Most of Palworld’s Technology Tree unlocks itself as you level up, paid for with the ordinary Technology Points you bank every level. But the most powerful gear in the game sits behind a second, much scarcer currency: Ancient Technology Points. These are the points that gate the Egg Incubator, the Pal Sphere launchers, grappling guns and other late-game essentials. You can’t earn them by grinding levels, so knowing exactly where they come from and what to spend them on first saves a lot of wasted effort.
What Are Ancient Technology Points?
Open your Technology Tree and you’ll notice two colors of recipe. The standard recipes use blue icons and cost regular Technology Points earned from leveling. Off to the side sits a column of purple recipes, the Ancient Technology branch. These can only be unlocked by spending Ancient Technology Points, a separate pool you accumulate through specific feats rather than passive progression. Because the supply is finite and tied to one-time events, every point matters, and you should treat the purple column as a priority list rather than something to fill in casually.
Where Ancient Technology Points Come From
There are a handful of reliable sources, and most of them are one-time rewards. Defeating or capturing the same boss a second time gives you loot and EXP but no further Ancient Technology Points, so the only way to grow your pool through combat is to find new targets.
- Alpha Pals (field bosses): Each Alpha Pal you defeat or capture for the first time grants one Ancient Technology Point. They are scattered across the world map and marked on it, so exploring new regions is the main way to keep this stream flowing.
- Tower Bosses: The named human bosses guarding the large towers (such as Zoe & Grizzbolt and the other faction leaders) each grant five Ancient Technology Points the first time you beat them. With seven towers, that is up to thirty-five points from tower fights alone, the single largest chunk available.
- Bounties: Added in the Feybreak update, Bounties function as human “Alpha” targets. Defeating or capturing one for the first time grants an Ancient Technology Point, giving later-game players a fresh source after the towers are cleared.
- Ancient Technical Manuals: This is a consumable book that grants one Ancient Technology Point when used. It cannot be crafted or bought from merchants; it appears in chests, primarily in Wildlife Sanctuaries and higher-level dungeons. Because those chests respawn over time, manuals are the closest thing to a renewable, farmable source of points.
| Source | Points (first time) | Repeatable? |
|---|---|---|
| Alpha Pal (field boss) | 1 | No, per Pal |
| Tower Boss | 5 | No, per tower |
| Bounty (Feybreak) | 1 | No, per bounty |
| Ancient Technical Manual | 1 per book | Yes, via respawning chests |
How to Farm Them Efficiently
Early on, your points come almost entirely from exploration. Hunt down Alpha Pals as you uncover new biomes, and prioritize the towers as soon as your team can handle them, since five points per tower is a huge return for a single fight. Capturing an Alpha rather than killing it earns the same point while also adding a strong Pal to your roster, so a Pal Sphere is rarely wasted here.
Once you’ve cleared the obvious bosses, Ancient Technical Manuals become your steady drip. They turn up in chests inside Wildlife Sanctuaries and the tougher mid-to-late dungeons, especially in the harder biomes. Sanctuaries are high-level, heavily guarded zones, so come prepared with a capable mount and combat Pals before you start looting. Running dungeon chests and revisiting sanctuaries after they reset is the most consistent long-term method, and it stacks neatly with Bounty hunting once Feybreak content is available.
What to Spend Ancient Technology Points On First
With a limited pool, the order you unlock things matters far more than in the blue tree. These are the priorities most players will get the most value from, listed roughly by how early and how impactful they are. Exact point costs have shifted slightly between patches, so treat the figures below as guidance and confirm the current cost in your own Technology Tree before committing.
- Egg Incubator (unlocks around level 7): The single most important early purple unlock. Without it you can’t hatch the Pal eggs you collect from the world or breed yourself, which means no access to better Pals, passives or rarer species. Make this your first Ancient Technology purchase. Note that its point cost has been listed differently across versions, so check it in-game.
- Grappling Gun (around level 12): A cheap, transformative mobility tool that lets you zip up cliffs and across gaps. The later Mega Grappling Gun extends the range. For the cost of roughly one point, the traversal upgrade pays for itself constantly.
- Pal Sphere launchers (higher levels, around the late 20s): These fire Pal Spheres at range, with advanced versions that scatter multiple spheres or home in on targets, dramatically improving your capture rate against fast or distant Pals. They are among the most expensive purple unlocks (several points each), so save for them once the essentials are handled.
- Quality-of-life tools: The Feed Bag (auto-feeds your active Pals from your inventory), the Hip Lantern (hands-free light in caves and at night) and the Pal Essence Condenser (the bench used to condense duplicate Pals into stronger versions) are all worthwhile mid-game buys once your incubator and mobility are sorted.
Note that personal Pal mounts and saddles are generally crafted at the Pal Gear Workbench using ordinary Technology Points, not from the purple Ancient Technology column, so don’t expect to spend your scarce points there. The Ancient Technology branch is about tools and capture power, not riding gear. If you’re working toward an optimized roster, pair these unlocks with our Palworld Perfect Pal Guide: IVs, Passives, Condensing & Souls and the Palworld Pal Souls Guide to make the most of the Pals you capture.
Fitting It Into Your Progression
Ancient Technology Points are a pacing mechanic as much as a currency. Beating towers ahead of schedule front-loads your points, while sanctuary and dungeon runs keep them trickling in afterward. If you’re unsure when to tackle each boss or which systems to chase next, our broader Palworld Progression Guide: What to Do in the Right Order lays out a sensible route. And since towers and sanctuaries are some of the toughest fights in the game, the Pals you farm there are worth protecting, our Palworld Base Defense Guide covers keeping your roster safe at home.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can you farm Ancient Technology Points infinitely?
Boss-based points are one-time only, you get nothing extra for re-killing an Alpha or Tower Boss. The closest thing to an infinite source is Ancient Technical Manuals, which drop from chests in Wildlife Sanctuaries and dungeons that respawn over time, so you can keep collecting them on repeated runs.
What should I unlock first with Ancient Technology Points?
The Egg Incubator should be your first purchase. It’s the gateway to hatching and breeding Pals, which underpins most mid- and late-game progression. After that, the Grappling Gun for mobility and the Pal Sphere launchers for capturing are the highest-value picks.
Do mounts and saddles cost Ancient Technology Points?
Generally no. Riding saddles are crafted using regular Technology Points at the Pal Gear Workbench. The purple Ancient Technology branch is focused on tools, capture equipment and quality-of-life gear rather than mounts, so save your scarce points for those.
Clearing towers, raiding sanctuaries and hunting bounties is a lot more fun with a crew. If you’d rather grind these bosses alongside friends on an always-on world, you can spin up a Palworld dedicated server to play together without one person having to stay online. For configuration help, our Palworld server setup docs walk through it, and if you’re new to co-op, see our Palworld Guild & Co-op Guide: Playing With Friends.
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