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Add an inventory item

An inventory item is one Data Asset. The pickup on the ground is always the same actor, BP_ItemPickup, and it reads its mesh from the Data Asset. No child class to make, no list to register it in.

By the end of this page you have an item that lies in the level, goes into a quick slot with its icon, shows in the player's hand, and, if you want, heals or restores stamina when used.

If you have not read How items and the inventory work, start there.

  • The Data Assets: Content/MPFriendslop/Blueprints/DataAssets/Item/Childs/
  • The pickup: Content/MPFriendslop/Blueprints/Environments/Items/BP_ItemPickup
  • The icons: Content/MPFriendslop/Textures/Widgets/Tools/

Step 1, the Data Asset

  1. In Blueprints/DataAssets/Item/Childs/, duplicate the shipped item closest to yours: DA_Item_Medkit for something you use up, DA_Item_Flashlight for something you keep.
  2. Name it DA_Item_<Name>.
  3. Fill in the fields below. They are all in Settings|Item.
Field What it does Shipped in DA_Item_Medkit
Display Name The interaction prompt on the pickup Medkit
Icon The picture in the quick slot. Draw it white on a transparent background. The slot tints it T_Icon_Tool_Medkit
World Mesh The mesh on the ground. The mesh in hand is set on the held actor SM_Tool_Medkit
Max Stack How many fit in one slot 3
Use Type None: cannot be used. Use: the item stays in the slot. Consume: one is removed from the stack on each use Consume
Max Charge The size of the item's resource. 0 means no resource and no charge bar on the slot 0
Pickup Class The actor spawned when the item is dropped or delivered BP_ItemPickup
Wield Actor Class The actor shown in hand while the slot is selected BP_WieldedMedkit
Restored Vital The vital a use restores. Empty means the item restores nothing DA_Health_Vital
Restore Amount How much of that vital one use gives back 50

Max Charge is the flashlight's battery (100) and the shotgun's shells (2). The charge belongs to the slot, so switching slots keeps it.

Keep Pickup Class on BP_ItemPickup. Every held item has its own held actor in Blueprints/Environments/Items/Wieldable/Childs/. For an item that is only held, duplicate BP_WieldedMedkit, set the Static Mesh of its HandMesh and ViewMesh to your mesh, and point Wield Actor Class at it.

The Settings|Overlay, Settings|Attachment and Settings|Hand IK fields decide how the item is held. For an item held like the medkit, leave the pose and hand IK fields empty. Where it sits in first person is the position of ViewMesh in the held actor, and a big item needs to sit further away than a small one. Both are covered in Make a held item, its hold pose and hand IK.

Step 2, a consumable

A consumable needs no graph. Set three fields:

  1. Use Type to Consume.
  2. Restored Vital to DA_Health_Vital or DA_Stamina_Vital, or to a vital of your own.
  3. Restore Amount to how much one use gives back.

That is how the medkit (50 health) and the Spare Battery (40 stamina) are made. The Spare Battery restores stamina. It does not recharge the flashlight, and no shipped item refills a charge. A new vital is covered in Health, damage and new vitals.

The use itself is done by BP_ConsumableComponent on the player. BP_FriendslopCharacter already has it. On your own pawn you need all three of these:

  • BP_ConsumableComponent
  • BP_InventoryComponent
  • the interface BPI_VitalManagerInterface, with Get Vital Component returning your BP_VitalsSystem

See How the player character works.

Step 3, put it in the level

  1. Drag BP_ItemPickup into the level.
  2. Set its fields in the Details panel.
Field What it does
Item Data Your DA_Item_<Name>. The mesh appears in the editor as soon as you set it
Count How many the player picks up. 1 by default
Charge The charge the item starts with: 100 for a full flashlight, 2 for a loaded shotgun
Interaction Type Simple by default. Hold makes the player hold the interact key
Interaction Duration For Hold, the hold time in seconds. Ignored for Simple. Spam is covered in Make any actor interactable

What you get for free

Once the Data Asset exists and a pickup points at it:

  • The pickup shows its mesh, its outline and its prompt.
  • It stacks with items of the same kind up to Max Stack, then takes a free slot.
  • The slot shows its icon, and a charge bar when Max Charge is above 0.
  • The item appears in the player's hand when its slot is selected.
  • Dropping it spawns a pickup with the same count and charge. It is dropped with everything else when the player dies.

None of that needs a line of Blueprint.

To sell your item instead of placing it, see Add an item to the shop.

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