Skip to main content Link Menu Expand (external link) Document Search Copy Copied
TimberAPI

Last updated: May 30, 2023 21:40:52

Making mods

Table of contents

  1. Setting up TimberAPI
    1. Mods with code
  2. Decompiling Timberborn
  3. Examples

Prerequisites

  • basic knowledge of programming / C# (Java is similar) if creating mods with code.
  • installed BepInEx manually. Installation guide

Setting up TimberAPI

TimberAPI gives you the tools you need to get started with interacting with the game.

  1. Download the latest TimberAPI (from Thunderstore or github)
  2. Copy the TimberAPI files to BepInEx\plugins folder
  3. Launch the game and verify from the console that TimberAPI is loaded

Whether you are creating a codeless mod or a mod with code, you need to create a mod.json. Mod.json contains info of your mod so that TimberAPI can load any custom code or assets into the game.

Example mod.json below. See also the mod.json schema

{
  "Name": "ExampleMod",                     // Name of the mod
  "Version": "1.0.0",                       // Version of the mod
  "UniqueId": "myname.mods.examplemod",     // Unique identifier of the mod
  "MinimumApiVersion": "0.5.0",             // Minimun TimberAPI version this mod needs
  "MinimumGameVersion": "0.2.8",            // Minimun game version this mod needs (0.2.8 is the lowest that works with TimberAPI v0.5)
  "EntryDll": "myname.Mods.ExampleMod.dll", // Optional. The entry dll if the mod has custom code
  "Assets": [                               // Optional. The Prefix for the asset bundle and the scenes where they should be loaded. 
    {
      "Prefix": "ExampleMod",
      "Scenes": [
        "InGame"
      ]
    }
  ]
}

Along with the mod.json, the mod can contain a .dll(s), asset bundles, localization files and specification files. The folder structure of the mod should be as follows:

  • PluginFolder
    • mod.json
    • CodeForMod.dll
    • assets
      • <asset bundles>
    • lang
      • <localization files>
    • specifications
      • <specification files>

Mods with code

To get started with custom code for Timberborn mods, follow these steps:

  1. Create a new .net standard 2.1 code project
  2. Add the nuget package TimberAPI. Visual studio guide, Rider guide

To bind your custom classes to Timberborn’s dependency container create a class that inherits the IConfigurator interface. Then using the Configure() method you can bind the classes. The Configurator class will laso need an [Configurator] attribute, so TimberAPI knows where the Configurator is used. See Dependency injection

If you need Patches in your mod, then you need to create a class that inherits the IModEntrypoint interface. Create a Entry(IMod mod, IConsoleWriter consoleWriter) method for the class and call Harmony inside it. For example

public class MyModEntry : IModEntrypoint
{
    public void Entry(IMod mod, IConsoleWriter consoleWriter)
    {
        var harmony = new Harmony("my.harmony.id");
        harmony.PatchAll();
    }
}

Decompiling Timberborn

The NuGet package Timberborn.GameLib you installed earlier allows you to see the general structure of the game. However, it’s recommended to decompile the game to see how exactly it works.

A list of known free decompilers:

Examples

It’s also helpful to look at existing mods. Most modders publish their source code online and can be found on ThunderStore

Table of contents