@KluthR Thanks for the reply. Problem is you can't access the restore tab when your usb drive fails and you can't boot.
I have since discovered that there are two options when this happens:
1. Install unraid again and get it setup enough to use the built in restore functionality (requires other plugins though to mount drives/shares)
2. Use the usb zip for unraid usb creator tool
I found #2 to be far more convenient/straightforward after someone told me but I couldn't find it mentioned anywhere officially as an option. I personally think it is worth merely bringing attention to it at a high level on the Github repo or on the initial post for this support thread. Maybe I am just dumb or expecting too much hand-holding.
Either way thanks for maintaining this plugin. Restore worked perfectly via method #2.