How to get Marvel’s Midnight Suns Arcane Keys

Marvel's Midnight Suns Arcane Key opening Arcane chest
(Image credit: 2K Games)

Marvel's Midnight Suns Arcane Keys are used to unlock the various Arcane Chests that a stashed around the Abbey grounds, and opening them will grant new items and outfits for the Hunter and the other Midnight Suns. As you'll discover early on, Arcane Keys are difficult to get hold of, which means you'll probably find plenty of chests before you have enough keys to get them open, which can be frustrating at first. Don't worry though, because when you progress through the Midnight Suns story you'll discover a few reliable ways of getting them, such as using the Offering Bowl and Reveal Word of Power. To get up to speed, here's everything you need to know about finding and using Midnight Suns Arcane Keys for Arcane Chests.

Midnight Suns Arcane Keys and Arcane Chests explained

Marvel's Midnight Suns Arcane Key at altar

(Image credit: 2K Games)

Arcane Keys found in Marvel’s Midnight Suns are solely used to open Arcane Chests found in and around the Abbey. Arcane Chests are small wood and gold chests that contain cosmetic items and varying amounts of resources and currencies. We’ve found outfits for Marvel's Midnight Suns characters, clothing items for the Hunter, and resources such as Gloss, Credits, and Blueprints.

Marvel's Midnight Suns Arcane chest loot

(Image credit: 2K Games)
Improve Friendships

Marvel's Midnight Suns Friendship levels Blade hangout

(Image credit: 2K Games)

You can get cosmetics for other heroes by increasing your Friendship Levels in Midnight Suns.

Any Arcane Key can be used to open any Arcane Chest, but the chest’s rarity determines the rarity of the cosmetic gear you’ll find inside. These chests also get marked on your map once they’ve been discovered, and a chest’s rarity is also shown by its color, both on the map icon and the chest itself – grey is Common, blue is Rare, purple is Epic, and orange is Legendary.

Arcane Chests reset every few in-game days, so they can be opened endlessly to get rewards of a certain rarity. Your Arcane Level also determines how many rewards you get from Arcane Chests, so increase your Arcane Level to get more stuff from each Arcane Chest you open! You can find more on how to get more Arcane Knowledge further down, but we've also got some other tips for Marvel's Midnight Suns here.

Where to get Arcane Keys in Marvel’s Midnight Suns

Marvel's Midnight Suns Offering Bowl

(Image credit: 2K Games)

When you first start Marvel’s Midnight Suns, there aren’t any ways to get Arcane Keys reliably, so you won’t be able to open many Arcane Chests. However, things will pick up as you progress, and things like the Offering Bowl, which is unlocked after placing all Elemental Rods at Agatha's Altar, really help with getting Arcane Keys and other resources. Here are a few ways you can get Midnight Suns Arcane Keys:

Marvel's Midnight Suns Arcane Key reward from sparring

(Image credit: 2K Games)
  • Reveal Word of Power: Once you've unlocked the Reveal word, you can use it near stone plates with the matching Reveal symbol to uncover Arcane Keys. Explore the Abbey grounds to find as many of these Reveal plates as possible.
  • The Offering Bowl: The Offering Bowl is a great way of gaining resources by using Artifacts. Essentially, you place an Artifact into the bowl and then use a Word of Power to get one Arcane Key in return. You can only do this at night and just once per night. If you use any other power, you’ll get different resources – for example, we got some Gloss when using the Open Word of Power. Find the bowl down a path that’s southeast of the Elemental Altar.
  • Exploring the Abbey grounds: Keys are hidden in some areas around the grounds of the Abbey. For example, check in the secret tunnel containing an ember of the forge – you reach it by going down a ladder.
  • Sparring: Make sure you spar at the Yard each day as sometimes there might be an Arcane Key on offer as a reward.
  • Place the Elemental Rods: An early Abbey quest you’ll have to do tasks you with finding and placing four Marvel’s Midnight Suns Elemental Rods at the Elemental Altar. Each rod you place will reward you with one Arcane Key, and collecting the Moon Seal afterwards provides another, so that's five in total.

How to get Arcane Knowledge and increase your Arcane Level in Marvel’s Midnight Suns

Marvel's Midnight Suns Arcane Level increase

(Image credit: 2K Games)

Your Arcane Level enhances your rewards when looting glowing resource orbs and opening Arcane Chests using Arcane Keys around the Abbey. Increasing your level also adds other benefits, such as being able to open white Arcane Chests for free at level three- no Arcane Key necessary. Here are the main ways of gaining Arcane Knowledge to increase your Arcane Level:

  • Inspect objects around the Abbey: There are all kinds of mystical items, advanced technologies, and dusty books to be found around the Abbey and its grounds. Inspect them for small amounts of Arcane Knowledge. The Abbey's Library is an especially good place to look as it frequently has new books to read.
  • Find collectibles: Similarly, when you're out and about, look for collectible items, such as tarot cards and diary pages for a little Arcane Knowledge.
  • Using Words of Power: Open secret paths, reveal hidden objects, and more.
  • Petting Charlie: Pet the devil dog to increase your Friendship Level with her, but also gain a small amount of Arcane Knowledge.

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Will Sawyer
Guides Writer

Will Sawyer is a guides writer at 12DOVE who works with the rest of the guides team to give readers great information and advice on the best items, how to complete a particular challenge, or where to go in some of the biggest video games. Will joined the GameRadar+ team in August 2021 and has written about service titles, including Fortnite, Destiny 2, and Warzone, as well as some of the biggest releases like Halo Infinite, Elden Ring, and God of War Ragnarok.