Set ARK’s per-level gains in Game.ini, under the ShooterGameMode header—not in GameUserSettings.ini. Add a PerLevelStatsMultiplier_Player, PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoTamed, or PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoWild line with the stat’s bracketed index, save the file, and restart the server. A value of 1 is the default, 2 doubles the configured gain, 0.01 nearly removes it, and 0 is not a disable value because it falls back to 1.0.
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What these multipliers change
ARK’s per-level multipliers change how much of a statistic is gained when a player or creature spends a level. They do not directly set a character’s current stat, change the level of newly spawned wild creatures, or replace the separate settings that control taming, breeding, harvesting, or experience.
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There are three families of settings:
PerLevelStatsMultiplier_Playerchanges gains when a player assigns a level.PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoTamedchanges gains for a tamed dinosaur after it receives a level.PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoWildchanges the per-level stat value used by wild dinosaurs.
The number in square brackets identifies the statistic. The number after the equals sign is the multiplier. For example, PerLevelStatsMultiplier_Player[0]=2 targets player Health and applies a multiplier of 2 to each Health point gained per level.
Where to put the settings
Single-player and non-dedicated sessions
For the original ARK: Survival Evolved, community hosting guides place the file in the ShooterGame saved-configuration tree’s WindowsNoEditor folder. The file you edit is Game.ini. A typical Windows path is:
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ShooterGame/Saved/Config/WindowsNoEditor/Game.iniThe exact parent folder depends on where your ARK installation is located. Search for the existing Game.ini inside ShooterGame/Saved/Config/WindowsNoEditor rather than creating a second file elsewhere.
Dedicated servers
Dedicated-server installations use the WindowsServer configuration folder according to the same community guides:
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ARK: Survival Ascended
Ascended uses the same general idea—per-level lines belong in Game.ini under ShooterGameMode—but its stat labels and configuration behavior are not identical to the original game. Confirm that a guide’s index names match your ASA build before copying it. An ASA-specific guide reports that the server must be restarted after saving; leaving the process running keeps the previously loaded values.
The correct Game.ini syntax
Open Game.ini in a plain-text editor. Add the header once, then place each multiplier on its own line beneath it:
[/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]
PerLevelStatsMultiplier_Player[0]=2
PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoTamed[7]=2
PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoWild[4]=2This example doubles player Health gains, tamed-dinosaur Weight gains, and wild-dinosaur Food gains. Change the family name, index, and value to match the target you want.
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1Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors2Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches3Repair Windows errors before they cause bigger problemsGuides show both lowercase and mixed-case versions of the section header:
[/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]
[/Script/ShooterGame.ShooterGameMode]Use the casing already present in your file or the format documented by your server provider, and do not create multiple competing headers. The important requirement is that the server recognizes the ShooterGameMode section. If a line has no effect, check the section spelling and location before changing the multiplier.
Stat indexes you can target
The community ARK wiki and hosting guides agree on indexes 0 through 7. Ascended changes the displayed meaning of several later indexes, so treat the ASA column as a version-specific label rather than assuming that an ASE configuration has the same result.
| Index | Original ARK: Survival Evolved | ARK: Survival Ascended label | Example key |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0 | Health | Health | [0] |
| 1 | Stamina | Charge Capacity | [1] |
| 2 | Torpidity | Torpidity | [2] |
| 3 | Oxygen | Charge Regeneration | [3] |
| 4 | Food | Food | [4] |
| 5 | Water | Water | [5] |
| 6 | Temperature | Temperature | [6] |
| 7 | Weight | Weight | [7] |
| 8 | Melee Damage Multiplier | Charge Emission Range | [8] |
| 9 | Speed Multiplier | Speed Multiplier | [9] |
| 10 | Temperature Fortitude (also called Fortitude in some guides) | Temperature Fortitude | [10] |
| 11 | Crafting Speed Multiplier | Crafting Speed Multiplier | [11] |
Some guides describe indexes 10 and 11 with shorter names such as Fortitude and Crafting Speed. More importantly, whether indexes 6, 8, 9, 10, and 11 accept a normal per-level increase is not consistently established. One guide states that some of these are base values that cannot be raised through per-level settings. Test a change on a disposable world before applying it to a long-running server.
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Multiplier values and what they mean
1: the default
1 leaves the game’s normal per-level gain unchanged. Explicitly setting a line to 1 can be useful when documenting a configuration, but it does not create a bonus.
2 or higher: increased gains
A value of 2 multiplies the configured gain by two; larger values produce proportionally larger gains where that statistic supports per-level scaling. A commonly quoted example says that a Health gain of 10 becomes 20 at 2.0, but that exact figure has not been independently verified across current builds. The multiplier changes the gain, not necessarily the displayed base-stat formula for every creature or game version.
0.01: nearly no progression
The community wiki describes 0.01 as nearly disabling progression. It is a very small multiplier, not an absolute lock: a tiny gain may still occur depending on the statistic and rounding behavior.
0: do not use it as an off switch
According to the same wiki guidance, a zero value is treated as a fallback to 1.0. In other words, PerLevelStatsMultiplier_Player[0]=0 does not reliably prevent Health gains; it can restore the default instead. Use a small positive value when you want to minimize progression.
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- Stop the game or server cleanly. Editing a live file can be overwritten when the process saves its configuration.
- Open the correct
Game.ini:WindowsNoEditorfor single-player or non-dedicated use, orWindowsServerfor a Windows dedicated server. - Find the existing
[/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]section. If it is absent, add it on its own line. - Add a player line using the required index. For example, to double player Weight gains, use:
PerLevelStatsMultiplier_Player[7]=2- Save as plain text with the filename
Game.ini. Check that your editor did not append.txt. - Start the server or game and assign a new level to a test character. Existing points already spent will not be retroactively redistributed by this line.
Step-by-step: change tamed- or wild-dinosaur stats
Tamed dinosaurs
Use PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoTamed followed by the index. This example doubles the Weight gained whenever a tamed dinosaur receives a level:
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[/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]
PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoTamed[7]=2The setting affects post-taming level gains. It does not itself change the creature’s taming effectiveness, the number of levels gained during taming, or a creature’s wild spawn statistics.
Wild dinosaurs
Use PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoWild for the wild-dinosaur family. For example:
[/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]
PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoWild[4]=2This targets the Food value associated with wild-dinosaur per-level scaling. Wild creatures already spawned into the world may not recalculate in the way you expect; test with a newly spawned creature and compare its level-up behavior.
Optional tamed-dinosaur variants
Community documentation also lists tamed-dinosaur variants with suffixes such as _Add and _Affinity. The suffixes refer to different stages of tamed-stat calculation: an immediate additive component and an affinity-based component. Their availability and behavior can vary by game version. Confirm that your build supports the exact key before relying on it, and do not substitute a suffix for the standard PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoTamed line unless you specifically need that calculation stage.
Game.ini versus GameUserSettings.ini
Per-level stat multipliers are Game.ini settings. Putting the lines in GameUserSettings.ini does nothing, including in ASA. The two files serve different configuration groups, so moving a syntactically correct line to the wrong file can look exactly like a multiplier that is “not working.”
Keep the section header and its multiplier lines together in Game.ini. If your host has separate tabs for the two files, select the tab explicitly labeled Game.ini or ShooterGameMode.
Restart and verify the change
- Save the file while the server is stopped, if possible.
- Start the server and wait until it has finished loading.
- Join with a test character or use a test creature rather than risking a main survivor or valuable tame.
- Record the current stat, spend exactly one level, and compare the resulting increase with the default behavior.
- After confirming the result, make one change at a time so an unexpected result can be traced to a single line.
Restarting is essential for ASA: an ASA-specific configuration guide says saving alone leaves the running server using values loaded at startup. A restart is also the safest procedure for the original game because it ensures the server rereads the file.
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The line is in the wrong file
Move it from GameUserSettings.ini to Game.ini, beneath the ShooterGameMode header. This is the first check because a correct key in the wrong file is ignored.
The server was not restarted
Stop and start the server after saving. In ASA, a restart is explicitly required for these values to take effect.
The section header is malformed
Check every bracket, period, and letter in [/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]. Do not put the key above the header or inside an unrelated section. If your existing file uses mixed case, keep that format consistently.
The index is wrong for the game version
Indexes 0–7 are consistent across the referenced lists, but ASA renames the displayed attributes at indexes 1, 3, and 8. Recheck the table before using an ASE example in ASA. Be especially cautious with indexes 6 and 8–11 because their support for per-level gains is not consistently documented.
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The value was set to zero
Replace 0 with the intended positive value. Zero is reported to fall back to the default multiplier rather than disabling the gain.
The file changed or the lines disappeared
A Steam discussion reports cases in which Game.ini lines disappeared after a server start and a player logging in and out. The cause was not confirmed. Make a backup before each restart, verify that the file is writable, and inspect it again after startup. Also check whether a control panel regenerates configuration files or whether another setting is overwriting the same section.
The statistic does not support per-level scaling
Some guides say certain base values cannot be increased through these keys. If a correctly placed line for index 6, 8, 9, 10, or 11 has no visible effect, test an agreed-upon index such as Health (0) or Weight (7). A working test on a supported stat distinguishes a syntax problem from a stat-specific limitation.
Choosing settings for common server goals
| Goal | Family | Typical starting value | What to test |
|---|---|---|---|
| Make survivor leveling faster without changing creature leveling | PerLevelStatsMultiplier_Player |
2 for the chosen index |
Spend one new level and compare the exact increase. |
| Give tamed creatures stronger level-up gains | PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoTamed |
2 for Health, Weight, or another supported index |
Use a newly leveled tame and confirm the stat is not a base-value exception. |
| Change wild-dinosaur per-level scaling | PerLevelStatsMultiplier_DinoWild |
2 for a supported index |
Check a newly spawned wild creature rather than relying on an existing spawn. |
| Almost stop gains in one stat | Any applicable family | 0.01 |
Confirm that rounding does not produce an unexpected zero or visible residual gain. |
These are starting points, not universal balance recommendations. The same multiplier can feel very different on players, tames, and wild creatures, and the game version determines which labels and indexes are meaningful.
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Quick Recap
Important limits and version caveats
- No official Studio Wildcard documentation confirming the complete index list or every key was located for this setting; the available descriptions come from community guides and the ARK community wiki.
- Original ARK: Survival Evolved and ARK: Survival Ascended should not be treated as configuration-identical. Confirm the edition before copying a line.
- Header casing varies among guides. The server’s accepted format matters more than a guide’s typography, so use the form already recognized by your installation.
- The often-repeated “10 Health becomes 20 at 2.0” example is not independently verified for current builds.
- A per-level multiplier does not retroactively repair points already spent or necessarily recalculate existing wild spawns.
A safe final checklist
- Correct edition identified: original ARK or ASA.
- Correct file selected:
Game.ini, notGameUserSettings.ini. - Correct folder selected:
WindowsNoEditorfor single-player/non-dedicated use orWindowsServerfor a Windows dedicated server. ShooterGameModeheader present exactly once in the relevant section.- Correct family chosen: Player, DinoTamed, or DinoWild.
- Correct bracketed index checked against the edition’s stat labels.
- Value set deliberately:
1default, a positive value such as2for a boost, or0.01for near-disable behavior; never0as an off switch. - Backup made and the server restarted.
- One fresh level-up or test creature used to verify the result.
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