Net Projectile

Netting ammo for the Harpoon Launcher

The Net Projectile is ammunition for the Harpoon Launcher in ARK: Survival Evolved. It arrived with Genesis: Part 2, and the ARK Wiki and our records list it on Fjordur, Lost Island and Genesis: Part 1 as well. The in-game text: "High-speed projectile that unfurls to ensnare creatures in netting. Can only be fired from a Harpoon Launcher." A hit wraps the target completely in a net.

What happens to a netted creature

A net holds its target in place for a minute, and once it wears off the same target cannot be netted again for 30 seconds. While caught, the creature cannot attack, whether tamed or wild, and its owner cannot ride it. Anyone can cut a netted tame free by hitting it three times with a Tek Sword, Sword, Pike, Metal Hatchet or Metal Sickle.

With a net loaded, the crosshair color shows what to expect: blue when nothing is targeted, green when the target can be immobilized, yellow when it will only be slowed, and red when the shot has no effect or the target is an ally.

Creatures it can and cannot stop

The ARK Wiki's list of affected creatures is long and includes the Allosaurus, Argentavis, Mammoth, Quetzal and Yutyrannus. Small fish such as the Sabertooth Salmon are not affected, nor is any creature whose drag weight is above 500, and the wiki adds that nothing the size of a Rex or bigger is affected. Some alphas had their drag weight raised to 600, but many others stay below 500 and can still be netted. The Arthropluera, Titanoboa and Alpha Blood Crystal Wyvern keep moving under the net without attacking, and Basilisks bury themselves after a few seconds. The wiki recommends the net for medium-sized targets such as the Argentavis or Carnotaurus, says it can serve for taming the Quetzal too, and warns that it can cause hit registration problems when you try to knock out a trapped creature.

Crafting the ammo

The engram unlocks at level 43 for 12 engram points, with the Harpoon Launcher as its prerequisite. Each projectile is crafted in the inventory in 1 second from:

• 4 Polymer, Organic Polymer or Corrupted Nodule
• 12 Metal Ingot or Scrap Metal Ingot
• 180 Fiber

A projectile weighs 2 and they stack to 100, so a full stack weighs 200. Our records count 36 loot crates that can contain it, including the Easy, Medium and Hard crates of the 'Bulbdog Fetch' and 'Circuit Chase' missions on Genesis Part 2. Before patch 330.8, the Harpoon Launcher stopped working under water when this ammo was equipped.