ARK Mutation Breeding Planner
Plan multi-generation mutation projects. Enter your male's current mutation counters and female pool size to see expected rounds to your first mutation, clean vs dirty line guidance, and how pool size affects your odds.
Breeding Setup
Each mutation adds +2 wild levels to this stat.
How many total mutations you want on this stat.
Shown in the dino's stats panel (top row).
Shown in the dino's stats panel (bottom row).
Results for 10 females — Melee Damage mutations
Mutation chance / round
53.2%
Full rate — male under 20 mutations
Expected rounds / mutation
2
Median rounds for 1 success
Rounds to 20 mutations
38
Expected total breeding rounds
Cumulative probability of at least 1 mutation by round
Female Pool Comparison — Expected Rounds to 1 Mutation
| Females | Chance / round | Expected rounds | 75% confidence by round |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5 | 31.6% | 4 | 4 rounds |
| 10 (yours) | 53.2% | 2 | 2 rounds |
| 15 | 68.0% | 2 | 2 rounds |
| 20 | 78.1% | 2 | 1 rounds |
Assumes all females have <20 total mutations (clean females). Male mutation count: 0 / under 20 — full rate.
Clean Line vs Dirty Line
Clean Line (recommended)
- ✓ Keep your breeding male's total counter below 20 (both Matrilineal + Patrilineal combined).
- ✓ When a mutated offspring is born, breed it back to the clean female line — the offspring inherits the mutation but keeps a low counter.
- ✓ Full 7.31% mutation rate is maintained indefinitely.
- ✓ Mutations stack cleanly on a single stat line.
Dirty Line (avoid)
- ✗ Using the mutated male repeatedly without resetting against clean females drives both counters toward 20+.
- ✗ Once the male exceeds 20 total mutations, rate drops to ~3.7% per round.
- ✗ If all breeding animals exceed 20, the mutation rate hits 0% permanently.
- ✗ Random stat mutations can scatter across undesired stats.
Rule of thumb: Every time you get a mutation you want, breed the mutated male back to a 0/0 female. The resulting offspring will carry the mutation stats but have low counters — use that offspring as your new breeder going forward.
Mutation Mechanics Reference
| Scenario | Rate per egg | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Both parents <20 mutations | 7.31% | Full rate — ideal setup |
| One parent >20 mutations | ~3.7% | Halved rate; still usable with clean females |
| Both parents >20 mutations | 0% | Hard stop — no mutations possible |
| Mutation effect | +2 levels | Added to a random stat + colour mutation |
The 7.31% figure is 1 - (1 - 0.025)^3 — three independent 2.5% rolls per egg. Matrilineal counter increments when the mother contributes the mutation; Patrilineal when the father does.
Run your own ARK server.
Rent a private ARK server on real hardware — full control-panel access, your mods, your configs, your rules. It's your server; run it your way.
Don't want to run it yourself? Our managed services & consulting team will set it up and keep it running for you — game servers, Windows, Linux, and cloud, from 10+ years of MSP work.