Lower South Cave (2024)

Lower South Cave (More commonly referred to as Hunter Cave) is in the south-central part of the Island, just north of the Sandy Cove, and can easily be reached on foot from the western bank of the river just west of the cove. Begin your trek at approximately (81.2, 49.5) and head east into the small ravine. Cave entrance is in the right cliff wall, a few hundred meters from the beach (80.1, 53.6).

The Lower South Cave is one of the easiest caves on the island, though it is still more dangerous than anything in the nearby surface environment. It houses the Artifact of the Hunter. Multiple creatures will slow and tranquilize the survivor as they swarm to the fight, and narrow, twisty passages and sudden drop-offs into crowds of creatures.

Hazards[]

• Cold, though not enough to cause Hypothermia (50F (10C) inside the cave)
• Looping, similar-looking paths can cause disorientation
• Ambushes from cave creatures lurking in crevices and dropping from holes in the ceiling - watch your surroundings!
• Torpidity induced by Arthropleura, Pulmonoscorpius, Titanoboa, and Araneo
• Mega Rabies contracted from Megalania (only on PC and consoles)
• Slowing Webbed attacks from Araneo
• Significant risk to armor from the Arthropleura's acid attack
• Waters full of Sarcosuchus and Piranha
• Recoil damage (and durability reduction) from melee attacks to the Arthropleura's armor
• Easy to get encumbered if harvesting resources. Bring animals that have weight reductions on important items

Creatures[]

• Araneo
• Arthropluera
• Dung Beetle
• Megalania
• Megalosaurus
• Piranha
• Pulmonoscorpius
• Sarco
• Titanoboa

Resources[]

• Berries
• Chitin
• Crystal
• Fiber
• Flint
• Hide
• Megalania Toxin
• Metal
• Obsidian
• Rare Mushroom
• Raw Fish Meat
• Raw Meat
• Raw Prime Meat
• Sarcosuchus Skin
• Stone
• Titanoboa Venom

Loot Drops (Items & Blueprints)[]

in the section Generic Caves, Green - Level 10

Recommended Equipment[]

The equipment recommendations below are likely sufficient for a single trip through the cave, without carting out all of the metal, obsidian, and crystal. If you plan on looting the cave completely (or returning often), you may want to bring supplies to build a Smithy within the cave to repair armor.

The cave contains limited quantities of plants for Fiber and various berries, but no trees (so no Wood or Thatch). You will be able to harvest mass quantities of Raw Meat, Raw Prime Meat, and Raw Fish Meat while in the cave, so a Campfire can be handy to replenish food supplies.

• Chitin Armor/Fur Armor or better
• A mountable swimming tame such as Beelzebufo for underwater loot crates
• 3×Torch (Or the gamma console command)
• Pike/Sword
• 3×Bug Repellant (If without necessary tames)
• 30×Cooked Meat
• 5×Medical Brew (Or purposely starve to heal with cooked meat)
• 20×Stimulant or 100×Stimberries to counteract Torpor-inducing attacks (If without necessary tames)
• Bow, Crossbow, Shotgun, or Pump-Action Shotgun (Use for Arthropleura, do not waste ammo on other creatures if possible)
• 60×Stone Arrow or 60×Simple Shotgun Ammo
• 2×Water Jar or 2×Waterskin or Canteen
• 10×Standing Torch to aid in navigation

Recommended creatures[]

• The Direwolf can be used by tribes with multiple players as they have great DPS and the ability to harvest large amounts of chitin.
• The Sabertooth can be used by solo players or tribes with high quality saddles, as they will take less damage than direwolves and are a strong alternative due to their ability to wear a saddle.
• The Baryonyx is a fantastic cave mount, being able to hold its own on land and packing an unstoppable stun AOE while in water. Baryonyx heal largely with fish meat, which is plentiful due to the cave's underwater sections.
• The Sarcosuchus is extremely fast underwater, scares away piranhas, and can deal large amounts of damage from a good range. For players without baryonyx, it provides enough amphibious utility within a cave (Use cryopod to get past tight tunnels.)
• The Castoroides serves a function as land combatant, water mount, and smithy all at the same time. However, it can not heal with raw meat as it is a herbivore.
• The Gigantopithecus is very powerful and can easily defeat all inhabitants of this cave. However, one must carry weaponry to shoot down Arthropleura before they become an issue.

Tips[]

• Using Bug Repellant will make it easier to avoid Araneo and Arthropluera. However, they are usually palling around with Titanoboa, so you may have to carefully draw the snakes away to ensure invisibility.
• Cryopods are a necessity for bringing out tames from/into tighter sections of the cave.
• A good mount is necessary to preserve resources and minimize risks.
• Set mounts on "Disable resource harvesting" to conserve weight.
• If cave navigation is a concern, place Standing Torch on the left side of cave paths as you descend; when exiting, keep the torches on your right to be sure you are heading in the correct direction.
• You can speed-run to the Artifact and back by going left at the first T, then left in the first large room and dropping off the cliff (into a nest of creatures, beware!). Escape back up the cliff using a Grappling Hook or by riding a Beelzebufo. On Mobile version you can climb up the cliff by jumping on the left corner of it (there is a small natural rim there, may take a couple tries)
• The lakes have only small "beach" areas where you can safely exit the water; do not jump into a lake without knowing where the "beach" is!
• Non-flying tames following you on Neutral or Aggressive will launch themselves off cliffs to defend you and may occasionally stumble down a cliff even if not aggro'd; tell them to Stop well back from any cliff before you walk up to it.
• Since one can farm a lot of Chitin and Hide (not to mention Experience) from the creatures in the cave, it's a good idea to wear Chitin Armor while farming. If Arthroplueras break your armor, all you need is fiber (available from plants within the cave) and a nearby Smithy or Castoroides to repair it.
• A full looting of the cave (including lakes) will net several stacks of Metal and Crystal and a few stacks of Obsidian (most of this is in the lakes)
• There are several Crystal nodes (but no Metal or Obsidian) which can be encountered before you reach points where creatures spawn
• Of the eight cavedrop/loot crate locations shown on the map, only two will be active at a time. Don't forget to check the lakes: three of the potential drop locations are underwater! Note: On Mobile there are only Loot Crates on PVP Servers.
• There is a cul-de-sac at the bottom of a spiraling ramp near the entrance to the cave where creatures can be led and trapped and shot at from above. This area is very safe for taming, being far away from the areas where creatures begin to spawn, yet deep enough into the cave that a battle with surface predators or enemy tribe members at the entrance to the cave likely won't disturb a tame.
• Allosaurus is the largest creature that can enter the Lower South Cave, which means you can ride an Allosaurus into the cave and cave creatures will ignore you if you don’t attack them.
• Take caution, as Megalania will deal Mega Rabies, leaving most players below 300HP to die a slow and annoying death. Bring healing items! Note: Not on Mobile.
• As with any dangerous location, parts of the cave may be safe and devoid of predators while on rare occasions other parts are swarming.

Compatible Tamed Creatures[]

This section is outdated. Please help update it if you can. The talk page may contain more information. Reason: "PC Update v252.0 introduced a new cave design. If you verify a creature's access, please update its notes to indicate the version you were playing on."

This table is incomplete.
You can help us by adding the tamed creatures you know can enter the cave. If the creature can't enter, please exclude it.

Accessibility Ratings:

• Excellent: Full-Cave Access (Entrance-to-Artifact)
• Limited: Can Access Portions of the Cave Safely
• Not Recommended: Can Get Stuck/Unable to Leave Cave

Creature	Accessibility	Rideable	Notes
Allosaurus	Limited	Yes	Cannot enter the final room, sometimes, during leaving the cave, you have to mine crystal in order to access. Cryopod needed to enter the rest of the cave.
Archaeopteryx	Excellent	No	Can be carried in and out by player.
Argentavis	Limited	Unofficial/ Single-Player	Can explore most of the cave, but can become stuck near the artifact and unable to leave.
Arthropluera	Not Recommended	Yes	Will be unable to leave cave.
Baryonyx	Limited	Yes	Cannot enter the artifact room.
Beelzebufo	Excellent	Yes	Finicky to get it through the smaller artifact chamber opening; recommend leaving it outside or going long way around to the taller opening. (Verified Xbox v790.19)
Carbonemys	Excellent	Yes
Carnotaurus	Limited	Yes	Cannot enter final room.
Castoroides	Excellent	Yes	Can be used to repair armor and weapons.
Chalicotherium	Excellent	Yes	Can explore majority of the cave and is effective against enemies.
Coelacanth	Limited	No	Can be brought in using a Fish Basket. But can only be released in into the water in the cave.
Compy	Excellent	No	Can keep one on shoulder or bring a whole pack.
Daeodon	Excellent	Yes
Dilophosaur	Excellent	No	Can bring one in or bring a whole pack.
Dimetrodon	Excellent	No
Dimorphodon	Excellent	No	Can keep one on shoulder or bring a whole flock.
Diplocaulus	Excellent	Yes
Dire Bear	Limited	Yes	Cannot enter artifact room. Mining of crystal deposits near entrance is sometimes necessary to exit smoothly.
Direwolf	Excellent	Yes	Can mount and ride one or bring a whole pack.
Doedicurus	Excellent	Yes
Dodo	Excellent	No	Can be carried in and out by player.
Dung Beetle	Excellent	No	Can be carried in and out by player.
Enforcer	Limited	Yes	Cannot enter the artifact chamber.
Equus	Excellent	Yes
Gallimimus	Excellent	Yes
Gigantopithecus	Excellent	Yes	Can travel and repel enemies with ease, and is also a decent swimmer if you land in the water.
Hesperornis	Excellent	No	Can be carried on shoulder or bring a whole flock.
Hyaenodon	Excellent	No	Can bring one in or bring a whole pack.
Ichthyornis	Excellent	No	Can be carried on shoulder.
Iguanodon	Limited	Yes	Can not enter artifact room.
Jerboa	Excellent	No	Can be carried by player.
Kaprosuchus	Excellent	Yes
Kairuku	Excellent	No	Can be carried in and out by player.
Kentrosaurus	Excellent	No
Lystrosaurus	Excellent	No
Megaloceros	Not Recommended	Yes	Can enter but will hit an 'invisible wall' further in that prevents entry.
Megalosaurus	Limited	Yes	Can reach all rooms but the artifact chamber. Can get stuck in lakes if not ridden out.
Megatherium	Limited	Yes	Can not enter artifact room. Ideal Chitin harvester.
Mesopithecus	Excellent	No	Can keep on shoulder or can bring a whole troop.
Microraptor	Excellent	No	Can keep on shoulder or bring a whole flock.
Moschops	Excellent	Yes	Really good for killing Araneos.
Onyc	Excellent	No
Otter	Excellent	No	Can be carried on shoulder.
Oviraptor	Excellent	No
Ovis	Excellent	Yes
Pachy	Excellent	Yes
Pachyrhinosaurus	Excellent	Yes
Parasaur	Excellent	Yes
Pelagornis	Excellent	Unofficial/ Single-Player
Pegomastax	Excellent	No	Can be carried on shoulder.
Phiomia	Excellent	Yes
Piranha	Limited	No	Can be brought in using a Fish Basket. But can only be released into the water in the cave
Procoptodon	Excellent	Yes
Pteranodon	Excellent	Unofficial/ Single-Player	Official Servers: Cannot mount in cave. Unofficial/Single-Player: Requires server setting -ForceAllowCaveFlyers to mount.
Purlovia	Excellent	No
Raptor	Excellent	Yes	Can mount and ride one in or bring a pack.
Ravager	Excellent	Yes
Sabertooth Salmon	Limited	No	Can be brought in using a Fish Basket. But can only be released into the water in the cave.
Sabertooth	Excellent	Yes	Got changed, invisible wall is gone.
Sarco	Limited	Yes	Can't make it down the first narrow path
Scorpion	Excellent	Yes	Can leave cave, tested 257.48
Spider	Excellent	Yes
Stegosaurus	Not Recommended	Yes	Can only enter using Cryopod limited in a few areas of the cave.
Terror Bird	Excellent	Yes	Can mount and ride one in or bring a flock.
Therizinosaur	Not Recommended	Yes	Can not enter it's head also get stuck in the ceiling at the entrance of the cave. Cryopod needed to enter the cave.
Thorny Dragon	Excellent	Yes
Thylacoleo	Limited	Yes	You will have to do some jumping to get in and out and it can't get in the artifact room.
Titanoboa	Excellent
Triceratops	Not Recommended	Yes	Can get in, but gets stuck. Charge into first area, then reverse. Cryopod needed to enter the rest of the cave.
Troodon	Excellent	No	Can bring one in or bring whole a pack.
Vulture	Excellent	No	Can keep on shoulder or bring a whole flock.

Notes[]

• Considered one of the easiest caves, very good for farming experience. The green area where the tunnel forks in a "T" leading down to the areas with the Explorer Notes and the area with the Artifact of the Hunter marks the start of where creatures begin to spawn, but beware: they may chase players to areas closer towards the entrance!
• As of version 242.x, there is still a bug just inside the entrance to the cave at approximately 82.3 52.9 that will teleport you to the surface or fall through the world. Try to attempt one or more of the following as a workaround:
  • Run and jump through the teleportation point.
  • Crawl (prone) through the teleportation point.
  • Walk along the left wall (without touching the wall).
  • Remove any items from your hands (or hotbar).
• There are three dossier notes in this location; one for Kaprosuchus, one for titanoboa, and one for Leech
• Apparently, Allosaurus is the largest creature that can fit this cave.
• Since there are not a lot of animals in the cave, it makes for a great place to tame Arthropleura on ARK: Mobile and request them to the surface.

Gallery[]

• 

  Cave Entrance

• 

  Inside the Cave

• 

  The Great Hall inside the Cave

• 

  old Cavelayout prior to 254.0

v · d · eLocations
Displayed are the locations for The Island. For locations found in DLCs, please see The Center, Scorched Earth, Ragnarok, Aberration, Extinction, Valguero, Genesis: Part 1, Crystal Isles, Genesis: Part 2, or Lost Island.
Maps	Resource Map • Explorer Map • Creature Spawn Map
Plains	The Eastern Plains • The Frigid Plains • The Western Plains
Islands	Cragg's Island • Southern Islets • South Haven • The Dead Island • The Footpaw
Mountains	Far's Peak • The Frozen Tooth • The Grand Hills • The Red Peak • Volcano • Weathertop • Whitesky Peak • Winter's Mouth
Beaches	Northeast Shores • Northern Shores • Northwest Shores • Southeastern Shores • The Southeast Shores • The Western Approach • The Western Coast
Forests	Southern Jungle • The Eastern Forest • The Redwood Forests
Caves	Central Cave • Lava Cave • Lower South Cave • North East Cave • North West Cave • Snow Cave • Swamp Cave • Tek Cave • The Caverns of Lost Faith • The Caverns of Lost Hope • Upper South Cave
Arenas	Broodmother Arena • Dragon Arena • Megapithecus Arena • Overseer Arena
Other	Deep Ocean • Drayo's Cove • Ice Wyrm's Belly • The Belly of the Beast • The Deep Island • The Descent • The Frigid Deep • The Frozen Fang • The Frozen Maw • The Frozen Sea • The Gulch of Lamentation • The Hidden Lake • The Maw • The Shadow Road • The Throat of Borea • The Throat of Flame • The Writhing Swamps • Smuggler's Pass • Volcanic Maw