Going for Platinum! (Without commands)

[Scram_Rotten]

As the title says, me and a few friends will be going at this Platinum the gamer way for the next few weeks or months. Taking it easy, getting the server all ready to be our up-coming home, I'll try update our adventures as the time goes on ? Any tips on what Dinosaurs to tame or things to craft will be appreciated!

[Mesopithecus]

Assuming that you'll be playing on the Island - then for bosses Megatheriums are great for the Broodmother, Tek Rexes for the Megapithecus and ascension cave; and Therizinos for the Dragon.  Make sure to also bring along a Yutyrannus for buffing, and a Daeodon for healing.

 

For crafting, aside from making sure you have a base of operations, then good armor and weapons are also essentials for the boss fights along with different soups for cooling effects.  Good quality saddles are also a priority to increase the survivability of your tames in the fights - best to look for saddle blueprints and craft them.  Your hardest blueprint to find will likely be for a rex saddle.

 

For taming, you'll want to be crafting narcotic, kibble, tranq arrows/darts and a crossbow or longneck - I recommend checking out a website called dododex which will be your go-to for taming information.

 

For the caves to find the artifacts, you'll likely want a Sabertooth or Thylacoleo for the land caves and a Mosasaur for the water cave.  Also bring along an otter as they can hold multiple of the same artifact.  You'll want some general utility dinosaurs too for collecting resources.

 

As you're playing with friends, I recommend that everyone has a specialist role - builder, tamer, breeder etc.  I'd probably look into some videos on breeding and how to get the best stats on your dinosaurs.  As you're presumably hosting your own server, I recommend tweaking the breeding settings so that it doesn't take 3 days to fully raise a tek rex to maturity.

 

Starting out, I'd suggest doing the Island note run as that can increase your level significantly - which will be a blocker for crafting, joining boss fights, collecting artifacts etc.

 

 

If you plan on playing on the other maps, then obviously my suggestions would change a little as it will open up other tames for you.  I do want to mention I've had better experiences finding higher level tames on Ragnarok, Valguero and Center (all free maps)

 

In addition to what I've mentioned, the wiki is a wonderful source of information:  https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/ARK_Survival_Evolved_Wiki

 

Obviously, if you want to go beyond the platinum, then the paid DLCs are a wonderful source of hours and hours of content.  I'd probably skip Scorched Earth, but Aberration, Extinction and Genesis 1 & 2 all offer some unique challenges - plus there is the story and lore to follow along with.  There are plenty of free DLCs too, I mentioned Ragnarok, Center and Valguero but there is also Crystal Isles, Lost Island and Fjordur - I cannot really comment much about these latter three as I've not personally played them, but I hear Fjordur in particular is fantastic.

 

I hope that information is somewhat helpful, it's always nice to see someone wanting to experience the game for what it is.  

Edited November 25, 2022 by Mesopithecus