Reskin the ship and asteroids

Replace art while keeping gameplay Blueprints unchanged. Paths below match the shipped SpaceShooterTemplate content folder.

Asset relationships

flowchart TB
  subgraph ship [Ship]
    SM_Spacehip --> MI_Spaceship
    MI_Spaceship --> BP_Spaceship
  end
  subgraph rocks [Asteroids]
    SM_Rocks["SM_SpaceRock_01–03"] --> MI_Rocks["MI_SpaceRock_01–03"]
    MI_Rocks --> BP_SpaceRock
    BP_SpaceRock --> ExplosionFX["Explosion Effects map"]
  end
  subgraph weapon [Weapon]
    SM_Missile --> BP_Projectile
    BP_Projectile --> BP_BaseCannon
    BP_BaseCannon --> BP_Spaceship
  end

Example — new ship material

1. In Content Browser, duplicate Materials/MI_Spaceship → name it MI_Spaceship_Custom.
2. Open MI_Spaceship_Custom and assign your albedo/normal/RMA textures (or edit base color).
3. Open BP_Spaceship → select Space Ship Mesh Component (SM_Spacehip).
4. Set Materials → Element 0 to MI_Spaceship_Custom.
5. Compile, save, play DemoMap — ship should render with your material while movement and collision stay the same.

Default asset	Path
Mesh	Meshes/SM_Spacehip
Material	Materials/MI_Spaceship
Textures	Textures/Spaceship_Albedo, Spaceship_Normal, Spaceship_RMA

Tip

If the ship appears to fly sideways after a mesh swap, adjust the Space Ship Mesh Component rotation in BP_Spaceship so the mesh forward axis matches Move Forward input.

Example — swap asteroid textures only

Keep the three stock meshes but change the look:

1. Duplicate MI_SpaceRock_01, MI_SpaceRock_02, MI_SpaceRock_03.
2. Point each duplicate at new textures under Textures/ (or your imported files).
3. Play and destroy each size — BP_SpaceRock picks mesh/scale from the Asteroid Sizes map; materials stay on the static mesh assets.

Mesh	Default material
SM_SpaceRock_01	MI_SpaceRock_01
SM_SpaceRock_02	MI_SpaceRock_02
SM_SpaceRock_03	MI_SpaceRock_03

Example — custom explosion for Large rocks

On BP_SpaceRock → Class Defaults → Explosion Effects:

Size	Default particle	Default sound
Small	P_Explosion_Small	Explosion_Cue
Medium	P_Explosion_Medium	Explosion_Cue
Large	P_Explosion_Large	Explosion_Cue
ExtraLarge	P_Explosion_ExtraLarge	Explosion_Cue

Steps:

1. Import or create a particle system (for example P_Explosion_Large_Neon).
2. Open BP_SpaceRock → Explosion Effects → row Large.
3. Set Particle Effect to your new system; keep Sound Effect as Explosion_Cue or assign Explosion01 / Explosion02.
4. Play, destroy a Large rock, confirm VFX/SFX play at the rock location.

Struct ST_SpaceRockDestructionEffects fields: Particle Effect, Sound Effect.

Missile / projectile look

Asset	Path
Mesh	Meshes/SM_Missile
Materials	MI_Missile, MI_Missile_Unlit

Open BP_Projectile → Projectile Mesh Component. Default projectile stats: Speed 10000, Damage 100.

Background

DemoMap uses M_Background and HDR T_HDR_Saturn on the sky/background geometry (EditorSkySphere). Swap these in the level or replace the texture on M_Background for a new backdrop without touching gameplay Blueprints.

Verification checklist

• Ship mesh collision still matches visuals (On Component Hit with asteroids)
• Projectiles register hits on the Asteroid object channel
• Each destroyed size plays the matching Explosion Effects entry
• WBP_HitDamage score popups still align (screen-space, not mesh-bound)

Next steps

• Tune difficulty
• Migrate into your project