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Ultimate Lost Ark Beginner's Guide

Ultimate Lost Ark Beginner's Guide

Ultimate Lost Ark Beginner's Guide with all the major aspects of getting starter covered

Lost Ark
Ultimate Beginner's Guide

 

Introduction

Lost Ark is an amazing MMORPG, we can safely say that after playing it for... too much time over the past few months. If you're looking for engaging End Game content, a well-designed progression system, and a ton of fun side activities, you won't be disappointed with this game. However, Lost Ark is a big game with a lot of nooks and crannies, so it can get a bit overwhelming for new players. Because of this, and to not let the time we've spent playing Lost Ark go to waste, we've decided to share the knowledge we've acquired about the game with you! 

In this guide, we will do our best to introduce you to Lost Ark's gameplay features and systems in detail to draw a bigger picture of what the game has to offer. We will also briefly describe the exciting continent of Arkesia in which most of Lost Ark's action takes place. This guide should help you start playing and enjoying the game right from the get-go! 

 

Lost Ark Class Overview

Down below, you will find brief breakdowns of each of the currently available Lost Ark Advanced Classes. From them, you'll learn about Class' aesthetics, main gameplay features, strong points, and weaknesses. It should help you to make an educated Class choice! 

If the information provided here is not enough for you and want to know a bit more about the Classes, or you're looking for optimal End-Game builds, we've got you covered as well! Check out our Lost Ark Builds and Classes Guide for more detailed Class descriptions and multiple Build examples! 

Assassins
Assassins
Assassins are your sneaky, backstaby, and very shady death dealers who value surprise attacks and deadly combos and prefer to exploit enemies' weaknesses instead of being forced into face-to-face encounters. After all, fair fights are for losers, aren't they? 
Shadowhunter
Shadowhunter
Shadowhunter possesses demonic powers that let her turn into a powerful Demon once her Identity Gauge, called Shadowburst Meter, is fully charged after using enough Human Form skills. Her two Class Engravings are Perfect SuppressionPerfect Suppression and Demonic ImpulseDemonic Impulse. Builds that use the latter emphasize Shadowhunter's Demon Form and build around it, while Perfect Suppression Shadowhunters forgo the Demon Form completely in exchange for more powerful Human Form Skills. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Demon Form offers incredible Burst Damage
  •  Solid Team Synergy 
  •  Good Stagger Damage 
  •  Rather mediocre at Tier 1 
  •  Mobility is not the best 
  •  Rather low survivability outside of the Demon Form 
Deathblade
Deathblade
Deathblade prefers a surprisingly straightforward approach to combat. She dual-wields blade weapons and uses them to quickly cut through her enemies in CQB, just like a Martial Artist would. Her two Class Engravings are SurgeSurge and Remaining EnergyRemaining Energy. Surge Deathblade builds stacks during Death Trance, benefits from a flat DPS boost, and deals full damage with their signature skill regardless of the amount of Death Orbs she has. Remaining Energy Deathblade, on the other hand, receives bonus Move Speed, Attack Speed, and Attack Power whenever she uses Blade SurgeBlade Surge
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Solid Mobility 
  •  Great Attack Speed 
  •  Offers fun, dynamic, high risk-high reward playstyle 
  •  Back Attack-Reliant 
  •  Rather lengthy Skill Animations 
  •  Situational Team Synergy skill 
Mages
Mages
Mages are characters who wield powerful magic as a weapon. They can tap into their arcane powers to cast devastating elemental spells or, in some cases, aid their comrades in combat. Their power also lets them relocate very rapidly if needed. 
Sorceress
Sorceress
Sorceress unleashes death and destruction upon her enemies by channeling the power of the elements (Fire, Frost, and Lightning) through her staff. A wide variety of spells, she has access to, ensures that She is very versatile in combat. Depending on the chosen Class Engraving, RefluxReflux or IgniterIgniter, She focuses on devastating long-range Burst Damage (Igniter Sorceress), or high and reliable Sustained Damage (Reflux Sorceress). The two variants also differ in terms of dynamics and mobility - Igniter Sorceress is less mobile and has longer animation locks in general. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Great Damage potential 
  •  No Positional Requirements on most Spells 
  •  High versatility 
  •  Low defenses 
  •  Lacks defensive tools, other than mobility skills 
  •  Lacks Push Immunity 
Bard
Bard
Bard excels at burst healing and keeping her teammates alive. She can reduce the group's damage taken and increase everyone's attack speed. Her aesthetic is very unique -  She fights using a plethora of music-themed magic spells and uses a harp as her weapon of choice. Unlike other Classes that heavily rely on their Class Engravings, Bard has a very flexible toolkit that can be mixed and matched based on your needs. As a result, she is very versatile and can easily adapt to any type of content. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Welcome to every PvE group 
  •  Strong Heals, powerful Buffs, and good self-protection 
  •  Good DPS for a support class 
  •  Hard to master 
  •  Plays a responsible role while in groups 
  •  Not the best choice for solo players 
Warriors
Warriors
Warriors are melee fighters who value heavy armor and slow hard-hitting weapons over mobility. They can shrug off more hits than other classes and hit harder than most, but their preferred equipment weights them down and makes them feel rather sluggish at times. 
Paladin
Paladin
Paladin is one of two Classes with access to dedicated Healing/Support abilities designed to bolster and reinvigorate teammates. He is a resilient melee fighter that can easily pull his weight during a fight. While in a group, Paladin focuses on damage prevention and aiding teammates. He has access to two types of abilities: Support-oriented Holy Skills and DPS-oriented Punish Skills. PvE builds mostly focus on the former. Thanks to the high uptime of His buffs, Paladin works especially well with classes focused on sustained DPS. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Strong Heal over Time effects 
  •  Good Survivability 
  •  High uptime on offensive Buffs 
  •  Usually forced to play the support role 
  •  Positioning-dependant Auras 
  •  Does not have the burst-healing capabilities of the Bard 
Berserker
Berserker
Despite His thick armor, Berserker moves around the battlefield with considerable speed and agility, and, thanks to his Burst Mode, He is able to deal considerable damage to anything that stumbles on his path. He has two viable raiding builds, based on His Class Engravings: Berserker's TechniqueBerserker's Technique and MayhemMayhem. Mayhem Berserkers are the more flexible ones but are also much trickier to play as their HP is constantly locked ad 25% of its maximum. Berserker's Technique Berserkers, on the other hand, offer a more tame experience based on a builder-spender rotation loop and put a large emphasis on dealing Burst Damage. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  High Sustained DPS 
  •  Great Burst Damage 
  •  Offers a solid mix of resilience and mobility 
  •  Long Skill Animations 
  •  The least tanky of Warrior Advanced Classes 
  •  Mayhem build gives you HP anxiety 
Gunlancer
Gunlancer
Gunlancer is the most resilient of all currently available Classes. His defenses are, in some cases, formidable enough to simply ignore some of the mechanics and soak up the incoming damage instead. Unlike an average tank class', Gunlancer's damage output is actually very solid, but He is the slowest and least mobile of all Lost Ark Classes. He is also known for his solid team utility. Gunlancer's PvE builds are based on His Class Engravings: Lone KnightLone Knight and Combat ReadinessCombat Readiness. The latter offers unmatched defense paired with high sustained DPS while the former sacrifices some of its survivability to gain better offensive capabilities, including high Stagger and solid Burst Damage. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Unmatched resilience and survivability 
  •  Has access to Taunt 
  •  Solid team utility (Damage Reduction and Shields) 
  •  Low mobility 
  •  Spacebar dodge moves you backward 
  •  Limited attack range 
Destroyer
Destroyer
Destroyer wears heavy armor, so he can take a beating and survive to live the other day. He also wields a giant hammer, so being hit by him will definitely leave a mark. Just like Gunlancer, He has access to the Taunt ability and can greatly improve the defensive capabilities of his teammates. He can also become almost unkillable through one of his cooldowns and He deals the highest Stagger Damage in the game. Depending on the chosen Class Engraving, He can deal impressive consistent Damage (Rage HammerRage Hammer) or focus more on dealing Burst Damage (Gravity TrainingGravity Training). 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Highest Stagger Damage in the game 
  •  Great Survivability 
  •  Has access to Taunt 
  •  Long Skill Animations 
  •  Low Mobility 
  •  Directional Requirements on most Attacks 
Martial Artists
Martial Artists
Martial Artists dance around the battlefield and dish out incredible amounts of punishment while jumping in and out of the enemies' effective range. These CQB (close quarters battle) specialists emphasize fast movement and devastating attack combinations. 
Scrapper
Scrapper
Scrapper's abilities deal a lot of damage and feel very impactful, but often suffer from long animations that may cause you some trouble if you use them in the wrong moments - good timing means a lot if you're a Scrapper. As for attack range... you'll spend a lot of time in melee, as a Scrapper, let's just say. Defense-wise, Scrapper is surprisingly durable and can withstand more than an average Martial Artist. Her two Class Engravings, Shock TrainingShock Training and TaijutsuTaijutsu, each boost one of Her signature skill types: TaijutsuTaijutsu increases Stamina Skill damage, while Shock TrainingShock Training improves Shock Skills. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Doesn't use Mana which simplifies resource management a lot 
  •  Good Mobility 
  •  Solid Burst Damage 
  •  Long Animation Locks 
  •  Lacks Ranged Abilities of any kind
  •  Long base Cooldowns 
Soulfist
Soulfist
Unlike the purely melee-oriented Scrapper, Soulfist mixes powerful melee skills with a solid selection of ranged abilities. Because of this, she can dish out damage while staying out of range of enemy attacks. She is also a queen of burst damage, as Her World DecimationWorld Decimation Awakening Skill is the single most powerful nuke in the game.  In the late game, she can choose to specialize in two ways, by choosing either Robust SpiritRobust Spirit or Energy OverflowEnergy Overflow Engraving. The former is all about the Burst Damage of World DecimationWorld Decimation and the latter focuses on sustained damage, dynamic attacks, and mobility. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Has access to a nice mix of melee and ranged skills 
  •  Insane Burst Damage potential 
  •  Great Mobility 
  •  Missing with World DecimationWorld Decimation is painful 
  •  Suffers from long downtimes 
  •  Rather low overall DPS, outside the Awakening's burst window 
Wardancer
Wardancer
Wardancer is a dynamic Class that rewards awareness, positioning, and encounter knowledge, but punishes mistakes. She is usually welcome in groups, thanks to her buff that grants attack speed and a higher critical chance to all party members. In combat, she generates so-called Elemental Orbs, She can then spend on Esoteric Skills to deal massive burst damage. Her Class Engravings are First IntentionFirst Intention and Esoteric Skill EnhancementEsoteric Skill Enhancement. While the latter does exactly what it says - it improves Wardancer's Esoteric Skills, the latter is a bit more convoluted - it prevents you from using Esoteric Skills but also increases your overall Damage done by a large margin. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Great team utility 
  •  Dynamic and fun to play 
  •  Solid Stagger and great Mobility 
  •  Directional Requirements on most Attacks 
  •  Long Cooldowns on Esoteric Skills 
  •  Will often experience mana-related problems 
Striker
Striker
Striker shares a lot of similarities with the Wardancer, as he's basically Her male counterpart. Just like the Wardancer, He offers very potent party buffs that make him a very desirable teammate, but He doesn't provide a move speed bonus which makes him a bit worse in this aspect. As for offensive power, Striker excels in dealing high amounts of Burst Damage and boasts a very high Critical Chance, but requires proper positioning to show his full potential. Sadly, he suffers from mobility problems if He decides to go the burst damage route. Striker's Class Engravings are Esoteric FlurryEsoteric Flurry and DeathblowDeathblow. Both of them affect Striker's Esoteric Skills but in completely different ways (Without going into detail, Esoteric FlurryEsoteric Flurry results in high Sustained Damage, and DeathblowDeathblow boosts Burst Damage). 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Solid Mobility 
  •  High Burst Damage and solid Stagger 
  •  Powerful team Synergies 
  •  Directional Requirements on most Attacks 
  •  Long Cooldowns on Esoteric Skills 
  •  Low Defense 
Glaivier
Glaivier
Glaivier is a master of a Glaive and a Spear. Depending on the situation, she uses one or the other which makes her very unique as far as Martial Artists go. Depending on the chosen Class Engraving (PinnaclePinnacle or ControlControl), she can focus on just one Weapon/Stance or embrace her identity and swap between the Stances to buff herself up during combat. PinnaclePinnacle Glaivier obtains powerful self-buffs from switching between stances with maxed Identity Gauge, While ControlControl Glaivier forgoes the Focus Stance (Spear Stance) and focuses solely on the Glaive. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  2 different skill sets make Glaivier very versatile 
  •  Highly Mobile 
  •  Good DPS and solid Stagger 
  •  Low uptime on the team synergy skill 
  •  The Control variant falls off in the late game 
  •  Limited viable Engraving choices 
Gunners
Gunners
Gunners are incredibly diverse when it comes to their approach to combat. Some of them prefer mobility and flexibility, while others opt for heavy armor and even heavier guns. What's common for all of them is their incredible damage potential. 
Gunslinger
Gunslinger
Ganslinger is a firearm enthusiast that makes use of three ranged weapons: a pistol, a shotgun, and a rifle. Each of Her weapons is suitable for a different task and has a different effective range. Switching between them plays a big part in Gunslinger's gameplay, so be prepared for a lot of movement (when you switch weapons, you also have to change your position, depending on the chosen weapon's effective range). If you prefer simpler Classes, Gunslinger's Time to HuntTime to Hunt Engraving will come in handy for you, as it removes Shotguns from the mix. If you'd like to embrace the class's identity, pick PeacemakerPeacemaker which promotes frequent weapon swaps. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Great Mobility 
  •  Good team synergy 
  •  Long Range on Rifle Skills 
  •  Squishy - relies on mobility to stay alive 
  •  High Skill Cap, especially with PeacemakerPeacemaker
  •  Weapon Swapping can get rather tedious at times 
Artillerist
Artillerist
Artillerist takes the phrase "victory through superior firepower" a bit too literally... He's like a mobile heavy artillery emplacement combined with a rocket launcher and a heavy flamethrower. As you can imagine, His abilities can deal very high AoE damage. Also, unlike other Gunners, he wears a set of Heavy Armor which makes him very resilient, especially for a ranged combatant. While in a group, Artillerist offers an on-demand group-wide shield and a defense debuff. The PvE Class Engraving of choice for the Artillerist is the Firepower EnhancementFirepower Enhancement which reduces all incoming damage by 20% and provides a powerful Crit Rate buff. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Great Survivability 
  •  High Crit Chance 
  •  High DPS and solid AoE Damage 
  •  Lacks Burst Damage a bit 
  •  Rather low Mobility 
  •  Quite long Skill Animations 
Deadeye
Deadeye
Deadeye is a male counterpart to the Gunslinger and thus they share a lot of similarities, however, Deadeye prefers to stay up close and personal with His enemies and favors the Shotgun, over Gunslinger's favorite Rifle, because of that. Lower optimal engagement range makes Him trickier to master than the Gunslinger and, as a result, He's a bit less popular. Deadeye's Class Engravings are PistoleerPistoleer and Enhanced WeaponEnhanced Weapon. PistoleerPistoleer is a great choice for new players as it simply removes both Rifle and Shotgun while providing a significant buff to Pistols. Enhanced WeaponEnhanced Weapon, on the other hand, provides powerful buffs when Deadeye swaps between His weapons. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  Highly Mobile 
  •  Good Stagger Damage and DPS 
  •  Solid Sustained DPS with both Class Engravings 
  •  Directional Requirements on most Attacks 
  •  Squishy - has to rely on mobility to survive 
  •  Annoying Animation Locks on some Skills 
Sharpshooter
Sharpshooter
Sharpshooter is a hipster among Gunners, as he uses a Bow instead of a Firearm. Because of this, he feels more dynamic and a bit more...  sophisticated. His other selling point is the fact that He can have a loyal pet companion that will always aid Him in combat. Defense-wise, He has to rely on His mobility to survive. Luckily, He can move and dodge like the best of them. When it comes to Class Engravings, Sharpshooter is quite Unique, as both of His (Death StrikeDeath Strike and Loyal CompanionLoyal Companion) enhance the same playstyle and thus are used together. Both of Sharpshooter's Class Engravings revolve around building up His Identity Gauge and boosting His capabilities once He summons His pet Silverhawk. 
Strengths and Weaknesses
  •  High Attack Range and Great Mobility 
  •  Can summon a powerful pet Companion 
  •  Unconditional Offensive Skills 
  •  Below average Stagger Damage 
  •  Rather long Animation Locks on Skills 
  •  Squishy - relies on mobility to survive 

 

Leveling in Lost Ark

Once you've created a character and chosen an Advanced Class, it's time for you to start leveling up as reaching the End Game quickly has some great benefits. These benefits include, among others, being able to participate in the End Game content that can provide you with large amounts of Gold and increasingly stronger Equipment. 

Tips for Quick Lost Ark Leveling

  1. Do some research beforehand - If you are a person that likes to go into every little detail before choosing a Class, or likes switching Characters like gloves because they turned out to not fit perfectly: read, watch, and analyze to make sure that you've chosen the right Class so that you won't have to start over! You can always make an alt later*

*You'll get a special Boost, that will let you level up a Character to 50 instantly, upon reaching Level 50 with your first Character and completing the Story Line Questline up to the Ealyn's Gift Quest. 

  1. You can Save up some time by skipping the Prologue - The Prologue takes about 20 minutes, which can be spent on leveling up. You can Skip it after arriving in Trua, the Forgotten Land Zone (shortly after disembarking from the ship) by choosing the Skip option in the top left corner of your screen. 
    • If you're completely new to the game, you might want to complete the Prologue as it serves as a Tutorial, and it's actually very well made. 
    • Arthetinean Engineer's Goggles Chest, the Prologue Reward, is bound to account, so you can always acquire it later with another Character. 
      • The Chest is obtainable once per account and can be moved freely between all your Characters, however, the Googles themselves are only tradable between Advanced Classes of the same Archetype*. Remember this before opening the chest! 
      • The male version of the Googles can't be worn by females and vice versa. This is important if you're playing a Class from the Martial Artist or the Gunner archetype. 

*For example: Opening the Chest on a Berserker will lock the Googles to Berserkers, Paladins, Gunlancers, and Destroyers on your Account. 

  1. Optimize your Leveling Process - There are many pitfalls that will elongate your Leveling process and many tricks that will greatly shorten it. Many of your choices will also impact your End Game progression! Here is a list of dos and Don'ts: 
    • If a Quest sends you to a Dungeon, use Solo Queue and do the Dungeon in the Normal Mode. It's much faster and the difference in potential Drops is negligible (especially considering the fact that you'll out level the rewards in an hour or so). 
      • Also, Run the Dungeons once. Repeating them to get additional drops is not worth it as the items will become obsolete extremely quickly anyway. 
    • Remember to Equip items as soon as you get them (if they are upgrades, of course). Most of your Damage will come from Accessories that have Specialization and Crit on them. 
    • If you get Consumable Combat Items as Quest Rewards, use them. Doing so will make Leveling easier and stuff that's given to you is not in a limited supply in the End Game anyway. 
      • This Does not apply to uncommon HP Potions (Green ones) that Heal you for a percentage of your HP. These should be kept for End Game Content. Use Regular Healing Potions (White ones) instead. 
    • Focus your Skill Points on AoE abilities, group enemies up, and AoE kill them. Killing individual monsters is a waste of time. You should easily be able to AoE kill every mob you come across when leveling. 
      • If you have enough Skill Points to max out an Ability, reset your Skills and do that. This will allow you to 1-shot most enemy packs with it. 
    • Don't farm monsters you don't need for a quest! Farming gives negligible Exp and should be avoided because of that. Low-Level drops are not worth it. 
    • There are multiple Channels on each Server. If there are too many people on yours, Swap instead of waiting for respawns! You can do that via the Channel menu in the top right corner of your screen (above the minimap). 
      • Tagged monsters will count towards Quest progression. If all channels are highly populated, you can resolve to Tagging monsters that are being killed by other Players. 
    • Use Teleport Features to save precious time. The Triport System is your best friend and the Song of Escape is great if you've completed a Dungeon Quest and the NPC awaits your return somewhere close to the Entrance (in a village that doesn't;t have its own Triport, for example). 
      • Triporting is done via the Map menu (M). It costs some Silver if you're unsubscribed and it's completely free for subscribers. 
    • About Life Skills... Some will tell you to Skip them to level up faster, some will tell you to Level them up together with your Character.
      • If you want to Power Level, skip Life Skills for now. 
      • If you're starting the game on an older server, you might as well Level up your Life Skills together with your Character. 
  1. Use the Optimized Leveling Route - If the game's story doesn't particularly interest you and you don't want to dive deeper into Arkesia's Lore by completing the side missions, use the following Route: 
    • Skip all Side Quests except for the one that unlocks Pets. 
    1. Follow the Main Quest Line in Rethramis
      • This is where you can unlock Pets, don't forget to do that! It's done by completing the "learning About Pets" quest acquired from your Journal (Press "J" to open it). The Quest becomes available once you've saved Prideholme from Demons. 
    2. Follow the Main Quest Line in Yudia
    3. Follow the Main Quest Line in West Luttera
    4. Follow the Main Quest Line in East Luterra
    • This is where the main part of the Main Quest Line ends. From now on, you'll be following World Quests instead. This is where the game introduces you to Sailing - pay attention to the Tutorial and you shouldn't have any problems with your boat! 
    1. Follow the World Quests in Tort. 
    2. Follow the World Quests in Tort. 
    3. Follow the World Quests in Tort. 
    • This should bring you to Level 50. The next set of World Quests will unlock End Game Activities and your journey will really begin! 
    1. Follow the World Quests in North Vern to unlock End Game content. 

Here are some additional Tips & Tricks that should make your Leveling even faster: 

  • You can use Tripods directly from the overlay map. To do so, hold Alt and Left Click on a Triport. 
    • You can also Teleport to a Port from anywhere inside of a Continent. To do so, just open your Map (M) and press the "Ready to Sail" button in the bottom left of the Map Screen. 
  • When you have your World Map opened (M), you can press and hold your Middle Mouse Button on it to move it around. 
  • Your Inventory can become clogged up with various trash items very quickly. To avoid this, dismantle all gear you don't plan on using! You'll mostly get NPC Trash Broken Equipment Powder and Useful Equipment Powder from doing so. These two Powders stack so they take just 2 slots in your inventory, and can be sold to an NPC for some profit.  
  • Always remember to use your Mount when traveling for longer periods of time. If a Triport is not available, Mount is your second best option to save precious time! 
  • Lost Ark has an AutoRun feature (Default "T"). You can use it to make multi-tasking much easier (when you're doing something on a second monitor, for example). 
    • Holding Alt and Left Clicking will let you set Auto-Paths while on the Sea. You can set up to 4 checkpoints this way! This will come in handy during long and tedious voyages and allow you to bypass storms while AFKing. 
  • While on the Sea, you'll often find floating Barrels. Picking them up will refresh your ship's Spacebar ability and allow you to travel faster. If you're in a rush and sail actively, you can use this feature to shorten your travel times to a minimum. 
  • Hotbars are your best friends! Pretty much any usable item/emote can be assigned to them. Take advantage of this by simply dragging a Consumable/Mount/Emote to the slot. 

 

Lost Ark End Game Progression

So, you've reached level 50, congratulations! Now the real game begins! There are a lot of things to do and very many features to explore in Lost Ark's End Game. In this chapter, we'll try to explain in detail how you can take full advantage of all of it. 

Unlocking the End Game Progression

The first thing you should do after reaching Level 50 is to unlock all progression possibilities the game presents you with. This can take up to 5 hours, so be prepared for quite a task! 

  • You should set your Return Point to the Vern Castle as it serves as the main End Game hub for Lost Ark. This will allow you to return to Vern Castle for free once every 120 minutes. 

Unlocking Guardian Raids, Chaos Dungeons, and Awakening Skills

  • Chaos Dungeons - At some point, your World Quest will ask you to visit the Chaos Dungeon's entrance point (the Ealyn's Request mission). This essentially unlocks Chaos Dungeons for your character. If you want to learn more about Unlocking and Completing Chaos Dungeons as well as about what waits for you inside and what rewards are to be won, be sure to check out our Lost Ark Chaos Dungeons Guide
    • After you've unlocked Chaos Dungeons, NPC named Beatrice will ask you to visit Trixion (the area where you've originally picked your Advanced Class and the place where you return the found Arks). Press F2 and play Song of Trixion to get there. Beatrice will task you with a mission that will unlock your Awakening and an extra Level 50 Skill - it's a good time to complete it. 
  • Guardian Raids - After you've unlocked Chaos Dungeons, a new entry will appear in your personal Journal. Press (J), navigate to "Guides" and accept the "Guardian Raid" Guide. This mission is completed by speaking with NPC Zarbel near the Raid Board. 

IMPORTANT: Don't enter Chaos Dungeons or Guardian Raids yet. Follow the rest of the steps beforehand to properly prepare your Character for them! 

Unlocking Abyssal Dungeons

  • This is done by completing the World Quest Line in North Vern - do just that. 

Abyssal Dungeons require Item Level 340 to enter. You'll also need a team of 4. Once you meet these requirements, you should run some of these, as you can get Engraving Recipes, Accessories, Enhancing Materials, and more out of them. With the stuff dropped from Abyssal Dungeons, you can start to work on your new Gear Set. 

Note: You'll also get Sturmbrecher Ship as a reward for completing the World Quest Line in North Vern. This ship will allow you to sail to the Shunshire Continent. 

Finishing the World Quest Line

Once you've unlocked Abyssal Dungeons and received the Sturmbrecher while doing so, you are able to sail to Shunshire and complete the World Quest Line. 

Equip your Shunshire, sail to Shunshire and complete your quest line to obtain a Chest that will provide you with a free 302 iLevel Set for free. This will be your starting End-Game gear. 

Note: If you're not a big fan of optimization, you can get the exact same set from running your first Chaos Dungeon. 

Unlocking Una's Tasks

Una's Tasks can be a solid and very reliable source of Lost Ark Gold if you do them regularly. There is a special (purple) questline that will explain this system to you in detail - accept and complete it! 

The tasks consist of various daily and weekly missions and award special Points that reset each week. The amount awarded depends on the task type: 

  • Daily tasks will give you 2 Points. 
  • Weekly tasks will give you 12 Points (this is a lot and you should try to complete these every week). Weekly tasks are quite long and you might not be able to complete them in one day. 

After reaching point thresholds, you will be awarded Una's Tokens. The tokens are awarded after collecting 25, 35, 45, 55, and 70 Points. These tokens can be exchanged at Gold Shops for special Lost Ark Gold Chests. There are three types of these: 

  • For 80 Tokens: Hefty Gold Sack
  • For 200 Tokens: Small Safe
  • For 500 Tokens: Large Gold Chest - You should always go for these, as the value of a Giant Gold Bar is too high to skip. 

Different Una's Tasks are unlocked by completing specific objectives. Here are the most worthwhile Tasks you definitely should unlock: 

  • I Can't Just Sit on My Hands - This Quest is located on Alakkir Island. It will task you with collecting 10 fresh Chicken Breasts. Talk to NPC Shanders. 
  • Anxious Mind - This is unlocked by completing a Hidden Quest in the southern part of Harbour City Changchun, Anikka (Click on a suspicious-looking Crate). The quest itself is located in the mentioned City as well. 
  • Pest Control - Available in Blackfang's Den from NPC Ruri. Your objective will be to defeat pirates that are trying to harm Blackfang. 
  • Prisoner Emancipation - This Quest is available from NPC Daybreaker Rita who resides on Kalthertz Island.  Your objective will be to free some prisoners by getting 5 Prisoner Emancipation Certificates. 
  • Where it Belongs - This Quest is located in the Frozen Sea, Shunshire. It's unlocked by completing the World Quest there. Talk to NPC Daybreaker Dyson and Slay 50 Hoarfrost Robbers to get their loot for him. 
  • Replacement Parts - Available on Golden Wave Island, which is located west of Arthetine. You can unlock it by Completing a Side Quest from NPC T-82 (the Quest's name is "Collecting Cargo"). This Una's Task is a simple Fetch Quest that will have you collecting Shipwreck Scraps for T-82. 
  • Ride like the Wind - This Quest takes place on the Open Seas of the Sea of Gienah. You can accept it on Peyto which is located west of Anikka. You will hire yourself as a "Taxi Driver" and Your objective will be to take a "Customer" to 4 locations in the Sea of Gienah. 
  • Rubbing Away the Marks of Time - Available on Toto Silver Island from the Frail Toto Elder. You can unlock it by Completing a Side Quest named "Time Wears You Down". All you have to do to complete this one is to collect 30 units of Salt. 

Completing the Adventure Questline on Dreamgull Island

This step is very important as it will be your main way of getting your initial Stone Fragments and Shards (Each Quest in this Chain awards Stone Fragment and Shard Chests!). To start the Questline, simply interact with an abandoned backpack right by the entrance. 

You can complete 5 Quests of this Questline immediately, however, to complete the rest you'll need Forest's Minuet Song. You can obtain the Music Sheet that teaches it to you from the "The Forest Where Fairies Sing" Questline on Lullaby Island. This questline is not too long and very easy (but there is a part that might require you to wait for up to 20 minutes - Check Lullaby Island Event Timer beforehand to avoid waiting). 

Upgrading your Gear

After all of the above is done, return to Vern Castle (via your Song of Return, for example) - it's about time you've upgraded your Gear! After returning, open your Quest Journal, you'll have multiple new Guide Quests there - accept them and head to NPC Senard who specializes in Honing Gear. 

  • If you didn't open the Chests obtained from the previous step, open them now. 
  • Use the acquired Materials to upgrade all of your Armor Pieces to +2. Doing so will take you to iLevel 340, which is enough to enter Abyssal Dungeons! 
  • If you have some Materials left, keep upgrading your Gear. To gain the most possible benefits, prioritize your Gear Pieces in the following order: 
    • Weapon ⇒ Gloves ⇒ Shoulderpads ⇒ Helmet ⇒ Legs ⇒ Chestpiece

After all of this is done, you're ready to start the Eng Game grind...

Completing your first Chaos Dungeons, Guardian Raids, and Abyssal Dungeons

Head to the Chaos Dungeon Entrance that is located in Vern Castle and Select North Vern Echo (it requires iLevel of 340 - you should be eligible by now). Complete two first Dungeons on the List (these will be your 2 Daily Chaos Dungeons that grant increased rewards!). You'll get a set of new powerful Accessories from these, so remember to equip them! You should also invest the obtained Materials into your Gear. 

  • If you want to learn more about Chaos Dungeons, feel free to check out our detailed Chaos Dungeons Guide

After you're done with your first two Chaos Dungeons, it's time to face off against deadly bosses in Guardian Raids! Defeat Ur'Nil to obtain your first clear reward (IMPORTANT: you should have the Guardian Soul reward UNCHECKED for this one). After that, clear Lumerus two times with your Guardian Soul active (this will maximize your rewards, as higher level Bosses reward more Leap Stones). 

  • If you're struggling to defeat Guardians, we might just have exactly what you need! Check our Lost Ark Builds and Classes Guide - you'll find Optimized Guardian Raid Builds for your Class there. 

After you're done with your Daily Chaos Dungeons and Guardian Raids, you can test your Skills in Abyssal Dungeons. These Weekly challenges are hybrids of Guardian Raids and Chaos Dungeons - You'll fight your way through a dungeon to face a deadly Boss at the end. Boss fights inside Abyssal Dungeons are difficult and require Encounter Knowledge, so don't get discouraged if you wipe - learn and you will definitely overcome the challenge! 

  • You'll find Abyssal Dungeon entrances in every Major City. 
  • Rewards from Abyssal Dungeons include Abyssal Gear, Abyssal Currency, Gold, Accessories, Engraving Recipes, Ability Stones, Card Packs, and Upgrade Materials. 

 

Lost Ark Gold Making

Gold is a very important commodity in Lost Ark and you'll need tons of it to upgrade your Gear, trade with other players, and generally progress your Character and Account as a whole. There are a lot of ways of earning Lost Ark Gold, some better than others. If you want to min-max your income, you will have to mix and match multiple methods, as most of them rely on various types of Daily and Weekly activities.

Here is a short list of some of the most profitable activities, you can do to earn large amounts of Lost Ark Gold: 

  • Daily Chaos Dungeons - Upgrade materials and accessories you get from Chaos Dungeons are tradable, so you can sell them on the Auction House to make a profit. Moreover, Shards earned from Chaos Dungeons can be exchanged for tradable items such as Engraving Recipes, Stones, and Materials. 
  • Guardian Raids - First two Guardian Raids you do each day are bound to drop tradable Upgrade Materials and Accessories. You can sell these at the Auction House to make a profit. Remember to double-check the net worth of Accessories before selling them (their prices might differ greatly, and you don't want to miss on potential profits)! 
  • Una's Tasks - These can be a  solid and very reliable source of Gold if you do them regularly. We won't go into detail here as we've already covered Una's Tasks in this guide (Check the "Unlocking Una's Tasks" for more information). 
  • Gathering Resources - If your energy bar is full and you have nothing better to do, you might gather some Trade Skill Materials and sell them at the Auction House. 
We've just scratched the surface when it comes to Lost Ark moneymaking. If you want to learn much more about it, you should check out our detailed Lost Ark Gold Farming and Making Guide

 

END NOTE

We will do our best to keep this guide up to date with all future game updates so that it stays true to the currently available in-game content. If we have missed a piece of information that is especially important to you, please let us know and we will make sure to add the missing information. 

Please note that this is an early version of our guide, and we will be happy to receive constructive criticism, that will help us improve it, so leave your suggestions in the comments section below. We also plan on expanding this guide with further sections, so stay tuned.