Terraria Server Commands: Console, Chat and TShock Cheat Commands

Terraria server commands come in three layers. The vanilla server console takes commands like kick, ban, save and exit (no slash). Every player can type chat commands such as /playing and /roll. Admin and cheat commands like /item, /godmode and /spawnboss only exist if the server runs TShock. Here is every one, with the exact syntax, plus the launch options that set a server up before it starts.

Terraria server console commands

The vanilla Terraria server has a short list of console commands, typed straight into the server window with no slash in front: kick, ban, save, exit, password, say, motd, four time jumps and a few info commands. Type help to list them. In vanilla, players can’t run these from chat. Whoever has the console is the admin.

Command	What it does
help	Lists the console commands
playing	Shows the players online
kick <player>	Kicks a player (“Kicked from server.”)
ban <player>	Bans a player and adds them to the ban list
password / password <pass>	Shows the join password / sets a new one
say <words>	Messages everyone, in yellow, as <Server>
motd / motd <words>	Shows / changes the message of the day
save	Saves the world now
exit	Saves, then shuts the server down
exit-nosave	Shuts down without saving
dawn, noon, dusk, midnight	Sets the clock to 4:30 AM, 12:00 PM, 7:30 PM or 12:00 AM
settle	Settles all water
seed	Shows the world seed
time, port, maxplayers, version	Info only: current in-game time, the port in use, the player cap, the build number
clear	Clears the console window

Two things trip people up. First, always stop the server with exit: the server only saves on shutdown when you use it, so closing the window can cost progress. Second, vanilla has no unban command. Bans are kept in the ban list file, banlist.txt in the server folder unless banlist= points elsewhere, so that file is where to lift one: stop the server, remove the player’s entry and start it again. On Terraria server hosting from GameTeam the console sits in the control panel, so you can type these from a browser.

Chat commands every player can use

Every player on a vanilla server can type a handful of chat commands. /playing lists who’s online, /roll rolls 1–100, /p talks to your team, and the death counters settle who keeps dying to the Eye of Cthulhu. None of them are admin or cheat commands; they work for everyone, with no setup and nothing to install.

Command	What it does
/playing or /players	Names everyone on the server
/p <message>	Sends a message to your party (team) only
/me <message>	Sends the message in third person
/roll	Rolls a number from 1 to 100
/e <emote> or /emoji	Shows an emote
/rps	Throws rock, paper or scissors
/death, /pvpdeath	Your deaths, and your PvP deaths
/alldeath, /allpvpdeath	Everyone’s deaths, and everyone’s PvP deaths
/bossdamage	Who did what in the last boss kill
/help	Lists the commands you can use

Does Terraria have cheat commands?

Not in vanilla. No vanilla command spawns items, toggles godmode or summons a boss. The built-in way to cheat is Journey Mode, whose power menu covers item duplication, godmode, time, weather and spawn rate. On a server, journeypermission_* keys in serverconfig.txt decide who may use each power. For real cheat commands on a normal world, the server has to run TShock.

Each Journey permission takes 0 (locked for everyone), 1 (host only) or 2 (everyone). A Journey server where only the host can freeze time or change the spawn rate, and nobody can use godmode, looks like this:

journeypermission_godmode=0
journeypermission_time_setfrozen=1
journeypermission_time_setspeed=1
journeypermission_setspawnrate=1
journeypermission_setdifficulty=1

Want the opposite, a server that pushes back on cheaters? secure=1 in serverconfig.txt (or -secure at launch) adds extra cheat protection.

How to become admin on a Terraria server

On vanilla, the admin is whoever controls the server console; there is no in-game login. On TShock, you claim owner rights once with a setup code from the console, create an account in the owner group and log in. After that you hand permissions to groups, so friends can moderate without touching the console.

1. Start TShock (TShock.Server.exe, or TShock.Server on Linux) and join the server.
2. Read the setup code in the console and type /setup 12345 (your code) in chat.
3. Create your account: /user add yourname yourpassword owner, then /login yourname yourpassword.
4. Type /setup once more to turn the setup system off.
5. Promote friends with /user group theirname admin. TShock ships with groups including guest, default, vip, newadmin, admin, trustedadmin and owner.

TShock commands start with /. Start one with . instead to run it silently, without the rest of the server seeing it.

TShock admin commands

TShock adds the moderation tools vanilla lacks: kicks with reasons, timed bans, mutes, an IP whitelist, teleports, warps and protected regions. All of them run from in-game chat by anyone whose group has the permission, as well as from the console. These are the ones server owners reach for most often.

Command	What it does
/kick <player> [reason]	Kicks a player, with an optional reason
/ban add <player> [reason] [duration]	Bans a player; a duration like 1d or 2h30m makes it temporary. /ban list and /ban del <ban ID> manage bans
/mute <player>	Stops a player from talking (/unmute to undo)
/whitelist <ip>	Adds an IP to the whitelist (turn it on with EnableWhitelist)
/tp <player>, /tphere <player>	Teleports you to a player, or a player to you
/warp add <name>, /warp <name>	Saves a warp point, then teleports to it
/region set 1, /region set 2, /region define <name>	Marks two corners and saves the area between them as a region; /region protect <name> true keeps others from building there
/serverpassword <password>	Changes the join password
/broadcast <message> (/bc, /say)	Messages the whole server
/who (/playing, /online)	Lists connected players
/save, /off (/exit, /stop)	Saves the world; saves and shuts down
/reload	Reloads config.json without a restart

TShock cheat commands: items, godmode and bosses

TShock’s cheat commands are what turn a normal world into a Terraria cheat server: spawn any item, give items to friends, toggle godmode, summon bosses and mobs, set the time and start events. Each sits behind a permission, so you decide which group gets which. The table lists the cheats people use most, with the permission that unlocks each one.

Command	What it does	Permission
/item <name or ID> [amount] [prefix] (/i)	Gives you an item, e.g. /item "terra blade" 1 legendary	tshock.item.spawn
/give <item> <player> [amount] [prefix] (/g)	Gives another player an item	tshock.item.give
/godmode [player] (/god)	Toggles godmode for you or someone else	tshock.godmode
/heal <player> [amount]	Heals a player, to full if you leave out the amount	tshock.heal
/buff "<buff>" [seconds]	Gives you a buff; -1 lasts 415 days	tshock.buff.self
/spawnboss <boss> [amount] (/sb)	Summons a boss next to you: eye, wof, plantera, moon lord, or all	tshock.npc.spawnboss
/spawnmob <mob> [amount] (/sm)	Spawns mobs around you	tshock.npc.spawnmob
/butcher [mob]	Kills every hostile NPC, or one type	tshock.npc.butcher
/time day | night | noon | midnight | hh:mm	Sets the world time	tshock.world.time.set
/hardmode	Turns Hardmode on or off	tshock.world.hardmode
/worldevent <event>	Starts bloodmoon, eclipse, fullmoon, meteor, meteorshower, rain, sandstorm, lanternsnight or an invasion	tshock.world.events

To let every registered player use one of these, add the permission to the default group, which is where new accounts go: /group addperm default tshock.item.spawn. Back up the world before you hand out /hardmode or /spawnboss all.

Terraria server launch options (command-line parameters)

Launch options set a server up before it starts, so you skip the setup questions. Add them after TerrariaServer.exe (or ./TerrariaServer on Linux), or put the same settings in serverconfig.txt and load it with -config. Launch options are handy for one-off starts and scripts; the config file is easier to keep tidy.

Option	What it does
-config <file>	Loads a config file
-world <file>	Loads a world and starts the server
-autocreate <1|2|3>, -worldname, -seed	Creates a small, medium or large world if -world finds none
-port <number>	Port to listen on (7777 by default)
-players <number> / -maxplayers	Player limit
-pass <password> / -password	Join password
-motd <text>	Message of the day
-banlist <path>	Where the ban list lives
-secure	Extra cheat protection
-noupnp	Turns off automatic port forwarding
-steam, -lobby friends|private	Steam support; friends-only or invite-only joins
-ip <address>	IP address to listen on
-forcepriority <0–5>	Process priority, ignoring priority= in the config
-disableannouncementbox, -announcementboxrange <pixels>	Silences Announcement Boxes, or sets their range (-1 is server-wide)

TerrariaServer.exe -world "C:\Users\YOU\Documents\My Games\Terraria\Worlds\MyWorld.wld" -autocreate 2 -port 7777 -players 8 -pass pick-something

Setting up the server itself, from download to port forwarding, is covered in the Terraria dedicated server guide. On a modded server the same console commands work, and tModLoader adds options of its own such as -modpack; see how to add mods to a Terraria server.

When a command doesn’t work

A command that fails is nearly always typed in the wrong place or by someone without the right permission. Vanilla console commands go in the server window, not in chat; TShock commands need a slash and a logged-in account with that permission. The messages below tell you which of the two you’ve hit.

You see	What it means
“Invalid command.” in the server console	A typo, or a TShock command typed into a vanilla server
Nothing happens when you type /kick in chat	Vanilla has no admin chat commands; use the console
“You do not have access to this command.”	TShock: you aren’t logged in, or your group lacks the permission
“Invalid command entered. Type /help for a list of valid commands.”	TShock doesn’t know that command (check the spelling with /help)
Journey powers are greyed out	That power’s journeypermission_ key is 0, or 1 and you aren’t the host

Run commands without opening the console

On Terraria server hosting from GameTeam the console is right in the panel, and the AI copilot runs commands for you in plain English. You pay per GB of RAM from $0.49/GB a week, with unlimited slots, and there’s no port to forward.

Type “save the world and warn everyone we restart in five minutes” and it runs save and say, or “ban the player who keeps griefing spawn” and it runs the ban once you confirm who. It also edits serverconfig.txt, so “lock Journey godmode for everyone” turns into the right journeypermission_ line.

FAQ

How do you use commands on a Terraria server?

Type vanilla commands into the server console without a slash (kick Steve, save, exit). Chat commands like /playing work for any player. Admin and cheat commands in chat need TShock.

How do I spawn items on a Terraria server?

Vanilla can’t. Use a Journey Mode world (research an item, then duplicate it) or run TShock and use /item <name> [amount], with the tshock.item.spawn permission.

How do I change the time on a Terraria server?

In the vanilla console, type dawn, noon, dusk or midnight. On TShock, /time also takes an exact time such as /time 19:30.

How do I kick or ban someone from my Terraria server?

Vanilla: kick <player> or ban <player> in the console. TShock: /kick <player> [reason] or /ban add <player> [reason] [duration] from chat.

What is a Terraria cheat server?

A server where players can spawn items, use godmode or summon bosses on demand. In practice that means a Journey Mode world with open powers, or a TShock server that gives cheat permissions to players.