Almost every "my ARK server ignores my settings" problem comes down to one of three things: the setting is in the wrong file, it is under the wrong section header, or the file was edited while the server was running. ARK: Survival Ascended splits its server configuration across two files, GameUserSettings.ini and Game.ini, and the split is not intuitive: XPMultiplier lives in one file while the per-source XP multipliers live in the other, and every breeding multiplier lives in the file most people don't open first.
This guide is for people who run an ASA server. It covers which file and section each common setting belongs in, what the most-searched rate multipliers actually do (including the ones where a lower number means faster), reasonable starting values for common server styles, and the pitfalls that make a server silently fall back to defaults. Setting names, files, sections and defaults are taken from the ARK wiki's server configuration reference.
Breeding has its own deep dive: see How ARK's Breeding Multipliers Actually Work. This page only tells you where those settings go.
| File | Section header | What goes there |
|---|---|---|
| GameUserSettings.ini | [ServerSettings] | Most server options and the basic and intermediate gameplay rates: XP, taming, harvesting, difficulty, day/night speed, player and creature damage, structures. |
| Game.ini | [/script/shootergame.shootergamemode] | Advanced options: breeding and imprinting, per-source XP, crops and spoiling, per-level stat multipliers, per-resource harvest rates, engram overrides, spawn tables. |
Both files sit in the same folder on the server: ShooterGame\Saved\Config\WindowsServer\, relative to the server install directory. GameUserSettings.ini also contains sections the game client uses; those are ignored by the server, so only what you put under [ServerSettings] (plus a few dedicated sections such as [SessionSettings] and [MessageOfTheDay]) affects your server's rules.
Many GameUserSettings.ini options can also be passed on the server's launch line using ?Option=Value after the map name. Game.ini options cannot: the wiki is explicit that specifying them on the command line has no effect.
All of these go under [ServerSettings]. Every default below is 1.0 unless noted, which is the baseline single-player experience.
| Setting | What it does | Default | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|
| XPMultiplier | Scales XP received by players, tribes and tames for all actions | 1.0 | Higher = more XP |
| TamingSpeedMultiplier | Scales creature taming speed | 1.0 | Higher = faster taming |
| HarvestAmountMultiplier | Yield from every harvesting strike: trees, rocks, berries, carcasses | 1.0 | Higher = more per strike |
| HarvestHealthMultiplier | "Health" of harvestable nodes, i.e. how many strikes a tree or rock withstands before it is gone | 1.0 | Higher = more strikes, more total yield |
| ResourcesRespawnPeriodMultiplier | Respawn period of resource nodes (trees, rocks, bushes) | 1.0 | Lower = faster respawn |
| ItemStackSizeMultiplier | Multiplies default stack sizes (items that stack to 1 are excluded) | 1.0 | Higher = bigger stacks |
| DayCycleSpeedScale | Speed of the day/night cycle | 1.0 | Lower = slower days |
| PlayerCharacterFoodDrainMultiplier | How fast players get hungry | 1.0 | Higher = hungrier faster |
| StructureResistanceMultiplier | Damage structures take when attacked | 1.0 | Higher = structures take MORE damage |
| MaxTamedDinos | Server-wide cap on tamed creatures | 5000 | A count, not a multiplier |
| OverrideOfficialDifficulty | Overrides the difficulty level; 5.0 lets common wild creatures spawn up to level 150 | 0.0 (off) | 5.0 = official max wild level |
XPMultiplier in GameUserSettings.ini is the global XP rate. If you want to boost only one way of earning XP, Game.ini has separate multipliers, each defaulting to 1.0: KillXPMultiplier, HarvestXPMultiplier, CraftXPMultiplier, GenericXPMultiplier (the XP you get automatically over time) and SpecialXPMultiplier. A common setup is to leave the global rate moderate and raise only crafting or harvesting XP, so players level by playing the part of the game you want to reward.
"Harvest rate" is really three knobs. HarvestAmountMultiplier is what you get per hit; HarvestHealthMultiplier is how many hits a node lasts, so raising it also raises total yield per node; ResourcesRespawnPeriodMultiplier is how long until the node comes back, where a lower value means faster respawn. If you want a single resource boosted without touching the rest, Game.ini supports per-resource lines (see below).
Per the wiki, at DayCycleSpeedScale=1 one real minute is roughly 28 in-game minutes, and a value around 0.035 gives an approximately 24-hour real-time day/night cycle. Most servers want something in between; DayTimeSpeedScale and NightTimeSpeedScale let you shorten nights without changing days.
Every option in this file goes under one header, written on the wiki as:
If the header is missing or misspelled, the lines below it are not read as server rules. The settings people most often look for here:
| Setting | What it does | Default |
|---|---|---|
| BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier | Maturation speed of babies; higher = faster. Full breeding guide | 1.0 |
| EggHatchSpeedMultiplier | Time for a fertilised egg to hatch; higher = faster | 1.0 |
| MatingIntervalMultiplier | Cooldown between matings; lower = sooner (0.5 = mate 50% sooner) | 1.0 |
| KillXPMultiplier / HarvestXPMultiplier / CraftXPMultiplier | XP from kills, harvesting and crafting, each scaled on its own | 1.0 |
| CropGrowthSpeedMultiplier | Crop growth speed in plots; higher = faster | 1.0 |
| GlobalSpoilingTimeMultiplier | Spoiling time of perishables; higher = food lasts longer | 1.0 |
| PerLevelStatsMultiplier_Player[i] / _DinoTamed[i] / _DinoWild[i] | How much a stat grows per level point, by stat index. See the ARK Stats Calculator | varies |
| HarvestResourceItemAmountClassMultipliers | Harvest amount for one resource class only, e.g. thatch | 1.0 per class |
Per-resource harvest lines use a struct syntax. The wiki's example, which doubles thatch from trees, must be written on a single line with no spaces:
Add one line per resource class you want to change. Per-level stats work by stat index; the wiki's example doubles the weight a player gains per level point:
There is no official "correct" rate; these are starting points, not rules. Change one or two values at a time and watch how your players progress before going further.
| Setting | Vanilla-like | Casual boosted | High-rate PvE |
|---|---|---|---|
| XPMultiplier | 1.0 | 2.0 – 3.0 | 5.0 – 10.0 |
| TamingSpeedMultiplier | 1.0 | 3.0 – 5.0 | 10.0 |
| HarvestAmountMultiplier | 1.0 | 2.0 – 3.0 | 5.0 – 10.0 |
| ResourcesRespawnPeriodMultiplier | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.25 – 0.5 |
| ItemStackSizeMultiplier | 1.0 | 2.0 | 5.0 – 10.0 |
| OverrideOfficialDifficulty | 5.0 | 5.0 | 5.0 |
Breeding rates for each style are covered in the breeding multipliers guide. To see what a taming rate means for a specific creature, run it through the ARK Taming Calculator before you commit to it.
A casual boosted server could look like this across the two files:
Breeding multipliers, per-source XP, crop growth and spoiling all belong in Game.ini. BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier placed in GameUserSettings.ini is not applied, and a "3x breeding" server keeps breeding at 1x. Use the tables above, and when in doubt check the wiki's server configuration page, which lists every option under the file it belongs to.
GameUserSettings.ini options must sit under [ServerSettings], not under a client section that happens to be in the same file. Game.ini options must sit under [/script/shootergame.shootergamemode]. A setting pasted above the header, or below a different header, belongs to that other section.
The wiki's own instruction is to close the game before editing the INI files, because changes made while it is running are removed. Stop the server, edit, then start it again. The server reads these files when it starts; a separate DynamicConfig mechanism exists for changing a small set of settings live, but ordinary ini edits need a restart.
Many GameUserSettings.ini options can also be set on the launch line with ?Option=Value. If a value is in both your launch line and your ini, you now have two sources of truth and it is easy to edit the one that isn't being used. Keep each setting in exactly one place, and prefer the ini file for anything you will tune over time.
Options documented for Game.ini can only be set there. Adding ?BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier=3 to the launch line does nothing.
Most multipliers mean "higher = more or faster", but not all. ResourcesRespawnPeriodMultiplier and MatingIntervalMultiplier scale a waiting time, so lower is faster. StructureResistanceMultiplier is named like a defence stat, but higher values make structures take more damage (2.0 = double damage, 0.5 = half). PlayerCharacterFoodDrainMultiplier above 1 makes players hungrier.
Lines like HarvestResourceItemAmountClassMultipliers=(...) are often shown wrapped for readability. In the actual file each entry must be on one line with no spaces.
For PerLevelStatsMultiplier_*, the wiki notes that a value of 0 falls back to the default of 1.0. To nearly disable stat gain for a stat, use 0.01 instead.
Every option needs a value. An option you don't list simply uses its default, so there is no need to copy a full template of every setting into your files. Listing only what you changed makes the next mistake much easier to spot.
Hand-editing two ini files over a file manager or FTP is where every pitfall above happens. NodeMesh runs your ASA server on your own hardware, and its Config tab edits these settings as form fields. Each field is mapped to the correct file and section, so XPMultiplier goes to GameUserSettings.ini under [ServerSettings] and BabyMatureSpeedMultiplier goes to Game.ini without you having to know that. You save, then restart from the same page.
The Config tab also understands what the numbers mean: change a breeding multiplier or the difficulty and it shows the consequence in plain language (for example how often a pair can re-mate, or the highest wild creature level), computed by the same calculators linked on this page.
Host ARK: Survival Ascended on your own PC or server. NodeMesh's Config tab writes every setting to the right file and section for you.
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