Where Are Starbound Save Files?
Starbound stores characters, ships, and universe data under storage in the game install folder. The player and universe subfolders separate character files from world files.
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On Windows Steam, the root is steamapps common Starbound storage under your Steam library. player holds .player and .shipworld files by hex ID, while universe holds .world files plus universe.dat and universe.chunks.
Back up the full storage folder before mods or manual transfers. Deleting universe resets explored worlds, while deleting a player ID removes that character and ship.
Where Starbound stores this, by platform
<SteamLibrary>\steamapps\common\Starbound\storage
<SteamLibrary> is your Steam library folder, by default Program Files x86 Steam. player holds characters and ships. universe holds worlds. Back up both plus starbound.log when reporting faults.
~/Library/Application Support/Steam/SteamApps/common/Starbound/storage
Same storage layout with player and universe subfolders. Use Go to Folder in Finder to open the hidden Library path. GOG installs use the GOG game folder as the install root.
~/.local/share/Steam/SteamApps/common/Starbound/storage
Same storage layout with player and universe subfolders. Server worlds also live under storage universe. Keep file permissions intact when copying between Windows and Linux.
Frequently asked questions
What do I copy to move to a new PC?
Copy the full storage folder including player and universe. That set keeps characters, ships, mission state, and modified worlds together. Place it into the new install with the game closed.
How do I reset the universe without losing characters?
Close the game, back up storage, then delete only the contents of storage universe. Leave storage player intact. On launch the game rebuilds fresh worlds while your characters remain.
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