How to Use Dwarf Therapist With Modded UI (Steam UI+ or Phoebus)
Introduction Using Dwarf Therapist with a modded UI such as Steam UI+ or Phoebus is entirely achievable, but it requires understanding a few compatibility layers that differ from a standard vanilla installation. Players who switch to graphical tilesets or enhanced interface packs sometimes find that Dwarf Therapist behaves unexpectedly or fails to connect without additional configuration. The core reason for this is straightforward. Dwarf Therapist reads game memory directly, and modded UI packages often ship with specific executable builds or file structures that differ from the base game. Knowing how to align these components correctly makes the setup process reliable and repeatable. Quick Answer about How to Use Dwarf Therapist With Modded UI What Modded UIs Actually Change in Dwarf Fortress Understanding what a modded UI does and does not modify is the foundation of troubleshooting any Dwarf Therapist compatibility issue. Many players assume graphical changes affect tool connectivity, but the relationship is more specific than that. Difference Between Tileset Mods and Executable Mods Tileset based mods such as Phoebus replace the graphic assets used to render the game world. These include character sprites, terrain tiles, and interface icons. They do not alter the game logic, memory addresses, or the underlying data structures that Dwarf Therapist reads. A pure tileset installation alongside an unmodified executable will behave identically to a vanilla installation from Dwarf Therapist’s perspective. The tool will connect, read skill data, and write labor changes without any additional steps required. The situation changes when a modded UI distribution includes a custom or patched game executable. Some older Phoebus packages and certain community bundles shipped with executables that differed from the official release, which in turn shifted memory addresses and broke standard offset files. How Steam UI+ Interacts With Dwarf Therapist Steam UI+ is primarily a quality of life enhancement layer for the Steam release of Dwarf Fortress. It typically modifies the interface presentation, key bindings, and visual layout rather than the core executable binary. Because the Steam version of Dwarf Fortress uses a distinct memory layout from the classic version, Dwarf Therapist requires Steam specific offset files regardless of whether UI+ is active. The presence of Steam UI+ itself does not introduce additional offset complexity in most cases. Players who experience connection failures after installing Steam UI+ should first confirm they are using the Steam compatible Dwarf Therapist release rather than a version built for the classic game. This single version mismatch accounts for the majority of reported issues in this setup. How to Configure Dwarf Therapist for a Modded UI Installation Correct configuration follows a specific sequence. Skipping steps or performing them out of order is the primary cause of persistent connection failures in modded setups. Verifying Your Game Version and Matching Offset Files Before launching anything, identify the exact version number of your Dwarf Fortress installation. On Steam, this appears in the game properties panel. For classic installations, the version string displays on the main menu screen. Navigate to the Dwarf Therapist releases page on its official repository and locate the release that explicitly lists support for your game version. Download that specific release rather than defaulting to the most recent one. Inside the Dwarf Therapist installation directory, locate the folder named released or memory_layouts. This folder contains the offset files that tell Dwarf Therapist where to read data in the game’s memory. Confirm the correct layout file for your operating system and game version is present. Resolving Offset Mismatches in Phoebus Installations Phoebus installations that include a modified executable require a corresponding custom offset file. Standard offset files will not align correctly with a patched binary, and Dwarf Therapist will either fail to connect or display corrupted data. Do not attempt to use a standard offset file with a known patched executable. The result is unreliable data that can mislead labor decisions rather than informing them. The recommended resolution is to source the Phoebus compatible offset file from the same community distribution that provided the Phoebus package. Many Phoebus bundles include a preconfigured Dwarf Therapist folder with matching layouts already in place. Common Problems and Solutions: Setting Up Profession Templates With a Modded UI Active Profession templates in Dwarf Therapist function independently of the active UI mod. The template system stores labor configurations locally and applies them through memory writes, which are unaffected by graphical layers. Creating Templates That Work Across UI Configurations Building profession templates while a modded UI is active produces fully portable templates. Because templates store labor toggle states rather than any graphical or UI data, they remain valid whether the player later switches between UI mods or returns to vanilla. A well structured template library covers the core production roles a fortress requires across its development stages. Start by building templates for the highest priority roles specific to your play style before expanding to secondary and tertiary assignments. Switching Between UI Mods Without Losing Template Data Template data is stored in the Dwarf Therapist configuration files on the local system, not inside the game save or the UI mod directory. This means switching from Phoebus to Steam UI+ or back to vanilla does not erase or affect saved templates. Always back up the Dwarf Therapist configuration folder before reinstalling or updating the tool. Updates occasionally reset the local configuration to default values, removing custom templates that have not been exported or separately preserved. The configuration folder location varies by operating system. On Windows it typically resides in the application data directory associated with the Dwarf Therapist installation path. Confirming this location before any update protects template investments made over many play sessions. UI Configuration Offset File Needed Template Compatibility Labor Write Support Vanilla Steam Steam specific layout Full Yes Steam UI+ Steam specific layout Full Yes Phoebus (pure tileset) Standard classic layout Full Yes Phoebus (patched executable) Distribution specific layout Full Requires correct offset Classic Vanilla Classic layout Full Yes Custom community bundle Bundle provided layout Full Requires matching file Troubleshooting Dwarf Therapist Connectivity With Modded Setups Persistent connectivity issues in modded environments almost always trace