ROCK DRAKE

Similar to the Wyvern on Scorched Earth, the Deinonychus on Valguero, and the Magmasaur on Genesis, adult Rock Drakes cannot be tamed. In order to obtain a tamed Rock Drake, a survivor must steal and hatch a Rock Drake Egg, which are only found in the Grave of the Lost; a region located in the deepest pits of the Aberrant Ark, at the very bottom of the chasm between the Luminous Marshes and the Overlook.

Actually the eggs are also found in Fjordur's Asgard Realm, within Drake Nest. It is irradiated so you will need hazard gear.

Reaching the Nests

Even reaching the nesting area on foot is already a dangerous undertaking; it requires hazard gear (bring spare suits, it's a long trip) to remain safe from the radiation all the way down to the nests. Charge light will be necessary to keep the Nameless at bay, and you must have tames either fast enough to escape from, or strong enough to fight, Reaper Queens, as the path crosses their territory. A practical route to reach the Grave of the Lost is to begin on the Southern end of the Crystalline Swamps, the most Southeastern area of the Bio-Luminescent zone, then enter the Spine region from there. Be careful not to stray too far East into the Element Falls, which is crawling with Reaper Queens. Follow the giant, metallic structure of the Spine overhead once you locate it, and it will guide you down to the Grave from there.

Alternatively, a far more risky- albeit much faster- method a survivor can use is to jump directly down into the Grave. Multiple locations are possible for this due to the centralized location, such as the bridge that juts out from the portal region, or from either side of the Luminous Marshes or The Overlook. Gear such as a Parachute or a Glider Suit will be necessary to reach the bottom safely, due to how far the fall is and the multiple pools of molten element. This method also does not allow for safely bringing tames with you, since any set to follow will most likely fall to their death into the element pools due to the lack of control you have over them. The only safe way to bring tames down with this method is to use Cryopods. The best method is therefore the former one; as without a Drake to climb back up for your first theft, you will have to walk back up out of the chasm on foot, or make an immensely long and dangerous climb with Climbing Picks. This is not advised, as most are not durable enough to make the climb, and the frequent earth quakes are likely to dislodge you in the process even if your picks don't break.

Once in the Grave of the Lost, there are two nesting grounds to choose from; one on the Western half of the chasm, and another on the Southern side, near a pair of element waterfalls, which are passed on the way down.

Stealing Eggs

After arriving at the bottom of the trench, there are yet more challenges to overcome. The nests themselves are dotted throughout a lengthy cave system along the Southern and Western half of the Grave, within indentations in the walls. Some of the crevasses can be entered and exited on foot, but these are few compared to the areas where tames that enter them cannot exit. Tamed Reaper Kings, Karkinos, Rock Drakes and Megalania are among the few creatures that can escape these pits unaided by Cryopods, so if using other creatures, very mindful of where you step. If the tame you brought down with you is unable to navigate the chasms, you will have to leave them behind in an accessible area, whilst you make your way to an egg using Climbing Picks. If you do not yet have a Rock Drake of your own, a Reaper King is another good option- with their chargeable jump, they are able to get in and out of the chasms, reach most nesting alcoves along the walls, and are capable of defending themselves against swarms of Drakes.

Once an egg has been picked up, any Drakes nearby will begin to swarm the survivor, and unless you reach your mount before they arrive, death will come within seconds. A good strategy is to kill any and all Drakes nearby before you grab the egg; a long range weapon such as a Crossbow can be used to aggro them and lure them to your mount to be killed. Remain alert, however- there may be Drakes camouflaged somewhere that you missed, so always be ready for a swift retreat to your mount once you've grabbed an egg.

Adding a Rock Drake Egg to your, or your mount's, inventory will cause every nearby Rock Drake to attack you, even if you are on a camouflaged Drake. This mechanic can be used to "switch aggro" to another survivor if you are currently overwhelmed, by having them move a Rock Drake Egg from their inventory to the inventory of their mount- the Drakes will attack the new target, as though the egg was freshly stolen.

Like all egg steal tames, the colours and stats of the baby are determined by the parent that laid the egg. As such, finding a wild Drake with a level that matches a nearby egg may indicate what the baby will be. However, this is never a guarantee- due to the amount of Drakes within the trench, there is also a good chance that there is a different Drake of the same level elsewhere that actually laid the egg.

Raising Drakes

Uniquely compared to other egg-raise tames, Rock Drakes require extremely low temperatures rather than extremely high to incubate. Roughly 2500 Hyperthermal Insulation is required, which can be viewed in your inventory. To achieve this, it is necessary to have a huge amount of Air Conditioners- typically, a minimum of 20, although the ambient temperature will influence the exact amount- or multiple, high damage Dimetrodons.

Similarly to Wyverns, Rock Drake babies will not eat Raw Meat, and instead require specialised food- Nameless Venom, which is obtained from killing the Nameless and looting their dropped item cache (if the loot has not been automatically collected within the killing tame's inventory). This can be done easily with any moderately strong mount, as long as you're careful to kill the Nameless quickly to avoid them summoning a Subterranean Reaper King. Nameless can be found throughout almost the entire map, so simply run around any area other than the Fertile zone without Charge Light to allow them to unbury. Venom will restore 400 food points, but can also be required as an imprinting food, so be sure to bring back a small stockpile. It cannot be refrigerated and does not stack, so a few runs will likely be needed to see the Drake to maturation.

Be aware if raising a Drake inside a building that adult Rock Drakes do not fit through Dino Gates or the Giant Trapdoor. If there is no Behemoth Gate in use. be sure to move the Drake outside before it fully matures.