Smooth Sailing

Smooth Sailing is a lightweight, configurable boat and sailing quality-of-life mod for Valheim 1.0, built for BepInEx + Jotunn.

It improves sailing without replacing the core ship experience, with selectable favorable-wind modes, configurable sailing wind intensity, improved rowing, and increased map exploration while traveling by ship.

Features

Favorable Wind

Smooth Sailing can provide a favorable effective wind while controlling a ship at Half or Full sail.

Four sailing modes are available:

• Off - Vanilla wind behavior.
• Dead Astern - Effective wind directly behind the ship.
• +60° Offset - Favorable wind offset to one side of the ship.
• -60° Offset - Favorable wind offset to the opposite side.

The offset angle is configurable and defaults to 60°.

A server administrator can cycle the modes in-game using the configured Admin Toggle Key (default: K):

Off -> Dead Astern -> +60° -> -60° -> Off

The selected mode is synchronized so participating clients use the same sailing behavior.

Sailing Wind Intensity

Smooth Sailing can independently control the effective wind intensity used for sailing while a favorable-wind mode is active.

Three intensity modes are available:

• Vanilla - Uses Valheim's current environmental wind intensity.
• Minimum - Enforces a configurable minimum sailing wind intensity while preserving stronger natural wind.
• Maximum - Always uses maximum sailing wind intensity.

The default intensity mode is Vanilla, preserving Valheim's normal variation in wind strength unless an administrator chooses otherwise.

Accurate Sailing Visuals

When a favorable-wind mode is active:

• The physical sail responds to the effective sailing wind direction.
• Sail cloth strength reflects the effective Smooth Sailing wind intensity.
• The circular sailing wind indicator displays the effective wind direction and favorable-wind state.
• Positive and negative offsets appear on their corresponding sides.
• The minimap wind arrow remains tied to Valheim's true environmental wind.
• Valheim's world/environmental wind remains unchanged.

This allows the ship's propulsion, sail, and sailing HUD to represent the effective wind actually affecting the ship while preserving normal world-wind information outside the sailing system.

Improved Rowing

• Configurable forward rowing speed multiplier.
• Configurable reverse rowing speed multiplier.
• Forward and reverse speeds can be tuned independently.

Ship Exploration

• Configurable map exploration radius multiplier while aboard a ship.
• Makes ocean exploration and coastline mapping significantly more convenient.

Multiplayer & Server Configuration

• Gameplay settings use Jotunn synchronized AdminOnly configuration.
• Server administrators control synchronized gameplay settings.
• Favorable-wind modes can be changed live by an administrator.
• Selected wind modes are synchronized to participating clients.
• Designed for dedicated-server as well as single-player use.

Requirements

• Valheim 1.0.x
• BepInExPack Valheim 5.4.2350+
• Jotunn 2.30.0+
• Smooth Sailing must be installed on the server and all participating clients for multiplayer use.

Installation

Thunderstore

Install Smooth Sailing through a compatible Thunderstore mod manager along with its required dependencies.

Manual Installation

Place:

SmoothSailing.dll

inside:

BepInEx/plugins/SmoothSailing/

The mod will generate its configuration file after the game is launched.

Default Configuration

[General]
Enabled = true

[Tailwind]
Tailwind Mode = DeadAstern
Offset Angle = 60
Wind Intensity Mode = Vanilla
Minimum Wind Intensity = 0.5
Admin Toggle Key = K

[Exploration]
Ship Exploration Radius Multiplier = 2

[Rowing]
Forward Row Speed Multiplier = 1.5
Backward Row Speed Multiplier = 2

Configuration

General

Enabled

Enables or disables Smooth Sailing.

Default: true

Tailwind

Tailwind Mode

Controls the effective sailing-wind mode.

Available values:

• Off
• DeadAstern
• PositiveOffset
• NegativeOffset

Default: DeadAstern

Offset Angle

Controls the angle used by the PositiveOffset and NegativeOffset modes.

0 represents dead astern. The default is 60 degrees.

Default: 60

Wind Intensity Mode

Controls the effective wind strength used for ship propulsion and sail visuals while a favorable-wind mode is active.

Available values:

• Vanilla - Uses the current environmental wind intensity.
• Minimum - Uses at least the configured Minimum Wind Intensity, while preserving stronger natural wind.
• Maximum - Uses maximum wind intensity.

Default: Vanilla

Minimum Wind Intensity

Sets the minimum effective sailing wind intensity when Wind Intensity Mode is set to Minimum.

The value ranges from 0 to 1. Natural wind stronger than this setting is preserved.

Default: 0.5

Admin Toggle Key

Allows a server administrator to cycle the Tailwind Mode while in game.

Default: K

Cycle order:

Off -> DeadAstern -> PositiveOffset -> NegativeOffset -> Off

Changing modes displays the selected mode on screen.

Exploration

Ship Exploration Radius Multiplier

Multiplies the normal map exploration radius while aboard a ship.

Default: 2

Rowing

Forward Row Speed Multiplier

Multiplier applied while rowing forward.

Default: 1.5

Backward Row Speed Multiplier

Multiplier applied while rowing in reverse.

Default: 2

Why 60 Degrees?

Valheim does not produce its maximum forward sailing force with the wind directly behind the ship.

The selectable offset-wind modes in Smooth Sailing were inspired by HelmWind by SirRomey, which analyzed Valheim's vanilla sail-force behavior.

SirRomey's analysis found peak sail efficiency at approximately 63° off dead astern, with a 60° offset effectively reaching that peak. HelmWind estimates this produces approximately 2.5% more forward speed than sailing directly downwind, with the tradeoff of additional lateral drift.

Smooth Sailing therefore defaults its offset modes to 60°, while allowing the angle to be configured.

Credits & Inspiration

Special thanks to SirRomey, creator of HelmWind, for the analysis and concept that inspired Smooth Sailing's offset-wind modes.

HelmWind demonstrated the advantage of maintaining approximately a 60° favorable wind angle rather than simply forcing the wind directly astern.

Smooth Sailing expands on that concept with:

• Server-synchronized favorable-wind modes.
• Dedicated-server support.
• Administrator-only live mode cycling.
• Both positive and negative configurable offsets.
• Synchronized sailing behavior for participating clients.
• Physical sail and sailing-indicator integration.
• Configurable Vanilla, Minimum, and Maximum sailing wind intensity.
• Sail-cloth visuals that reflect the effective sailing wind strength.
• Preservation of Valheim's true environmental wind on the minimap and outside the sailing system.

HelmWind:

https://thunderstore.io/c/valheim/p/SirRomey/HelmWind/

Multiplayer

Smooth Sailing supports both single-player and multiplayer.

For multiplayer, install the mod on:

• The dedicated server, if one is being used.
• Every player connecting to the server.

Gameplay configuration is synchronized using Jotunn's AdminOnly configuration system, allowing the server administrator to control synchronized settings for all players.

Some Smooth Sailing functionality is necessarily performed client-side, including map exploration and visual presentation.

Favorable-wind ship behavior is designed to remain consistent when different players take control of the ship, including situations where the active captain and the ship's network owner are different players. Favorable sail visuals are also applied across participating clients.

Multiplayer captain switching, network ownership behavior, and sail visuals continue to benefit from community testing. Bug reports are welcome.

Reporting Bugs

Found a problem with Smooth Sailing?

Please report it through the Issues section of the Smooth Sailing GitHub repository:

https://github.com/P377Y/Smooth-Sailing/issues

When reporting a multiplayer or sailing issue, please include:

• Smooth Sailing version
• Valheim version
• BepInEx and Jotunn versions
• Single-player or multiplayer
• Dedicated server or locally hosted game
• Number of players
• Whether you were the ship captain when the problem occurred
• Ship type and sail setting
• Selected Smooth Sailing wind mode
• Selected Wind Intensity Mode and Minimum Wind Intensity, when relevant
• Steps to reproduce the problem
• Your BepInEx LogOutput.log when possible

Building from Source

Smooth Sailing targets .NET Framework 4.7.2.

Open:

SmoothSailing.slnx

in Visual Studio and build using the Release configuration.

The compiled mod will be generated at:

bin/Release/net472/SmoothSailing.dll

The project requires references to the Valheim, BepInEx, Harmony, Jotunn, and MagicaCloth2 assemblies.

License

Smooth Sailing is released under the MIT License.

See License.txt for details.

Changelog

0.3.4 - Multiplayer Sync Improvements

• Added server-authoritative synchronization for Smooth Sailing mode changes.
• Admin hotkey changes are now sent to the server, validated, and synchronized to connected players.
• Improved sail visual synchronization so non-controlling players should see the same favorable-wind sail orientation as the captain.
• Added proper handling for solo and locally hosted worlds.
• Mode-change notifications now appear after the server confirms the change.
• Improved support for multiple actively sailing ships, with favorable wind calculated independently relative to each ship's heading.
• Additional multiplayer testing and feedback is welcome, especially with multiple players and multiple ships sailing simultaneously.

0.3.3

Changed

• Improved sail visual behavior to more closely preserve Valheim's native sail rotation and positioning.
• Smooth Sailing now substitutes its effective wind direction while retaining Valheim's native sail-angle calculation and rotation speed.

Technical

• Audited sail propulsion, rowing propulsion, wind intensity, ship exploration, and MagicaCloth wind handling against the current Valheim implementation.

0.3.2

Fixed

• Fixed ships bouncing or jumping while rowing, particularly at high rowing speed multipliers.
• Corrected rowing force handling so forward and reverse multipliers no longer affect ship buoyancy.
• Improved rowing stability across the full configurable multiplier range.

0.3.1

Fixed

• Updated ship cleanup handling for compatibility with Valheim 1.0.12.
• Replaced the removed Ship.OnDestroy lifecycle hook with Ship.OnDisable.
• Restored clean Smooth Sailing initialization following the latest Valheim/Jotunn update.

Changed

• Added "boat" terminology to package metadata and README for improved discoverability.

0.3.0

Added

• Added configurable sailing wind intensity with three modes:
  • Vanilla — uses Valheim's current environmental wind intensity.
  • Minimum — enforces a configurable minimum sailing wind intensity while preserving stronger natural wind.
  • Maximum — always uses maximum sailing wind intensity.
• Added configurable Minimum Wind Intensity, defaulting to 0.5.
• Added ship-local MagicaCloth wind handling so sail cloth visually responds to Smooth Sailing's effective wind strength.

Improved

• Ship propulsion now uses Smooth Sailing's effective wind direction and intensity together in the sail-force calculation.
• Sail cloth strength now matches the effective sailing wind instead of remaining dependent on the world's current wind intensity.
• Sailing HUD favorable-wind state now reflects the effective Smooth Sailing wind used for propulsion.
• Wind direction, wind intensity, propulsion, sail orientation, sail cloth, and the sailing HUD now use a consistent effective sailing-wind model.
• Valheim's true environmental wind remains unchanged outside Smooth Sailing's ship-specific sailing behavior.
• The minimap wind arrow continues to display the true environmental wind.
• Offset modes continue to default to 60°.

Fixed

• Fixed Maximum wind intensity producing full-speed calculations while the physical sail could remain visually flat during low environmental wind.
• Fixed ships losing sail propulsion when sailing into the true environmental headwind even though Smooth Sailing was supplying a favorable effective wind.
• Fixed the sailing wind indicator appearing unfavorable when the effective Smooth Sailing wind was favorable.
• Fixed residual environmental wind direction leaking into the final sail-force vector and causing stalled or unintended lateral movement in Dead Astern mode.

Testing

Version 0.3.0 has been tested with:

• Vanilla, Minimum, and Maximum wind-intensity modes.
• Dead Astern, positive offset, negative offset, and Off sailing modes.
• Maximum effective wind while sailing directly into the true environmental headwind.
• Sail-cloth response at different environmental wind intensities.
• Sailing HUD and minimap wind-indicator behavior.

Additional multiplayer and dedicated-server testing is welcome, particularly around captain changes, network ownership, and sail visuals across clients.

Please report issues at:

https://github.com/P377Y/Smooth-Sailing/issues

0.2.0

Added

• Added selectable sailing wind modes:
  • Off — vanilla wind behavior.
  • Dead Astern — favorable wind directly behind the ship.
  • +60° Offset — favorable wind offset to one side.
  • -60° Offset — favorable wind offset to the opposite side.
• Added a configurable favorable-wind offset angle, defaulting to 60°.
• Added in-game wind-mode cycling for the local host and server administrators.
• Added configurable Admin Toggle Key, defaulting to K.
• Added on-screen feedback when changing sailing modes.
• Added synchronization of the selected sailing mode for multiplayer and dedicated servers.

Improved

• Expanded favorable-wind support beyond the original dead-astern tailwind lock.
• Physical sail orientation now reflects Smooth Sailing's effective sailing wind.
• The circular sailing HUD indicator now reflects the effective sailing wind.
• Positive and negative offset modes correctly display the effective wind on their respective sides.
• The minimap wind arrow continues to display Valheim's true environmental wind rather than the wind being applied by Smooth Sailing.
• Improved multiplayer synchronization so participating clients use the server-selected sailing mode.
• Retained support for captain/network-owner differences introduced in previous multiplayer updates.

Credits & Inspiration

• Added selectable offset-wind modes inspired by HelmWind by SirRomey.
• SirRomey's analysis of Valheim's vanilla sail-force curve identifies peak efficiency at approximately 63° off dead astern. HelmWind uses a practical 60° default, which sits effectively at the peak and is estimated to provide roughly 2.5% more forward speed than dead-astern sailing, at the cost of additional lateral drift.
• Smooth Sailing builds on this concept with configurable positive and negative offsets, dedicated-server support, synchronized sailing behavior, administrator-controlled live mode cycling, and integrated sail/HUD visuals while preserving Valheim's true environmental wind on the minimap.

HelmWind: https://thunderstore.io/c/valheim/p/SirRomey/HelmWind/

Testing

Version 0.2.0 significantly expands Smooth Sailing's wind-handling and multiplayer behavior. Additional community testing is especially welcome for:

• Dedicated servers with multiple players.
• Switching captains while a favorable-wind mode is active.
• Cases where the captain is not the current network owner of the ship.
• Switching between Off, Dead Astern, +Offset, and -Offset modes during sailing.
• Sail orientation as viewed by passengers and other players.
• Sailing HUD and minimap wind-indicator behavior across clients.
• Different ship types.

Please report issues at:

https://github.com/P377Y/Smooth-Sailing/issues

0.1.2

Multiplayer Tailwind Improvements

• Improved multiplayer tailwind handling when the ship captain and network owner are different players.
• Favorable wind is now applied to ship physics for both the active captain and the client currently responsible for the ship's network simulation.
• This addresses cases where a non-owner captain could see favorable wind on their HUD while the ship itself still behaved as though it were sailing into the real environmental wind.
• Improved forced-tailwind sail visuals so the favorable sail orientation can be rendered for non-captain players as well.
• Improved sail visual stability while turning and while the underlying environmental wind changes.
• Updated internal sailing checks to better separate ship physics, captain-specific wind behavior, and shared sail visuals.

Testing

Multiplayer tailwind and sail visual behavior are still being actively tested.

In particular, additional testing is welcome for:

• Captain changes between players.
• Cases where the captain is not the current network owner of the ship.
• Sailing directly into unfavorable environmental wind.
• Sail orientation as viewed by passengers and other non-captain players.

If you encounter a sailing, captain-switching, sail-visual, exploration-radius, or networking issue, please report it here:

https://github.com/P377Y/Smooth-Sailing/issues

0.1.1

Important

The internal mod ID was renamed in 0.1.1. Existing 0.1.0 settings may need to be reconfigured because Smooth Sailing now uses a new config file.

• Renamed the internal mod/project branding from P377Y Tailwind to Smooth Sailing.
• Changed tailwind handling to better follow the active ship captain in multiplayer.
• Improved favorable-wind behavior during captain changes and multiplayer sailing.
• Renamed the compiled mod to SmoothSailing.dll.
• Added public GitHub source repository and bug tracker.
• Added structured GitHub bug reports for multiplayer and sailing issues.

0.1.0

• Initial development build.
• Tailwind lock while controlling a ship at half/full sail.
• Matching local wind indicator.
• Ship exploration-radius multiplier.
• Separate forward and reverse rowing multipliers.
• Server-synchronized admin-only configuration through Jotunn.