Palworld Server Settings 2026: Sakurajima + Tower of Mercy Configs

Update May 2026: Palworld’s server-settings catalogue has expanded across two major updates: Sakurajima (mid-2025) added new tuneables for the Sakurajima island, and Tower of Mercy (early 2026) introduced raid-difficulty scaling settings. This guide covers the current PalWorldSettings.ini options as of V1.0+/Tower of Mercy era, with realistic tuning suggestions for small / medium / large groups.

Where the Settings Live

For a dedicated server, the master config file is at:

• Windows: Pal\Saved\Config\WindowsServer\PalWorldSettings.ini
• Linux: Pal/Saved/Config/LinuxServer/PalWorldSettings.ini

The OptionSettings line at the top of the file holds all the comma-separated tunables. Edit, save, restart the server.

Core Group-Size Settings

Setting	Default	Realistic 4-player	Realistic 16-player	Realistic 32-player
ServerPlayerMaxNum	32	4	16	32
ServerName	generic	your group’s name	same	same
ServerDescription	blank	note your rules	same	same
AdminPassword	blank	strong password	strong	strong
ServerPassword	blank	set if private	set if private	often public
RCONEnabled	false	true (admin convenience)	true	true

Pal Behavior & Capture Tuning

Setting	Default	Casual	Hardcore
PalCaptureRate	1.0	1.5-2.0 (faster catches)	1.0 (default difficulty)
PalSpawnNumRate	1.0	1.5	1.0-2.0 (more pals around)
PalDamageRateAttack	1.0	1.0	0.7 for harder fights
PalDamageRateDefense	1.0	1.5 (less death)	1.0
PalAutoHPRegeneRate	1.0	1.5 (faster heals)	1.0
PalAutoHpRegeneRateInSleep	1.0	2.0	1.0

Player & Combat Tuning

Setting	Default	Notes
PlayerDamageRateAttack	1.0	1.5 for casual; 0.8 for hardcore
PlayerDamageRateDefense	1.0	1.5 reduces deaths in casual; 1.0 for hardcore
PlayerStomachDecreaseRate	1.0	0.5 for less micromanagement
PlayerStaminaDecreaseRate	1.0	0.7 if your group hates stamina drain
PlayerAutoHPRegeneRate	1.0	1.5 for casual
DeathPenalty	All	None / Item / ItemAndEquipment / All — pick based on group difficulty preference

Resource & Crafting Multipliers

Setting	Default	Casual	Hardcore
CollectionDropRate	1.0	2.0	1.0
CollectionObjectHpRate	1.0	0.5 (faster harvest)	1.0
CollectionObjectRespawnSpeedRate	1.0	1.5	1.0
EnemyDropItemRate	1.0	1.5	1.0
WorkSpeedRate	1.0	1.5 (faster Pal work)	1.0
ExpRate	1.0	1.5-2.0	1.0

Day / Night Cycle

Setting	Default	Notes
DayTimeSpeedRate	1.0	0.5 = longer days; 2.0 = faster cycle
NightTimeSpeedRate	1.0	2.0 = shorter nights (less hostile encounters)
ExpRate	1.0	see Resource section

Sakurajima & Tower of Mercy-Era Settings

The 2025 Sakurajima patch and the 2026 Tower of Mercy patch added tuneables not in the original V0.x docs:

• SakurajimaContentEnabled — toggle the Sakurajima island. Default: true. Set false if your community is still on V0.x progression.
• RaidDifficultyRate — introduced with Tower of Mercy. 0.5 for casual raid bosses; 1.5 for hardcore.
• RaidEnemyHpRate — raid-specific HP scaling.
• BellanoirEncountersEnabled — toggle Bellanoir-line raid bosses (Tower of Mercy content).
• TowerOfMercyContentEnabled — master toggle for the patch’s content.

Backup & Save Settings

Setting	Default	Recommendation
AutoSaveSpan	30 (seconds)	30 for active groups; 60 if disk I/O is bottlenecked
EnableInvaderEnemy	true	false for purely peaceful runs
EnablePlayerToPlayerDamage	false	true for PvP servers
EnableFriendlyFire	false	true for hardcore PvE+PvP groups
EnableInvaderEnemy	true	true for default; false for ultra-casual

Recommended Profiles for Common Group Types

4-Player Casual / First Run

PalCaptureRate=1.5, ExpRate=1.5, CollectionDropRate=1.5, PlayerAutoHPRegeneRate=1.5, DeathPenalty=Item

16-Player Modded / Mid-Hardcore

PalCaptureRate=1.0, ExpRate=1.0, RaidDifficultyRate=1.0, DeathPenalty=ItemAndEquipment, EnablePlayerToPlayerDamage=true (with rules)

32-Player Open / Public

PalCaptureRate=1.0, ExpRate=1.0, ServerPassword=blank, EnableInvaderEnemy=true, RaidDifficultyRate=1.0

Common Mistakes

• Editing the wrong file. Linux uses LinuxServer subdirectory, Windows uses WindowsServer. Edit the matching one.
• Restart required. Settings don’t apply until full server restart.
• OptionSettings line is one-liner. Don’t break it across multiple lines — the parser reads it as a single comma-separated list.
• Backup before bulk changes. Mistype a value, the server fails to boot. Save the .ini before edits.
• Sakurajima/Tower of Mercy options need server on the matching version. If your server is V0.x, those settings are ignored.

Bottom Line

The PalWorldSettings.ini surface area has roughly doubled since launch. Pick a difficulty profile, set the multipliers, and tune one section at a time. Don’t change everything at once.

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