Community Guide - Make a creative prop from a static mesh

[Cardin ([JOGO]Cardin)]

Here is a quick guide on turning a mesh into a prop. It can then be used with the phone tool, prop manipulator etc in creative.

NOTE This is not an official method and is in fact different to the method Epic previously advised. This process will be replaced with a more palatable and obvious set of steps. You also may need to replace all these props in the future if Epic do remove the BP system entirely. If Mesh>Prop is not a necessity, please consider using your time instead to test supported features to speed along development of UEFN.
UPDATE Upon clarification, blueprints as a functional container are staying in UEFN so this method should stay valid for the foreseeable future.

Right click the static mesh and click Asset Actions > Create Blueprint Using This…

Name the new blueprint and choose a folder to save it to, I chose the same folder the static mesh was in, I also prefix creative props with FN_ so they are easy to search for.

When you click save the blueprint will open in a new window, currently it is an actor but we want it to be a prop. Click Class Settings > Parent Class > Building Prop.

You will get a mesh compile error so to fix this select the Static Mesh root.

Then click Add and select your mesh from the common section.

Now select the mesh named just StaticMesh and delete it.

Click Compile then save the blueprint and that’s it. Now when you drag the newly created blueprint into the world and push the changes, anybody in creative can select the prop, hotbar it, use devices with it etc.

There are plenty more options to fine tune and play with in the blueprint details panel but the main one that I always change is Random Scale Range, setting this range to a constant 1.0 will stop the asset being a different size each time you place it.

You can also add niagara fx as children to the Static Mesh Component and they will work in creative.

Have fun

[BrendannnD]

Thank you Cardin!! Came in clutch while I was trying to figure out how to get my prop manipulator working.

[Fresnella]

Thanks for this, @Cardin ! Tested it and it works for me. It’s very different from another working method I was using, which used to be in the UEFN docs. Actually yours is better because it’s simpler. Where did you find the instructions you used? I wish Epic would standardize these and publish them in the docs . I requested it in Feedback if anyone wants to upvote.

I understand Epic’s stated reasoning (Blueprints won’t be in Public Beta). However, in a creator community, when there is no official public source for a crucial piece of info, that info (or even incorrect/conflicting versions of it) spreads through word of mouth between creators instead. Creators who don’t have the social skills or time to make friends in the community are left out of the loop and their work is hampered. This preventable social dynamic could potentially turn toxic and insular as more and more creators from outside of Creative (e.g me, from Core) migrate to UEFN. Helpful, experienced creators can mitigate this by sharing info publicly, but Epic writes the docs and sets the tone.

Here are a few extra steps I remember, to make it so that players can destroy your prop and harvest resources.

1. In the Blueprint’s Details Panel, make sure “Allow Resource Drop” and “Can be Damaged” are checked. (They should be by default).

2. Type “resource” in the search bar in the Details Panel in your Blueprint window. In the dropdown menu for “Resource Type” choose a resource that best fits your prop. I’m choosing Wood for this example.

3. In the same Details Panel, search for “attributes”. Under Attribute Init Keys, for the Initialization Category dropdown menu choose PropWood (or PropStone or PropMetal if you choose Stone or Metal for your resource). For Initialization Subcategory choose 2 (choose 2 regardless of which resource you’re using). Do this for both Index 0 and Index 1.

4. Compile and Save.

5.In the Details panel again, search for “socket.” In the text box for “Death Particle Socket Name” , type in FX_Death.

6. Compile and Save. Exit Blueprint window.

7. In your Content Browser, open the window for the Static Mesh you used. Locate the Socket Manager tab. If you don’t see a Socket Manager tab, go into the toolbar and click Window > Socket Manager to add the tab.

8. Open the Socket Manager tab. Click the plus sign in the right corner to add a socket. Name your socket by typing “FX_Death” into the text box.

9. Adjust the gizmo labeled FX_Death to place it wherever you want the prop destruction particles to be spawned.

10. Save static mesh. Player should be able to destroy the prop using their pickaxe, which will make the prop disappear, spawn destruction VFX/SFX and particles shaped like whichever resource you chose, and grant that resource to the player’s inventory.

Bonus tip:
In the prop Blueprint, you can replace the default FN SFX and VFX for Death Particles, Death Sound, and Hit Sound with your own Niagara Systems or Sound Cues. I use this a lot.

Btw love the tip about adding Niagara FX as a child, I didn’t know that one!

[Cardin ([JOGO]Cardin)]

Thank you so much for adding to this!

Necessity is the mother of invention, I wanted to convert over 100 actors to FN props. I had to find a way that was quicker, even by a step or two, then I had a vague memory about parent classes and the ability to change them from my time dabbling in UE.

[Cleverlike_Studios]

YEAH!!! Thank you for creating this. Both of you.

[Fresnella]

Nice! Ya the parent class step seems to shorten the process a lot. Before, I was dragging an empty Building Prop actor into the viewport and adding the static mesh in the details panel before I created the blueprint. Now I can skip that.

[Cleverlike_Studios]

Screenshots of all that need to be changed. I did mine a bit differently. I only changed the static mesh in the static mesh component, I did NOT add a new static mesh or delete any default components.

Screenshots below for quick reference.

Changes made in Static Mesh Component:

Changes made in Class Defaults:

From the experimenting I’ve done, the resource type and the Attribute Init Keys do not need to match. In the example below I was able to harvest Stone from the prop.

IMPORTANT: Be sure that the static mesh has collision!

[Cardin ([JOGO]Cardin)]

Thanks for the updates!
I am interested in your steps up to generating a “Building Prop”.

I always end up with compiler error like this which is something baked into “Building Prop” actor.

This is within this child component “Static Mesh” which you are not getting?

I also have a swathe of more settings here in Class Defaults.

Would be great to work out what we are doing different or why the discrepancy.

[Cleverlike_Studios]

I can’t speak to the issue with the compiler error, not sure what that is about.

Though in regards to the “swathe of Class Default” settings in the details panel. I toggled on “Show only modified properties” in the settings gear dropdown. It’s a sick trick for reverse engineering what other developers changed. (@ time 3:02 10 Unreal Engine Tips for Teachers - YouTube)

[Cardin ([JOGO]Cardin)]

Ahh I didn’t notice the settings filter.

Following my own steps, even in a new project I always end up with the mesh compiler error so I am hesitant to change the steps but in case others have the same error. Id like to know why I get this error.