--- title: "Changing the Starting Weapon on Your Abiotic Factor Server" description: "Customise player loadouts by changing which weapon survivors spawn with at the start of the game." url: https://help.chiphead.tech/en/articles/365-changing-the-starting-weapon-on-your-abiotic-factor-server collection: "Abiotic Factor" updated: 2026-06-11 language: en --- # Changing the Starting Weapon on Your Abiotic Factor Server Customise player loadouts by changing which weapon survivors spawn with at the start of the game. **Customise what weapon players spawn with to adjust your Abiotic Factor server’s difficulty or balance early combat.** In **Abiotic Factor**, new players spawn with a default starting weapon. Using the **FirstTimeStartingWeapon** setting, server owners can change this to give players an advantage in early fights or make the start of the game more challenging. This guide explains how to modify the starting weapon for your **Abiotic Factor** server. * * * ### Changing the Starting Weapon You can edit the starting weapon setting by modifying the **SandboxSettings.ini** file through the **ChipHead Panel**: 1. Log in to your **ChipHead Panel**. ![](https://staticfiles.gleap.io/gattachments/iKXwcisXrOuCBhtrl1EPeOCTvdrA917BJJEz7VBB6v91Ro1rMf0XLkQwn6vxb32A4KCMoQNJzN7.webp) 2. Click **Files** & Navigate to the following directory: ```javascript AbioticFactor/Saved/SaveGames/Server/Worlds// ``` 3. Open the file **SandboxSettings.ini**. ![](https://staticfiles.gleap.io/gattachments/ph9cgYneQIln4Uf9jEEfI6CbcGD9R4oN51Y7pdvgoce3gACWsE4WWODvexltOUZd85HY4AFDTWE.png) 4. Locate the line that says **FirstTimeStartingWeapon** and set it to your preferred value from the list below:

Value	Starting Weapon	Description
0	None	No weapon is given to new players.
1	Shiv	A basic short-range weapon.
2	Desk Leg	A makeshift blunt weapon.
3	Kitchen Knife	A sharp weapon that deals decent damage.
4	Starter Baton	A balanced melee weapon with good handling.
5	Pipe Club	A heavy melee weapon with strong knockback.
6	Random	Gives a random weapon from the list above.

6. Click “**Save Content”.** 7. Start your server ![](https://staticfiles.gleap.io/attachments/20260611010602_3886.webp) * * * > **Success:** **All done!** > You’ve successfully changed the starting weapon for players on your **Abiotic Factor** server. Whether you want to give newcomers a fighting chance or start them off with nothing, you can easily control your server’s balance through your **ChipHead** panel.