main story steps |
| Daily loop / endgame | Weapon banners, Potential upgrades, sustained income | Sanity cap becomes the real ceiling, not gear or roster quality |
Follow this sequence to get it done fast.
-
1
Push story to the first Protocol Space
nothing else opens up until you clear it, so don't waste time on side content before this point.
-
2
Automate your first mining point
build the Electric Mining Rig as soon as possible to eliminate manual collection and start feeding your factory loop passively.
-
3
Spend Sanity every day instead of banking it
because regeneration stops dead at cap, letting it sit full for even a few hours quietly wastes points you can't get back.
-
4
Clear daily commissions before pulling
daily challenges provide Activity Levels that reward Operational EXP and Headhunting Materials, and the Event Center has Weekly Routine Challenges on top.
-
5
Raise Authority Level toward the next region gate
Wuling unlocks once you reach Authority Level 43 and begin the Arrival at Wuling main mission, so keep raising Authority Level through exploration and side content as you push the story.
-
6
Decide your banner plan before you pull anything else
figure out which operator or weapon banner you actually want before spending currency you've stockpiled from the early game.
Map Exploration and Closing a Region: Cosmetic Checklist or Real Resource Source?
It checks out: region exploration in Endfield is a resource system, not a completionist side task. Talos-II is built so collectibles, resources, and Authority Level feed back into each other, starting in Valley IV and moving into Wuling, and each new region adds the same underlying loop rather than a fresh set of rules. TP Points are fast-travel nodes that also clear nearby fog, let your team rest and heal, grant experience, and serve as the place where you submit Aurylenes for rewards, which makes them worth activating even before you loot everything nearby. Prioritize activating TP Points to clear fog, then gather Aurylenes and open chests along the way — Gear Template Crates and Rare Growths are high value for gear crafting and Operator progression.
The part that actually confirms this isn’t cosmetic: region resource pools don’t carry over. Resources do not carry over between regions — Wuling and Valley IV run on separate pools, meaning fully clearing your starting zone gives you nothing extra once you reach the next one. That’s also why later region expansions gate their rewards behind actual investment rather than just walking around: to fully explore the newest 1.4 areas, you need to max out the level of the Xiranite Nexus and craft different tiers of Aero-Salvage devices in advance using materials from the AIC. Exploration and the factory system aren’t separate tracks — they gate each other.
Those figures come from roughly 1,500 Orundum obtainable from fully exploring the 1.2 Test Area, around 2,000 Orundum from the 1.3 Sword Vault Dale, and at least 5,550 Orundum from the two areas added in 1.4. Each new map has been worth more free gacha currency than the last, which is a strong signal that later exploration content isn’t a cosmetic afterthought — it’s how the game keeps pull income growing alongside the story.
| Source | What You Get | Requirement | Who It Suits |
|---|---|---|---|
| TP Points | Fast travel, fog clearing, rest/heal, minor EXP | None — found while exploring | Everyone, activate first |
| Chests & Aurylenes | Orundum for gacha pulls | Explore fully / defeat area enemies | Players saving for a specific banner |
| Gear Template Crates / Rare Growths | Gear crafting, operator progression materials | Found at specific points of interest | Players gearing operators past early tiers |
| Mining points / AIC nodes | Passive material generation for the factory | Requires base AIC unlocked and built | Players who want steady income with less manual grinding |
Best Ways to Spend Sanity and Materials Early
| Method | Speed | Effort | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|
| Protocol Space (Sanity) | Steady, capped daily | Low once cleared once | Operator promotion and skill materials |
| Full region exploration | Slow, one-time per area | High initially | Free Orundum and gear crafting materials |
| Daily commissions | Fast, short sessions | Very low | Consistent Authority Level EXP and Headhunting Materials |
| AIC factory automation | Passive, compounds over time | Setup cost, then hands-off | Long-term material income without active play |
| Arsenal Issue weapon banners | Depends on pull budget | None beyond currency | Players chasing specific weapon tiers |
What You Unlock As Authority Level and Elite Levels Climb
Elite Levels Control Your Stat Ceiling, Not Just Character Level
Leveling is done via Operator Materials, and level caps are tied to Elite Levels — materials come from Protocol Space combat simulations, exploration, or the AIC Quota Exchange, and increasing Elite Levels also unlocks Talent Nodes and increases Skill Ranks. This means an operator “capped out” at their current level isn’t actually finished — they’re waiting on Elite Level materials, which routes right back to Sanity and exploration.
Potential Runs on Duplicates, Not Currency
Operator Tokens from duplicates pulled in the gacha unlock the Potential upgrade tree for stat boosts and exclusive artwork. It’s a separate track from Elite Level and materials, which is why two players with the “same” operator can perform noticeably differently.
| Reward | How You Get It | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| Higher Sanity cap | Authority Level ups | More daily Protocol Space runs before hitting a wall |
| Elite Level promotions | Operator materials from Protocol Space, exploration, AIC Quota Exchange | Raises level caps and unlocks Talent Nodes |
| Higher Skill Ranks | Elite Level increases | Stronger active skills without needing new operators |
| Potential upgrades | Operator Tokens from duplicates | Stat boosts and exclusive artwork on existing operators |
| Weapon tiers | Arsenal Issue banners | Meaningful damage and utility upgrades outside the gacha for operators |
Common Misconceptions About Endfield's Progression Curve
“A Better Reroll Means a Faster Account”
Endfield guarantees a 6-star character through the beginner event, and rerolling is only really necessary if you’re chasing a specific meta operator from launch banners. Past the first couple of weeks, Authority Level and material income matter more than roster quality. If you haven’t settled the reroll question yet, that decision belongs in a dedicated reroll guide — this article assumes you’ve already made that call.
“Leftover Resources Carry Into the Next Region”
They don’t. As covered above, Wuling and Valley IV run on separate resource pools, so fully clearing your starting area buys you nothing extra once the next region opens.
“Banking Sanity for a Weekend Session Is Efficient”
It’s the opposite. Endfield has no overcapping system, so any regeneration past your current cap is simply lost — a full weekend of untouched Sanity is a full weekend of wasted regen, not saved-up value.
What Not to Do in Your First Few Days
Warning
Converting premium currency into emergency Sanity refills early feels productive but isn’t — the conversion cost for Origeometry increases with each daily use, so it’s better saved for banner pulls unless you desperately need Sanity for limited-time content.
Beyond that, avoid pulling before you’ve settled a banner plan. The safer approach is to hold currency until you’ve claimed your progression-based permits, then spend with a clear banner plan instead of impulse rolling. Weapon pulls are similarly structured to punish impatience: a 6-star weapon is guaranteed within 4 Arsenal Issue pulls and a rate-up weapon within 8, but each issue gives 10 weapons at once — spending piecemeal against a banner you haven’t researched can burn currency for a guarantee you didn’t need yet. Finally, don’t skip daily commissions and Database entries to “save time” for exploration — the in-game Database under the Menu contains tutorials and lore entries that reward Credits for Headhunting when read, and those rewards don’t come back once claimed.
Tip
Check your Sanity before you log off, not when you log back in — since regeneration stops completely once you hit cap, letting it sit full overnight is the single easiest way to waste progression without noticing.
Our Take: Where the Real Bottleneck Is After You Reroll
Our Take
The reroll decides your first week; resource management decides everything after it.
Once the initial roster question is settled, Endfield’s pacing is closer to a factory game wearing gacha clothes — Sanity, Authority Level, and exploration income compound on each other, and none of them respond to how good your operators are on paper. Players who treat exploration as a checkbox and hoard currency waiting for a “perfect” pull tend to stall harder than players who spend Sanity daily and clear regions as they open. Given the game’s fast patch cadence, expect specific thresholds like the Authority Level for new regions to shift over future versions, so treat the structure here as durable and the exact numbers as current-version snapshots.