How to survive a Heat Wave in Scorched Earth – Ark: Survival Ascended

After you jump into your first survival game in Ark: Survival Ascended: Scorched Earth, you’re bound to notice your character heating up alarmingly fast due to the harsh desert climate.

Because of the hot temperatures, Heat Waves are more likely to occur, and your chances of dying to heat stroke are substantially higher than normal. To avoid this fate, we’ll explain exactly what Heat Waves are and how you can avoid dying to the heat.

What is a Heat Wave in Ark: Survival Ascended?

You might notice the clouds dissipating and the sky becoming a warmer shade of orange while the screen gets blurry due to heat. This means a Heat Wave is on its way.

There are two types of Heat Wave in Ark: Survival Ascended: Scorched Earth: Minor and Extreme. Minor Heat Waves reach around 20-29 degrees Celsius. You become dehydrated faster, and staying outside for a prolonged period damages your health points, which eventually leads to death. 

Extreme Heat Waves reach up to 50 degrees Celsius, and they are guaranteed to damage your health points. They can cause fatal heat stroke in no time. Look at the flashing flame symbols at the bottom-right corner of your screen to understand your body temperature. Also, check out our guide on other ways to cool down your temperature.

It’s not doom and gloom, though, as Heat Waves are also opportunities to venture out into cold areas of the map. The harsh weather provides natural immunity for anyone looking to avoid the cold.

How to overcome Heat Waves in Ark: Survival Ascended: Scorched Earth

While dipping your toes in a nearby swamp or lake might seem like the easiest solution, they’re full of dangers, and you might die from being attacked by aquatic creatures. So, what else can you do?

Build a tent and stay in there until the Heat Wave is over to keep yourself safe, and avoid spending resources to stay alive. A tent helps you separate yourself from the outside weather immediately and helps you recover health with medical brews, if you took damage while venturing into the hot desert. Also, keep an eye out for water sources to quench your thirst. There are also Sandstorms that you need to worry about during the harsh weather.

Once you’ve leveled up, craft desert cloth armor and harvest certain food items like cactus sap containing water to fight Heat Waves. Putting your points into Fortitude is also a great way to build resistance to environmental hazards.

Once you’ve mastered surviving Heat Waves, it’s time to find and tame a Phoenix, which only spawns during Heat Waves. The creature never lands on the ground, and continuously flies high in the sky. Once the Heat Wave is over, it turns into ash, and rises again during the next Heat Wave. If you want to snag a Phoenix, you’ll have the best odds by following it during the Heat Wave, or simply camp where it despawned earlier. 

Aside from the Phoenix, read our list of all the dinos you can find in the wild and tame.