Base16 Color Schemes
March 15, 2026 ยท View on GitHub
Aether supports importing Base16 color schemes, a popular format for terminal and editor themes.
What is Base16?
Base16 is a standardized color scheme format that defines 16 colors for consistent theming across applications. Each color has a specific semantic meaning:
| Color | Purpose |
|---|---|
| base00 | Default Background |
| base01 | Lighter Background (status bars) |
| base02 | Selection Background |
| base03 | Comments, Invisibles |
| base04 | Dark Foreground |
| base05 | Default Foreground |
| base06 | Light Foreground |
| base07 | Light Background |
| base08 | Red (variables, errors) |
| base09 | Orange (integers, constants) |
| base0A | Yellow (classes, search) |
| base0B | Green (strings) |
| base0C | Cyan (regex, escapes) |
| base0D | Blue (functions) |
| base0E | Magenta (keywords) |
| base0F | Brown (deprecated) |
Importing Base16 Schemes
Via GUI
- In the Color Palette section, click the import button (document icon)
- Select Base16 (.yaml) from the dropdown
- Choose your
.yamlor.ymlfile - The colors are automatically mapped and applied
Via CLI
# Import and apply Base16 scheme
aether --import-base16 /path/to/scheme.yaml
# With optional wallpaper
aether --import-base16 /path/to/scheme.yaml --wallpaper ~/wallpaper.jpg
# Light mode variant
aether --import-base16 /path/to/scheme.yaml --light-mode
File Format
Base16 schemes use a simple YAML format:
scheme: "Dracula"
author: "Jamy Golden (http://github.com/jamygolden)"
base00: "282a36"
base01: "44475a"
base02: "44475a"
base03: "6272a4"
base04: "bd93f9"
base05: "f8f8f2"
base06: "f8f8f2"
base07: "ffffff"
base08: "ff5555"
base09: "ffb86c"
base0A: "f1fa8c"
base0B: "50fa7b"
base0C: "8be9fd"
base0D: "bd93f9"
base0E: "ff79c6"
base0F: "00f769"
Supported features:
- Colors with or without
#prefix - Single and double quoted values
- Inline comments (
base00: "282a36" # background) - Full-line comments
Color Mapping
Aether maps Base16 colors to ANSI terminal colors following the base16-shell standard:
| ANSI Color | Base16 Source |
|---|---|
| 0 (Black) | base00 |
| 1 (Red) | base08 |
| 2 (Green) | base0B |
| 3 (Yellow) | base0A |
| 4 (Blue) | base0D |
| 5 (Magenta) | base0E |
| 6 (Cyan) | base0C |
| 7 (White) | base05 |
| 8 (Bright Black) | base03 |
| 9 (Bright Red) | base08 |
| 10 (Bright Green) | base0B |
| 11 (Bright Yellow) | base0A |
| 12 (Bright Blue) | base0D |
| 13 (Bright Magenta) | base0E |
| 14 (Bright Cyan) | base0C |
| 15 (Bright White) | base07 |
Extended Colors
When importing a Base16 scheme, Aether automatically derives extended colors from the palette:
| Extended Color | Derived From |
|---|---|
accent | color4 (Blue) |
cursor | color7 (White / Default Foreground) |
selection_foreground | color0 (Black/Background) |
selection_background | color7 (White / Default Foreground) |
These extended colors can be manually adjusted after import in the Extended Colors section.
Finding Base16 Schemes
Popular repositories with Base16 schemes:
- tinted-theming/base16-schemes - Official scheme collection
- base16-schemes-source - Original scheme list
- tinted-theming/schemes - 250+ schemes
- base16-gallery - Visual browser
- terminal.sexy - Export as Base16
Example Schemes
Gruvbox Dark
scheme: "Gruvbox dark, hard"
author: "Dawid Kurek (dawikur@gmail.com)"
base00: "1d2021"
base01: "3c3836"
base02: "504945"
base03: "665c54"
base04: "bdae93"
base05: "d5c4a1"
base06: "ebdbb2"
base07: "fbf1c7"
base08: "fb4934"
base09: "fe8019"
base0A: "fabd2f"
base0B: "b8bb26"
base0C: "8ec07c"
base0D: "83a598"
base0E: "d3869b"
base0F: "d65d0e"
Nord
scheme: "Nord"
author: "arcticicestudio"
base00: "2E3440"
base01: "3B4252"
base02: "434C5E"
base03: "4C566A"
base04: "D8DEE9"
base05: "E5E9F0"
base06: "ECEFF4"
base07: "8FBCBB"
base08: "BF616A"
base09: "D08770"
base0A: "EBCB8B"
base0B: "A3BE8C"
base0C: "88C0D0"
base0D: "81A1C1"
base0E: "B48EAD"
base0F: "5E81AC"
Troubleshooting
"Missing Base16 colors" error
Ensure your YAML file contains all 16 base colors (base00 through base0F).
Colors look wrong
Base16 uses semantic color assignments that may differ from direct 1:1 mappings. The bright colors (8-15) intentionally reuse some accent colors for consistency.
File not recognized
Make sure the file extension is .yaml or .yml and follows the Base16 format with baseXX keys.