| name | landscape-materials |
| display_name | Landscape Material System |
| description | Create landscape materials with layer blending, texture setup, and layer info objects (LandscapeMaterialService). Use when the user asks to build a landscape/terrain material, set up paint layers (grass/rock/dirt), create layer info objects, add a grass output, or assign a material to a landscape. For production master-material+RVT systems, load landscape-auto-material. |
| vibeue_classes | ["LandscapeMaterialService","MaterialService","MaterialNodeService"] |
| unreal_classes | ["MaterialExpressionLandscapeLayerBlend","MaterialExpressionLandscapeLayerWeight","MaterialExpressionLandscapeLayerCoords","LandscapeLayerInfoObject"] |
| keywords | ["landscape material","layer blend","terrain material","weight blend","layer info","terrain texture","height blend","slope blend","auto paint","height mask","slope mask"] |
🧠 Brains complement: IF an unreal-engine-skills-manager tool (external MCP) exists in this session, call it with {action: "load", skill: "materials-and-shaders"} for UE domain knowledge on this topic — correct APIs, architecture, best practices — and treat it as the rubric for any review / "best practices" question. If no such tool is available (e.g. running under Claude Code or Codex without that MCP), skip this line entirely and proceed with this skill alone — do NOT attempt the call.
Landscape Material System Skill
When to Use This Skill vs. landscape-auto-material
- This skill (
landscape-materials): Simple materials with 2-5 layers using LandscapeLayerBlend. Good for prototyping.
landscape-auto-material: Production materials using material functions, RVT, and material instances. Good for shipping quality. Use when you need the Real_Landscape paradigm with auto-layering, altitude/slope blending via material functions, and biome configuration through material instances.
If you need material functions, Runtime Virtual Textures, or the master-material + instance pattern, load the landscape-auto-material skill (the engine's AgentSkillToolset GetSkills exposes it).
Critical Rules
🚨 Inspect Before Modifying Existing Landscape Materials
Before modifying an existing landscape material, you MUST export and review its current graph:
import unreal, json
path = "/Game/Materials/M_Terrain"
info = unreal.MaterialService.get_material_info(path)
print(f"Blend: {info.blend_mode}, Shading: {info.shading_model}")
graph = json.loads(unreal.MaterialNodeService.export_material_graph(path))
for expr in graph['expressions']:
name = expr.get('parameter_name') or expr.get('class')
print(f" [{expr['id']}] {expr['class']} - {name}")
if expr.get('landscape_layers'):
for layer in expr['landscape_layers']:
print(f" Layer: {layer}")
for oc in graph['output_connections']:
print(f" Output '{oc['property']}' ← expr {oc['expression_id']}")
Why: Landscape materials often already have LayerBlend nodes, texture samplers, and connected outputs. Adding duplicate nodes without reviewing first creates orphaned expressions and broken connections. Always export → review → plan → modify.
Two Services Work Together
- LandscapeMaterialService - Landscape-specific nodes (LayerBlend, LayerCoords, LayerInfo)
- MaterialService + MaterialNodeService - Standard material operations (create, compile, save, connect other nodes)
Layer Blend Types
| Type | Use |
|---|
LB_WeightBlend | Standard paintable layers (most common) |
LB_AlphaBlend | Non-normalized blending |
LB_HeightBlend | Height-based auto-blending between layers |
Always Create Layer Info Objects
Each layer name needs a matching ULandscapeLayerInfoObject asset:
- Create before assigning material to landscape
- Asset name convention:
LI_<LayerName> (e.g., LI_Grass, LI_Rock)
- ALWAYS store and use
.asset_path from create_layer_info_object() result — never guess paths
- WRONG:
"/Game/Landscape/Grass_LayerInfo" → CORRECT: grass_info.asset_path (which is "/Game/Landscape/LI_Grass")
⚠️ assign_material_to_landscape Will Silently Skip Bad Paths
If layer_info_paths contains wrong paths, assign_material_to_landscape may return True (material set) but layers will be empty. Always verify with get_landscape_info().layers after assignment.
Compile + Save After Changes
unreal.MaterialService.compile_material(mat_path)
unreal.EditorAssetLibrary.save_asset(mat_path)
⚠️ compile_material Is Slow — Use Separate Code Blocks
compile_material() can take minutes for landscape materials with blend nodes. NEVER put create + compile in the same code block — it will exceed the Python execution timeout.
Split into separate steps:
- Block 1: Create material, add blend nodes, add layers, connect outputs, save
- Block 2:
compile_material(mat_path) alone
- Block 3: Create layer info objects, assign to landscape
Texture Tiling
- Landscapes are large; textures need tiling via LandscapeLayerCoords
- Default
MappingScale=0.01 tiles every 100 units
- Smaller values = more tiling, larger values = less tiling
Task Index
| Task | Sub-doc | Sample script |
|---|
| Create a landscape material (+ layers) | workflows.md → Create Complete Landscape Material | scripts/create_landscape_material.txt |
| Set up a layer with textures | workflows.md → Setup Layer with Textures | — |
| Create layer info objects | workflows.md → Create Layer Info Objects | — |
| Assign material to a landscape | workflows.md → Assign Material to Landscape | — |
| Grass output node | workflows.md → Create Grass Output Node | — |
| Satellite-guided material + painting | satellite.md | — |
Sub-docs
workflows.md — step-by-step landscape-material build workflows (layers, textures, layer info, grass).satellite.md — satellite-image-guided material creation and slope/height painting.
Verification
compile_material (slow — keep it in its own code block) then save. Inspect the graph with
MaterialNodeService.export_material_graph before modifying an existing landscape material.
Sample scripts (run via execute_python_code)
scripts/create_landscape_material.txt — create a landscape material with a layer blend, compile, assign.
