V3.0 Dead Hot Summer: Wipe or Continue Your V2.6 Server?

Updated June 12, 2026. Experimental lands June 15; stable follows. Decide before update week, not during it.

The official position first: V2.6 save continuation is supported in V3.0 — TFP's release notes include explicit instructions for carrying a V2.6 server forward. The real question is whether you should. V3.0's content is concentrated in two places that pull in opposite directions: world content (60+ new POIs and the Sign-Tech signage overhaul) that an explored map will not fully show you, and the sandbox system, which works on any world. Here is the decision, honestly.

The case for continuing

  • It is officially supported. Recreate your legacy settings in the in-game Sandbox Options menu, paste the generated code as the SandboxCode property, and your world carries forward — the full procedure is in our SandboxCode migration guide. The one trap: an un-migrated config silently runs default Adventurer-equivalent rules, which is how a hardcore server wakes up casual.
  • The sandbox layer works retroactively. The 150 options, the new repair/degradation rules, item magnitude on new loot — the systems apply to your existing world immediately. A continued server still gets most of what makes 3.0 interesting.
  • Your community's bases are your retention. Same calculus as every wipe: history keeps the regulars.

The case for wiping

  • New POIs generate in new terrain. 60+ POIs and the Sign-Tech overhaul are the visible newness; an extensively-explored map shows them only in unexplored or newly generated areas. Fresh world = full content.
  • The preset moment. Launching a fresh world as Undead Matinee or Bite Club (see the presets guide) is a clean server identity that a continued world cannot adopt mid-story — death rules and progression options bite differently on day 200 than day 1.
  • The population wave. A 3.0-scale update is the biggest player-return window since 2.0; fresh-start servers capture returning players who will not join a world where established players own the map.

The middle paths

  • Season it: archive the V2.6 world (final backup, downloadable), open a fresh 3.0 world as a new season with an official preset. The wipe-as-ceremony pattern communities accept.
  • Two worlds for launch month: continue the V2.6 save for the regulars, open a fresh preset server for the wave, merge attention later.
  • Continue now, wipe at stable: ride experimental on the old world, treat the stable release as the wipe moment — it also dodges experimental-cycle instability on a fresh map everyone is invested in.

The update-week checklist (either path)

  • Backup, restore-tested, before touching the version. Saves do not load backward; the backup is the only rollback.
  • Record your V2.6 settings before updating — you will recreate them in the Sandbox Options menu (the legacy serverconfig properties are removed).
  • Modded servers: wait for your critical mods. The V3.0 mod compatibility guide covers what breaks; overhaul servers wait longest.
  • Pin V2.6 until you choose to move. Experimental is opt-in; nothing happens to your server until you act.

Sources