Progression in ARK: Survival Ascended runs entirely on resources — and knowing where to find them and how to farm them efficiently is what separates a struggling solo from a thriving tribe. This guide covers where the key resources are, the best tames to gather each one, and how to set up efficient farming runs.
The key resources and where to find them
- Metal — the backbone of mid-game gear. Found in darker rocks with shiny veins, concentrated on mountains and rocky highlands.
- Crystal — needed for electronics, scopes and saddles; on mountain peaks and in caves.
- Obsidian — for advanced gear and polymer; high mountains and caves.
- Oil — underwater nodes, oil rocks in the snow and desert biomes, and oil veins; used for gasoline and polymer.
- Silica Pearls — clustered on the ocean floor and in some caves; essential for electronics.
- Cementing Paste — made from chitin/keratin + stone, or harvested from beaver dams.
The best farming tames
- Ankylosaurus — mines metal, crystal and obsidian far faster than a pick and reduces their weight in its inventory. The single most important farming tame.
- Argentavis — carries the Anky to mountain nodes and reduces the weight of ore it holds, so you haul huge loads home. The classic metal engine is an Anky + Argent.
- Doedicurus — the best stone farmer, and rolls into a defensive ball.
- Therizinosaurus — a superb all-rounder for wood, fibre, berries, thatch and meat.
- Castoroides (Beaver) — top wood farmer and a mobile smithy.
- Dunkleosteus / Megalodon — underwater for oil and pearls.
Run an efficient circuit
Map your map’s richest nodes and run a repeatable loop: fly the Anky in on the Argent, strip the metal cluster, and fly home before the nodes respawn. Keep a Forge running while you farm so raw metal becomes ingots as you go. Use our ARK interactive resource maps to filter node types and plan the route.
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