navigation

name	navigation
description	Implement pathfinding and navigation in Godot using NavigationAgent and NavigationRegion nodes. Use this skill when building AI movement systems, setting up navigation meshes, creating patrol routes, implementing obstacle avoidance, or adding dynamic navigation to 2D/3D games.
metadata	{"author":"godot-dev","version":"1.0"}

Navigation System

NavigationAgent3D

Basic Pathfinding

extends CharacterBody3D

@onready var nav_agent = $NavigationAgent3D

@export var speed = 5.0
@export var target: Node3D

func _ready():
    nav_agent.path_desired_distance = 0.5
    nav_agent.target_desired_distance = 1.0
    nav_agent.radius = 0.5
    nav_agent.height = 1.8
    nav_agent.set_navigation_map(get_world_3d().navigation_map)

func _physics_process(delta):
    if target:
        nav_agent.target_position = target.global_position

    if nav_agent.is_navigation_finished():
        return

    var next_pos = nav_agent.get_next_path_position()
    var direction = (next_pos - global_position).normalized()
    direction.y = 0

    velocity = direction * speed

    if velocity.length() > 0:
        look_at(global_position + velocity)

    move_and_slide()

NavigationRegion3D

Setup in Editor

1. Add NavigationRegion3D node
2. Create NavigationMesh resource
3. Bake navigation mesh

Runtime Baking

extends Node3D

@onready var nav_region = $NavigationRegion3D

func _ready():
    NavigationServer3D.region_bake_navigation_mesh(
        nav_region.navigation_mesh,
        get_world_3d()
    )

NavigationAgent2D

2D Pathfinding

extends CharacterBody2D

@onready var nav_agent = $NavigationAgent2D

@export var speed = 200.0
@export var target_position: Vector2

func _ready():
    nav_agent.target_position = target_position

func _physics_process(delta):
    if nav_agent.is_navigation_finished():
        return

    var next_pos = nav_agent.get_next_path_position()
    var direction = (next_pos - global_position).normalized()

    velocity = direction * speed
    move_and_slide()

AI Patrol System

extends CharacterBody3D

@export var patrol_points: Array[Vector3] = []
@export var speed = 3.0
@export var wait_time = 2.0

@onready var nav_agent = $NavigationAgent3D
@onready var wait_timer = $Timer

var current_point_index = 0
var is_waiting = false

func _ready():
    wait_timer.wait_time = wait_time
    wait_timer.one_shot = true
    wait_timer.timeout.connect(_on_wait_finished)
    if patrol_points.size() > 0:
        nav_agent.target_position = patrol_points[0]

func _physics_process(delta):
    if is_waiting:
        return

    if nav_agent.is_navigation_finished():
        start_waiting()
        return

    var next_pos = nav_agent.get_next_path_position()
    var direction = (next_pos - global_position).normalized()
    direction.y = 0

    velocity = direction * speed
    move_and_slide()

func start_waiting():
    is_waiting = true
    wait_timer.start()

func _on_wait_finished():
    is_waiting = false
    current_point_index = (current_point_index + 1) % patrol_points.size()
    nav_agent.target_position = patrol_points[current_point_index]

Obstacle Avoidance

extends CharacterBody3D

@onready var nav_agent = $NavigationAgent3D

func _ready():
    nav_agent.avoidance_enabled = true
    nav_agent.neighbor_distance = 10.0
    nav_agent.max_neighbors = 10
    nav_agent.time_horizon = 2.0
    nav_agent.avoidance_layers = 1
    nav_agent.avoidance_mask = 1

func _physics_process(delta):
    nav_agent.target_position = target.global_position
    var next_pos = nav_agent.get_next_path_position()
    var direction = (next_pos - global_position).normalized()
    velocity = direction * speed
    move_and_slide()

Dynamic Navigation

Adding Obstacles at Runtime

extends Node3D

@onready var nav_region = $NavigationRegion3D

func add_obstacle(position: Vector3, size: Vector3):
    var obstacle = NavigationObstacle3D.new()
    obstacle.position = position
    obstacle.radius = size.x / 2
    obstacle.height = size.y
    add_child(obstacle)
    nav_region.bake_navigation_mesh()

Best Practices

1. Use NavigationAgent: Handles pathfinding automatically
2. Bake nav mesh: For static environments
3. Dynamic obstacles: Use NavigationObstacle3D
4. Agent radius: Set correctly for obstacle avoidance
5. Path smoothing: Interpolate between path points
6. Multiple layers: For different movement types (ground, water, air)