V Rising Server Requirements Calculator

V Rising dedicated server requirements

The V Rising dedicated server is distributed for free through Steam (app ID 1829350) and is currently a Windows-only binary. On Linux it is run through Wine or Proton, which is well documented by the community and adds only a small amount of overhead. The server is a separate download from the game client and does not require a paid copy of the game to host.

RAM

The server process alone sits at roughly 4 GB at idle on an empty world, but that idle figure is a floor, not a target. A safe practical baseline is 8 GB for a small group of friends, which is what most hosts now provision by default. As players build castles and more of the map stays loaded, memory use climbs: target 10-12 GB for 10-20 players and 12-16 GB for a full 40-player server. A crucial point that trips people up: RAM scales with the world (number and size of castles, loaded chunks), not purely with how many players are currently online. A server with many offline players' castles still holds that data in memory.

CPU

This is the most important and most misunderstood part. V Rising's simulation runs on a small number of hot threads, so clock speed and single-core performance matter far more than core count. The server processes player movement, combat, boss AI, castle servants, and raid mechanics largely sequentially each tick. Two to four fast cores (3.5 GHz and up, ideally 4.0 GHz+ boost on a modern architecture) will outperform a CPU with many slow cores. During castle sieges and large PvP fights the tick rate can drop on weak CPUs, and no amount of extra RAM will fix CPU-bound tick lag.

Storage

The server install plus a starting world is small. Many hosts allocate around 30 GB, and a realistic base of 10 GB covers the install and an active world with growth headroom. Save files grow as castles and entities accumulate, so leave room and back up regularly. SSD/NVMe is recommended for faster world load and save operations, though storage speed is rarely the bottleneck for V Rising.

Network and ports

Bandwidth needs are modest. By default the server uses UDP port 9876 for game traffic and UDP port 9877 for Steam queries (RCON, if enabled, uses TCP). Both the game port and the query port must be open in the firewall and forwarded on the router for the server to appear in the server browser. Plan for roughly a few GB of egress per active player per month under typical play.

Player count

The configuration default is 40 players (MaxConnectedUsers in ServerHostSettings.json), and 40 is the slot count most communities treat as "full." The server technically supports up to 128, but high-population servers are CPU-limited and rarely stay perfectly smooth during large events regardless of how much hardware you throw at them.

Vanilla vs. modded

Modded servers run on BepInEx, which needs about 8 GB of RAM just to boot the first time. Plugins (extra storage, PvE/PvP overhauls, content mods) add both memory and CPU load, and modded servers require the ServerLaunchFix mod so the launched server uses the same mods as the client. Budget roughly 1.5-2x the vanilla RAM for a meaningfully modded server.

Optimizing your V Rising server

Because V Rising is CPU-bound, most real performance wins come from configuration and host choice rather than raw RAM.

• Pick the fastest single-core CPU you can. When comparing plans or VPS offerings, look at per-core clock speed and architecture, not just core count or total GHz. A modern 4.5 GHz core beats four older 2.4 GHz cores for this game.
• Tune the game settings, not just the hardware. Castle limits, decay rates, and the number of allowed castle hearts per player directly affect how many entities the server simulates. Generous castle and servant limits on a high-pop server are a leading cause of tick-rate drops.
• Use SSD/NVMe storage for faster world loads and quicker, less disruptive autosaves. Set a sensible save/backup interval so saves do not stack up during peak play.
• Keep the server updated. The server version must match the client version after each patch, or players cannot connect. Automate the SteamCMD update step.
• On Linux, run under Wine/Proton with a clean prefix and a systemd service for reliable restarts. Force SteamCMD to download the Windows platform so you get the correct binaries.
• Watch tick rate, not just CPU percentage. A core can be pegged on one thread while overall CPU usage looks low. If raids feel laggy, you are CPU-thread-limited; reduce simulated load (castle/entity limits) or move to a faster core.
• For modded servers, add only the plugins you need. Each plugin adds per-tick work. Test on a staging world and monitor performance after each addition rather than installing a large mod pack blindly.
• Reserve admin slots (MaxConnectedAdmins) so staff can join a full server, and set MaxConnectedUsers to a number your CPU can actually sustain during sieges, not the highest number you can technically set.

What to look for in a host

Because V Rising lives and dies on single-thread CPU speed, the single most important spec to check is the per-core clock speed and CPU generation of the underlying hardware. A host advertising a high core count tells you little; ask which CPU the node uses and what its boost clock is. Modern desktop-class chips with strong single-core performance are ideal for this game.

Beyond the CPU, evaluate:

• RAM headroom. Make sure you can comfortably exceed the ~4 GB idle footprint and grow into 8-16 GB (or more for modded). Look for plans that let you upgrade RAM without migrating.
• Location and latency. Pick a region close to most of your players. Survival PvP and raids are latency-sensitive, so geographic proximity often matters more than headline specs.
• DDoS protection. Public V Rising servers are common targets; network-level mitigation is worth having.
• Easy mod and config access. One-click or guided BepInEx installation, plus FTP/SFTP and a web console, make managing plugins and editing ServerHostSettings.json far less painful.
• Automatic backups and easy restores. Worlds grow and corruption can happen; scheduled backups you can roll back to are essential.
• Automatic version updates. The server must match the client after every patch, so a host that updates promptly saves you downtime.
• NVMe/SSD storage for faster loads and saves, and the ability to run on Windows or properly configured Wine/Proton on Linux.

Whether you self-host on a VPS or use a managed game-server provider, judge offerings on these capabilities rather than on marketing slot numbers.

CPU note: Single-thread-bound. V Rising runs its world simulation, castle/servant logic, and combat ticks largely on a few hot threads, so high clock speed (3.5 GHz+, ideally 4.0 GHz+ boost) matters far more than core count. Prioritize a modern CPU with strong single-core performance (e.g. Ryzen 7000/9000 or recent Intel) over many slow cores.

Numbers are for the Release (1.0.x) dedicated server. The server binary is Windows-only (Steam app ID 1829350); on Linux it runs under Wine/Proton with a small extra RAM/CPU overhead. RAM scales with how many castles exist and how much of the map is loaded, not just live player count, so a 'full' world with offline players' castles still consumes memory. The ~4 GB idle figure is just the empty-world floor; provision 8 GB as a practical minimum. CPU is the real bottleneck during raids/sieges; adding RAM will not fix tick lag caused by a slow single-core CPU. Bandwidth is modest (a few GB per active player per month for typical play).