Nuclear OptionNuclear Option Server Requirements (Players, RAM and CPU)
How many players a Nuclear Option server can hold and how much RAM and CPU it needs, from a squadron of friends to a 32 player public server.
Updated Oct 1, 2026 · 4 min read
On this page
Nuclear Option's dedicated server is small to download and light at idle, but a full Escalation match with dozens of players, AI units and missiles in the air is real work for a CPU. This guide covers how many players a server can hold, what the RAM and CPU numbers look like, and which plan fits which group.
How many players can join a Nuclear Option server?
The player cap is MaxPlayers in DedicatedServerConfig.json, 16 by default. The game does not hard limit it to 16, but Shockfront's own guide is clear about what happens above it:
Counts over 16 will display a performance warning to players in the server list. Ensure your server hardware can handle the increased load if setting this higher.
So 16 is the size the developers recommend, and larger servers are possible on stronger hardware, with the fastest CPUs.
Why CPU matters more than RAM
In Nuclear Option the server is in charge of the battle. It authenticates bullet hits and damage, runs the AI units, and simulates aircraft, ground vehicles, ships and every missile in flight. Each new player adds an aircraft and the missiles, flares and targets that come with it, and the large operations like Escalation and Terminal Control add whole airbases, convoys and naval groups on top.
That load lands mostly on single core speed. A server with plenty of RAM but slow cores will feel laggy long before it runs out of memory, while a modest amount of RAM on fast cores holds up well.
How much RAM does a Nuclear Option server need?
Some reference points:
- Idle, no mission loaded: about half a gigabyte in our testing. The server does not load a mission until the first player joins, and it unloads the mission 30 seconds after the last player leaves (
NoPlayerStopTime). - Community server setups list 500 MB as the minimum and 1.5 GB as the recommendation for an empty server.
- During a mission memory grows with the number of units the mission spawns, so a large operation with a full server needs more than a small dogfight mission with a few friends.
- Workshop missions vary the most. A mission maker can place far more units than the built in operations, and those units cost memory and CPU.
Disk is not a concern: the Linux server is a little under 1 GB, plus whatever Workshop missions you add.
Quick sizing table
| Group | Players | RAM | CPU |
|---|---|---|---|
| A squadron of friends | Up to 8 | 3 GB | 2 fast cores |
| A regular group or small community | Up to 16 | 4 GB | 3 fast cores |
| Public PvP or unit heavy Workshop missions | Up to 32 | 6 GB | 4 fast cores |
These match our Nuclear Option server plans: Starter, Standard and Pro. They leave headroom on top of the server's own needs, because a server that runs out of memory in the middle of a mission takes everyone down with it.
What makes a server lag
If players report rubber banding or late hits, look at these first:
- Too many players for the cores. Above 16 players the game itself warns about it. Lower
MaxPlayersor move to stronger hardware. - Big missions. Escalation runs with every airbase active and all assets in play, the largest of the built in operations. Smaller missions like Altercation or Confrontation put less on the server.
- Unit heavy Workshop missions. Try the same group on a built in mission. If the lag disappears, the mission is the cause.
- A home connection. Upload speed matters for the host. Each player's updates leave through your upload, and home connections are often far slower up than down.
- Frame rate limit.
RunServer.shstarts the server with-limitframerate 60, the frame rate Shockfront ships with. While nobody is online the server drops itself to 5 frames per second to save CPU.
Running it at home vs hosted
At home the numbers above come out of the same PC you might want to play on. A PC running both the game and the server for 16 players needs serious hardware, and your upload speed becomes everyone's ping. A spare machine or a small VPS works too, but you take on SteamCMD updates after every patch and port forwarding for UDP 7777 and 7778. Our guide to making a Nuclear Option dedicated server covers that route.
A hosted server runs on hardware built for this: fast cores, plenty of bandwidth and no home IP to share. On GamezServers the player cap follows your plan automatically, you can move to a bigger plan at any time with the price prorated, and Sleep when empty stops the server after 4 days with nobody online, so you are not running a war for no one. For more on sizing any game, see how much RAM a game server needs.
FAQ
Is 16 players the maximum?
No. 16 is the default and the point where the server list shows a performance warning. You can set MaxPlayers higher if the hardware keeps up.
Does a Nuclear Option server need a GPU?
No. The dedicated server runs without graphics. CPU, RAM and network are what count.
Does the server use resources when nobody is playing?
Very little. With nobody online it waits without a mission loaded and runs at a low frame rate until someone joins.
Can I run PvP and co-op on the same server?
Yes. The mission rotation can mix PvP operations and co-op missions against the AI. See how to set up a Nuclear Option mission rotation.
Ready to start? Follow how to host a Nuclear Option server.
Skip the setup. Your own Nuclear Option server.
Then $7.99/mo. Just trying it? $2.00 for 3 days