Apply Material By Rules
The Smart Way to Assign and Manage Materials with powerful filters & tags
Teaser Video V1.0 : Video
What's New In V2.0: Video (more video to come)
Documentation: Documentation
Support: Link
What’s New in Version 2.0 (UE5.3+)
Updated Engine Support: Now fully compatible with Unreal Engine 5.3, 5.4 and 5.5
Performance Boost: Workflow is up to 10× faster thanks to core optimizations
NEW TOOL - Select By Rules (Lite): Instantly select actors in the scene based on your DataTable filters
Auto-Generate Variables: Extract and populate material parameters directly into the rules
Create Rules from Selection: Build new material rules instantly from selected actors
Cheat Sheet UI: Simplify variable creation with dynamic tag previews and examples
NEW FEATURE – [MATERIAL_SLOT]: Assign textures directly by material-slot index
Improved Workflow: Major enhancements to reduce manual input and accelerate rule creation
Assign materials to hundreds of objects at once.
Auto-generate rules using existing assets to extract mesh names, material names, or both
Customizable rules: Target assets, actors, and materials with precision.
Advanced tags: Utilize tags for tailored material assignment.
Rules Template for apply texture from Substance Painter, Kitbash 3D, Vray, ....
Conform old assets: Fix imported assets with missing or incorrect textures.
Introducing the Apply Material By Rules plugin for Unreal Engine, a versatile and powerful tool designed to revolutionize your material assignment workflow and optimize your game development process. With support Unreal Engine 5, this plugin is the ultimate solution for artists, level designers, and game developers who demand precision and efficiency in their projects.
The Apply Material By Rules plugin allows you to create and manage a set of rules, each rule containing a filter and a variable. The filter acts as a search criterion, enabling you to target assets, actors, and materials with incredible precision. With wildcard support using "*", you can easily extend your search for the perfect selection. The variable defines how materials are assigned based on the filter, providing granular control and customization of the material application process.
One of the key features of the plugin is the use of advanced tags, which give you the power to automate and customize the material assignment process further. With tags like FILE_NAME, ASSET_NAME, MATERIAL_NAME, RANDF, RANDI, ACTOR_NAME, ACTOR_LAST_INDEX, and [R0-9:value], you have the flexibility to tailor material assignment to your specific needs. These tags make it possible to create detailed rules that respond to your unique project structure and requirements.
The plugin offers two ways to assign materials: from the Content Browser and from the Outliner. When assigning materials from the Content Browser, the plugin edits the asset and modifies the original material of the asset. This option is less recommended, but it provides the flexibility to modify the asset directly. Alternatively, you can assign materials from the Outliner, which allows you to select the actors on which you want to assign the material. This method does not change the material in the asset but modifies the "Material Overwrite" of the static mesh, making it easy to revert to the original material.
The Apply Material By Rules plugin is capable of searching for textures across your entire project. This means you can import your textures into Unreal Engine, organize them as you see fit, and the plugin will still find and apply them based on your rules. The plugin also provides an option to remove materials generated by the rules, giving you the flexibility to make changes and refine your material assignments.
With the ability to assign materials to hundreds of objects at once and the power to modify each detail granularly, the Apply Material By Rules plugin brings a level of efficiency and precision to your game development workflow that is unparalleled. This powerful plugin allows you to conform old objects that are not well imported or have textures that are not correctly linked to materials, streamlining your asset pipeline and ensuring consistency across your project.
For example, imagine you have imported a library of objects in .fbx format with only the color texture assigned. If your texture structure is based on [OBJECT_NAME]_[MATERIAL_NAME]_color, normal, roughness, ao, height, you can create a single rule with a filter of "*" (for all objects in the scene) and choose your Master Material. For each variable, simply input "Color=[ASSET_NAME]_[MATERIAL_NAME]_color", normal, etc., and the plugin will automatically generate all the materials for your entire library.
The Apply Material By Rules plugin is a game-changer for artists, level designers, and game developers working in Unreal Engine. With its powerful features and intuitive interface, you can streamline your material assignment process and focus on creating stunning environments and experiences for your players. Don't miss the opportunity to elevate your game development to new heights - try the Apply Material By Rules plugin today and experience the difference it can make for your projects.
Key Features
Bulk Assignments
Apply materials to hundreds of assets or actors in one pass
Supports both Content Browser (asset-level edits) and Outliner (actor-level “Material Overwrite”)
Rule-Driven Workflow
Create named rules with a Filter (wildcards * supported) and a Variable set
Auto-generate filters from existing mesh or material names
Advanced Tags for Dynamic Variables
Built-In Tags:
FILE_NAME, ASSET_NAME, MATERIAL_NAME
ACTOR_NAME, ACTOR_LAST_INDEX
Randomizers: RANDF, RANDI
Custom ranges: [R0-9:value]
New Slot Tag:
[MATERIAL_SLOT] – targets a specific material index on the mesh
Templates & Conformance
Prebuilt templates for Substance Painter, KitBash3D, V-Ray, etc.
“Conform Old Assets” mode fixes missing or mismatched textures on imports
Project-Wide Texture Search
Imports textures anywhere in your Content Browser directory
Rules will locate and assign based on naming conventions
Easy Cleanup
One-click “Remove Rules Materials” to revert all assignments generated by the plugin
How It Works
Create a Rule
Filter: e.g. Tree, SM_Chair*, or use auto-extract from selected assets
Variable: define output mappings, e.g.:
Color = [ASSET_NAME]_[MATERIAL_NAME]_Color
Normal = [ASSET_NAME]_[MATERIAL_NAME]_Normal
Assign from Content Browser
Select your target assets
Run “Apply Materials by Rules” to modify the asset’s default materials
Assign from Outliner
Select actors in your level
Run “Apply Materials by Rules” to override via the actor’s Material Slot (non-destructive)
Use [MATERIAL_SLOT]
When you need to assign a texture to a specific slot index, e.g.:
CopierModifier
BaseColor_[MATERIAL_SLOT] = MyTexture_BaseColor
Batch & Preview
Preview assignments in the UI
Adjust filters or variables on the fly
Click “Run All Rules” to push changes globally