Arknights launches Retracing Our Steps event with limited-time rewards and new operators

Arknights has put one of its biggest value windows on the board, and the first thing to chase is the free six-star Astgenne the Lightchaser before the event phases start closing. Retracing Our Steps is live on iOS and Android on the Global server, with its side story rolling out in three parts and all content set to end on May 5 at 03:59 UTC-7.

The event is built around Pilgrimage through the Blizzards, Road of Reformation, and Heart of Karlan. Pilgrimage through the Blizzards opened on April 14 at 08:00 UTC-7, Road of Reformation followed on April 21 at 16:00 UTC-7, and Heart of Karlan opens on April 28 at 16:00 UTC-7. Clearing those stages earns Multi-functional Snow Detector, the event currency used for rewards tied to the event shop and its linked systems.

The reward loop is the real draw. Retracing Our Steps includes Karlan Trade R&D, Oracular Riddles, and Observatory Support Division, which together feed progression materials, furniture parts, operator tokens, and the free six-star Astgenne the Lightchaser. Astgenne is the event’s key giveaway, and she is obtained by clearing OS-5 and completing the Oracular Riddles mission. Anyone aiming for maximum return should push the story unlock first, then clear OS-5 as soon as possible so Astgenne lands in the roster before the rest of the event is even finished.

The other deadline that matters is the Thank-You Celebration banner, A Shared Oath of Guardianship. It runs from April 14 to April 28 at 03:59 UTC-7 and boosts SilverAsh the Reignfrost [Limited], Pramanix the Prerita, Lappland the Decadenza [Limited], Wiš'adel [Limited], Virtuosa [Limited], and the five-star Snow Hunter. That makes the first two weeks of the update the most crowded stretch for both free resources and recruitment targets.

Arknights also timed the rollout like a proper anniversary-style event, with the official news page listing the sidestory opening on April 9 and a related Sunlit Peak Project video creation event on April 14. Community event tracking identifies Retracing Our Steps as the fortieth Side Story, the tenth Celebration event, and the third chapter in the Snow and Silver Steel arc, which fits the scale of the rollout. One practical detail matters more than the lore: the event stories cannot be reviewed in Public Affairs during the event, but they will be added there after it ends, so story clears and reward farming both need to happen before May 5.