First section is just a few nitpicks and interesting facts of Garry's Mod.


gm_construct and gm_flatgrass, the default maps for Garry's Mod, both have interesting secrets.
gm_construct has a secret room located beneath the bridge that's located next to the "warehouse".










It looks like this on the inside;










This doll is also very important.










gm_flatgrass has also only one secret, located inside the... bridge?










Inside of the "bridge";

Are you ready to start playing with other toddlers and lookalikes in Garry's Mod? First select the "Multiplayer" mode, located under the Start New Game button. A bunch of gamemodes will appear, but do not worry, I will help you find the right one!



The first list is a list of gamemodes, the ones where servers have all the same idea, for example Sandbox. This one is a simple gamemode where you build with other people, but most of the time it's just a few entities and props. Be creative!

Then we have DarkRP, the most famous gamemode of all. DarkRP, as it suggests in the name, is a gamemode focused on Roleplay, and most servers (hosted DarkRP servers with the DarkRP gamemode), if not all, have an economy system, and a full on home system and whatnot!

And then we have all other gamemodes, like Hide & Seek, 1942RP (if you're deranged), Cinema, and much, much more.

But let's say we want to play some Sandbox. This is what would pop up.

A list of servers will show up, and you might want to take some time to choose one. The top ones are always the best, always the most ping-free, but might have more players and might take some time to load. As always, take your time.

Once you find a server that looks fantabulous, you must click on it and boom!!! Done. Or actually, let it load for a few decades so that you can install every single addon that server has. If you're lucky, you might find a server with fewer addons that don't take a decade to load.


But what about hosting a private server peer-to-peer with one or more friends? What about a simpler method of playing with your friend rather than having to download multiple addons with no necessity?
There is a way!
You will have to select "Singleplayer" in the main menu, then go to the tab next to the maps, and select "Single player". A bunch of options appear for the amount of players able to join in at once.


WARNING: The more players you select, the more ping it will produce. You should also use this feature WITH A VPN, so it is recommended that you watch a video that is related to this feature. Do not play peer-to-peer sessions with strangers, as they may be able to access your private information using third-party software!!!

After selecting the amount of players, a new list of variables should appear. Change them however you like, but you can always do "9999"!

Change the settings however you like, it is up to you. Godmode, advanced rigging or whatever, up to you. It is always best to talk with your friends about the settings and whatnot, they might prefer something like "activate everything" or "just a few props or whatever".

Now, this step is EXTREMELY important! When creating a new peer-to-peer server with your buddies, do NOT forget what addons you have installed and what addons your friends have installed! You could use a popular tool called Addon Share, which makes your friends automatically download your addons! (always check for any settings in-game, and any modifications to the addon. If it is not working properly, you should try to download a different Addon Share... addon.)

The reason why this is so important is because, if you do not follow this step (A.K.A. not have an organized addon collection that your friends have subscribed to), they will ONLY see missing textures and ERROR models.

You might just be fine now! If you wish to change anything, you have the in-game menu in disposal for you. Check for any conflicting addons, delete them, and you're off!

If you are struggling with an extremely specific issue but rather simpler one, you should ALWAYS resort to the wiki for any kind of helpful tips. This goes from changing languages to programming advanced addons and how to share them properly.

The Garry's Mod Wiki[wiki.facepunch.com] by Facepunch (the official developers of GMOD) have created an entire Wiki site for any user to visit. If you are wondering on how you can do certain stuff, like creating a gamemode, tampering with the UI for an addon, binary modules, or anything else, you have the site right here.

If the formatting isn't working properly, the link is below.
https://wiki.facepunch.com/gmod/


The website as of April 8, 2024

If you are the average Garry's Modder who wants to play with random things or build interesting structures, then here is a BEAUTIFUL addon collection-collection that I composed entirely! Here are 4 collections, from construction, to fun gimmicks, to useful tools. Use any one of them how you like, you can even mix and match!

Before anything, however, I recommend mounting Counter Strike: Source, as it is super important. The reason why is because most addons require CSS to load their textures and models. Without this, you could result in a messy map or addons with no proper textures. There are tutorials online on how to get CSS, including either 1. purchasing the game or 2. getting all of the assets and placing them inside GMod (for free).

This collection has some of the most important tools, maps, modifications and gamemodes that build the base Garry's Mod. It is always important to deselect a few addons if you wish to.

This collection features some of the most important maps from Garry's Mod, aswell as a few fun, horror and interactive maps! Make use of all of them if you wish :D

This collection features some extremely important addons revolving around building. It is essential for Garry's Mod builders and it contains some extremely useful stuff. Even if you aren't a die-hard GMOD builder, this collection can still be very useful!

Funny thingies that make gameplay go boom boom hahaaaaa
Just make sure that you have CSS installed in here it's probably important i didnt test this one

Now comes the more technical part, but do not worry, Source games' configuration menus aren't THAT difficult to modify properly. First, open it from the pause menu or the normal boot menu, under "Options". You will see this;


Once you open it, you can see your usual spray, which usually exists in almost, if not all Source games, and a new addition called "Crosshair Customization". You can also disable sprays, modify all that server-sided stuff like downloadable content, etc.


You can modify your FOV, use "Fast Weapon Switch", which uses the scrollwheel to automatically change weapons. I personally wouldn't recommend this, because it's a bit jank for me, but maybe it'll work for you. For now, what we want to change is the crosshair. Click on the button below (Crosshair Customization) and let's start modifying our crosshair.

From here, you can change your crosshair from 3 styles: Dot Image, Classic, and Half-Life 2. Before we do that, there's a global setting called "Quick Info", which displays two vertical bars just like in Half-Life 2 that displays the weapon stats. Super helpful if you're the average Half-Life player, but right now it's not the best option to enable. Let's start customizing it!

Dot Image allows us to change the color and the global setting however we like. It will display a simple dot for the crosshair with a little stroke on it. This is the default option.

Classic is a simple shooter-styled crosshair with four lines pointing to the middle. It is SUPER customizable, allowing for sizes, distances, colors, strokes, and more. You can even make it a Minecraft crosshair if you want! (screenshot btw)

And lastly, Half-Life 2. It is the classic crosshair with the least amount of customization available.

Let's move over to Keyboard settings; You have the usual keybinding settings, and also an "Advanced" menu. You can use it for the Fast Weapon Switch, a Developer console (super handy even for normal players!), and some other setting I don't remember.

Let's talk about the Video settings.


First, if your game is lagging or the resolution is not correct, you can change it from here. Below, where it says "Resolution", change the number of pixels that should display. 1920x1080 is HD. Once you find the resolution you deem good (and this includes the native resolutions aswell. It will say next to the # of pixels), apply and wait for the game to load.

Now, change your display mode of the game and the Frames Per Second unlocker (FPS Unlocker). You may choose the limit of frames that you deem fine, usually below the 1% lows. If you get a constant mess from 60 frames to around 120 in certain areas, you may limit this to 60 frames. If you get a stuttery mess then you should 1. change a few video settings and 2. set it to the 1% low (in this case, if the stutters happen then you should set it to either 30, 40, or 60 frames. You may unlock additional frames if you wish.)

You can also change brightness and so on. Now let's move on to the Advanced settings. Click on "Advanced" and this menu pops up.


You can change model resolution, texture resolution, water detail, shadow detail, and more. If your game is constantly lagging then you may change the Texture detail and Model detail options. If it is still lagging, change Shader detail and Shadow detail.

You should also modify Antialiasing, Filtering, and Vsync (Wait for vertical sync option). This way, the frames are mostly limited to your monitor's refresh rate and you will not get any choppy frames.

Disable motion blur. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please. Please.

Enable HDR, multicore rendering (new option now), and check DirectX version. You are ready!

You have read everything this guide has to offer, congratulations! Thank you so much for reading my guide, I have worked on this for months now (mainly due to the lack of ideas I had).

Give this guide a thumbs up, a favourite if you wish, and an award! Awarding me gives me motivation to create more guides like these and helps more beginners steer themselves into a better side of the Garry's Mod community! (I'm speaking to all of the FNaF dupes, saves, and addons here. Except for the maps.)

Thank you!
- Gabriel