R-Velonasaur

Scout

Its base speed is not all too impressive, being slower than a . On top of that, the Velonasaur cannot go straight into a sprint but rather has to build up speed gradually and though it does so quickly in less than 3 seconds, this can become an issue if it bumps into trees and rocks, slowing you down. However, due to its smaller size, combined with decent enough speed, good jumping, and its ability to keep enemies off at a distance with its quill-shooting facial fins, it makes for a good…

War Mount

A good level Velonasaur with high melee damage can shred enemy survivors, tames, and wild creatures with ease; while its minigun attack discourage enemies from closing distance( though most ARK AI lack this self preservation). Coupled with an ability to temporarily ground flyers similarly to the ; its good melee attack, decent longevity, and speed make this a cactus-lizard to be reckoned with. Level , , and .

Primitive Turret

The Velonasaur has a turret mode that can be enabled. When parked up on a higher elevation and on aggressive, the Velonasaur can defend your base from threats like an actual , though its range of affect is not quite as far as a conventional turret. Leveling up melee damage only increases the damage of a ridden Velonasaurs' attacks but does not effect the damage of its spines in turret mode, as it is capped at a certain damage. (It's not for certain if this interaction is a bug…

Keep in mind that velonas quills on turret mode benefits from melee damage, though melee damage is eventually capped.

Guardian and Defender

Whether a single Velonasaur or a pack of them, they can be easily used to protect an area and any other allied players and tames in that area from incoming attackers. The spines that can be shot by the Velonasaur at a distance allows for a unique strategy of defense, as they can act like defensive, movable turrets without requiring bullet ammo. Thus they can be great for defending a survivor's base or a certain area. The Velonasaur's spines can also ground flyers for a…

Tank Destroyer/Shredder

Since its spines deal damage that is considered as creature melee, the Velonasaur not only never deals damage to allies but also ignores all body parts multipliers. While this means no extra damage on creatures with high multipliers to specific body parts like head shots, it also means that this death lizard can easily shred any tanks that rely on low damage multipliers to soak damage, such as the , , , and . Its small size also means that it can fit in almost any place…

Raw Damage

Thanks to the naturally high DPS and ranged nature of the Velonasaur's quills, it can be reliably used in situations where damage output is needed in huge quantities in a short amount of time. Whatever the need, whether it be defending an Element Node or base, slaughtering enemy dinos, or even assisting in taming a Titan, the Velonasaur makes can do it all when damage is needed.

Anti-Air Tame

Because the Velonasaur's spines can ground flyers for a short time, Velonasaurs can be paired with Reapers since Reapers can also slow down any creature's movement with their acid on top of grounding flyers. In short, Velonsaurs stop the flyer's speed and the Reapers make sure they are unable to quickly get back in the air, giving enough time for ground tames such as Gigas to finish up the flyers.

Travel

Due to the Velonasaur's small size, it can go undetected when travelling through brush. If a foe is encountered, they can be dispatched from afar with its spines or if it comes quickly it can be taken out via the spin attack. (Level Speed and Stamina)

Transport

The Velonasaur can transport items easily without having to worry about flyers due to its ranged attack. On top of that the frills can serve to intimidate would-be attackers. (Level Weight, Stamina, and Speed)