Gathering Basics

New to Ark? Learn the essentials of gathering basic resources like berries, wood, stone, and meat. Essential for early survival and crafting!

Alright, so you've just woken up on the ARK and the first thing you'll need to do is get your hands dirty. Gathering is the absolute foundation of everything you'll do in this game, from crafting your first tools to building your first base. Let's break down the basics so you can start surviving. Think of gathering as your first job on the island. You'll be collecting a variety of materials from different sources. Here's a quick rundown of what you'll be looking for and where: Bushes: These are your go-to for early-game consumables and crafting ingredients. * Berries: You'll find a mix of berries like Mejoberry, Azulberry, Tintoberry, Amarberry, Narcoberry, and Stimberry. Each has its own use, so keep an eye on what you're picking! * Seeds: Alongside berries, you'll also get seeds for various plants, including the useful Rockarrot Seed, Citronal Seed, Longrass Seed, and Savoroot Seed. These are crucial for farming later on. * Fiber: Essential for crafting many early-game items, so grab all you can. Rocks: These give you the building blocks for tools and structures. * Stone, Metal, Flint, and Obsidian: You'll find these by hitting rock formations. Stone is plentiful, but Metal is key for progressing to better tools and gear. Remember, you'll need to smelt Metal into Metal Ingots using a Refining Forge for advanced crafting. Trees: Your primary source for wood and thatch. * Thatch and Wood: Basic building materials. You'll be chopping down trees constantly in the early game. Dinosaurs: Don't just see them as threats; they're also resource nodes! * Raw Meat and Hide: Harvested from most creatures. Essential for food and crafting. * Keratin: Some dinos provide this, similar to Hide. Always check what you can loot! * Chitin: You'll get this from specific creatures like the Pulmonoscorpius, Araneomorphus, Titanomyrma, Meganeura, and Trilobite. Using a hatchet on these will give you more Chitin, so keep that in mind! As you progress, you'll unlock better tools like the Metal Pick and Metal Hatchet, which will make gathering much more efficient. But for now, focus on these basics. Happy gathering!