Alpha Raptor

The Alpha Raptor is one of the Alpha Creatures in ARK: Survival Evolved.

Basic Info
The Alpha Raptor is a bigger, stronger version of a Raptor which rarely spawns throughout the island. In addition to their own strength, they also buff the damage and resistance of any nearby wild dinos. They pose a significant threat to any players who aren't fully prepared to encounter one.

Defeating an Alpha Raptor grants a large amount of XP and gives all nearby players a. They also frequently drop recipes, high-quality weapons and armor, and various other items.

Alpha Raptors do not drop normal raw meat when harvested. Instead, they give very large quantities of.

Behavior
The Alpha Raptor is much like the normal Raptor. They move extremely fast and do large amounts of damage. This makes fleeing from one difficult, so it is not advisable to get into a fight with one unless you're prepared to see the battle through. The Alpha Raptor has an enormous amount of health like the Alpha T-Rex and Alpha Carno. It can easily destroy non-metal buildings, so it is not advisable to hide from or fight one from inside your base if it is not built to withstand one. The Alpha Raptor has an increased jump height compared with other dinos to get behind its target.

Appearance
The Alpha Raptor is about 1.5x the size of a normal Raptor and share the same color palette, but with a slightly darker shade. They also have a glowing red aura surrounding them, making them easier to differentiate from their normal counterparts.

Drops

 * Harvest


 * Guaranteed Special Loot

Combat
This section describes how to fight against the Alpha Raptor.

General
Know your strategy before the confrontation. The worst time to encounter/battle an alpha raptor is when the player is unprepared. Use all resources available to take it down, and do not be afraid to do battle with a tamed creature, as long as it has high levels in combat sections like Health and Melee damage. Take into account that the alpha can shred its prey if it catches it. If it gets its claws on the player, the player must turn and face it down. At that point, it is strictly a race to kill the other opponent. Employ pikes, swords and spears so you aren't the loser!

Strategy
The easiest method to kill an alpha raptor is by luring it to a corpse with no other carnivores around, running away, and shooting it from a safe distance. Alphas will aggro on corpses but can not destroy them without the help of other carnivores. Shoot the head for x3 damage.

Another Strategy is to use an Argentavis on steep terrain. Spam attack and the alpha will rarely ever hit you, certain rocks can allow you to tilt the argy's head down to completely avoid damage. Experienced argy riders can avoid damage all together on steep terrain by timing their 4th attack to be slightly delayed- knockback is your friend.

Bleeders (Tames that can deal damage equal to a certain percentage of the target's health) are very useful against alpha predators. Notable bleeders include the, the , the (in packs), and the. Make sure to take out the alpha's allies before battle, and any interfering herbivores.

A mid to high level Therizinosaurus can be used to duel an alpha raptor, their damage output and fast attack rate can keep the alpha raptor far enough away to effectively fight it.

Two high level (should only tame 135s and above, since they are easy tames with an argentavis) direwolves allow you to take down even the toughest of alpha raptors, remember to right click for howl buff!

Dinosaurs with high knockback and fast attacks like the Carnotaurus are useful for this encounter, as they can hit the alpha raptor while taking small amounts of damage in return.

If you simply want to run away, try to lead it to another animal such as a Parasaur or Triceratops. The Alpha should begin to attack it if you run past it.

If you have lots of tames, you can corner one at the base of a cliff by having them all attack it. It won't be able to move. I recommend using a pack of Raptors, a Sarco, and a few Dilophosauraus.

Unlike normal Raptors, it's not immobilized by bolas, so the strategy low-level players usually rely on to escape/kill these creatures is useless against Alphas.

Weaponry
Use ranged weapons and mounts to deal damage from far away. If physical confrontation becomes relevant, use pikes, swords and spears. Do not run, as such an attempt will turn out fruitless. Use everything at your disposal, including the terrain. Lodging the raptor in rocks or trees can save your life, and possibly end the raptor's (don't stop running though... since it will eventually turn around.)

Dangers
The alpha raptor is extremely fast, and you will most likely never escape one unless you have a flying mount or a high level Galimimus. If you find yourself in a fight with an alpha raptor head for the water, the alpha raptor will almost always be slower than you in water. The alpha raptor also deals massive amounts of damage, so if you are not ready to fight one, it is highly recommended to not approach it.

Unlike regular raptors, Alpha Raptors do not pounce so there is no worry for it dismounting you from your tame. This does not stop other raptor allies from joining the fight and pouncing you as well.

Note that Raptors seem to no longer pounce the player outside of the Genesis Hunts.

Weakness

 * If a player is prepared, they can usually use a powerful mount (e.g. Rex, Thylacoleo, Allosaurus, Therizinosaurus), other tribe members, or guns to kill off high level Alpha Raptors.
 * The Alpha Raptor keeps biting until the body of a victim decomposes, this gives you the opportunity to attack it from long range.
 * It suffers from headshots. A crossbow or gun does this job well.
 * On mobile, the alpha raptor will not agro if it is stuck in the water. You can use this bug to your advantage, and get it trapped underwater. Keep in mind that it cannot drown, so you must beat it with a pike. It has been observed at the Red Obelisk, that if it falls into the water, it will sink and become passive.