Open VanillaChapter 1 · Start
Getting started
What Open Vanilla is, the three ways to play, what you need, and your account.
What Open Vanilla is #
Open Vanilla is a free, community-run home for classic Vanilla. You can play on the official Vanilla Remastered realm (Vanilla with careful quality-of-life additions), play solo offline with bots, or host your own realm for friends. It's built on the open-source benilla client and runs in your browser or on Windows.
Note: Open Vanilla is a fan project. It isn't affiliated with or endorsed by Blizzard, it sells nothing, and it never ships Blizzard's game files: you use a copy of Vanilla Client v1.3 you obtain yourself.
Three ways to play #
| Way | Best for | Needs |
|---|---|---|
| Browser | Trying it right now, phones and tablets, any PC | A browser with WebGPU; nothing to install |
| Launcher (Windows) | The full experience, your own addons, Solo and hosting | Windows 10/11 64-bit and Vanilla Client v1.3 (the launcher can fetch it) |
| Play Solo | Offline play with bots, no other players | The launcher, a few GB of disk, 8 GB+ RAM recommended |
Quick start: browser #
- Open play.openvanilla.app.
- Press Sign in with Discord, or Play as guest to try it first.
- Create a character and play. The first load downloads game data; after that it loads from your disk.
Details: Playing in the browser.
Quick start: launcher #
- Download the launcher from the home page (Desktop Client):
OpenVanilla-Setup-<version>.exeis the recommended installer, or the zip for a portable copy. - Start it. On Home, the bar above PLAY says what's missing; pressing PLAY fixes it: it downloads Vanilla Client v1.3 or lets you pick the folder you already have.
- Press PLAY. The first time, it signs you in with Discord.
Details: The launcher.
Note: The launcher isn't code-signed yet, so Windows may say "Unknown publisher" or show SmartScreen. Choose More info → Run anyway, or check the file against the checksums on the release page first.
Your account #
- Sign in with Discord is the one button for new and returning players: the first time, it creates your realm account and adds you to the Open Vanilla Discord. Open Vanilla never sees your Discord password or messages.
- Guests get a real account tied to that device (kept for 30 days of inactivity). Press Save your heroes — link Discord in game to keep your characters for good.
- Accounts live on each realm: a community realm has its own accounts and its own website.
- Staff will never ask for your password.
What you need: Vanilla Client v1.3 #
The desktop game needs your own copy of Vanilla Client v1.3 (English, build 5875). The launcher's game setup page either downloads one (Download & install, a few GB, resumable) or checks a folder you already have (Select existing folder). It never changes the game's files. More on clients.html and in The launcher.
Where to go next #
- New to the interface? In-game features, then the command cheat sheet.
- Want friends? Realms and friends, Community.
- Want to build? Edit your own game, Connect an AI, Publish to the Workshop.