Reaper Addition (Discontinued)
If you spent any time in the ARK modding community, you likely heard whispers about a mod that flipped the Reaper taming meta on its head. That mod is Reaper Addition (Discontinued), a fan-favorite addition for ARK: Survival Ascended that introduced a completely new way to acquire and breed these terrifying Xenomorph-like creatures. While the mod is no longer updated, its legacy remains strong among players who crave a different challenge than the standard Reaper Queen impregnation mechanic.
What Made Reaper Addition (Discontinued) Unique?
The core hook of this mod was simple yet revolutionary: it removed the need to get impregnated by a Reaper Queen. Instead, you had to hunt down and tame a Reaper King using a knockout (KO) taming method. This was a massive departure from the vanilla experience, where Reapers are only obtained through a risky, passive gestation process. The mod gave players direct control over their taming, making the acquisition of these apex predators feel more like taming a Rex than surviving a horror movie.
Key Features of the Mod
- KO Taming for Reaper Kings: Forget the Queen's tail. You had to knock out a wild Reaper King and feed it to raise its taming effectiveness.
- Gender System: Reaper Kings in this mod had distinct genders, allowing for breeding mechanics that simply do not exist in the base game.
- Breedable Reapers: Once you had a male and female Reaper King, you could breed them to produce offspring, opening the door to stat mutations and imprinting.
- Unique Spawn Codes: The mod included specific admin commands for spawning both wild and tamed variants, bypassing the standard Reaper Queen path entirely.
Understanding the Taming and Breeding Loop
The design philosophy behind Reaper Addition (Discontinued) for ARK: Survival Ascended was to make the Reaper a sustainable creature. In vanilla ARK, Reapers are sterile; you can only get new ones by finding a Queen in the wild. This mod changed that by making the King the centerpiece. You had to locate a wild Reaper King in the Redwood biome, knock it out, and then protect it while it tamed. Once tamed, you could check its gender and pair it with an opposite-gendered mate to start a breeding line.
Where to Find Them
As the original description states, "Reapers spawn on RedWood." This was a deliberate choice, placing these deadly creatures in a biome known for its dense tree cover and ambush predators. This created a tense hunting ground where players had to navigate the forest while tracking down their target. The Redwood setting also meant that taming was often interrupted by other local threats like Therizinosaurus or packs of Raptors, adding a layer of chaos to the process.
Admin Spawn Codes and Commands
For players who preferred to skip the grind or test the creatures in creative mode, the mod provided specific cheat commands. These were essential for server admins and solo players alike who wanted to add the creatures to their world without waiting for natural spawns.
- Tamed Reaper Queen (for reference): Cheat GMSummon "Xenomorph_Character_BP_Female_CheatImpregnate_AD_C" 120
- Wild Reaper Queen: Cheat SpawnDino "Blueprint'/ReaperAddition/Creature/Reaper/Xenomorph_Character_BP_Female_CheatImpregnate_AD.Xenomorph_Character_BP_Female_CheatImpregnate_AD'" 500 0 0 120
- Tamed Reaper King: Cheat GMSummon "Xenomorph_Character_BP_Male_Tamed_AD_C" 120
- Wild Reaper King: Cheat SpawnDino "Blueprint'/ReaperAddition/Creature/Reaper/Xenomorph_Character_BP_Male_Tamed_AD.Xenomorph_Character_BP_Male_Tamed_AD'" 500 0 0 120
These codes allowed players to summon the creatures at a specific level (120 in the examples) and were crucial for testing the breeding mechanics or simply adding a guard beast to their base. If you are looking to download Reaper Addition (Discontinued), you will need to find a mirror or archive, as the mod is no longer listed on the main mod pages. When you do find a copy, ensure it matches the version of ARK: Survival Ascended you are running, as older mods often break with major game updates. For those using the foxygame.net launcher, the add-on catalog may still have a cached version of the mod, allowing for a one-click install that bypasses manual file placement, though you should verify the version compatibility before enabling it on a live server.
How to Install the Mod
If you have managed to secure a copy of the mod files, the installation process is straightforward. The standard method involves placing the mod folder into your ARK: Survival Ascended directory. Here is a quick guide on how to install it correctly.
- Locate your ARK: Survival Ascended installation folder.
- Navigate to the ShooterGame > Content > Mods directory.
- Create a new folder and name it with the mod's ID (usually a string of numbers).
- Extract the downloaded mod files into this folder.
- Launch the game and enable the mod in the "Mods" section of the main menu.
Remember that this mod was designed for a specific version of the game. If you are playing on a newer patch, the mod may cause crashes or fail to load. It is always best to check community forums for any compatibility patches or notes regarding the specific ARK: Survival Ascended versions that support the mod. While the mod is discontinued, many players still run it on private servers that have not updated to the latest version.
Why It Was Discontinued
Modding ARK is a volatile endeavor. Major game updates often break code, and maintaining a mod takes significant time. The creator of Reaper Addition (Discontinued) likely moved on to other projects or found it too difficult to keep up with the rapid release cycle of ARK: Survival Ascended. Regardless of the reason, the mod left a mark by proving that even the most alien creatures in ARK could be integrated into the traditional taming and breeding systems.
Final Thoughts
While you can no longer find it on the official CurseForge or Mod.io pages, the community has preserved it. If you are nostalgic for a different way to obtain Reapers, or if you simply want a breeding pair of Xenomorphs to guard your base, tracking down this mod is worth the effort. Just be prepared for the compatibility headaches that come with using a discontinued mod. It is a piece of ARK history that offered a unique twist on one of the game's most iconic creatures, and for those who experienced it, the Reaper King will always be the true alpha of the Redwoods.