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A free scan shows the junk files, broken settings and background clutter dragging Windows down - then fixes them in one click.Free scan · Windows 10 & 11For an ARK: Survival Ascended server, the first decision is PvE or PvP: PvE prevents players from damaging one another, while PvP allows player attacks and makes raiding and offline defense central concerns. The second decision is who controls the server. Official servers are browsable by map, mode, player count and mod use; a non-dedicated session is limited to eight players; a self-hosted or rented dedicated server gives you control over rates, difficulty, rules and mods.
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Hardcore is an additional toggle rather than a replacement for PvE or PvP. Creative mode is a separate administrative or single-player capability. This guide explains those choices, where each rule is configured, and how to change settings without confusing rates, difficulty and game-mode rules.
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Choose PvE or PvP first
Every other setting builds on this choice. Decide whether the server should be cooperative or whether player-versus-player conflict is part of the intended experience before adjusting breeding, harvesting or creature difficulty.
PvE: cooperative survival
PvE disables player-versus-player damage. Players can still fight wild creatures, bosses and environmental hazards, but another survivor cannot directly kill them with a weapon or tame. This suits family servers, building communities and groups that want progression without base raids.
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PvE does not remove every source of conflict. Tribe membership, claiming rules, structure placement, resource competition and disagreements over shared locations still matter. Establish house rules for abandoned structures, communal areas and who may use boss or resource assets.
PvP: combat and raiding
PvP permits players to attack one another. Bases, tames and inventories become strategic targets, so server rules need to cover raiding, tribe recruitment, alliances, wipe schedules and acceptable conduct. A small private PvP server can feel very different from a large public one because a single active tribe may control most of the map.
Offline protection is a separate design question. Community guides commonly name PreventOfflinePvP and PreventOfflinePvPInterval as controls, but those key names were not confirmed against an official configuration reference. Treat them as community-reported syntax: test on a backup world and verify against current server documentation before relying on them.
| Decision | PvE | PvP |
|---|---|---|
| Player combat | Player-versus-player damage is disabled. | Players can attack one another. |
| Base raiding | Direct player raids are not part of normal play, though ownership and placement rules still matter. | Raiding and defense are core gameplay systems. |
| Offline protection | Usually less important because players cannot damage one another. | Must be designed and tested; community-reported keys are not officially confirmed here. |
| Best fit | Co-op progression, building and low-conflict communities. | Competitive tribes, scheduled wars and high-risk survival. |
Pick the server type that matches your control needs
Official servers
Official servers are listed in the in-game browser. The browser exposes practical filters and information such as map, PvP or PvE designation, current player count and whether mods are used. You do not administer the configuration, so rates, rules and update timing are determined by the operator rather than by your group.
Official servers are useful when you want a populated, ready-to-join world and do not want to maintain files. Their trade-off is limited control: you cannot tailor breeding speed, loot, engrams or special rules to your group.
Non-dedicated sessions
A non-dedicated session is hosted from a player’s game and supports a maximum of eight players. It is convenient for a small group that plays together, but the host’s availability and connection become part of the experience. The session is not a substitute for a persistent dedicated server when players need to log in independently.
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A dedicated server gives the administrator control over configuration files, passwords, rates, difficulty, mods and restart timing. Self-hosting requires suitable hardware, network configuration, backups and update maintenance. Renting shifts those infrastructure tasks to a host, but you still need to understand the same files and restart procedure.
| Server type | Player capacity stated here | Settings control | Mods and persistence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Official | Varies by listed server; browse the current player count. | Operator-controlled. | Shown in the browser; persistent world. |
| Non-dedicated | Maximum eight players. | Host controls the session options. | Designed for a host-led group rather than an always-on world. |
| Self-hosted or rented dedicated | Depends on the server configuration and hardware; a confirmed universal INI player-cap key is not established here. | Administrator-controlled through server files and launch settings. | Persistent and suitable for independently timed play; mod support depends on the setup. |
Understand Hardcore and Creative mode
Hardcore
Hardcore is a toggle layered onto the server’s normal PvE or PvP mode. Enable it only when the group accepts the consequence of character death and the resulting loss of progress. Explain the rule before anyone creates a character, because a casual PvE server and a hardcore PvE server have radically different expectations even though both prohibit player damage.
Creative mode
Creative mode can be enabled from the ESC menu in single-player or on a server where you have administrator rights. It is useful for testing a build, checking a mod interaction or recovering from an administrative mistake. On a community server, restrict creative access to trusted administrators and announce when it is used so players can distinguish testing from normal progression.
Know which file controls which rule
Dedicated-server rules are split between two INI files. Editing the wrong file is a common reason for a setting appearing to do nothing.
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GameUserSettings.ini contains server basics and many frequently adjusted multipliers under the [ServerSettings] section. This is where passwords, experience, taming, harvesting, difficulty and PvE display options are commonly stored.
- Access: server password and related basic access options.
- Rates: experience, taming and harvesting multipliers.
- Difficulty: the server difficulty value and related display behavior.
- Mode presentation: PvE-oriented display options.
Keep one setting per line and preserve the section header. Stop the server before editing, because a running process can overwrite your changes during shutdown.
Game.ini: deeper progression rules
Game.ini is used for deeper game-mode rules under [/Script/ShooterGame.ShooterGameMode]. Breeding intervals and maturation, per-level stat gains, engrams and loot behavior belong here rather than in the basic rates file.
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Anecdotally, a 2023 Steam forum thread reported that a server could ignore a missing Game.ini and described copying settings from a single-player configuration as a workaround. That is a community report, not an official guarantee. If a rule has no effect, confirm that the file exists in the server’s actual configuration directory, that the section header is exact and that the server was fully restarted.
Important configuration examples and qualifications
Set official-level wild creature difficulty
To match the maximum wild creature level used by official servers, set the following under [ServerSettings] in GameUserSettings.ini:
[ServerSettings]
OverrideOfficialDifficulty=5.0The value 5.0 produces a maximum wild creature level of 150 because the calculation is 5.0 multiplied by the base level interval of 30. This changes wild-spawn levels; it does not by itself increase player or tamed-creature statistics.
September 30, 2026 variant-dino setting
An update dated September 30, 2026 added AllowVariantDinoPacks under [ServerSettings]. Its default is false. Leave it at the default when you do not want the newly supported variant packs enabled; set it only after checking that your installed server build and mod set support the option.
[ServerSettings]
AllowVariantDinoPacks=falsePvE and PvP key names require verification
Community guides also name ServerPVE and DisableStructureDecayPvE as PvE/PvP-related controls. Their exact behavior and current support were not confirmed against an official source for this guide. Do not paste these keys into a production server and assume they worked: test in a copy, inspect the resulting behavior in-game and verify syntax against documentation for your server build.
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How to change settings safely
- Choose the target world. Confirm whether you are editing an official server, a non-dedicated session or a dedicated server you control. Official settings cannot be changed by players.
- Stop the dedicated server completely. Wait until the process has closed so it cannot rewrite the files while you edit them.
- Back up the save and both INI files. Keep a dated copy of
GameUserSettings.ini,Game.iniand the world save. A backup is your fastest recovery from a malformed line or an unwanted wipe. - Place each setting in the correct section. Put passwords, rates and
OverrideOfficialDifficultyunder[ServerSettings]inGameUserSettings.ini. Put breeding, stat gains, engrams and loot rules under[/Script/ShooterGame.ShooterGameMode]inGame.ini. - Use plain key-value syntax. Follow the exact spelling and capitalization shown by the server documentation. Remove duplicate entries when troubleshooting; conflicting copies make it unclear which value is being read.
- Save, start the server and test with a small change. Change one category at a time, join the world, and test the result. For difficulty, inspect newly spawned wild creatures rather than assuming existing creatures changed.
- Record the working configuration. Keep a changelog with the date, build, edited key and observed result. This makes future updates and rollbacks much safer.
Rates, difficulty and rules are different levers
Rates change time and resource flow
Experience, taming and harvesting multipliers affect how quickly players progress or gather materials. Raising them can make a short cooperative session practical; lowering them can create a longer survival campaign. Adjust one multiplier at a time and tell players whether the change is permanent, seasonal or a test.
Difficulty changes the wild-creature level ceiling
OverrideOfficialDifficulty=5.0 is a difficulty setting, not a general “hard mode” switch. It sets the wild level ceiling to 150 under the stated calculation. If your goal is more dangerous combat without faster progression, change difficulty rather than XP or taming multipliers.
Game rules change progression systems
Breeding, per-level stat gains, engrams and loot tables can alter the character-building meta even when XP and harvesting rates remain unchanged. These belong in Game.ini and should be documented because they affect balance more deeply than a simple rate increase.
Troubleshoot a setting that does not work
- Nothing changed after editing: verify that the server was stopped and restarted, and confirm you edited the active instance rather than a template or local copy.
- A rate changed but breeding or loot did not: move the deeper rule to
Game.iniunder the ShooterGameMode section. - The server ignores Game.ini: check that the file exists, that the section header is exact and that permissions allow the server process to read it. The reported copy-from-single-player workaround is anecdotal, so preserve your backup before trying it.
- Wild levels look unchanged: the override affects new wild spawns. Existing creatures may retain their previous levels until they are removed and respawned.
- A community key has no effect: treat the key as unverified, remove duplicate entries, and check documentation for your current build instead of escalating the value blindly.
- Players disagree about the mode: confirm the browser label or server configuration and publish the rule set before the first character is created.
Choose a practical setup for your group
Small private co-op group
Use a non-dedicated session when all participants can play with the host and eight players or fewer are sufficient. Select PvE unless the group specifically wants internal combat, and consider moderate XP, taming and harvesting increases to fit shorter play sessions.
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Persistent building community
Use a dedicated PvE server so players can log in independently. Establish structure, claiming and abandoned-base policies, then tune rates in GameUserSettings.ini. Put breeding and loot changes in Game.ini and keep a backup before every update.
Competitive tribe server
Use a dedicated PvP server with written raid, alliance and offline-protection rules. Test any community-reported protection keys in an isolated copy before exposing the world to players. Publish wipe dates, restart windows and the exact rates so the competitive environment is understandable.
Challenge-focused campaign
Combine PvE or PvP with the Hardcore toggle only after players understand the death consequence. Keep a written recovery policy for administrative errors, but do not silently restore characters after ordinary gameplay deaths if the server is advertised as hardcore.
Planned engine change to watch
A current listing dated October 14, 2026 places an Unreal Engine 5.8 upgrade on October 28, 2026. Treat that date as a listed target, not a guarantee of release. Before updating a dedicated server, back up the world, confirm mod compatibility and test the configuration on a copy. Engine or server-build changes can alter how configuration keys are parsed even when the INI text is unchanged.
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