This Arknights beginner guide 2026 lays out the four deadlines in one place. The second phase of Yesterday's Sea already closed at 03:59 on October 23, but the event itself runs to 03:59 on October 30 . The Production Team Newsletter #70 mail (200 Orundum and 5 Polyester Group) was sent at 17:00 on October 17 with a 7-day claim window. Hengyuan Jinliang opened on October 11. The anniversary preview stream is set for 19:30 on October 24.
Applicable version: as of the October 23, 2026 update (client 2.7.81, released October 8, 2026; Arknights has no numbered version system, so official announcement dates are the anchor)
Arknights late-October overview: three time anchors
Arknights does not use version numbers like "7.1"; the only reliable markers are the client build and the announcement dates. The official site lists client 2.7.81 updated October 8, 2026 . Hengyuan Jinliang from October 11 and Newsletter #70 from October 17 form the backbone of late October .
What the October 16 hotfix actually changed
The October 16 update was a hotfix: no downtime, no compensation, only number tweaks and known-issue fixes, plus a forced relog around 16:00 . It is not a version update, and neither banners nor the event schedule moved.
The one thing from Newsletter #70 you can claim now
Newsletter #70 shipped with a reward mail: 200 Orundum and 5 Polyester Group, sent at 17:00 on October 17, valid for 7 days . The value here is not the Orundum. Polyester Group is a standard Elite 2 material, and five of them cover roughly three to four resource-stage runs.
Arknights Yesterday's Sea wrap-up: what to grab before October 30
Yesterday's Sea is a limited SideStory in two phases. Phase two closed at 03:59 on October 23 and is gone; the event closes at 03:59 on October 30 . Two end times is the trap: players see "ends October 30" and assume phase two can wait.
What is still available after phase two closes
Closing phase two only removes its exclusive stages and their first-clear rewards. Phase one stages and the event shop stay open until 03:59 on October 30 . So the correct order this week is: clear the event shop with tokens, then go back for phase one challenge stages and their Originite Prime, and only then consider permanent material farming.
The salvage plan pays operators and furniture
The salvage plan on the event page is not a gacha
it hands out fixed rewards based on cumulative salvage count and includes an operator and furniture . That makes it more valuable per sanity than the parallel resource stages, because the furniture is limited and the operator is free, while resource stages are available every day of the year.
Arknights Hengyuan Jinliang and the event shop: free value
Hengyuan Jinliang is the collaboration with the National Library of China, opened October 11 . The check-in portion costs no sanity, which makes it pure free value: log in once a day and the cumulative day rewards hand over furniture or materials.
Event shop purchase order
Event shop priority runs non-renewable first, scarce second, routine last: limited furniture and operator tokens, then high-tier materials such as Agglomerate, then LMD and EXP . LMD has fixed daily income and event tokens expire.
Arknights weekly sanity split: where 1,680 points go
Sanity regenerates at one point per six minutes, which is 240 per day and 1,680 per week . That number sets everything else: it decides how many resource-stage runs a week can hold, and it forces a choice between events and permanent farming rather than allowing both.
A split table you can copy
| Purpose | Weekly sanity | Priority | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Limited event stages | 420-630 | High | Has a deadline |
| Annihilation | 125 | High | Weekly first-clear reward |
| Resource stages (Elite) | 360-480 | Medium | Fill the gap |
| Chips and skill summaries | 240-300 | Medium | Skill upgrades |
| LMD and EXP stages | 120-180 | Low | Only when short |
(The table is a planning aid built on in-game sanity rules and stage costs; check exact stage costs in game.)
Why events sit ahead of Annihilation
Annihilation only needs one clear a week for its first-clear reward, while limited event stages disappear permanently once the deadline passes. So the order is event stages first, Annihilation second, resource stages third.
The one exception is the final day of an event. If sanity runs short, skip the LMD in the event shop before skipping the Annihilation first clear, because Orundum is hard currency and LMD is not.
Arknights material stage choice: fill the actual gap
Material stage choice is not about which stage has the best drop rate. It is about how many operators you plan to build in the next two weeks. Taking one six-star to Elite 2 normally consumes four to six material types, one or two of them high-tier . So decide on the operator first and the stage second, instead of farming everything and sorting it out later.
Elite materials before skill materials
Push level to the promotion threshold first, then collect skill mastery materials. Levels bring flat stats and mastery brings multipliers, and flat stats are the base every skill scales from . Doing it the other way round produces the classic waste: Mastery 3 on a skill whose base attack is still too low to matter.
How to save on high-tier materials
The event shop is the only channel that converts tokens into saved sanity. The 5 Polyester Group from Newsletter #70 plus whatever the shop offers roughly saves one resource-stage run .
Arknights chips and skill summaries: the hidden gate
Chips and skill summaries come from dedicated stages rather than material stages . They pay in batches and are capped weekly, so the shortage shows up one skill level short at the worst moment.
When to farm chips
Chip search is split by class, with a daily cap per stage. Farm the class you are about to master and nothing else . The test is simple: which class is the operator you plan to master?
Arknights FAQ
Can I still get the phase two first-clear rewards?
No. Phase two closed at 03:59 on October 23 and unclaimed first-clear rewards went with it. Phase one stages and the event shop remain open until 03:59 on October 30 .
When does the Newsletter #70 mail expire?
It was sent at 17:00 on October 17 with a 7-day window and contains 200 Orundum and 5 Polyester Group. It cannot be reclaimed after expiry .
How much sanity does a week actually produce?
At one point per six minutes, natural regeneration is 240 per day and 1,680 per week, excluding sanity potions and Originite Prime conversion .
Should I spend Orundum now?
No. The anniversary preview stream is at 19:30 on October 24 and the next limited banner schedule and rates are not published yet .
Arknights action list for this week
- Claim the Newsletter #70 mail (200 Orundum, 5 Polyester Group) before it expires.
- Clear the event shop in order: limited furniture and tokens, high-tier materials, then LMD.
- Check in to Hengyuan Jinliang daily and finish the 7-day cumulative rewards.
- Split 1,680 sanity: 420-630 event stages, 125 Annihilation, 360-480 resource stages, 240-300 chips.
- Hold Orundum and Originite Prime until after the October 24 stream.
Full operator and material cross-references live in the GameHub mobile guide section and are revised whenever the official notice changes.