RimWorld Mods Library
This is the Crit Pick RimWorld mod library — a comprehensive, always-updated catalogue of every mod we cover, from a single quality-of-life tweak to a whole series like Vanilla Expanded. It's built for RimWorld players hunting their next install: filter by setting (the world it's set in: vanilla RimWorld, medieval, cyberpunk, and more) and by type (what it does: storyteller, quality of life, gameplay, content) to find, compare and install mods without trawling a dozen forum threads. Pick one of each to narrow it down, or leave both on "All" to browse the lot. The list builds itself from our coverage and reads it live, so it never goes stale, and each card links straight to the write-up.
Find a mod
Loading the library…
How the library works
Two ways to filter
Every mod here is tagged on two axes, and the filters read those tags. Setting is the world the mod is set in — vanilla RimWorld by default, or a reskinned era like medieval, cyberpunk or fantasy when a mod takes the rim somewhere else. Type is what the mod is or does: storyteller adds or changes the AI that paces events, quality of life smooths friction without touching balance, gameplay changes the rules, content adds new things, overhaul reworks a whole system, and there's room for visual, interface, audio, utility, framework and translation. Pick one setting and one type together to drill down, or leave either on "All".
How the list stays current
Nothing on this page is typed by hand. It reads the Crit Pick feed and pulls in every post tagged both rimworld and mod, then reads each one's setting and type from its tags. Publish a new mod write-up with those tags and it shows up here on the next load — no edit to this page needed. The filter chips and their counts build themselves from whatever is in the feed, so a brand-new category appears the moment a mod uses it.
Where the labels come from
Each mod page carries its tags, and the filters read them. The setting is a theme tag like medieval or cyberpunk when a mod reskins the world; with no theme tag a mod is treated as vanilla RimWorld. The type is one tag from the Crit Pick mod taxonomy — storyteller, quality-of-life and the rest — and it also lives in the page's structured data as the mod's genre, so search engines and AI read the same classification a reader sees. A mod missing its type tag still exists on its own page; it just won't slot into the Type filter until it's tagged.
How to install mods
Where to find mods
Most RimWorld mods live on the Steam Workshop, which is the easiest source. Plenty are mirrored on Nexus Mods, and mods that aren't on Steam — or that you'd rather keep DRM-free — usually have a GitHub page instead.
Installing a mod
On the Steam Workshop, open a mod's page, hit Subscribe, and Steam downloads it the next time you launch the game; then run RimWorld and tick it on in the in-game mod list. For a Nexus or GitHub download, grab the latest release, unzip it, and drop the folder into RimWorld's own Mods folder by hand. That folder's location varies by operating system, so check the path for Windows, macOS or Linux before you copy anything in.
Load order and compatibility
RimWorld loads mods top to bottom, and some have to come before others: the Core module sits first, frameworks like Harmony and HugsLib load early so the mods that depend on them can build on top, and big overhauls such as Combat Extended go later. A manager like RimPy or RimSort organises the list for you and flags problems before you launch. Run a bunch of mods together and a few will occasionally disagree — most of the time a compatibility patch smooths it over, and when two are flatly incompatible the mod's page tends to say so.
Performance and troubleshooting
If a heavily modded game starts to drag, performance mods help: RocketMan rewrites parts of the game's processing to claw back speed in the late game. When something breaks for no obvious reason, verifying the game's file integrity through Steam clears up a surprising number of mod-related issues. And if a mod warns it isn't save-safe, start a fresh colony rather than risk an existing one.
Library questions, answered
What is a RimWorld mod library?
Two things share the name. This page is one of them: a curated, always-updated catalogue of RimWorld mods you can filter by setting and type and browse in one place. The other sense is a kind of mod — a library, or framework, that provides shared code and tools other mods rely on. Those framework mods are the foundation a lot of popular mods are built on: Harmony patches the game so mods can change it safely, and HugsLib supplies common plumbing like mod settings and in-game logging. You rarely run them for their own sake, but plenty of mods won't load without them.
What's the difference between "setting" and "type"?
Setting is the world the mod is set in — vanilla RimWorld, or a reskinned era like medieval, cyberpunk or fantasy. Type is what the mod does: storyteller, quality of life, gameplay, content, and so on. They're independent, so you can ask for, say, medieval content mods by setting one filter to Medieval and the other to Content.
What do the types mean?
Most mods sit in one type:
Storyteller — adds or changes the AI storyteller that paces events and difficulty.
Quality of life — smooths friction without touching the base game's balance.
Gameplay — changes the rules: mechanics, AI, combat, or the social side, the way Hospitality lets you host and win over visitors.
Content — adds new things: weapons, armor, clothing, walls, medical items, animals, factions, even whole new systems like Dubs Bad Hygiene's bathing and thirst, up to big series like Vanilla Expanded.
Overhaul — reworks a whole system; Combat Extended, for one, rebuilds ballistics and inventory to make combat more realistic.
Visual — cosmetic only: new textures and effects.
Interface — changes what you see and click, like RimHUD's customizable readout of colonist stats.
Audio — music, ambience and sound.
Utility — tools that act on the game or its files, like the RimPy and RimSort mod managers.
Framework — a library other mods build on for support, like Harmony, HugsLib or Humanoid Alien Races.
Translation — localisation.
Can I combine filters?
Yes. The two rows work together — choose a setting and a type to see only mods that match both. The count under the filters updates to show how many fit, and each chip shows how many it would leave you given the other filter. Set either row back to "All" to widen again.
Does it update on its own?
Yes. The library reads the Crit Pick feed live and shows every mod we cover. Publish a new mod page tagged with its setting and type and it appears here on the next load — there's no separate list to maintain.
Why is a mod missing from the library?
Almost always because it isn't fully tagged. A mod appears once it carries both the rimworld and mod tags; it then needs a type tag (storyteller, quality-of-life, …) to land in the Type filter, and a theme tag (medieval, cyberpunk, …) only if it isn't vanilla — otherwise it sits under RimWorld by default. Add the missing tag on the mod's own page and it slots in; there's nothing to edit here.
Where's the full list of games, or the release dates?
This page is mods only. For a directory of every game Crit Pick covers, see all games; for releases sorted by date with countdowns, see the release timeline.
Spotted a mod we cover that's missing here, or filed under the wrong type? The fix is the tags on the mod's own page, not this one. This library is built from Crit Pick's own coverage and reads it live — all game and mod names, logos and trademarks are the property of their respective owners.