The Complete Mod Guide for Project Zomboid (41.73+)

This guide will present you with the best mods that the workshop has to offer. There will be no compatibility errors and this guide is to only give you the most essential mods that you can use in your playthrough. You will have to add very personal mods yourself. Currently 50+ mods in this guide, all compatible.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION

THIS IS A WIP GUIDE. THIS WILL BE UPDATED WEEKLY. IF THERE IS AN ISSUE, PLEASE COMMENT. IF YOU HAVE SUGGESTIONS, PLEASE COMMENT. YOU CAN FIND THE 1 CLICK INSTALL ALL BUTTON BELOW. THANKS

NO COMPATIBILITY ISSUES - DECEMBER 2022

ONE CLICK INSTALL

I added everything to a collection,
if you believe a mod should be added to this, please comment below!

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2835875888

CORE MODS

ABSOLUTE CORE MODS THAT YOU SHOULD USE IN YOUR SAVE.

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Tsar's Common Library


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2392709985
This mod contains a library that many other mods use. Mandatory for playing modded PZ.



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Mod Options



https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2169435993
This mod does nothing on it's own, but will come in handy later if you ever want to change certain mod settings. An absolute MUST for any player who wants to customize their experience with PZ even further.



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Easy Config Chucked


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2529746725
A simple mod that makes other mods work



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Essential Mods

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Alternative Inventory Rendering


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2809595776
This mod replaces existing Inventory Rendering Code with Alternative Rendering Code to get more FPS. Also it comes with some new features that could be useful for your Zomboid Run.
This mod does not requires new save.-IMPOSSIBLE WITHOUT


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Manage Containers


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2650547917
Manage Containers is a life changer if used correctly. If you set up all of your storage, you can go on a loot haul and come back and just press ONE simple button, and this mod will sort everything for you in a heartbeat. I highly recommend this mod if you hate trying to organize everything when you come back from a looting trip.

How to use (video at bottom as well)
Right click any container and select "Configure Container". This will bring up the list of item categories based on the items present in that save.
It works the same as
Left click to set one category.
Ctrl + Left click to add/remove a single category.
Shift + Left click to bulk add/remove categories from the previous click to the current click.
After you've set the item categories you want this container to receive, here are the two ways to transfer.
Selecting multiple items in your inventory, right clicking and selecting transfer to assigned containers.
Shift + transferAll for your selected inventory.

https://youtu.be/y23DQpVmplY

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Authentic Z


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2335368829&searchtext=
Authentic Z adds hundreds of clothing options that you can wear, or find on zombies. Makes the game feel more real, as zombies have more variation to them. -IMPOSSIBLE WITHOUT





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FuelAPI


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2688538916
FuelAPI changes the way fuel works in your game. Well, at least how you transport it. It is a QoL mod, but also a very essential mod.-HIGHLY RECOMMENDED

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Autotsar Trailers



https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2282429356&searchtext=
Are you upset because you had to leave loot behind as your trunk's storage only had a capacity of 70? Cry no more. This mod adds many trailers to the game, storage trailers, generator trailers etc. IMO, A must have mod. Cannot play without.



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Water Dispenser


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2687798127
Despite the simple name, this mod changes the way water dispensers work in the game, in a big way. It's a bit of a QoL mod, allowing you to remove the water jugs from dispensers rather than take the entire water dispenser. My bases use to be filled with them, but now I can store just the jugs.-RECOMMENDED



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Bushcraft Gear - Rare Weapons


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2432621382
Bushcraft Gear - Rare Weapons aims to add in 3 rare melee weapons. You won't find them easily, but when you do, you'll be happy until they break.-HIGHLY RECOMMEND



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Bushcraft Gear - Tools


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2423906082
Bushcraft Gear - Tools adds 6 new vanilla friendly weapons to your world that include 2 new machete's, 2 new axes and 2 new knifes. -HIGHLY RECOMMEND



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Vanilla Vehicle Enhancer


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2788428718
This mod replaces all textures for all vehicles in the vanilla game except for the step van and the trailer which I might do for a future update. The aim of this mod is to enhance the look of the default vehicles and to add some much needed variety to the vanilla motor pool.



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Undead Survivor


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2713921292
This mod adds currently 3 new outfits called "Stalker", "Prepper" and "Nomad"
Very unique outfits and rare outfits to find.



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Fluffy Hair


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2447729538
This mod will add for almost all hats new adjusted hair models for the default hairs to keep their original shape when wearing something on the head. No more Ponytails or flat hairs!



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Filibusters Rhymes' Used Cars!


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1510950729
Hey dudes, I've added a handful of new cars to the game.
Also a few files.
FRUsedCars - The main mod file, activate this.
FRUsedCarsNLF - Lore friendly names. Activate this or FRUsedCarsNRN
FRUsedCarsNRN - Real car names. Activate this or FRUsedCarsNLF
FRUsedCarsFT - The fuel test mod. You don't need to activate this, but it gives the propane and military fuel truck working gas storage tanks.

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Shark's Law Enforcement Overhaul


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2616752828
This mod introduces vanilla-friendly SWAT zombies to be inline with the actual equipment (with some limited liberties) and clothing standards of the 1990's SWAT units.-HIGHLY RECOMMENDED



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Shark's (and Peach's) Military Uniform Improvements


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2530389024
This mod entirely redoes military zombies and adds in military equipment both from the 1990's and later which is inline with the universe of Project Zomboid.-HIGHLY RECOMMENDED



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Expanded Helicopter Events


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2458631365
This mod replaces the vanilla helicopter event with a more dynamic suite of events which are both challenging and fair.-HIGHLY RECOMMENDED



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Rifle Sling


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2684045242
Adds a Rifle Sling to the game, can be worn with the rifle in four different positions.
Equipping the sling will give you an additional hotbar slot and attach point for Sawn-Offs or full Rifles.-RECOMMENDED



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Weapon Condition Indicator


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2619072426

The mod shows condition (durability) of a weapon attached to the hotbar (back, belt, holster, etc.) or equipped in the primary hand. And many other useful features.-HIGHLY RECOMMENDED



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Jigga's Green Fire


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=1703604612
⚡ Adds marijuana and loose tobacco (including farming) to the game to spice up smoking in Zomboid.

There are 2 parts to this mod, make sure to enable the expansion if you want the 2nd half
🔥EXPANSION:
Introducing the Addictions & Withdrawals Mod! Now you can gain and lose both the "Smoker" and "Stoner" traits respectively -- depending on how often you smoke tobacco and cannabis!
🚭It can take several weeks or more to stop smoking.
🚭It takes nearly as long for non-smokers to pick up the habit.
🚭Smokers that have kicked the habit can pick it up again easily.
etc etc etc there is more but its a lot



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Aquatsar Mods

Aquatsar changes the way you can experience PZ. It adds in boats and motorcycles, and more importantly, it adds in cars that you can completely overhaul and make them like mad max. (only 2 cars below can do that)

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Aquatsar Tuning Atelier - Dadge Steals TY Twin Turbo '91


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2743496289
Adds a customization car to your game that you can totally customize into a zombie survival machine. End game content. Very fun.



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Aquatsar Tuning Atelier - Fjord Mustard


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2681635926
Adds another car like above. End game content.



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Autosar Tuning Atelier - MolksAgen Luton Van


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2792425535
Adds a custom vehicle that you can personalize like the cars above.

Quality of Life mods

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Better Sorting


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2313387159&searchtext=
I'm just going to say it, Vanilla sorting is garbage. Once you use this mod for the first time, you'll question how you ever played without it. -HIGHLY RECOMMEND



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Fuel Side Indicator


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2616986064
Find it annoying to turn your vehicle around in a gas station and attracting MORE zombies? Do you wish there was a way to know which side your car's gas tank is at?
Fuel Side Indicator is a simple addition to your vehicle's dashboard that lets you know which side you have to park your car when refuelling!


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Moodle Fractions²


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2831252135
Displays fractions of how impactful a status effect is on the player. When you look at your moodle, it will give you a better representation of how poorly of a position your character is in at the moment.



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Just Throw Them Out The Window


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2659216714
This mod is meant to address a single problem. You all know too well that awkward moment when the upper levels of your base get invaded by zombies. If you're lucky enough to survive this, you end up with piles of corpses all around the place. But then it's so annoying to get rid of all the corpses, right? Well, in that case you can just throw them out the window! ;D



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Desterilize Rags - Use Them In Other Recipes


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2036923155
Many recipes call for ripped sheets and do not let you use sterilized rags. This lets you turn them back into ripped sheets if you want to use them for something else. Useful if you've fully upgraded your medical supplies to bandages.



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Invisible Clothing Patches


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2464748152
A small mod that hides those disgusting to look at patches that appear on your clothing when you tailor.



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Become Desensitized


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2627877543
After you kill 500 (Modifiable through Sandbox Options) zombies through melee or gun combat (no fire burns), you get the chance to become desensitized. This chance increases as you get more zombie kills.
If you reach 2000 (Modifiable through Sandbox Options) zombie kills, you automatically become desensitized.



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Become Brave


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2809204984
After you kill 350 (Modifiable through Sandbox Options) zombies through melee or gun combat (no fire burns), you get the chance to become brave. This chance increases as you get more zombie kills.
If you reach 1500 (Modifiable through Sandbox Options) zombie kills, you automatically become brave.



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Rain Wash


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2657661246
Rain washes blood and dirt away. Including the character's body, clothing, equipped bags, equipped and attached weapons, the vehicle your character is in and vehicle attached to it or last used vehicle and vehicle attached to it.



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Extra Map Symbols


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2701170568
Extra Map Symbols adds additional map symbols following base game style - HIGHLY PREFER

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Map Legend UI


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2710167561
Liking the new map feature, but still don't remember what all the building colors stand for? Suffer no longer.
This mod adds a legend from old town maps to in-game world map.



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More Description for Traits


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2685168362
Hello there ! This mod is intended for players who are confused about what effects each trait and profession has on the character.
It adds description to the traits that need it to describe their effects on the character in detail, instead of leaving people guessing with vague sentences. This way, players can have an easier time imagining their own builds by themselves. It also adds the description on mouse hover in the character's info screen, in game.




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Backpack Borders


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2808679062
Backpack Borders is a small UI tweak that adds a background and border to the container buttons in Zomboid's inventory windows.



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True Actions. Act 2 - Lying


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2487022075
Added the ability to lie/sit on beds, sofas and other suitable items (over 200 tiles for lying).
Lying/sitting is not available on some beds that face north or west.



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Katanas and Machetes on Back or Belt


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2016648690
What it says on the tin; allows you to attach Katanas and Machetes to either Back or the Belt Hotbar slots.



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Draw on the Map


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2804531012
Lets you freely draw on the map if need be.



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Working Treadmill


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2752895143
With this mod, now you can use a treadmill. You will gain fitness XP a little more than squat and gain sprinting XP as well. If you carry weight is more than a half you will gain strength XP too.



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Maps - The Great 4 MUST HAVE

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The Great 4. Grapeseed, Blackwood, Pitstop and Rosewood Expansion

-All these maps need the 3 tile sets at the bottom of this
-If you want any of these maps, you might as well add them all.
All 4 of these maps interlock with eachother to create something epic. In vanilla, you would spawn at Rosewood and loot the place relatively quickly. But now? You have 3 new locations and an expansion to expand the bottom of your PZ map. IMO, Must have maps for your playthrough. If you decide to download ANY of these maps, you will need these 3 tile mods at the bottom of this section

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2463499011&searchtext=

Grapeseed is 1/4 maps in this section that brings life to the bottom of your PZ map.








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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2536865912&searchtext=

Blackwood is 2/4 maps in this section that brings life to the bottom of your PZ map.







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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2597946327&searchtext=Pitstop

Pitstop is 3/4 maps in this section that brings life to the bottom of your PZ map.







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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2718350686

Rosewood Expansion is 4/4 maps in this section that brings life to the bottom of your PZ map.







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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2599752664
1/3
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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2337452747
2/3
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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2384329562
3/3
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^These tile packs are needed for Grapeseed, Blackwood, Rosewood Expansion and Pitstop.^
Make sure to download them!

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Maps - Essential

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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2195155059&searchtext=

West Point Expansion does exactly that, expands the town of West Point by 40-50%. It makes the town bigger, and more importantly, more fun to explore.




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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2711501222


St. Bernard's Hill is another great addition to the bottom of the map, but this time it's literally the bottom right corner. It fills in another large void of nothing to the map for you to explore. Also adds in a great place to bunker up in with a giant lake in the corner to fish.




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https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2712480036

Ekron is another map, same author as Pitstop/Grapeseed/Blackwood. This doesn't fit into the "connect 4" per say, but still expands the map quite a bit in the top left.





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Vehicles

THIS SECTION NEEDS SERIOUS MODS. PLEASE COMMENT BELOW YOUR FAVORITE MODDED VEHICLES

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91' Range Rover Classic

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2409333430



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Kentucky Emergency Services Pack


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2660896019
adds over 10 emergency service cars to the game (police, fire dep, etc)
all of these cars are intended to belong to their own in-game town. So, you can see a police car with text saying, "Blackwood Police" or an ambulance with a decal saying "Grapeseed Township EMS"
Yes, this mod takes into account modded towns



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Kentucky Emergency Services - Bowling Green



https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2724141932
Adds another police car to the pack above.


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92 AM General M998 + M101A3 Cargo trailer
https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2642541073
And now... for something completely different, fully animated M998 HMMWV!

REMOVED - BROKEN DUE TO UPDATES

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Aquatsar Yacht Club


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2392987599
Adds towable/usable boats to the game. Need this mod for the main mod we want from aquatsar, motorcycles

--buggy waiting for updates

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Aquatsar Motorclub


https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2778576730
This day has come! Autotsar Inc. together with KI5-Production, are pleased to present the new vehicles: 1984 BWM R80, 1986 Xarley-Davitsan Sportstep XL 1200, 1988 Suvzuki 250 Quadruiner

--buggy waiting for updates

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[Ibram Gaunt]

However, I can reccomend a lean and mean mod that has made my engie playthroughs much more fun. Deadly Pipe Bomb. Basically it ups the damage done by pipebomb explosions by a hundred so that it instantly kills all the zeds caught in the blast. Y'know, actually doing what the f it was supposed to do in the first place.

[Ibram Gaunt]

The problem I'm having with mods is they make loading the game up and even starting an new file tedious from not only the long wait times, but also from the fact that if you click the screen during part of the loading process it will freeze the game and crash it. So you can't just alt tab.

I want a lean and good modlist that will add to the experience of the game but won't make Bejing Rush Hour Traffic look speedy by comparison to my PC. Crafting, military vehicles, powerful medicines and better explosives.

[Atzu]

Shark's Law Enforcement and (and Peach's) mods won't enable without a Night Vision mod, and another mod that supports that.
Could those mods be added to the collection?

[Chama]

@avaster im assuming that mod is off steam somewhere on the nexus, because I can't even find it

[avaster]

essemtial mod: catboy neko mod & this 'guide' has been reported :D

[Chama]

this isn't meant for servers, it's meant for solo play. There are mods in here that probably dont work for servers

[Ashix/Saiyett]

I got a dedicated server running, and then I added mods and now it doesn't :D
I put in the core mods, the essentials, and the quality of life. Any idea which might be borking it before I go add them one at a time?

[Agent Missouri]

this collection is lit, thanks champ

[Nightengale537]

My 2nd comment was purely for reasons for lack of updates maybe abandonment who knows either way it was a good mod that showcased what you can do with the engine when you push it far enough

[Chama]

@Houbi, thanks mate!

@Don Monda, that sounds like a very personal mod to add, which isn't what this guide is about :D