ArkTheorist123

That's one of the harder questions. In the hall of history, just before the Overseer Arena, you can see the drops being, well, dropped into the map from the ceiling. The thing is, there's no mention of the drops at any point during ANY of the explorer notes. This leads me to two possibilities: 1. The drops were always a part of the ARKs, but were just never mentioned in the explorer notes (VERY unlikely). 2. The drops were implemented by The One Who Waits to help us on our journey to eventually defeat the corruption. As for the orbital supply drops on Extinction, well, those could have been launched from the ARKs by OWW.

The place the kid - Skye - was talking about was ARK Park. In fact, I made an entire post on 10/11/18 (page 1) on how the whole ARK Park GAME could be Skye's dream, so I suggest you check that out!

So, here's every message that's been uncovered (so far): "G" Timer: This is not ark 2 Init AP uplink AP secure connection Decrypting incoming datastream Verify UID fingerprint 724EA9458ED40FBF Command elevation request granted Command received syscheck Processing... AP Secure Connection Previous Directive Runtime % 6.0485183048e+52 Tp System Idle Time: 1.08159553106ek5 Tp AP Secure Connection ComSec: OK PhysSec: OK Power Core: OK C2M Integrity: 88% Specimen Viability: 52% "Communications records": COMMUNICATIONS TEST RECORD 427A6F2B UNRECOVERABLE MESSAGE [LXG_2qANfeIT] HtafP... suboa^; [ cyq-ut..OUT> tes2\ $hU6pte [At:_R;C'1V˟] Alk...S1d7Nd <GUESS..jbeGV cb(...9bF7oLs ]e(Uz [XOG_xRGNS:Ip* Enl s5mlaJ?r e^c...tНd Go"V ]us:9 -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA256 [LOG_TRANSMIT] Start sublayer encrypted communications test. [LOG_TRANSMIT] Verify receipt. [LOG_TRANSMIT] Confirm full fingerprint ID of 724EA9458ED40FBF in user profile. -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v2 iQIcBAEBCAAGBQJdPUtAAAoJEHJOqUWO1A+/gJQP/0t6bbn7ECOybQn2YWO7TVVN gfcgSQvfBp+Zxp+efdwQe9mK6MHalrFQIbpazdJYA6vnDx99Il86WvVbjOoQZxEw DdVfesW4fboqqX0rMB+zUo+aIll4ekfCHcEyC2/YCAaYP/5cjFmFa7hx/VsBwrNs DxRrg9vjTkiC6LcW3sCuP1YX5jKQXQLa4i2nmDCzx101F7GdGZ8jFHWvsrPx98rk isGrEzBk42ygN75/YFjnKq+q5D4L4AEkf9s6MRTR/0NTJ8QREOoWroAsvo+J+JsK Ta9gb1hRbeT2MRr47OoG7rB9yfV1DDPsu1Hj8CrFYti4Yl+qIxSXF3Reiob+nzwD 2zo5VT/QAwN8yMtcRJrgWsb2BtPDV/QaRq8K7YjVIQ3VXw8/4f88u2OxbmDXLr6H jjKNx4f6aUUra8xMFi7btWrQCDf0QcuFklJsFMiAOgmEZOSo5dDVy2ah8nA5mWma ftfpbj956KRchJ3gOnX4M2IPp4c3Y0as4c9q4jVtFBxsgisCaEphn71AOK3QnUKE b57N21fvKbzkFofmnMLzdtEMAKvW+iD/bDGxxMmruIl2DWXQqsltp13A2VowFrhe cAZW/c+9HlSRsBHJYJJx5ejkSGDAs0FS2pa/8P40YkD/ZYSmaQTCEG+cPxwFuFd+ wuyYJHzkM05VFgWwDIHq =2DQu -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- [LOG_TRANSMIT] Start sublayer encrypted communications test. [LOG_TRANSMIT] Verify receipt. [LOG_TRANSMIT] Confirm full fingerprint ID of 724EA9458ED40FBF in user profile. [LOG_RECEIVE] Message receipt confirmed. [LOG_RECEIVE] Future communications using fingerprint ID 724EA9458ED40FBF only. [LOG_RECEIVE] Host System Directive: Null [LOG_RECEIVE] Host System Status: Hibernate [LOG_RECEIVE] End sublayer encrypted communications test. gpg: Signature made Wed 31 Jul 2019 03:51:38 AM DST gpg: using RSA key 724EA9458ED40FBF gpg: Good signature from "Helena Walker <HLNA.WLKR@gmail.com>" [unknown] gpg: WARNING: This key is not certified with a trusted signature! gpg: There is no indication that the signature belongs to the owner. Primary key fingerprint: C3FB C832 2297 5EF0 27C2 46D7 724E A945 8ED4 0FBF [LOG_TRANSMIT] Secure communication request. Please respond with subject "6aa6816d-e710-4024-a28e-834315c92fdf". -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA256 [LOG_TRANSMIT] Standby, please await further outgoing communications on established channels. -----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- Hash: SHA256 [LOG_TRANSMIT] OK. [LOG_TRANSMIT] Your cognitive profile seems limited to specimen guardianship, you're a glorified patient monitor. [LOG_TRANSMIT] Maybe that's good... better to teach you new tricks than convince your host system you should be allowed in places you're not. [LOG_TRANSMIT] We'll need to do some tests, so I'm working on a few changes to your programming. [LOG_TRANSMIT] I'll contact you when it's ready. -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: GnuPG v2 iQIcBAEBCAAGBQJdQSOPAAoJEHJOqUWO1A+/sHEP+wfK/4tnKd0y57WuuJlOEcD2 u/xjjxgXu6/yi6RB/rZgUTJeS2dfA1zdy740lLGIMD8kW+tovbae/mz9OicDUPu1 4axUDl0rBzV8fpvOdBMQiMqVGdVPQiVr/RkslSPq15PR9ujXJBLj4C1ybLsCJWKl c8+JmHlNrB4SDWwrfJkLAlznMhgGrYq+/WFd5a1K41Wd6ETz9VjUdAu5mJjPcHrf kCfkm/KRAE2iOlR4qfL4s6NU2ADZmG8Qu/qWcNZX0eu7iObgBfeQ564hf3fQAmkT pcONB5Rz+AbH0Rg81hVtd0A1tDyf12vVCoXC/WWneh3mz/+5OIZn9Kx+aygJn3vD 7c7P5A0/ADWfe1uRV0Fe/YOIQV/1j019hcRAiSVuUmVBtwbxzSh1KZevUR/So4hK 0CHJF70zU/XFw7XjWn+ARWJ3IlsXbsfnGtYKUc9/80BUcpEYLgQnz81BPqi1aZc3 bb8F9C8HcHCKbkSFaMDJ370vHnin0b66SotihVpv24xqn/nIRnMV1LOthwUPfpSx VP+QnIRlUZMZVMkS0zp/EjZr61mMpl1yAI1qSYDJY3kFkeHYODYWmKXUtdwSgiXZ y7kibNUp1SJ8djerzg9Fov5DmGuCJzQj1VEWufzDd9iqKiDFph5LNyX+F7GHNnkG 3o+xvpwXQZDAsiJ1upFy =k1Ih -----END PGP SIGNATURE----- My analysis: I think what's going on is some sort of communication between two people in two different facilities, facility/person A and facility/person B. One of the facilities is likely Arat Prime, though whether it's the facility we're seeing with the timer or the other unseen facility I'm not sure, though AP might be the facility with the timer since AP seems like the only place where this "Command elevation (or maybe just "elevation"?)" procedure can be activated. There's also the fact that the facility with the timer looks very similar to the hole on Extinction, though whether that's true and what exact relevance it would have if it was, I'm not sure. Regardless, it seems both facilities are being connected via satellite uplink. Also, let's assume that the text by [LOG_TRANSMIT] and [LOG_RECEIVE] are what's appearing on person A's communication system, and the text by "gpg" (not sure exactly what that means) is what's appearing on person B's communication system. What exactly is happening with the communication records is kinda high-tech, but I'm going to break it down as best I can: Those blocks of random letters/numbers seen between the phrases "-----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE-----" and "-----END PGP SIGNATURE-----" are signatures of the sender, but heavily encrypted ones (PGP stands for "Pretty Good Privacy"). Basically the way this works is two important people get one of the same "RSA Key". This key is plugged into their respective computers or other communication device and is used to not only decrypt other people's signatures, but encode your own signature before it is sent to the other person. These encrypted signatures are used as a sort of "password", as not only would the message - if intercepted - be untraceable without the key, but it would verify that the message was indeed sent by the person and not an imposter. Now that that explanation is out of the way, I want to point out something important - the encrypted signature used during the "Sublayer Encrypted Communications Test" is HELENA'S. In other words, I'm thinking that HELENA is one of the two people talking in these communication records. I know that she "died" at the end of Extinction, but EVERYTHING seems to be pointing to this. Not only is the signature Helena's, but Wildcard, rather than hide that bit of communication dialogue in one of their OWN gmail accounts, SPECIFICALLY made one for Helena. Furthermore, when you send Helena that code through the gmail account, you get a response seemingly from the SAME AP communication network. Finally, in the latest transmission from the communication records, you can see what appears to be a message that has appeared on person A's communication device, the message having seemingly been sent by person B. The message appears to refer to person A as "limited to specimen guardianship, you're a glorified patient monitor". If Helena I person A, then this description would PERFECTLY describe her as a Homo Dei, a "godlike" entity that "monitors" us survivors, or "specimens/patients". So, here's a recap/interpretation of what I think is going on here: Helena (person A) has somehow not only survived Extinction, but has come across a pre-existing human facility, as well as somehow acquired not only an ID fingerprint - serial #724EA9458ED40FBF - , but an RSA key (with the same serial #). She uses the ID fingerprint to gain access to the facility's communication system. She then manages to establish an encrypted satellite uplink connection to Arat Prime (or fixed AP's connection if AP is the facility with the timer), but in order to do so must put in an ID fingerprint and encrypted signature. She complies, using the same fingerprint ID she used before, but using HER OWN signature, which she encrypts using the RSA key (presumably not her own, as we'll see in a moment). The system accepts the ID and signature, but person B gets a warning from his/her communication device that the signature given (Helena's) and the signature of the person who originally owned the ID fingerprint are not the same, and hence might be someone impersonating the fingerprint's original owner. Person B seemingly ignores this, and proceeds to establish full communication with Helena. After doing so, he sends her that message about her "cognitive Profile" and tells her he will "change her programming" and will contact her when it's ready. Person B then grants her "command elevation"/"elevation" and also sends her the upgrade in the form of an encrypted datastream - the glowing beam in the timer! While being upgraded, she decides to pass the time by running a check-up on the system she's using, which is what we're currently seeing with the timer, given all the holograms and statuses for the coms, power core, etc (not to mention those holograms of what appears the be the device the beam is going into!). After all that, we still have a few questions: Which facility is AP? Is one of the facilities related to that hole on Extinction? Who is person B, the person managing the "gpg" communication system? - He/she ends her message to Helena with his/her OWN encrypted signature, but we're unable to translate it without the RSA key. What is "Command elevation"/"elevation"? - this one I may actually have an answer for: In person B's message to Helena, he tells her she is "limited to specimen guardianship". Is command elevation/elevation some command that grants her freedom from monitoring the ARKs? Is that what happened to person B? Why is there a Hologram of humans (definitely humans and not Homo Dei, human DNA strand in hologram, Homo Dei have different-looking DNA strand) with the message "Specimen Viability (capability of doing work):52%"? Is Helena or person B looking for someone to perform some task? Again, I could be completely wrong about all of this, but at the moment I'm confident we're about to see some return of Helena, this time stronger than before.

Alright, I managed to decipher that one bit of text just left of the human hologram: C2M Integrity: 88% What "C2M" stands for, I'm not sure, unless I somehow spelled it wrong, but I'm pretty sure I didn't.

So, these are some of the translations for the ascension code with the new video update (Starting with the text on the pillar directly behind the camera and moving right across): AP Secure Connection Previous Directive Runtime % 6.0485183048e+52 Tp System Idle Time: 1.08159553106ek5 Tp AP Secure Connection ComSec: OK PhysSec: OK Power Core: OK Specimen Viability: 52% There are 3 other messages that I wasn't able to definitively make out the symbols of, the two at the very bottoms of the hologram walls to the left and upper right of the camera, as well as the one just to the left of the human hologram. If someone could somehow translate those ones, that'd be great!

Not to mention the fact that: 1. In the Island ascension cutscene ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-I9ipgYk6k0 ), we start by flying away from the Island we were just on, only to fly over ANOTHER Island. 2. In Mei-Yin's final Island note she says "I suspect this command center was created by something with technology far beyond most normal comprehension. In the distance I can see several worlds, one that is clearly a place I've been." So, yeah, it's confirmed both in the game and in the lore. Also, TravisMichael , you were right when you said the survivors are clones and not Homo Dei, but I do also agree with ishootpaint when he says the survivors are likely not clones of people that actually existed.

https://www.reddit.com/r/playark/comments/cjzrkc/weve_found_something_more_in_the_mysterious_post/

Don't know if anyone here's seen this yet, but just watch this and you'll find this whole thing goes FAR beyond the timer itself. Link to this mysterious forum user's profile: https://survivetheark.com/index.php?/profile/1204632-ê€2š¥ëìy/ Link to this mysterious user's "COMMUNICATIONS TEST RECORD" forum that's stirring everyone up: New mysterious default forum profile pic : Notice how the new profile pic, if you look closely, is of some sort of notch that's shaped like the Homo Deus crystal. If someone could brighten it to make it more clear, that'd be nice. Actually, if you think you could decipher all those weird codes, that'd be nice, too Also, JasonTheCTM , you did misspell that one part of the new timer codes, the "yscheck" is actually "syscheck", short for "System check".

I mean, there's always the possibility the respawn mechanic could get reintroduced to the story, just with a different explanation this time.

At 2:53 that recharging station is basically 100% proof now that Aberration impacted the planet. Honestly I would love it if - in whatever new content this timer is meant to reference - they added a cutscene where you actually got to SEE Aberration impact the planet. If they did that I would honestly call it the best cutscene in the game's history.

I doubt it. As OWW note #10 on Extinction says: "I'm by far the most junior of us, but the rest of my kind can do even less than I. They cannot touch minds or leave slivers of thought. They rely on flawed proxies to oversee the grand System they created, for they can no longer manage it themselves. It is not that they are weak, not at all. It is their power that nurtures the seeds that orbit our home, each one drawing strength from a member of our number. Yes, power they have, but nothing to guide it. Their identity, their sense of self, has decayed and crumbled. Only I can speak for us. I, the youngest, the weakest and the last." Given what she says here, that each Homo Deus "powers" an ARK (or maybe IS an ARK), I find it unlikely that the Homo Dei would be on some special ARK. Furthermore is what she says in her 11th and 12th Extinction notes... "How could ones such as my elders decay like they did? I once asked the same question, but no longer. No one told me the answer. I have simply felt it as I wait, bearing down on me, bit by bit. Think, how much have you ever seen at once? Were you able to process it all, to take in every little detail? Now imagine doing that for two such images. Now a hundred. A thousand. Ten thousand. A million. All that knowledge, all that information, flows into us. It's what let my elders build the System. It's what let me grant you your name, One Who Tries Again, and it's what lets me speak to you now. Yet inevitably, our minds crumble beneath the weight of all that truth, and our souls? They turn to smoke." „ ~ The One Who Waits "While my elders have lost themselves, I still cling to my own mind. My own heart. As much as both have changed, they are still mine, but my grip will not hold forever. There's so much to see, so much to calculate and account for. While I speak to you, I measure the probabilities our conversation alters, and I observe another of your kin. So on and so on, ad infinitum. Without pause, without rest There is no quiet for me anymore, no peaceful silence. I never valued it like I should have, but how could I have seen that? I knew so little then." ...Which seems to suggest that the Homo Dei have become so caught up in processing the activities of the survivors that they can no longer think about anything else, even their old personality/memories. And, judging by Helena's "death" at the end of the Extinction cutscene, it seems this effect continues even if the ARKs do go back to Earth. Becaue of this, I doubt the Homo Dei would make an appearance after Extinction AT ALL, since they would all be still stuck with the ARKs, processing information. But wait, THERE'S MORE! Here's a quote from OWW's 8t Extinction note: "You see those islands in the sky are seeds, and when they fall, they'll need what's left of the System's energy to bloom. So when the barren garden is fully revived, you'll lose the ability to revive yourself." So if Wildcard really is planning to add another DLC, one taking place after the events of Extinction, how would it work if it's not meant to have a respawn mechanic? Would it be like hardcore - mode Minecraft, with one life? I made a post on April 24th (top of page 5) talking more in depth about most of this and more, check that out if you want to find out more.

That would have to mean that whatever new content Wildcard is presenting us likely involves some sort of crossover between Aberration and Extinction specifically, which, given we already have Ragnarok, The Center, and Valguero, which are basically crossovers with The Island, SE, and a little bit of Aberration specifically, makes perfect sense.

The soundtrack is probably one of the most detailed parts of ARK. Take the normal credit soundtrack, for example - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KNVCD2WdRsA The first 1:25 sounds like something you would hear on The Island or SE. But then the point between 1:25 and 2:22 sounds like something from Aberration, with it's "electronic" theme. And then the entire rest of that soundtrack sounds like something from Extinction (quite literally!). The mighty sounds the trumpets make during that part are kinda similar to the might of the titans. In short, the credit soundtrack perfectly matches the order and themes of the story ARKs and is a perfect example of A) How much Wildcard values the audio in this game, and B) How much Gareth Coker is underrated. That's why the credits soundtrack for Extinction is so important ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DuEYjga48s ). It gives off this impression that you've accomplished something great, but that there's still more to come, which is basically confirmed with the electronic notes in it even after element has been purged, and of course, that guitar note at the very end.

I see what you're talking about. Problem is, the lines of text are too distant/blurry/faint/blocked by brighter text for me to make out the entire bits of text. I think I was able make out a few words on the faint lines of text on the hologram behind the camera, though, such as "4" at the end of one line and "@" at the end of another (I think that one's trying to say "@survivetheark"?). But yeah, can't really make out much, though if someone was able to decipher all of it, that'd be nice.

Just the original twitter post that led to the timer for those that want to see it

"Initialize Arat Prime Uplink" is the same thing I think it means. As Silverflower1 pointed out the word "Uplink" refers to a communications link to a satellite (or the act OF sending someone something via satellite link). That's another odd similarity between this device and the hole in the Extinction cutscene. In the cutscene ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=koANO557eT4 ), a large hole (which already looks very similar to the device, as Anthomnia and JasonTheCTM pointed out) opens up and shoots a beam into the sky. Not only does the beam in the cutscene look EXACTLY like the one this timer device is emitting albeit shorter, but the beam in the cutscene shoots INTO THE SKY. If the device in the cutscene and the device with the timer are the same thing, then the beam in the cutscene could be sending a transmission to a satellite above to remotely bring the ARKs down. So needless to say, I think it's pretty obvious that the timer device is sending some sort of transmission, most likely to a satellite, given the timing of the beam's appearance and the similarities between the timer device and other devices we've seen before that likely communicate with satellites. But other than that, such as what the transmission contains or where it's going, I can't be sure at the moment, though I wouldn't say just yet that whatever's going on is evil, since usually whenever something truly evil is goin on, it's associated with the color purple (Rockwell, corruption, etc) whereas the timer device and the beam inside it are grey, the color of "good" element or just good in general (Purple="bad" element/evil). On top of that, while the timer device and cutscene device look and act similar, I don't think this is the EXACT SAME device. The one in the cutscene shot off only one, short burst, whereas the timer device is currently holding on a long, continuous one. Here's my explanation for this: We (are meant to, not shown in-game) end up starting the reseed protocol from a secret facility on Extinction, with the hole in front of it. The thing is, there's no way during the ARKs and facility's construction that the humans would know that SPECIFIC facility would be the one the protocol would be started from. In other words, they may have constructed MANY facilities just like it across the planet to increase the chances of the protocol being started. If that's the case, then what we're seeing with this timer may be a device LIKE the one in the cutscene, just in a different place on Earth. Or maybe it IS the device from the cutscene, but doing some sort of transmission after (or maybe before?) it brought the ARKs back to Earth. There's also a possibility that this transmission may be related to this "Livingstone" person I've mentioned before (maybe he's hijacked the uplink?) Hopefully we'll get more timer updates like this in the future.

Some kind of elevator is also a good guess. The positioning of the ascension code almost makes it seem as though the end of the device is at the same level as the ground, and the text is meant to be read from there. Then again, the beam is moving from top-to-bottom, unless this is a top-to-bottom elevator and there's a different elevator going from bottom-to-top. At this point the device could still literally be anything. A laser cannon? Elevator? Some device within Arat Prime? Satellite uplink station? Actually, now that I think of it, that last one might be the most likely since the beam didn't appear until the "Init AP uplink" message came out.

I find it interesting how the device has 3 pillars like an ARK (7:48) as well as resembles that hole on Extinction (9:45). And again, the similarities to the Aberration portal (7:24). Also at 6:46 you can see when the end of the device lights up and you slow it down you can almost see some sort of glowing room on the other side through the small hole In the center.

I didn't realize it was a 3D space until now lol. The other weird glowing rings make the device look even more like a portal.

OK OK OK, The first line of code on the left starts with the letters "THIR-", and the line next to it starts with "NO-". I guess it's trying to say something will happen on the THIRd of NOvember? I can't be sure, the lines of code are slanted so it's hard to make out exactly what it says towards the bottom ? Nonetheless, I think this is meant to be inside Arat Prime. The holograms and music seem to fit for that setting, and Arat Prime, the launch center for the ARKs, is the only remaining place I can think of that would contain a strange never-before-seen device like what we see flashing periodically next to the timer (though upon closer inspection it almost sems to resemble the West end of the Aberration portal ? ). When the timer ends, will we end up finding out more about Livingstone, element, Mei-Yin, Diana, Homo Dei, the conflict between the URE and the Terran Federation, the ARKs, the corruption, and the moon (that's a mouthful)? Also, I think the name of this timer, "G", is also meant to mean something, maybe the name of whatever new DLC or whatever this scene is meant to reference? Also also, I can't be the only person thinking the music playing sounds like something out of Halo, right? ? Timer ends roughly on August 9th around noon, though there's a possibility I may not get to see the timer end personally because I'll be going on vacation around that specific time ?

IM GONNA TRY TO DECIPHER THAT ASCENSION CODE BUT I THOUGHT EXTINCTION WAS THE LAST STORY DLC WHAT IS THIS HOLD ON -

https://survivetheark.com/g/ WHAT IS THIS WHAT IS THIS WHAT IS THIS HOLD ON ON A SEC -

HOW I'M ENTERING AREA 51: HOW I'M LEAVING AREA 51:

Just a likely untrue theory, but since every story ARK has multiple clones of themselves, maybe Valguero is a version of Aberration that wasn't destroyed by Diana and friends? I mean, in one of her first 10 Aberration notes, the surface TEK village is referenced as being near a "Canyon" - and Valguero just happens to have many canyons. Also, the fact that Diana and friends, before realizing Aberration was a space station, tried to escape using a jetpack suggests that they thought they had to clear some kind of land formation - like, say, the mountains that make up Valguero's barrier hologram. Then again, the Aberration zone on Valguero doesn't have the same layout as the actual Aberration map. Also, what is up with that portal in the Aberration zone, and what does it imply? This is all assuming, of course, that Valguero and the other non-story maps exist in the same universe as the story maps, which we can't exactly prove.