Mermkingmanager

Based on game build 714014 | Last updated: 2026-03-03

Overview

MermKingManager is a world-scoped component responsible for managing the emergence, transformation, and destruction of the Merm King and his candidates in Don't Starve Together. It tracks valid thrones, identifies eligible Merm candidates, handles transformation logic when a candidate's calorie threshold is met, and coordinates state persistence and replication across game shards. It integrates closely with the mermcandidate, health, inventory, and inspectable components to manage state transitions.

Usage example

-- Typically attached automatically to TheWorld; not manually added by mods.
-- Example interaction with the manager:
local manager = TheWorld.components.mermkingmanager
if not manager:HasKingAnywhere() then
    -- Force a new king search (requires a valid throne and Merm candidate)
    local throne = GetValidThroneSomehow()
    manager:FindMermCandidate(throne)
end

Dependencies & tags

Components used: burnable, health, inspectable, inventory, mermcandidate, shard_mermkingwatcher
Tags checked: merm, player, mermking, mermguard, shadowminion, creaturecorpse, NOCLICK, mermprince, burnt
Tags added/removed: mermprince (added/removed for candidates), shadowminion (checked)

Properties

Property	Type	Default Value	Description
main_throne	Entity?	nil	The throne currently occupied by the active Merm King (if any).
thrones	table<Entity>	{}	List of all valid thrones in the world.
king	Entity?	nil	The current Merm King entity (if active).
king_dying	boolean	false	Whether the king is currently in the process of dying or has been killed but not yet removed.
candidates	table<Entity>	{}	Map from throne → candidate representing candidates waiting to transform at each throne.
candidate_transforming	Entity?	nil	The candidate currently undergoing transformation to king.
inst	Entity	(inherited)	The owning entity (always TheWorld).

Main functions

OnThroneDestroyed(throne)

• Description: Removes a destroyed throne from tracking, cleans up associated candidate state, and kills the Merm King if the destroyed throne is the main throne (only via deconstruction staff).
• Parameters: throne (Entity) — the destroyed throne entity.
• Returns: Nothing.

CreateMermKing(candidate, throne)

• Description: Transforms a Merm candidate into the Merm King, consumes the throne, clears all other candidates, and registers death/removal callbacks.
• Parameters:
  candidate (Entity) — the Merm candidate to promote.
  throne (Entity) — the throne the candidate occupied.
• Returns: Nothing.
• Error states: Does nothing if called without a valid candidate/throne.

FindMermCandidate(throne)

• Description: Searches for a new Merm candidate near the specified throne if no king currently exists.
• Parameters: throne (Entity?) — the throne to check; if nil, only searches global logic if called externally.
• Returns: Nothing.

ShouldGoToThrone(merm, throne)

• Description: Attempts to register a Merm candidate for a specific throne. Sets nameoverride, adds mermprince tag, and registers removal/death callbacks.
• Parameters:
  merm (Entity) — the candidate entity.
  throne (Entity) — the throne to occupy.
• Returns: true if the candidate was successfully assigned; otherwise false.

ShouldTransform(merm)

• Description: Determines if the given Merm candidate meets all conditions (calories, throne proximity, no ongoing transformation) to transform into the Merm King.
• Parameters: merm (Entity?) — the candidate entity to evaluate.
• Returns: true if transformation should proceed; false otherwise.

IsThroneValid(throne)

• Description: Validates whether a throne can host a Merm King candidate (e.g., not burning, no king corpse present).
• Parameters: throne (Entity?) — the throne to validate.
• Returns: true if the throne is valid; false otherwise.

GetKing(), GetMainThrone(), GetCandidate(throne), GetThrone(merm)

• Description: Simple getters for current state (king, throne, candidate).
• Parameters: See namesake argument in function signatures.
• Returns: GetKing() → Entity?, GetMainThrone() → Entity?, GetCandidate(throne) → Entity?, GetThrone(merm) → Entity?.

HasKingLocal(), HasKingAnywhere(), HasKing()

• Description: Checks whether a Merm King exists. HasKingLocal() is local-only. HasKingAnywhere() queries shard state. HasKing() is a deprecated wrapper.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: true if a king exists in local or shard world (depending on method); false otherwise.

HasTridentLocal(), HasCrownLocal(), HasPauldronLocal()

• Description: Checks if the local Merm King possesses a specific quest item (trident, crown, pauldron). Equivalent *Anywhere() variants exist for shard-aware queries.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: true if the item is held by the local king; false otherwise.

OnSave()

• Description: Serializes key state (king, candidates, thrones) for save/load persistence. Returns entity GUID lists for asset tracking.
• Parameters: None.
• Returns: data (table), ents (table<number>) — save data and entity GUIDs.

LoadPostPass(newents, savedata)

• Description: Rebuilds manager state after a world load by resolving GUIDs to entity references.
• Parameters:
  newents (table<GUID, {entity}>) — mapping of GUID to loaded entities.
  savedata (table) — save data returned by OnSave().
• Returns: Nothing.

Events & listeners

• Listens to:
  • oncandidatekingarrived (on self.inst) — triggers king creation if candidate arrives at throne.
  • onthronebuilt (on self.inst) — adds new throne to list and starts candidate search.
  • onthronedestroyed (on self.inst) — cleans up throne/candidate state.
  • onremove, death (on king, candidates) — handles king/candidate lifecycle.
• Pushes:
  • onmermkingcreated — fired after a king is successfully created.
  • onmermkingdestroyed — fired after king removal/cleanup.