The world ofArk: Survival Evolvedis filled with an array of prehistoric and fantasy creatures, from the well-known T. Rex to even elemental wyverns. You’ll need to tame these creatures to help you get materials and fight off other creatures, but getting some of them isn’t as simple as just knocking them unconscious.

Creatures like the Deinonychus are a bit unique among all the creatures: no amount of tranquilizing is going to tame them. If you want one of these ferocious, brightly colored raptors as a mount or battle partner, you’ll have to use some special tactics to do so.

Player character looking at their in-game map during the day which has four orange stars edited onto it where Deinonychus spawn in Ark: Survival Evolved.

How To Find Deinonychus Nests

Similar to Wyverns and Magmasaurs, Deinonychus are one of the few creatures in ARK that aretoo aggressive, and theycannot be tamed normallyvia Tranq Arrows or passive taming.

If you want a Deinonychus of your own, you’re going to have tosteal and hatch a fertilized egg, which means locating aDeinonychus Nest.

Player character riding an Andrewsarchus during the day and one-shotting two wild Deinonychus on Fjordur in Ark: Survival Evolved.

Deinonychus and their nestscan spawn on two maps: their origin map ofValgueroandFjordur. They appear aslarge, circular nests made of sticks.

Wild Deinonychus will often be patrolling directly near their nests or attacking nearby creatures, so if you see a group of them wandering or fighting, you’ll likely find a nest nearby.

Player character riding a saddled Lymantria during the day on the Valguero map in Ark: Survival Evolved.

There are generallybetween one and three Deinonychus eggs per nest, and the eggs' level and parents will be determined by the Deinonychus that have spawned near the nest.

Once three eggs have been laid in the nest, the Deinonychuswon’t lay any more eggsuntil the current ones spoil, or you go by and pick them up.

Player character crouching down in a Deinonychus Nest and looking at a fertilized egg in Ark: Survival Evolved.

you’re able to increase your chances of finding eggs with a high level breeding pair by collecting all the eggs you see and killing low level Deinonychus in the area.

Best Creatures To Use To Grab Deinonychus Eggs

With how aggressive Deinonychus are and that they frequently spawn inlarge packs of around two to sixindividuals, you’llneed a fast and powerful tamethat’s capable of either outrunning them, or that can kill them off quickly.

Even if you plan to run, you’ll want acreature with some HP investment, since even a single Deinonychus can do a lot of damage in a short time, and they can affect you with the Bleeding effect.

Player character looking down at a Fertilized Deinonychus Egg incubating next to a Dimetrodon in Ark: Survival Evolved.

Regardless of the map you’re on, you’ve got apretty wide pool of creaturesavailable to use if you’re planning to steal Deinonychus eggsfrom the ground or lack a flyer:

Carbonemys

While they can’t outrun them,Carbonemys are great tanksandeasily tameable, especially at the beginning of the game. A few of them cantank attacks from even high level Deinonychusas long as they aren’t too weak.

Sabertooth and Thylacoleo

If you’re further into the game, either aSabertooth and Thylacoleomake great choices as well. They’re bothfast and powerful, and can eitheroutrun Deinonychus or kill them. Sabertooth are easier to find, but Thylacoleo have better movement and stats.

Carnotaurus

Carnotaurushave thedamage and health to tank hitsfrom Deinonychus and kill them. They also cando Bleed damageback with theirheadbutt ability.

Equus

Equusare alsocapable of outrunning Deinonychus, and canknock groups of them unconsciouswith their back-kick attack, making it even easier.

If you’re on Fjordur, the Andrewsarchus is a powerhouse that can both outrun or kill Deinonychus with ease.

You also don’t need a saddle to ride them, and even high level Andrewsarchus can be tamed early on if you’re careful.

If you’re looking toavoid any fightingorwant to grab eggs quickly, there are a few different flyers well suited for the task:

Pteranodon

Pteranodonsalso work for quickly grabbing up Deinonychus eggs, sincethey’re speedyand, if you’ve got to fight, canhit several enemies at once with their barrel-rollattack.

Argentavis

Argentavisare great at being anegg-stealing mountsince they’ve gotgreat HP and Attack stats, aren’t too difficult to tame, and have theweight for carrying a lot of eggsat once.

For those on Valguero, the Lymantria is a good choice as well. While they can’t fight, they’ve got a fast flying speed and the unique ability to release pollen that slows down other creatures, allowing them to easily escape Deinonychus.

How To Grab Deinonychus Eggs

The first thing to do when approaching a nest is get an idea ofhow many Deinonychus are in the areabecause even if you’ve got a good creature, a pack of them can sneak up on you pretty quickly and do a lot of damage, similar to a Raptor.

All Deinonychus in the immediate area will aggro on you as soon as you pick up one of their eggs.

If there are only a few, and your creature is strong enough, all you need to do iskill the Deinonychus in the area, thengrab whatever eggs are leftin the nests, orgrab the eggs and then runaway.

They’llchase after you for a time, but they’ll eventually lose aggroand return to their nests even if you’re in possession of their eggs.

You can also run towards herbivores while you’re being chased, and see if you can distract the Deinonychus with them by starting a fight between the groups.

Anothereasy wayto get their eggs is towait for them to attack another dinosaur, thenrun off with an eggbefore they can catch up with you.

Deinonychus spend most of their timeattacking any dinosaur within their range, and they’ll often end up fighting nearby herbivores likeStegosaurus,Triceratops, andDoedicurus,since they spawn in the same areas.

How To Hatch A Deinonychus

Once you’ve got a few Deinonychus eggs,all you’ll need to do ishatch them and raise themlike any other dinosaur.

Deinonychus eggsneed a temperature between 176 and 194 degrees Fahrenheit, or between80 and 90 degrees Celsiusif you’reusing Air Conditionersin a room.

you’re able to also use a few Dimetrodons to naturally regulate temperatures for much cheaper, and they can also act as guards for baby dinosaurs.

From there, just place them down and incubate the eggs like you would normally, andonce they hatch, you can imprinton the babies.

Deinonychusdon’t need any special itemsto eat and cansurvive off Raw Meatlike other carnivores, so you don’t need to worry about having tons of food prepared for them beforehand.

Hatched Deinonychus can be bred together to make more tamed Deinonychus for passing down stat mutations, colors patterns, and making new mutations.