diff --git a/Makefile b/Makefile
index f2d1d1c93..3c0228ccb 100644
--- a/Makefile
+++ b/Makefile
@@ -18,16 +18,16 @@ ce: compile-elpa
 d: doctor
 
 ## Package management
-install: | init.el .local/autoloads.el
+install: | .local/autoloads.el
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//packages-install
 
-update: | init.el .local/autoloads.el
+update: | .local/autoloads.el
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//packages-update
 
-autoremove: | init.el .local/autoloads.el
+autoremove: | .local/autoloads.el
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//packages-autoremove
 
-autoloads: | init.el
+autoloads:
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//reload-autoloads
 
 
@@ -36,19 +36,19 @@ autoloads: | init.el
 # compile-core
 # compile-module
 # compile-module/submodule
-compile: | init.el clean
+compile: | clean
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//byte-compile
 
-compile-core: | init.el clean
+compile-core: | clean
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//byte-compile-core
 
-compile-elpa: | init.el
+compile-elpa:
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//byte-recompile-plugins
 
-$(patsubst %, compile-%, $(MODULES)): | init.el .local/autoloads.el
+$(patsubst %, compile-%, $(MODULES)): | .local/autoloads.el
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//byte-compile -- $(patsubst compile-%, %, $@)
 
-recompile: | init.el
+recompile:
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//byte-compile -- -r
 
 clean:
@@ -60,14 +60,14 @@ clean:
 # test-core
 # test-module
 # test-module/submodule
-test: | init.el .local/autoloads.el
+test: | .local/autoloads.el
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//run-tests
 
-test-core $(patsubst %, test-%, $(MODULES)): | init.el .local/autoloads.el
+test-core $(patsubst %, test-%, $(MODULES)): | .local/autoloads.el
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom//run-tests -- $(subst test-, , $@)
 
 # run tests interactively
-testi: | init.el .local/autoloads.el
+testi: | .local/autoloads.el
 	@$(DOOMI) -f doom//run-tests
 
 
@@ -85,9 +85,6 @@ info:
 	@$(EMACS) --batch -l core/core.el -l core/autoload/debug.el -f doom/info
 
 ## Internal tasks
-init.el:
-	@$(error No init.el file; create one or copy init.example.el)
-
 .local/autoloads.el:
 	@$(DOOM) -f doom-initialize-autoloads
 
diff --git a/init.el b/init.el
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..50621daa5
--- /dev/null
+++ b/init.el
@@ -0,0 +1,30 @@
+;;; init.el -*- lexical-binding: t; -*-
+;;
+;; Author:  Henrik Lissner <henrik@lissner.net>
+;; URL:     https://github.com/hlissner/doom-emacs
+;;
+;;   =================     ===============     ===============   ========  ========
+;;   \\ . . . . . . .\\   //. . . . . . .\\   //. . . . . . .\\  \\. . .\\// . . //
+;;   ||. . ._____. . .|| ||. . ._____. . .|| ||. . ._____. . .|| || . . .\/ . . .||
+;;   || . .||   ||. . || || . .||   ||. . || || . .||   ||. . || ||. . . . . . . ||
+;;   ||. . ||   || . .|| ||. . ||   || . .|| ||. . ||   || . .|| || . | . . . . .||
+;;   || . .||   ||. _-|| ||-_ .||   ||. . || || . .||   ||. _-|| ||-_.|\ . . . . ||
+;;   ||. . ||   ||-'  || ||  `-||   || . .|| ||. . ||   ||-'  || ||  `|\_ . .|. .||
+;;   || . _||   ||    || ||    ||   ||_ . || || . _||   ||    || ||   |\ `-_/| . ||
+;;   ||_-' ||  .|/    || ||    \|.  || `-_|| ||_-' ||  .|/    || ||   | \  / |-_.||
+;;   ||    ||_-'      || ||      `-_||    || ||    ||_-'      || ||   | \  / |  `||
+;;   ||    `'         || ||         `'    || ||    `'         || ||   | \  / |   ||
+;;   ||            .===' `===.         .==='.`===.         .===' /==. |  \/  |   ||
+;;   ||         .=='   \_|-_ `===. .==='   _|_   `===. .===' _-|/   `==  \/  |   ||
+;;   ||      .=='    _-'    `-_  `='    _-'   `-_    `='  _-'   `-_  /|  \/  |   ||
+;;   ||   .=='    _-'          '-__\._-'         '-_./__-'         `' |. /|  |   ||
+;;   ||.=='    _-'                                                     `' |  /==.||
+;;   =='    _-'                                                            \/   `==
+;;   \   _-'                                                                `-_   /
+;;    `''                                                                      ``'
+;;
+;; These demons are not part of GNU Emacs.
+;;
+;;; License: MIT
+
+(require 'core (concat user-emacs-directory "core/core"))