Viking Codex

v1.0.0 initial release - multiplayer verification and complete biome classification remain pending.

One Valheim plugin combining a progression-aware Codex with server-wide cooperative material discovery. It shares knowledge through native character registration. It does not add inventory items, change crafting costs, or remove station requirements.

Install when ready

Finish your current game session before installing. Use a separate test profile and backed-up disposable characters/worlds initially.

1. Install BepInExPack_Valheim 5.4.2351 and Jötunn 2.30.2 or compatible versions.
2. Extract the Manual ZIP and copy its VikingCodex folder into your game's or mod profile's BepInEx/plugins/ directory.
3. Install the same Viking Codex version on the server and every client, then start the modded game normally.
4. Press F8 or open inventory and select Codex.

No default configuration changes are needed. The optional installer scripts copy only this plugin and back up an existing VikingCodex.dll. They do not install dependencies. Do not install RuntimeProbe.dll, .references, .tools or .runtime into a play profile.

The Thunderstore-format ZIP declares both dependencies. Local ZIP import, mod-manager installation, and public distribution remain pending actual installation testing. There is no published Viking Codex listing yet.

Implemented features

• Native-styled independent Codex panel, Escape/Close, keyboard navigation, virtualized scrolling, scaling, search, combined biome/category/discovery filters and progression/alphabetical sorting.
• Unknown-name/detail protection with dark icon silhouettes, calculated discovery/recipe completion, crafting and building requirements, alternative recipes and known recipe relationships.
• Asset-backed vanilla registry plus dynamic modded detection. Baseline: 2,369 item/creature/piece asset records and 481 recipe asset records from the installed Valheim 1.0.20 bundle. These are source inventory counts, not displayed in-game totals. Iconless NPC attack items are excluded from Codex pages; actual entries must also be registered in the live game.
• Versioned character-bound sharing protocol, server validation/rate limits, duplicate protection, offline catch-up, bounded per-frame native application, explicit existing-knowledge import, and world-specific atomic/checksummed history with backups.
• Independent Codex/sharing settings, synchronized server options, local UI settings, optional intentional Wiki actions, external metadata, catalog reload/export and diagnostics.

Curated seeds, native spawn-biome flags, explicit biome asset paths and verified recipe/drop/conversion relationships supply progression metadata. Unresolved entries stay Unclassified. Derived ordering and newly added content still need gameplay review; metadata never changes native prerequisites.

Configuration

BepInEx/config/com.vikingcodex.cfg is created on first plugin load. Server defaults enable eligible-material sharing and offline catch-up; existing-knowledge import is off. Client defaults enable Codex, spoiler protection, unknown placeholders and Wiki actions. Inventory-button visibility and offset can be adjusted for UI mods.

See docs/CONFIGURATION.md, docs/USER-GUIDE.md, docs/SERVER.md and docs/TROUBLESHOOTING.md.

Build and verification

Build/API baseline: Valheim 1.0.20, Unity 6000.0.75f1, BepInExPack 5.4.2351 (loader 5.4.23.5), Jötunn 2.30.2, .NET SDK 8.0.426. Game/dependency DLLs are private compilation references and never included in packages.

The plugin compiles and 65 automated checks pass. Multi-client scenarios exercise the same core used by the runtime adapter through the real packet codec, but they are simulations, not actual Valheim multiplayer tests. The user confirmed the earlier build opens in-game; the latest UI changes and actual multiplayer acceptance remain pending. See docs/RELEASE-VERIFICATION.md for remaining acceptance.

Populate .references from your own installation with scripts/collect-references.ps1, then run scripts/build.ps1 (or bash scripts/build.sh with a .NET SDK). Package with python scripts/package.py. Production packaging is blocked until all 24 runtime acceptance criteria have evidence and release metadata is finalized.

1.0.0 features and known limitations

Item and recipe rows are combined. Biome selectors show progress. Recipe details flag missing materials and station requirements. Session discoveries are marked NEW until viewed. All peers must have the same plugin version, including when sharing is disabled.

The static asset audit found no missing metadata IDs or enabled recipes without visible output items. 843 visible asset records remain Unclassified; full gameplay coverage and biome correctness are not verified. See docs/CATALOG-AUDIT.md.

AI disclosure

Code and documentation were generated with assistance from OpenAI Codex under the project owner's direction. Select the AI Generated category when publishing this package.