Summary
- ARK: Survival Ascended faced early controversy but has gained popularity post-launch.
- Explosive weapons like C4 and RPGs offer upgraded visuals and unique mechanics.
- Specific strategies like timing and accurate aiming are crucial for using explosive weapons effectively.
ARK: Survival Ascended was released on October 25, 2023. Initially, the game launched into some controversy, as it seemed nothing more than an updated and improved version of ARK: Survival Evolved, but with pay-to-win aspects added. Furthermore, the developers were accused of a lack of transparency regarding how the launch of ARK: Survival Ascended would fit into the ARK franchise, and whether existing ARK players would need to pay to play the game.
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Despite its rocky launch, the game has become increasingly popular since its release. Although the gameplay is almost identical to ARK: Survival Evolved, with just a few additions, and slightly different PvP mechanics. Weapons available in Survival Ascended are, in general, exactly the same as their counterparts in Evolved. That said, explosives now come with updated visuals and a few tweaks that make them distinct from their previous iterations.
7 Grenade
Basic Throwable Explosive
Stats:
- Damage: Explosive (175)
- Weight: 0.5
- Stack Size: 10
The Grenade is the most basic of all explosive weapons a new player can acquire in ARK: Survival Ascended. It does very little damage within a very small impact area. The Grenade's timer is set for detonation 5 seconds after being thrown.
Using a Grenade can require the player to time their throw. For example, if they are trying to bounce the grenade off a cave wall, in order to have it detonate just inside a cave. This would mean not throwing the Grenade until a short time before the fuse runs out by "cooking" it beforehand.
6 Improvised Explosive Device
Basic Tripwire Trap
Stats:
- Damage: Explosive (250)
- Weight: 0.5
- Stack Size:10
The Improvised Explosive Device is a tripwire trap that ARK: Survival Ascended players can place in pairs to create a tripwire between the two units. Both explosives will be detonated when this tripwire is activated.
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It is important to note that anything can set off a tripwire trap. This includes the player that placed it, as well as their tribe members. However, only the owner and tribe members can unhook the trap and disarm it. Therefore, care needs to be taken to ensure everyone playing together knows where Improvised Explosive Devices have been set up, to avoid accidents.
5 C4 Charge
Basic Remote Detonation Explosive
Stats:
- Damage Type: Explosive (6899)
- Requires: C4 Remote Detonator
- Weight: 0.1
- Stack Size: 100
- Durability: 100
The C4 Charge is the basic remote explosive in ARK: Survival Ascended. The charge can be placed by hand, or it can be thrown at a target. If thrown, it will stick to most objects, including creatures, base structures, and other players.
The player will need a C4 Remote Detonator to be able to set the charge off. When it comes to using the C4 Charge against Dinos, its damage is reduced to just 1500 against creatures that do not have a saddle.
4 Rocket Propelled Grenade
Long-Range Explosive Damage
Stats:
- Damage: Explosive (250)
- Requires: Rocket Launcher or Rocket Turret
- Weight: 0.1
- Stack Size: 100
In ARK: Survival Ascended, the Rocket Propelled Grenade is an explosive ammunition for both the hand-fired Rocket Launcher and the auto-firing Rocket Turret. It does a decent amount of damage but can't be fired over long distances. When used in a turret, it will keep firing until the ammo is exhausted.
The Rocket Propelled Grenade does additional explosive damage (1400) against creatures that do not have a saddle, making it a devastating hunting weapon. However, it is most commonly used in PvP to destroy base structures at a distance.
3 Primitive Tek Rifle
Explosive Damage Rifle
Stats:
- Damage: Explosive (150)
- DPS: 580-600
- Rate of Fire: 4
- Ammo: 50
The Tek Rifle is one of the best explosive weapons in ARK: Survival Ascended. It does lower damage than a Grenade, but can be delivered on target much more consistently and in greater numbers. This ranged weapon can be fired for around 40 shots before it overheats, at which point the player will need to wait for it to cool down.
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The Tek Rifle has a scope built in which is equipped with basic night vision functionality, making it one of the more effective cave hunting weapons. The player will need to defeat several high-level enemies to unlock its engram, and then continue fighting those enemies to keep crafting ammo for it.
2 Tek Grenade
Improved Thrown Explosive
Stats:
- Damage: Explosive (300)
- Weight: 0.5
- Stack Size: 10
The Tek Grenade does almost double the damage of the standard thrown grenade in ARK: Survival Ascended. However, it suffers the same drawback of having a fixed 5-second detonation timer, which can make it hard to use accurately.
The Tek Grenade is unlocked by defeating the Manticore and Megapithecus, or by competing in the Ragnarok Arena. This weapon would likely have taken the top spot in this list if it was easier to unlock. As it stands, it is a great explosive weapon, but not accessible until the late game when the player has access to certain high-level locations.
1 Cannon
High Damage Stationary Weapon
Stats:
- Ammo: Cannon Ball
- Structure: 5000
- Decay Time: 8 days
The Cannon is an stationary weapon in ARK: Survival Ascended, m eaning that this isn’t a portable weapon like all other weapons on this list have been. It takes the number one slot on this list because it is so useful for taming creatures.
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Specifically, headshots from a cannon on certain large species in the game, including the Titanosaur, Astrocetus, and, the Rock Elemental, are a very efficient way to tame these creatures, as it takes few cannonballs to tranquilize them. Larger creatures such as the Karkinos can be tamed the same way, but by using body shots instead.
Ark: Survival Ascended
- Released
- October 26, 2023
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Studio Wildcard
- Platform(s)
- PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S
- Genre(s)
- Survival, Open-World
