Publish Mod

---
name: publish-mod
description: Package, lint, and release game modifications
---

# Publish a mod

## 1. Lint
```bash
um publish check ./MyMod --game "<game install folder>"
```
- **FAIL:** files byte-identical to game files, leaked keys (fal/Anthropic/OpenAI/GitHub/AWS), `.env` files.
- **WARN:** decompiler fingerprints in source (`FUN_`/`DAT_`/`sub_` names, "Decompiled with" headers), large
  engine archives, absolute user paths, a missing README, fal assets without credit.

Fix every FAIL. Resolve each WARN deliberately. For example, AoE2 data mods do ship a modified `.dat`, which
is the platform's norm.

## 2. Package the way the platform expects

| Platform / loader | Package |
|---|---|
| tModLoader | Build → `.tmod`; publish from the in-game Mod Sources menu (Steam Workshop) |
| BepInEx / Thunderstore | zip with `manifest.json`, `icon.png` (256×256), `README.md`, `plugins/<Mod>.dll`; dependency strings like `BepInEx-BepInExPack-5.4.2100` |
| Nexus Mods | zip laid out as it installs (`Data/...` for Bethesda, `BepInEx/plugins/...`, `ue4ss/Mods/...`, `~mods/*.pak`) |
| AoE2 DE | the official mod site (ageofempires.com/mods) or the in-game uploader; data mods include `resources/_common/dat/...` |
| Steam Workshop | the game's own uploader or SDK tool |
| Minecraft | Modrinth / CurseForge jar with `fabric.mod.json` / `neoforge.mods.toml` |
| ROM hacks / GameMaker | patches only (BPS/IPS/xdelta), never the modified game file |

A Nexus mod with options gets a FOMOD installer: see the
[FOMOD tutorial](https://fomod-docs.readthedocs.io/en/latest/tutorial.html) and
[STEP's FOMOD guide](https://stepmodifications.org/wiki/Guide:FOMOD). Nexus Mods' own
[modding wiki](https://modding.wiki/en/home) covers the rest of their site's conventions.

## 3. README (in the zip and on the page)
- What it adds: bullets, a GIF or the showcase video.
- Requirements: game version, the loader and its version, dependencies.
- Install, uninstall and troubleshooting (where the log is).
- Compatibility: multiplayer? Known conflicts?
- Credits:
  - the loader and libraries;
  - references you learned from;
  - **"Art/audio generated with fal (fal.ai) using <models>"** (`fal_manifest.jsonl` lists them);
  - honest AI disclosure (which agent and model built it).
- License for your code (MIT/Apache is common). Your assets' terms follow the models' licenses.

## 4. Version and changelog
Use semver in the manifest/build file, name the supported game version, and keep a changelog. When the game
updates, re-run the in-game test scene before bumping.

## 5. The post
- Lead with the video: the showcase-video skill; 20-45 s, gameplay within 2-3 s.
- Post text: the hook, what it is, the "how" credit (which agent + fal built it), a link.
- If the video uses anyone else's footage, credit them by handle and ask first.
- Publishing is always the user's call. Draft it, show them, and let them press the button.