Basic Game Setup

Collections are where your game data lives. You can create them on the dashboard or use the Sync Tool to push schemas from the editor.

## Option A: Use the Sync Tool (Recommended)

After configuring credentials in **Network Storage > Setup**, open **Network Storage > Sync Tool** from the editor menu bar.

The library scaffolds a sample `players` collection for you on first install at `Editor/Network Storage/collections/players.collection.yml`. Prefer `.yml` for YAML Source files. Existing `.yaml` files still sync and are treated the same. You can edit this file or create new ones, then push them to the server with the Sync Tool.

A collection file looks like this:

```yaml
sourceVersion: "1"
kind: collection
name: players
collectionType: per-steamid
accessMode: endpoint
schema:
  type: object
  properties:
    playerName:
      type: string
    xp:
      type: number
      default: 0
    gold:
      type: number
      default: 0
    inventory:
      type: array
      items:
        type: object
```

Click **Push** in the Sync Tool to create or update the collection on the server.

## Option B: Create on the Dashboard

1. Open your project on the [Network Storage dashboard](/tools/network-storage)
2. Click **New Collection**
3. Fill in:

| Field | Value | Why |
|-------|-------|-----|
| **Name** | `players` | Stores per-player data |
| **Type** | Per-Player | Each player gets their own document |
| **Access Mode** | Endpoint controlled | Prevents clients from writing directly |

4. Paste this schema:

```yaml
type: object
properties:
  playerName:
    type: string
  xp:
    type: number
    min: 0
  gold:
    type: number
    min: 0
  inventory:
    type: array
    items:
      type: object
```

5. Click **Create Collection**.

## Use Example Templates

If you are not sure what schema to use, start with the example templates on the dashboard:

- **Player Profile** -- name, XP, level, stats
- **Inventory** -- item storage with quantities
- **Leaderboard** -- global score tracking

## Schema Tips

- Use `min: 0` on currency and XP fields to prevent negative values
- Add `_ledger: true` to track every change for audit purposes
- Use `default: 0` to initialize fields automatically