Unlocking Efficiency: A Guide to the Industrial Forge in ARK: Survival Evolved
What is the Industrial Forge?
A Game Changer
ARK: Survival Evolved is a vast, untamed world teeming with prehistoric creatures, challenging environments, and the constant threat of survival. Building a base and thriving in this environment requires ingenuity, resourcefulness, and a commitment to constant improvement. At the heart of any successful ARK settlement lies the Industrial Forge, a transformative piece of technology that drastically speeds up crafting and unlocks the potential for truly automated production. This guide will delve into everything you need to know to master the Industrial Forge, from building it to optimizing its output and turning your base into a crafting powerhouse.
The Industrial Forge, unlike its more basic counterparts, is a marvel of efficiency. It represents a significant leap forward from the early game crafting methods. While the Refining Forge serves its purpose, it pales in comparison to the sheer speed and capacity offered by the Industrial Forge. This is where you transition from struggling to gather enough resources to building and crafting at scale, essential for progressing in the game. The difference isn’t merely incremental; it’s a fundamental shift that reshapes how you approach survival and expansion.
Obtaining the Industrial Forge requires a bit of commitment and in-game progression. You can learn the Engram for the Industrial Forge through leveling up and spending Engram points. This signifies a point in your journey where you’re expected to handle complex crafting and resource management. Once you have the Engram, you can build the Industrial Forge and reap its many benefits. This signifies that you’re ready for the next level of crafting efficiency and base building capabilities.
Crafting the Industrial Forge
Gathering the Necessary Materials
Constructing the Industrial Forge is an investment in your future. You’ll need to collect a specific list of raw materials. These resources are a testament to its power. They include things like metal ingots, electronics, and polymer or cementing paste, all of which are generally higher-tier resources requiring specific gathering locations or advanced crafting techniques. Gathering these resources efficiently is critical. This process pushes you to explore different regions of the map, from the depths of caves to the hazardous volcanic areas. The quality and efficiency of this early resource gathering sets the stage for the success of your entire operation. Knowing the best places to find each of these materials will significantly speed up the crafting process. Mining metal in the snowy mountains or the volcanic islands, for example, can greatly decrease the time it takes to start building.
The Build Process
The actual crafting process for the Industrial Forge takes place within a Fabricator or a Smithy, which itself is a crafting station. You will select the Industrial Forge from the crafting menu, and provided you have all the required materials in your inventory, the construction process will begin. Once built, the Industrial Forge can change your base from a primitive camp to a crafting haven, ready to meet the demands of the game.
Fueling the Industrial Forge
The Role of Gasoline
Fueling the Industrial Forge is a crucial aspect of keeping your crafting operations running smoothly. The primary fuel source for the Industrial Forge is gasoline. Gasoline is an energy dense fuel source that is made by combining oil with hide, keratin, or chitin in a Refining Forge. Gasoline is efficient to craft. Once you are producing gasoline on a large scale, you can ensure that your Industrial Forge operations will run with no downtime.
Managing Fuel Consumption
Understanding and managing fuel consumption is a key skill. The Industrial Forge burns fuel to craft materials, and without sufficient fuel, crafting grinds to a halt. Tracking how much fuel you are burning per hour of use enables you to determine the ideal amount of gasoline to be on hand. This knowledge will allow you to strategize and manage fuel to allow your base to remain productive.
Automating Fuel Production and Storage
To make your industrial base a real asset, automation is key. Automating gasoline production and building storage systems for gasoline are two critical factors in keeping your base operation going. Consider building a dedicated gasoline production line. Place multiple Refining Forges near oil and hide/keratin/chitin gathering points, and pipe the finished product to a designated fuel storage area. In addition, build several large storage containers specifically for gasoline, near the Industrial Forge.
What Can the Industrial Forge Craft?
Metal Ingots and Other Essentials
The Industrial Forge truly shines when you realize what you can craft with it. It’s not merely a faster Refining Forge; it unlocks the ability to mass produce essential items. At the heart of the Industrial Forge’s functionality is its ability to refine metal.
Metal ingots are at the foundation of many craftable items, so quickly turning raw metal into ingots means having the resources available to craft advanced base defenses, tools, and weapons. Another major benefit is the ability to craft bullets and ammunition at a rate that is much faster than with other crafting stations. The faster crafting speeds also help with many other useful things.
Benefits of Accelerated Production
The increased speed also directly benefits your ability to craft specialized items for building and advancement. A faster craft allows for easier crafting of items like tools, structures, and ammunition at a scale that would be very difficult to reach in other environments.
Setting Up and Optimizing the Industrial Forge
Placement and Organization
Optimizing your setup is critical for realizing the Industrial Forge’s full potential. Where you place your Industrial Forge and the way you structure your crafting area directly affect efficiency and productivity. Consider setting up your Industrial Forge in close proximity to resource storage. This arrangement streamlines the flow of resources, reducing the amount of time spent moving materials. Consider creating a dedicated crafting area to keep the process organized. You can use structures such as Vaults or Metal Storage to contain the raw materials and crafted products.
Safety First
Ensure the placement of your Industrial Forge is safe. Industrial Forges can generate heat and can catch fire with the application of gasoline. Build a space for your forge away from flammable materials. This ensures that your progress won’t be set back.
Maximizing Efficiency
Maximizing efficiency extends beyond mere placement; it also involves optimizing the crafting workflow. Consider ways to automate the process of moving materials to and from the forge. Structures like the Chemistry Bench can make this process easier.
The capacity of the Industrial Forge allows for over-crafting. You can have a large amount of an item already crafted and available to be used later on. This allows you to have materials ready when needed, increasing the speed of your operations.
Troubleshooting and Common Issues
Addressing Potential Problems
Troubleshooting can arise even in the most well-planned bases. The Industrial Forge, like any complex piece of machinery, can sometimes exhibit problems. There are common issues, which are usually relatively easy to fix. For example, the forge might not be working. The solution often involves checking if the correct resources are loaded into the forge.
Solutions and Workarounds
If the forge is not burning fuel, it might be out of fuel or there is a glitch. Check the fuel levels, and replace it if necessary. If the issue persists, restarting the server might resolve minor glitches.
Advanced Tips and Tricks
Taking it to the Next Level
Advanced strategies can further enhance your crafting operations. If you want to take automation to another level, explore mods such as Structures Plus. The integration of structures plus can drastically improve your manufacturing setup.
The Industrial Forge in PvP
Using the Industrial Forge in PvP scenarios can provide some strategic advantages. Having an efficient crafting setup can allow you to rebuild defenses more quickly after a raid.
Efficient Base Layouts
Building efficient layouts is key to surviving in ARK. The goal is to create a base layout that simplifies resource management and minimizes downtime.
Conclusion
The Industrial Forge is a pivotal tool for any serious ARK player. It transforms your base from a simple shelter into a sophisticated manufacturing center. It allows you to gather, craft, and expand at a scale that’s impossible with other methods. With the correct use of the Industrial Forge and a good understanding of the methods described in this guide, you can build a formidable base in ARK.
Remember that the Industrial Forge is not a magic bullet; it’s a powerful tool that demands careful planning and ongoing management. Embrace this challenge and you’ll soon find yourself thriving in the world of ARK: Survival Evolved.
The Industrial Forge is an essential item, but it is also resource intensive. It is a worthy investment.
Now, get out there, build your Industrial Forge, and unlock your base’s true potential!
