Ark: Survival Evolved places you in an incredible and mysterious world filled with some insane dinosaurs. There are hundreds of dinosaurs, and each of them are completely different from one another. Some fly, some spit fire, some wield lightning, etc. This list goes on and on.
In a game that has so much unique variety, you have to wonder what the best creatures are. While almost all the dinosaurs are very cool, there are 15 that are leagues ahead of the rest.
Please enjoy the top 15 best Ark: Survival Evolved dinosaurs:
Reaper King (Best Fighter):
The Reaper King is the obvious choice for the number one spot, he’s a mercenary of death. Everything and everyone runs in fear of this brutal beast, praying that you’re not on his hit list. Having one of these in your arsenal is the ultimate trophy.
If you need to add some power to your team, this is your first choice. Any tribes that have a problem with you won’t be able to do anything about it once you’re equipped with one of these.
- Jumps far: The Reaper King has the ability to jump incredibly far. This gives him the ability to traverse uneven terrain with ease.
- Spits poison: The Reaper King has the very unique ability to launch a poison projectile at the target. This slowly damages his enemies over time, and drains their stamina. It can also hit more than one creature at a time.
- Does a lot of damage: The Reaper King is a natural born fighter. With a very high base damage, it’s the perfect combatant. Once you add a few levels to its attack, it’s practically unstoppable.
- Immune to radiation: The Reaper King is immune to the radiation that’s emitted within the Radiation Zone, meaning there isn’t anywhere on Aberration that you can’t take this beast with you.
- Burrow ability: The Reaper King has the ability to burrow underground, making him camouflaged and almost invisible to enemies and players. This can be very useful for surprise attacks and infiltration.
- Damage reduction: The Reaper King has a natural layer of defense, with his incredibly thick skin. Paired with a very high base health pool, he also resists most types of attacks.
- Tail swipe attack: The Reaper King has a powerful tail swipe attack that both does damage, and launches the enemies far back.
- Scary appearance: The Reaper King simply looks scary. There’s almost nothing more intimidating than the reaper king. Nothing like that scary alien-like appearance to make you run as fast as you can.
Reaper King details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Reaper
How to get the Reaper King: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9j7DzDbI9zU
Shadowmane (Most Variety):
The Shadowmane is without question one of the most unique and impressive dinosaurs in Ark: Survival Evolved. Perfect for travel and fighting, there is almost nothing that this impressive beast can’t do.
Taming one of these bad boys can be dangerous and difficult, but it’ll be the best investment you could possibly make.
- Impressive jump: If you hold down the jump button, the Shadowmane will charge up, and be able to jump incredibly far or high distances.
- Very fast swimmer: The Shadowmane is an extraordinary swimmer, capable of matching the speed of many aquatic dinosaurs.
- Natural Armour: The Shadowmane doesn’t need a saddle in order for you to ride it. However even without a saddle, the Shadowmane has natural armour. The armour level will be higher depending on the level it’s tamed at.
- Two riders: The Shadowmane can be ridden by two players at once.
- Teleport attack: The Shadowmane can teleport into a target, dealing damage and stunning the enemy in the process.
- Invisibility: The shadowmane can turn itself invisible. This will allow it to escape easily from dinosaurs that are attacking you. They’ll lose interest when you turn invisible. A female Shadowmane can also share invisibility with other tamed dinosaurs if mate boosted.
- Pack boost: The male Shadowmane can give a pack boost to other Shadowmanes if mate boosted. This will increase attack and speed, as well as other basic stats.
- Power Bar: As the Shadowmane attacks, a progress bar goes up. Once the progress bar is at max, the next attack will deal massive amounts of damage. If that attack deals a finishing blow, it will instantly recharge.
Shadowmane details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Shadowmane
How to get the Shadowmane: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-HemnsB3QY
Rock Drake (Best Glider):
The Rock Drake is an incredibly fun dinosaur to use mainly due to the fact that it makes travel a breeze. It’s found on the Aberration Map, which is the third map in the story mode. After spending a lot of time travelling with slow flying dinos, being able to swiftly glide through the air is refreshing.
If you’re like me and you crave speed, this is a must have dinosaur, and will make a great addition to your team.
- Gliding: The Rock Drake is widely regarded as the best Glider in Ark. He has the ability to jump up really high and glide incredible distances at amazing speed.
- Climbing: The Rock Drake has the ability to climb practically anything. This pairs perfectly with his gliding ability. He can climb the tallest heights, and launch off.
- Invisibility: The Rock Drake has the unique ability to turn completely invisible. This makes him perfect for getting past wild dinos, and other players. You can still see him if you look closely enough, but it takes a very keen eye. You could easily catch a player off guard.
- Dive Bomb attack: While gliding, the Rock Drake can prepare a Dive Bomb attack that will use his speed and momentum to deal massive amounts of damage to his opponents.
- Immune to radiation: Similar to the Reaper King, the Rock Drake is completely immune to the radiation that’s emitted within the Radiation Zone. Making him the perfect creature for travelling around the entire map.
- Valuable eggs: The Rock Drake eggs can be used to craft Supreme Kibble, which is perfect for taming multiple other types of dinosaurs. You can tame a few female Rock Drakes and get a strong egg production in the works.
Rock Drake details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Rock_Drake
How to get the Rock Drake: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnPJwxGvXSo
Wyvern (Most Unique Flyer):
The Wyverns are the most unique and powerful flying dinosaurs in Ark: Survival Evolved. Being able to travel extreme distances swiftly, and harness specific abilities depending on the species.
- Can pick up bigger dinos: The Wyvern is one of the few fliers that can pick up bigger dinosaurs such as the Carnotaurus. This really comes in handy for taming or travelling.
- Breath attack: Each specific type of Wyvern has a unique breath attack. Fire Wyvern obviously breathes fire, Lightning does lightning, Poison does poison… You get the drill. Lightning does the most damage, but each one is extremely powerful.
- Fast flyer: With the help of their big wings, the Wyverns fly very very fast.
- Can blow enemies away: The wyvern has the ability to flap its wings in the direction of an enemy, creating a strong gust of wind that will blow enemies backwards.
- Powerful base damage: To top it all off, the Wyvern has incredible base attack, allowing it to easily take on most creatures it encounters.
Wyvern details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Wyvern
How to get the Wyvern: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9WakNsg2oE
Magmasaur (Best Fire Dino):
The Magmasaurus is an incredibly interesting dinosaur with so many unique abilities. It’s very resourceful and very powerful, making it one of the most versatile dinosaurs on this list.
- Immune to heat: The Magmasaur is completely immune to heat, in fact he thrives in heat. He can swim in lava without taking any damage. Unfortunately it’s the opposite in the cold, so don’t let it get cold.
- Metal smelting: The Magmasaur can gather Metal and Stone very effectively. Not only that, but it acts as a portable forge, cooking your Metal swiftly on the go.
- Lava ball: The Magmasaur can launch fireballs over great distances like a mortar. This is perfect for breaking into fortified bases, or dealing massive damage from a safe distance.
- Hardened mode: The Magmasaur can activate a hardened mode, which will increase its defense, while continuing to hit hard.
- Lava eruption: The Magmasaur can set everything around it on fire, even through walls. This ability makes him one of the most unique dinosaurs on this list.
Magmasaur details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Magmasaur
How to get the Magmasaur: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2VWDTZHOxzE
Maewing (Best For Early Game):
The Maewing is an all time fan favourite dinosaur in Ark: Survival Evolved. He can be tamed very easily and very early on, and makes travelling at slow speeds a thing of the past.
- High-speed gliding: The Maewing is most famous for its ability to travel at extremely high speeds by gliding through the air. It’s extremely fun to use, and becomes your travel partner for life.
- Fast swimmer: The Maewing is also a very fast swimmer, making it perfect for almost all environments.
- Nursing ability: The Maewing acts as a portable Babysitter. It can feed your baby dinosaurs for you, freeing up your time.
- Excellent resource gatherer: The Maewing can harvest large amounts of berries and fiber at once, making it a perfect early herbivore.
- Passenger mount: The Maewing can carry a passenger, making it perfect for multiplayer.
Maewing details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Maewing
How to get the Maewing: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYt6HzJ6ytg
Argentavis (Best Island/The Center Flyer):
The average Ark player spends more time with the Argentavis than any other dinosaur in the game. The Argentavis is the perfect flying dinosaur for the first maps. While it’s not as cool as the other dinosaurs on this list, it deserves a spot for how much it’s needed.
- High stamina: The Argentavis has high stamina, and can easily travel for long amounts of time before needing to land and recharge.
- High weight: The Argentavis has an extremely high weight stat, making it the perfect dinosaur for carrying valuables or resources.
- Reduced resource cost: When resources are in the Argentavis’ inventory, the weight cost is reduced by half, meaning the Argentavis can carry a lot more than the average dinosaur or player.
- Powerful: The Argentavis can handle itself. If you train its health and attack well, it can easily take down powerful carnivores.
Argentavis details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Argentavis
How to get the Argentavis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XpAn4H-EjI
Managarmr (Best Extinction Dino):
The Managarmr is a very powerful and versatile creature, being very popular around Ark players for its unique abilities.
- High speed: The Managarmr travels very fast both in the air, and on the ground, making it perfect for traversing the map.
- Gliding and hovering: After a powerful jump, the Managarmr can either glide or hover, making it incredibly versatile in the air.
- Ice breath: The Managarmr can freeze enemies in place with its impressive ice breath attack.
- Rapid ice attack: Along with the ice breath attack, the Managarmr can also rapidly fire ice projectiles from a distance.
Managarmr details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Managarmr
How to get the Managarmr: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Bg2qr0KW8h4
Giganotosaurus (Best Late Game Tame On The Island):
The Giganotosaurus (or Giga) is the most obvious candidate for this list. Everyone fears the mighty Giga, known for being shockingly bigger than the T-rex, and much more powerful, even though they look similar.
- Powerful attack: The Giga is basically the king/queen of the arena. The mighty conqueror that sends everything running in fear, because one bite will wipe you out.
- High health: There isn’t much you can do to stop the mighty Giga when it’s coming after you. Just run and pray, because your weapons won’t do anything.
- PVP benefits: Having a Giga, or multiple Giga’s makes you a scary opponent on any PVP server. Not many tribes will want to challenge you, and if they do, they better be prepared to shed blood.
Giganotosaurus details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Giganotosaurus
How to get the Giganotosaurus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UFmLLlHIJDw
Carcharodontosaurus (Mighty Rival To The Giga):
The Carcharodontosaurus (or Carcha) is a more recent addition to Ark: Survival Evolved. He’s a rival of the mighty Giganotosaurus. He’s the same size as the Giga, and has similar power, but slightly different abilities.
- Ferocity meter: The Carcha has the unique ability to increase its power with each individual kill. Each kill will increase the ferocity meter until it’s maxed out.
- Rampage bonus: Once the ferocity meter is maxed out, the Carcha will be a practically unstoppable opponent, since all its stats will increase even further.
- Faster than the Giga: The Carcha is slightly faster than the almighty Giganotosaurus. Especially as you increase the Ferocity meter, as that makes him faster too.
- Bleed damage: The Carcha makes the enemy bleed with each attack, which will slowly drain health, making the enemy more vulnerable and easier to kill.
Carcharodontosaurus details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Carcharodontosaurus
How to get the Carcharodontosaurus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y20r173_2i0
Tusoteuthis (Best Ocean Dino):
The Tusoteuthis (or Tuso/Giant Squid) is the King/Queen of the ocean. No creature dares insult the mighty Tuso, because it really won’t take much for the Tuso to kill whatever it wants.
Having a Tusoteuthis on your team is clear proof that you’re in charge of the ocean, this is your house. It’s a truly brilliant achievement, and will make your ocean travels a breeze.
- Grab ability: The Tusoteuthis has the ability to grab dinosaurs with its tentacles, ensuring that enemies don’t get away. They can also be very useful for transporting aquatic dinosaurs across the map.
- Taming support: You can also use the grab ability to help you tame aquatic dinosaurs. By grabbing the dinosaur first, you can comfortably knock out the dinosaur without worrying about it getting away.
- High Damage: The Tusoteuthis has a natural high damage output. This makes him a powerful addition to your arsenal.
- Armour and health: The Tusoteuthis has a high health pool, and a lot of resistance. His thick blubber allows him to absorb many types of attacks.
- Ink Cloud ability: The Tusoteuthis has the ability to release a thick cloud of ink, which can allow him to escape in a dangerous situation, or to reposition in combat. It’s a great escape ability.
Tusoteuthis details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Tusoteuthis
How to get the Tusoteuthis: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kcX2KmVGGpc
Therizinosaurus (Best Fiber Gatherer):
The Therizinosaurus (sometimes called the Tickle Chicken) takes the place of the T-Rex on this list. The Therizinosaurus rivals the T-Rex, and is slightly more powerful. Having an army of these can easily win you any war.
- Powerful claw swipe: The Therizinosaurus beats the T-Rex, because it deals higher Damage Per Second (DPS). It attacks with both of its claws, dealing massive amounts of damage to targets.
- Strong bite: The bite attack from the Therizinosaurus has incredibly high damage, and can also hit players while on their mounts. This is another reason it beats the T-Rex.
- Excellent harvester: While an effective berry collector, the Therizinosaurus excels at gathering Fiber. It can easily collect thousands of Fibre in a few minutes.
Therizinosaurus details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Therizinosaur
How to get the Therizinosaurus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y98dBlinKTQ
Yutyrannus (Best Support Dino):
The Yutyrannus is a very unique dinosaur that is a must have dinosaur in any boss fight due to its unique abilities. It’s worth your time to find a high level and tame it for all your boss fights.
- Fear Roar: The Yutyrannus has two types of unique roars, the first being the Fear Roar. The Fear Roar sends wild dinosaurs running in fear, allowing for easy crowd control. The roar also makes affected dinosaurs take more damage.
- Courage Roar: The Courage Roar is the second roar, and it’s why you must have a Yutyrannus for your boss fights. The Courage Roar gives all of your tames a powerful boost. It increases their damage and boosts their damage resistance.
- Valuable eggs: The Yutyrannus eggs can be used to craft Supreme Kibble, which is the most effective food for taming a lot of creatures on Ark. Getting a male and a female to produce a lot of eggs early on will greatly help you on your journey.
- Powerful: The Yutyrannus is naturally very powerful, while perhaps not quite as powerful as other carnivores on its own, it can definitely stand its ground.
Yutyrannus details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Yutyrannus
How to get the Yutyrannus: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9a07l_tMaok
Bloodstalker (Most Unique Travel Dino):
The Bloodstalker is one of the most fun dinosaurs to travel with on Ark. It basically turns you into Spiderman. Definitely worth spending the time to tame.
- Drunk: A funny little known fact about the Bloodstalkers is that their name changes when you’re drunk. This was a funny feature that the developers snuck in there, and was a funny concept for players to discover. Makes you question if you’re actually drunk.
- Emote: Similar to the Drunk feature, if you emote in the direction of one of your Bloodstalkers, they’ll emote back to you. It’s just a random and funny detail that showcases this creature's personality.
- Webslinger: Now the good stuff, The Bloodstalker can travel insanely fast by swinging on webs like Spiderman. It can take a moment to learn, but once you do it’s so fun.
- Swimming: Surprisingly, this spider also makes for an excellent swimmer, making it perfect for travelling on almost all types of terrain.
- Blood drain attack: The Bloodstalker can latch onto other creatures, trapping them while it drains their blood. This deals damage over time and weakens the enemy.
- Sneak attacks: Due to the web slinging ability, the Bloodstalker can blend into its environment, hanging from a web until the perfect moment to strike. The enemy won’t see it coming.
Bloodstalker details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Bloodstalker
How to get the Bloodstalker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9a07l_tMaok
Phoenix (Best Trophy Dino):
The Phoenix is the most rare creature in all of Ark: Survival Evolved, found only on Scorched Earth during the Heatwave event. If being a trophy collectible isn’t enough, he also has some insanely valuable features.
- Black pearl production: One of the most valuable traits of the Phoenix, is the ability to excrete Black Pearls occasionally. Black Pearls are an incredibly rare and valuable resource in Ark, used for the most advanced recipes.
- Metal smelting: Similar to the Magmasaur, the Phoenix can smelt metal into ingots directly in its inventory. It also reduces the weight of metal, making it a perfect gatherer.
- Cooking ability: Just like the smelting ability, it can also cook food in its inventory.
- Immune to fire: The Phoenix is immune to fire, which definitely comes in handy on Scorched Earth.
- Fire damage: The Phoenix deals fire damage, which is very powerful because it damages enemies over time. It has a fire breath attack, and a fire charge attack.
- Heat protection: The Phoenix protects the player from extreme heat conditions. Heat being one of the biggest struggles on the Scorched Earth map makes the Phoenix a lifesaver.
- Rebirth: When the Phoenix dies, he turns into a pile of ash. Instead of being dead forever, he can be reborn from the ash during the next heatwave event. Can’t get rid of him very easily.
Phoenix details: https://ark.fandom.com/wiki/Phoenix
How to get the Phoenix: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0i-b7dGe__c
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