Can You Tame Alphas in Ark: Survival Evolved and Ark: Survival Ascended?

The short, direct answer is: officially, no, you cannot tame Alpha creatures in Ark: Survival Evolved (ASE) or Ark: Survival Ascended (ASA) through normal gameplay. Alphas are designed to be formidable challenges, powerful adversaries that test a survivor’s skills and provide valuable resources upon defeat. Taming them would fundamentally break the game balance, making their power readily available to players and hindering progression by denying other players access to necessary trophies for boss fights.

Understanding Alpha Creatures in Ark

Alpha creatures are larger, stronger, and significantly more aggressive versions of their regular counterparts. They are easily identified by a fiery aura around them, making them instantly recognizable even at a distance. They drop unique trophies upon defeat, which are crucial for accessing boss arenas and advancing through the game.

Alpha dinosaurs are generally considered untamable because:

• Game Balance: Taming an alpha would grant players an extremely powerful asset that can unbalance the game.
• Trophies: Alpha creatures drop essential trophies needed to fight bosses. Taming them would deprive other players of access to these resources.
• Designed as a Challenge: Alpha creatures are implemented to provide a high-level challenge for experienced survivors.

Methods That Do Allow Alpha “Taming”

While official, in-game mechanics do not permit the standard taming of Alpha creatures, there are a few methods through which players can gain control of them:

Console Commands/Admin Commands

The primary method for acquiring tamed Alpha creatures is through the use of console commands or admin commands. These commands can be used in single-player mode or on servers where the player has administrative privileges.

• forcetame Command: By using the forcetame command while targeting an Alpha creature, you can instantly tame it, gaining full control. This command completely bypasses the normal taming process.
• summon Command: Additionally, specific Alpha variants can be summoned into the game via the summon command. This can then be followed by forcetame to gain control.

These commands essentially bypass the limitations of normal gameplay, which are designed to prevent such taming.

Mods

The other method for taming Alphas is through the use of specific modifications (mods). These mods are created by the community and add new features to the game, including altered taming mechanics for Alpha creatures.

• Tamable Alpha Mods: These mods usually modify the game’s core mechanics, allowing for passive or even traditional KO taming of alpha creatures. Often these mods have their own unique mechanics surrounding Alpha taming.

These mods often involve higher level requirements, rare items, or other unique constraints to still provide a challenge within the game.

Why Alphas are NOT Meant to be Tamed

The game designers have specifically made Alpha creatures untamable for these critical reasons:

• Maintaining Difficulty: Alpha creatures serve as a benchmark for survivor progression. They are intended to present a challenge that requires strategic combat, good equipment, and teamwork for victory.
• Resource Control: The unique trophies dropped by Alphas are crucial for battling the game’s bosses and advancing through the storylines. Taming them would eliminate the incentive to hunt and fight them, disrupting game progression.
• Gameplay Experience: Alphas add a level of excitement, terror, and the potential for unique interaction. Taming them and converting them into simple tools would detract from this core experience.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Here are 15 Frequently Asked Questions to further clarify the topic:

1. Can you tame an Alpha Raptor?

No, an Alpha Raptor cannot be tamed through normal in-game mechanics. They are designed as a formidable challenge. You would have to use admin commands like “forcetame” or certain mods to gain control of an Alpha Raptor.

2. Are Alpha creatures tamable on official servers?

No, Alpha creatures are not tamable on official servers through normal gameplay. You cannot tame them with tranquilizers or by feeding them as you would regular creatures.

3. Can you tranq an Alpha Raptor?

Yes, you can knock out an Alpha Raptor using tranquilizer darts or arrows, but it will require a very large quantity, typically over 200 tranq darts. It’s far more effective to use high damage weaponry to kill them. They will still not be tamable when knocked out.

4. How do you tame an Alpha Wolf?

You cannot tame an Alpha Wolf in the standard game. As with other Alpha creatures, you’d need to use console commands or a mod that alters the rules of taming. The myth that Alpha Wolves can be tamed through feeding is incorrect.

5. Can you tame an Alpha Shark (Megalodon)?

No, a Megalodon Alpha cannot be tamed using standard methods. Similar to other Alphas, it’s designed to be a challenging creature that is primarily used for resource farming after it is killed. Admin commands or modifications are required for “taming” an Alpha Megalodon.

6. What is an Alpha creature in Ark?

An Alpha creature is a larger, stronger, and more aggressive version of normal creatures. They are characterized by a fiery red aura and possess increased health, damage, and overall stats. They drop unique resources like trophies.

7. Why can’t I tame an Alpha creature?

Alpha creatures are specifically designed to be untamable to maintain game balance and progression. Taming them would provide an unfair advantage and hinder resource progression through boss fights.

8. Can you use Kibble to tame Alpha creatures?

No, Kibble cannot be used to tame Alpha creatures using standard methods. Kibble is only useful for regular creatures. The methods to control Alphas are admin commands or mods that specifically alter those parameters.

9. Do Alpha creatures respawn?

Yes, Alpha creatures do respawn, though their locations and timings are typically random. You will have to continue the hunt if you want to get multiple trophies for boss fights.

10. Can you pick up an Alpha Raptor with an Argentavis?

No, you cannot pick up an Alpha Raptor with an Argentavis or any other flyer. This is a feature intended to prevent alpha creatures from being easily exploited.

11. Does a bear trap work on Alpha creatures?

No, bear traps will not trigger on Alpha creatures. They were designed to only work on regular dinos.

12. What is the purpose of Alpha Trophies?

Alpha Trophies are required to access boss arenas. They are used in different combinations to open the doors that leads to the boss fights.

13. Can you ride a tamed Alpha T-Rex?

Yes, if an Alpha T-Rex is force tamed through console commands, it can be ridden. Wild ones will not have the same properties.

14. How many tranq arrows does it take to kill an Alpha Raptor?

It can take upwards of 200 tranquilizer arrows to kill an Alpha Raptor but this isn’t recommended. It’s more effective to use weapons with high damage.

15. Can you tame a legendary animal in Ark?

No, legendary animals are not tamable in standard gameplay. Only through admin commands or mods can you have control of them. They were designed to be end game bosses, not creatures that can be tamed.

Conclusion

In conclusion, while the idea of taming an Alpha creature might be appealing, it is important to understand that they are designed to be powerful, untamable challenges in Ark: Survival Evolved and Ark: Survival Ascended. This design choice ensures game balance, resource progression, and ultimately, an engaging gameplay experience. Only through admin commands or mods can one truly “tame” them, otherwise they remain a high-level challenge for survival on the Ark.