Character Appearance

The Character Appearance is a data asset that allows you to define how a character looks.

It lets you state all the meshes, materials, morph targets and grooms that build it up.

The appearance asset has been built in a way that whether you use modular or combined characters, simply adding the Meshes Key (gameplay tag) to the mesh, Narrative will find the correct mesh.

Properties

Variable Name	Type	Description
Form Tag	FGameplayTag	Tag representing the form selected in the character creator (race, gender).
Unarmed Anim BP	TSubclassOf<UAnimInstance>	The animation blueprint to use when the character is unarmed.
Meshes	TMap<FGameplayTag, FCharacterCreatorAttribute>	Map of mesh attributes for specific slots.
Grooms	TMap<FGameplayTag, FCharacterCreatorAttribute>	Map of groom attributes for specific slots.
Morphs	TArray<FCreatorMeshMorph>	Morph targets to apply to the mesh.
Scalar Values	TMap<FGameplayTag, float>	Global scalar values that morphs and meshes can reference.
Vector Values	TMap<FGameplayTag, FLinearColor>	Global vector values that morphs and meshes can reference.

FCharacterCreatorAttribute

Variable Name	Type	Description
Mesh	TObjectPtr<USkeletalMesh>	The skeletal mesh to apply to the character.
b Use Leader Pose	bool	Indicates if the mesh should follow the leader pose component.
Mesh Materials	TArray<FCreatorMeshMaterial>	Materials to apply to the mesh, including parameter overrides.
Morphs Array	TArray<FCharacterCreatorAttribute Morph>	Array of morph attributes for character customization.

FCreatorMeshMaterial

Variable Name	Type	Description
Material	TObjectPtr<Material>	The skeletal mesh to apply to the character.
Scalar Tag ID	FGameplayTag	Tag to retrieve scalar values for material parameters.
Vector Tag ID	FGameplayTag	Tag to retrieve vector values for material parameters.

Adding extra equipment slots

note

As of the current version of NarrativePro, it is recommended to update the C++ to add extra equipment slots.

NarrativeGameplayTags.h

Open NarrativeGameplayTags.h and add your custom slot.

FGameplayTag Equipment_Slot_XXX;

For example:

FGameplayTag Equipment_Slot_Vest;

NarrativeGameplayTags.cpp

Now open NarrativeGameplayTags.cpp and add your custom tag addition.

AddTag(Equipment_Slot_XXX, "Narrative.Equipment.Slot.Mesh.XXX", "Tag for the XXX equipment slot");

For example:

AddTag(Equipment_Slot_Vest, "Narrative.Equipment.Slot.Mesh.Vest", "Tag for the Vest equipment slot");

NarrativeCharacter.h

Now open NarrativeCharacter.h and create a new Skeletal Mesh to support your new equipment slot.

UPROPERTY(BlueprintReadOnly, VisibleAnywhere, Category = "Narrative|Components|Body Meshes")
TObjectPtr<class USkeletalMeshComponent> XXXMesh;

For example:

UPROPERTY(BlueprintReadOnly, VisibleAnywhere, Category = "Narrative|Components|Body Meshes")
TObjectPtr<class USkeletalMeshComponent> VestMesh;

NarrativeCharacter.Cpp

Now open NarrativeCharacter.cpp and set-up the new Skeletal Mesh.

XXXMesh = CreateDefaultSubobject<USkeletalMeshComponent>(TEXT("XXXMesh"));
XXXMesh->SetupAttachment(GetMesh());
XXXMesh->SetReceivesDecals(false);
XXXMesh->SetLeaderPoseComponent(GetMesh());

For example:

VestMesh = CreateDefaultSubobject<USkeletalMeshComponent>(TEXT("VestMesh"));
VestMesh->SetupAttachment(GetMesh());
VestMesh->SetReceivesDecals(false);
VestMesh->SetLeaderPoseComponent(GetMesh());

Finally, find the InitializeEquipmentComponent function and add your mapping.

EquipmentMap.Add(FNarrativeGameplayTags::Get().Equipment_Slot_XXX, XXXMesh);

For example:

EquipmentMap.Add(FNarrativeGameplayTags::Get().Equipment_Slot_Vest, VestMesh);

Animations

If you are going to use a custom animation blueprint, make sure it inherits from Narrative Anim Instance. This will give you access to all the default variables such as NPC data and combat hits.