BeaverBuddiesStability Fork

Install guide

From download to your first co-op session. Every player installs the mod; only the host needs a save.

Before you start

  • Timberborn 1.1.2.4, the same version on every computer. This fork is tested on Windows with the Steam version.
  • The Harmony and Mod Settings mods. Get Harmony from the Steam Workshop and Mod Settings from the Steam Workshop or mod.io.
  • For Steam invites: every player online in Steam and owning Timberborn there.

Every player installs the same download and runs the same game version. The mod refuses a mismatch when someone joins. It's the most common cause of trouble.

Install the mod

  1. Download

    Go to the latest release and download BeaverBuddies-Stability-Fork-1.1.16.zip under Assets (not the "Source code" archives).

    Download 1.1.16

    Joining a friend? Use the same release as your host: ask which version their mod list shows, or use the zip they sent you.

  2. Close Timberborn

    Close the game before you copy files.

  3. Extract and copy

    Extract the zip and copy the BeaverBuddies-Stability-Fork folder into your Timberborn Mods folder:

    Documents\Timberborn\Mods

    You should end up with Mods\BeaverBuddies-Stability-Fork\version-1.1\manifest.json. Replace the folder if it's already there.

  4. Keep only one BeaverBuddies

    Unsubscribe from the Workshop BeaverBuddies and delete any other copy, including an old BeaverBuddies-StabilityPreview folder. They share a mod ID and conflict.

  5. Start Timberborn and enable the mods

    Open Mods on the main menu and enable Harmony, Mod Settings and BeaverBuddies - Stability Fork. Restart the game if it asks you to.

Optional: to check the download, run this in PowerShell in the folder you saved it to, and compare the result with 1.1.16-SHA256SUMS.txt:

Get-FileHash .\BeaverBuddies-Stability-Fork-1.1.16.zip -Algorithm SHA256

Check it loaded

  • The mod list shows BeaverBuddies - Stability Fork with version 1.1.16.
  • The main menu has a Join co-op game button.
  • Your game log, %USERPROFILE%\AppData\LocalLow\Mechanistry\Timberborn\Player.log, contains the line BeaverBuddies v1.1.16 is loaded!

If it is not there, see The mod does not load.

Host a game

  1. Load game → pick a save → Host co-op game. A box lists the players who connect.
  2. Bring your friends in with one of the three ways below.
  3. When everyone is in the list, choose Start Game.

Friends join before you unpause. After that, or once anyone builds or marks something, nobody else can join. For a late friend, save and host that save again.

If a warning says your mods and a friend's differ, fix that before you start: see Troubleshooting.

Option 1: Steam invite (easiest)

Choose Invite Friends and pick your friend in Steam's overlay. If nothing opens right after you host, wait a moment and click again. Enable Steam Networking must be on in the mod's settings; it is by default.

Option 2: Direct IP

Give your friend your IP address. Your router must forward port 25565 to your computer. This works alongside Steam invites.

Option 3: Hamachi or another virtual network

A virtual LAN such as Hamachi avoids port forwarding, and it has been tested. Give your friend the address it assigns you; they join by direct IP.

Join a game

With a Steam invite

Accept the invite from Steam's notification or overlay. If Timberborn is closed, Steam starts it and joins for you. With the host's Allow Friends to Join Directly via Steam on (the default), Join Game on the host's entry in your Steam friends list works too.

With an IP address

On the main menu, choose Join co-op game and enter the host's IP address or domain name.

Guests get a copy of the host's save, kept under Online Games.

While you play

  • The connection panel shows who is connected, each ping, whether you're in sync and the tick rate. Click its title to collapse it.
  • Teammates' cursors and selections show on your screen. To change how each looks, press Esc → Player cursors.
  • To ping a spot on the map for everyone, bind Ping Location under Options → Bindings → BeaverBuddies.
  • Set your Ping Display Name and Ping Color in the mod's settings so friends can tell you apart.

If a desync happens

A desync means the players' games have drifted apart. The game tells you. Then:

  1. The host chooses Save and Rehost.
  2. Guests choose Reconnect (wait for Rehost). It joins the way you joined: the same address, or the host's new game on Steam. If Steam doesn't show the host's new game, accept the host's new invite.

What causes desyncs: Troubleshooting. If the game instead says multiplayer has stopped because an action may have changed only part of the game, read this answer before you save.

Settings

Open Mods (on the main menu, or Esc in a game) and click the settings button on BeaverBuddies - Stability Fork.

SettingDefaultWhat it does
Enable Steam NetworkingOnLets players join your games through Steam.
Allow Friends to Join Directly via SteamOnFriends can join from their Steam friends list without an invite.
Player activity indicatorsOnShares your cursor, selection and edits, and shows other players'.
Ping Display NamePlayerThe name others see on your pings, cursor and edits.
Ping ColorYellowThe color of your pings, cursor and chat name on everyone's screen. Left on yellow, your cursor and chat name get a color by player number; pings stay yellow.
Connection panelExpandedExpanded, Collapsed or Hidden.
Connection panel positionTop leftTop left, top right, bottom left or bottom right.
Ease off when a guest drops below this frame rateOffHost only. While a guest stays below it (20, 30, 45 or 60 fps), the game slows a little and speeds back up by itself. Also in the connection panel as Ease off below.
Remove the large colony speed limitOffTimberborn slows its speeds as the population grows. Turn this on to run the speed you chose. In multiplayer the host's choice applies to everyone for the whole session.
Reduce the number of forced pausesOffOff, Menu only or Never auto-pause. Every player should use the same value. With Never auto-pause, pause before you save, or the save can be damaged.
Port25565The port for hosting and joining by direct IP. Without Hamachi or similar, the host forwards it on their router.
Client Connection Address127.0.0.1The address filled in when you join by direct IP. It remembers the last one you entered.
Always Use Detailed LoggingOffRecords extra detail for diagnosing desyncs, at a cost in performance. Leave it off unless you're asked to turn it on.

Under Options → Bindings → BeaverBuddies there are three optional keys: Ping Location, Toggle connection panel and Chat: start typing. None is bound until you choose a key.

Update or remove

  • Update: download the new zip, close the game and replace the BeaverBuddies-Stability-Fork folder. Everyone updates together: different builds can't join each other.
  • Remove: disable it under Mods, or delete the BeaverBuddies-Stability-Fork folder from Mods.