Windrose Server Settings Explained: ServerDescription and World Files

Where the Windrose server settings files are

Both files are plain JSON, so any text editor works. Their locations in the official guide:

Neither file exists until the server has run once. Start it, stop it, then edit. The save folder name (RocksDB_v2, previously RocksDB) changed with update 0.10.0.5.120, so if you find older guides pointing at a different folder, trust the folder that actually exists on your server.

ServerDescription.json: every key

This is the key list from the official guide's example file. The values shown are the guide's examples, not guaranteed defaults.

In the official example file these keys sit inside a ServerDescription_Persistent object, next to top-level Version and DeploymentId fields that the guide does not explain. Leave those alone.

The player cap deserves a note. The guide does not state a hard maximum for MaxPlayerCount. The Steam page says the game supports up to 8 players and that parties of 4 give the best experience, so treat 8 as the practical ceiling and 4 as the comfortable number, and check the current patch notes before going higher.

Setting a password the right way

A password needs two edits that must agree. Put the password in Password and set IsPasswordProtected to true. To remove the password, empty the field and set the flag back to false. The official guide is explicit that the flag must match whether the field is empty.

"IsPasswordProtected": true,
"Password": "your-password-here",
"ServerName": "Our Crew",
"MaxPlayerCount": 4,

The password is an extra requirement on top of the invite code, so players need both.

World difficulty: presets in WorldDescription.json

Each world file has a WorldPresetType of Easy, Medium or Hard, plus a WorldSettings block that is empty for presets and filled in for a Custom world. The preset values in the guide:

All three presets use Coop.StatsCorrectionModifier of 1 and Coop.ShipStatsCorrectionModifier of 0. The guide notes that custom values force the type to "Custom" on the next launch, so do not expect to nudge one number and still be labelled Medium.

Custom world parameters and their ranges

A Custom world stores its values as tags. The full tag is WDS.Parameter.<name>, and the JSON key is that tag wrapped in a small JSON string, as the guide's Medium example shows. Booleans go under BoolParameters, numbers under FloatParameters, and combat difficulty under TagParameters.

"FloatParameters": {
  "{\"TagName\": \"WDS.Parameter.MobHealthMultiplier\"}": 1.5
}

Applying a world change and switching worlds

1. Stop the server

   Close the console window or end the process so nothing is writing to the save.

2. Edit WorldDescription.json

   Change the preset or the custom parameters for the world you want.

3. Run the updater

   From a Command Prompt in the server root, run the command below with the path to that world's file, then start the server.

   Copy

   R5WorldDescriptionUpdater.exe <path_to_world>\WorldDescription.json

To load a different world, change WorldIslandId in ServerDescription.json to that world's ID and restart. The ID must match the world's IslandId and its folder name. Do not rename world folders, because the save database relies on those IDs.

Frequently asked questions