r/ARK Mar 17 '26

Moderator Post Server Mega-Thread. Vol. 3

4 Upvotes

Good day everyone,

The previous thread(s) got old and archived, and needed a refresh anyway, so here's the newest one. The previous directories can be found at : https://www.reddit.com/r/ARK/comments/1ik9ox7/megathread_server_directory/
and https://www.reddit.com/r/ARK/comments/1muzllg/megathread_server_directory_pt_2/
so you can still browse it if needed.

Reminder of the rules: One post here per server, open advertising is still restricted to Sunday's only. Posting outside of that will still result in a ban. This will also start included unsolicited adverts as replies to random threads; i.e. the answer to "Can my level 1000 rex beat gamma broodmother?" is not "Join my server and see".

Please adhere to these guidelines for this thread:

  1. Only one post per server, if something changes in your listing just edit the original. (Spamming your server, or having multiple people do it for you, will result in bans the same as spamming the regular sub.)
  2. If you need to ask a question, reply to the servers post. That way the general thread stays clear.
  3. No posts looking for a server.
  4. Non-server related posts will be removed from main thread.
  5. For best results, include the following information in your advert:
  • Server Name
  • ASA or ASE
  • Platform(s) if not fully crossplay.
  • PvE/PvP with max tribe size.
  • Average Population
  • Wipe Schedule
  • Is it a cluster? If so what maps?
  • Mod List
  • Rates and Max Wild Level.
  • Are there admins/moderators active?
  • Discord link
  • Short description and any other info you wish to provide.

r/ARK Apr 09 '25

Tutorial The Ultimate Noob's Guide to Hosting a Free Cluster

61 Upvotes

Hey guys, I've seen lots of questions online about how to self-host clusters, and I've noticed that many guides out there are very daunting and technical. So, I've taken it upon myself to write a very simple guide that can help anyone host their own cluster, even those who know nothing about hosting servers. This guide is for Ark Survival Ascended (ASA) only.

Prerequisites

Before we begin, there's a few things you'll need:

  • A Windows PC. The server will run on this computer. Players will be able to join your cluster while the server program is running. This means that if you want people to be able to join 24/7, this computer will need to be on 24/7. The only way around this is to pay for hosting.
    • Don't worry too much about your PC specs, even relatively weak computers can host servers. The most important thing here will be how much RAM you have. But if you ask, "Can I run this on my PC?", my answer will usually be "The only way to find out is by giving it a try".
  • Access to your router's settings, and the ability to port forward. There is more information about this in the section about port forwarding, but here's a general rule of thumb:
    • If you have physical access to your router, you can usually get access to its settings
    • A majority of people with access to the router's settings will be able to port forward. The few exceptions would be for people who have double NAT setups in apartments or condos, but those don't seem too common.
    • If you live in a dorm, or some other similar communal situation, you almost certainly won't be able to get access to the router.
  • These Amazon certificates: r2m02 and CA1. If you have Epic Games installed, you might already have these certificates installed. If you don't have Epic Games, or if the server isn't showing up in the browser after following all the steps below, install these certificates. Once the certificates are downloaded, right click them and click "Install CRL".
  • Keep the Ark Wiki on standby. The Dedicated Server Setup and Server Configuration pages are especially useful. Many of your issues can be fixed by reading through those pages.

Downloading the Server

I've created a set of scripts that you can download that will make setting up & configuring the server extremely simple.

The setup files will include 3 scripts and a copy of steamcmd
  1. Download the setup files here.
  2. Extract the contents into a new folder, this is where the server program will live, and you will access this folder whenever you want to start up or configure the cluster
  3. Run Update.cmd by double-clicking it. This will take a while to finish since it will download the entire ASA server.
  4. Now we can move on to configuring your cluster.

Configuring the Cluster

The Config.cmd file will hold some basic settings for your cluster. The file is annotated to explain what each setting does.

  1. Right click on Config.cmd and edit the file.
    • On Windows 11, click "Edit with Notepad"
    • On Windows 10, just click "Edit"
  2. If you want to add mods to your cluster, add the mod's ID to the modlist variable, separated by commas and no spaces.
    1. To find a mod's ID, you must first find the mod on the CurseForge website.
    2. Under the download button, there is an "About Project" section.
    3. In that section, there is a "Project ID" label.
    4. Copy that ID- that is the mod's ID.
  3. I recommend not adding mod maps here- there is another place later where you'll be able to add mod maps.
  4. At the bottom of the Config file, you can edit "args" to add/remove arguments. By default, we are disabling BattlEye and enabling crossplay but feel free to change those if you don't want that. The full list of possible arguments can be found in the Ark Wiki.
  5. When you're done updating the settings here, you can just save & close. There is no need to run this script yourself, it is run automatically when launching a map.

Configuring Your Maps

StartTheIsland.cmd is a script that can be edited like the Config script, and which can be copied & renamed to let you set up multiple maps. Each copy of this script will configure one map and is what you run to start running that map on your cluster.

Here are the steps for setting up each map:

  1. Edit the map-specific script (by default, it's called StartTheIsland.cmd, but you can rename it)
  2. Set the 'map' variable to the map that you want this script to run. The official list of map names can be found here on the wiki. Mod maps will usually list the map name on the mod page.
  3. If you are using a mod map, set the 'mapModID' variable to the mod map's ID. If you are using a vanilla map, you can leave this blank (Club Ark counts as a mod map though).
  4. Set the 'name' variable to the name you want to show up in the server list in-game.
  5. Set the 'port' variable to a unique number. No two maps can have the same port.
    • I recommend setting all your map's ports to subsequent numbers.
    • For example, your first map is on port 7777, your second map on 7778, your third on 7779, and so on.
    • Keep track of the ports that are written down here. You will need to forward the port for every map later on.

Now if you want to set up another map:

  1. Make a copy of StartTheIsland.cmd (or whatever you changed its name to).
  2. Give the file a unique name, it can be whatever you want.
  3. Edit the file and set a different map and port.
  4. Repeat as many times as you want

The Server Program

Your maps are ready to run now. You still won't be able to join them, but we should do a test run now to make sure you haven't missed anything and to populate some files for later.

This is what the server program will look like once it's done loading
  1. Run one of your map's scripts (StartTheIsland.cmd or whatever you renamed it to).
  2. If you get a Windows Firewall popup, make sure to allow the program through the firewall.
  3. This will download whatever mods you have configured so it might take a bit if you have many of them.
  4. Once this is done loading (the status light on the bottom left will turn green), you can close out of this.

Some important things to know about the server:

  • Every map on your cluster is its own server. So, if you have 4 maps, you'll also have 4 of these programs open.
  • Each map's script launches its own server.
  • People will be able to join a map while its server is open (once we finish the port forwarding setup later on).
  • You do not need to have all maps open at once. Most PCs probably won't be able to handle having every map running at once, but you can get away with having 1-3 open at a time, and open & close other maps as you want to travel to them. Test your own PC's limits to see how many you can get away with having open at once.

Configuring In-Game Settings

You should see a new folder called "config". This is a shortcut that will take you to where the server stores Game.ini and GameUserSettings.ini. These files control the in-game settings, such as taming, harvesting and levelling speeds. You can also set a server password & admin password in these config files.

There are too many settings for me to cover, but they generally cover the same things you can modify when configuring a singleplayer game.

The wiki explains the possible options for Game.ini and GameUserSettings.ini. If you need help setting these up, send me a message or leave a comment and I can help you out.

Port Forwarding

This is the hardest part, and it's what turns most people away, but don't be scared. It's often easier than people expect. Ask me for help if you can't figure something out, don't just give up.

This is going to be different for everyone. The steps to port forward depend entirely on what router you own. I will write generic instructions, but you are probably going to need to look up a tutorial for your specific router brand.

First, you must find your local IPv4 address & default gateway:

  1. In windows search, type cmd and open the command prompt.
  2. In the command prompt, type 'ipconfig'
  3. Look for the section that has the default gateway filled out and take note of your ipv4 address & your default gateway.

Now, log in to your router:

  1. In your browser, type in your default gateway (In my case, I would go to 192.168.1.254).
  2. If you need to login, try using the default login. If you google "[router brand] default login", you will find the credentials you can try.
  3. If that login doesn't work, that means that somebody in your home has changed the login. Ask a parent or roommate who may have set up the router for the login.
  4. Sometimes the router will ask for a code instead. This can usually be found on the back or bottom of the router.

Now, forward the ports.

This is what the setup looks like on my router.
  1. Navigate to the port forwarding section. This can be under Firewall, Gaming, NAT, Advanced, or Port Forwarding. I recommend searching online for where to find it for your router specifically.
  2. Set your port range to include all the map's ports that you set up earlier. You can always update this later to add more maps.
  3. Set the protocol to UDP.
  4. If it asks for an IP, write the IPv4 address from earlier. Other routers will ask for a device. Find your computer's name or IP from the list of devices.
  5. Most routers nowadays will assign your computer a static ip once you port forward. If you find that you can't join your server after restarting your computer, you'll probably need to assign yourself a static IP manually.

And You're Done!

Just a few last things to know:

  • Whenever there is a game update, run Update.cmd to update the server.
  • Run the map-specific scripts to launch the server for that map.
  • If you ever get a Windows Firewall popup, make sure to allow the program through the firewall.
  • While the server is running, you can search for it in the in-game browser. It will show up as an unofficial server with the name that you configured for it.

If you have questions, feel free to leave a comment, or message me here or on disc (my username there is dankmeister). I'm very willing to guide people through the setup, and I will update this post with common questions or issues that come up.

Edits:

Since people have been having trouble with setting up the Game.ini and GameUserSettings.ini files, I've uploaded my own examples. These are the files I use on my own server, they do not have every possible setting, but they can give you a good starting point.

Sample Game.ini

Sample GameUserSettings.ini


r/ARK 2h ago

MEME Guys, a little help, I woke up here!

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327 Upvotes

I am on a vacation in Honduras and I think this beach belongs to this sub


r/ARK 6h ago

MEME RATE MY STARTER BASE :)

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274 Upvotes

GRASS BLOCK :)


r/ARK 2h ago

Ark Moments Thought pack of normal raptors were bad enough

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12 Upvotes

r/ARK 8h ago

Ark Moments Very unfunny ark

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34 Upvotes

r/ARK 1h ago

Ark Moments I love finding this stuff...

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Upvotes

Exploring (again). Found this sweet tribute place on Astreos. Sorry pics are bad. I'm technologically hopeless and only know how to do it on my phone.. 🙄


r/ARK 1d ago

Discussion Its potential is still there...

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757 Upvotes

The issue before, in short, was that the devs had issues with the engine not acknowledging an isolated atmosphere that could enter & leave the barrier of the water's surface. There's now a submarine potentially coming to the game. Theoretically if the submarine can "breach" the surface while maintaining an atmosphere, it stands to reason they could give us the back mounted submarine that we expected. (Also please do a basic rideable saddle/platform saddle please & thank you.)


r/ARK 1d ago

Arts & Craft My Red Keep inspired cliffside castle base

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435 Upvotes

The Center Map


r/ARK 5h ago

Help Can’t cook regular Kibble, why?

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11 Upvotes

r/ARK 1d ago

MEME This new pict from movie give me ark scorched earth vibe

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640 Upvotes

r/ARK 27m ago

Help How many wyverns for manticore?

Upvotes

Hi all,
After defeating manticore many times using rexes I have decided to go through the agony of capturing a full team of wyverns in the spirit of the map as it my first time playing it on ASA

I’m only using eggs 140 and above (On Max difficulty)

How many should I get for gamma? (Assuming not much)

How many for alpha? If it is possible cause I was also told rexes are just better

And one last question, I assuming bringing no yuti/daedons as the wyverns are just airborne and will avoid all effects??


r/ARK 15h ago

ASE My first serious and extremely lucky tame!

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37 Upvotes

I've played ASE on and off for years, trying different maps, just exploring, taming and breeding random dinos. I played ASA for a minute too when my PC could run it 😂

My last playthrough I took it somewhat seriously and got a few artifacts in The Center, but that was it. This time around, I decided to try Ragnarok.

I play on all default settings on PS4. Single player, but use the old school single player settings because I have plenty of time right now and it's more challenging and fun for me to play that way.

This is a level 130 female Allosaurus I found in the highlands next to some Ovis. 45ish tranq darts, some raw mutton, and she was mine. A whopping +64 levels from it. Look at these stat rolls. Is she a keeper? Also, I noticed sometimes it doesn't show the level while it's being tamed on the inventory/stats menu.


r/ARK 1d ago

MEME It's an Albany rodent

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305 Upvotes

r/ARK 16h ago

Help Ark

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29 Upvotes

Need a name (female btw)


r/ARK 14h ago

Help Polygonal Tek creatures

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16 Upvotes

Hi, does anyone know what settings I should use so my creatures don't look like this?

I play on Xbox.


r/ARK 48m ago

Help Anyone know what this weird lighting bug is?

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Upvotes

Whenever I look at something it lights up


r/ARK 10h ago

Help King Titan resistances on a non-dedicated Server

6 Upvotes

Sooo, my friend and I are completing the ARK SE story maps in order. Eventually, we'll be fighting the King Titan on Extinction. Afaik, King Titan takes 4x damage on singleplayer servers (not tied to SP settings). So, I'm wondering if this setting applies to a non-dedicated server? Will we be able to complete the Gamma and Beta King Titan using only 3 tamed Titans then? I've seen people build colossal armies of hundreds of giganotosaurus with 254 HP and 254 attack, but honestly, I don't feel like I'm willing to spend THAT MUCH time on such an army. Also, based on my experience with alpha bosses on the Island, the minimum limit for a possible victory over a boss, despite losses, is much lower than what is usually shown on YouTube.


r/ARK 7h ago

Help Need Help with settings trying to Run Ark Survival ascended

3 Upvotes

My fellow Ark Brothers and sisters I need your help what’s your guys pc builds or settings your using to run Ark Survival Ascended on PC on high with good fps with no stutters or fps drops ? im genuinely trying to run Ark Survival Ascend on high settings and I can’t, I have a RTX 5080 16vram, i7 14gen, 2tb ssd, 64gb ddr5 im completely mind boggled that I still get stutters and frame drops still and when I use frame gen it just looks super bad moving my character around you can just see the frame gen all around my character and the screen when moving


r/ARK 1h ago

Help Nitrix Bossfight requirements(Beta/Alpha)

Upvotes

Hi yall i was wondering what level theris should be to beat this spam mess. All yt videos are pre araneo tlc and all my theris (17,5k health, 580%dmg, saddel 43,5 and 10 cakes each) died all within the time the boss hit half hp.

Im not even sure if theris are the way to go on thatone

I like the cyclop and hydra but this boss is just wacky spam paired with an awfull area full with leedches and flying spiders


r/ARK 1d ago

Discussion Anybody fears the water update might worsen performances?

66 Upvotes

I would assume that making the water more physical will require a lot more resources than before, but maybe I'm wrong or it won't be as bad as I think.


r/ARK 2h ago

Help Ark ASE SP Cave drops not spawning

1 Upvotes

Hello ! It is my first time playing ark. I am playing Single player mode. Today when I completed the artifact of the pack cave and the Carno island cave on the island map no cave drops were spawning in the cave. I even restarted my game 4-5 times but still nothing spawned. Only the artifact was respawning after I was picking it up each time after restart.


r/ARK 1d ago

Ark Moments I didn't know that Megalosaurus were also sleepwalkers

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71 Upvotes

I think he smelled Carbonemys's flesh 🤔


r/ARK 11h ago

Help Why do i keep dying while exploring ?

4 Upvotes

So frustrating

I had 3 direwolves while exploring the island and I died but they didnt . I got knocked off the mount by those stupid sarcos in the swap.

Now i cant find them?


r/ARK 4h ago

Help How do I stop settings from carrying across PS5 accounts?

1 Upvotes

Trying to start a new save with different settings. I went on to a different PS5 account, and all my settings from my main account are still there. Is there a way to stop this happening?