Configure Don’t Starve Together world generation by editing worldgenoverride.lua in every shard directory, enabling the override, selecting a preset, and adding only the settings your current game build supports. A surface world uses Master/worldgenoverride.lua; caves use Caves/worldgenoverride.lua. Stop the server, back up both shards, and regenerate the world after saving your changes because an existing save is not rebuilt automatically.
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What controls world generation
The normal administrator-facing file is worldgenoverride.lua. A dedicated server normally has one copy for each shard: Master/ for the surface and Caves/ for the underground world. A community guide checked against build 747465 describes this layout, but the exact directory structure can vary with the host panel and game build, so confirm the folders on your installation.
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If leveldataoverride.lua is also present in the same shard, the Don’t Starve Wiki’s dedicated-server guide says that file takes precedence over worldgenoverride.lua. This is the most common reason an apparently correct edit appears to do nothing. Older Klei forum posts describe copying a client-generated leveldataoverride.lua and using it instead; that advice predates more recent administrator guidance. Treat the two files as alternatives, not as two independent layers you can safely combine.
Prepare the server before editing
Stop every shard
Shut down the server cleanly before changing configuration or moving saves. Do not edit while the process is writing world data. If your host uses a control panel, use its stop button; on a manually managed installation, stop the dedicated-server process using the method you normally use to launch it.
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Make a dated backup
Copy the entire cluster, including both shard directories and configuration files, to a separate location. At minimum, preserve Master/save/, Caves/save/, both override files, cluster.ini, cluster_token.txt, and your administrator and allow/block lists. Regeneration is destructive: moving the wrong save directory can make the old world appear to be gone, and deleting it permanently removes the rollback option.
Record the running build
Preset names and available keys are not guaranteed to remain identical between game updates. Keep the server and client on the same supported version, and verify examples against the files shipped with that build. The preset list below is assembled from community documentation, not a current official Klei reference, so do not assume that every name is accepted by your installation.
Understand the override file
worldgenoverride.lua is a Lua table. The important top-level keys are:
| Key | Purpose | Important qualification |
|---|---|---|
override_enabled |
Master switch for this file. | When it is false, the file can be read but its settings are not applied. |
worldgen_preset |
Selects the map-generation preset. | Use a value that exists in the current build. |
settings_preset |
Selects the world-rules preset. | Availability and spelling can change between builds. |
preset |
Legacy combined preset key. | Older configurations may use it for both generation and rules; avoid mixing it with newer keys unless your build expects that format. |
overrides |
Table of individual settings layered over the selected preset. | Only add setting names and values exposed by your current game files or a client-generated configuration. |
Lua syntax matters. Keep the outer braces, use commas between entries, quote string values, and do not paste JSON syntax into the file. A malformed file may be ignored or prevent the shard from starting, depending on the build and launcher.
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Build a surface-world configuration
Create or edit Master/worldgenoverride.lua. A minimal structure looks like this:
return {
override_enabled = true,
worldgen_preset = 'SURVIVAL_TOGETHER',
settings_preset = 'SURVIVAL_TOGETHER',
overrides = {
-- Add supported individual settings here.
},
}The example uses a preset name listed by the Don’t Starve Wiki. It is an illustration of the file shape, not a guarantee that the name is valid in every release. If your build uses a combined legacy preset, its file may instead contain preset = '...'; do not blindly include both forms.
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Adding individual settings
Place per-setting changes inside overrides, for example:
overrides = {
-- setting_name = 'value',
}No current, complete list of individual setting keys or accepted values is established in the available documentation. Rather than guessing names from an old tutorial, generate a world with the desired options in the game client and inspect the resulting file, or copy the setting names from the version-matched configuration shipped with your server. Preserve the exact capitalization and value type. A quoted value, number, and Boolean are not interchangeable.
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Configure the caves shard separately
The underground world is a separate shard and needs its own override file. Edit Caves/worldgenoverride.lua rather than assuming the Master file is inherited:
return {
override_enabled = true,
worldgen_preset = 'DST_CAVE',
settings_preset = 'DST_CAVE',
overrides = {
-- Add only cave settings supported by this build.
},
}DST_CAVE is one of the cave-oriented names listed in community documentation. Other listed cave presets include DST_CAVE_PLUS and TERRARIA_CAVE. Confirm the spelling in your current build before restarting. If you want the surface and caves to use different rules, that is expected: each shard reads its own file and is generated independently.
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Sources disagree about the complete preset inventory. The Don’t Starve Wiki lists the following names:
SURVIVAL_TOGETHERMOD_MISSINGSURVIVAL_TOGETHER_CLASSICSURVIVAL_DEFAULT_PLUSCOMPLETE_DARKNESSTERRARIADST_CAVEDST_CAVE_PLUSTERRARIA_CAVE
A separate third-party documentation page presents a similar but not identical set and omits newer playstyle names. An older Klei forum post mentions RELAXED, ENDLESS, WILDERNESS, and LIGHTS_OUT, but those names were not verified against current game files. Do not select a name merely because it appears in an old forum comment.
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The safest way to verify a name
- Start the matching Don’t Starve Together client and choose the Host-server workflow.
- Create or edit a world using the options you want.
- Let the client generate the world, then stop it cleanly.
- Inspect the generated override data and copy the version-matched file to the corresponding dedicated-server shard.
- Check that the file points to the intended shard and does not contain obsolete settings from a different game version.
The Wiki recommends this client-host method because the game writes valid key names and values for the installed build. It also explains why a client-generated leveldataoverride.lua may be more reliable than hand-typing a long list of overrides.
Decide between worldgenoverride.lua and leveldataoverride.lua
| Question | worldgenoverride.lua |
leveldataoverride.lua |
|---|---|---|
| Typical origin | Hand-edited by a server administrator. | Generated by the client after configuring a hosted world. |
| When both exist | Ignored in favor of leveldataoverride.lua, according to the Wiki guide. |
Takes precedence. |
| Best use | Small, deliberate server-side changes with documented keys. | Transferring a complete, version-matched client configuration. |
| Main risk | Typos, obsolete keys, or a forgotten override_enabled switch. |
Accidentally carrying client-specific or old-world settings into a different server build. |
If you choose the hand-edited route, remove or rename a conflicting leveldataoverride.lua only after backing it up. If you choose the client-generated route, keep a copy of the original file and make sure the generated file belongs to the same game version as the dedicated server.
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World-generation settings are consumed when a world is created. Starting an existing save does not rebuild its map, biomes, or rules from a newly edited override file.
- Stop the server and back up the cluster.
- Edit the correct file in
Master/and, if needed, the separate file inCaves/. - Check that
override_enabled = trueand that no higher-precedenceleveldataoverride.luais contradicting the file you edited. - Validate the Lua structure: matching braces, commas between entries, quoted strings, and no JSON brackets or comments copied into a value.
- Move the existing
Master/save/andCaves/save/directories outside the cluster as a rollback backup. Delete them only when you are certain the old world is no longer needed. - Start the server and allow both shards to generate. The first launch can take longer because the saves no longer exist.
- Join the world and confirm the generated map and rules before deleting your backup.
Some older forum discussions mention the console command c_regenerateworld() as an alternative after editing. Its behavior was not verified for current builds, so treat it as an experimental, version-dependent option rather than a standard production procedure. The supported, predictable workflow is to back up and move the shard save folders, then let the server generate fresh saves.
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Troubleshoot a configuration that appears ignored
The old world loads unchanged
The server is probably opening an existing save. Stop it, verify that you edited the shard actually being launched, and move the relevant save/ directory out of the cluster. World-generation settings do not retroactively alter an existing map.
Changing worldgenoverride.lua has no effect
Look for leveldataoverride.lua in the same shard. According to the Wiki guide, it wins when both files are present. Back it up, then either edit that generated file or remove it so the hand-edited file can be read.
The server starts but the selected preset is not used
Check the Boolean spelling and capitalization of override_enabled, then verify that the preset name exists in the current build. Names reported in older posts, including playstyle names such as ENDLESS or LIGHTS_OUT, may no longer be accepted. A client-generated file from the same version is the least ambiguous reference.
The shard fails to start after an edit
Restore the backup and compare the edited file character by character. Common causes are a missing comma, unmatched brace, invalid quote, or an override value of the wrong type. Remove newly added entries one at a time until the shard launches, then reintroduce only keys confirmed by the current build.
Surface settings work but caves do not
Each shard has its own file and save directory. Confirm that Caves/worldgenoverride.lua exists, uses a cave-compatible preset, and that Caves/save/ was regenerated. Editing only the Master file cannot change an already generated cave world.
What cluster.ini does—and does not establish
The standard cluster file tree places cluster.ini beside cluster_token.txt, adminlist.txt, whitelist.txt, and blocklist.txt. The dedicated-server world-generation guidance discussed here assigns the generation overrides to the two shard files, not to cluster.ini. Its role in selecting map presets is therefore not established by the available documentation. Do not move world-generation keys into cluster.ini unless the configuration format for your exact build explicitly documents them there.
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- Server stopped before editing.
- Complete cluster backup stored outside the live directory.
- Correct shard identified:
Master/for surface,Caves/for underground. - Only one intended override source active, with any competing
leveldataoverride.luabacked up. override_enabledset totrue.- Preset names checked against the current client or server build.
- Lua syntax checked before launch.
- Old
save/folders moved or deleted only after backup. - Freshly generated surface and cave worlds tested in game.
Because current official documentation does not provide a stable, published preset list for every release, keep the generated files and your build number with the backup. That record makes future updates and rollbacks much safer than relying on a tutorial written for an earlier version.
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