Build and Test Your Mod

If you followed along with the Setting Up Your Development Environment page, you should now be able to build your project.

Building Your Mod

In our case, we've Maven as the build system. Maven is a powerful build automation tool that manages dependencies, compiles your code, and packages everything into a distributable JAR file.

Understanding Maven

Maven uses a pom.xml file (Project Object Model) to define your project's configuration, dependencies, and build settings. You can learn more about Maven at the official Apache Maven website.

Building with Maven

To build your mod, open a terminal in your project directory and run:

mvn package

This command will:

Compile your Java source code
Run any tests (if present)
Package everything into a JAR file

Build Output

Once the build completes successfully, your mod will be located in the target directory and named:

ExamplePlugin-1.0-SNAPSHOT.jar

Info

The exact name may vary depending on what you configured in your pom.xml file. Check the artifactId and version fields to see what your JAR will be named.

Testing Your Mod

Now that you've built your mod, it's time to test it in Hytale!

1. Locate the Mods Folder

First, you need to find Hytale's mods directory:

Press Win + R on your keyboard
Type %appdata% and press Enter
Navigate to: Hytale\UserData\Mods

The full path should look like:

C:\Users\YourUsername\AppData\Roaming\Hytale\UserData\Mods

Warning

If the Mods folder doesn't exist, you may need to create it manually or launch Hytale at least once.

2. Copy Your Mod

Copy the ExamplePlugin-1.0-SNAPSHOT.jar file from your project's target directory into the Mods folder you just located.

3. Launch Hytale and Verify

Start Hytale
Click "Create a New World"
Click the settings cog
Click "Mods"
See your mod in the list!

If your mod appears in the list, congratulations! Your mod has been successfully loaded by Hytale.

Troubleshooting

If your mod doesn't appear in the mods list:

Make sure the JAR file is in the correct Mods folder
Check that your manifest.json file is properly configured
Look for any error messages in the Hytale logs
Verify that you're using the correct version of Java and Maven

Next Steps

Now that you can build and test your mod, you're ready to start adding functionality! Check out these guides:

Create Commands - Add custom commands to your mod
Create Events - React to in-game events

Happy modding!

Build and Test Your Mod

On this page