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The Ark: Survival Ascended Crossbow marks the middle ground for in-game projectile weapons. It’s much better than the Bow and Slingshot but doesn’t quite deliver the results a Longneck Rifle does. However, The Crossbow is a trusty weapon and can last for quite a while. If you play your cards right and learn how to use them effectively, you can even take a Crossbow armed with Tranq Arrows on large carnivore taming runs. You can easily use the Crossbow for most of your Ark: Survival Ascended experiences, so why not learn how to get one?
How To Craft a Crossbow in Ark: Survival Ascended
Crafting a Crossbow requires some more advanced crafting stations, rather than the typical crafting you’ve done in your inventory so far. You’ll need a Refining Forge, as well as a Smithy, and a whole bunch of resources.
- 35x Fiber
- 10x Wood
- 7x Metal Ingot
First, you’ll need to take at least 14 Metal to the Refining Forge, stock it full of fuel, which can be Wood, Thatch, or Sparkpowder, and wait for your Metal to be smelted into Metal Ingots. Once you’ve collected the Metal Ingots from the Refining Forge, take them over to the Smithy along with 25 Fiber and 10 Wood.
After you’ve collected your Crossbow, you can equip it to your toolbar and add any type of arrow to it. We use it primarily for Tranq Arrows, but it’s all up to your preference and what you’d like to do with it.
How To Get The Resources to Make a Crossbow
First, you should start with the Metal Ingots since crafting them will likely take longer than collecting the rest of the resources you’ll need. Take a Metal Pick or a Stone Pick and head out to the water or up in the mountains. In the mountains, you’ll be able to find golden rocks that are rich in Metal, but they’re harder to come by and in more dangerous environments. The safest way to get Metal Ingots is to grab them from the round, smooth rocks that you can often find on the beach near the edge of the water. Hit them with your pick until you’ve collected 14 Metal, and take them back to your Refining Forge along with some fuel.
While you’re waiting for your Metal Ingots, you should start collecting Fiber and Wood. Both resources are pretty easy to obtain. Take your Metal Hatchet or Stone Axe to any tree and hit it until you’ve acquired 20 Wood. Remember that using a pick for this task will yield more Thatch than Wood, so it’s important to be mindful of the tool you use.
Finally, head over to any wooded areas where foliage is present on the ground. Unequip any tools you’re using so your hands are empty. Now, if you interact with the foliage on the ground using the E button on your keyboard, you can collect Fiber, along with some useful berries.
To sum up how to get a crossbow in Ark Survival Ascended:
- Collect Metal and craft Metal Ingots
- Harvest Wood with an axe or hatchet
- Harvest fiber from foliage
- Craft a Crossbow in a Smithy
Ark: Survival Ascended is now available on PC.
