Download and run r2modman on Linux

Choose a package that fits your distribution

AppImage is the most portable starting point and does not require a distribution-specific package manager. Use deb for Debian, Ubuntu, and related systems; rpm for Fedora or openSUSE; pacman for Arch-based systems. All formats come from the same release, so the choice changes installation and update behavior—not the core profile features.

• AppImage: portable and broadly compatible.
• deb: integrates with Debian-family package management.
• rpm: intended for RPM-family distributions.
• pacman: intended for Arch-family distributions.

Make the AppImage executable

Keep the file in a user-owned Applications or Downloads directory, not in the game folder. Grant executable permission once, then start it from a terminal for the first run so any launch error remains visible.

chmod +x r2modman-3.2.19.AppImage
./r2modman-3.2.19.AppImage

Treat Proton as a separate layer

If the game runs through Proton, r2modman must identify the same Steam library, game directory, and platform context. Use Steam’s Browse local files action as the path of record, then compare each entry in Settings → Locations. A blank .forceproton file can help when the platform is misdetected, but it is not a universal fix for every game.

Diagnose launch failures from the terminal

Capture the first meaningful error and distinguish AppImage permissions, Electron sandboxing, missing libraries, and game-path issues. You can test --no-sandbox only to identify a sandbox failure; if it changes the result, correct the system or package permissions rather than treating a reduced security boundary as the permanent solution.

./r2modman-3.2.19.AppImage --no-sandbox

Verify the complete Linux launch chain

Success means more than opening the manager. Select a game, verify its Steam and game paths, create a clean profile, install only the required loader, and use Start modded. If these steps work, the manager, path detection, and basic loader handoff are functioning; add mods gradually after that baseline.