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Getting Started

Welcome! This guide will help you set up r2modman so you can begin downloading and using Hell2Modding (also known as h2m) mods from Thunderstore.

Browsing available mods​

All available mods can be viewed in the Thunderstore Hades II community.

1. Remove old mods​

If you were not previously using mods from Nexus, skip to Step 2!
If you were using mods from Nexus, you will need to uninstall them before using r2modman.
How to clean up ModImporter mods

danger

Mods downloaded from Nexus Mods are NOT compatible with r2modman mods!

2. Install r2modman​

Download r2modman from Thunderstore, extract the archive, and run the installer.
r2modman on Thunderstore

3. Start r2modman​

  1. Start r2modman
  2. Search for Hades II and click Select Game
  3. Click Select profile to continue with the default profile
  4. Browse the Online mod section and download whatever you like
  5. Click Start modded in the top-left of the screen to start the game with your downloaded mods
  6. Have fun!

FAQ​

What if I want to use mods I found on Nexus Mods?​

Short answer - you can't use them if you plan on using r2modman.

Long answer - this guide is specifically for Hell2Modding mods, not ModImporter/Nexus Mods. Please be aware that many mod authors are no longer developing for ModImporter, and no longer post updates on Nexus Mods.

If you were using old format (ModImporter) mods from Nexus Mods, uninstall them before installing r2modman.

Why move away from ModImporter and Nexus Mods?​

ModImporter and Nexus Mods served the community well for the original Hades, and was quickly ported over to Hades II during the Technical Test. Unfortunately, ModImporter works by physically modifying the game scripts on your computer. With enough mods, this could put your game installation into an unstable state. There were also a lot of manual steps, like having to navigate into your game directory to drop files in there. It was an error-prone, manual process.

What's the deal with Hell2Modding?​

The new h2m framework has significant benefits over ModImporter. It does not need to touch your game installation files. Additionally, with r2modman there is no need for any manual installation steps. Installing mods with r2modman/h2m is a much more user-friendly, seamless process. It's also convenient for mod developers, as they can publish directly to Thunderstore from GitHub.

What if I don't want to use r2modman?​

This is not recommended, as manual installation of h2m and its mods is not a straightforward process.

Are there launch arguments for Steam to start the game modded by default?​

Yes. You can see the launch arguments r2modman provides for your current profile on the Help page, which is under the Settings. If you add these to your Steam launch arguments for Hades II, using Play in Steam will start the game modded instead of Vanilla. Please still regularly check r2modman for any mod updates and fixes. Whenever Hell2Modding gets an update, you also need to start the game at least once through Start modded in r2modman, to properly install the update.

I own Hades II on Epic Games and mods do not work when playing. What can I do?​

Many community members playing Hades II on Epic Games have reported that the following steps have resulted in mods working for them:

  1. Install r2modman as usual.
  2. Install your mods.
  3. In the Windows Explorer, navigate to %appdata%\r2modmanPlus-local\HadesII\profiles in the address bar at the top. This resolves to C:\Users\<username>\AppData\Roaming\r2modmanPlus-local\HadesII\profiles.
  4. Select your profile name. This is usually Default.
  5. Copy the content of this folder. It should contain a _state and ReturnOfModding folder, as well as a d3d12.dll and a mods.yaml file.
  6. Navigate to the Ship folder in the installation directory of Hades II. For Epic Games, this is likely C:\Program Files (x86)\Epic Games\Games\HadesII\Ship.
  7. Paste the copied content of the profile folder into the Ship directory.
  8. Use Start Modded in r2modman. A small console window should open alongside the game, and mods should be active when you load into the game.

Note that unless you relink the profile folder in AppData to the Ship folder, you will need to re-copy the contents after each mod update and whenever you install a new mod. If you have any further issues playing with mods, please create a post in #help-h2 in the Hades II Modding Discord.

How do I clean up old ModImporter mods?​

  1. Navigate to your Hades II/Content directory
  2. Delete the Mods directory
  3. Run modimporter.exe (or modimporter.py) one last time to clean up your files

What do I do if cleaning up ModImporter fails?​

If you're using Steam, validate your game files to revert to a clean state. Otherwise, you may need to reinstall.