Hello there! Apologies if this is obvious to other peeps, but I’ve searched around online and in the docs and I can’t find any way to set a default physics material. I’d assumed it’d be in the project settings, but I can’t find it.
I’m using Unreal 5 btw.
Is there a way to set a default physics material, or do we have to set it manually on all of the meshes in our levels?
Thanks for your help!
Hey there @PsychicParrot! Welcome to the community! So there’s no default physics material on import besides the engine specific one. However, there’s a couple of ways to automate some of the work. There is an import settings object however, but I believe working with it is source only.
You could have an editor utility widget that runs through every actor you designate and sets the physical material that way.
You could do the same for meshes in the asset directory.
Alternatively you can create a custom importer but this is even more advanced.
Then the last (and worst way) would be to edit the engine’s default physical material.
It’d go a bit like this for the actor variant, but you’d have to hit the button after you’d selected all you want in the level, and likely some changes to it. The bottom is how I’d like to say you can edit it, but the source doesn’t expose SM asset variables to Blueprint.
Hi SupportiveEntity,
Cheers for the welcome - it’s nice to be here! 
Thanks for answering my question, I really appreciate it.
The default physic material is the engine’s default. Its used internally on a bunch of things when they fail.
Normally, just edit its values on a per-project basis to change what it does (Granted im not even sure if with Chaos now being a thing it has any effect or works accurately).
Additionally to setting it (overriding it rather) at the mesh level…
You used to be able to output physmat in a material shader if i remeber correctly.
And if not, they added a system to have multiple physmat based on a color texture for the same item.
As far as setting one on import, there isnt a way.
In theory you can just leave it be, then use the instance replacement system to force all of them to be changed to a custom mat.
(Same process when you delete a material instance that is assigned).
Thanks for answering my question, MostHost_LA!
Yeah I guess Chaos changes stuff too. Instance replacement sounds like it may be the way. Cheers!
