Update! You don't actually have to repack your modded files back into Moonring.exe to use them!

As mentioned in the guide for running Moonring natively under GNU/Linux, Moonring.exe is a Zip archive. Using an archiver such as 7zip, modding is a mere matter of dragging and dropping whatever files you wish to modify out of and back into Moonring.exe.

Put the modified files (including their folder structure) where Moonring keeps your save file, too. That's C:\users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\moonring.

Here's a simple one - a mere string added to the credits, as found in state_title_screen.lua.





You can add your favourite tracker music from the 80s and 90s, too! While the music folder within Moonring.exe consists only of .xm and .it files, whatever tracker library Moonring uses can also digest old-school .mod files. Probably .s3m, too.

In this test I have dropped populous.mod into the music folder and added it to the tracklist in global.lua. As the comment above the music file list states, the first file listed is used for the theme (as in, the title screen).



And what can I say, it works! Can't screenshot that, though. You'll just have to believe me.

Have Steam verify your installation.

Delete any modified files from C:\users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\moonring. Be careful not to delete your save files in the process!

For easier mod management, once there are several you might want to try out, set up JSGME.

...just some thoughts on how modding could be better, in case the developer stumbles over this guide. I understand that dealing with something like Steam Workshop might be too much of a distraction, when you're still well occupied with hunting bugs and adding more content.

One fairly easy thing (afaik) that could make modding a lot more accessible would be to allow loading external files, giving them preference over original ones. Thus, users wouldn't have to drop mods into Moonring.exe to install them. With an already existing tool such as JSGME (look it up, if you've never heard of it) adding and removing mods, while being in full control of their load order, would be a breeze.

To answer the question on the modability of Moonring, encountered here and there on Steam, Reddit etc.: Since Moonring loads not only your save game from C:\users\[username]\AppData\Roaming\moonring, but any folders and game files as found within Moonring.exe, one can safely say: Moonring is actually modable!


Anyway So, feel free to start working on your sci-fi total conversion, kids!