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WAD files are the archive format used by League of Legends to store game assets. Learn how to extract, modify, and repack them for mod creation.

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What Are WAD Files?

WAD (“Where’s All the Data”) files are compressed archives containing:
  • Textures - Character skins, UI elements, particles
  • Models - 3D meshes and skeletons
  • Animations - Character movements and effects
  • Audio - Sound effects and voice lines
  • Data - Configuration files and game logic

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WAD File Types

.wad.client

Standard game WAD files used by the League client.Found in: Game/DATA/FINAL/

.wad

Generic WAD format, converted to .wad.client when imported.

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Extracting WAD Files

Extracting (unpacking) a WAD file converts it into a directory structure you can modify.

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Using CLI Tools

1

Locate the WAD File

Game WAD files are in your League installation:
League of Legends/Game/DATA/FINAL/Champions/
League of Legends/Game/DATA/FINAL/Maps/
League of Legends/Game/DATA/FINAL/Characters/
2

Run Extract Command

Use the wad-extract tool:
wad-extract input.wad.client ./output-directory
This creates a directory with all extracted files.
3

Verify Extraction

Check the output directory for:
  • data/ - Main game data
  • assets/ - Asset files
  • levels/ - Map data (if applicable)
  • OBSIDIAN_PACKED_MAPPING.txt - Hash mapping file

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Extract All WADs

To extract multiple WAD files at once: 
wad-extract-all ./input-directory ./output-directory
This recursively finds and extracts all .wad and .wad.client files.

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Creating WAD Files

Packing a directory back into a WAD file.

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Using CLI Tools

1

Prepare Your Directory

Ensure your directory structure matches the extracted format:
my-modified-wad/
├── data/
│   └── characters/
├── assets/
└── OBSIDIAN_PACKED_MAPPING.txt
2

Run Make Command

Use the wad-make tool:
wad-make ./input-directory output.wad.client
This creates a new WAD file from the directory contents.
3

Import to Mod

Add the created WAD to a mod:
mod-tools addwad output.wad.client ./MyMod --game:/path/to/league

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WAD Operations in Mods

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Adding WADs to Mods

The addwad command integrates WAD files into mod structure: 
mod-tools addwad <src_wad> <dst_mod_dir> [flags]
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src_wad
string
required
Source WAD file or unpacked directory
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dst_mod_dir
string
required
Target mod folder (must contain META/info.json)
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--game
string
Game folder path for rebasing and optimization
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--removeUNK
boolean
Remove entries not present in base game WADs
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--noTFT
boolean
Exclude Teamfight Tactics assets (map21, map22)

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Example Workflows

mod-tools addwad ./custom.wad ./MyMod

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Understanding WAD Structure

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Directory Layout

Extracted WAD files follow this structure: 
Champion.wad.client/
├── data/
│   └── characters/
│       └── champion_name/
│           ├── skins/
│           │   ├── base/
│           │   │   ├── champion_name.dds      # Texture
│           │   │   ├── champion_name.skn      # Skin mesh
│           │   │   └── champion_name.skl      # Skeleton
│           │   └── skin01/                    # Alternate skin
│           └── animations/
│               └── *.anm                      # Animation files
├── assets/
│   └── characters/
│       └── champion_name/
│           └── *.bin                          # Binary data
└── OBSIDIAN_PACKED_MAPPING.txt               # Hash mappings

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Key File Types

Visual assets for characters, UI, and effects.
  • .dds - DirectDraw Surface (game native format)
  • .png - Portable Network Graphics (easier to edit)
Convert between formats using image editing tools.
3D geometry and skeletal data.
  • .skn - Skin mesh (vertex data)
  • .skl - Skeleton (bone structure)
  • .scb/.sco - Static mesh objects
Require specialized tools to edit (Maya, Blender with plugins).
Character movement and action animations.Binary format requiring animation editing tools.
Configuration and game logic files.Some can be edited with text editors (JSON-like format), others are binary.

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Optimization and Rebasing

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What Is Rebasing?

Rebasing compares your WAD against the base game files and:
  1. Identifies changes - Finds files that differ from the base game
  2. Removes duplicates - Strips files identical to the base game
  3. Aligns naming - Matches the base mount structure
  4. Reduces size - Creates smaller, more efficient mods

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When to Rebase

Always rebase when:
  • Creating mods from extracted game WADs
  • Adding WADs that contain unmodified files
  • Preparing mods for distribution
  • Optimizing mod size
Don’t rebase when:
  • Working with custom assets not in the base game
  • The game path isn’t configured correctly
  • You want to preserve all files regardless of origin

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Rebase Example

# Without rebasing - includes all files
mod-tools addwad ./modified.wad ./MyMod
# Result: 50 MB mod

# With rebasing - only changed files
mod-tools addwad ./modified.wad ./MyMod \
  --game:"C:/Riot Games/League of Legends/Game"
# Result: 5 MB mod (only actual changes)

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Advanced WAD Techniques

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Filtering TFT Assets

If you only play Summoner’s Rift, exclude TFT files: 
mod-tools addwad ./champion.wad ./MyMod \
  --game:/path/to/league \
  --noTFT
This skips:
  • map21 (TFT map)
  • map22 (TFT alternate map)
Benefits:
  • Smaller mod size
  • Faster overlay builds
  • Reduced memory usage

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Removing Unknown Entries

Strip files not present in the base game: 
mod-tools addwad ./custom.wad ./MyMod \
  --game:/path/to/league \
  --removeUNK
Use this when:
  • You accidentally included files from other sources
  • The WAD contains outdated or unused assets
  • You want the cleanest possible mod
Be careful with --removeUNK when adding custom content that doesn’t exist in the base game.

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Batch Processing

Process multiple WADs efficiently: 
# Extract all WADs
for file in *.wad.client; do
  wad-extract "$file" "./extracted/${file%.wad.client}"
done

# Modify files in ./extracted/

# Add all back to mod
for dir in ./extracted/*/; do
  mod-tools addwad "$dir" ./MyMod --game:/path/to/league
done

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Troubleshooting WAD Operations

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Extraction Failed

Symptoms: Extract command fails or produces empty directory Solutions:
  • Verify the WAD file isn’t corrupted
  • Check you have read permissions
  • Ensure enough disk space for extraction
  • Try a different output directory

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Import Failed

Symptoms: addwad command fails with error Solutions:
  • Verify the mod has META/info.json
  • Check the game path is correct
  • Ensure mod-tools.exe exists
  • Review error message in log.txt

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Rebasing Removes Everything

Symptoms: Mod becomes empty after rebasing Solutions:
  • You didn’t modify any files (all match base game)
  • Check the game path points to the correct version
  • Verify your changes are actually different from base
  • Don’t use --removeUNK for custom content

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WAD Too Large

Symptoms: Created WAD file is very large Solutions:
  • Enable rebasing with --game flag
  • Use --removeUNK to strip unused entries
  • Enable --noTFT if you don’t need TFT assets
  • Check for duplicate or temporary files in the directory

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WAD File Locations

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Game WAD Directories

League of Legends/
└── Game/
    └── DATA/
        └── FINAL/
            ├── Champions/        # Champion WADs
            ├── Maps/            # Map and environment WADs
            ├── Characters/      # Character models and data
            ├── Particles/       # Particle effects
            ├── Sounds/          # Audio files
            └── UI/              # Interface elements

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Mod WAD Storage

cslol-manager/
└── installed/
    └── ModName/
        └── WAD/
            └── *.wad.client    # Optimized mod WADs

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Best Practices

1

Always Keep Backups

Before modifying game WADs:
  1. Copy the original WAD to a safe location
  2. Extract to a separate directory
  3. Work on the copy, not the original
2

Use Rebasing

Always rebase when creating mods:
  • Smaller file sizes
  • Better compatibility
  • Easier distribution
3

Validate Before Packing

Before creating a WAD:
  • Remove temporary files
  • Check for leftover editor files
  • Verify directory structure is correct
4

Test Incrementally

When modifying WADs:
  1. Make small changes
  2. Test each change
  3. Build incrementally
Don’t make all changes at once - it’s harder to debug.

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Next Steps

Creating Mods

Use WAD files to create complete mods

CLI Commands

Master all WAD-related CLI tools

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