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unreal-mcp-overview

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Overview of the Flopperam Unreal Engine MCP server -- tool categories, workflows, and cross-tool relationships. Use when first connecting to a running Unreal Editor, when unsure which tool handles a task, or when the user asks about available capabilities.

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Source SKILL.md: https://github.com/flopperam/unreal-engine-mcp/blob/HEAD/skills/unreal-mcp-overview/SKILL.md

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Flopperam Unreal Engine MCP — Overview

This MCP server controls a live Unreal Editor instance over WebSocket. Every tool operates on the running editor — if a tool returns a connection error, the editor may not be running or the FlopAI plugin is not loaded.

Intent Classification

Before calling any tool, classify what the user needs:

  • Question / explanation — Answer from knowledge. Use read-only tools only if specifics are needed. Do NOT make changes.
  • Inspection / analysis — Use read-only tools and report findings. Do NOT modify anything.
  • Modification / creation — Proceed with the full observe → execute → verify workflow.

When intent is unclear, default to answering rather than modifying.

Tool Categories

Scene & Level

  • scene_query — find actors by class/label/tag/folder with spatial filters (near/box/frustum)
  • scene_brief — compact level overview
  • scene_compose — declaratively spawn/modify/delete actors with prefabs + patterns
  • actor_inspect — drill into one actor found via scene_query
  • level_inspect — persistent level + streaming + World Partition + data layers
  • search_assets — search Content Browser by name/prefix/class
  • asset_references — hard-reference graphs (what does X pull in, or what uses X)
  • project_context — engine version, enabled plugins, project settings, maps, content stats

Blueprint (Read-Only — All Tiers)

  • bp_brief — compact one-call BP overview. Use FIRST for orientation.
  • bp_inspect — 21 targeted query operations batched in one call
  • bp_export — full GraphSpec JSON dump for cloning/diffing

Blueprint Authoring (Paid Tier)

  • bp_create — create Actor/Pawn/Character/Component/Object/Interface/Enum/Struct BPs
  • bp_class — reparent, add/remove interfaces, override functions, set CDO properties
  • bp_variable — batched variable CRUD with full type vocabulary
  • bp_component — batched component CRUD with inline property writes
  • bp_graph — function/macro/event graph CRUD
  • bp_nodes — batched node add/remove (~40 node types)
  • bp_wire — batched exec + data edges + pin defaults + pin ops
  • bp_input — Enhanced Input bundle (IA + IMC + key mappings)
  • bp_commit — compile + auto-layout + health report
  • bp_author — full GraphSpec one-shot (compound escape hatch)
  • bp_dry_run — capability probe before non-trivial writes
  • repair_blueprint — rescue corrupted BPs

Materials & Shading

  • material_inspect — read-only overview, expressions, connections, parameters
  • material_edit — create materials/instances/functions, author expression graphs

VFX

  • niagara_inspect — read-only Niagara system inspection
  • niagara_edit — system/emitter/user-parameter/renderer writes
  • niagara_script_edit — reusable NiagaraScript module graphs
  • chaos_edit — Geometry Collections (destruction, fracture, clustering)

Animation

  • animation_inspect — read-only animation inspection
  • animation_edit — sequence/montage/notify/BlendSpace/socket writes
  • animation_graph_edit — AnimBlueprint AnimGraph authoring
  • ik_rig_edit — IK Rig chains + solvers
  • ik_retarget — skeleton chain mapping for batch retargeting

UMG / Widgets

  • widget_inspect — read-only UMG widget tree inspection
  • widget_edit — tree/property/style/animation/MVVM/event writes

AI & Ability System

  • behavior_tree — BTs, Blackboards, AI Controllers, perception, NavMesh, EQS, Smart Objects
  • gas_edit — Gameplay Abilities, Effects, Attribute Sets
  • tag_registry_edit — project-wide Gameplay Tag hierarchy

Landscape & Foliage

  • landscape_inspect — height/slope/normal queries, statistics
  • landscape_edit — sculpting, semantic features, paint layers, heightmap import/export
  • foliage_inspect — type + count listing
  • foliage_edit — scatter, place exact transforms, remove by radius/type

Cinematics & Audio

  • sequencer_edit — Level Sequences with actor bindings, tracks, keyframes, camera cuts
  • metasound_edit — procedural audio (MetaSound graphs)
  • sound_asset_edit — SoundCue graphs, SoundClass, Attenuation

Procedural

  • pcg_graph_edit — PCG graphs with generators, samplers, filters, mesh spawners

Data Assets

  • asset_factory — enums/structs/DataTables/DataAssets/Enhanced Input

Other

  • ramp_authoring — curve assets (UCurveFloat, UCurveVector, UCurveLinearColor)
  • collision_profile_edit — collision profiles, physical materials, object type responses

Editor & Diagnostics

  • editor_actions — save, undo, redo, select, build lighting, compile, PIE start/stop
  • editor_log — Output Log + Message Log with filters
  • performance_audit — triangle counts, actor counts, texture memory, optimization warnings
  • window_capture — viewport screenshot as PNG
  • cpp_source — read/write/search C++ source, Live Coding hot-reload

Runtime Verification

  • pie_test_bp — Blueprint-focused PIE harness with 30+ assertion types (paid)
  • pie_test_scene — scene-focused PIE harness (free)

Execution (Paid Tier)

  • python_execution — arbitrary Python inside the editor process (last resort)
  • unreal_api — 15,000+ UE API signature lookups
  • skills / bp_skills — load workflow documentation on demand

Core Workflow

  1. Orient — bp_brief, scene_brief, search_assets, or project_context
  2. Execute — use the appropriate domain tools
  3. Verify — re-read with inspect tools, run PIE test for runtime behavior

Efficiency Rules

  • Batch everything — every tool that accepts arrays (queries, variables, components, nodes, edges, operations) is designed for one call with many items
  • Call independent tools in parallel — don't wait for scene_query before calling search_assets if both are needed
  • Use filters — bp_inspect, material_inspect, widget_inspect, animation_inspect all support compact mode + filters
  • Defer compile — narrow bp_* writes defer compile; batch many, then bp_commit once

Constraints

  • Responses are capped at 512KB — use filters and targeted queries
  • search_assets returns Content Browser paths in PackageName.AssetName format — always use the FULL path as returned
  • scene_query returns actor labels — these are NOT asset paths
  • Guessed /Game/... paths silently resolve to nullptr — always resolve via search_assets first