Best armor in Ark Survival Ascended, ranked

In Ark Survival Ascended, you’ll be needing armor to protect yourself from the elements and from predators. They also may make a fashion statement, but that’s another issue entirely.

For this reason, you’ll need to know which ones are the best for you to use.

All armor in Ark Survival Ascended ranked

Below is a list of all the armor types in Ark Survival Ascended, from worst to best considering how well they protect you. Each piece is unlocked at a certain level, but don’t be fooled into thinking that each piece gets better as you go along the levels, as that isn’t always the case.

Also, please ignore my strange proportions. Given any character creation tool, I can’t help but not take it seriously.

SCUBA

So, SCUBA gear is late-game and is actually incredibly useful. However, it has the worst armor rating out of all others. This is a very situational set that allows you to breathe underwater. It also makes you faster underwater, and increases your underwater vision. You unlock it at level 81, and is actually the most durable armor you’ll find in the game, so it wins in that category.

The SCUBA set has an armor rating of 5, a cold protection of -15, and heat protection of 23.

Cloth

The Cloth set is, predictably, very low on this list. Very easy to make and great for starting out, you’ll want to upgrade from this set as soon as you possibly can. Unlocked at level 3, all this set takes for the most part is materials that can be scavenged grabbing around the foliage and punching trees. It provides decent enough temperature mitigation for that early in the game, making it a great recommendation for your first day or two in-game.

The Cloth set has an armor rating of 40, a cold protection of 40, and a heat protection of 60.

Hide

Hide is the next step up to the Cloth set, and provides more than double the defence. It does make you hotter, however, so you may need to be careful in warmer and scorching environments. You’ll unlock this set at level 15, and it isn’t really that expensive. You’ll just need to bash down a few more dodos. This is a must if you want to explore further out in search of resources and goodies.

The Hide set has an armor rating of 100, a cold protection of 85, and a heat protection of -25.

Related: All New Dinosaurs in ARK: Survival Ascended

Ghillie

Funnily enough, the Ghillie set does defend you more than the Hide set, and it does aid in hiding you from predators. Unlocked at level 33, this mid-tier armor protects you well enough from predators, allows you to avoid them better, and also defends very well against the heat. It makes a great general purpose set, and isn’t too expensive, either.

The Ghillie set has an armor rating of 160, a cold protection of 24, and a heat protection of 155.

Fur

Now we’re entering the more expensive territory of armor in Ark Survival Ascended. This is a situational armor set, as it really heats you up. So even though it provides good protection against predators, if you’re in a hot area, you’ll find yourself cooking in no time. Naturally, the Fur set performs fantastically in colder areas, or places of high elevation, so may become a necessity. It unlocks at level 23, however, so it will be a while before you can last long in the snow.

The Fur set has an armor rating of 200, a cold protection of 249, and a heat protection of -105.

Chitin

Chitin armor not only looks cool, but is one of the better sets and is relatively affordable. Unlocking at level 37, this dependable and tough set will set you well for encounters of the dino kind, and you’ll be able to hold your own against any aggressors. I would hold on before saddling out to face any bosses, but it’ll defend you on your journey. Chitin armor doesn’t do great against the elements, and does actually heat you up a little, so be careful.

The Chitin set has an armor rating of 250, has a cold protection of 43, and a heat protection of -35.

Related: How to use the fly cheat in Ark Survival Ascended

Flak

I hope you have a lot of metal, because that’s what it’ll cost for a full set of Flak armor. You’ll unlock this set at level 56, and it’ll be of great service to you for many levels beyond. Again, this suit isn’t fantastic against the elements, and it’ll heat you up a tad, but the fantastic armor rating makes it worth it. By this point in the game, getting your hands on the metal required should be an easy task, whether you have it to hand or not.

The Flak set has an armor rating of 500, a cold protection of 60, and a heat protection of -25.

Riot

Riot is the best armor you can get in the game, excluding the following end-game armor. It is pretty expensive, but does get unlocked at level 98, so you should have enough experience to get a hold of all the components easily. With this armor, you will probably be fighting all the bosses that the game has to offer. It is the heaviest set, but it offers fantastic protection, so will be worth it.

The Riot set has an armor rating of 575, a cold protection of 60, and a heat protection of -16.8.

TEK

The TEK armor set is earned upon beating all the bosses, and so is strongest set by a huge margin. And not just physical protection, as the armor has incredibly high environmental protection. You will essentially be unstoppable. And why shouldn’t you be after beating the highest challenges of the game? No other player will be able to challenge you, and you’ll rightfully rule the island.

The Tek set has an armor rating of 900, a cold protection of 255, and a heat protection of 208.

I hope this list helps you, fellow survivor. For more Ark Survival Ascended help, look no further than PC Invasion.