Hyena Bank & Licensing
ARK: Survival Ascended thrives on player choice, but what if the choice was taken out of your hands in the most exciting way possible? The Hyena Bank & Licensing add-on flips the taming meta on its head by introducing a craftable dino license that unlocks the ability to tame dinos at random. This commissioned mod adds a layer of gambling, strategy, and long-term progression to your survival sandbox. Instead of simply walking up to any creature and knocking it out, you will need to earn your right to tame through the Hyena Bank system.
How the Random Taming System Works
The core mechanic revolves around a simple but addictive loop. You craft a license, use it, and the mod randomly selects which dinos you are now permitted to tame. Each successful unlock adds more creatures to your available taming potential, meaning your roster grows over time. This system forces you to adapt your base defenses and resource gathering to whatever creatures you happen to unlock, rather than relying on the same old Rex or Therizinosaur every playthrough.
This is not a one-and-done unlock either. The mod is deeply configurable, allowing server admins to tweak the experience. The default configuration includes a cooldown period between unlocks, a specific number of dinos to unlock per license use, and a coin cost that must be paid. For example, the standard settings are TimeBetweenUnlocksSeconds=3600 (one hour), NumDinosToUnlock=1, and CoinCostToUnlock=1. This creates a steady drip-feed of new taming opportunities, perfect for long-term servers.
Using the Hyena Bank Structure
To get started, you need to build the Hyena Bank structure itself. This is where you will interact with the system to purchase your licenses and spend your coins. Both the unlock coins and the licenses are crafted in the player inventory, but the bank acts as the central hub for managing your taming rights. The bank is a physical structure that must be placed in your base, adding a new layer of base design as you protect this valuable asset from raiders.
Admins have full control via console commands. You can spawn the necessary items directly using cheats such as cheat giveitem "/HyenaBanking/Items/PrimalItem_HB_Coin.PrimalItem_HB_Coin" 1 0 0 for coins, cheat giveitem "/HyenaBanking/Items/PrimalItem_HB_License.PrimalItem_HB_License" 1 0 0 for licenses, and cheat giveitem "/HyenaBanking/Structures/Bank/PrimalItem_HB_Bank.PrimalItem_HB_Bank" 1 0 0 for the bank. The relevant engrams are EngramEntry_HB_License_C, EngramEntry_HB_Coin_C, and EngramEntry_HB_Bank_C.
Critical Server Configuration for Hyena Bank & Licensing
Before you even think about spawning your first coin, you must configure your server correctly. The most vital step is setting the clusterid in your server configs. The mod relies on this identifier to save all vital player and tribe data. Even if you are running a single server with no intention of clustering, you must still set this value to something unique. Without it, your progress will be lost upon server restart, making the entire mod pointless. This is the number one cause of "broken" installations, so double-check your ini files.
Once the cluster ID is set, the mod works seamlessly with most other QoL and building mods. Because it uses its own item paths and engrams, it rarely conflicts with other mods that alter the base game. However, you should always test it alongside your full mod list to ensure no ID overlaps occur. The mod is designed for the current version of ARK: Survival Ascended, and the developer actively patches it for major game updates, ensuring long-term stability for your server.
Installation and Compatibility
Installing the mod is straightforward. You can find it on the CurseForge and Mod.io platforms. To install, simply subscribe to the mod and add it to your server's mod list. For single-player, it activates just like any other mod. If you are looking for a streamlined way to manage your mods, the foxygame.net launcher offers a one-click install for Hyena Bank & Licensing, pulling the latest version directly from the repository and handling all the file placement for you. This is especially useful if you are running a dedicated server and want to avoid manual downloads.
For those wondering how to install this without a launcher, the process is manual but simple. Download the mod file, place it in your ARK: Survival Ascended mod folder, and ensure the mod ID is added to your server command line or single-player load order. The launcher mentioned above also provides auto-updates, so you never have to worry about missing a patch that fixes a critical bug or adds new dinos to the unlock pool.
Why You Should Download Hyena Bank & Licensing
This mod is perfect for players who feel the game has become too predictable. It encourages you to build bases that can house a wider variety of dinos, and it makes the early game much more tense, as you never know what you will be able to tame next. The configurable nature of the mod means that hardcore servers can make unlocks incredibly rare and expensive, while casual players can set the cooldown to a few minutes for constant variety. The Hyena Bank & Licensing for ARK: Survival Ascended is a fresh take on progression that rewards patience and punishes complacency.
In conclusion, if you want to inject a dose of randomness into your taming routine, this add-on delivers. It is a well-crafted, configurable system that respects the base game's mechanics while adding a new layer of risk and reward. Whether you are a solo survivor or running a large tribe, the Hyena Bank forces you to think differently about your creature collection. Set your cluster ID, build your bank, and see what the RNG gods decide you deserve to tame next.
--- **Update Sep 19, 2026:** Added 4 files for version 1.0.