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Getting Started

Creating Your First Addon

1. Addon Folder Structure

ArcheAge loads addons from the following directory:

C:\ArcheRage\Documents\Addon

Inside this directory, create a new folder for your addon. The folder name will become your addon’s identifier.

Example:

C:\ArcheRage\Documents\Addon\MyFirstAddon\

2. Create Your First Lua File

Inside your addon folder (MyFirstAddon), create at least one .lua file (e.g., MyFirstAddon.lua) and add some basic code to verify it loads.

Minimal example (MyFirstAddon.lua):

ADDON:ChatLog("My First Addon loaded successfully!")

3. Create the Table of Contents File (toc.g)

Every addon must contain a file named toc.g in its root folder. This file tells the game which Lua files to load and in which order.

Example toc.g content:

# My First Addon
MyFirstAddon.lua

After saving both toc.g and your Lua file(s):

  1. Launch (or restart) ArcheAge.
  2. At the character selection screen, open the Addon setup menu (usually accessible via a button near the top right of the screen).
  3. Locate your addon in the list.
  4. Enable it by checking the box.

Enable addon at character select

  1. Log into the game world.
  2. View the chat window and look for the message: My First Addon loaded successfully!

If the message appears, your addon has loaded correctly and is functioning as expected.

Important note on addon detection and reloading:

  • For a new toc.g (brand new addon that didn’t exist at launch), you must fully restart the client to detect it.
  • For changes to an existing toc.g or Lua files, you can reload using Addon Manager.
  • Alternatively, return to the character selection screen to reload, but Addon Manager is faster for development.

WARNING: Reloading can crash the client

Addon reloads are generally safe but can cause crashes in certain circumstances:

  • Infinite loops
  • UI memory leaks or texture loading issues
  • Conflicts with other addons or existing UI objects

Safe development workflow:

  1. Test new code on a fresh character

  2. Start with minimal addons

  3. If a crash occurs: Check these log files for error details:

    • C:\ArcheRage\Documents\ArcheRage.log (main game log)
    • C:\ArcheRage\Documents\ArcheRage.crash (crash dump)

    Look for lines mentioning your addon widget names, UI Logic Errors, Lua errors, or stack traces.

Pro tip: Keep Addon Manager open during development — disable your addon instantly if something goes wrong, then reload safely.