How to Set a Tame Limit on an ARK Survival Ascended Server

To set a tame limit on an ARK: Survival Ascended server, stop the server and add MaxPersonalTamedDinos=<number> under [ServerSettings] in GameUserSettings.ini for a per tribe cap, and adjust MaxTamedDinos for the hard cap across the whole server. ASA also has a soft tame limit that marks extra tames "For Cryo" and removes them after a countdown. A per tribe cap of 300 to 500 on a busy server, or lower on a small one, keeps tribes from filling the map with dinos and dragging server performance down.

Why tame limits matter

Every tamed creature is an entity the server updates, saves and sends to nearby players. A few hundred tames are no problem. Several thousand, especially packed into one base, lead to:

• Long save hitches every time the world saves.
• Lag and rubber banding near big breeding bases.
• Slower loading into the area for every player who visits.
• A larger save file and more RAM use.

On a small private server you may never hit a problem. On a busy server with breeders, a cap is the single most effective performance setting you can add.

The settings

All of these go in ShooterGame/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/GameUserSettings.ini, under [ServerSettings]:

Step 1: Pick your numbers

Some starting points:

Official servers use per tribe caps in this range too. For platform saddles, PersonalTamedDinosSaddleStructureCost=19 is a common value, so one platform saddle with a base on it counts as many dinos. Without it, a tribe can sidestep the cap by building on giant platform tames.

Step 2: Edit the file with the server stopped

ARK writes GameUserSettings.ini back to disk when it shuts down. If you edit it while the server is running, your change is overwritten on the next stop. Stop the server first, then edit.

[ServerSettings]
MaxPersonalTamedDinos=300
PersonalTamedDinosSaddleStructureCost=19
MaxTamedDinos=4000

Add the lines to the existing [ServerSettings] section rather than making a second one. If the section has the same key twice, ARK uses only one of them. The settings without them resetting guide explains the traps in more detail.

Step 3: Start and test

Start the server and check from a tribe in game. The tribe manager shows the tame count against the cap once a limit is set. Try a tame on a tribe that is at the limit: the game refuses it with a message that the tribe has too many tames.

Existing tames above the new cap are not deleted. The tribe simply cannot tame, hatch or claim more until it drops below. That makes it safe to add a cap to a running world.

The soft tame limit

The soft limit works differently. It does not block taming. Once the server as a whole goes over the soft limit, the newest tames above it get a "For Cryo" mark and a timer. Players have until the timer runs out to put them in cryopods. When it reaches zero, the server destroys the marked tames.

To turn it on:

[ServerSettings]
DestroyTamesOverTheSoftTameLimit=True
MaxTamedDinos_SoftTameLimit=4000
MaxTamedDinos_SoftTameLimit_CountdownForDeletionDuration=604800

Use it as a safety net on a busy server, set below MaxTamedDinos, and announce it to players before switching it on. A shorter countdown such as 259200 (three days) suits active servers, while a week gives casual players time to log in.

On a small server with a per tribe cap, the soft limit is usually not needed.

Other settings that keep dino counts down

• Tribe size. MaxNumberOfPlayersInTribe in Game.ini limits how many players a tribe can have, which stops one huge tribe from holding most of the server's tames.
• Dino decay on PvE. On PvE, unvisited tames decay and become claimable. Leave decay on unless your group is tiny, so abandoned bases do not keep their dinos forever. The PvE server guide covers decay settings.
• Wild dinos. Wild creature counts are a separate issue. DestroyWildDinos clears them and they respawn fresh, which helps when a map has filled with leftover creatures.

Using the panel

On a GamezServers ARK server, GameUserSettings.ini is in the file manager. Stop the server with one click, edit, and start it again so your values stick. The panel's own settings handle the rates people change most (XP, taming speed, harvest amount, PvE), and for anything else like tame caps you add lines in the file. For a PvE group that wants this set up from the start, see ARK PvE server hosting.

FAQ

What is the default tame limit on an ARK Ascended server?

The server wide hard cap, MaxTamedDinos, is 5000. There is no per tribe cap until you set MaxPersonalTamedDinos.

Does lowering the tame limit kill existing dinos?

No. Tribes over the new cap keep their tames but cannot add more. Only the soft tame limit, when turned on, destroys tames after its countdown.

Do cryopodded dinos count toward the limit?

Dinos in cryopods are items, not creatures in the world, so they do not count while stored. They count again once released.

Why is my tame limit not working?

Most often the server was running when you edited the file and overwrote it on shutdown, or the line is in the wrong section. Stop the server, check it is under [ServerSettings], and start again.