Your Palworld 1.0 server's rates, difficulty, and PvP rules all live in one file: PalWorldSettings.ini. This guide explains the settings that actually change how your world feels, then gives you three copy-ready presets so you can pick a vibe and go.
Where to edit Palworld settings
PalWorldSettings.ini is the main config file for a dedicated server. The stock defaults are copied from DefaultPalWorldSettings.ini the first time the server boots, so you edit the live PalWorldSettings.ini, not the default one.
On our panel you edit this file directly from the panel, no FTP round trip needed. If you prefer FTP you have full access anyway. Every option sits on one long line inside OptionSettings=(...), comma-separated, so change the value you want and leave the rest untouched. Changes apply on the next restart.
The settings that matter most
You do not need to touch all 100-plus options. These are the ones players actually feel:
- Difficulty: the master preset. Leaving it as a custom baseline and tuning the values below gives you the most control.
- ExpRate: XP multiplier for players and Pals. 1.0 is vanilla, 2.0 roughly halves the grind.
- PalCaptureRate: how easily Pals get caught. Higher means fewer wasted spheres.
- PalEggDefaultHatchingTime: hours to hatch an egg. Vanilla is a long 72, drop it to 1 for near-instant breeding.
- DeathPenalty: what you drop when you die.
None(keep everything),Item(drop items, keep gear),ItemAndEquipment(drop both),All(drop items, gear, and the Pals on your team). This one option sets the stakes single-handedly. - DayTimeSpeedRate / NightTimeSpeedRate: how fast day and night pass. Lower a value to lengthen that phase, raise it to shorten it. Speeding up night is a popular way to spend less time fending off nocturnal Pals.
- bEnablePlayerToPlayerDamage: PvP.
Falsefor pure co-op,Trueto let players fight. - GuildPlayerMaxNum: max members in one guild (up to 20).
- BaseCampMaxNum: how many base camps a guild can run at once.
- ServerPlayerMaxNum: player slots, up to 32 in 1.0. Remember Palworld is RAM-hungry, so size your plan to the slot count.
Recommended presets
Pick the one that matches your group, paste the values into PalWorldSettings.ini, and restart.
Chill co-op (fast progress, forgiving, no PvP):
Difficulty=None
ExpRate=2.000000
PalCaptureRate=2.000000
PalEggDefaultHatchingTime=1.000000
DeathPenalty=None
DayTimeSpeedRate=1.000000
NightTimeSpeedRate=2.000000
bEnablePlayerToPlayerDamage=False
GuildPlayerMaxNum=20
ServerPlayerMaxNum=8
Balanced (a touch faster than vanilla, low-stakes deaths):
Difficulty=None
ExpRate=1.500000
PalCaptureRate=1.500000
PalEggDefaultHatchingTime=24.000000
DeathPenalty=Item
DayTimeSpeedRate=1.000000
NightTimeSpeedRate=1.000000
bEnablePlayerToPlayerDamage=False
GuildPlayerMaxNum=16
ServerPlayerMaxNum=16
Hardcore (vanilla rates, harsh deaths, PvP on):
Difficulty=None
ExpRate=1.000000
PalCaptureRate=1.000000
PalEggDefaultHatchingTime=72.000000
DeathPenalty=All
DayTimeSpeedRate=1.000000
NightTimeSpeedRate=1.000000
bEnablePlayerToPlayerDamage=True
GuildPlayerMaxNum=8
ServerPlayerMaxNum=32
Every value is a normal number, so mix and match: run Hardcore rates with PvP off, or Chill rates with a bigger guild. There is no wrong answer, only the world your group wants.
Crossplay and multiplayer settings
Palworld 1.0 crossplay spans Steam, Xbox, PS5, and Mac, so most groups leave it on and set ServerPlayerMaxNum to fit everyone. A six-to-eight person friend group is comfortable at 8 slots, a community server can push to the 32 cap. GuildPlayerMaxNum caps a single guild, which matters if you want several separate teams sharing one map. If you are starting fresh for 1.0 (Pocketpair's recommendation for the full Sky Islands and World Tree experience), pick your preset before anyone logs in so nobody re-rolls a character.
Apply your changes
Settings only take effect on a restart. On our panel one click restarts the server, and because a restart also runs SteamCMD, the same action keeps you on the latest 1.0 build. That is the neat part: tuning your world and staying current are the same button. If a big patch lands and you want the details on forcing a clean update, see our update guide.
New to hosting Palworld?
If you have not stood up a server yet, our setup guide walks through it start to finish, and what's new in 1.0 covers everything the update added. When you are ready, you can rent a Palworld 1.0 server on Ryzen 9 hardware from $6.00/mo for 6 GB, with instant setup and config editing built in. New servers can use code SUMMER26 for 50% off the first month.
