[Top 15] Ark: Survival Evolved Most Important Engrams

Engrams help to unlock the many possibilities in Ark!


[Top 15] Ark: Survival Evolved Most Important Engrams

15. Smithy

The smithy is very important in Ark. It’s one of the first crafting tables you can use to finally obtain stronger weapons, armor, tools, and even building supplies and saddles.The smithy opens up the opportunity for you to use metal to craft items.

To obtain the smithy, you must have:

  • Level 20
  • 18 Engram Points
  • 5 Metal Ingots
  • 50 Stone
  • 30 Wood
  • 20 Hide

 

14. Refining Forge

The forge is crucial in your progress through Ark. The forge allows you to smelt metal down into metal ingots that can be used for crafting. 

To obtain the forge, you must have:

  • Level 20
  • 21 Engram Points
  • Campfire engram unlocked
  • 125 Stone
  • 5 Flint
  • 65 Hide
  • 20 Wood
  • 40 Fiber

 

13. Cryopod

Cryopods are a bit more of a late game item, but it is still very important. Cryopods give you the option of moving your tames around in your inventory, saving you time, space, and the stress of potentially losing one of them on your journey. 

To obtain a cryopod, you must have:

  • Level 51
  • 20 Engram Points
  • An obelisk, supply crate, loot crate, treasure chest, or tek replicator
  • 10 Crystal
  • 15 Fiber
  • 5 Hide
  • 2 Metal Ingots
  • 4 Oil
  • 8 Polymer

 

12. Campfire

The campfire is going to be one of your earliest engram purchases in most cases. You can use your campfire to produce charcoal, which won’t be needed until later, and also cook raw meat to make it edible.

To get a campfire, you must have:

  • Level 2
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 12 Thatch
  • 1 Flint
  • 16 Stone
  • 2 Wood

 

11. Storage Box

Storage boxes are an absolute must in Ark. You will have to start with a small storage box and eventually upgrade to a large, then a vault. Without someplace to store your resources and items in Ark, you will quickly find that it is very difficult to work around your weight limits while crafting and gathering. 

To get a small storage box, you must have:

  • Level 4
  • 6 Engram Points
  • 25 Wood
  • 20 Thatch
  • 10 Fiber

To let a large storage box, you must have:

  • Level 16
  • 9 Engram Points
  • 50 Wood
  • 35 Thatch
  • 25 Fiber

To get a vault, you must have:

  • Level 75
  • 30 Engram Points
  • A fabricator or Tek replicator
  • A refining forge
  • 500 Metal Ingots
  • 100 Cementing Paste
  • 70 Oil
  • 90 Polymer

 

10. Armor

Having armor in Ark very well could be the difference between in-game life and death. The islands of Ark are littered with carnivores that would no doubt wish nothing less than to eat you. Having decent armor can help with that greatly. In the early game portion of your experience, you will begin with cloth armor, upgrade to hide armor, then chitin, flak, riot and tek. This may take quite some time, but it’s well worth it in the end.

To make cloth hat, you must have:

  • Level 3
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 10 fiber

To make cloth shirt:

  • Level 3
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 40 Fiber

To make cloth pants:

  • Level 3
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 50 Fiber

To Make cloth boots:

  • Level 3
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 25 Fiber
  • 6 Hide

To Make cloth gloves:

  • Level 3
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 20 Fiber
  • 4 Hide

9. Bed

The best thing about Ark, in my opinion, is that you are given a chance to set your spawn point. In the event that you die, you can be respawned right at your base, and safe indoors where you can re-gear and get going to go find your items. 

To make a simple bed, you must have:

  • Level 7
  • 8 Engram Points
  • Hide Sleeping Bag Engram unlocked
  • 15 Wood
  • 80 Thatch
  • 30 Fiber
  • 40 Hide

8. Building resources

Building resources are literally so important in Ark. Having a decent base that can protect you from the elements and enemies is very helpful. It gives you somewhere safe to wait through the night, somewhere to hold your resources and items, somewhere to keep your tames around and maybe even breed them. You start off with basic thatch building blueprints, then stone, metal, and tek. 

To get the basic thatch blueprints, you must have:

Thatch Foundation

  • Level 4
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 20 Thatch
  • 6 Wood
  • 15 Fiber

Thatch Wall

  • Level 4
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 10 Thatch
  • 2 Wood
  • 7 Fiber

Thatch Ceiling

  • Level 4
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 15 Thatch
  • 4 Wood
  • 10 Fiber

Thatch Door

  • Level 4
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 7 Thatch
  • 4 Fiber

Thatch Doorframe

  • Level 4
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 8 Thatch
  • 6 Wood
  • 6 Fiber

 

7. Narcotics

Narcotics are widely useful in Ark, purely for the reason that it is required for the majority of taming. You need narcotics to make tranq arrows, tranq darts, and much more.

To make Narcotics, you need to have:

  • Level 6
  • 6 Engram Points
  • Mortar and Pestle
  • 5 Narcoberries
  • 1 Spoiled Meat

6. Mortar & Pestle

The Mortar and Pestle makes it possible for you to craft a wide variety of resources, ranging from cementing paste, to narcotics, and even to spark powder. Without a Mortar and Pestle, you won’t get very far with your crafting or taming in Ark.

To get the Mortar and Pestle, you must have:

  • Level 6
  • 6 Engram Points
  • 65 Stone
  • 15 Hide

5. Crossbow

The crossbow is probably one of my most commonly used weapons in Ark. It takes a while to gain access to stronger weapons, but with your levels put into the right attributes, the crossbow can be a deadly weapon, or a very helpful tool.

To make the crossbow, you need:

  • Level 25
  • 12 Engram Points
  • Refining Forge  and Smithy
  • 7 Metal Ingots
  • 10 Wood
  • 35 Fiber

 

4. Bola

The bola is extremely important in your time in Ark. It can help you slow down enemies so that they cannot attack you while trying to tame them. 

To make a bola, you must have:

  • Level 9
  • 8 Engram Points
  • 10 Thatch
  • 3 Stone
  • 15 Fiber
  • 3 Hide

 

3. Spear

The spear is the first weapon you will have access to in Ark. It opens up the possibility for increased defense and attack damage, snd unlocks the ability to get stronger weapons in the future. It’s perfect for attacking small dinosaurs and spearing fish. 

To make the spear, you must have:

  • Level 2
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 2 Flint
  • 8 Wood
  • 12 Fiber

 

2. Pick

On your first days in Ark, you will need to collect resources like crazy. Crafting a pick can help you collect some of the resources that you can’t simply collect by hand. 

To make a Stone Pick, you must have:

  • Level 1
  • 0 Engram Points
  • 1 Stone
  • 1 Wood
  • 10 Thatch

 

1. Hatchet

The hatchet will most likely be the first tool you craft in Ark, and your most used one as well. Obtaining a hatchet allows you to collect wood and thatch at an increased rate, and even begin to smack large rocks to collect stone, flint and metal. 

To craft a Stone Hatchet, you must have:

  • Level 2
  • 3 Engram Points
  • 10 Thatch
  • 1 Flint
  • 1 Wood

You May Also Be Interested In:

More on this topic:


No amount of endermen could keep Jordan from her work. Grueling zombies try to attack, but with her potion of strength and diamond sword her to fight them off between enchanting books.
Gamer Since: 2005
Favorite Genre: RPG
Currently Playing: Warframe
Top 3 Favorite Games:BioShock, League of Legends, Fallout 4


More Top Stories