An adult Elderclaw cannot be tamed — not knocked out, not trap-fed, not coaxed. There are exactly two ways to get one, and both of them start with a kill.
The numbers
| Stat | Value |
|---|---|
| Taming type | Baby claim or seed growing (adults cannot be tamed) |
| Health | 800 |
| Food | 2,800 |
| Weight | 650 |
| Melee Damage | 35 |
| Torpor | 1,000 |
| Preferred food | see method |
| Found on | Valguero, The Center, Aberration, Extinction, Ragnarok, Genesis: Part 1, Astraeos, Lost Colony |
Base stats from the official ARK wiki creature data. Note the melee damage is 35, not the 100 the older guides claimed, and it lives on eight maps rather than fourteen.
The method, in one sentence
Kill the parent and claim the wild baby, or kill an Elderclaw for the seed it drops, plant that seed in a Large Crop Plot and keep answering its requests until it matures.
That is the whole tame. Everything hard about it is in the execution.
Step by step
- Decide which route you are taking. The baby claim is faster; the seed route takes longer but gives bonus levels from how well you tended the plant.
- Baby route: kill the parent, then claim the baby. The simple method is to claim a wild baby Elderclaw after killing its parent and raise it like any other baby.
- Have a well-leveled Gigantoraptor for imprinting. Without one, you will miss out on a lot of potential levels — this is the single biggest cost of the simple route.
- Seed route: kill an Elderclaw and take the seed. It will have a seed in its inventory, much like a tribute item.
- Plant it in a Large Crop Plot. Water and fertilize it, and it starts to grow like other plantable items.
- Answer the requests. The seed asks for 1 of 6 different resources. You have 5 minutes to provide the one it asks for — failing to do so decreases taming effectiveness the longer you go without. Once satisfied, it asks again after some time, and that interval grows as the seed matures.
- Interact with the egg inside the plant when it matures. The baby hatches with the same base level as the parent, plus bonus levels from taming effectiveness based on how well you tended the growth.
- Raise it like any other baby. Elderclaws are also breedable, and seeds from a tamed Elderclaw still go in a Large Crop Plot but do not need the special tending.
Why the method is what it is
The creatures that break the knockout rule are the ones players search for by name, because the standard trap does not apply to them. This one follows its own rule, and the guides that treat it like a Rex are the ones that waste the attempt.
Note that the seed does not grow during the 5-minute timer — meeting its request gives it a spurt of growth. A wild seed whose needs are met promptly grows faster than a neglected one.
The three ways this goes wrong
- Trying to knock one out. It cannot be tamed as an adult, so every tranq arrow is wasted.
- Imprinting without a Gigantoraptor. You lose a large chunk of the levels you were counting on.
- Letting the 5-minute timer lapse. Effectiveness drops the longer you leave the seed without what it asked for.
A quick checklist
- A well-leveled Gigantoraptor for imprinting (baby route).
- A Large Crop Plot, water and fertilizer (seed route).
- All six resource types the seed can request.
- A plan to check the seed every few minutes as the request interval grows.
For the stats of the other creatures, see the best tames guide. For the commands to place one in front of you, see the spawn commands guide.