How to Adjust the Round Flow on Your SCP: Secret Laboratory Server

How long the lobby waits, whether late joiners still spawn in, when the Alpha Warhead detonates automatically and how many items a player may carry – you set all of this in the config_gameplay.txt file. This guide explains the keys that control the flow of a round and gives you three recipes for typical server concepts.

Intercom, AFK kick, spawn protection and round restart settings are covered in the guide Adjust gameplay settings.

Change the Round Flow

1. Find the game port
   Open the dashboard of your server and note down the game port from the Overview.

2. Stop the server
   Stop your server via the dashboard.

3. Connect via SFTP
   Connect to your server via SFTP.

4. Open the configuration file
   Open the following file – replace <Port> with your game port:

   /.config/SCP Secret Laboratory/config/<Port>/config_gameplay.txt
   

5. Adjust the values
   Look for the keys from the sections below and only change the value after the colon. If a key is missing, add it as a new line in the format key: value. Then save the file.

6. Start the server
   Start your server via the dashboard. The changes only take effect with this start.

Default Values at a Glance

Lobby and Late Join

Lobby wait time

lobby_waiting_time sets how many seconds the lobby countdown runs before the round starts. The countdown only begins once at least two players are connected. With default, the server waits 20 seconds. If the server is full, the round starts immediately.

lobby_waiting_time: 30

Late join

late_join_time determines how many seconds after the round starts newly joining players still receive a role. Anyone joining later enters the game as a spectator and has to wait for the next reinforcement wave or the next round. With the default value 0, nobody spawns in directly after the round has started.

late_join_time: 60

Automatic Alpha Warhead

The Alpha Warhead can start automatically after a fixed time. This prevents rounds that drag on endlessly. auto_warhead_start_minutes counts from the start of the round – with 0 (default), the feature is disabled.

auto_warhead_start_minutes: 20
auto_warhead_lock: true
auto_warhead_broadcast_enabled: true
auto_warhead_broadcast_message: The Alpha Warhead is being detonated automatically and cannot be stopped.
auto_warhead_detonate_broadcast: The automatic Alpha Warhead has been detonated.

With auto_warhead_lock: true (default), the automatically started warhead can no longer be cancelled. If you set the value to false, players can stop the countdown as usual.

Decontamination

The Light Containment Zone is decontaminated during a round. With disable_decontamination: true, you turn decontamination off completely. If you want to keep it but show your own message, enable the broadcast:

auto_decon_broadcast_enabled: true
auto_decon_broadcast_message: The Light Containment Zone has been decontaminated.

Dead Man's Switch

Once both the MTF and the Chaos Insurgency have no reinforcement waves left, the Dead Man's Switch starts a countdown. When it runs out, the Alpha Warhead starts automatically and can no longer be stopped. You set the length of the countdown in seconds with dms_activation_time:

dms_enabled: true
dms_activation_time: 180

With dms_enabled: false, you turn the Dead Man's Switch off completely.

Round End with One Player

By default (end_round_on_one_player: false), a round does not end while fewer than two players are on the server. If you set the value to true, a round can also end normally while only one player is connected – handy when you want to test settings on your own.

end_round_on_one_player: true

SCP-914 Mode

914_mode controls what SCP-914 picks up when refining. With default, the server uses DroppedAndHeld.

914_mode: DroppedAndInventory

Item and Ammo Limits

Item categories

These keys set how many items of a category a player may carry at the same time. The inventory holds a maximum of 8 items – a limit of 8 is therefore effectively unlimited.

Ammo

The ammo limits accept values from 1 to 65535:

Spawn Order

team_respawn_queue determines which roles are assigned when the round starts. Each digit stands for one player slot: with N players, the first N digits determine how many SCPs, Facility Guards, Scientists etc. are spawned. Which player gets which role is chosen by the game. If there are more players than digits, the sequence starts over from the beginning.

With default, the server uses the built-in order 4014314031441404134041434414.

Recipes for Typical Servers

You can copy the following recipes directly into your config_gameplay.txt. Only change the existing keys – do not create duplicate entries. If a key is missing, add it as a new line in the format key: value.

Shorter rounds

For servers on which rounds should end quickly:

lobby_waiting_time: 15
auto_warhead_start_minutes: 15
auto_warhead_lock: true
dms_activation_time: 120

More relaxed rounds

For servers on which late joiners can still play along and players may carry more:

lobby_waiting_time: 30
late_join_time: 60
limit_category_medical: 5
limit_category_grenade: 3

Event server

For events with their own flow, where decontamination and automatic warheads would get in the way:

lobby_waiting_time: 60
disable_decontamination: true
auto_warhead_start_minutes: 0
dms_enabled: false
team_respawn_queue: 4044440444