Set up DarkRPJobs, economy and rules for your RP server

Published on September 2, 2026 · last updated on November 4, 2026

What DarkRP brings

DarkRP is a complete set of rules: players choose a job - citizen, police officer, gun dealer, mayor and many more -, earn money, rent houses and build bases. On top come laws, warrants and an economic cycle.

Exactly this scope makes it the most demanding gamemode: it brings many addons, permanently attracts more players and needs noticeably more resources than a Sandbox or TTT round. A larger package is worthwhile for DarkRP - the tiers are on the product page.

Installation

1. Provide DarkRP. Easiest via your Workshop collection, alternatively by uploading it into the addons folder.
2. Add the customization addon. DarkRP is not edited directly - there is a separate addon for that, in which all your own jobs and settings live. Why that matters is explained just below.
3. Include an RP map. DarkRP needs a map with houses, shops and streets.
4. Set the gamemode and start map and restart the server.

After the first start, connect yourself and check whether the job menu appears. If it does not, the live console usually reports which dependency is missing.

The most important rule: never change the gamemode itself

It is tempting to write a new job directly into DarkRP's files. Do not do it. With the next update of the gamemode, these files are overwritten - and all your work is gone.

Instead, there is a customization addon of its own designed for exactly this: that is where you put jobs, weapons, vehicles, starting money and rules. It remains untouched by updates because it is a separate addon.

A practical side effect: your customizations are in one place and can be backed up or transferred to a second server. A folder that you download regularly via SFTP - that is all it takes, because backups are deliberately self-service with us.

Customize jobs and the economy

The heart of a DarkRP server is its jobs. For each, you define:

• Name, color and description - what players see in the menu.
• Model and equipment - what the job looks like and what it starts with.
• Salary and starting capital - the levers of the economy.
• Restrictions - how many players may hold the job at the same time and whether an application is required.

Restraint pays off with the economy: salaries that are too high devalue all trade within a few days. Better start tight and adjust later - the reverse way leads to arguments.

Rules and moderation

A DarkRP server stands and falls with its rules. Technically, a lot can be set - base-building rules, permitted weapons, behavior during raids -, moderation does the rest.

For this, you need an admin system with graded ranks: who may kick, who may ban, who may assign jobs? The usual way leads via ULX, described in admin rights with ULX.

In addition, for all server tasks that do not need in-game rights: via subusers in our web interface, someone can trigger restarts or handle files without having admin rights in the game.

What DarkRP costs in resources

Three things come together: the gamemode itself, a typically long addon list and permanently more simultaneous players than with round-based modes. Anyone who wants to run DarkRP seriously should choose the package accordingly - details in how much RAM do I need?.

On top of that comes the loading time for new visitors. A DarkRP server with many addons and a large map is practically impossible to run without FastDL - you lose players before they have even seen the job menu.

Frequently asked questions