I've played over 30 hours of multiplayer in Torchlight 2 since it received Steam Workshop support. Much of that time was spent trying to explain to friends (and friends of friends) how to get the mods, enter multiplayer, and sync up our clients so we can play properly.

I can only assume other people are having issues with mods and multiplayer considering how many times I've had to explain this process over the past week. This is basically to save myself some time, and hopefully save a few of you some headaches as well.

Getting all set up.

Everyone will have to sync to the host when they try to join a game, but you can iron out several connectivity kinks by having everyone download each mod before they launch the game.

Make a list of mods to give anyone joining your game and give the priority order to avoid compatibility issues.

Make sure that everyone launches the game with mods and not the vanilla client.

The mod order is very important. Some mods do not require that they be in any particular position, but some do. Be sure to read the mod's page on the Steam Workshop to see if the author recommends a particular placement. Sometimes these recommendations will be found in the comments section, and sometimes they are found in the mod loader. Keep an eye out!

Seeing modded multiplayer games

Joining your friends' games and joining pub games are entirely different ballparks due to the mod list and order system. Finding public games with mods you're interested in playing with requires choosing mod collections at the top of the internet lobby and seeing what is available. Finding games with the right combination of mods can be difficult, to say the least.

Joining a game with friends is much easier than finding a compatible pub, but it is not as simple as with vanilla Torchlight 2.

Ensure the host's Runic account is on your contact list in-game. If you do not see their game on the list, click on their name and then "Show Game".

If there is no option to show your contact's game, search for the game name. If there are still no results, double-check that you both have the same mods and that they are in the same order.

If there is no "Join" option when you click on a game, look at the top of your screen for a small wrench icon. The wrench icon syncs your client to the host's mods so there are no compatibility issues during play. Your client will restart and you should be able to join with no problem.

If you cannot see your friend's game, double-check your mod list and relaunch.

Stop crashing! Okay, fine. Whatever.

Since I've been poking around with so many mods, I've had more crashes in Torchlight 2 than I have had with any other game in the past few years. Solving your crashing issues can be complicated, but the easiest way is to boot the game with a single mod, test it in multiplayer action, then relaunch with two mods and so on.

Steps, read them!

Boot the game only with SynergiesMOD enabled. Have a friend join your game, with only SynergiesMOD enabled. Both of you enter and exit the same map at the same time around 4 or 5 times. If there are no crashes, exit the game and boot with both SynergiesMOD and another mod. Repeat step 2 (with the additional mod) and 3. If all is well, keep adding mods until you find the source of your problems.

Sometimes crashes just happen, and they're not really something you can bet on happening. Be sure to do the steps listed above if you intend to play with more than four people.

No one enjoys crashing time and time again, and I am 95% sure the in-game crashes deterred at least three friends-of-friends from ever playing again. If one of the players in your game crashes regularly in a single game session, have someone else host and see if that makes a difference. Good luck, and have fun!