Frequently Asked Questions
Is the game really free?
Yes. Phantom Badlands is completely free with no microtransactions, ads, or premium currency. It's a passion project.
What is permadeath?
When your character dies, they're gone forever. However, your Sanctuary (account-level home) preserves registered companions, stored items, and Baddie Points earned from each death. Every new character starts fresh but benefits from what you've built.
How do I play with friends?
Walk into another player to send a party invite. Parties of up to 4 players share combat, dungeons, and snake-formation movement. You can also trade items and companions directly. Use /friend add <username> to maintain a persistent friend list with online status, or /c <message> for clan chat and /p <message> for party chat.
What's the Mentor system?
Players at Level 20+ can volunteer as mentors with /mentor on — a gold ★ appears next to their name. When a mentor parties with a Level < 10 player and they win combat together, the whole party earns +25% XP. Use /mentors to see who's currently mentoring. Whispers from new players display a [NEW Lv X] tag for mentors to spot quickly.
Does anything I do persist after death?
Yes — your account keeps a lot. Your Sanctuary, registered companions, stored items, Baddie Points, account Valor, clan membership, friend list, block list, and trade history all persist across permadeath. Only the character's level, stats, inventory, and gold are lost. Use Home Stones to send specific eggs, equipment, or supplies to the Sanctuary before a risky run.
What platforms are supported?
Currently Windows 64-bit only. The game is lightweight (text-based) and runs on virtually any modern PC.
How do I report bugs?
Use /bug <description> in-game, or post on the GitHub Discussions forum.
Is there PvP?
Not currently. The focus is on cooperative PvE, exploration, and the social title system (Jarl, High King, etc.).
How often is the game updated?
Very frequently. Updates are pushed regularly with new features, balance changes, and bug fixes. The launcher auto-updates so you're always on the latest version.
I forgot my password. What do I do?
Contact the game admin on the forum with your username and they can reset it for you.
Can I contribute to the game?
Absolutely! The game is open source on GitHub. Feature suggestions, bug reports, and pull requests are all welcome.