Convoy, TruckersMP and mods: what each kind of multiplayer allows in Euro Truck Simulator 2 and American Truck Simulator
Euro Truck Simulator 2 and American Truck Simulator have two ways to drive with other people, and they treat mods in opposite ways. The official Convoy mode lets small groups run any mods as long as everyone has the same ones; TruckersMP, the long-running community network, runs big public servers with strict limits on what is allowed. Which you use decides what is in your mod folder.
Convoy: official, small, mod-friendly
Convoy arrived in version 1.41 and is built into both games. A host opens a session, up to eight players join through Steam, and everyone drives the same world with their own careers. The condition is matching mods: every player must have the same mods active, in the same order, and the game checks before letting you in. The host’s list is shown when you try to join, with the mods you are missing marked, so the usual routine is for the host to post the list and the download links before the session.
This is the mode for playing with map mods, with a shared trailer pack, or with a friend’s favourite truck mod. Performance depends on everyone’s machines, and the host’s connection carries the session. Players’ own mods that are not on the list simply have to be deactivated for the session, which is a Mod Manager toggle, not an uninstall.
TruckersMP: large, public, restricted
TruckersMP is a separate launcher that runs the game with its own network layer and hundreds of players per server. Because every player must see the same world, it allows only mods that do not change it:
- Allowed on standard servers: local-only cosmetic mods such as paint jobs, interior accessories, sound mods, graphics and weather mods, UI tweaks. Nobody else sees them, so they do not need to match.
- Not allowed: truck mods, trailer mods, cargo packs, traffic mods and map mods, with the exception of the dedicated ProMods servers, where that specific map (in the version TruckersMP supports) is required.
- Save editing has rules of its own on TruckersMP; the general principle is that a vehicle must be buildable from the stock game’s parts.
The launcher also pins the game to a supported version. When SCS releases an update, TruckersMP usually needs days or weeks to support it, and in the meantime the launcher asks you to switch Steam to the previous version’s branch (the Betas tab lists older versions as “temporary_1_61” and the like). During the 1.62 open beta, TruckersMP players stay on 1.61.
What this means for your mod folder
- Playing both: keep two profiles. One for TruckersMP with only the allowed cosmetic mods active; one for single-player and Convoy with everything. Profiles store their own mod lists, so switching is a profile change.
- Convoy with friends: agree on a list, everyone downloads from the same source so the files match, everyone activates in the same order. A file that differs by one version fails the check.
- TruckersMP after an update: do not update your mods to the new game version until TruckersMP supports it; your single-player profile can move ahead, your multiplayer profile stays with the old branch.
Where ModsDrop fits
Files here are ordinary mods. For Convoy, sharing a ModsDrop page link is the simplest way to make sure everyone downloads exactly the same file: the SHA-256 shown on the page lets anyone confirm their copy matches. For TruckersMP, only the cosmetic categories apply; a truck mod downloaded here is for your single-player profile.
Common failures
- Convoy refuses to join, lists a mod you have. Different version of the same mod, or a different order. Compare the file names and sizes, then match the order to the host’s.
- TruckersMP launcher says unsupported version. Switch Steam to the branch the launcher names, and expect your single-player mods marked for the newer version to show warnings on the old one.
- Kicked for a mod on TruckersMP. A local mod that changed a vehicle or the map, however small. Deactivate it on the multiplayer profile.
Steam Workshop, official catalogues and mod sites: how each game handles mods, and the trade-offs of each route
Profiles, saves and the ‘mod missing’ dialog: keeping an ETS2 or ATS career safe from betas, removed mods and updates
SCS Software’s October: 1.62 betas, the Coaches DLC, Iceland, Edinburgh in the UK rework and British Columbia
Steam Workshop mods in ETS2 and ATS: subscribing, where the files are, updates, removals, and clashes with manual copies