Content Warning Mod SDK

Start here — video tutorial

Watch this first. The tutorial walks through everything in this SDK and how to get started modding Content Warning end to end:

YouTube — Full Content Warning modding tutorial

It covers setup, Unity, asset bundles, building, local testing, and publishing to Steam Workshop. The rest of this README is a written reference you can come back to while you work.

---

Platform: Windows only. This SDK and tutorial do not support Linux or macOS.

Game version: latest Steam build only.

Audience: beginners building Steam Workshop mods with a C# DLL, Unity asset bundles, and DbsContentApi. You do not need BepInEx to play or ship mods — BepInEx tooling here is only for publicizing game assemblies at compile time.

---

License

You may use, modify, and distribute this template however you want. No warranty — use at your own risk.

---

What you will ship

Every published mod is a Workshop item folder containing:

File	Purpose
YourMod.dll	C# plugin loaded by the game
example_mod (rename when you customize)	Asset bundle: item/mob prefabs, icons, etc.
example_scene (rename when you customize)	Asset bundle: your custom map scene

Players subscribe on Workshop. Everyone in a lobby who uses your mod (or any mod that registers maps/mobs/items) must also subscribe to DbsContentApi and load it before your mod in Content Warning's Workshop load order.

---

Before you start

Install or prepare:

1. Windows PC
2. Content Warning (Steam, up to date)
3. .NET SDK — to run dotnet build
4. PowerShell — all helper scripts are PowerShell on Windows
5. SteamCMD — to upload Workshop items
6. DbsContentApi — subscribe in Steam Workshop
7. Unity 6.x — for building asset bundles (any Unity 6 version is fine)
8. AssetRipper — to create a Unity project from the game (covered in the video above)

---

Get this template

You can download as ZIP, clone, or fork this repository. It is not a library you reference — it is your mod project.

Rename your mod (recommended early)

Change the example names so your Workshop item and DLL are unique:

Location	What to change
ExampleMod.csproj	<AssemblyName>, <Product>, <RootNamespace>
MyPluginInfo.cs	PLUGIN_GUID, PLUGIN_NAME, PLUGIN_VERSION
Logger.cs	Log prefix string
Namespace / folder	ExampleMod → your mod name (optional but tidy)
steam-build/mod.vdf	title, description, paths
Asset bundle names	example_mod / example_scene in Unity and in Modules/CustomContent.cs if you rename them

PLUGIN_GUID should be globally unique across the modding community (reverse-domain style, e.g. com.yourname.coolmod).

---

Step 1 — Install DbsContentApi (modders and players)

1. Open BD's content API on Steam Workshop.
2. Click Subscribe.
3. Launch Content Warning and let Workshop content download.
4. In the game's Workshop / mod load order, ensure DbsContentApi loads first, then your mod.

Modders: you need DbsContentApi installed for building (DLL reference) and running tests.

Players: anyone joining a lobby with mods that use DbsContentApi must have it subscribed.

Locate the installed API DLL (path varies by machine), typically under:

Steam/steamapps/workshop/content/2881650/<DbsContentApiWorkshopId>/

Point DbsContentApiDir in ExampleMod.csproj at the folder containing DbsContentApi.dll (do not copy the DLL into this repo).

Also set CWDir in ExampleMod.csproj to your game install, e.g.:

C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Content Warning

---

Step 2 — Configure config.json

1. Copy EXAMPLE.config.json → config.json (same folder as the .ps1 scripts).
2. Fill in every path for your machine.

config.json is gitignored on purpose — each developer keeps their own paths.

Key	Meaning
AssetBundlePath1	Full path to the example_scene bundle file after Unity build
AssetBundlePath2	Full path to the example_mod bundle file after Unity build
DebugDllPath	bin/Debug/netstandard2.1/YourMod.dll after dotnet build
ReleaseDllPath	bin/Release/netstandard2.1/YourMod.dll after dotnet build -c Release
WorkshopModFolder	Your mod's Workshop install folder (see First publish below)
SteamCmdPath	Path to steamcmd.exe
SteamUsername	Steam login name (not display name)

Bundle paths usually look like:

.../Assets/AssetBundles/example_scene and .../Assets/AssetBundles/example_mod

---

Step 3 — Unity content (UNITY_CWSDK)

Create the Unity project

1. Use AssetRipper on Content Warning to export a Unity project (see video above).
2. Open the project in Unity 6.
3. Copy the entire UNITY_CWSDK folder from this repo into your Unity project's Assets folder.
4. Copy UNITY_CWSDK/PUT_MY_CONTENT_IN_EDITOR_FOLDER/CreateAssetBundles.cs into Assets/Editor/ (create the folder if needed). This adds the menu Assets → Build AssetBundles.

Asset bundle layout (important)

Bundle name	Contains
example_mod	Item prefabs, mob prefabs, icons — anything that is not the map scene
example_scene	One custom map scene (e.g. TestScene)

Assign assets to these bundle names in the Unity Inspector (bottom Asset Labels).

MAP_PREFABS (in UNITY_CWSDK/MAP_PREFABS/) are mandatory for custom maps. Include the required prefabs in your map scene / bundle setup as shown in the template.

Example content under UNITY_CWSDK/EXAMPLES/ (map, mob, gun, item) is optional — use it as a starting point or ignore it and register your own prefabs later.

Build bundles

In Unity: Assets → Build AssetBundles. Output goes to Assets/AssetBundles/. Update config.json with the full paths to example_mod and example_scene.

Custom mobs (extra note)

If you author new monsters, you may need to edit RigCreator.cs in your Unity project — see UNITY_CWSDK/note.txt for the [ContextMenu("Generate Rig")] hint.

---

Step 4 — C# mod project

Entry point

ExampleMod.cs is discovered via [ContentWarningPlugin]. On load it can configure DbsContentApi flags and call CustomContent.Init().

DEBUG_MODE

ExampleMod.DEBUG_MODE is true in the template. Set it to false for release builds. You can branch your own code on this flag any way you like (extra logging, cheat shop prices, etc.).

Harmony (optional example)

Patches/HigherJumpingPatch.cs only shows how to patch game code with Harmony — higher jump for human players. Use it as inspiration; you do not have to ship any patches. Patches with [HarmonyPatch] are applied automatically when the assembly loads.

VANILLA_COMPATIBLE

In MyPluginInfo.cs, keep VANILLA_COMPATIBLE = false whenever you register a map, mob, or item. That content must exist on all clients, not host-only. Only set compatibility to true for mods that do not add synced custom entities (rare for this SDK).

Registering content (surface level)

Registration lives in Modules/CustomContent.cs:

• Map — load example_scene bundle, find scene path, Maps.RegisterMap(...).
• Mob — load prefab from example_mod, Mobs.RegisterMonster(...) with a MobSetupConfig.
• Items — load prefabs, add behaviours, Items.RegisterItem(...) with ItemConfig.

You can delete or comment out example registrations and only ship a map, or only items, etc. For deeper APIs, read DbsContentApi source or Workshop docs.

Reusing vanilla game assets (advanced, optional)

The example gun clones the Dog's laser projectile from Resources instead of authoring a new projectile prefab. That works but is a bit hacky — fine for learning, not ideal for every mod. Curious modders can trace CustomContent.cs and the DbsContentApi repo for production patterns.

---

Step 5 — Local testing (update.ps1)

Fast loop without uploading to Workshop for other players:

.\update.ps1

This script:

1. Runs dotnet build (Debug)
2. Copies your Debug DLL + both asset bundles into WorkshopModFolder from config.json

Requirements before it works:

• config.json exists and paths are correct
• You already published once (even a stub) and subscribed to your mod so WorkshopModFolder exists
• Asset bundles were built in Unity
• DbsContentApi is installed and loads first

Launch the game, enable your mod, and test. Repeat: edit code → update.ps1 → test in game.

---

Step 6 — First Workshop publish

Simplest path for beginners:

1. Edit steam-build/mod.vdf:

   • Set contentfolder to your steam-build\build folder (absolute path)
   • Set previewfile to steam-build\icon.png
   • Set title / description
   • Leave publishedfileid as "0" for the first upload
   • Set visibility — 0 = public, 1 = friends only, 2 = private (good for first tests)

2. Put one empty placeholder file inside steam-build\build\ (e.g. placeholder.txt). You are only creating the Workshop item ID, not shipping real content yet.

3. Run:

   .\publish_or_update_the_mod.ps1

   SteamCMD logs in (Steam Guard may prompt), uploads the item, and writes the new publishedfileid back into mod.vdf automatically.

4. Subscribe to your own mod in Steam Workshop.

5. Find the install folder, e.g.:

   Steam/steamapps/workshop/content/2881650/<YourPublishedFileId>/

   Put that path in config.json → WorkshopModFolder.

6. Build real content: Unity bundles + dotnet build, then use update.ps1 for local testing.

When ready for others to download your real build:

.\prepare_final_build.ps1   # Release build → copies DLL + bundles to steam-build\build
.\publish_or_update_the_mod.ps1

prepare_final_build.ps1 runs dotnet build -c Release and stages the Release DLL and both bundles into steam-build\build for upload.

Set DEBUG_MODE = false before a public release.

---

Workshop visibility reference

Value in mod.vdf	Meaning
0	Public
1	Friends only
2	Private

You can keep the mod private while iterating; switch to public when ready.

---

Project layout (quick reference)

CW_SDK/
├── ExampleMod.cs              # Plugin entry
├── MyPluginInfo.cs            # GUID, name, version, vanilla flag
├── Modules/CustomContent.cs   # Register maps / mobs / items
├── Modules/                   # Example item behaviours
├── Patches/                   # Example Harmony patch
├── ExampleMod.csproj          # Game + DbsContentApi references
├── EXAMPLE.config.json        # Copy → config.json
├── update.ps1                 # Local test: Debug build + copy to Workshop folder
├── prepare_final_build.ps1    # Stage Release build for upload
├── publish_or_update_the_mod.ps1
├── steam-build/
│   ├── mod.vdf
│   ├── icon.png
│   └── build/                 # Staged files for SteamCMD
└── UNITY_CWSDK/               # Copy into Unity Assets/

---

Troubleshooting

Config file not found

Copy EXAMPLE.config.json to config.json and fill in paths.

PowerShell script won't run

Execution policy may block scripts. In an elevated or user PowerShell session:

Set-ExecutionPolicy -Scope CurrentUser RemoteSigned

dotnet not found

Install the .NET SDK and reopen the terminal.

steamcmd.exe not found

Install SteamCMD and set SteamCmdPath in config.json.

Workshop mod folder not found

Publish once (even with a placeholder file), subscribe to your mod, then paste the real Workshop path into config.json.

Asset bundle not found

Build bundles in Unity (Assets → Build AssetBundles) and point AssetBundlePath1 / AssetBundlePath2 at the files on disk (no file extension).

DbsContentApi / build errors

Subscribe to the Workshop item, download content, and fix DbsContentApiDir in ExampleMod.csproj.

Mod does nothing in game

Confirm DbsContentApi is enabled and loads before your mod. Confirm you subscribed to your mod and ran update.ps1 or published a build containing the DLL and both bundles.

Friends can't join

If you register maps, mobs, or items, all players need your mod and DbsContentApi.

---

Links

• Content Warning on Steam
• BD's content API (DbsContentApi)
• SteamCMD documentation

Good luck — watch the video tutorial.