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 |
|---|---|---|
DisableBuildingAbandonment | False | If True, decay is OFF. Buildings never abandon. Use carefully: the server will fill with abandoned structures over time. |
BuildingDecayTimeMultiplier | 1.0 | Multiplier on building decay timers. 2.0 doubles all decay times. 0.5 halves them. |
BuildingDecayTimePerScore | (seconds) | How much decay time each point of building score adds. |
MaxBuildingDecayTime | (seconds) | The cap on any building's decay timer, however big it is. |
ThrallDecayTime | 1296000 (15 days) | How long thralls and pets last when no clan member comes online. |
How long a building lasts
On the Enhanced server a building's decay time comes from its building score: BuildingDecayTimePerScore sets the seconds each point of score adds, MaxBuildingDecayTime is the ceiling for any single building, and BuildingDecayTimeMultiplier stretches or shrinks the timers. A bigger building therefore lasts longer than a small hut.
The game's event log records each step for every building: "changed decay state to normal. Will abandon at ...", then "changed decay state to abandoned. Will decay at ...", and finally "has decayed". Thralls decay separately, after ThrallDecayTime without a clan member online.
To make every building last longer, raise BuildingDecayTimeMultiplier, and raise MaxBuildingDecayTime if your largest bases already sit at the ceiling.
Recommended preset: PvE community
DisableBuildingAbandonment=False BuildingDecayTimeMultiplier=2.0
Keeps decay on (so abandoned bases eventually clean up) but doubles all timers, so a vacationing player's base gets twice as long before it abandons. Most PvE servers use a 2x-3x multiplier.
Recommended preset: PvP server
DisableBuildingAbandonment=False BuildingDecayTimeMultiplier=1.0
Vanilla decay timers (PvP players are usually online frequently). For faster cleanup of dead bases, lower the multiplier below 1.0. An abandoned-damage multiplier such as StructureDamageInABMultiplier is not a setting this server knows. Combine with regular wipes; see the server wipe guide.
Recommended preset: RP / building showcase server
DisableBuildingAbandonment=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.
Known issue in Patch 3.0.0 (6 October 2026): Funcom list that a building decaying away refreshes the decay timer of placeables, so chests, workstations and other placeables can stay behind after the building is gone. It is a game bug, not a setting, and waits on a Funcom patch.
Solo player decay protection
Decay only matters on a persistent world that stays up 24/7, which is why a managed Conan Exiles dedicated server runs every decay timer in real time even while every player is offline.
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?
Usually, but it depends on the building's score: a big base with a high building score gets a long timer, a small one gets a short one. On a server you run, check the timers in the game's event log, which prints "Will abandon at" with the exact time for each building.
Want decay sliders in the panel instead of editing files? Rent a Conan Exiles server with Supercraft: DisableBuildingAbandonment and BuildingDecayTimeMultiplier are exposed as panel toggles.