B key toggles bBuildMode. While active, Tick line-traces from the
character's eye height along its forward vector, breaks the hit
result, and snaps the impact point to a 200-unit grid via
Vector_SnappedToGrid, storing the result in SnappedLocation. No
visual feedback or placement yet (next: ghost preview, then
place/remove).
Uses BreakHitResult (a multi-output-pin CallFunction on
GameplayStatics) to extract struct fields, since a dedicated
"BreakStruct" node type isn't supported by this tool -- works fine
as a plain function call.
One Hull/Thruster/Power/Storage block placed near the ship spawn and
wired into the corresponding Slot_* references. Verified via Python
(direct RecalculateStats call + property reads): MaxHull 150,
MaxPower 150, StorageCapacity 30, ShipMovement.MaxSpeed 4500 -- all
exactly base + block bonus. Confirms the block-slot aggregation
system works end-to-end. Smoke-tested in PIE: no runtime errors.
Four typed slot variables (Slot_Hull/Thruster/Power/Storage, one per
block class) plus a RecalculateStats event that reads each slot (via
IsValid + external-member Get on the slot's block instance) and
derives MaxHull, ShipMovement.MaxSpeed, MaxPower/Power, and
StorageCapacity from base values plus whatever's attached. Called at
the end of BeginPlay. All slots empty = base values, matching current
gameplay exactly.
New technique discovered: VariableGet/VariableSet support an external
member reference via a "variable_class" field (full asset path
required for Blueprint-generated classes, not just the short class
name) -- this is how block-instance properties and component
properties (e.g. FloatingPawnMovement.MaxSpeed) get read/written at
runtime without needing a formal Function or the broken array/loop
path.
BP_Block_Hull, BP_Block_Thruster, BP_Block_Power, BP_Block_Storage:
simple Actors with a mesh and a single contribution variable each
(HullBonus/ThrustBonus/PowerBonus/StorageBonus). Distinct shapes/
scales for visual identification.
Array variables and the ForEachLoop macro don't reliably work
through this MCP plugin's Blueprint graph builder (confirmed via a
throwaway test: the macro's wildcard Array pin never resolves its
type, compile fails every time) -- so aggregation will use one typed
slot per block type on the ship rather than a generic block list.
ResourceNode_01 placed in the landing zone. E key on the character:
checks distance to the resource node (via a typed ResourceNodeRef
variable, same object-reference technique as the ship/character
cross-refs), and if within 300 units calls AddStorage on the ship
(through ShipPawnRef) and destroys the node. AddStorage increments
StorageAmount up to StorageCapacity, printing feedback either way.
Smoke-tested in PIE: no runtime errors.
ACharacter defaults bUseControllerRotationYaw to true, which makes
the Controller's rotation overwrite the actor's rotation every tick
-- stomping our manual AddActorLocalRotation calls almost immediately
(visible as a barely-perceptible tick instead of a turn). Plain Pawn
(the ship) doesn't have this default, which is why the same rotation
logic worked fine there. Disabled it on both the class default and
the placed instance.
F key on the ship: teleports the player character to just above the
ship's location and possesses it. F key on the character: possesses
the ship back. Same controller, so possessing one pawn automatically
unpossesses the other.
Notable implementation detail: GameplayStatics::GetActorOfClass
looked like the obvious way to find "the other pawn" at runtime, but
this MCP plugin's pin_defaults mechanism can't correctly set a Class-
type pin (it accepts the string silently but the compiler later
rejects it as an invalid default) -- there's no supported node type
for a class-literal either. Worked around it by adding real object-
reference variables (PlayerCharacterRef / ShipPawnRef) via
unreal.BlueprintEditorLibrary.get_object_reference_type() directly
through the Python escape hatch, marking them instance-editable, and
wiring the actual actor references between the two placed level
instances. Avoids needing any runtime class lookup at all.
BP_PlayerCharacter (Character-based): first-person camera, WASD
movement + A/D turning (same input scheme as the ship), SuitOxygen
stat that depletes each tick, clamped at 0. Not auto-possessed yet --
that's the ship exit/enter transition (next task). Placed one
instance in L_TestFlight near the ship spawn.
Also reverted level gravity to default (-980): FloatingPawnMovement
(ship) never reads world gravity regardless of its value, but
CharacterMovementComponent (this character) needs real gravity to
walk normally. Zero gravity was an unnecessary leftover from Phase 0
that would have broken on-foot movement.
Added a landing zone as a region of the existing test level (at
X=8000) rather than a separate level/L_Landing01 -- avoids needing
level-streaming and cross-level pawn-transfer machinery that Phase 1
doesn't need yet. Ground platform (scaled plane), 3 scattered rock
obstacles, and a flat landing pad marker disc.
DamageHull and RepairHull custom events (this MCP plugin's Blueprint
graph builder can't author formal parameterized Functions yet, only
CustomEvents, so amounts are fixed rather than passed in):
- DamageHull: Hull -= 10, clamped to 0.
- RepairHull: if StorageAmount > 0, consumes 1 storage and restores
20 hull (clamped to MaxHull); otherwise no-ops.
Bound to H/R test keys with on-screen PrintString feedback, since
there's no HUD yet to show the actual Hull/Storage values.
No real damage trigger (e.g. collision) wired up yet -- nothing to
collide with in the level yet. Smoke-tested in PIE: no runtime
errors.
CameraBoom was parented to ShipMesh, which is rotated 90deg to point
the placeholder cone forward -- the camera inherited that rotation,
producing a badly skewed near-edge-on view. Reparented CameraBoom to
the actor root instead, so its pitch is relative to actor-forward,
not the mesh's cosmetic rotation.
Also added 5 marker cubes around the spawn point: the level was
completely empty, so with a rigidly-attached chase camera, forward/
backward translation had zero visual reference and could look like
nothing was happening even if movement was working correctly.
The level had zero actors besides the ship, so it rendered fully
black (no directional light, no sky light). Added a DirectionalLight
and a real-time-capture SkyLight so the placeholder ship is actually
visible during PIE testing.
W/S thrust forward/back, A/D yaw left/right, via direct key-binding
(InputKey nodes) rather than Enhanced Input -- this MCP plugin's
Blueprint graph builder doesn't support authoring Enhanced Input
Action nodes yet, only raw key events. Tick applies ThrustAxis/
YawAxis each frame via AddMovementInput/AddActorLocalRotation.
Bumped FloatingPawnMovement Max Speed/Acceleration for a snappier
placeholder feel. Smoke-tested in PIE: no runtime errors.
BP_ShipPawn: cone mesh, FloatingPawnMovement for gravity-free flight,
spring-arm chase camera. Placed in L_TestFlight and set to
auto-possess Player 0 for PIE testing. No input wiring yet.
