Something I’m trying to add in my level is a platform that will launch players around the map. What should i do to make it so the static mesh i made will have the ability to launcher bots/players in a certain direction in a catapult type manner?
Place a trigger volume or use an OnHit collision event (depending on the type of object; is it like a Halo mancannon where you walk into it? Is it like a trampoline?) and have it trigger a Launch event on whatever actor collided with it.
Hi Ferginator,
Here is how I create mine. There are different methods depending on what you want to do. This will get you started though.
The first image is just my BP component that is setup with a static mesh and a box for collision to generate the on overlap event
In this second image in my blueprint layout.
You’ll want to cast to the player from the generated overlap event. To get the launch character node you’ll need to turn off the context search checkbox when you drag out from the cast to character node.
In the Launch Velocity if you change the Z amount it will control how high your character is launched. I would suggest pulling off a node there for “Make Vector” then making variables in the panel to the right for the XYZ and making them editable. You can then edit them in the details panel when your BP is in the scene and you will not have to open the BP everytime or have separate ones for each jump pad.
If you have setup your GitHub account you should be able to get to the Unreal Tournament build there and take a look at the JumpPad that is being used. I would think that was setup all in Blueprints but have not looked at it though.
If you have any questions feel free to ask!
how do you generate the component overlap?
oh and here are two pics to show you what I am trying to do. the player is to run onto the mancannon and than at the end of the cannon, the part that will be shooting out an effect to make it look like it will thrust you, when you meet the effect, it will thrust you up onto the platform.
Select the box component(or whichever component you want to generate event for) and you’ll see Add Event section in it’s details panel.
THANK YOU SO MUCH! i was so confused at first what you were trying to say, but when i saw this video it helped explain what you did and i go it to work lol. the difficult part was that my mancannons are are not pointed in a strictly X or Y axis so it had some issues at first but it was an easy fix.
the video, which calls them “jump pads” are halo’s Grav Lifts. the Mannon does essentially the same thing but not strictly up in the Z axis but instead on a catapult manner in the X and Y but you still need lift in the Z. So can instead of a box component could i use a custom made one or will i have to use the Components they have set? Because I used Maya and 3Ds max to size it up and stuff before putting it in to UE4 I put the pivot in the center of the map but the static mesh, mancannon, off a bit so i could duplicate and make 4 symmetrical mancannons on each side and would be easy to mathematically rotate 45 degree snaps around. Because otherwise i think if i have to make a new box component every time and try to line it up to the mancannons, it will slightly be off some. Have a bit of OCD lol wanting to make everything line up. I’m not sure if there is a fast way to rotate around because i know that the values for the Launch velocity for X n Y will be some negative and some positive. Luckily the math is easy it perfect needs 1000 of each XYZ. just that when it comes to mirroring it around, I’m not sure if i can make one blue print for all 4 mancannons or if ill have to make 1 for each.
So basically What i just need to know is if i can make my own component in Maya/Max and export to UE4 in the blueprint? And is it possible to make one blueprint for all 4 or need 4 blueprints? It’s okay if if i have to make 4 separate blueprints.
Also here is what i have so far for pics to show.
ya the thing i circled in the red is the box component and wanted to know if i could use somethign from Maya to import into UE4 instead if that is possible.
thank you as well for helping me find that was looking around for ages trying to find it.
Hi,
There’s no need to use multiple blueprints for the same object. You can setup your launch velocity to have variables so that you can edit these directly in the details panel for the specific placed ManCanon-BP. By using the Make Vector Node you can drag a pin off the XYZ values and make a variable that is editable there. This will give you much more control over the individually placed BPs but still allow you to have just one Blueprint for them all.
You can use your own components to trigger as well. When you use it in the components make sure that it’s collision is set to OverlapDynamic to generate overlap events to launch the character. Also make sure to keep actor hidden in game and visibility turned to off if you don’t want to see it in the viewport while you’re editing.
If you’re still having issues or have more questions feel free to ask! 
Hi,
There’s no need to use multiple blueprints for the same object. You can setup your launch velocity to have variables so that you can edit these directly in the details panel for the specific placed ManCanon-BP. By using the Make Vector Node you can drag a pin off the XYZ values and make a variable that is editable there. This will give you much more control over the individually placed BPs but still allow you to have just one Blueprint for them all.
You can use your own components to trigger as well. When you use it in the components make sure that it’s collision is set to OverlapDynamic to generate overlap events to launch the character. Also make sure to keep actor hidden in game and visibility turned to off if you don’t want to see it in the viewport while you’re editing.
If you’re still having issues or have more questions feel free to ask!
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Ya i have one question, in the video he has a static mesh, the pad, and the component, and a visual animated texture, i think that’s what it is. Could you instead make the AT, the glowing yellow thing he has in the video, , be the component and have the OverlapDynamic? So that way you can have an animation, say i have it spitting out plasma, and also acts as the component. kinda like combining them together so you don’t have to have 3 separate pieces but instead 2?
Oh and is it OverlapAllDynamic in the Collision Presents?
Oh btw how do you drag a pin off? like get these guys? 
Since the mesh with the the panning material is what you want to generate the launch on you could setup that to have the type of collision. That mesh will generate the overlap event if enabled to do so and nothing else in the Blueprint will.
Using any of the following will do the same basic job.
OverlapAllDynamic
OverlapAll
OverlapOnlyPawn - This will only affect the player pawns
okay cool i got that, the only thing now is i can’t get your method to work with the vector. i figued out the pin off variable but at the very bottom i enter the value and it still requires the - in the -1000 for x or else it shoots me off to the side instead of forward. not sure what i missed or messed up on. but i still have to enter the values for the vector like i did without it to get the velocity. and if i duplicate and rotate to a new position it won’t shoot me straight forward because the values i need to change in order to do that.
Oops! Forgot that the Launch node is based on world rotation and not local rotation. This means that if you want to jump forward you would enter a number and if you reversed the BP for the other one it would need to be a negative value to get the same.
We can get around that though by using the following setup.
In this I’ve added a arrow component (you can use another mesh or the ones you’ve already got in your components tab) so that I could see which way my mesh is always pointing.
I placed this in the event graph > used a get Forward Vector node > Break Rot Vector Node > pulled a pin off to a multiply float by float node > and then plugged that into my X value.
On the multiply node I kept my X editable variable I made as they second pin. This will allow me to still edit the X jump value from the details panel.
Now any place you rotate or move your jump pad you can just plug in the values you need and it will shoot you out/up in the direction relative to the blueprint and not the world.
Sorry for my flub and I hope this helps!
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i have it all set up but now whether the X variable is 1000 or -1000 it keeps shooting me off to the side. not sure why.
Oh i remove the Y variables only and it just taking me up straight in the Z axis like as if X has no affect at all.
Oh wait i figured it out, but now instead of shooting me directly straight, it shoots me up and slightly to the left. have to figure out that one somehow. probably the box isn’t perfectly rotated.
Okay so apparently i needed to add anoth 500 to the already -1000 for some reason but now it works
The only problem i have left now is i tried duplicating and rotating it but it shares the same value when i change it and so it still sling shots me into the same direction
With a little help got it figured out for you!
When getting the forward vector there should be a link to set the yaw as well for the Y value. Ideally the X and Y values should be the same. The further apart and offset your character is will shoot you slightly off to the side.
Using the following setup I’ve gotten rid of the X and Y value and instead made a variable that is the XY value:
In my test you will see that I’ve extended the arrow in the X axis with the scale to better see how straight the jump is for the player. This is a good way to test and see if you’re getting the results.
Here is a test Project I’ve made with the new setup. You can download it from dropbox link here: https://www.dropbox.com/s/f3dc90en6pp0uy0/JumpPadTest.zip?dl=0
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tried downloading but it said it was a newer version and i have the 4.3.1 so not sure if you have the 4.4.0 but anyways it did still open but it was blank and the blueprint was empty. Anyways i copied what you did but it’s odd. Like if i have the X and Y values separated it the man cannons fire me is completely different directions. but if i have XY they fire me in the same direction, just not the direction i need to go in which is firing me to the left. ill try drawing i in these pics.
Let me also add because i’m not sure if i left this out, and it might be important, that X is -1500 and Y is +1500, or 1500. I think originally i went with 1000 but i up to it to 1500. but if i have only one variable, XY its only positive 1500. also in the pictures the two man cannons i circled are the ones with the blue prints, the other two where just their for blocking. the arrows show which direction im bring projected in. they should all be firing towards the origin where the center platform is located and not the bridges leading the the center platform.
When X and Y are two different variables
When XY is one variables
and here is the blueprint component and graph editor if this helps.
Okay so for my trouble shooting what i had to do was i had to rotate the box positive 90 degrees in the Z axis and have XY as the same and it worked for the 2. now to test the other two.
well apparently that’s all i needed to do. thanks for the help . the XY thing i think fixed what i needed it to do. so now all 4 mancannons now work and fire in all directions to the center.
Hi I have the same set up but just using in the Z axis. I do have everything working but was curious as to how this would work for players, bots, thrown grenades and dropped weapons/props?
Thanks.