ARK Classic PvP Season 5: Rates, Maps and Rule Changes

ARK: Survival Evolved’s Classic PvP Season 5 launched on December 14, 2021 alongside the Lost Island map. The cluster was designed as a faster, restricted alternative to the standard official-server ruleset, with fewer late-game systems and several creature balance changes.

Season 5 rates and server limits

• Experience, taming and gathering: 5x the standard official rate.
• Breeding, hatching and raising: 4x.
• Maximum tribe size: 25 players; formal tribe alliances disabled.
• Maximum server population: 100 players.

The six-map cluster included The Island, Scorched Earth, Ragnarok, Lost Island, Valguero and The Center.

Content restrictions

Classic PvP excluded TEK engrams, cave building, Aberration and Extinction content, and the taming of TEK dinosaurs, Paraceratherium, Tapejara and Titanosaur. Cryopods remained enabled. Weapon-damage scaling was reduced, while a Reaper Queen spawn was added to Valguero’s Aberration Zone.

Creature balance changes

Tamed Stegosaurus resistance was reduced by 35%. Tamed Quetzal resistance fell by 20%, and tamed Wyverns received 20% reductions to both resistance and damage. These rules describe the Season 5 launch configuration announced by Studio Wildcard, not the current official-server rules.

Sources

The complete launch rules are preserved in Studio Wildcard’s Steam announcement and its Steam Store News copy. The date and issue number can also be checked in the official ARK community wiki index and the ARK Servers archive.