CustomCryos Plugin Description
Features
CustomCryos is a configurable cryopod control plugin for ARK: Survival Evolved. It expands where cryopods can be used, controls which dinos may be released, supports normally uncryoable creatures, and provides configurable cryo cooldown and capture-time systems.
What It Does
CustomCryos evaluates every supported cryopod release against the player, current map, configured zone, permission, cryopod item, and stored-dino rules.
A release can be approved only when the applicable checks pass:
Administrators may bypass these checks when AdminBypass is enabled.
Zone Types
Each configured location has a Type field.
### BossZone
BossZone entries are intended for boss arenas where vanilla ARK blocks cryopod weapons or prevents the cryopod projectile from completing normally.
For an approved release, CustomCryos applies its boss-arena weapon bypass and safe projectile replay path. The plugin still requires the configured permission and dino rules to pass before the bypass is used.
### MissionZone
MissionZone entries are intended for Genesis mission areas and similar mission-controlled locations.
For an approved release, CustomCryos temporarily handles the active-mission restriction and uses the projectile replay path when vanilla does not create the cryopod projectile correctly.
### World
World entries are ordinary coordinate-based zones. They use the configured location, radius, permission, and dino rules without enabling boss- or mission-specific patches.
Zone Detection
A player is considered inside a zone when:
MapNameContains supports multiple alternatives separated with
Center uses Unreal coordinates in this order:
ARK distance values are Unreal units. Approximately 100 Unreal units equals one meter.
Permission Behavior
A zone with a Permission value requires that exact permission group.
When a zone Permission is empty, CustomCryos falls back to the global Permissions.AllowedGroups configuration. If no global groups are configured, Permissions.AllowIfNoGroupsConfigured determines whether access is allowed.
AdminBypass can allow server administrators through all permission and zone checks.
Dino Rule Priority
Stored-dino rules are checked in this order:
A matching blocked entry wins over an allowed entry.
Dino entries may use:
Full blueprint paths are recommended when exact matching is important.
Cryopod Item Handling
The Cryo section controls which cryopod items CustomCryos recognizes.
When AllowedCryoItemBlueprints is empty and AllowAnyCryoIfListEmpty is true, all cryopod item types are accepted.
When specific items are listed, only matching cryopod item blueprints are processed by the plugin.
This supports vanilla cryopods and custom cryopod items when their item blueprint paths or class-name fragments are added.
Automatic Unequip on Zone Entry
When UnequipCryoOnEnter is enabled, a held cryopod is silently unequipped once when the player enters a configured zone.
The player can equip it again inside the zone. This ensures the plugin performs a fresh permission, dino, and zone decision under the correct arena or mission conditions.
No player message is sent for the automatic unequip.
Force-Cryoable Dinos
ForceCryoableDinos allows selected creatures that vanilla normally refuses to cryopod.
The plugin lets vanilla evaluate the capture first. It only overrides the result when vanilla denies the capture and all configured force-cryo checks pass.
Each group can define:
The global ForceCryoableDinos.BlockedDinos list overrides every group.
Built-in safety checks remain active. The target dino must:
This system is suitable for dinos such as Tek Stryders or Titans without globally allowing every normally blocked creature.
Cryopod Cooldown
The CryoCooldown section changes the duration of the vanilla cryopod cooldown buff while keeping the normal lower-right vanilla icon and HUD position.
GlobalSeconds is used for normal players.
When UseMagaBuffOverride is enabled, CustomCryos checks the same player's active buff array for MagaBuffClassContains. If found, MagaBuffSeconds is used instead.
The plugin updates both the visible Blueprint TimeLeft value and the persistent cooldown data so the configured timer remains synchronized.
Capture Time
The CaptureTime section changes the vanilla empty cryopod ingestion duration.
Seconds is the desired capture duration. Vanilla is approximately five seconds. The configured value is clamped to a minimum of 0.05 seconds.
WeaponClassContains identifies the empty cryopod weapon class and should normally remain:
Disabling this section restores the vanilla capture duration.
Messages and Logging
CustomCryos can send configurable player-facing messages for:
Optional logging includes:
Debug should normally remain disabled unless troubleshooting.
Admin Controls
The reload command name can be changed in the Commands section. The diagnostic commands are fixed.
Configuration
The plugin can be configured for:
Requirements
JOIN DISCORD
Features
CustomCryos is a configurable cryopod control plugin for ARK: Survival Evolved. It expands where cryopods can be used, controls which dinos may be released, supports normally uncryoable creatures, and provides configurable cryo cooldown and capture-time systems.
- Configurable cryopod release zones – supports boss arenas, mission areas, and normal world locations
- Boss arena cryopod support – bypasses the vanilla boss-zone weapon and projectile restrictions for approved releases
- Mission-zone cryopod support – allows approved releases inside configured mission areas
- World zones – creates ordinary coordinate-based cryopod areas without boss or mission patches
- Per-zone permissions – each zone can require its own permission group
- Global permission fallback – zones with an empty Permission field can use the global allowed-group list
- Global dino rules – controls which stored dinos may be released everywhere
- Per-zone dino rules – each location can independently allow or block stored dinos
- Block-list priority – blocked dinos take priority over allowed lists
- Custom cryopod item support – restricts the plugin to configured cryopod item blueprints when desired
- Automatic cryopod unequip on zone entry – forces a clean re-equip inside the zone so all checks run correctly
- Force-cryo support – allows selected normally uncryoable dinos to be captured
- Permission-based force-cryo groups – different permissions can unlock different dino groups
- Force-cryo safety checks – dead, ridden, and incorrectly owned dinos are not force-captured
- Configurable cryopod cooldown – changes the vanilla lower-right cooldown buff timer
- Optional MAGA cooldown override – uses a separate cooldown while the configured MAGA PvP cooldown buff is active
- Configurable capture time – changes how long the vanilla empty cryopod takes to ingest a dino
- Player messages – configurable permission, restriction, allow, and reload messages
- Allowed and denied logging – optional logs for successful and blocked release attempts
- Debug diagnostics – detailed logging and an in-game context dump command
- Runtime reload – reloads configuration without restarting the server
What It Does
CustomCryos evaluates every supported cryopod release against the player, current map, configured zone, permission, cryopod item, and stored-dino rules.
A release can be approved only when the applicable checks pass:
- the plugin and cryo handling are enabled
- the used item matches the configured cryopod rules
- the player is inside a configured zone when zone handling is required
- the player has the zone permission or applicable global permission
- the stored dino passes global restrictions
- the stored dino passes the current zone restrictions
Administrators may bypass these checks when AdminBypass is enabled.
Zone Types
Each configured location has a Type field.
### BossZone
BossZone entries are intended for boss arenas where vanilla ARK blocks cryopod weapons or prevents the cryopod projectile from completing normally.
For an approved release, CustomCryos applies its boss-arena weapon bypass and safe projectile replay path. The plugin still requires the configured permission and dino rules to pass before the bypass is used.
### MissionZone
MissionZone entries are intended for Genesis mission areas and similar mission-controlled locations.
For an approved release, CustomCryos temporarily handles the active-mission restriction and uses the projectile replay path when vanilla does not create the cryopod projectile correctly.
### World
World entries are ordinary coordinate-based zones. They use the configured location, radius, permission, and dino rules without enabling boss- or mission-specific patches.
Zone Detection
A player is considered inside a zone when:
- the current map matches MapNameContains
- the player is within Radius of Center
- the zone entry is enabled
MapNameContains supports multiple alternatives separated with
|, for example:Gen2|Genesis2Center uses Unreal coordinates in this order:
[X, Y, Z]ARK distance values are Unreal units. Approximately 100 Unreal units equals one meter.
Permission Behavior
A zone with a Permission value requires that exact permission group.
When a zone Permission is empty, CustomCryos falls back to the global Permissions.AllowedGroups configuration. If no global groups are configured, Permissions.AllowIfNoGroupsConfigured determines whether access is allowed.
AdminBypass can allow server administrators through all permission and zone checks.
Dino Rule Priority
Stored-dino rules are checked in this order:
- global BlockedDinos
- global AllowedDinos / AllowAllStoredDinos
- zone BlockedDinos
- zone AllowedDinos / AllowAllStoredDinos
A matching blocked entry wins over an allowed entry.
Dino entries may use:
- full blueprint paths
- blueprint names
- generated class names
- recognizable class-name fragments
Full blueprint paths are recommended when exact matching is important.
Cryopod Item Handling
The Cryo section controls which cryopod items CustomCryos recognizes.
When AllowedCryoItemBlueprints is empty and AllowAnyCryoIfListEmpty is true, all cryopod item types are accepted.
When specific items are listed, only matching cryopod item blueprints are processed by the plugin.
This supports vanilla cryopods and custom cryopod items when their item blueprint paths or class-name fragments are added.
Automatic Unequip on Zone Entry
When UnequipCryoOnEnter is enabled, a held cryopod is silently unequipped once when the player enters a configured zone.
The player can equip it again inside the zone. This ensures the plugin performs a fresh permission, dino, and zone decision under the correct arena or mission conditions.
No player message is sent for the automatic unequip.
Force-Cryoable Dinos
ForceCryoableDinos allows selected creatures that vanilla normally refuses to cryopod.
The plugin lets vanilla evaluate the capture first. It only overrides the result when vanilla denies the capture and all configured force-cryo checks pass.
Each group can define:
- an enabled state
- a friendly name
- a required permission
- an AllowedDinos list
The global ForceCryoableDinos.BlockedDinos list overrides every group.
Built-in safety checks remain active. The target dino must:
- be alive
- have no rider
- be owned by or team-aligned with the player
- match a permitted group
This system is suitable for dinos such as Tek Stryders or Titans without globally allowing every normally blocked creature.
Cryopod Cooldown
The CryoCooldown section changes the duration of the vanilla cryopod cooldown buff while keeping the normal lower-right vanilla icon and HUD position.
GlobalSeconds is used for normal players.
When UseMagaBuffOverride is enabled, CustomCryos checks the same player's active buff array for MagaBuffClassContains. If found, MagaBuffSeconds is used instead.
The plugin updates both the visible Blueprint TimeLeft value and the persistent cooldown data so the configured timer remains synchronized.
Capture Time
The CaptureTime section changes the vanilla empty cryopod ingestion duration.
Seconds is the desired capture duration. Vanilla is approximately five seconds. The configured value is clamped to a minimum of 0.05 seconds.
WeaponClassContains identifies the empty cryopod weapon class and should normally remain:
WeapEmptyCryopod_CDisabling this section restores the vanilla capture duration.
Messages and Logging
CustomCryos can send configurable player-facing messages for:
- missing permission
- releases not allowed at the current location
- blocked dinos
- successful releases
- successful or failed config reloads
Optional logging includes:
- allowed cryopod releases
- denied cryopod releases
- force-cryo overrides
- cooldown adjustments
- capture-time adjustments
- zone transitions and diagnostic details when Debug is enabled
Debug should normally remain disabled unless troubleshooting.
Admin Controls
CustomCryos.reload– reloads the configuration from player console or RCONCustomCryos.ccc– writes a detailed cryopod, player, weapon, buff, zone, and nearby-volume diagnostic dump to the plugin logccc– short alias forCustomCryos.ccc
The reload command name can be changed in the Commands section. The diagnostic commands are fixed.
Configuration
JSON:
{
"LicenseKey": "PUT-YOUR-LICENSE-KEY-HERE",
"General": {
"Enabled": true, // Master switch for the plugin.
"Debug": false, // Enables detailed diagnostic logging. Keep false unless troubleshooting.
"AdminBypass": true, // If true, administrators bypass permission and zone restrictions.
"LogAllowed": true, // Logs successful cryopod releases.
"LogDenied": true, // Logs denied cryopod releases.
"SendMessages": true // Sends player-facing allow/deny messages.
}, // General plugin behavior and logging options.
"Cryo": {
"Enabled": true, // Enables cryopod item filtering.
"AllowAnyCryoIfListEmpty": true, // When true and the list below is empty, all cryopod items are accepted.
"AllowedCryoItemBlueprints": [] // Optional list of allowed cryopod item blueprint paths or class-name fragments.
}, // Controls which cryopod item blueprints this plugin recognizes.
"CryoCooldown": {
"Enabled": true, // Enables the custom cryopod cooldown duration.
"GlobalSeconds": 300.0, // Default cryopod cooldown duration in seconds.
"UseMagaBuffOverride": true, // If true, players with the configured MAGA PvP cooldown buff use MagaBuffSeconds.
"MagaBuffSeconds": 600.0, // Cryopod cooldown duration used while the player has the MAGA PvP cooldown buff.
"MagaBuffClassContains": "Maga_PvpCd_Buff_C" // Runtime class-name fragment used to identify the MAGA PvP cooldown buff.
}, // Controls the vanilla lower-right cryopod cooldown buff timer.
"CaptureTime": {
"Enabled": false, // Enables the custom cryo capture duration.
"Seconds": 1.0, // Desired total capture duration in seconds. Vanilla is approximately 5 seconds.
"WeaponClassContains": "WeapEmptyCryopod_C" // Class-name fragment used to identify the vanilla empty cryopod weapon.
}, // Controls how long it takes to cryo a dinosaur.
"ForceCryoableDinos": {
"Enabled": true, // Master switch for forced cryo support.
"Groups": [
{
"Name": "Stryders", // Friendly group name used in logs.
"Permission": "CustomCryos.ForceCryo.Stryders", // Permission required to force-cryo dinos in this group.
"AllowedDinos": [
"TekStrider"
] // Allowed dinosaur class-name fragments or blueprint paths.
},
{
"Name": "Titans", // Friendly group name used in logs.
"Permission": "CustomCryos.ForceCryo.Titans", // Permission required to force-cryo dinos in this group.
"AllowedDinos": [
"DesertKaiju",
"IceKaiju",
"ForestKaiju"
] // Allowed dinosaur class-name fragments or blueprint paths.
}
], // Permission-based groups of dinosaurs that may be force-cryod.
"BlockedDinos": [] // Global deny list checked before force-cryo groups.
}, // Allows selected normally-uncryoable dinosaurs to be cryopodded.
"Zones": {
"Enabled": true, // Enables all configured zone checks.
"UnequipCryoOnEnter": true, // Unequips cryopods when entering a configured zone.
"ZoneCheckIntervalSeconds": 1.0, // How often player positions are checked against configured zones.
"Locations": [
{
"Enabled": true, // Enables this zone entry.
"Name": "Center Arena", // Friendly name used in logs.
"Type": "BossZone", // Zone type. Supported values include "BossZone", "MissionZone", and "World".
"MapNameContains": "Center", // Map-name match. Use | to allow multiple name fragments.
"Center": [
-205408.0,
574213.0,
100888.0
], // Zone center coordinates: [X, Y, Z].
"Radius": 50000.0, // Zone radius in Unreal units. Roughly 100 units = 1 meter.
"Permission": "CustomCryos", // Permission required to use cryopods in this zone.
"AllowAllStoredDinos": true, // If true, all stored dinos are allowed unless blocked below.
"BlockedDinos": [], // Dinosaur class-name fragments or blueprint paths denied in this zone.
"AllowedDinos": [] // Dinosaur class-name fragments or blueprint paths allowed in this zone.
},
{
"Enabled": true,
"Type": "BossZone",
"Name": "Center Arena",
"MapNameContains": "Center",
"Center": [
-201583,
556020,
100837
],
"Radius": 30000.0,
"Permission": "CustomCryos",
"AllowAllStoredDinos": true,
"BlockedDinos": [],
"AllowedDinos": []
}
] // List of boss, mission, or world zones.
}, // Location-based rules for cryopod release.
"GlobalDinoRules": {
"AllowAllStoredDinos": true, // If true, all stored dinos are allowed unless blocked below.
"BlockedDinos": [], // Global blocked dinosaur class-name fragments or blueprint paths.
"AllowedDinos": [] // Global allowed dinosaur class-name fragments or blueprint paths.
}, // Fallback dinosaur rules used outside specific configured zones.
"Messages": {
"Prefix": "[CustomCryos]",
"NoPermission": "You do not have permission to release cryos here.",
"NotAllowedHere": "Cryopod release is not allowed here.",
"DinoBlocked": "That dino is not allowed from cryos here.",
"Allowed": "Cryopod release allowed.",
"ReloadSuccess": "CustomCryos config reloaded.",
"ReloadFail": "Failed to reload CustomCryos config."
}, // Player-facing plugin messages.
"Commands": {
"Reload": "CustomCryos.reload" // Console/RCON command used to reload the config.
} // Console/RCON command names.
}The plugin can be configured for:
- global enable or disable
- admin bypass
- allowed and denied logging
- player-facing messages
- accepted cryopod item types
- vanilla cooldown duration
- MAGA-specific cooldown duration
- cryopod capture duration
- permission-based force-cryo groups
- globally blocked force-cryo dinos
- boss, mission, and world zones
- map filters, coordinates, and zone radii
- per-zone permission requirements
- global and per-zone allowed or blocked dinos
- automatic cryopod unequip on zone entry
- reload command name
Requirements
- ARK: Survival Evolved Dedicated Server
- Ark Server API 3.56
- ArkPermissions / Permissions plugin when permission-gated access is used
- MAGA plugin only when the optional MAGA buff cooldown override is enabled
JOIN DISCORD
