GitHub Actions Auto Build

Manually compiling, packaging, and uploading Releases is tedious. With GitHub Actions, CI/CD can automate it all: push code → auto-compile → auto-package → auto-publish.

Why You Need a Private Lib Repository

ADOFAI Mods must reference the game's original DLLs (Assembly-CSharp.dll, etc.) at compile time. But these DLLs are copyright-protected and cannot be placed in public repositories.

The solution: create a private repository specifically to store these binaries, and use a token to access it during CI builds. This is the "private lib repository" approach.

Never put original binaries in public repositories or Releases — see Development Guidelines.

Step 1: Prepare the Private Lib Repository

1. Create a private repository, e.g. my-mods-libs

2. Place the original DLLs from the game directory A Dance of Fire and Ice\ADofAI_Data\Managed\ into it (keep the same directory structure):

   my-mods-libs/
   └── Managed/
       ├── Assembly-CSharp.dll
       ├── UnityEngine.dll
       ├── UnityEngine.CoreModule.dll
       └── ...

3. Push to GitHub (the repository is private, so binaries won't be exposed)

These DLLs are build dependencies only — don't modify, don't distribute, for CI internal use only.

Step 2: Create a Personal Access Token (PAT)

CI needs permission to clone the private repository:

1. GitHub → Settings → Developer settings → Personal access tokens → Fine-grained tokens
2. Create a new token with only:
   • Repository access: select your private lib repository
   • Contents → Read (read permission)
3. Copy the token value

Step 3: Store the PAT as a Secret

In your Mod repository:

1. Settings → Secrets and variables → Actions
2. New repository secret
3. Name: LIBS_PAT (or any name), value: paste the token from the previous step

Secrets don't appear in logs. In CI, use ${{ secrets.LIBS_PAT }}.

Step 4: Write the Actions Workflow

Create .github/workflows/build.yml in your repository:

name: Build

on:
  push:
    tags:
      - "v*"        # Trigger on tag push

jobs:
  build:
    runs-on: windows-latest
    steps:
      - uses: actions/checkout@v4

      # 1. Clone the private lib repository (using PAT)
      - name: Clone private libs
        run: |
          git clone https://${{ secrets.LIBS_PAT }}@github.com/yourname/my-mods-libs.git libs

      # 2. Install .NET
      - uses: actions/setup-dotnet@v4
        with:
          dotnet-version: "8.x"

      # 3. Build (referencing DLLs under libs/)
      - name: Build
        run: dotnet build MyFirstMod.csproj -c Release -p:ADOFAI_PATH=libs

      # 4. Package the Mod directory
      - name: Package
        shell: pwsh
        run: |
          $mod = "MyFirstMod"
          New-Item -ItemType Directory -Path dist/$mod -Force | Out-Null
          Copy-Item MyFirstMod/bin/Release/**/*.dll dist/$mod/
          Copy-Item Info.json dist/$mod/
          Copy-Item README.md dist/$mod/

      # 5. Publish to Release
      - uses: softprops/action-gh-release@v2
        with:
          files: dist/MyFirstMod/*

Making csproj Support the libs Path

The workflow passes the lib repository path via -p:ADOFAI_PATH=libs. Your .csproj should use this property:

<Project Sdk="Microsoft.NET.Sdk">
  <PropertyGroup>
    <TargetFramework>net48</TargetFramework>
    <!-- Local path: your game directory -->
    <ADOFAI_PATH Condition="'$(ADOFAI_PATH)' == ''">D:\Steam\steamapps\common\A Dance of Fire and Ice</ADOFAI_PATH>
  </PropertyGroup>

  <ItemGroup>
    <Reference Include="Assembly-CSharp">
      <HintPath>$(ADOFAI_PATH)\ADofAI_Data\Managed\Assembly-CSharp.dll</HintPath>
      <Private>false</Private>
    </Reference>
  </ItemGroup>
</Project>

• Condition: when CI passes ADOFAI_PATH, it uses the CI path; for local development, it uses the default game path
• <Private>false</Private>: don't copy game DLLs into the output directory

Workflow Breakdown

Step	Purpose
checkout@v4	Pull your Mod source code
Clone private libs	Pull binary dependencies using secrets.LIBS_PAT
setup-dotnet	Prepare the build environment
dotnet build	Compile Release
Package	Assemble the Mods/MyFirstMod/ directory structure
action-gh-release	Upload to Release assets

Trigger

on:
  push:
    tags:
      - "v*"

Push a tag like v1.0.0 to auto-build and publish:

git tag v1.0.0
git push origin v1.0.0

Common Issues

Build can't find game DLLs?

Confirm the private lib repository directory structure matches the HintPath in .csproj (both should use ADofAI_Data/Managed/).

Secret name wrong?

In the Actions run log, using the wrong name for ${{ secrets.XXX }} will silently substitute an empty string. Check that the Secret name matches exactly.

PAT lacks clone permission?

Confirm the PAT has Contents: Read permission and that repository access only checks the lib repository.

What You Learned

• Why you need a private lib repository
• How to create a PAT and configure a Secret
• The complete CI workflow and csproj adaptation

Next Step

Read the guidelines before publishing → Development Guidelines