Ark Survival Evolved Starter [Our Expert’s Opinion] For Beginners

Ark Survival Evolved is a survival-based game released in 2017, and it involves the player having to rely on their survival instincts and skills while stranded on an island. The island features harmful enemies like dinosaurs that can obliterate the player, and it is up to the Ark player to figure out ways to survive and not die out in the wild. Our Ark Survival Evolved Starter Guide will uncover a basic guide that will help new players! If you are having issues choosing maps in the game, our best Ark Survival Evolved Map guide will help you out!

Hosting Servers 

When Ark players start the game, they’ll find a “Host/Local” option on the loading screen. This allows you to create an Ark server. You can either play alone in single-player mode, create your server for friends, or join random worlds.

For Ark beginners, it’s advised to join an existing server to learn the game’s dynamics instead of relying on a private server.

Joining an Ark 

To join an Ark server:

1. Go to the Ark screen.
2. Look for the “Official servers” option.
3. Select it to see verified and safe servers.

Beginners can also:

• Choose a specific map to spawn in different regions.
• Opt for game mode difficulty (Easy, Medium, Hard).
• For the best Ark Survival Evolved start, Medium is recommended.

Additionally, consider ping for a smooth experience. Select a server with the lowest ping to avoid lag and connectivity problems.

Character Creation Screen 

Subsequently, as you choose your Ark servers, the next thing that the game will introduce to you will be your character in Ark, which is completely customizable. You can choose your gender, skin tone, head size, torso size, arms, legs, eye color, hair color, and more. Character creation is crucial as it affects how other players perceive you on the server. Feel free to experiment with body shape and hair color for a unique look.

Spawn Region 

Next up, newer players in Survival Evolved should also consider researching if they want to load into servers that are harder in terms of survivability or if they want to stick to the easier end. 

We recommend spawning into servers on the easiest difficulty mode, the main reason being that if you are a complete beginner, it will be hell trying to figure out the controls, making your base and survive all at the same time in a tougher server. 

Ark players can also choose “South, West, East, and North” zones, including the different difficulty modes. 

Spawning in The Server 

Congratulations on spawning in an Ark server! Here’s what to do next:

1. Observe your surroundings to identify your location and nearby animals.
2. Press “I” to open your inventory.
3. Start crafting essential items for survival.
   • Prioritize crafting picks and torches.
   • These tools will help you gather resources, hunt animals, and create campfires, vital for your survival in Ark Survival Evolved.

Pickaxe Creation 

To craft a pickaxe in Ark Survival Evolved:

1. Collect the necessary materials: 1 stone, 10 thatch, and 1 piece of wood.
   • Gather stone by approaching any nearby stone and pressing “E” to add it to your inventory.
   • Obtain thatch and wood by interacting with taller trees. Click the left mouse button to punch the tree, which will yield wood and thatch, adding them to your inventory.
2. Return to your crafting list and double-click on the Pick to craft it.

Engrams 

The next thing players should know about is Engrams in Ark.

They are blueprints containing recipes for crafting various items, including torches, armor, and building materials like doors, walls, and frames. These blueprints also specify the required crafting materials.

To begin, follow this Starter Guide:

1. Access “Engrams” and look under “Beginner Items.”
2. Select the “Stone Hatchet,” a farming weapon.
3. Spend your points to acquire the blueprint.
4. Consider investing in a spear and a campfire for survival as well.

Hotbar 

Next up, players are also free to add stuff to their Hotbar, and they can customize which number they want to use for each item placement. In this example, use the Pick and place it on number three, after which the player can simply click on “3”, and they will be able to wield the Pick. 

With the Ark pick, they can go to any nearby tree and mine it to get wood and thatch and grindstones to get flint and shards, which can be used for crafting other items. 

Getting Basic Armor

To acquire basic armor:

1. Crafting Armor:
   • Crafting armor will earn you points.
   • Spend these points on armor blueprints, which include a basic shirt, pants, arm wraps, and a hat.
2. Unlocking Blueprints:
   • After spending points on armor blueprints, you’ll gain access to items like cloth pants, a cloth shirt, cloth gloves, boots, and a hat.
   • This basic armor offers minimum protection but is sufficient initially.
3. Gathering Fiber:
   • To craft this armor, gather fiber pieces.
   • Approach nearby trees and hold the “E” button to harvest them.
   • Collect both fiber and berries from tree leaves for crafting.
4. Advancing Armor:
   • As you progress in Ark on easy mode, you’ll need “Hide” for better armor pieces.
   • To obtain Hide, kill small, non-aggressive animals like Dodo birds.
   • Approach a Dodo bird, as it won’t harm you.
   • Use your spear to pierce it until it dies and collect the Hide for crafting armor.

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Dying and Respawning 

Dying and Respawning:

1. High Risk of Death:
   • Players can easily die upon spawning due to choosing a challenging spawn location or lacking survival knowledge.
2. Threats from Dangerous Animals:
   • Another risk is getting hunted by dangerous animals like dinosaurs in the open world.
3. Respawning:
   • If you die, you can respawn at a random location.
4. Recovery:
   • Lucky players may find a green beam that helps them return to their previous death location to retrieve lost items.

Gathering Materials 

The next important tip our Starter guide players should know is how to get meat and hunt animals. You will also need to understand how to use different weapons to get other materials from the same animals. 

If beginner players in Ark Survival Evolved want to get meat, then you should use a Pick for hunting down harmless animals. However, if you’re going to get your hands on crafting materials like hiding, the best weapon to get that is a Hatchet. 

Making a Campfire 

Campfires are yet another important aspect of survival, and our Starter Guide can certainly not afford to miss out on mentioning them!

To create a campfire in Ark Survival Evolved:

1. Blueprint:
   • Obtain the campfire blueprint.
2. Placement:
   • Place the campfire in a suitable location, away from water and animals.
3. Fuel:
   • Gather wood and thatch by chopping down trees. These can be used as fuel for the campfire.
4. Cooking:
   • To cook meat obtained from hunting animals in Ark, drag and drop it into the campfire cooking pot.

Making a Base

After cooking basic food, the next thing to worry about is making a base. You can get blueprints from the Engrams, and the most important items will be listed below: 

• Thatchet Foundation 
• Thatchet Ceiling 
• Thatchet Wall 
• Thatchet Doorframe 
• Thatchet Door 
• Storage box 
• Thatchet Wall 
• Sleeping bag 

After finding the correct materials for the blueprints, players in Ark will require one foundation, three walls, one doorframe, one door, and one ceiling, which will all be enough to make a proper structure inside which you can reside. 

Sleeping Bag 

Having a sleeping bag in Ark Survival Evolved is crucial for several reasons:

1. Respawning:
   • Respawning is essential because you may die multiple times, losing progress and crafted items with each death.
2. Progress Preservation:
   • Sleeping in your Ark sleeping bag allows you to respawn at your bed location, preserving your progress even after death.

This helps you avoid the hassle of crafting important items like your base and weapons repeatedly.

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Storage Box

The storage box is a fundamental item, particularly for beginners:

1. Inventory Management:
   • Carrying too many items in your inventory can reduce mobility and make you vulnerable to attacks by animals.
2. Usage:
   • Place the storage box in your base, preferably next to your sleeping bag.
   • Use it to store items such as berries, raw meat, spare armor, spear weaponry, and anything else that is unnecessary to carry around and contributes to your weight.

This allows you to keep your inventory organized and ensures you can move freely without being encumbered.

Slingshot 

As you progress, you may encounter larger animals that can’t be easily taken down with spears or picks. To deal with them, you’ll need a slingshot:

1. Slingshot Usage:
   • The slingshot allows you to attack animals from a distance.
   • It uses stones as ammo.
2. Torpor Effect:
   • When you attack animals with the slingshot, it inflicts torpor on them.
   • Torpor is a measure of an animal’s unconsciousness or sedation level in the game.

The slingshot is useful for taming and dealing with larger creatures that require a more strategic approach.

You can also tame Ark Survival Evolved Crystal Wyverns with a bit of research from our guide!

Taming Animals 

Last but not least, players will also need to tame animals, and the best way to do that is to continue using their slingshot in Ark Survival Evolved and aim at the animal until it falls unconscious. 

Remember that the animal you are aiming for will have an unconscious meter and a torpidity meter. Ensure the torpidity meter gets full before the unconscious meter goes down.

You can use berries to tame the animal and then control it. With that, we will wrap up our Starter Guide; we hope you liked it! Make sure to check out our Ark Survival Evolved Best Single Player Settings guide!

Photo Credit: RoyalewithCheese