DayZ types.xml: every field explained

types.xml is the list of everything the DayZ Central Economy spawns as loot: one entry per item classname with how many copies should exist, how long they lie on the ground and where they appear. Most "why is there no loot" problems on a server end up in this file.

Where the file is

Each map has its own copy inside its mission folder: mpmissions/dayzOffline.chernarusplus/db/types.xml for Chernarus, dayzOffline.enoch for Livonia and dayzOffline.sakhal for Sakhal. The mission that runs is set by template in serverDZ.cfg, so edit the folder your server actually starts.

The server reads the file once, at start. Changes take effect after a restart.

A real entry: M4-A1 on Chernarus

The vanilla entry of the current game version, straight from the mission files:

types.xml · Chernarus

<type name="M4A1">
    <nominal>1</nominal>
    <lifetime>7200</lifetime>
    <restock>3600</restock>
    <min>1</min>
    <quantmin>30</quantmin>
    <quantmax>80</quantmax>
    <cost>100</cost>
    <flags count_in_cargo="0" count_in_hoarder="0" count_in_map="1" count_in_player="0" crafted="0" deloot="0"/>
    <category name="weapons"/>
    <usage name="ContaminatedArea"/>
</type>

Every item page of the item database shows this block for each map, ready to copy.

Every field

Field	What it does
`nominal`	How many copies the economy tries to keep on the map at the same time.
`min`	When the count drops below this number, the economy starts spawning the item again, back up to nominal.
`lifetime`	Seconds an untouched item lies in the world before cleanup. 3600 is an hour, 3888000 is 45 days (used for base building).
`restock`	Seconds the economy waits before spawning again once the count is below min. 0 means as soon as possible.
`quantmin, quantmax`	Fill level in percent when the item spawns: rounds in a magazine, water in a bottle. -1 for items without quantity.
`cost`	Spawn priority, 100 by default. Almost never changed.
`flags`	Which copies count toward nominal: count_in_map (lying in the world), count_in_cargo (inside other items), count_in_hoarder (in tents, barrels and stashes), count_in_player (in inventories). crafted="1": the economy never spawns it; deloot="1": only dynamic events such as helicopter crashes do.
`category`	Loot category: weapons, clothes, tools, food, containers, explosives. The list comes from cfglimitsdefinition.xml.
`usage`	Kinds of places where it spawns: Military, Police, Medic, Town, Village, Farm, Industrial, Hunting, Coast and others, also from cfglimitsdefinition.xml.
`value`	Map tiers, from Tier1 near the coast to Tier4 far inland. An item without value is not limited by tier.
`tag`	Where the item is placed inside a building: floor, shelves or ground.

How the numbers work together

Take an item with nominal 10, min 5 and restock 1800. While there are 5 or more copies on the map, nothing happens. When players pick up enough that the count falls to 4, the economy waits 30 minutes and then spawns copies until there are 10 again.

What counts as "on the map" depends on the flags. With only count_in_map, copies in backpacks and tents are not counted, so players can hoard an item and the economy keeps spawning more. count_in_cargo and count_in_hoarder close that gap.

Lifetime only matters for items lying in the world: the timer starts when the item appears or is dropped.

Common changes

More of an item: raise nominal and min together, for example to 10 and 6. With a low min, a higher nominal changes little: restocking only starts below min.
Switch an item off: set nominal and min to 0. The entry stays, the item stops spawning.
Only in military places: keep a single <usage name="Military"/>.
Only far from the coast: keep <value name="Tier3"/> and <value name="Tier4"/>.
Items from mods: put them in a file of your own, for example db/types_mymod.xml, and register it in cfgeconomycore.xml: <ce folder="db"><file name="types_mymod.xml" type="types"/></ce>. Game updates will not overwrite it.

Mistakes that break loot

One broken line, a missing quote or closing tag, can make the server reject the whole file, and loot stops appearing. After editing, read the server log right after the restart.
min larger than nominal. Keep min at or below nominal.
Editing the wrong mission folder: the server only reads the one set in serverDZ.cfg.
Expecting changes without a restart.
Huge nominal values for many items at once: the economy has to place and track every copy, and a server with tens of thousands of extra items gets slower.

Ready entries for every item

the item database has the vanilla entry of every item for Chernarus, Livonia and Sakhal: Weapons, Clothing, Food, Tools, Vehicles and the rest. What an item spawns with is set in cfgspawnabletypes.xml in DayZ: attachments, cargo and damage, cars and crashes in events.xml in DayZ: vehicles, crashes and animals, and the classnames themselves are listed in DayZ classnames: every item by category.

types.xml in DayZ: every field explained