Mods for other frameworks

Kiln loads mods made for other Enshrouded mod frameworks without rewriting them. It supplies the runtimes listed below, with limits for each adapter. Server startup checks do not guarantee every mod or loader combination.

Introduced in dev.18 and expanded in dev.20, dev.21, dev.22 and dev.24. dev.22 is about mods that did not load: how the launcher takes them in, lists them and hands them to another loader. dev.24 makes mods of other loaders really run: EML mods next to ShroudForge mods, Flame mods from the game’s mods folder, and nothing a mod wrote deleted. Most of this has run on test servers. Where no player has seen it in the game yet, the table says untested in game.

Every framework

Framework	Its mods	What Kiln does	Status	What you do
EML (Enshrouded Mod Loader) 0.2.0	data mods: stats, stacks, recipes, new items	runs EML’s own code before the game starts. Installed by default	untested in game (works on test servers)	drop the mod in, or import it in the launcher. EML and ShroudForge
ShroudForge	Lua mods, with settings	ships ShroudForge’s runtime and runs it. Installed by default. Your own ShroudForge can be used instead	untested in game (works on test servers)	drop the mod in, or import it. EML and ShroudForge
EMF 0.3.3 through 0.6.0 / API v27	DLL and Lua mods, server tools, commands	gives EMF mods EMF’s API on Kiln. Installed by default	77 full / 13 partial C slots; client checks remain	drop the mod in, or import it, then switch it on. EMF mods
SET (Shrouded Engine Tweaks) 0.1.1	Lua mods with windows and tweaks	runs SET’s Lua API on Kiln, also on dedicated servers	server probe 39/0; API and client limits remain	drop the mod in, or import it. More frameworks
Greeneye Loader 1.2.2	client mods: The Worst Map Mod, Find, Quick Deposit, Town Portals	gives them Greeneye’s whole API. Works on Linux too	untested in game	drop the mod in, or import it. More frameworks
Flame	Creative Mode	starts Creative Mode without its loader, from the game’s mods folder	untested in game	drop the mod in, or import it. More frameworks
Shroudtopia 0.1.1 and 1.0	minimaps, first-person view, older tweaks	gives them Shroudtopia’s whole API	untested in game. Shroudweave’s mods: untried	drop the mod in, or import it. More frameworks
Enshwick 1.0.0-alpha.14	DLL, Luau and data-pack mods	runs Enshwick’s own loader. Kiln ships it, so you don’t need Enshwick	untested in game (works on test servers)	drop the mod in, or import it. More frameworks
shroudlink 0.8.0	server mods: chestsort, assistants, storage, meter, gemforge	runs shroudlink’s own server part. Its client addon (the in-game MODS tab) imports as a mod of its own	works on a test server; with players: untested	put the mods on the server, or import them. More frameworks
Ember (server SDK)	private-chests	finds and lists the mods; doesn’t run them	not yet: Ember hasn’t published its loader	nothing to do yet. More frameworks
Stand-alone dinput8.dll mods	one DLL each	loads them next to Kiln	works	install Kiln; it keeps them. Below
Closed-source DLL mods (XHL-Core, Auto Loot Plus, trainers)	one or more DLLs	loads them next to Kiln, early or after Kiln	late loading: untested in game	switch on Load after Kiln and ShroudForge if they clash. Below
Kiln DLL mods	DLLs with a native.json	loads them at the time you choose	works	add them in the launcher. Below

Adding mods in the launcher

The launcher imports mods of every framework above. Drop a mod anywhere on the launcher window, or choose it with Add mods above the list on Play. The launcher says which framework the mod is for and adds it to that list, switched on, with its kind next to its name. Its menu (the three dots, or a right click) has its settings where the mod has them, its versions, its folder and Remove. Something Kiln can’t run is skipped with the reason. It is never added as a plain DLL. Since dev.22 mods are taken the way they are shared:

• Archives. .zip, .7z and .rar. The launcher reads 7z itself. A rar needs a tool that is already on your PC: unrar, 7-Zip, bsdtar, or the tar that comes with Windows. Without one, the launcher says to extract the archive first and drop the folder. A password-protected or split archive is refused the same way. A modpack must be a zip.
• Packages shaped like the game folder. Many authors zip a mod as it sits in the game folder: a mods folder, with a loader DLL such as dbghelp.dll next to it. The launcher imports every mod in that mods folder. The loader in the package is not installed, and that is one note in the result (“not needed, Kiln runs EML mods”), not an error. A tool that runs on its own next to Kiln (ReShade, a mod menu) is left out whole, with what to do: copy its files into the Enshrouded folder yourself.
• Ids with capitals or spaces. An EML mod called HoardersHelper used to be refused as “not a valid mod id”. Now the mod’s files stay as they are, and the Library lists it under an id made from its own: hoardershelper, with the mod’s own id shown next to it. ShroudForge packages with upper-case ids import the same way. Kiln’s own mod kinds, EMF mods and Enshwick mods still need a lower-case id.
• A dinput8.dll mod keeps its files. A DLL beside the .ini, data or picture files it reads (or powrprof.dll with a folder) is imported as one mod with all its files, and loaded from that folder, so it finds them next to its DLL. A mod that looks for its files in the game folder instead is not served by this: the launcher can’t place files there yet. Since dev.24 an update of such a mod (dinput8.dll and the like) replaces the old version instead of becoming a second entry, and the same DLL is no longer loaded twice.

More on the library: Profiles and mods. Mods you extracted into the game folder by hand are in the same list, marked Game folder (In the game folder).

Your other loader is installed too

Check the guide for your framework before combining loaders; use one startup owner for each framework.

• Kiln steps aside. When another framework’s own loader runs in the game, Kiln’s part for that framework does nothing, and that loader runs its mods. kiln/logs/kiln.log says steps aside. A native loader arriving after a mod has already started can still conflict; detection cannot undo arbitrary native hooks or threads.
• Kiln fills in. When the other loader’s files are there but it didn’t start, for example on Linux or a Steam Deck where Proton doesn’t load it, Kiln runs its mods instead. Since dev.22 Kiln checks that the file really is the loaded code. Before, under Proton without a DLL override, it could step aside for a loader file that never ran, and nothing ran the mods.
• The launcher copies your profile’s mods for that loader. Another framework’s own loader (EML’s dbghelp.dll, for example) reads only its own folder (mods/ for EML) and never Kiln’s Library. A mod you added in the launcher did not run at all while that loader was installed. Since dev.22, while such a loader is installed, the launcher copies the profile’s mods of that framework into the folder it reads, and takes its copies out again when the loader is gone. A mod never runs twice. A mod you put in that folder yourself is never touched, and when it is the same mod, yours runs. A copy a mod changed (settings written into its folder) is left as it is.
• Press Play in the launcher after you install or remove such a loader. The copies are made when a profile is loaded (Settings, Profiles) and when the launcher brings the profile up to date before a start. Install the loader later and start once from the launcher’s Play, not Steam’s; the same goes the other way: remove the loader, start from the launcher, and the copies go.
• EML mods next to ShroudForge mods. ShroudForge carries EML. While it runs, it patches the game’s data and runs an EML mod only when its own switch for that mod is on. Kiln’s copies had no such switch before dev.24: nobody applied them, and Kiln said they ran. Since dev.24 Kiln sets the switch, also on Linux when EML’s own dbghelp.dll is still in the game folder. For a mod ShroudForge does not run, the launcher and the in-game menu say why (switched off, made for the other side, or a file ShroudForge refuses) and suggest a switch only where a switch helps. EML and ShroudForge together.
• Where it can’t help. shroudlink’s and Ember’s own loaders can’t read Kiln’s layout. With one of them running, the profile’s mods of that framework don’t load, and kiln.log, the state file and the launcher’s engine row say so.
• One start without mods. Just once, Without mods on Play can’t stop such a loader: it runs what is in its folder, Kiln’s copies included.
• Kiln preserves loader files. Kiln only takes the name dinput8.dll. Another tool’s dinput8.dll is moved into Kiln’s folder and loaded from there. Files under other names (EML’s dbghelp.dll, Shroudtopia’s winmm.dll, Enshwick’s powrprof.dll) stay where they are. Uninstalling Kiln puts every file back as it was.
• ShroudForge asks first: the launcher takes over its dinput8.dll only after you agree. Its folder, settings and mods stay.

To let a framework’s own loader run its mods instead of Kiln, keep that loader installed. To hand them back to Kiln, remove that loader (or switch its line off in kiln/chain.ini if Kiln chained it), then press Play in the launcher.

Where the mods go

Inside the game folder (or the server folder). These are the folders the frameworks use themselves, so a mod’s own install steps still work.

Framework	Folder
EML	mods/<mod>/ (also kiln/eml/mods/<mod>/)
ShroudForge	mods/<mod>/, or the folder set in ShroudForge’s settings
EMF	emf/mods/<mod>/ or emf/mods/<name>.dll
SET	shrouded_engine_tweaks/mods/<mod>/
Greeneye Loader	greeneye/<mod>/
Creative Mode (Flame)	mods/creative/ (a mod added in the launcher: mods/<id>/)
Shroudtopia	mods/<mod>.dll or mods/<mod>/
Enshwick	mods/<author.name>/
shroudlink	shroudlink_mods/<name>.dll (server)
Ember	ember/mods/<mod>/ (server)
Kiln DLL mods	kiln/native/<folder>/

Several frameworks share mods/. Kiln tells their mods apart by their files, and each part only takes its own.

With the launcher you don’t need these folders: add the mod and switch it on in the list on Play. Kiln loads the list for each framework. A mod you put in a framework’s folder by hand is read when that framework’s drop-in switch is on (the profile’s Folders and notes). That is the one rule for every framework, and the list on Play shows each hand-placed mod, marked Game folder, and whether it loads. Drop-in folders has the switches. Two loaders read their whole folder themselves once they run: ShroudForge, when the profile has an enabled ShroudForge mod, and Enshwick, when it has an Enshwick mod. SET has no switch: its folder always loads.

Servers and players

Framework	Where it runs	Players need
EML	server and game	the same data mods as the server, or items can go missing
ShroudForge	server and game, as each mod says	the same mods, when a mod is for both sides
EMF	server and game. Mods marked client only in the game	client mods only for themselves
SET	a world you host, and dedicated servers	nothing for server mods. Windows and keys work only in the game
Greeneye Loader	the game (a mod can say server)	the mod, for themselves
Creative Mode	the game	the mod, for themselves
Shroudtopia	mostly the game; some mods on servers	the mod, for themselves
Enshwick	server and game	the same version of each mod that has a join check, or Enshwick refuses the join
shroudlink	dedicated server	nothing. shroudlink’s optional client addon adds its MODS tab: drop it on the launcher
Ember	dedicated server	nothing

A server needs Kiln’s part for each framework it runs. The server pack has them. The launcher’s server Mods page copies other frameworks’ mods into the folders their parts read.

Modpacks carry the other frameworks’ mods that players need too, for example EML data mods. Kiln’s join check doesn’t compare them yet: a Kiln player who lacks a server’s EML mod isn’t refused. Tell your players, or put those mods in your modpack.

Honest limits

• Untested in game. Most framework parts are new in 0.2.0-dev.18. They ran on test servers and in Kiln’s own tests, not yet in a player’s game. Please report what you see.
• dev.22 was not run on Windows, on a Steam Deck or in a real client. The copies for another framework’s own loader, the drop-in switches, the game-folder list, packages shaped like the game folder and 7z and rar were tested with unit tests, Wine host tests with stand-in loader DLLs, and dedicated-server labs under Wine. One lab run used a real ShroudForge loader build. What works today has the checklist.
• Copies are made by the launcher. Install another framework’s own loader and start from Steam, and its copies are not there until you start once from the launcher’s Play.
• dev.24 was not run on Windows or on a Steam Deck. In a real game (Linux, Proton, one client) Kiln’s entries in the main menu with ShroudForge mods on, W and S steering with ShroudForge’s Unlimited Flight, and SET’s tools were seen. Everything else was tested on Linux hosts, under Wine without a display and on dedicated test servers. What works today has the list.
• One failing EML mod inside ShroudForge makes ShroudForge drop its whole startup pass: none of its data mods apply that start. The in-game Mods menu shows them as failed; the launcher’s Engines view can still say they run.
• A loader that was already running. Enshwick’s own loader may see a mod copied while it was running only from the next start.
• EMF. API v27 implements radial wheels, stamina/mana and right-click window events. Client-world programs/events remain unsupported, and player-facing rendering/input and joined delivery remain unchecked. Mods requesting above API v27 are refused. Current differences.
• SET. SET itself only runs in worlds you host. Kiln’s dedicated-server probe passes 39/0; game options, Admin.send, ImGui Debug and SET’s settings.ini editor remain unavailable. Kiln’s tool windows still need client drawing/input checks. If another tool’s powrprof.dll is loaded (Enshwick’s own, Shared XP), Kiln’s SET part stays off.
• Ember mods are found and listed, but don’t run until Ember publishes its loader.
• Greeneye Loader doesn’t start under Wine or Proton. Kiln runs its mods there instead. That ran in tests on Linux, not yet in a real game.
• Creative Mode changes the same things as Kiln’s own creative mode (building cost, flight, time of day). Use one or the other.
• Shroudweave mods use Shroudtopia’s format as far as we know, but none has been tried.
• One writer for game data. EML and ShroudForge both change game files before the game starts. Only one does it per start: when ShroudForge runs, it applies your EML mods from its own mods folder. See EML and ShroudForge.
• Two mods on the same thing. Kiln doesn’t stop two frameworks’ mods that change the same game system (both change loot, both change building cost). Both apply.
• Two mods on the same game function. Since dev.21 Kiln, EMF mods, Shroudtopia mods and a hosted ShroudForge share one hook per game function, in a fixed order (Hooks and patches). A closed-source DLL hooks on its own; see below.
• Every native mod, of any framework, runs its own code in the game. Install mods only from sources you trust.

Stand-alone dinput8 mods

Many small mods are a single dinput8.dll (stat sliders, sprint toggles, HUD tweaks, shroudlink’s client addon). Only one file can have that name. When you install Kiln, it moves the other dinput8.dll to kiln/chain/ and loads it from there, listed in kiln/chain.ini. Kiln also reads the dinput8-chain.ini that EMF and other chain loaders write. A mod with its own name (iphlpapi.dll, powrprof.dll, dxgi.dll) is left alone and runs next to Kiln.

A dinput8.dll mod you drop on the launcher is kept with the files around it and added as a native mod, loaded from its own folder (Adding mods in the launcher).

Kiln DLL mods

One or more DLLs, with a small native.json naming them and when they load:

When	Use
dllmain	before any game code (listed by the launcher)
early	first thing when Kiln starts (default)
boot	after Kiln’s own services
world	when the first world starts

Add them in the launcher (they are listed on Play, and Native and DLLs, next to Load order, groups them by load time), or drop them into kiln/native/<folder>/. One that crashes while loading is marked failed with a crash report, and the game carries on. DLL mods never unload, so changes need a restart.

The official dev.25 launcher has no Nexus Catalog, account sign-in or Mod Manager Download handler. Download the archive in your browser and import it, whatever framework it uses.

Closed-source DLL mods

Mods that ship only as a DLL (XHL-Core, Auto Loot Plus, trainers, overlays) hook game functions when they load, before Kiln has hooked anything. Kiln then hooks over them and usually works. Some clash: a feature of Kiln, ShroudForge or an EMF mod stops working, or ShroudForge’s own engine hooks refuse to start. New in 0.2.0-dev.21, three things help.

Load it after Kiln. On Native and DLLs (next to Load order, from the list on Play), each chain entry has a Load after Kiln and ShroudForge switch. Switch it on and restart the game. Kiln then loads that DLL after its own services, plugins and ShroudForge: Kiln hooks first and the DLL hooks over Kiln. kiln.log says it loaded late. Without the launcher, name the DLL in kiln/chain.ini under [late], and keep its line in its own list:

[chain]
chain\xhl-core-dinput8.dll
[late]
chain\xhl-core-dinput8.dll

A late DLL that fails to load is a warning in kiln.log, and the game goes on. An older proxy ignores [late] and loads those DLLs early.

Overlaps. The same page shows last session’s hook overlaps: functions where another DLL and Kiln, ShroudForge or an EMF mod both hook. Load late next to an overlap switches that DLL to late in one click. kiln.log warns once per overlap, names both sides and the fix. The list is in kiln/state/hooks.json under overlaps. Before the first start with dev.21 the page says “No hook map yet”.

Compat rules. The page lists the compat rules that apply to the loaded profile. A rule can warn, load a chain DLL late, or disable a chain DLL or a mod the profile lists. Kiln ships its own rules (kiln/compat-rules.json); yours go in the profile’s config folder as compat-rules.json, and a rule of yours with the same id replaces Kiln’s:

{ "format": 1, "rules": [
  { "id": "xhl-and-shroudforge",
    "when": [ { "module": "xhl-*.dll" }, { "engine": "shroudforge" } ],
    "action": "late", "subject": { "module": "xhl-*.dll" },
    "message": "XHL hooks the same functions as ShroudForge. It loads after Kiln so both work." } ] }

The launcher applies late and disable of chain entries when it writes chain.ini, so press Play in the launcher after you change a rule. Kiln itself logs warn rules and skips a disabled mod the profile lists. A rule it can’t apply is reported in kiln.log as not applied.

What loading late can’t do:

• EMF’s own loader always loads first. The launcher shows it as “Always loads first”, without a switch.
• A DLL another loader already started (with EMF’s loader chained, it starts the DLLs in dinput8-chain.ini) is reported as already-loaded. Use a compat rule, or switch one side off.
• A disabled native mod’s late DLL doesn’t load. An early or boot native mod can’t require a late one.
• disable on a native mod whose DLL already loaded at dllmain is reported as not applied. Start again from the launcher’s Play to apply it.

Status: the switch, overlaps and rules were tested under Wine and on lab servers, and the launcher pages with tests and mock data. Nobody has tried them with XHL-Core in a real game yet.

Logs

Each framework part writes its own lines to kiln/logs/kiln.log ([eml], [emf:<mod>], [greeneye], …) and a status file per framework in kiln/state/. The launcher’s Logs page (Engines) shows one line per framework, with each mod’s state and the reason when it didn’t load.