Albion Online Best Mounts for Gathering (2023)

Resources are the foundation of Albion Online’s economy, and gatherers are the lifeline of this ecosystem—which is why many players choose the gatherer’s path. But being a gatherer can be a risky profession, especially for those searching for higher rewards.

As a gatherer, you’re one of the main targets of gankers. And more often than not, you won’t be able to fight back when you’re caught. So if you want to be a gatherer, you should be prepared and equipped with the best builds and best mounts for gathering.

In this article, we’ll help you choose the best mounts for gathering in Albion Online.

What Makes a Mount Good for Gathering?

There are four main factors to consider when choosing the best gathering mount: max load bonus, move speed bonus, HP and resistance, and average market price.

Max Load Bonus

When looking for a good mount for gathering, the max load (carry weight) bonus is crucial.

Resources are generally heavy, especially the higher-tier ones. If you don’t have sufficient max load capacity, you’ll get an overweight move speed debuff—which will make you a slow and juicy target for gankers. And if you don’t want to get an overweight debuff, then you’ll be forced to go back and bank your resources more frequently.

Neither of these two situations is good nor efficient, and you’ll be cutting a lot of your potential profits as a result. Hence, having a sufficient max load capacity lets you optimize your gathering sessions.

Move Speed Bonuses

Similar to ganking, gathering also requires having a decently fast mount. It’s even more important for gathering since you’re the one who’s trying to run away and has to outspeed the gankers.

There are two levels of move speed bonuses: the regular move speed bonus and the gallop move speed bonus. You need a mount that has high move speed bonuses, so you can escape gankers and jump from one resource node to another more efficiently.

Another thing to note is the gallop buff delay. Although this isn’t as significant as the move speed bonuses, it can still prove helpful in certain situations.

Mounts with low gallop buff delay gain their gallop move speed bonus in a shorter time.

For example, the Giant Stag and Moose have a gallop buff delay of 2 seconds, which is shorter compared to 5 seconds for Swiftclaw and 3 seconds for Riding Horse. So if you get hit while on a Moose, you’ll gain back your mount’s gallop move speed bonus more quickly than while on a Riding Horse.

However, two to three seconds of difference in gallop buff delay is rarely significant. Being able to gallop two to three seconds more quickly won’t really save you when you’re being chased by a full ganking squad.

HP and Resistance

Aside from move speed bonuses, another important factor for a gathering mount is its tankiness. If you can’t outrun your gankers, you should at least be able to outlive them (still preferable if you can do both!).

If your mount has high HP and resistances, it can survive ganks long enough to give you time to escape to the nearest exit. A tanky mount also has a higher chance of surviving the initial onslaught of gankers, preventing them from dismounting you.

Average Market Price

Lastly, another factor when choosing the best mount for gathering is the market price.

Let’s face it, you will definitely die at some point (unless you don’t leave the safe zones). But dying is fine as long as you know how to bounce back

If you want to be a gatherer, you should always pick a mount that best fits your budget.

Certain mounts are better in terms of their benefits-to-price ratio. Some gathering mounts are cheap but also slow and easily killable. Meanwhile, some mounts are tanky and fast but cost a considerable amount.

But some mounts have a good balance of both. These mounts aren’t too expensive, yet they offer good benefits for gathering.

A balanced combination of all these factors makes an excellent mount for gathering. If you want to know what the best gathering mounts are, then read on.

1

Moose

• Mount HP: 1075
• Base move speed bonus: 70%
• Gallop move speed bonus: 120%
• Max load bonus: 374 – 392 kg
• Average market price: 423k – 450k silver*

Tier 6 Moose is perhaps the best mount for gathering you can find in Albion Online. Almost everything about the Moose fits our criteria well, and it’s by far the most cost-efficient mount in the game.

The Moose possesses a good max load bonus, excellent move speed bonuses, decent survivability, and an affordable market price.

This mount has a max load bonus of at least 374 kg. It might not seem much compared to boar mounts, but it’s enough for a decent gathering session when coupled up with a bag.

Moreover, Moose’s excellent move speed bonuses are the top when it comes to gathering mounts. The only other mount that can match its move speed bonuses is the Frost Ram (which we’ll talk about later).

Its gallop move speed bonus of 120% is on par with the Swifclaw’s, so you have a high chance of escaping gankers with this mount.

Of course, if your gankers are using Direwolves, then they’ll eventually be able to outrun you, but Moose’s speed is the best chance you got for a gathering mount. Besides, almost nothing else can outrun a Direwolf anyway as it’s one of the best ganking mounts in the game.

The Moose’s HP at 1075 isn’t amazing, but it’s not terrible by any means. Its amazing move speed bonuses definitely offset its lack of tankiness.

Lastly, the average market price for the Moose is around 423k to 450k silver, which is within the budget of most players (even new ones). Other mounts are definitely cheaper, but the advantages of the Moose make it very well worth the silver.

2

Saddled Wild Boar

• Mount HP: 1098
• Base move speed bonus: 70%
• Gallop move speed bonus: 110%
• Armor: 76
• Magical resistance: 76
• CC resistance: 162 – 164
• Max load bonus: 781 – 821 kg
• Average market price: 360k – 385k silver*

Next, we have the Saddled Wild Boar. Compared to the Moose, the Saddled Wild Boar leans more toward the slower but tankier side of gathering mounts.

In terms of carrying weight capacity, the Saddled Wild Boar is superior to the Moose. Its max load bonus of at least 781 kg is more than double the Moose’s, which lets you go on longer gathering sessions for better efficiency.

Unfortunately, the Saddled Wild Boar falls short when it comes to speed. It only has a gallop move speed bonus of 110%, which makes it an easy target to catch for gankers in fast mounts. 

The Saddled Wild Boar is far from being the fastest mount, but its survivability rests on its decent HP and good resistances. Its HP is just slightly more than the Moose’s at 1098, but it has added beefiness thanks to its bonus armor, magical resistance, and CC resistance.

The bonus armor and magical resistance let your mount absorb more damage before dying, and the CC resistance helps you survive multiple crowd control effects from gankers.

A Saddled Wild Boar is typically sold for around 360k to 385k silver, which is close to the price of the Moose. It’s relatively cheaper but also tankier with a better max load bonus, making it on par with the Moose as one of the best mounts for gathering.

3

Spectral Direboar

• Mount HP: 885
• Base move speed bonus: 60%
• Gallop move speed bonus: 115%
• Armor: 80
• Magical resistance: 80
• CC resistance: 189
• Max load bonus: 1203 kg
• Average market price: 820k – 890k silver*

The Spectral Direboar is very similar to the Saddled Wild Boar. It’s a more expensive version of the latter, but it also has some perks that make it an excellent mount for gathering.

The Spectral Direboar has less HP at 885, but it’s compensated by having slightly higher armor, magic resistance, and CC resistance. The difference may not seem significant, but every point in armor, magic resistance, and CC resistance counts when you’re being chased by bloodthirsty gankers and running for your life.

In terms of base move speed bonus, the Spectral Direboar is only at a disappointing 60%, so you’re more vulnerable when its gallop move speed bonus is not active.

Fortunately, its gallop move speed bonus is at 115%, which is just a few points slower than the Moose and a bit faster than the Saddled Wild Boar.

The best things about the Spectral Direboar are its max load bonus and mount ability. Its max load bonus is 1203 kg, which is around 33% higher than the Saddled Wild Boar’s. That’s A LOT of resources!

Moreover, it also has the ability Glimpse of the Other Side. This ability makes you invisible for five seconds, which can give you enough time to juke gankers.

Note: Using this ability removes your gallop move speed buff, so beware.

The main downside of the Spectral Direboar is its expensive price. It typically costs around 820k to 820k silver when it’s not available for the month (since it’s one of the Adventurer’s Challenge mounts), and it only slightly gets cheaper during its designated months, which is every July.

The combination of extremely high max load bonus, overall tankiness, and juking ability make the Spectral Direboar not only a good mount for gathering but an exceptional mount for transporting as well.

4

Giant Stag

• Mount HP: 902
• Base move speed bonus: 70%
• Gallop move speed bonus: 105%
• Max load bonus: 226 – 238 kg
• Average market price: 76k – 88k silver*

The Giant Stag is the cheaper version of the Moose—and noticeably weaker. It has a below-average HP and mediocre gallop move speed bonus.

It’s worse than the Moose in every way, except for their price.

The good things about the Giant Stag are its great base move speed bonus and decent max load buff. But none of these are enough to compensate for this mount’s frailty and subpar gallop speed bonus.

However, the main selling point of the Giant Stag is its cheapness. You can buy one from the market for only around 76k to 88k silver.

This means you can buy 4 to 5 Giant Stags for the price of one Moose! This is why it’s a great mount for gathering, especially for beginners who have very limited silver.

Be wary, though, as the Giant Stag’s frailty makes it an easy target for gankers. Its low HP, lack of resistances, and low gallop move speed bonus mean that you have to be extra careful when traversing the red and black zones.

Once you get caught by the initial CC or damage of a gank group, you’re most likely going to die if there’s no exit nearby.

None of its stats is amazing, but the Giant Stag’s low price and decent max load bonus make it a viable option for a cheap gathering mount—and deserving of a spot on this list.

5

Frost Ram

• Mount HP: 1014
• Base move speed bonus: 70%
• Gallop move speed bonus: 120%
• Max load bonus: 374 kg
• Average market price: 665k – 750k silver*

Finally, we have on this list another Adventurer’s Challenge mount, the Frost Ram. The use of this mount for gathering and roaming was popularized by the Albion Online content creator Stabber (aka NomadPoncho).

The Frost Ram is relatively expensive, and inexperienced players who use it may end up losing tons of silver for nothing. You need to have good map awareness and experience to maximize the use of this mount.

In terms of pure stats alone, Frost Ram is like an upgraded version of the Moose. Their stats are almost similar with the Moose having a slightly higher HP and max load bonus.

However, the Frost Ram can use the ability Leap, which can allow you to escape certain scenarios where you would otherwise die if you were on a Moose.

Leap simply lets you jump up to 15 meters away, and you’re immune to damage and CC while on air. It also has an instant cast time and only a 15-second cooldown, making it a premium escape ability against ganking groups.

The main downside to this mount is its expensive price tag. It costs 665k to 750k  silver, so you’re better off using other “safer” gathering mounts if you don’t have that much silver to lose.

The Frost Ram is an excellent mount for roaming, but it’s far from unkillable. Its Leap ability is an amazing escape tool but only if you know how and when to use it.

*All prices indicated are based on April 2023 Albion West marketplace average listings.