Slow Sailing Bagpipes

Play custom bagpipe music while rowing your Viking longship!

Description

Tired of the silence while rowing your boat in Valheim? This mod adds atmospheric bagpipe music that plays automatically when you row at slow speed (forward or backward). Perfect for those long journeys across the ocean!

Features

• Automatic Music Playback: Music starts after about 0.1 seconds of eligible rowing, then fades in over 1.5 seconds
• Forward & Backward Rowing: Works with both rowing directions
• Custom Music Support: Add your own MP3, OGG, or WAV files
• Random Selection: Multiple tracks? The mod randomly picks one each time
• Smooth Transitions: 1.5-second fade-in, 0.5-second fade-out
• Grace Period: Stop rowing briefly? Music resumes instantly within 10 seconds
• Game Music Muting: Automatically mutes Valheim's soundtrack during playback
• Configurable: Adjust volume and track folder location

How to Use

1. Get in a boat (Raft, Karve, or Longship)
2. Set speed to slow (press W until you see the rowing animation)
3. Row briefly - after about 0.1 seconds, the music will start fading in
4. Stop rowing - music fades out, but resumes instantly if you start again within 10 seconds

Customizing Your Music

Using r2modman (Recommended)

1. Launch r2modman and select your Valheim profile
2. Click "Settings" → "Browse profile folder"
3. Navigate to: BepInEx/plugins/BagPipesTracks/
4. Add your MP3/OGG/WAV files to this folder
5. Delete or replace the placeholder ghost_bagpipe_track.mp3
6. Launch the game!

Supported Audio Formats

• MP3 (recommended) - 192 kbps or higher
• OGG (Ogg Vorbis)
• WAV (uncompressed)

Tips for Best Results

• Use loopable tracks for seamless playback
• Recommended length: 30-120 seconds
• Multiple files will be randomly selected each time
• Files should be non-zero size (delete the 0-byte placeholder!)

Finding Bagpipe Music

Looking for royalty-free bagpipe music?

• Freesound: https://freesound.org/ (search "bagpipes")
• Pixabay Music: https://pixabay.com/music/ (search "bagpipes" or "celtic")
• YouTube Audio Library: https://www.youtube.com/audiolibrary
• Incompetech: https://incompetech.com/music/ (Kevin MacLeod)

Note: The included track is from Uppbeat - License code: ZYTOPY5OYRRTR1FG

Configuration

After first launch, edit the config file at:

BepInEx/config/eh.mataeo.valheim.slowsailingbagpipes.cfg

Available Settings

[General]
Enabled = true              # Master toggle (true/false)
Volume = 0.85               # Bagpipe volume (0.0 to 1.0), scaled by the in-game Master and Music sliders

[Audio]
TrackDirectory = BagPipesTracks  # Audio folder (relative or absolute path)

Troubleshooting

No music plays

• Ensure you have audio files in the BagPipesTracks folder
• Check that files are not 0 bytes (delete placeholder)
• Verify you're rowing at slow speed (not half or full)
• Keep rowing for at least 0.1 seconds
• Check the log: BepInEx/LogOutput.log

Music doesn't stop

• This is a known Valheim API quirk - try stopping and starting rowing
• Check BepInEx/plugins/Logs/ for the mod's detailed log

Want different music volume?

• The bagpipes follow the in-game Master and Music volume sliders, so adjust those first
• To change the bagpipes relative to the game's music, edit the config file and change Volume = 0.85 (0.0 to 1.0)
• Volume and TrackDirectory changes apply immediately while the mod is running

Technical Details

• Trigger delay: 0.1 seconds
• Fade-in: 1.5 seconds
• Fade-out: 0.5 seconds
• Grace period: 10 seconds
• Rowing detection: Forward (Ship.Speed.Slow) OR Backward (Ship.Speed.Back)

Compatibility

• Valheim: 1.0 and later (verified against 1.0, Unity 6000.0.75f1)
• BepInEx: 5.4.2350+
• Multiplayer: Client-side only (each player hears their own music)

Source Code & Issues

• GitHub: https://github.com/mataeo-eh/Valheim-Slow-Sailing-Bagpipes-Mod
• Report bugs: https://github.com/mataeo-eh/Valheim-Slow-Sailing-Bagpipes-Mod/issues

Credits

• BepInEx Team: Mod framework
• Valheim Modding Team: Jotunn library
• Iron Gate Studio: Creating Valheim
• Music: Hidden Past by Kevin MacLeod (from Uppbeat)

License

MIT License - See GitHub repository for details

Changelog

v1.0.6 (2026-09-11) - Valheim 1.0 update

• Updated for Valheim 1.0 (Unity 6). Now requires BepInExPack_Valheim 5.4.2350 or later - older packs cannot load plugins on Unity 6 at all.
• Fixed vanilla music bleeding over the bagpipes on track changes
• Fixed the bagpipes going silent or playing on the wrong audio bus after returning from the main menu
• Rebuilt against the Valheim 1.0 game assemblies

v1.0.5 (2026-05-14)

• Initial public release
• Forward AND backward rowing support
• 0.1-second trigger delay
• Live config reload for volume and track directory updates
• Configurable volume and track directory
• Random track selection
• Smooth fade transitions

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Enjoy your Viking sea voyages with custom bagpipe music!