If you enjoy exploring your hunter-gatherer roots as you journey through ARK Survival: Evolved’s many different maps. It won’t be long before you wonder what the best locations for setting up your base on every map of Ark Survival Evolved to triumph over any PvE or PvP obstacles are.
Searching for a high elevation with plenty of room to spread out is an excellent place to start. Still, most of the best possible base locations will be found in hard-to-locate caves, thanks to their well-protected space and narrow entrances that make them easier to defend.
That’s only enough to get you started, however, as anyone who has taken the time to explore even a bit of the world that ARK: Survival Evolved offers will realize there’s so much to dig into. You can find all the information you need to discover the best base locations for every map in ARK: Survival Evolved.
From the theory behind choosing a base location to the actual coordinates for unique spots, you are through here. Nothing will stop you from conquering any ARK you might find.
1. The Island
Base Location Coordinates: 83.7 84.4
Perhaps the personal favorite for many ARK players, Herbivore Island has many benefits as a jack-of-all-trades starting position. It can very well be considered the best PVE early Island location in the game.
The landscape provides a natural horseshoe for aquatic creatures and a mountain range that makes for an excellent spot for setting up your Dinosaur pen.
With a little bit of everything, this location doesn’t master anything, so you will need to venture out to collect more resources overall.
However, the abundance of valuable sections in this area makes it an excellent place for a base. It will usually be taken up in every PvP server within minutes.
2. The Center
Base Location Coordinates: 33.8 52.1
This is a cave base location with only two entrances, which are decently hidden. You have plenty of space inside for setting up fortifications which is a rare find when it comes to caves. The cave’s entrance is the perfect defense strategy within themselves.
The tight corridors can bottleneck any incoming attacks, and a few well-placed turrets can rip your attackers to shreds.
The resources within the caves are of good quality and vary, enough to raise a tribe. There is enough room in here to look after a medium tribe.
3. Scorched Earth
Base Location Coordinates: 68.2 26.3
As one of the highest-up locations on the map, you will be detached from the hostile happening of the map. It is a great location to keep a lookout for the rest of the players in PVP servers.
The height makes it nigh impossible for an attacker to try to invade you. If you set up moderate defenses, the invaders will most often turn away with their tails between their legs.
Resource scarcity is a bit of an issue but also another reason for other players to not bother you. There is an obelisk nearby which is great for fighting bosses.
4. Ragnarok
Base Location Coordinates: 41.2 28.9
This cliffside location gives you a nice plateau with a decent amount of room for building on top of it and only one walkway leading up to it, making it great for defense.
With plenty of space leading up to it, you can build as much foundation as you need making it an excellent spot for starting a large tribe.
5. Aberration
Base Location Coordinates: 46.4 59.3
This is an excellent spot for defense and farming of all kinds. It is perfectly hidden near the top of a huge blue vine.
It is hard to reach, and if you take the time to cut the bottom foundations of this base location, then you will essentially be ground-attacker-proof. The location has only two main entrances, which you can defend quite easily.
6. Extinction
Base Location Coordinates: 57.5 58.4
With a large tower to be your foundation, you can start building a base at the top of these coordinates, and you will have plenty of room to branch out beneath you as you build.
This location benefits from being in the city while still having protective height and plenty of space to each side. The city has tons of other benefits which you can access with relative ease.
7. Valguero
Base Location Coordinates: 47.1 91.4
If a small hitting cave is your idea of a stable base location, this area should suit you quite well with all of the overhead tree covers before we drop down into a water pool that opens into a cave on the other side.
You will want to head to around 4691 drops down and look for a rock formation that looks like a bridge underneath. You will find this base location midway through.
8. Crystal Isles
Base Location Coordinates: 53.3 58.1
You should choose this area if you are looking for a bit more space for a medium-sized tribe. The cave under this volcano offers plenty of room to spread out for all your breeding, housing, farming, and other needs.
The caves all spawn metals naturally, so you can pick them like you are picking apples from your backyard.
Few will even try to invade you if you have adequately set up the defenses of the single entrance to this location.
9. Lost Islands
Base Location Coordinates: 42.6 55.1
This here is an abandoned fort of sorts in the middle of a lake. Beauty and functions are both present here. The fort walls provide premade defensive structures for you to build further upon.
The ground is relatively flat for you to place your base without much foundational effort. The location is in the center of the map as well, which is a plus for exploration.
The fort is divided into two sections; one for the dinos to live in and one for the humans of your tribe. Additionally, the water all around acts as a defensive measure, too, but don’t get fooled since it is extremely shallow. Apart from the creatures near this location, some great creatures can be found on this island.
10. Fjordur
Base Location Coordinates: 55.0 73.6
Another fort location with a massive flat surface for you to build upon without any restrictions. The walls around the castle are quite thick, you can use them to place defensive turrets or even other structures on top.
The location is near a green hilly area, so you got scenic points, and the mountains around spawn a nice assortment of metallic resources.
The south of the location has a spawn point for some amazing dinos. There is a small water source right in front of one of the castle’s gates that leads to a beautiful waterfall. The lake to the north is also a nice addition for your water breeding and miscellaneous needs.
11. Genesis Part 1
Base Location Coordinates: 25.9 26.0
This will be an excellent location for any PvP server as it is located within a cave and one of the few caves you can build on this map. With only two main entrances and tight corridors, this area is very easy to set up turrets to defend. You can also find resources like metal and silver close by.
12. Genesis Part 2
Base Location Coordinates: 20.0 58.4
This is a massive flat plateau on top of a hill right at the edge of the map. The sheer size of the location gives you ample opportunity to go crazy while building your base.
One of the best features is the fact there is only one road that leads to this elevated location providing a great defensive measure from ground attacks.
It is next to a mine as well, so there is access to good resources. Alpha predators and other creatures also spawn in this location which you could use to tame or gather loot. This is one of the best base locations in Ark Survival Evolved Genesis Part 2, especially if you are into PVE.
Key Factors to Any Great ARK Base
Knowing where to build a great base is nice, but understanding the foundations of finding and creating a great base will take you further.
Whether you are playing against other people or on the computer, there’s so much to think about. Keep these basic concepts in mind when you choose a base location, and you might see it survive more than the night.
Access
It is nearly impossible to have an effective base if you don’t have both an entrance and an exit. However, ARK is an incredibly dynamic game that gives you many different options for approaching a base.
Because you have effective traps and towers at both natural entrances doesn’t mean you will be protected from all attackers.
Many assaults use air support, so building at high altitudes sometimes won’t help. The best locations are highly rated because they limit access to extreme levels. These caves often only have a couple of entrances, large dropdowns, or environmental hazards to prevent invaders.
The importance of limiting access scales with the competition you will be facing, though, so you might not need to worry about different things like protection from the air if you aren’t playing PvP.
Still, the best possible options offer plenty of space and protection and limited access, so it is certainly something to keep in mind. It would help if you considered while caves prevent access, they also often come with a pesky 6x damage multiplier.
Resources
Since resources are such a significant factor in your progression through the game finding a base location that satisfies your need for help is very important. It is simple enough to start hacking at trees and collecting stones, but more precious resources like metals can be more challenging to come across.
While the perfect base location doesn’t need to be parked right on top of resources, they should be available nearby in surplus so you aren’t slowed down during your tech progression. Taking the time to explore and find a great location next to dangerous obstacles can help you speed through the game if you know what to look for.
Dinosaurs
You will see the many different creatures throughout the gameplay; a massive part of Ark’s overall experience evolved. As a survival game based on hunting-gathering and building up your base, finding the right dinosaurs can be integral 2 enjoying the game.
When it comes to deciding on a base location, however, dinosaurs can play many different parts. You might want to use your base for collecting dinosaurs, or you may be more worried about preventing dangerous ones from approaching.
When considering dinosaurs and your base finding the best of both worlds usually includes an area to hold them and the type of access that prevents them from overwhelming you.
Breeding
Eventually, as you progress in the game, breeding will become an essential aspect of the game, depending on your interests. With this in mind, you will want to consider future breeding options when deciding your base location.
For breeding, you can keep it simple by just searching for a large enough space that you can construct a breeding pen. Though many creatures require water breeding, making sure your base location includes a deep enough reservoir for this might be necessary.
With all the necessities out of the way, let’s get into the best base locations for every map in ARK: Survival Evolved. Each site will be explained with the general coordinate for finding the area and a short breakdown of why the location works and when you should use it.
PvP vs. PvE
Here are a few general tips on how to approach base building on a PvP vs. PvE server.
- PvP: Build away from starting zones, popular resource points, or obelisks.
- PvE: Make sure you are building at a location with resources nearby
These were some of the best base locations on each of the maps in Ark: Survival Evolved. We have chosen each of these locations with all the tiny considerations we have mentioned earlier, and you wouldn’t go wrong in picking them up yourself.