The “Outgoing Reliable Buffer Overflow” network error is a common issue players face in ARK Survival Evolved or ARK Survival Ascended, particularly when transitioning between servers within a cluster or when joining one. This error occurs because your character file contains excessive data, causing a timeout while loading player data. There are multiple potential causes for this error, each with specific solutions:
- Too Many Learned Engrams This is often the main culprit. If you’ve learned a large number of engrams—or use a mod that automatically grants all engrams—your character’s file becomes bloated since engram data is saved within it. Servers that grant extra engram points can exacerbate this The Solution:
- Remove mods that auto-learn engrams.
- Use a Mindwipe Tonic to reset learned engrams. For the tonic, you’ll need:
- 24x Cooked Prime Meat, Prime Fish Meat, Lamb Chops, or Prime Meat Jerky
- 200x Mejoberries
- 72x Narcotic
- 72x Stimulant
- 20x Rare Mushrooms
- 20x Rare Flowers
- Water Once reset, only learn the engrams you truly need. Regularly performing a mindwipe can help manage this issue.
- Overloaded Inventory The more items in your inventory, the more data needs to be transferred with your character. An overfilled inventory can lead to this error when logging in.Solution:
- Retry logging in and hope it succeeds.
- Ask a tribe member to clear out items from your inventory.
- If neither is viable, contact a server admin for assistance.
- Excess Cryopods or Armor Specific items like cryopods (which hold detailed data about dinosaurs) and armor (which includes stats like durability, armor value, and thermal properties) carry more data than others. A combination of these can trigger the error. The Solution:
- Avoid transferring all items at once. Instead, make multiple trips, even though it may take more time, to ensure item safety.
Risks Associated with This Error In most cases, the error merely results in a timeout, requiring you to log in again. However, in rare situations:
- Items in your inventory may be lost and might not be recoverable without admin help.
- In extreme cases, your character could corrupt, leading to a permanent loss.
These issues can often overlap, so it’s important to monitor your engram count and inventory load while traveling, especially if survivor items like skins and costumes add extra weight each time. Overloading can also negatively impact the server, causing brief freezes. Frequent timeouts due to overloading on official servers—where many players travel between servers—can lead to prolonged freezes (15 to 30 seconds), disrupting gameplay for everyone.
By managing your data and inventory efficiently, you can prevent these issues and contribute to smoother server operation!
