Palworld: PalWorldSettings.ini explained (rates, death penalty, bases, backups) Print

Almost everything about how a Palworld server plays, from how fast eggs hatch to whether players drop their gear on death, lives in one file: PalWorldSettings.ini. This guide explains where the file is, how to edit it safely, and which settings are worth changing for a typical friends-and-community server.

Where the file lives

On a Linux dedicated server the file is at Pal/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/PalWorldSettings.ini inside the server folder (on Windows builds it is Pal/Saved/Config/WindowsServer/). The folder is only created after the server has started at least once, so if it is missing, start the server, wait for it to finish loading, then stop it and look again.

You will also see a file called DefaultPalWorldSettings.ini in the root of the server folder. That one is a template: editing it does nothing. If your PalWorldSettings.ini is empty or only contains the header line, copy the contents of the default file into it and edit the copy.

How to edit it safely

1. Stop the server. Palworld reads the file on startup and can overwrite changes made while it is running.
2. Open the file in the panel's file manager (or download it over SFTP).
3. All options sit on one long line inside OptionSettings=(...), separated by commas. Change values only; do not add line breaks inside the brackets and keep the quotes around text values such as ServerName="...".
4. Save, start the server, and check the server name and settings in-game. If the server ignores your changes, a typo somewhere on the line usually caused Palworld to fall back to defaults.

Server identity and access

• ServerName and ServerDescription: what players see in the community server list.
• ServerPassword: leave empty for a public server or set a password for a private one.
• AdminPassword: required for in-game admin commands (/AdminPassword yourpassword in chat), RCON and the REST API. Always set this to something long; it is the only thing standing between a random player and your server's kick and shutdown commands.
• ServerPlayerMaxNum: the player cap. Keep it at or below the slot count of your plan.
• PublicPort and PublicIP: only used for the community server list entry. They do not change which port the server listens on, so leave them matching the address players actually connect to.
• CrossplayPlatforms: which platforms may join (Steam, Xbox, PS5, Mac by default). Trim this list only if you want a PC-only server.
• bShowPlayerList=True shows the player list in the ESC menu, handy for public servers. bIsShowJoinLeftMessage prints join and leave messages in chat.

Difficulty and rates

These multipliers default to 1.000000, meaning normal rates. Values above 1 make things faster or more generous; below 1 makes them slower.

• ExpRate: experience gain. 2.0 is a comfortable "we only play on weekends" rate.
• PalCaptureRate: capture chance multiplier. 1.5 noticeably cuts the number of spheres thrown at stubborn Pals.
• PalSpawnNumRate: how many wild Pals spawn. Higher values cost server CPU, so raise it gradually.
• DayTimeSpeedRate and NightTimeSpeedRate: speed of the day and night cycle. Many servers set night to 2.0 so nights pass faster.
• PalEggDefaultHatchingTime: hours for a Huge Egg to hatch (smaller eggs scale down from this). 72 is the default; 10 or lower suits most community servers.
• CollectionDropRate and EnemyDropItemRate: how much you get from gathering and from defeated enemies.
• WorkSpeedRate: how fast base Pals work.
• ItemWeightRate and EquipmentDurabilityDamageRate: carry-weight scaling and how quickly gear wears out.
• PlayerDamageRateAttack, PlayerDamageRateDefense, PalDamageRateAttack, PalDamageRateDefense: damage dealt and taken by players and Pals, useful for tuning a server that feels too easy or too punishing without touching everything else.

Death, PvP and raids

• DeathPenalty: None, Item (drop inventory but keep equipment), ItemAndEquipment, or All (also drops Pals in your party). Item is the usual choice for a co-op server.
• bIsPvP: enables player-versus-player damage. Keep it False unless the server is built around PvP.
• bHardcore disables respawning entirely and bPalLost makes Pals that die stay dead. Both are permanent decisions for a world, so agree on them before launch.
• bEnableInvaderEnemy: base raids. Turn this off if raids keep wrecking a newcomer's first base, or if the base sits on a cliff where raiders path badly.
• bEnableFastTravel and bEnableFastTravelOnlyBaseCamp: fast travel everywhere, or only between your own bases.

Guilds and bases

• GuildPlayerMaxNum: maximum members per guild (20 by default).
• BaseCampMaxNumInGuild: bases per guild, default 4, maximum 10.
• BaseCampWorkerMaxNum: Pals working at each base, up to 50. This is the single biggest lever on server performance: 50 Pals in several bases will slow a busy server down. 15 to 20 is a sensible ceiling for a community server.
• BaseCampMaxNum: total bases across the whole server.
• bAutoResetGuildNoOnlinePlayers and AutoResetGuildTimeNoOnlinePlayers: automatically remove the structures and base Pals of guilds that have been offline for the set number of hours. Useful on public servers to clear abandoned bases.

Saving, backups and limits

• AutoSaveSpan: seconds between autosaves (default 30). Leave it alone unless you see save stutter.
• bIsUseBackupSaveData=True keeps rolling backups in a backup folder next to the save. It costs disk I/O, but having it on is cheap insurance against a corrupted world.
• MaxBuildingLimitNum: per-player building cap; 0 means unlimited.
• ServerReplicatePawnCullDistance: how far from a player Pals are synced, in centimetres (5000 to 15000). Lowering it helps a crowded server.
• ChatPostLimitPerMinute: anti-spam limit for chat.

A sensible starting point for a friends server

If you want a server that respects everyone's time without feeling trivial, this combination works well: ExpRate=1.5, PalCaptureRate=1.5, NightTimeSpeedRate=2.0, PalEggDefaultHatchingTime=10.0, DeathPenalty=Item, bEnableInvaderEnemy=False, BaseCampWorkerMaxNum=20, bIsUseBackupSaveData=True, plus a strong AdminPassword. Change one or two values at a time and ask your players how it feels after a session; most "the server is too grindy" complaints are fixed by hatching time and capture rate alone.

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