diff --git a/src/meta/build.js b/src/meta/build.js
index 290957512a..29155d55c3 100644
--- a/src/meta/build.js
+++ b/src/meta/build.js
@@ -92,7 +92,7 @@ aliases = Object.keys(aliases).reduce(function (prev, key) {
 	return prev;
 }, {});
 
-function beforeBuild(callback) {
+function beforeBuild(targets, callback) {
 	var db = require('../database');
 	var plugins = require('../plugins');
 	meta = require('../meta');
@@ -100,7 +100,7 @@ function beforeBuild(callback) {
 	async.series([
 		db.init,
 		meta.themes.setupPaths,
-		plugins.prepareForBuild,
+		async.apply(plugins.prepareForBuild, targets),
 	], function (err) {
 		if (err) {
 			winston.error('[build] Encountered error preparing for build: ' + err.message);
@@ -159,6 +159,8 @@ function build(targets, callback) {
 			return arr.indexOf(target) === i;
 		});
 
+	winston.verbose('[build] building the following targets: ' + targets.join(', '));
+
 	if (typeof callback !== 'function') {
 		callback = function (err) {
 			if (err) {
@@ -178,7 +180,7 @@ function build(targets, callback) {
 	var startTime;
 	var totalTime;
 	async.series([
-		beforeBuild,
+		async.apply(beforeBuild, targets),
 		function (next) {
 			var threads = parseInt(nconf.get('threads'), 10);
 			if (threads) {
diff --git a/src/meta/languages.js b/src/meta/languages.js
index 90c3603677..5692533756 100644
--- a/src/meta/languages.js
+++ b/src/meta/languages.js
@@ -6,97 +6,44 @@ var async = require('async');
 var fs = require('fs');
 var mkdirp = require('mkdirp');
 var rimraf = require('rimraf');
+var _ = require('underscore');
 
 var file = require('../file');
 var Plugins = require('../plugins');
-var db = require('../database');
 
 var buildLanguagesPath = path.join(__dirname, '../../build/public/language');
-var	coreLanguagesPath = path.join(__dirname, '../../public/language');
+var coreLanguagesPath = path.join(__dirname, '../../public/language');
 
 function getTranslationTree(callback) {
 	async.waterfall([
-		// get plugin data
+		// generate list of languages and namespaces
 		function (next) {
-			db.getSortedSetRange('plugins:active', 0, -1, next);
-		},
-		function (plugins, next) {
-			var pluginBasePath = path.join(__dirname, '../../node_modules');
-			var paths = plugins.map(function (plugin) {
-				return path.join(pluginBasePath, plugin);
-			});
-
-			// Filter out plugins with invalid paths
-			async.filter(paths, file.exists, next);
+			file.walk(coreLanguagesPath, next);
 		},
 		function (paths, next) {
-			async.map(paths, Plugins.loadPluginInfo, next);
-		},
-
-		// generate list of languages and namespaces
-		function (plugins, next) {
 			var languages = [];
 			var namespaces = [];
 
-			// pull languages and namespaces from paths
-			function extrude(languageDir, paths) {
-				paths.forEach(function (p) {
-					var rel = p.split(languageDir)[1].split(/[/\\]/).slice(1);
-					var language = rel.shift().replace('_', '-').replace('@', '-x-');
-					var namespace = rel.join('/').replace(/\.json$/, '');
-
-					if (!language || !namespace) {
-						return;
-					}
-
-					if (languages.indexOf(language) === -1) {
-						languages.push(language);
-					}
-					if (namespaces.indexOf(namespace) === -1) {
-						namespaces.push(namespace);
-					}
-				});
-			}
-
-			plugins = plugins.filter(function (pluginData) {
-				return (typeof pluginData.languages === 'string');
-			});
-			async.parallel([
-				// get core languages and namespaces
-				function (nxt) {
-					file.walk(coreLanguagesPath, function (err, paths) {
-						if (err) {
-							return nxt(err);
-						}
-
-						extrude(coreLanguagesPath, paths);
-						nxt();
-					});
-				},
-				// get plugin languages and namespaces
-				function (nxt) {
-					async.each(plugins, function (pluginData, cb) {
-						var pathToFolder = path.join(__dirname, '../../node_modules/', pluginData.id, pluginData.languages);
-						file.walk(pathToFolder, function (err, paths) {
-							if (err) {
-								return cb(err);
-							}
-
-							extrude(pathToFolder, paths);
-							cb();
-						});
-					}, nxt);
-				},
-			], function (err) {
-				if (err) {
-					return next(err);
+			paths.forEach(function (p) {
+				if (!p.endsWith('.json')) {
+					return;
 				}
 
-				next(null, {
-					languages: languages,
-					namespaces: namespaces,
-					plugins: plugins,
-				});
+				var rel = path.relative(coreLanguagesPath, p).split(/[/\\]/);
+				var language = rel.shift().replace('_', '-').replace('@', '-x-');
+				var namespace = rel.join('/').replace(/\.json$/, '');
+
+				if (!language || !namespace) {
+					return;
+				}
+
+				languages.push(language);
+				namespaces.push(namespace);
+			});
+
+			next(null, {
+				languages: _.union(languages, Plugins.languageData.languages).sort().filter(Boolean),
+				namespaces: _.union(namespaces, Plugins.languageData.namespaces).sort().filter(Boolean),
 			});
 		},
 
@@ -109,8 +56,8 @@ function getTranslationTree(callback) {
 				},
 				function (x, next) {
 					fs.writeFile(path.join(buildLanguagesPath, 'metadata.json'), JSON.stringify({
-						languages: ref.languages.sort(),
-						namespaces: ref.namespaces.sort(),
+						languages: ref.languages,
+						namespaces: ref.namespaces,
 					}), next);
 				},
 				function (next) {
@@ -125,40 +72,42 @@ function getTranslationTree(callback) {
 		function (ref, next) {
 			var languages = ref.languages;
 			var namespaces = ref.namespaces;
-			var plugins = ref.plugins;
+			var plugins = _.values(Plugins.pluginsData).filter(function (plugin) {
+				return typeof plugin.languages === 'string';
+			});
 
 			var tree = {};
 
-			async.eachLimit(languages, 10, function (lang, nxt) {
-				async.eachLimit(namespaces, 10, function (ns, cb) {
+			async.eachLimit(languages, 10, function (lang, next) {
+				async.eachLimit(namespaces, 10, function (namespace, next) {
 					var translations = {};
 
 					async.series([
 						// core first
-						function (n) {
-							fs.readFile(path.join(coreLanguagesPath, lang, ns + '.json'), function (err, buffer) {
+						function (cb) {
+							fs.readFile(path.join(coreLanguagesPath, lang, namespace + '.json'), function (err, buffer) {
 								if (err) {
 									if (err.code === 'ENOENT') {
-										return n();
+										return cb();
 									}
-									return n(err);
+									return cb(err);
 								}
 
 								try {
 									Object.assign(translations, JSON.parse(buffer.toString()));
-									n();
+									cb();
 								} catch (err) {
-									n(err);
+									cb(err);
 								}
 							});
 						},
-						function (n) {
+						function (cb) {
 							// for each plugin, fallback in this order:
 							//  1. correct language string (en-GB)
 							//  2. old language string (en_GB)
 							//  3. corrected plugin defaultLang (en-US)
 							//  4. old plugin defaultLang (en_US)
-							async.eachLimit(plugins, 10, function (pluginData, call) {
+							async.eachLimit(plugins, 10, function (pluginData, done) {
 								var pluginLanguages = path.join(__dirname, '../../node_modules/', pluginData.id, pluginData.languages);
 								var defaultLang = pluginData.defaultLang || 'en-GB';
 
@@ -168,7 +117,7 @@ function getTranslationTree(callback) {
 									defaultLang.replace('_', '-').replace('@', '-x-'),
 									defaultLang.replace('-', '_').replace('-x-', '@'),
 								], function (language, next) {
-									fs.readFile(path.join(pluginLanguages, language, ns + '.json'), function (err, buffer) {
+									fs.readFile(path.join(pluginLanguages, language, namespace + '.json'), function (err, buffer) {
 										if (err) {
 											if (err.code === 'ENOENT') {
 												return next(null, false);
@@ -183,21 +132,21 @@ function getTranslationTree(callback) {
 											next(err);
 										}
 									});
-								}, call);
+								}, done);
 							}, function (err) {
 								if (err) {
-									return n(err);
+									return cb(err);
 								}
 
 								if (Object.keys(translations).length) {
 									tree[lang] = tree[lang] || {};
-									tree[lang][ns] = translations;
+									tree[lang][namespace] = translations;
 								}
-								n();
+								cb();
 							});
 						},
-					], cb);
-				}, nxt);
+					], next);
+				}, next);
 			}, function (err) {
 				next(err, tree);
 			});
@@ -208,9 +157,9 @@ function getTranslationTree(callback) {
 // write translation hashes from the generated tree to language files
 function writeLanguageFiles(tree, callback) {
 	// iterate over languages and namespaces
-	async.eachLimit(Object.keys(tree), 10, function (language, cb) {
+	async.eachLimit(Object.keys(tree), 100, function (language, cb) {
 		var namespaces = tree[language];
-		async.eachLimit(Object.keys(namespaces), 100, function (namespace, next) {
+		async.eachLimit(Object.keys(namespaces), 10, function (namespace, next) {
 			var translations = namespaces[namespace];
 
 			var filePath = path.join(buildLanguagesPath, language, namespace + '.json');
diff --git a/src/plugins.js b/src/plugins.js
index 6c69553a05..e3752bbb0c 100644
--- a/src/plugins.js
+++ b/src/plugins.js
@@ -8,10 +8,8 @@ var semver = require('semver');
 var express = require('express');
 var nconf = require('nconf');
 
-var db = require('./database');
 var hotswap = require('./hotswap');
 var file = require('./file');
-var languages = require('./languages');
 
 var app;
 var middleware;
@@ -20,7 +18,12 @@ var middleware;
 	require('./plugins/install')(Plugins);
 	require('./plugins/load')(Plugins);
 	require('./plugins/hooks')(Plugins);
+	Plugins.data = require('./plugins/data');
 
+	Plugins.getPluginPaths = Plugins.data.getPluginPaths;
+	Plugins.loadPluginInfo = Plugins.data.loadPluginInfo;
+
+	Plugins.pluginsData = {};
 	Plugins.libraries = {};
 	Plugins.loadedHooks = {};
 	Plugins.staticDirs = {};
@@ -30,8 +33,8 @@ var middleware;
 	Plugins.acpScripts = [];
 	Plugins.libraryPaths = [];
 	Plugins.versionWarning = [];
-	Plugins.languageCodes = [];
 	Plugins.soundpacks = [];
+	Plugins.languageData = {};
 
 	Plugins.initialized = false;
 
@@ -84,21 +87,7 @@ var middleware;
 		Plugins.libraryPaths.length = 0;
 
 		async.waterfall([
-			function (next) {
-				// Build language code list
-				languages.list(function (err, languages) {
-					if (err) {
-						return next(err);
-					}
-
-					Plugins.languageCodes = languages.map(function (data) {
-						return data.code;
-					});
-
-					next();
-				});
-			},
-			async.apply(Plugins.getPluginPaths),
+			Plugins.getPluginPaths,
 			function (paths, next) {
 				async.eachSeries(paths, Plugins.loadPlugin, next);
 			},
@@ -150,21 +139,7 @@ var middleware;
 		var templates = {};
 		var tplName;
 
-		async.waterfall([
-			async.apply(db.getSortedSetRange, 'plugins:active', 0, -1),
-			function (plugins, next) {
-				var pluginBasePath = path.join(__dirname, '../node_modules');
-				var paths = plugins.map(function (plugin) {
-					return path.join(pluginBasePath, plugin);
-				});
-
-				// Filter out plugins with invalid paths
-				async.filter(paths, file.exists, next);
-			},
-			function (paths, next) {
-				async.map(paths, Plugins.loadPluginInfo, next);
-			},
-		], function (err, plugins) {
+		Plugins.data.getActive(function (err, plugins) {
 			if (err) {
 				return callback(err);
 			}
diff --git a/src/plugins/data.js b/src/plugins/data.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000000..afb8d095ab
--- /dev/null
+++ b/src/plugins/data.js
@@ -0,0 +1,336 @@
+'use strict';
+
+var fs = require('fs');
+var path = require('path');
+var async = require('async');
+var winston = require('winston');
+
+var db = require('../database');
+var file = require('../file');
+
+var Data = module.exports;
+
+var basePath = path.join(__dirname, '../../');
+
+function getPluginPaths(callback) {
+	async.waterfall([
+		function (next) {
+			db.getSortedSetRange('plugins:active', 0, -1, next);
+		},
+		function (plugins, next) {
+			if (!Array.isArray(plugins)) {
+				return next();
+			}
+
+			plugins = plugins.filter(function (plugin) {
+				return plugin && typeof plugin === 'string';
+			}).map(function (plugin) {
+				return path.join(__dirname, '../../node_modules/', plugin);
+			});
+
+			async.filter(plugins, file.exists, next);
+		},
+	], callback);
+}
+Data.getPluginPaths = getPluginPaths;
+
+function loadPluginInfo(pluginPath, callback) {
+	async.parallel({
+		package: function (next) {
+			fs.readFile(path.join(pluginPath, 'package.json'), next);
+		},
+		plugin: function (next) {
+			fs.readFile(path.join(pluginPath, 'plugin.json'), next);
+		},
+	}, function (err, results) {
+		if (err) {
+			return callback(err);
+		}
+		var pluginData;
+		var packageData;
+		try {
+			pluginData = JSON.parse(results.plugin);
+			packageData = JSON.parse(results.package);
+
+			pluginData.id = packageData.name;
+			pluginData.name = packageData.name;
+			pluginData.description = packageData.description;
+			pluginData.version = packageData.version;
+			pluginData.repository = packageData.repository;
+			pluginData.nbbpm = packageData.nbbpm;
+			pluginData.path = pluginPath;
+		} catch (err) {
+			var pluginDir = path.basename(pluginPath);
+
+			winston.error('[plugins/' + pluginDir + '] Error in plugin.json or package.json! ' + err.message);
+			return callback(new Error('[[error:parse-error]]'));
+		}
+
+		callback(null, pluginData);
+	});
+}
+Data.loadPluginInfo = loadPluginInfo;
+
+function getAllPluginData(callback) {
+	async.waterfall([
+		function (next) {
+			getPluginPaths(next);
+		},
+		function (pluginPaths, next) {
+			async.map(pluginPaths, loadPluginInfo, next);
+		},
+	], callback);
+}
+Data.getActive = getAllPluginData;
+
+function getStaticDirectories(pluginData, callback) {
+	var validMappedPath = /^[\w\-_]+$/;
+
+	if (!pluginData.staticDirs) {
+		return callback();
+	}
+
+	var dirs = Object.keys(pluginData.staticDirs);
+	if (!dirs.length) {
+		return callback();
+	}
+
+	var staticDirs = {};
+
+	async.each(dirs, function (route, next) {
+		if (!validMappedPath.test(route)) {
+			winston.warn('[plugins/' + pluginData.id + '] Invalid mapped path specified: ' +
+				route + '. Path must adhere to: ' + validMappedPath.toString());
+			return next();
+		}
+
+		var dirPath = path.join(pluginData.path, pluginData.staticDirs[route]);
+		fs.stat(dirPath, function (err, stats) {
+			if (err && err.code === 'ENOENT') {
+				winston.warn('[plugins/' + pluginData.id + '] Mapped path \'' +
+					route + ' => ' + dirPath + '\' not found.');
+				return next();
+			}
+			if (err) {
+				return next(err);
+			}
+
+			if (!stats.isDirectory()) {
+				winston.warn('[plugins/' + pluginData.id + '] Mapped path \'' +
+					route + ' => ' + dirPath + '\' is not a directory.');
+				return next();
+			}
+
+			staticDirs[pluginData.id + '/' + route] = dirPath;
+			next();
+		});
+	}, function (err) {
+		if (err) {
+			return callback(err);
+		}
+		winston.verbose('[plugins] found ' + Object.keys(staticDirs).length +
+			' static directories for ' + pluginData.id);
+		callback(null, staticDirs);
+	});
+}
+Data.getStaticDirectories = getStaticDirectories;
+
+function getFiles(pluginData, type, callback) {
+	if (!Array.isArray(pluginData[type]) || !pluginData[type].length) {
+		return callback();
+	}
+
+	winston.verbose('[plugins] Found ' + pluginData[type].length + ' ' + type + ' file(s) for plugin ' + pluginData.id);
+
+	var files = pluginData[type].map(function (file) {
+		return path.join(pluginData.id, file);
+	});
+
+	callback(null, files);
+}
+Data.getFiles = getFiles;
+
+/**
+ * With npm@3, dependencies can become flattened, and appear at the root level.
+ * This method resolves these differences if it can.
+ */
+function resolveModulePath(basePath, modulePath, callback) {
+	var isNodeModule = /node_modules/;
+
+	var currentPath = path.join(basePath, modulePath);
+	file.exists(currentPath, function (err, exists) {
+		if (err) {
+			return callback(err);
+		}
+		if (exists) {
+			return callback(null, currentPath);
+		}
+		if (!isNodeModule.test(modulePath)) {
+			winston.warn('[plugins] File not found: ' + currentPath + ' (Ignoring)');
+			return callback();
+		}
+
+		var dirPath = path.dirname(basePath);
+		if (dirPath === basePath) {
+			winston.warn('[plugins] File not found: ' + currentPath + ' (Ignoring)');
+			return callback();
+		}
+
+		resolveModulePath(dirPath, modulePath, callback);
+	});
+}
+
+function getScripts(pluginData, target, callback) {
+	target = (target === 'client') ? 'scripts' : 'acpScripts';
+
+	var input = pluginData[target];
+	if (!Array.isArray(input) || !input.length) {
+		return callback();
+	}
+
+	var scripts = [];
+	async.each(input, function (filePath, next) {
+		resolveModulePath(pluginData.path, filePath, function (err, modulePath) {
+			if (err) {
+				return next(err);
+			}
+
+			if (modulePath) {
+				scripts.push(modulePath);
+			}
+			next();
+		});
+	}, function (err) {
+		if (err) {
+			return callback(err);
+		}
+
+		if (scripts.length) {
+			winston.verbose('[plugins] Found ' + scripts.length + ' js file(s) for plugin ' + pluginData.id);
+		}
+		callback(err, scripts);
+	});
+}
+Data.getScripts = getScripts;
+
+function getModules(pluginData, callback) {
+	if (!pluginData.modules || !pluginData.hasOwnProperty('modules')) {
+		return callback();
+	}
+
+	var pluginModules = pluginData.modules;
+
+	if (Array.isArray(pluginModules)) {
+		var strip = parseInt(pluginData.modulesStrip, 10) || 0;
+
+		pluginModules = pluginModules.reduce(function (prev, modulePath) {
+			var key;
+			if (strip) {
+				key = modulePath.replace(new RegExp('.?(/[^/]+){' + strip + '}/'), '');
+			} else {
+				key = path.basename(modulePath);
+			}
+
+			prev[key] = modulePath;
+			return prev;
+		}, {});
+	}
+
+	var modules = {};
+	async.each(Object.keys(pluginModules), function (key, next) {
+		resolveModulePath(pluginData.path, pluginModules[key], function (err, modulePath) {
+			if (err) {
+				return next(err);
+			}
+
+			if (modulePath) {
+				modules[key] = path.relative(basePath, modulePath);
+			}
+			next();
+		});
+	}, function (err) {
+		if (err) {
+			return callback(err);
+		}
+
+		var len = Object.keys(modules).length;
+		winston.verbose('[plugins] Found ' + len + ' AMD-style module(s) for plugin ' + pluginData.id);
+
+		callback(null, modules);
+	});
+}
+Data.getModules = getModules;
+
+function getSoundpack(pluginData, callback) {
+	var spack = pluginData.soundpack;
+	if (!spack || !spack.dir || !spack.sounds) {
+		return callback();
+	}
+
+	var soundpack = {};
+	soundpack.name = spack.name || pluginData.name;
+	soundpack.id = pluginData.id;
+	soundpack.dir = path.join(pluginData.path, spack.dir);
+	soundpack.sounds = {};
+
+	async.each(Object.keys(spack.sounds), function (name, next) {
+		var soundFile = spack.sounds[name];
+		file.exists(path.join(soundpack.dir, soundFile), function (err, exists) {
+			if (err) {
+				return next(err);
+			}
+			if (!exists) {
+				winston.warn('[plugins] Sound file not found: ' + soundFile);
+				return next();
+			}
+
+			soundpack.sounds[name] = soundFile;
+			next();
+		});
+	}, function (err) {
+		if (err) {
+			return callback(err);
+		}
+
+		var len = Object.keys(soundpack.sounds).length;
+		winston.verbose('[plugins] Found ' + len + ' sound file(s) for plugin ' + pluginData.id);
+
+		callback(null, soundpack);
+	});
+}
+Data.getSoundpack = getSoundpack;
+
+function getLanguageData(pluginData, callback) {
+	if (typeof pluginData.languages !== 'string') {
+		return callback();
+	}
+
+	var pathToFolder = path.join(__dirname, '../../node_modules/', pluginData.id, pluginData.languages);
+	file.walk(pathToFolder, function (err, paths) {
+		if (err) {
+			return callback(err);
+		}
+
+		var namespaces = [];
+		var languages = [];
+
+		paths.forEach(function (p) {
+			var rel = path.relative(pathToFolder, p).split(/[/\\]/);
+			var language = rel.shift().replace('_', '-').replace('@', '-x-');
+			var namespace = rel.join('/').replace(/\.json$/, '');
+
+			if (!language || !namespace) {
+				return;
+			}
+
+			languages.push(language);
+			namespaces.push(namespace);
+		});
+
+		callback(null, {
+			languages: languages,
+			namespaces: namespaces,
+		});
+	});
+}
+Data.getLanguageData = getLanguageData;
diff --git a/src/plugins/load.js b/src/plugins/load.js
index 04b65e9163..c2456397fe 100644
--- a/src/plugins/load.js
+++ b/src/plugins/load.js
@@ -1,70 +1,124 @@
 'use strict';
 
-var db = require('../database');
-var fs = require('fs');
 var path = require('path');
 var semver = require('semver');
 var async = require('async');
 var winston = require('winston');
 var nconf = require('nconf');
 var _ = require('underscore');
-var file = require('../file');
-var meta = require('../meta');
 
+var meta = require('../meta');
 
 module.exports = function (Plugins) {
-	Plugins.getPluginPaths = function (callback) {
-		async.waterfall([
-			function (next) {
-				db.getSortedSetRange('plugins:active', 0, -1, next);
+	function registerPluginAssets(pluginData, fields, callback) {
+		function add(dest, arr) {
+			dest.push.apply(dest, arr || []);
+		}
+
+		var handlers = {
+			staticDirs: function (next) {
+				Plugins.data.getStaticDirectories(pluginData, next);
 			},
-			function (plugins, next) {
-				if (!Array.isArray(plugins)) {
-					return next();
-				}
+			cssFiles: function (next) {
+				Plugins.data.getFiles(pluginData, 'css', next);
+			},
+			lessFiles: function (next) {
+				Plugins.data.getFiles(pluginData, 'less', next);
+			},
+			clientScripts: function (next) {
+				Plugins.data.getScripts(pluginData, 'client', next);
+			},
+			acpScripts: function (next) {
+				Plugins.data.getScripts(pluginData, 'acp', next);
+			},
+			modules: function (next) {
+				Plugins.data.getModules(pluginData, next);
+			},
+			soundpack: function (next) {
+				Plugins.data.getSoundpack(pluginData, next);
+			},
+			languageData: function (next) {
+				Plugins.data.getLanguageData(pluginData, next);
+			},
+		};
+
+		var methods;
+		if (Array.isArray(fields)) {
+			methods = fields.reduce(function (prev, field) {
+				prev[field] = handlers[field];
+				return prev;
+			}, {});
+		} else {
+			methods = handlers;
+		}
 
-				plugins = plugins.filter(function (plugin) {
-					return plugin && typeof plugin === 'string';
-				}).map(function (plugin) {
-					return path.join(__dirname, '../../node_modules/', plugin);
-				});
+		async.parallel(methods, function (err, results) {
+			if (err) {
+				return callback(err);
+			}
 
-				async.filter(plugins, file.exists, next);
-			},
-		], callback);
-	};
+			Object.assign(Plugins.staticDirs, results.staticDirs || {});
+			add(Plugins.cssFiles, results.cssFiles);
+			add(Plugins.lessFiles, results.lessFiles);
+			add(Plugins.clientScripts, results.clientScripts);
+			add(Plugins.acpScripts, results.acpScripts);
+			Object.assign(meta.js.scripts.modules, results.modules || {});
+			if (results.soundpack) {
+				Plugins.soundpacks.push(results.soundpack);
+			}
+			if (results.languageData) {
+				Plugins.languageData.languages = _.union(Plugins.languageData.languages, results.languageData.languages);
+				Plugins.languageData.namespaces = _.union(Plugins.languageData.namespaces, results.languageData.namespaces);
+			}
+			Plugins.pluginsData[pluginData.id] = pluginData;
 
-	Plugins.prepareForBuild = function (callback) {
+			callback();
+		});
+	}
+
+	Plugins.prepareForBuild = function (targets, callback) {
 		Plugins.cssFiles.length = 0;
 		Plugins.lessFiles.length = 0;
 		Plugins.clientScripts.length = 0;
 		Plugins.acpScripts.length = 0;
 		Plugins.soundpacks.length = 0;
+		Plugins.languageData.languages = [];
+		Plugins.languageData.namespaces = [];
+
+		var map = {
+			'plugin static dirs': ['staticDirs'],
+			'requirejs modules': ['modules'],
+			'client js bundle': ['clientScripts'],
+			'admin js bundle': ['acpScripts'],
+			'client side styles': ['cssFiles', 'lessFiles'],
+			'admin control panel styles': ['cssFiles', 'lessFiles'],
+			sounds: ['soundpack'],
+			languages: ['languageData'],
+		};
+
+		var fields = targets.reduce(function (prev, target) {
+			if (!map[target]) {
+				return prev;
+			}
+			return prev.concat(map[target]);
+		}, []).filter(function (field, i, arr) {
+			return arr.indexOf(field) === i;
+		});
+
+		winston.verbose('[plugins] loading the following fields from plugin data: ' + fields.join(', '));
 
 		async.waterfall([
-			async.apply(Plugins.getPluginPaths),
-			function (paths, next) {
-				async.map(paths, function (path, next) {
-					Plugins.loadPluginInfo(path, next);
-				}, next);
-			},
+			Plugins.data.getActive,
 			function (plugins, next) {
 				async.each(plugins, function (pluginData, next) {
-					async.parallel([
-						async.apply(mapFiles, pluginData, 'css', 'cssFiles'),
-						async.apply(mapFiles, pluginData, 'less', 'lessFiles'),
-						async.apply(mapClientSideScripts, pluginData),
-						async.apply(mapClientModules, pluginData),
-						async.apply(mapStaticDirectories, pluginData, pluginData.path),
-						async.apply(mapSoundpack, pluginData),
-					], next);
+					registerPluginAssets(pluginData, fields, next);
 				}, next);
 			},
 		], callback);
 	};
 
 	Plugins.loadPlugin = function (pluginPath, callback) {
-		Plugins.loadPluginInfo(pluginPath, function (err, pluginData) {
+		Plugins.data.loadPluginInfo(pluginPath, function (err, pluginData) {
 			if (err) {
 				if (err.message === '[[error:parse-error]]') {
 					return callback();
@@ -76,25 +130,10 @@ module.exports = function (Plugins) {
 
 			async.parallel([
 				function (next) {
-					registerHooks(pluginData, pluginPath, next);
-				},
-				function (next) {
-					mapStaticDirectories(pluginData, pluginPath, next);
-				},
-				function (next) {
-					mapFiles(pluginData, 'css', 'cssFiles', next);
-				},
-				function (next) {
-					mapFiles(pluginData, 'less', 'lessFiles', next);
+					registerHooks(pluginData, next);
 				},
 				function (next) {
-					mapClientSideScripts(pluginData, next);
-				},
-				function (next) {
-					mapClientModules(pluginData, next);
-				},
-				function (next) {
-					mapSoundpack(pluginData, next);
+					registerPluginAssets(pluginData, ['soundpack'], next);
 				},
 			], function (err) {
 				if (err) {
@@ -124,12 +163,12 @@ module.exports = function (Plugins) {
 		}
 	}
 
-	function registerHooks(pluginData, pluginPath, callback) {
+	function registerHooks(pluginData, callback) {
 		if (!pluginData.library) {
 			return callback();
 		}
 
-		var libraryPath = path.join(pluginPath, pluginData.library);
+		var libraryPath = path.join(pluginData.path, pluginData.library);
 
 		try {
 			if (!Plugins.libraries[pluginData.id]) {
@@ -149,199 +188,4 @@ module.exports = function (Plugins) {
 			callback();
 		}
 	}
-
-	function mapStaticDirectories(pluginData, pluginPath, callback) {
-		var validMappedPath = /^[\w\-_]+$/;
-
-		function mapStaticDirs(mappedPath, callback) {
-			if (Plugins.staticDirs[mappedPath]) {
-				winston.warn('[plugins/' + pluginData.id + '] Mapped path (' + mappedPath + ') already specified!');
-				callback();
-			} else if (!validMappedPath.test(mappedPath)) {
-				winston.warn('[plugins/' + pluginData.id + '] Invalid mapped path specified: ' + mappedPath + '. Path must adhere to: ' + validMappedPath.toString());
-				callback();
-			} else {
-				var realPath = pluginData.staticDirs[mappedPath];
-				var staticDir = path.join(pluginPath, realPath);
-
-				file.exists(staticDir, function (err, exists) {
-					if (exists) {
-						Plugins.staticDirs[pluginData.id + '/' + mappedPath] = staticDir;
-					} else {
-						winston.warn('[plugins/' + pluginData.id + '] Mapped path \'' + mappedPath + ' => ' + staticDir + '\' not found.');
-					}
-					callback(err);
-				});
-			}
-		}
-
-		pluginData.staticDirs = pluginData.staticDirs || {};
-
-		var dirs = Object.keys(pluginData.staticDirs);
-		async.each(dirs, mapStaticDirs, callback);
-	}
-
-	function mapFiles(pluginData, type, globalArray, callback) {
-		if (Array.isArray(pluginData[type])) {
-			if (global.env === 'development') {
-				winston.verbose('[plugins] Found ' + pluginData[type].length + ' ' + type + ' file(s) for plugin ' + pluginData.id);
-			}
-
-			Plugins[globalArray] = Plugins[globalArray].concat(pluginData[type].map(function (file) {
-				return path.join(pluginData.id, file);
-			}));
-		}
-		callback();
-	}
-
-	function mapClientSideScripts(pluginData, callback) {
-		function mapScripts(scripts, param) {
-			if (Array.isArray(scripts) && scripts.length) {
-				if (global.env === 'development') {
-					winston.verbose('[plugins] Found ' + scripts.length + ' js file(s) for plugin ' + pluginData.id);
-				}
-
-				Plugins[param] = Plugins[param].concat(scripts.map(function (file) {
-					return resolveModulePath(path.join(__dirname, '../../node_modules/', pluginData.id, file), file);
-				})).filter(Boolean);
-			}
-		}
-		mapScripts(pluginData.scripts, 'clientScripts');
-		mapScripts(pluginData.acpScripts, 'acpScripts');
-
-		callback();
-	}
-
-	function mapClientModules(pluginData, callback) {
-		if (!pluginData.hasOwnProperty('modules')) {
-			return callback();
-		}
-
-		var modules = {};
-
-		if (Array.isArray(pluginData.modules)) {
-			if (global.env === 'development') {
-				winston.verbose('[plugins] Found ' + pluginData.modules.length + ' AMD-style module(s) for plugin ' + pluginData.id);
-			}
-
-			var strip = pluginData.hasOwnProperty('modulesStrip') ? parseInt(pluginData.modulesStrip, 10) : 0;
-
-			pluginData.modules.forEach(function (file) {
-				if (strip) {
-					modules[file.replace(new RegExp('.?(/[^/]+){' + strip + '}/'), '')] = path.join('./node_modules/', pluginData.id, file);
-				} else {
-					modules[path.basename(file)] = path.join('./node_modules/', pluginData.id, file);
-				}
-			});
-
-			meta.js.scripts.modules = _.extend(meta.js.scripts.modules, modules);
-		} else {
-			var keys = Object.keys(pluginData.modules);
-
-			if (global.env === 'development') {
-				winston.verbose('[plugins] Found ' + keys.length + ' AMD-style module(s) for plugin ' + pluginData.id);
-			}
-
-			for (var name in pluginData.modules) {
-				if (pluginData.modules.hasOwnProperty(name)) {
-					modules[name] = path.join('./node_modules/', pluginData.id, pluginData.modules[name]);
-				}
-			}
-
-			meta.js.scripts.modules = _.extend(meta.js.scripts.modules, modules);
-		}
-
-		callback();
-	}
-
-	function mapSoundpack(pluginData, callback) {
-		var soundpack = pluginData.soundpack;
-		if (!soundpack || !soundpack.dir || !soundpack.sounds) {
-			return callback();
-		}
-		soundpack.name = soundpack.name || pluginData.name;
-		soundpack.id = pluginData.id;
-		soundpack.dir = path.join(pluginData.path, soundpack.dir);
-		async.each(Object.keys(soundpack.sounds), function (key, next) {
-			file.exists(path.join(soundpack.dir, soundpack.sounds[key]), function (err, exists) {
-				if (!exists) {
-					delete soundpack.sounds[key];
-				}
-
-				next(err);
-			});
-		}, function (err) {
-			if (err) {
-				return callback(err);
-			}
-
-			if (Object.keys(soundpack.sounds).length) {
-				Plugins.soundpacks.push(soundpack);
-			}
-
-			callback();
-		});
-	}
-
-	function resolveModulePath(fullPath, relPath) {
-		/**
-		  * With npm@3, dependencies can become flattened, and appear at the root level.
-		  * This method resolves these differences if it can.
-		  */
-		var matches = fullPath.match(/node_modules/g);
-		var atRootLevel = !matches || matches.length === 1;
-
-		try {
-			fs.statSync(fullPath);
-			winston.verbose('[plugins/load] File found: ' + fullPath);
-			return fullPath;
-		} catch (e) {
-			// File not visible to the calling process, ascend to root level if possible and try again
-			if (!atRootLevel && relPath) {
-				winston.verbose('[plugins/load] File not found: ' + fullPath + ' (Ascending)');
-				return resolveModulePath(path.join(__dirname, '../..', relPath));
-			}
-				// Already at root level, file was simply not found
-			winston.warn('[plugins/load] File not found: ' + fullPath + ' (Ignoring)');
-			return null;
-		}
-	}
-
-	Plugins.loadPluginInfo = function (pluginPath, callback) {
-		async.parallel({
-			package: function (next) {
-				fs.readFile(path.join(pluginPath, 'package.json'), next);
-			},
-			plugin: function (next) {
-				fs.readFile(path.join(pluginPath, 'plugin.json'), next);
-			},
-		}, function (err, results) {
-			if (err) {
-				return callback(err);
-			}
-			var pluginData;
-			var packageData;
-			try {
-				pluginData = JSON.parse(results.plugin);
-				packageData = JSON.parse(results.package);
-
-				pluginData.id = packageData.name;
-				pluginData.name = packageData.name;
-				pluginData.description = packageData.description;
-				pluginData.version = packageData.version;
-				pluginData.repository = packageData.repository;
-				pluginData.nbbpm = packageData.nbbpm;
-				pluginData.path = pluginPath;
-			} catch (err) {
-				var pluginDir = pluginPath.split(path.sep);
-				pluginDir = pluginDir[pluginDir.length - 1];
-
-				winston.error('[plugins/' + pluginDir + '] Error in plugin.json or package.json! ' + err.message);
-
-				return callback(new Error('[[error:parse-error]]'));
-			}
-
-			callback(null, pluginData);
-		});
-	};
 };
diff --git a/test/build.js b/test/build.js
index 215b823ce2..0d61283eac 100644
--- a/test/build.js
+++ b/test/build.js
@@ -6,6 +6,7 @@ var fs = require('fs');
 var assert = require('assert');
 var mkdirp = require('mkdirp');
 var rimraf = require('rimraf');
+var async = require('async');
 
 var db = require('./mocks/databasemock');
 var file = require('../src/file');
@@ -103,7 +104,11 @@ describe('Build', function (done) {
 	var build = require('../src/meta/build');
 
 	before(function (done) {
-		rimraf(path.join(__dirname, '../build/public'), done);
+		async.series([
+			async.apply(rimraf, path.join(__dirname, '../build/public')),
+			db.setupMockDefaults,
+			async.apply(db.activatePlugin, 'nodebb-plugin-markdown'),
+		], done);
 	});
 
 	it('should build plugin static dirs', function (done) {
@@ -177,10 +182,17 @@ describe('Build', function (done) {
 	it('should build languages', function (done) {
 		build.build(['languages'], function (err) {
 			assert.ifError(err);
-			var filename = path.join(__dirname, '../build/public/language/en-GB/global.json');
-			assert(file.existsSync(filename));
-			var global = fs.readFileSync(filename).toString();
-			assert.strictEqual(JSON.parse(global).home, 'Home');
+
+			var globalFile = path.join(__dirname, '../build/public/language/en-GB/global.json');
+			assert(file.existsSync(globalFile), 'global.json exists');
+			var global = fs.readFileSync(globalFile).toString();
+			assert.strictEqual(JSON.parse(global).home, 'Home', 'global.json contains correct translations');
+
+			var mdFile = path.join(__dirname, '../build/public/language/en-GB/markdown.json');
+			assert(file.existsSync(mdFile), 'markdown.json exists');
+			var md = fs.readFileSync(mdFile).toString();
+			assert.strictEqual(JSON.parse(md).bold, 'bolded text', 'markdown.json contains correct translations');
+
 			done();
 		});
 	});
@@ -188,9 +200,20 @@ describe('Build', function (done) {
 	it('should build sounds', function (done) {
 		build.build(['sounds'], function (err) {
 			assert.ifError(err);
-			var filename = path.join(__dirname, '../build/public/sounds/fileMap.json');
-			assert(file.existsSync(filename));
+
+			var mapFile = path.join(__dirname, '../build/public/sounds/fileMap.json');
+			assert(file.existsSync(mapFile));
+			var fileMap = JSON.parse(fs.readFileSync(mapFile));
+			assert.strictEqual(fileMap['Default | Deedle-dum'], 'nodebb-plugin-soundpack-default/notification.mp3');
+
+			var deebleDumFile = path.join(__dirname, '../build/public/sounds/nodebb-plugin-soundpack-default/notification.mp3');
+			assert(file.existsSync(deebleDumFile));
+
 			done();
 		});
 	});
+
+	after(function (done) {
+		db.emptydb(done);
+	});
 });
diff --git a/test/mocks/databasemock.js b/test/mocks/databasemock.js
index bd7831ac82..675aa9e866 100644
--- a/test/mocks/databasemock.js
+++ b/test/mocks/databasemock.js
@@ -81,51 +81,21 @@ winston.info(testDbConfig);
 var db = require('../../src/database');
 module.exports = db;
 
-after(function (done) {
-	db.close(done);
-});
-
 before(function (done) {
 	this.timeout(30000);
-	var meta;
-	async.waterfall([
+	async.series([
 		function (next) {
 			db.init(next);
 		},
 		function (next) {
-			db.emptydb(next);
-		},
-		function (next) {
-			db.createIndices(next);
-		},
-		function (next) {
-			winston.info('test_database flushed');
-			meta = require('../../src/meta');
-			setupDefaultConfigs(meta, next);
-		},
-		function (next) {
-			meta.configs.init(next);
+			setupMockDefaults(next);
 		},
 		function (next) {
 			db.initSessionStore(next);
 		},
 		function (next) {
-			meta.dependencies.check(next);
-		},
-		function (next) {
-			meta.config.postDelay = 0;
-			meta.config.initialPostDelay = 0;
-			meta.config.newbiePostDelay = 0;
+			var meta = require('../../src/meta');
 
-			enableDefaultPlugins(next);
-		},
-		function (next) {
-			meta.themes.set({
-				type: 'local',
-				id: 'nodebb-theme-persona',
-			}, next);
-		},
-		function (next) {
 			// nconf defaults, if not set in config
 			if (!nconf.get('sessionKey')) {
 				nconf.set('sessionKey', 'express.sid');
@@ -161,6 +131,40 @@ before(function (done) {
 	], done);
 });
 
+function setupMockDefaults(callback) {
+	var meta = require('../../src/meta');
+
+	async.series([
+		function (next) {
+			db.emptydb(next);
+		},
+		function (next) {
+			winston.info('test_database flushed');
+			setupDefaultConfigs(meta, next);
+		},
+		function (next) {
+			meta.configs.init(next);
+		},
+		function (next) {
+			meta.dependencies.check(next);
+		},
+		function (next) {
+			meta.config.postDelay = 0;
+			meta.config.initialPostDelay = 0;
+			meta.config.newbiePostDelay = 0;
+
+			enableDefaultPlugins(next);
+		},
+		function (next) {
+			meta.themes.set({
+				type: 'local',
+				id: 'nodebb-theme-persona',
+			}, next);
+		},
+	], callback);
+}
+db.setupMockDefaults = setupMockDefaults;
+
 function setupDefaultConfigs(meta, next) {
 	winston.info('Populating database with default configs, if not already set...\n');
 
@@ -174,9 +178,14 @@ function enableDefaultPlugins(callback) {
 
 	var defaultEnabled = [
 		'nodebb-plugin-dbsearch',
+		'nodebb-plugin-soundpack-default',
 	];
 
 	winston.info('[install/enableDefaultPlugins] activating default plugins', defaultEnabled);
 
-	db.sortedSetAdd('plugins:active', [0], defaultEnabled, callback);
+	db.sortedSetAdd('plugins:active', Object.keys(defaultEnabled), defaultEnabled, callback);
 }
+
+db.activatePlugin = function (id, callback) {
+	db.sortedSetAdd('plugins:active', Date.now(), id, callback);
+};
diff --git a/test/plugins.js b/test/plugins.js
index 97a9c1908b..caccbe2851 100644
--- a/test/plugins.js
+++ b/test/plugins.js
@@ -16,7 +16,6 @@ describe('Plugins', function () {
 			assert.ifError(err);
 			assert(plugins.libraries[pluginId]);
 			assert(plugins.loadedHooks['static:app.load']);
-			assert(plugins.staticDirs['nodebb-plugin-markdown/js']);
 
 			done();
 		});