| name | using-ue5-materials |
| description | Route any UE5 / Unreal Engine material, shader, or material-graph authoring request to the correct ue5-materials sub-skill. Invoke this whenever the user asks to build, edit, tweak, or debug a UE5 material, shader effect, or Material Editor graph — even if they don't explicitly name the skill or say "shader". Covers both live editing via MCPBridge and clipboard-paste T3D workflows. |
UE5 Materials — Router
Any request to create, modify, or debug a UE5 Material or Material Graph — whether the user says "shader", "VFX", "material", "material function", or just describes a visual effect — must route through this plugin's sub-skills. Don't write HLSL inline, don't write YAML inline, don't guess node wiring in the main conversation.
Routing Table
| User Intent | Invoke | Why |
|---|
| "Create a confetti VFX" / "I want a glowing edge" | ue5-materials:author | Plain-text description → full material graph |
| "Make the edge softer" / "use a different easing" | ue5-materials:author (iterate) | HLSL change on an existing shader |
| Pastes HLSL, asks for changes | ue5-materials:author (edit mode) | Edits preserve existing input/output signature |
| "Wire a TextureCoordinate into a Lerp" / simple graph | ue5-materials:author (direct YAML path) | Known nodes, no design work needed |
| "Does MF_UI_SDF_AntiAliasedStep exist?" | ue5-materials:registry | Look up or register a node type |
| "Check if MCPBridge is up" / "apply this YAML live" | run apply_material.py directly | CLI — no sub-skill needed |
Execution Modes
This plugin has two paths for getting a YAML spec into UE5:
- Live mode — when the Unreal Editor is running with MCPBridge available at
localhost:13580, apply_material.py --mode live drives create_material + add_material_expressions + connect_material_pins directly. The material appears in the Editor without paste.
- Clipboard mode —
apply_material.py --mode clipboard emits T3D text. User copies it, opens the Material Editor, Ctrl+V.
- Auto mode (default) — probes the bridge, uses live if up, clipboard otherwise.
The author skill produces YAML; the user or Claude then runs apply_material.py to apply it. Live mode is preferred when available; clipboard is the fallback.
Red Flags
| Thought | Reality |
|---|
| "I'll write the HLSL inline, it's simple" | Invoke ue5-materials:author. HLSL conventions live inside sub-agent prompts. |
| "I'll generate the YAML myself in the main context" | Invoke ue5-materials:author. The YAML format has subtle rules. |
| "This is just a quick wire-up" | Still invoke author — it has a direct-YAML path for simple cases. |
| "I should explore the codebase first" | The skill does its own exploration. Invoke first. |
Key Principles
- Brainstorm before build — new shaders (Entry Point A inside
author) start with superpowers:brainstorming to lock the idea before silent agents design it. Entry Points B, C, D, Phase 4 iterations, and direct-YAML path skip the gate.
- Opus for shader design, Sonnet for node mechanics, agent subprocesses keep the main context clean.
- File-based handoff — agents write
material_brief.md, shader_design.md, shader_code.hlsl, ue5_nodes.yaml. The main context only sees summary tables.
- YAML is the durable artifact — it survives edits, diffs cleanly, replays in either mode.
- Live and clipboard modes are interchangeable outputs of the same YAML; pick based on what's running.
- No Comment boxes — Generator never emits
Comment nodes; they crash UE5 on resize. Named Reroutes + column positioning replace them.
