Best Mods for Your Vintage Story Server

Vintage Story’s modding community has built some genuinely impressive stuff. The official mod database hosts over 5,000 mods, but not all of them play nice with servers. Some popular single-player mods cause sync issues in multiplayer. Others look lightweight but hammer your server’s tick rate once you’ve got 5+ players online.

This guide focuses specifically on server-friendly mods - the ones that work well in multiplayer, won’t tank your performance, and enhance the experience for everyone connected. All mods listed here are compatible with Vintage Story 1.21.x and have been verified for multiplayer use.

What Makes a Good Server Mod?

Before diving into specific mods, here’s what separates server-ready mods from problematic ones:

Performance considerations matter more on servers than in single-player. A mod that adds 200 new entities might run fine solo, but with multiple players loading different chunks simultaneously, those entities stack up. Watch for mods that spawn lots of passive mobs or add complex tile entities - they’re often the culprits behind TPS drops.

Client-side vs server-side requirements can be confusing. Some mods only need to be installed on the server (players join and play normally). Others require both server and client installation. When players connect to a server with required mods, Vintage Story automatically prompts them to download what they need - but it helps to communicate your mod list beforehand so players aren’t surprised by a 5-minute download.

World generation mods need special attention. If a mod changes how terrain, structures, or ores generate, it must be installed before creating your world. Adding them later means new chunks will have the modded generation while existing chunks won’t, creating jarring borders and potentially corrupting the world, resulting in server crashes.

With that groundwork covered, here are the mods worth running on your server.

Essential Quality of Life Mods

Carry On

What it does: Lets players pick up and move filled storage containers, barrels, and certain blocks without emptying them first.

Why it matters for servers: Solves one of multiplayer’s biggest annoyances - having to coordinate moving a filled chest across your base. It also reduces accidental griefing since players can relocate misplaced containers instead of breaking them and spilling contents everywhere.

Technical details: Server-side mod with automatic client download. Adds minimal overhead since it only activates when players interact with movable objects.

Download: Carry On on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install carryon

Player Corpse

What it does: When you die, your items stay in a skeletal corpse at your death location instead of scattering everywhere. Adds a waypoint so you can find your way back.

Why it matters for servers: Death is frustrating enough without losing your gear to a crevasse or lava pool. This is especially valuable when someone dies during a temporal storm or in unexplored areas far from spawn. The waypoint system helps players recover without needing admin assistance.

Technical details: Requires Common Lib as a dependency. Lightweight performance impact - only creates corpse entities on death, which is relatively rare compared to constant mob spawning.

Download: Player Corpse on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install playercorpse

Auto Map Markers

What it does: Automatically places waypoints on your map when you interact with important objects like translocators, traders, beehives, and ore deposits.

Why it matters for servers: Coordination becomes much easier when everyone’s map automatically marks shared resources. No more asking in chat “Where was that copper vein again?” The server-wide markers help new players orient themselves without needing a guided tour.

Technical details: Can be installed server-side or client-side. Server installation means all players get the benefit automatically. Very light performance impact.

Download: Auto Map Markers on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install automapmarkers

Content Expansion Mods

Primitive Survival

What it does: The most downloaded Vintage Story mod for good reason. Adds fishing (with nets, traps, and poles), advanced trapping systems, irrigation, and dozens of other primitive-tech features that expand the early to mid game.

Why it matters for servers: Gives players more to do during the progression phase. The fishing and trapping systems work great for group projects - someone can focus on food production while others mine or build. Adds enough content to feel substantial without overwhelming new players.

Technical details: Server-side with required client download. Well-optimized despite adding significant content. Fish traps and irrigation can create additional tile entities, but the impact is reasonable unless someone builds hundreds of them.

Download: Primitive Survival on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install primitivesurvival

Expanded Foods 2.0 + A Culinary Artillery

What it does: These two mods work together to overhaul cooking. Expanded Foods adds new recipes and uses for existing ingredients. A Culinary Artillery provides the tools - cooking pots, knives, cutting boards, and more specialized equipment.

Why it matters for servers: Food becomes more interesting when there are actual choices beyond “which meat gives the most satiety.” The expanded cooking system creates opportunities for players to specialize - someone can run a kitchen while others focus on farming or hunting.

Technical details: Both are server-side mods. A Culinary Artillery is a dependency for Expanded Foods, so install them together. Mid-range performance impact - adds new items and recipes but doesn’t spawn entities or modify world generation.

Download: Expanded Foods | A Culinary Artillery - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install aculinaryartillery & /moddb install expandedfoods

Better Ruins

What it does: Adds over 200 new ruins and structures to world generation, both above and below ground. Ranges from small abandoned camps to massive underground complexes.

Why it matters for servers: Exploration becomes dramatically more rewarding. The structures aren’t just decorative - they contain loot and sometimes environmental storytelling. Great for servers that want more world content without adding mobs or changing core mechanics.

Technical details: World generation mod - must be installed before creating your world. Increases initial world generation time but has no runtime performance impact. Server-side only.

Performance note: If you’re running this on a server with limited RAM, the additional structures during world gen can push memory usage higher. For most servers (4GB+ RAM), this isn’t an issue.

Download: Better Ruins on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install betterruins

Multiplayer Enhancement Mods

Pet AI + Companion Mods

What it does: Pet AI is a framework mod that does nothing alone, but it powers several companion mods: Wolf Taming, Cat Taming, Fox Taming, and various Feverstone creature mods (Horses, Wilds). Install Pet AI plus whichever companion mods you want.

Why it matters for servers: Adds personality and utility to your world. Tamed wolves can help with hunting, horses provide faster travel, and cats are just nice to have around your base. The AI is well-designed - pets follow, defend, and can be commanded.

Technical details: Pet AI + companion mods are all server-side with required client downloads. Performance consideration: each tamed animal is an entity. If your server has 10 players each with 3 pets, that’s 30 additional entities. Monitor your entity count if people go overboard as it can lead to significant performance issues.

Downloads: Pet AI | Wolf Taming | Cats | Feverstone Horses

From Golden Combs

What it does: Expands beekeeping with ceramic hives and Langstroth hives that have configurable production rates and times. Makes beekeeping more engaging and gives you control over how much honey your server produces.

Why it matters for servers: Vanilla beekeeping is fairly basic. This mod adds depth without adding complexity - the new hives are intuitive but offer meaningful choices. The configurable production rates are especially useful for server balance. You can tune honey production to match your server’s economy.

Technical details: Server-side mod with client download required. Minimal performance impact. The hive entities are no more demanding than vanilla beehives.

Download: From Golden Combs on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install fromgoldencombs

Prospect Together

What it does: Shares prospecting data between players and displays it on everyone’s map. When someone prospects an area, all players see those results.

Why it matters for servers: Pure multiplayer utility. Eliminates duplicate prospecting work and helps coordinate mining operations. If your server has dedicated miners, they can prospect large areas and everyone benefits from that information.

Technical details: Server-side mod. Extremely lightweight - only updates map data when players prospect, which isn’t a frequent action.

Download: Prospect Together on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install prospecttogether

Building & Creative Mods

QP’s Chisel Tools

What it does: Adds specialized chiseling tools that make detailed building much faster. Includes tools for lines, planes, and other shapes that would take forever to chisel manually.

Why it matters for servers: Building-focused servers love this mod. It doesn’t change what’s possible with chiseling, just makes it practical to create complex designs without spending hours clicking. Great for servers with dedicated builders or community projects.

Technical details: Can work as client-side only (players who don’t have it simply can’t use the tools). Installing server-side makes the tools available to everyone. Negligible performance impact.

Download: QP’s Chisel Tools on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install chiseltools

Bricklayers

What it does: Massively expands the variety of clay, bricks, porcelain, glazings, colored glass, and luminous glass available. Adds hundreds of new block variants for building.

Why it matters for servers: Aesthetic variety for builders. The additional blocks don’t change gameplay but give creative players way more options for distinctive builds. Colored and luminous glass in particular are popular for decorative projects.

Technical details: Server-side with client download. Minor performance impact - adds blocks but not entities or complex mechanics. The main consideration is mod file size since there are so many texture variants.

Download: Bricklayers on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install bricklayers

Optional Gameplay Overhauls

These mods significantly change how Vintage Story plays. They’re excellent for themed servers or groups that want deeper systems, but discuss with your community before installing them since they alter core mechanics.

Combat Overhaul

What it does: Complete rework of combat mechanics. Adds accurate hit detection, a Bullseye aiming system where precision matters, weapon proficiencies, and specialized character progression for different combat styles.

Why it matters for servers: If vanilla combat feels too simple or PvP isn’t engaging enough, this mod transforms the system. The weapon proficiency system creates distinct combat roles - someone specializing in spears plays differently than someone focusing on bows.

Technical details: Requires Overhaul Lib as a dependency. Server-side with required client download. Performance impact is moderate - the new hit detection and progression systems add some overhead, but it’s well-optimized.

Important: This fundamentally changes combat. Make sure your players are on board before installing it.

Download: Combat Overhaul on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install combatoverhaul

XSkills

What it does: Adds an RPG-style skill and ability system. Players gain experience and level up in various skills, unlocking abilities as they progress.

Why it matters for servers: Creates long-term progression beyond the base game’s tech tree. Players develop specialized roles based on which skills they level. Works great on RPG-focused servers or for long-running worlds where players have exhausted vanilla progression.

Technical details: Requires XLib as a dependency. Server-side with client download required. Moderate performance impact since it tracks progression data for each player and adds new abilities.

Download: XSkills on VS ModDB | XLib - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install 247 & /moddb install 244

Medieval Expansion

What it does: Adds historically-themed content including weapons, armor, building materials, and decorative items. Focuses on medieval aesthetics while maintaining gameplay balance.

Why it matters for servers: Perfect for themed servers or communities that want a specific historical feel. The additions blend well with vanilla content while giving builders more period-appropriate options.

Technical details: Server-side with client download. Minor to moderate performance impact depending on how much of the content is actively used.

Download: Medieval Expansion on VS ModDB - install on your WinterNode server with /moddb install 280

Installing Mods on Your WinterNode Server

WinterNode makes mod installation straightforward with the /moddb install command. You can run this either from your server console or in-game if you have admin permissions.

Here’s the process:

1. Find the mod you want on the Vintage Story Mod Database
2. Note the exact mod name (it’s the mod name in the URL - for example, “carryon” for the Carry On mod)
3. Run /moddb install [modname] on your server
4. Restart your server to load the mod

For example, to install Primitive Survival:

/moddb install primitivesurvival

If the server doesn’t recognize the mod name or if there’s no mod name in the URL, you can specify the mod ID instead:

/moddb install 280

When your server restarts, the mod is active. Players joining will be automatically prompted to download any required client-side mods.

For more details, including bulk installation via SFTP, check out the WinterNode mod installation guide.

Performance Tips for Modded Servers

Start with minimal mods. Install 2-3 mods, play for a few days, and see how the server handles them before adding more. This approach makes it easier to identify problem mods if performance degrades.

Monitor your server’s TPS and MSPT after adding mods. Vintage Story shows these values when you press F3. TPS (ticks per second) should stay at 30. If it drops consistently below that, something is causing lag. MSPT (milliseconds per tick) should stay under 33ms. Higher values indicate processing bottlenecks.

Communicate your mod list to players before they join. While automatic downloads work well, it’s better if players know what to expect. Some people have data caps or slow connections and appreciate a heads-up about a 50MB mod download.

Back up your world before adding mods, especially content mods that add new items or change world generation. Most mods are safe to add mid-game, but having a backup lets you roll back if something breaks. WinterNode takes automated off-site backups in addition to local backups, but you may want to consider taking your own, up-to-date backup from right before you added mods.

Entity-heavy mods (anything that adds lots of animals, NPCs, or tile entities) are your main performance concern. WinterNode servers have solid hardware - NVMe SSDs and no CPU throttling - which handles modded servers well, but even good hardware has limits when you’re running 15 mods that each add 20 new mob types.

Finding More Mods

The Vintage Story Mod Database is your starting point. You can filter by category, sort by downloads or recent updates, and check compatibility with specific game versions.

When evaluating a mod for your server, check:

• Game version compatibility: Make sure it supports 1.21.x
• Server-side designation: The mod page usually specifies “server side” or “client side”
• Dependencies: Some mods require libraries or other mods to function
• Last updated date: Mods that haven’t been updated in over a year might have compatibility issues

The mod descriptions typically mention multiplayer compatibility and known issues. Reading the comments section often reveals problems other server owners have encountered.

WinterNode exists because we wanted game server hosting that didn’t nickel-and-dime people. All our Game Servers are priced at $1.99/GB of RAM - we don’t charge extra for CPU usage, storage space, or basic features other hosts mark up.

Everything’s backed by our 48-hour refund policy, so there’s no risk in trying out a modded Vintage Story server.

Got questions? Our support team responds to tickets with actual humans, and we’re active on Discord if you prefer chatting there. We also have a Vintage Story Help Center if you want to get into the details.