Taming and riding dinosaurs are arguably the best parts ofARK: Survival Ascended, making it stand out among other survival sandbox competitors. Each ofARK: Survival Ascended’s dinosaurs has its own uses, with varying strengths and weaknesses across the board. While one dino might excel at harvesting materials, such as berries, another may be a fantastic travel mount with superior speed.
In some cases, personal taste surely has an impact on which dinosaurs the player decides to tame for different uses. Still, though there are plenty of challenge videos showcasing just how far players can get with one single dinosaur, in most scenarios, players will want totame the best dinosaursin each category to reduce the notorious grind necessary to complete the Ark. This article is written from a PvE standpoint, and does not cover the Giganotosaurus, Titanosaur, Quetzal, Carcharodontosaurus or Mosasaurus.
11Triceratops, The Classic Three-Horned Dino
Makes Arduous Berry Gathering A Thing Of The Past
Easily one of the most recognizable, well-loved, and classic dinosaurs, the Triceratops is a fantastic dino in both theearly and mid stages ofARK: Survival Ascended. To tame creatures,players require various materials, including narcoberries, which are gathered from bushes. Gathering berries by hand is a long, arduous process, especially when narcoberries seem to have a much lower harvest rate than some other berries.
The Triceratops has a fantastic berry gathering rate, gathering a much higher number of berries in one click. On top of this, their weight allows them to gather hundreds of berries without being over-encumbered. As well as being an efficient berry-gatherer, a high-level Triceratops can be a decent way of farming Alpha Raptors for levels and loot in the beginning, thanks to their increased defense from the front.
10Castoroides, The Giant Beaver
An All-Rounded, Wood Chopping Machine
The Castoroides, a giant beaver, is an extremely versatile mount with many uses, with its most effective job being a wood-gatherer. However, due to its ability to half the weight of any wood, stone, fiber, and thatch in its inventory, the Castoroides can also act as a good pack-mule for material runs. Additionally, the Castoroides is one of few dinosaurs with a unique saddle that allows the player tocraft and repair gearon the go, acting as a mobile smithy.
As if all of this wasn’t enough, the giant beaver has a good swimming speed, out-matching most wild dinos. This swim speed makes the Castoroides a decent travel mount, especially in rivers, allowing the player to get around quickly and safely.
9Basilosaurus, The Gentle Whale
Makes Water Caves A Piece Of Cake
The Basilosaurus is a gentle giant of the sea, often seen surrounded by mantas. Tamed through passive methods, the player will need to clear out the Basilo’s entourage of dinos before trying to tame it.
After taming a Basilo, the player will no longer need to fear the Electrophorus and Cnidaria haunting the ocean, making the whale a must-have tame for clearing the underwater caves. As well as being immune to stuns and dismounts, the Basilosaurus provides the player with insulation, keeping the survivor warm in cold seas.
8Thylacoleo, The Tree Cat
Brilliant For Shredding High-HP Opponents
The Thylacoleo is one of the best land mounts inARK: Survival Ascended. The tree cat’s great damage, solid health pool, and brilliant movement speed are thoroughly outmatched by most wild dinos, especially as the Thyla can scale mountains, cliff-edges,and traverse the mapwith ease.
Furthermore, the Thyla’s 5% max health bleed enables the player to face down tough opponents such as the Alpha Carno, and at higher levels, even Alpha Rex. The bleed is so potent that well-bred Thylas can even be used in groups to take down huge dinosaurs like the Titanosaur.
7Megatherium, The Giant Sloth
An Insect’s Worst Nightmare
The Megatherium is known as the best dino for taking out the Broodmother, a horrifying spider boss inARK: Survival Ascended, due to its rage mode, which is triggered after killing an insect. Whilst enraged, the Megatherium deals increased damage and reduces incoming damage.
Even a pack of non-bred, high-level Megatherium with base saddles should be able to take out the Beta-level Broodmother with ease, allowing players to farm for Tek recipes and fragments. The Megatherium’s buff against insects also makes it the perfect candidate for clearing out the swamp cave, which is overrun by deadly, high-level insects.
6Doedicurus, The Stone Gatherer
Smashes Rocks With Ease
The Doedicurus has one job and one job only: gather stone and be incredibly good at it. It’s safe to say it smashes this task, making the slow process of gathering stone a thing of the past once the player successfully tames a Doedic.
As well as being an amazing stone-gatherer, the Doedic has the additional benefit of reducing the weight of carried stone by 75%, allowing the player to embark on huge stone-gathering missions with ease. While the Doedic is slow, it does have a rolling ability that drains stamina but allows it to move around a little quicker. Alternatively, the player can pick up their Doedic with an Argentavis for even faster gathering.
5Ankylosaurus, The Metal Gatherer
A Must-Have Dino For Metal Runs
The metal-collecting variant of the Doedicurus, the Ankylosaurus is an extremely effective metal gatherer, gathering more metal from a single node than other methods, as well as reducing the total weight of carried metal by 85%.
On top of being an effective metal-gathering dino, the Anky is quite good at obtaining flint, obsidian, oil, and crystal, too, thanks to its pick-like tail. The best method of gathering metal with the Anky is to pick it up with an Argentavis and allow it to passively harvest from metal nodes, as both dinos reduce the total weight of carried metal.
4Therizinosaurus, The Big Clawed Chicken
The Champion Of Gathering Materials
The Therizinosaurus is a goofy, long-nailed, bird-like terror with insane gathering rates and high damage. As one of the few aggressive herbivores on the Ark, the Theri is not to be approached unless the player has a strong mount and even stronger courage.
Excelling at multiple types of gathering, including chitin/ keratin and organic polymer, the Theri is an amazing mid to late-game mount. In addition to its incredibly high gather rates, the Therizinosaurus is one of the best dino options for clearing the Dragon, anARK: Survival Ascendedboss, as it is unaffected by the Dragons' special passive which deals greater damage to carnivores.
3Argentavis, The Jack Of All Trades Flier
Excellent For Traversing The Island
The Argentavis is arguably the best creature on The Island inARK: Survival Ascendeddue to its flexibility as a mount. Able to pick up and carry most medium creatures, including the Thylacoleo, the Argie makes the taming of these dinos incredibly easy.
On top of being an effective dino-collector, the Argentavis can carry both the Doedicurus and Ankylosaurus, fly them over rocks, and let the two dinosaurs passively gather the materials from metal nodes and rocks. Furthermore, the unique saddle type of the Argentavis allows the player to repair gear on the go.
2Yutyrannus, The Fluffy Rex
Provides Incredible Buffs For Allies
There’s nothing worse than traversing the already dangerous snowy landscape and hearing the roar of a Yutyrannus nearby. Spawning primarily in the snow biome, the fluffy cousin of the Rex is a fantastic battle dinosaur that buffs its allies while applying huge debuffs to its enemies.
With an equal base health stat to the Rex and a small damage difference, the fluffy dinosaur can be used as a strong, supportive dino during boss fights, buffing the chosen army of dinosaurs with massive boosts to their damage output, while reducing incoming damage by a large margin.
