How to Host a tModLoader Server on LoafHosts

Hosting a tModLoader server means renting a machine that runs Terraria’s modding framework around the clock, so your world keeps generating boss loot, growing bases, and accepting mod updates whether or not anyone happens to be online. tModLoader is a free, community-built framework from the TML Team that loads mods into Terraria without recompiling the game, and it requires the player (and the server) to already own base Terraria. A hosted server gives you a permanent IP, a real config file you control, and a mods folder your whole group can share, none of which the in-game “Host & Play” option gives you once your own PC goes to sleep. This guide walks through deploying a tModLoader server on the LoafHosts LPV5 panel, picking the right startup settings for your world, tuning serverconfig.txt with the built-in Config Editor, and loading mods. By the end you will have a running, joinable modded Terraria world.

Why Run a Dedicated tModLoader Server

Terraria and tModLoader both let you host a world straight from the client, but that session lives and dies with your PC: close the game, and the world stops advancing and every connected player is dropped. A dedicated hosted server runs the tModLoader server process as its own program, separate from anyone’s game client, so the world is always there to join, your boss fights and events keep running on a fixed schedule, and your mod list is centralized in one place instead of forty players each managing their own.

Tip: A dedicated server keeps your world persistent even when the person who built it is offline

Tip: Players connect to one fixed IP and port instead of a host who comes and goes

Tip: A shared mods folder on the server means everyone downloads the same mod versions from one place

Note: tModLoader is a free framework, but it requires the server (and every connecting player) to own base Terraria on Steam

Sizing Your Custom Server

Loafhosts runs one configurable Custom server: you slide RAM from 1 to 32 GB and storage from 10 to 500 GB and pick a protection tier. More CPU and RAM headroom matters for tModLoader once you add a heavy modpack, because a modded Terraria world (bosses, projectiles, NPCs, and mod-added AI) gets noticeably more CPU-hungry than vanilla. A smaller build is great value for a small, lightly modded world with a handful of friends. Pricing starts at $13.50/mo, and longer billing cycles save up to 25%.

Tip: Size up on RAM and CPU headroom if you run a large modpack (Calamity, Thorium, or several big mods stacked together) or a bigger player count

Tip: A smaller build is plenty if you run vanilla or a light modlist with a small group

Tip: Every Custom server uses AMD Ryzen 9 7950X3D CPUs, DDR5 memory, and NVMe storage

Tip: Every Custom server includes unlimited player slots; tModLoader’s own player cap is set separately (see below)

Note: The Advanced and Strict protection tiers add Terabit.io L4/L7 DDoS filtering

Note: The Basic protection tier includes standard DDoS mitigation; Terabit.io filtering comes with Advanced and Strict

Picking a Server Region

Host close to the bulk of your players to keep latency low, especially for boss fights where lag is the difference between dodging and eating an attack. Custom servers are available in New York, Dallas, Los Angeles, and Frankfurt, which covers US East, Central, West, and EU, with Montreal available for Strict protection.

1. List where your core players actually live, not where you live
2. For a US East or Canadian group, choose New York, or Montreal if you want Strict protection; for European groups, pick Frankfurt
3. For a Central US group, choose Dallas
4. For a US West or Pacific group, choose Los Angeles
5. If your group is split, favor the region with the most players and the lowest average ping

Tip: Pick the closest region even if it is not the one nearest you; ping matters more in boss fights than raw CPU headroom

Deploying Your Server on LPV5

Loafhosts runs the LPV5 panel inside LoafHub at hub.loafhosts.com. After checkout your tModLoader server deploys in about 60 seconds with no setup fees, so you can move straight to configuration.

1. Configure your Custom server, pick your region, and complete checkout at loafhosts.com
2. Open LoafHub at hub.loafhosts.com and log in
3. Select your new tModLoader server to open the LPV5 panel
4. Wait for the 60-second deploy to finish and the server to show a ready state
5. Open the Console tab so you can watch the first boot
6. Press Start and let the server download tModLoader and generate your first world

Tip: There are no setup fees, so the price you saw at checkout is the price you pay

Tip: Bookmark hub.loafhosts.com for quick access to the panel

Note: On first install, the server pulls the tModLoader release straight from the official tModLoader GitHub releases, not from SteamCMD, so no Steam credentials are needed for the install step itself

Setting Up Your World on the Startup Tab

Before you first start the server, the Startup tab is where you set the handful of variables that shape the world tModLoader will generate. These are read once, at server startup, and passed straight into the launch command.

Warning: The server always passes -autocreate on startup. If no world file matching World Name already exists on disk, the server generates a brand-new world under that name every time it boots, rather than failing or waiting. Once your world exists, do not change World Name unless you actually want to start over; a mismatched name silently creates a second, empty world instead of loading your existing one.

Note: Max Players is locked to 8 by default and is not a field you can raise yourself in the panel; if you need a higher cap, contact support

Tip: Pin tModLoader Version to an exact release tag instead of latest once your world and mods are set up. latest re-resolves to whatever is newest on every reinstall, which can jump you across the old native-binary releases (tagged v0.*, Terraria 1.3-era) and the modern .NET releases, breaking mod compatibility on a reinstall you didn’t expect to change anything

First Boot

With your Startup tab settings saved, press Start and watch the console. The server downloads the tModLoader release matching your chosen Version, unpacks it, and (because -autocreate is always passed) generates a new world named after World Name at the size and difficulty you chose, since no world with that name exists yet. World files are written under ~/saves/Worlds/<World Name>.wld on the server. Once you see the console settle and print its ready message, the server is live and waiting for players.

Tip: First boot on a large world size takes noticeably longer than small or medium; give it a few minutes before assuming something is wrong

Note: Two Docker images back this egg, one for modern .NET-based tModLoader releases and one for the legacy native-binary v0.* releases; LoafHosts picks the correct one to match your chosen Version automatically

Tuning serverconfig.txt with the Config Editor

tModLoader also reads a serverconfig.txt file for a handful of server-side settings that are not covered by the Startup tab variables above, things like whether secure/anti-cheat mode is on, how aggressively distant NPCs stream to clients, OS process priority, and automatic UPnP port forwarding. LoafHosts includes a BETA Config Editor for this file so you do not have to hand-edit a key-value text file over SFTP.

1. Open your tModLoader server in the panel
2. Open the Config Editor from the Game section of the sidebar
3. Adjust settings across the World, Server, and Network groups, or apply one of the two presets
4. Save, then restart the server to apply your changes

The full breakdown of every field, both presets, and the locked settings lives in the dedicated tModLoader Config Editor guide. In short: World Name, Max Players, Server Password, MOTD, Language, and World Size are all managed from the Startup tab and passed in on the command line, so they override anything written in the file, which is why the Config Editor keeps its scope to the settings that are actually read from serverconfig.txt. The server port and password are shown locked in the editor as a safety net either way.

Note: The Config Editor is a BETA feature

Console Commands and Admin Actions

tModLoader and Terraria have no built-in RCON protocol, so there is no separate RCON port or RCON password to configure, and no external RCON client will work against this game. Every admin action, from kicking a player to saving the world early to adjusting time, is issued the same way: typed directly into the live console in the panel’s Console tab, the same interface you used to watch the first boot. The server’s stop command is the plain console line exit, which lets tModLoader save the world cleanly before it shuts down; always prefer a normal Stop from the panel over a hard kill so the world save is not put at risk.

Note: There is no RCON for tModLoader; all commands go through the live console, not a separate protocol

Tip: Use exit (or the panel’s Stop button, which sends it for you) rather than a force-kill, to avoid corrupting an in-progress world save

Installing Mods

Mods in tModLoader are .tmod files, and this egg has no Steam Workshop or mod.io integration built in, tModLoader itself does its own mod browsing from inside the game client, not from the dedicated server. To add mods to your hosted server:

1. Open the File Manager for your tModLoader server in the panel
2. Navigate to the mods/ directory (the server’s -modpath)
3. Upload the .tmod files for the mods you want, either files you downloaded from the in-game Mod Browser on your own client, or files a mod’s page provides directly
4. Restart the server so it loads the new mods

Warning: Every player who wants to join a modded server must have the same mods installed on their own client, via the in-game Mod Browser or by matching .tmod files, or they will fail to connect or see errors

Tip: Keep a copy of your exact mod list and versions somewhere your players can reference, since tModLoader does not push mods to clients automatically the way some other games’ Workshop integrations do

Connecting and Going Live

Once the console shows the server ready, hand out your connection details.

1. Copy the server IP and port from the panel
2. In Terraria, choose Multiplayer, then Join via IP, and enter the address and port
3. Have one player connect and confirm the world, difficulty, and any mods match what you expect
4. Share the IP, port, and any server password with your group

Tip: If you are running mods, remind the first connecting player to install the matching mod list before they try to join

Keeping the Server Healthy

A tModLoader server runs best with a little routine maintenance: scheduled restarts to clear memory after long sessions, backups before you add or update mods, and an eye on the console after every boot for mod-loading errors. The LPV5 panel includes scheduling and backup tools so this can be mostly hands-off.

Tip: Take a backup before adding mods, changing your mod versions, or touching World Name

Tip: Schedule a restart during a quiet hour if your group plays for long, multi-hour sessions

Note: Loafhosts offers a 3-day money-back guarantee on game servers if the host is not the right fit

Frequently Asked Questions

How much does tModLoader server hosting cost?

The Custom server starts at $13.50/mo, and you scale the price by sliding RAM and storage to fit your server. Longer billing cycles save up to 25%, and there are no setup fees.

Do I need to own Terraria to run a tModLoader server?

Yes. tModLoader is a free framework, but it is built on top of Terraria, so the server (and every connecting player) needs to own base Terraria on Steam.

Why did my world reset when I restarted the server?

The server always passes -autocreate, so if the World Name on the Startup tab does not exactly match an existing world file, it generates a brand-new world instead of loading the old one. Do not change World Name after your world exists unless you specifically want to start over, and double-check the spelling matches exactly.

Does tModLoader support RCON?

No. Neither Terraria nor tModLoader has a built-in RCON protocol. All admin commands are issued through the live console in the panel, and the server’s own stop command is exit.

How do I install mods on my tModLoader server?

Upload the .tmod files for the mods you want into the server’s mods/ directory using the panel’s File Manager, then restart the server. There is no in-panel mod browser or Steam Workshop integration for this game; mods come from tModLoader’s in-game Mod Browser on your own client or from a mod’s own download page.

Why is my player cap stuck at 8?

Max Players ships locked at 8 by default on this egg. It is not a self-serve field in the panel; contact support if your group needs a higher cap.

Can I change the world difficulty after the world already exists?

Difficulty only takes effect when a world is auto-created. Changing it in the Config Editor after your world already exists will not retroactively change that world’s difficulty; it only applies the next time the server generates a brand-new world.

Can I get a refund if tModLoader hosting is not for me?

Yes. Loafhosts offers a 3-day money-back guarantee on game servers, so you can try tModLoader hosting and request a refund within that 72-hour window if it is not the right fit.