RimWorld Multiplayer Mod: RimWorld Together vs Multiplayer (and How to Host a Server)

RimWorld has no official multiplayer, and there are two community mods that add it. They work in quite different ways. Multiplayer, the mod started by Zetrith, puts you and your friends into one shared game: the same colony, the same maps, and one player hosting from their own PC. RimWorld Together gives each player their own colony on a shared planet, running at their own pace, with a server that keeps the world online so players can trade, raid and send each other events.

This guide compares the two RimWorld multiplayer mods, helps you choose between them, and then walks through setting up a RimWorld Together server on GameServerKings: the version matching, the first-join setup, admin rights and the config files.

Versions this page was checked against

RimWorld 1.6.4850 (June 2026) · RimWorld Together 26.8.31.1 (server and Workshop mod, both 31 August 2026) · Multiplayer v0.11.5 (the latest tagged release; the Workshop version was updated June 2026).

RimWorld Together vs Multiplayer at a glance

Pick Multiplayer if you want to build one colony together, every player on the same map, like a board game. Pick RimWorld Together if you want your own colony, a persistent world your friends can drop in and out of, and interaction on the world map: trading, raids and roads.

How the Multiplayer mod works

Multiplayer runs one game for everyone. Everyone's game has to stay in step, so the mod's FAQ is blunt about it: "EVERYTHING needs to be the same for it to work in multiplayer". That includes DLC. When you connect through Steam, the mod syncs config files and downloads the host's enabled Workshop mods for you. Mods that aren't compatible with Multiplayer cause desyncs, where players' games drift apart. The mod keeps a compatibility list and shows each mod's status in the in-game mod menu.

The host starts a game from their own RimWorld and friends join through Steam, LAN or direct IP. The game stops when the host quits. The mod's FAQ answers "Can I make a dedicated server?" with "No." The v0.11.5 release notes do mention work on a standalone server and letting the game continue without the host, but it isn't a supported hosting option yet. It isn't something you can rent as a server.

Newer options include async time, where each colony runs its own clock, and multifaction, a beta option that lets players run separate factions.

How RimWorld Together works

RimWorld Together splits the game in two. Each player runs their own colony in their own RimWorld. The server holds the shared planet: every settlement, the market, roads, factions, and the actions players take against each other. In the developers' words, players "co-exist on the world map instead of traditional coop play". You can send events to other players, trade items and pawns, visit or raid their colonies, build roads, and change the world permanently with pollution or by destroying NPC settlements.

Because your colony doesn't depend on anyone else's, nobody has to wait for a host. The one thing that has to match exactly is the mod version. The server compares the client's RimWorld Together version with its own and turns away any player whose version differs.

Setting up a RimWorld Together server on GameServerKings

A GSK RimWorld Together server downloads the official Linux server build straight from the project's GitHub releases. You only have three variables to deal with on the Startup tab:

The panel also writes the server's IP (0.0.0.0) and Port (your main allocation) into Configs/ServerConfig.json every time the server starts. Don't change those two values in the file, because the panel will put its own values back.

1. Match the server and mod versions

Every player's RimWorld Together mod has to be exactly the same version as the server. The Workshop mod updates automatically, so with Version set to latest you're normally in step. When a new release comes out, update the server by running Reinstall Server from the Settings tab. The installer only replaces the server program (GameServer) and leaves your world and configs where they are. Take a backup first anyway.

If you pinned an older release, your players need the matching client mod. Every GitHub release includes it as 3005289691.zip, and the RimWorld Together wiki explains how to swap it into your Workshop folder. Players can see their client version at the top left of the main menu.

2. Start it and check the port

Start the server and watch the console. When it's ready it prints:

Server launched
Listening for users at 0.0.0.0:<port>
Type 'help' to get a list of available commands

The port in that line should be your server's port from the Network tab. If it says 25555 and that isn't your allocation, restart the server once so the panel can write the port into the config.

3. Join first and create the world

The first player to connect sets up the planet everyone will share, so do this yourself before you give the address to anyone else:

1. Subscribe to RimWorld Together and Harmony on the Workshop, and enable both in RimWorld's mod list. RimWorld Together won't run alongside the Prepatcher mod.
2. Enable every mod you plan to play with now. The wiki recommends creating the world "with all the mods you are planning to use", particularly mods that add factions, biomes or world events.
3. Use the mod's button on RimWorld's main menu to connect to your server's IP and port (as shown on the panel), make an account and create the world.

If a warning lists "incompatible mods" when you join, the wiki says you can usually dismiss it.

4. Make yourself admin

In the panel console:

op YourUsername

Use the username you registered in step 3. Admins can open the in-game admin panel (turn on dev mode, then use the button at the top right) to change difficulty, the storyteller and the mod list. Only admins can change the mod list once the world exists. The server bans any non-admin who tries.

For the mod list, mark mods that affect the world as Required, allow cosmetic and quality-of-life mods as Optional, and put anything you don't want as Forbidden. Players with a required mod missing, or with a mod that isn't on the list, are turned away. Admins aren't checked, and togglemodbypass switches the check off for everyone. modlist prints the current list.

5. Decide whether it's private

A new RimWorld Together server lists itself in the public in-game server browser by default. The console says so: "Server discovery is ENABLED … Remember to set a password if you are playing with a private party!" For a server just for friends, do one of these:

• set a join password with setpassword YourPassword, or
• stop the listing with togglebrowser (it prints Server browser discovery is now OFF and saves the setting), then restart the server. You can also set "EnableServerBrowser": false in Configs/ServerConfig.json while the server is stopped.

For a public server, fill in Name, Description, and SteamWorkshopURL (a Workshop collection of your mods) in the same file, so players browsing can find it and get your mods.

Where the server keeps its files

Everything is in the server root, which you can reach over SFTP:

Stop the server before you edit any JSON file, and check your edit is valid JSON. A missing comma is the most common way to break a config.

Troubleshooting

What to Read Next

• How to upload files via SFTP: for editing the config files and downloading backups
• How to create a backup: before you reinstall to update the server
• Players Can't Connect to My Server: How to Fix It: for when the port and version look right but players still can't connect

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