Rearrangements Ascended
ARK: Survival Ascended continues to evolve thanks to a passionate modding community, and few add-ons capture that spirit quite like Rearrangements Ascended. Born from a desire to fix specific frustrations and enhance the sandbox experience, this mod offers a treasure trove of adjustments that cater to both casual builders and hardcore survivors. While it was originally crafted for a private server cluster, its broad appeal means any player can benefit from its thoughtful tweaks. This guide breaks down everything you need to know, from installation to the most impactful changes.
What is Rearrangements Ascended for ARK: Survival Ascended?
At its core, Rearrangements Ascended for ARK: Survival Ascended is a comprehensive overhaul mod. It does not simply add a single creature or item; instead, it rebalances existing mechanics and introduces a suite of new tools designed to smooth out the rough edges of the base game. The mod focuses on three primary pillars: item usability, creature behavior, and structural utility. Whether you are tired of your Oviraptor eating all your eggs or frustrated by the clunky turning radius of a Plesiosaur, this mod likely has a solution for you.
The mod is built with a "use at your own risk" philosophy, as the creator openly states they make it for fun. However, the quality and depth of the changes suggest a deep understanding of the game's systems. It is a labor of love that prioritizes player convenience and logical consistency over strict balance, making it a fantastic choice for those who want a more forgiving and enjoyable ARK experience.
Key Item and Consumable Changes
One of the most immediate differences you will notice involves how consumables work. The mod significantly alters the food economy, making survival less of a chore.
Herbivore and Carnivore Healing
- Berries for Herbivores: Standard berries now heal herbivores when consumed, functioning similarly to how meat works for carnivores. Mejoberries are particularly effective, offering a higher healing value.
- Prime Meat Buffs: Raw Prime Meat and Raw Prime Fish Meat now restore health for carnivores, with prime fish providing double the healing of standard meat.
- Vegetable Stew: A new craftable item acts as the herbivore equivalent of prime meat, perfect for healing large plant-eaters in a pinch.
Quality of Life Consumables
- Stacking Improvements: Raw meats now stack to 100, while prime meats stack to 5, freeing up valuable inventory space.
- Reduced Cooldowns: Raw Meat and Raw Fish Meat have a 75% reduction in their use cooldown, allowing for rapid healing in combat.
- Blood Extractor: This tool now has no cooldown, making blood collection for kibble or other recipes much faster.
For those looking to expand their taming capabilities, the mod introduces a Re-Imprinting Potion. This handy item allows you to change the imprint of a dinosaur to yourself, which is a godsend if you have inherited a creature from a tribemate or found a wild baby. Additionally, a Genderswap Potion lets you change a tamed creature's gender, simplifying breeding lines significantly.
Creature Behavior and Movement Overhauls
The changes to creature AI and movement are arguably the most impactful features of the mod. They address long-standing annoyances that players have complained about for years.
Flyer and Aquatic Maneuverability
- Flyer Improvements: Flyers can now walk backwards and pick up other flyers if they are small enough. Wyverns also benefit from a tighter turning radius when ridden, making them far more agile in combat.
- Aquatic Agility: Plesiosaurs, Tusoteuthises, and Mosasaurs can now swim backwards and turn much tighter. Plesiosaurs can even turn in place, which is a massive improvement for underwater base building.
- Spinosaur Buffs: Spinosaurs can now sprint in water and turn tighter, cementing their place as the ultimate semi-aquatic predator.
Targeting and AI Adjustments
- Predator Logic: Large aquatic creatures like Mosasaurs will no longer be targeted by anything smaller than a Megalodon. Medium aquatic creatures are also safe from pests like Anglerfish and Piranhas.
- Aquatic Repellent: A new consumable item prevents most small aquatic creatures from targeting you, making deep-sea exploration significantly safer.
- Pet Management: Tamed Oviraptors will no longer eat eggs, and their pick-up radius can be displayed. Achatina can now eat berries, and Otters will eat regular raw meat, simplifying their upkeep.
Furthermore, the mod adds a Titano Treat, a craftable food available at level 100 that automatically feeds a Titanosaur for a full week. This removes the constant pressure of keeping a Titanosaur fed and makes it a viable long-term base or war mount.
New Structures and Utility Items
Beyond creature and item tweaks, Rearrangements Ascended introduces several new structures that fill gaps in the vanilla game.
- Simple Workbench: This crafting station allows you to craft most inventory-only items at a 2.5x faster pace, saving you precious time when mass-producing resources.
- Metal Feeding Trough: An intermediate tier between the standard and Tek troughs. It refrigerates items slightly and has an expanded range, perfect for mid-game tribes.
- Artifact Generators: These stations can be crafted from five artifacts and passively produce more artifacts. These can be used for decoration or boss fights, but cannot be used to create more stations.
- Conversion Bench: This bench converts items from the mod into their spin-off variants, allowing for greater flexibility.
If you are using a launcher that supports mod management, such as the one found on foxygame.net, you can easily browse the add-on catalog to find and install this mod. The launcher simplifies the process of managing multiple mods, ensuring that Rearrangements Ascended is always up to date with the latest version of ARK: Survival Ascended, which is crucial for avoiding client crashes. Its one-click install feature is particularly useful for players who are new to modding, as it removes the guesswork from manual installation. Furthermore, the launcher's auto-update functionality means you will never have to worry about version compatibility issues breaking your game after a patch.
The mod also includes a Mega-Stimulant, which wakes up a dinosaur very swiftly by reducing torpor by 10,000 over 20 seconds. However, be warned: it deals 1,000 damage to any human attempting to use it. For those who enjoy a bit of chaos, there are gag items like the Dysentery Shot and a Very Smelly Note. A Color Extractor and Recolor Potion have been moved to a separate mod, but they are worth checking out if you are into creature aesthetics.
How to Install and Compatibility
Learning how to install this mod is straightforward. As with most ARK: Survival Ascended mods, you can find it on the Steam Workshop. To get started, simply subscribe to the mod page. Once subscribed, ensure the mod is enabled in your server's mod list or your single-player world settings. The mod is designed to work with the current version of ARK: Survival Ascended, and the creator actively updates it to maintain compatibility with official patches.
It is important to note that some features, such as the Liopleurodon variants, were temporarily removed due to server/client crashes. The mod creator is actively investigating these issues and plans to reintroduce them in a stable form. This highlights the importance of keeping the mod updated, as older versions may contain the broken code. For the best experience, always check for the latest update before starting a new playthrough.
Final Thoughts on Rearrangements Ascended
In conclusion, Rearrangements Ascended is a fantastic addition to any ARK: Survival Ascended player's mod list. It addresses a wide array of quality-of-life issues while adding enough new content to keep the experience fresh. The changes to aquatic movement alone are worth the download, as they completely transform underwater exploration. The new structures and consumables provide meaningful alternatives to vanilla options, and the creature AI tweaks make the world feel more logical and less punishing.
While it is a personal project, the polish and utility of this mod are undeniable. If you are looking to streamline your ARK experience, reduce tedium, and gain access to powerful new tools, you should definitely download Rearrangements Ascended. It is a testament to what the modding community can achieve and a must-have for anyone who spends significant time in the waters of the Ark.
Whether you are a solo survivor or the leader of a massive tribe, the adjustments offered here will make your time in the game more enjoyable. From the simple pleasure of a stack of 100 raw meat to the game-changing ability to re-imprint a dinosaur, this mod has something for everyone. Give it a try, and you will likely find that it becomes a permanent fixture in your mod loadout.