Editing Leveling Guide

This guide covers how to train each [[Skills|skill]] from 1 to 99 efficiently. It pairs with the stage guides — '''[[Beginner's Guide]]''', '''[[Mid-Game Guide]]''', and '''[[Endgame Guide]]'''.

== The one rule ==

For almost every skill: '''run the highest-level action you've unlocked.''' Higher actions give more XP per completion, and the extra time per action is more than paid back. The exceptions (noted below) are when a lower action feeds something you need right now, or a '''weather window''' opens a temporary bonus action.

== Universal speed-ups ==

These help '''every''' skill, so buy/build them early and keep them current:

* '''[[Companions]]''' — assign a creature whose buff matches the skill you're training (a speed buff shortens actions; a double buff pays extra output).
* '''[[Mastery]]''' — each action's own mastery ladder and the skill pool quietly cut action time and boost output; the milestones reward broad levelling.
* '''[[Museum]]''' wings — a completed wing gives a permanent double-yield or speed bonus to its skill.
* '''[[Shop]]''' — '''Sharpened Tools''' (+2%/rank to all four gathering skills) and, late, the '''[[Tool Ladders]]''' (up to −24% action time per gathering skill).
* '''[[Weather]]''' — time the right sky (Rain for [[Fishing]], Heatwave for [[Mining]]/[[Smithing]], etc.); severe weather and weather-window gathers give the biggest bursts.
* '''[[Homestead]]''' — the Forge speeds [[Smithing]]; passive producers keep your processing inputs stocked.

== Gathering skills ==

These need no inputs — just run the top action.

* {{Icon|foraging}} '''[[Foraging]]''' — climb the ladder to Sky Grain, Primal Bloom, and the level-90+ capstones (Vale Nectar, World-Tree Fruit). Watch for the '''Tailwinds''' weather-window gather.
* {{Icon|logging}} '''[[Logging]]''' — up through Cloudwood, Worldroot and Dawn Sequoia. Logging also feeds rope, hafts, and building materials, so bank extra.
* {{Icon|mining}} '''[[Mining]]''' — up through Moonstone, Starfall Vein and Heartstone. Mining supplies every [[Smithing]] tier, so you'll often mine ahead of your forge.
* {{Icon|fishing}} '''[[Fishing]]''' — up through Helicoprion and Leedsichthys. Fish feed [[Cooking]]; a '''Storm/Rain''' window opens the Stormfish gather.

Tip: once you have '''[[Companions#Hired hands (background gathering)|hired hands]]''' ([[Taming]] 25), park dinos on the gathers you're not actively training so all four skills tick at once.

== Processing skills ==

These consume gathered inputs, so '''keep a buffer stocked''' — running dry stalls your training. Run the highest recipe you can supply.

* {{Icon|cooking}} '''[[Cooking]]''' — turns fish and meat into healing food (and the six '''kibble''' recipes). You'll always want food for [[Hunting]] and [[Taming]], so Cooking rarely goes to waste.
* {{Icon|crafting}} '''[[Crafting]]''' — rope, armour, saddles, torches, and the endgame dino '''trinkets'''. Rope and torches are constant background needs.
* {{Icon|smithing}} '''[[Smithing]]''' — smelt ore to ingots, then forge the tier ladder (Bronze → Iron → Silver/Gold → Obsidian → Moonstone). Smelt in bulk so forging never waits on ingots.
* {{Icon|alchemy}} '''[[Alchemy]]''' — tonics and, vitally, '''tranquilizers''' for [[Taming]]. Keep Calming Tonics and Potent Tranquilizers ahead of your taming plans.

== Combat and progression skills ==

* {{Icon|hunting}} '''[[Hunting]]''' — combat gathering; each kill costs HP, so bring cooked food and let auto-eat carry you. Climb to tougher prey as your gear and HP allow; endgame adds '''[[Hunting#Nemesis hunts|nemesis hunts]]'''.
* {{Icon|taming}} '''[[Taming]]''' — the longest grind (roughly 420–490 hours to 99). It levels from taming '''and''' from [[Breeding]], imprint care, and [[Dispatch]] missions, so a running breeding/imprint pipeline is the fastest path. Feed matching '''[[Taming#Kibble and premium tames|kibble]]''' for faster attempts.
* {{Icon|expeditions}} '''[[Expeditions]]''' — trains by running patrols and Guardians; push new biomes for the XP jumps and gear. Watch '''[[Expeditions#Guardian Heat|Guardian Heat]]''' and interleave patrols.
* {{Icon|delving}} '''[[Delving]]''' — trains by running [[Caves|caves]]; each cave opens after you clear its biome. The [[Caves#The Amber Door|Amber Door]] (Delving 95, needs the Sigil) is the capstone.
* {{Icon|farming}} '''[[Farming]]''' — plot-based rather than action-based: plant the best seeds you have across your [[Homestead|Farmland]] plots and harvest on a cycle. Farming has no mastery ladder.

== A practical order ==

You don't level skills one at a time — you keep '''all your engines pointed somewhere useful''':

# Your '''active action''' on whichever skill you're pushing (usually the one gating your next goal).
# '''Hired hands''' on the gathers you're not actively training.
# '''Homestead''' producers topping up processing inputs.
# '''Dispatch''' squads out for materials and dino XP.
# A '''breeding/imprint''' cycle feeding [[Taming]] XP in the background.

== See also ==

* '''[[Beginner's Guide]]''' · '''[[Mid-Game Guide]]''' · '''[[Endgame Guide]]''' — the stage-by-stage guides.
* '''[[Skills]]''' — every skill's own page with its full action list.
* '''[[Mastery]]''', '''[[Weather]]''', '''[[Tool Ladders]]''' — the big cross-skill multipliers.

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