Introduction

For the sake of simplicity, this first part of this guide focuses solely on getting an editable copy of Naev running. Actual development is documented later.

The vast majority of content in Naev is easily editable, including all graphics, sounds, music, AI modules, as well as ship, outfit, commodity, and planet definitions.

Note: Currently, Naev's packed data format, ndata, cannot be unpacked. However, ndata is generated from a directory of files, and Naev can also run directly from those files.

Installing on Windows

1. If you haven't already, download and run the installer.
• You don't need to download the ndata file through the installer if you plan to follow this guide.
2. Download the unpacked data ZIP and extract it somewhere.
3. Navigate to the location where you installed Naev and copy the contents of the directory.
• By default, the installer uses C:\Program Files\Naev\
4. Paste the contents of the install directory into the directory created by extracting the data ZIP.

You can now run Naev in the current directory.

Optionally, you can edit the start menu shortcut created by the installer to point to this directory instead.

Some (but not all) changes you make will be reflected immediately in-game. To be sure, you should restart Naev after modifying the data.

Content Development

To quickly address licensing, if you intend to contribute content to the project, we require it to be appropriately licensed. In practice, this means GPLv3 for XML and Lua, and a Creative Commons 3 license (or similar) for media, preferably Creative Commons Attribution 3.0.

Graphics

The majority of the graphics Naev uses (ships, outfits, stations) are 2D renders of 3D models. For 3D work, we work exclusively in Blender, though other formats are fine provided Blender can open them.

2D work (many weapon sprites, bar portraits, planets, faction logos) is split into two categories. For the raster artwork, GIMP is commonly used. On pieces that either require little detail or are likely to be scaled, we prefer vector graphics created in Inkscape or similar.

If you're looking for something to do, see Graphics.

Audio

All of our audio is kept in the Ogg Vorbis format, though WAV or FLAC are also usable.

While we don't need any new sounds right now, contributions are always appreciated for use with new outfits.

New music is always in demand.

Missions, AI

Missions and AI modules are written in Lua.

Interaction is performed using the Lua API. Naev possesses a fairly comprehensive API allowing modification of many player and NPC attributes, creation of ships, all the way up to altering the galaxy.

We have several example missions, one on the mission development page, and another more complex example here.

Extensive documentation for the Lua API can be found here.

For more information, see Mission Development.

Ships, Outfits, Commodities, Planets

Just about everything is defined in a series of XML files, from individual outfits up to the star systems that make up the galaxy.

Each file tends to share elements with others. You can find an example mission XML entry at Mission Development. Examples and documentation on the other types can be found in the Content Development section of the sidebar.

General

For in-depth information on other facets of development, see the Development series.

If you have any questions, feel free to ask on our IRC channel. Click here to connect.