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Play Solo

Server busy, or just want the world to yourself? Play Solo runs the whole game offline on your PC, from the same Open Vanilla launcher: switch PLAY to SOLO and press PLAY. The same client and addons, your own world server, and companions to fill your group for dungeons.

A lone adventurer sits by a campfire on a hillside at night; a companion in plate with a shield and axe stands behind, and a robed companion with a glowing staff stands across the fire, under the Orion constellation
Download Open Vanilla for Windows Or play online in your browser

Play Solo is built into the Open Vanilla launcher: OpenVanilla-Setup-<version>.exe (recommended) or OpenVanilla_<version>_Win64.zip from the latest release · Windows 10 or 11 (64-bit) · needs your own Vanilla Client v1.3. The release isn't code-signed yet, so Windows may show “Unknown publisher” or SmartScreen; checksums are on the release page.

What Play Solo is

The whole game, on your PC

Your own private world server, SPP Classics (CMaNGOS), runs hidden in the background while you play. No queue, no lag spikes, no internet needed once it's set up.

Same client and addons

The same Open Vanilla launcher and client, with the same built-in Vanilla Remastered addons, as online play.

Companions for groups

Computer-controlled companions (playerbots) join your party, so dungeons and group quests work with nobody else online. Bots also wander the world, so it doesn't feel empty.

Yours alone

The servers only listen on your own PC, so nobody else can connect. Play at your own pace.

Three steps

  1. Step 1: a gold medallion with a download arrow

    1. Get the launcher

    Install Open Vanilla from the button above and start OpenVanilla.exe. Point it at your Vanilla Client v1.3 folder if it asks.

  2. Step 2: a gold medallion with a zipped folder opening and stars spilling out

    2. Switch to SOLO, press PLAY

    On HOME, set the switch next to PLAY to SOLO and press PLAY. It downloads SPP Classics (about 110 MB), then its server files (about 700 MB), with progress in the bar. It resumes if stopped.

  3. Step 3: a gold medallion with a play button and a small campfire flame

    3. One guided step, then PLAY

    SPP's setup window opens once: type 1, wait for the Vanilla menu, then type 0. PLAY turns ready by itself. Press it: the launcher starts the servers, starts the game and signs you in as SOLO / SOLO.

The guided step downloads SPP's map data and builds its database, so it takes a while the first time. After that, PLAY starts Solo in moments, and closing the game saves the world and stops the servers.

Solo or the realm?

Solo versus Realm: on the left one campfire with an adventurer and two companions on your PC; on the right a hilltop keep ringed by the campfires of many players
SoloRealm
Where it runsOn your PC, offlineOur server, online
Other playersJust you, with companion botsEveryone on the realm
Client and addonsThe sameThe same
World serverSPP Classics (CMaNGOS with playerbots)The realm, with its Vanilla Remastered changes
Groups and dungeonsCompanions fill the groupGroup up with real players
CharactersStay on your PCStay on the realm
How to playLauncher: SOLO, then PLAYLauncher: ONLINE, or play in your browser

What you need

Solo characters stay solo

Characters you make in Solo stay on your PC. They can't be moved to the live realm, and characters from the live realm can't be brought into Solo. Think of it as a separate world that only you play in.

Questions

Is it really offline?

Yes. Once it's installed, Play Solo needs no internet. The world server, the login server and the database all run on your PC and only listen on your PC (127.0.0.1), so nobody else can connect to them.

Who are the companions?

They're playerbots: computer-controlled characters run by your own world server (CMaNGOS PlayerBots). They join your group so you can run dungeons and group quests without other players, and more of them roam the world.

Is it the same as the realm?

It's the same client and the same built-in addons. The world server is SPP Classics (CMaNGOS with playerbots) rather than the realm's own server, so the realm's Vanilla Remastered server changes aren't there. And what you won't find is other people: no trading, guilds or chat with real players.

Can I move my solo character to the realm later?

No. Solo characters stay on your PC, and realm characters stay on the realm. That keeps the live realm fair for everyone.

Why does the first start take a while?

The first time, the launcher downloads SPP Classics (about 110 MB) and its server files (about 700 MB), and SPP's own setup window downloads its map data and builds the database. That happens once. After that, PLAY starts Solo in moments.

I host my own realm on this PC. Will they clash?

They use the same ports (3724 and 8085), so stop hosting before you play solo, and start it again afterwards. The launcher's Dedicated server can run the very SPP install Play Solo set up.

How do I start over?

Play Solo lives in the launcher's Realms\Solo folder (the launcher's Solo page has an OPEN FOLDER button). Close the game and the launcher, then delete that folder: the next SOLO PLAY sets SPP Classics up again from scratch. Your solo characters go with it.

I already have SPP Classics.

On the launcher's Solo page, press I HAVE SPP CLASSICS… and pick your SPP_Classics_V2 folder (or the SPP_Server inside it) instead of downloading it again.

Mac or Linux?

Play Solo is Windows only for now. On any computer you can still play online in your browser.

Something went wrong.

The bar above PLAY says what's missing, and pressing PLAY usually fixes it. The server logs are in the launcher's Logs folder (Settings → Folders). Post in the Open Vanilla Discord's #bug-reports with what you saw and the last lines of spp-mangosd.log.