Conan Exiles Decay System (2026): Full Server Reference
Building decay is one of the most-misunderstood systems in Conan Exiles. It controls when player bases become abandoned, lootable, and eventually destroyed if no one shows up. Done right, decay keeps your server clean. Done wrong, it wipes a player's house while they're on vacation.
Need to set decay rules for an active community? Read the playstyle presets below first. Default settings are aggressive enough to lose players if you forget to communicate the rules.
How decay works
Each placed building piece has a decay timer. The timer ticks down whenever the clan that owns it has nobody online. When a clan member logs in or interacts with the structure, the timer resets to maximum.
Three states a building can be in:
- Active — timer above zero, building is owned, no one can loot it.
- Abandoned — timer hit zero. Anyone can loot containers and dismantle pieces. Ownership cleared.
- Destroyed — after a grace period in abandoned state, the engine despawns the structure entirely.
The decay-related ServerSettings.ini knobs
| Setting | Default | Effect |
|---|---|---|
AbandonmentDisabled | False | If True, decay is OFF. Buildings never abandon. Use carefully — server will fill with abandoned structures over time. |
DecayTimeMultiplier | 1.0 | Base multiplier on all decay timers. 2.0 doubles all decay times. 0.5 halves them. |
ShelterTimeMultiplier | 1.0 | How long decoration / non-protected pieces last vs structural ones. |
StructureDamageMultiplier | 1.0 | Damage to player structures (PvP setting, but interacts with decay). |
StructureDamageInABMultiplier | 1.0 | Damage to structures in Abandoned state. |
Default decay tiers (vanilla)
Different building piece materials have different baseline decay times before DecayTimeMultiplier applies:
- Sandstone — ~7 days
- Stonebrick / Reinforced Stone — ~14 days
- Insulated Wood — ~10 days
- Hardened Brick — ~21 days
- Black Ice — ~21 days
- Arena (best tier) — ~28 days
If you want every building to last the same time regardless of material, use Pippi or set DecayTimeMultiplier high enough that even sandstone lasts the period you care about.
Recommended preset: PvE community
AbandonmentDisabled=False DecayTimeMultiplier=2.0 ShelterTimeMultiplier=2.0
Keeps decay on (so abandoned bases eventually clean up) but doubles all timers. A vacationing player's hardened-brick base survives 6 weeks instead of 3. Most PvE servers use a 2x-3x multiplier.
Recommended preset: PvP server
AbandonmentDisabled=False DecayTimeMultiplier=1.0 StructureDamageInABMultiplier=2.0
Vanilla decay timers (PvP players are usually online frequently). Abandoned bases take double damage so they clean up faster after a wipe-equivalent event. Combine with regular wipes — see the server wipe guide.
Recommended preset: RP / building showcase server
AbandonmentDisabled=True
Decay completely disabled. Acceptable on small whitelisted servers where the admin handles cleanup manually. Do NOT use on a public server — abandoned bases will accumulate forever and tank performance.
Refresh mechanics: how to reset a timer
Three ways the timer resets to full:
- Any clan member logs in and walks within range of the structure.
- A clan member interacts with any container/workstation in the structure.
- Damage is dealt to the structure (during a raid, for example).
One important nuance: the entire connected building counts as one decay unit. If you have a sprawling base, refreshing one foundation refreshes the whole connected mass.
Solo player decay protection
Single-player worlds default to AbandonmentDisabled=True — your buildings won't decay regardless of online time. Only dedicated multiplayer servers care about decay.
Common Questions
How do I see my building's decay timer in-game?
Hold the interact key on a foundation block. The tooltip shows the decay countdown. Pippi mod adds a "decay overlay" command for admins to see all timers across the server.
What happens to my thralls and pets when my base decays?
Stationed thralls and pets persist independent of building decay. They have their own follower timer (much longer) and stay placed where you left them even if the building around them is gone.
Can I refresh a friend's base for them?
Only if you're in the same clan. Standing near someone's base does not refresh it for non-clan members. This is intentional — otherwise PvP raiders could refresh enemy bases.
Does logging in once a week prevent decay?
For most building tiers yes (Stonebrick+ lasts 14+ days vanilla). Sandstone-only bases lose protection in ~7 days. Upgrade to Stonebrick+ if you can only log in weekly.
Want decay sliders in the panel instead of editing files? Rent a Conan Exiles server with Supercraft — AbandonmentDisabled and DecayTimeMultiplier are exposed as panel toggles.