Spyglass

Long-range scouting from level 7

With the Spyglass, a survivor in ARK: Survival Evolved can scout far ahead; the game calls it "This instrument, while primitive, is quite effective at long-range reconnaissance." Looking through it, you can spot players and creatures at a distance, read a creature's level and gender, and check who owns a structure. That makes it a good way to size up possible tames, for example when searching for Rexes, without getting close.

Handy uses in the field

• On a mount: it works while riding. Selecting it zooms in at once, and putting it away zooms back out. Some mounts, such as the Pteranodon, block a lot of the view.
• Distant orders: with a player or creature in view, the Attack This Target whistle sends a tame after it.
• Recovering flyers: after being killed in flight, disconnecting or dismounting by accident, look at the flyer through the glass, then whistle for it to follow or to land.

Crafting the Spyglass

The engram costs 2 engram points at level 7. The recipe is small:

• 5 Wood (or Fungal Wood)
• 10 Hide
• 10 Fiber
• 2 Crystal (or Primal Crystal)

It takes 5 seconds and gives 2 experience. The Crystal is the hurdle: the ARK Wiki says it is only mined reliably with a Metal Pick, while a Stone Pick drops it so rarely that several crystal nodes may give a single piece. So even with its low unlock level, the Spyglass can take new players a while to make.

Weight, loot and what replaces it

It weighs 0.5. 72 crate types can contain one, from the Aberration White crates to the Fjordur Green and Genesis Blue crates and the Astral T-Rex crate. Later on in ASE, the Electronic Binoculars take over its job.