Modding

New Stars supports mods through the Steam Workshop. You can publish your own content packs and turn any mod you've subscribed to on or off from inside the game — no file copying, no restart. This page covers the two in-game panels: the Workshop Uploader (for publishing mods) and the Mod Manager (for enabling and disabling them).

What a content pack can contain

A content pack is a folder of files, sorted into named subfolders by type. Include whichever subfolders you need — empty or missing ones are skipped.

Subfolder	Contents	Where it appears in-game
Icons/	.png / .jpg empire icons	Empire icon picker on the empire creation screen
Portraits/	.png / .jpg species portraits	Species portrait picker on the empire creation screen
Presets/Empires/	.sav empire presets	Empire preset list, alongside the built-in presets
Presets/Maps/	.sav map presets	Map preset list, alongside the built-in presets

A typical pack root looks like:

My Pack/
  Icons/              empire icon images
  Portraits/          species portrait images
  Presets/
    Empires/          empire preset .sav files
    Maps/             map preset .sav files

Empire and map presets

To put a preset in a pack, save it in-game as you normally would, then copy its .sav file out of your local presets folder into the pack's Presets/Empires/ or Presets/Maps/ subfolder.

• Presets that arrive from a pack appear in the preset lists marked as Workshop content and are read-only — they can't be edited or deleted, only loaded. (Loading one copies it into your game, just like a built-in preset.)
• Empire presets keep their spawn-state toggle (Not spawnable / Spawnable / Always spawn), so a pack can ship empires that take part in galaxy generation.
• Enabling, disabling, subscribing, or unsubscribing a pack updates the preset lists immediately — no restart needed.
• An empire preset that references a custom icon or portrait you don't have installed falls back to a placeholder for that slot; the preset still loads.

Uploading a mod

Open the Workshop Uploader from the mods menu. The left sidebar lists every pack you already own, plus a New pack entry, so it's always clear whether you're creating a new mod or editing an existing one.

Placeholder — Workshop Uploader panel. Replace with screenshot of the upload screen.

To publish a new pack:

1. Click New pack in the sidebar. A blank draft opens, marked Draft · not published.
2. Enter a Title and Description.
3. Click Browse next to Content folder and select the folder containing your mod's files.
4. Click Browse next to Preview image and pick a .png or .jpg thumbnail.
5. Choose a Visibility: Private, Friends, or Public.
6. (Optional) Add a change note describing the update.
7. Click Publish New Pack. The progress bar tracks the upload; when it finishes, your draft becomes a published pack with its own Workshop ID.

To update a pack you already own, select it in the sidebar, change whatever you need, and click Publish Update.

Preview image requirements

Steam rejects uploads without a valid preview image, so the uploader checks yours before submitting. The image must:

• be a .png, .jpg, or .jpeg file (not a folder),
• be under 1 MB in size, and
• sit outside the content folder, so it isn't double-counted as mod content.

If any check fails, the status line explains what to fix and nothing is uploaded.

Notes

• A draft has no Workshop ID until its first successful upload. You can remove an unpublished draft with Delete draft. Already-published packs are owned by Steam and can only be removed from the Steam client.
• Only one upload runs at a time.
• If Steam isn't running, the uploader still lets you fill in a draft but can't publish until Steam is available.

Enabling and disabling mods

Open the Mod Manager from the mods menu. It lists every Workshop mod you're subscribed to — each row shows the mod's icon, title, description, and an on/off switch. The header summary reads, for example, 2 OF 5 ENABLED.

Placeholder — Mod Manager panel. Replace with screenshot of the subscribed-mods list.

• To enable or disable a mod, click its switch. The change is saved and applied immediately — there's no need to restart the game. Disabling a mod leaves your subscription intact; it just stops loading.
• The list refreshes every time you open the panel, so newly subscribed mods appear automatically.
• Press Esc or click the × to close.

To add mods to this list, subscribe to them on the Steam Workshop; they'll download in the background and show up the next time you open the Mod Manager. A mod still downloading appears with the note Not installed yet — Steam is still downloading this mod.

If you aren't subscribed to anything yet, the panel shows: You're not subscribed to any mods yet. Browse the Steam Workshop to subscribe.

Troubleshooting

Symptom	Cause / fix
"Steam isn't running"	Start Steam, then reopen the panel. Workshop features need the Steam client.
A subscribed mod is missing	It may still be downloading. Reopen the Mod Manager once Steam finishes.
Upload won't start	Check that the title, content folder, and a valid preview image are all set — the status line names the missing piece.
Preview rejected	Use a .png/.jpg under 1 MB, stored outside the content folder.
A pack's presets don't appear	Confirm the pack is enabled in the Mod Manager and that its presets sit in Presets/Empires/ or Presets/Maps/ as .sav files.