ARK Breeding Settings and Dino Wipes: Mating, Hatching and Cleanup
Breeding is a big part of ARK. On your own server you can speed it up, and you can reset wild creatures when spawns become broken or overcrowded.
Where to change breeding settings
Stop the server, open the Files tab and edit GameUserSettings.ini. The multipliers go in the server settings section. Check our ARK rates guide for the file path on your server.
Common multipliers
- MatingIntervalMultiplier controls the cooldown between mating. Lower means more frequent.
- EggHatchSpeedMultiplier raises how fast eggs hatch. Higher means faster.
- BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier raises how fast babies grow up.
- BabyCuddleIntervalMultiplier changes how often babies request imprinting. Lower means more frequent requests.
- BabyImprintAmountMultiplier changes how much each imprint gives.
- BabyFoodConsumptionSpeedMultiplier controls how fast babies eat.
Verify names and defaults on the official wiki. Extreme values can cause strange behaviour, so start modestly.
Note on babies
A very fast maturation combined with a slow cuddle interval can make imprinting hard, since babies grow before you can finish. Keep the settings balanced.
Wiping wild dinos
A dino wipe removes wild creatures so they respawn. It does not touch tamed dinos.
- Join the server as an admin and open the console.
- Run cheat DestroyWildDinos.
- Wait a few minutes for creatures to respawn.
Do this after changing spawn settings, after updates, or when spawns look stuck. You may see a brief lag spike, so announce it first. Some servers also schedule a wipe from the panel; check what is available.
Tame limits
Too many tames hurt performance. Consider limits for tamed dinos per player or tribe. See the official documentation for the exact settings in your version.
Tips
- Always restart after editing ini files and keep a backup.
- Do not edit the file while the server runs, as it may be overwritten at shutdown.
- Our ARK lag guide has more on performance.