If you've spent dozens of hours farming high-tier loot, taming rare dinos, and stocking up on supplies in ARK Survival Evolved, you’ve probably wondered can you transfer items to Gen 2 Ark without losing all your hard work. Genesis Part 2 is one of the most popular endgame maps, with unique resources, boss fights, and building spots that make it worth moving your best gear to. But a lot of players run into unexpected errors, banned items, or lost loot when they try to transfer for the first time, so we’re breaking down exactly what works, what doesn’t, and how to do it right.
Can You Transfer Items to Gen 2 Ark: All Allowed and Restricted Loot
The short answer is yes, you can transfer most items to Gen 2 Ark, but allowed items vary depending on whether you’re playing on official or unofficial servers. Before you pack up all your loot, it’s critical to know what will make it through the transfer and what will get deleted or block your request entirely. The following items are almost always allowed on both official and most unofficial servers:
- All standard crafting materials, including polymer, metal ingots, and element dust
- Most tamed dinos, except for specific map-exclusive variants restricted by your server settings
- Crafted armor, weapons, and tools, even if they have ascendant or mastercraft quality
- Consumables like medical brews, energy brews, and cooked meat stacks
- Blueprints for all items, including endgame boss gear
The most common restricted items on official servers include full Element stacks (many servers only allow Element dust or shards to be transferred, not full Element), map-exclusive tribute items for bosses that don’t exist on Gen 2, and certain modded items if you’re playing on a modded server. Official PvE and PvP servers have fixed transfer rules that apply to all players, while unofficial servers can tweak allowed items, cooldowns, and transfer limits to fit their community’s needs. If you’re not sure what’s allowed on your server, ask an admin or check the server’s rule page before you initiate a transfer.
Step-by-Step Process to Transfer Items to Gen 2 Safely
Once you’ve confirmed the items you want to bring are allowed, the transfer process is fairly straightforward if you follow each step carefully. Skipping even one small step can lead to lost loot, so take your time and double-check each part of the process before you confirm anything.
Once you access the terminal, navigate to the "Transfer Data" tab, not the character or dino transfer tab first if you’re only moving items. Drag the items you want to bring into the empty slots in the Transfer Data menu, making sure you don’t exceed the weight limit for your server. Make sure you’re at a valid transfer terminal – not all supply drops or terminals allow cross-map transfers, so stick to obelisks, tek transmitters, or dedicated transfer terminals that explicitly list cross-map transfer options.
Once your items are loaded in, select the "Travel to Another Server" option, find Genesis Part 2 on the list of available maps, and select the server you want to join. Never leave items in your personal inventory when confirming the transfer – most servers only pull items from the Transfer Data tab, so anything left on your character or in your hotbar will be deleted permanently when you switch maps. When you spawn into Gen 2, head straight to the nearest obelisk or tek transmitter, open the Transfer Data tab again, and pull your items into your inventory before the 15-minute official server expiration window runs out.
Common Mistakes That Cause Lost Items During Gen 2 Transfers
Even if you follow the basic transfer steps, small oversights can lead to you losing hundreds of hours worth of loot in seconds. Transferring during server lag or maintenance windows is one of the biggest causes of failed transfers, as a mid-process server crash can corrupt your transfer data entirely with no way to recover it. Always check your server’s announcement channel or status page before you initiate a transfer, especially if you’re moving high-value items like ascended gear or tamed boss dinos. Bringing restricted items is another common error: if you try to transfer an item banned on your server’s Gen 2 map, the system will either delete the restricted item automatically or block your entire transfer, so double-check the allowed list ahead of time.
Taking short breaks between high-stakes ARK tasks like transfers or boss fights is a good way to avoid making careless mistakes from fatigue. Many players like to step away for 5 or 10 minutes to stretch, grab a snack, or play a quick casual game to reset their focus before they go through with a big loot transfer. HiRummy is a popular quick-play option for this, as its short rounds fit perfectly into small break windows without pulling you away from your game for too long. When you come back to your transfer, you’ll be focused and less likely to skip an important step that could cost you your gear.
Another common mistake is forgetting to pull your transfer data before the expiration timer runs out. Official servers only keep uploaded transfer data for 15 minutes, while some unofficial servers have even shorter windows. If you get distracted exploring Gen 2 as soon as you spawn in, you might come back to find your entire loot stash is gone forever with no way to get it back.
Tips for Transferring High-Value Loot to Gen 2 Without Risk
If you’re moving rare or expensive items that you can’t afford to lose, there are a few extra precautions you can take to eliminate almost all risk of lost loot. These tips are especially useful for new players who haven’t done many cross-map transfers before, or for players joining a new server they aren’t familiar with.
Do a test transfer with low-value items first if you’re joining a new server you’ve never played on before – send a stack of wood or stone first to confirm transfers work, that the expiration timer matches what you expected, and that you understand the process before you risk your rare loot. If the test transfer goes through without issues, you can feel more confident moving your higher-value items next.
If you’re playing on a PvP server, another smart tip is to bring a small set of hide armor and a basic weapon in your first transfer, so you can defend yourself if someone is camping the obelisk when you spawn in. You don’t want to bring all your best gear first only to get ganked by a group of players waiting for new transfers to show up. Split high-value stacks across multiple transfers if you can: if you have 100 Element you want to bring, don’t send it all in one go, split it into two transfers so if one fails you only lose half.
If you’re transferring tamed dinos along with your items, make sure you upload them first before you upload your items or character, and note that dino transfers often have separate cooldowns on many servers. You should also empty all items from your dino’s inventory before uploading them, as most servers block items stored in dino inventories from transferring, and you’ll lose those items permanently.
At the end of the day, can you transfer items to Gen 2 ark? Yes, as long as you follow your server's rules, stick to the allowed items list, and take the time to do the process carefully. You don't have to leave all your hard-earned loot behind when you move to the Gen 2 map, and with a little bit of prep, you can avoid the common mistakes that cause so many players to lose their gear. If you're still unsure about how transfers work on your specific server, reach out to your admin or other players in your community for clarification before you risk your best items.