Earth3 Builder Manual

Product Introduction

Earth3 Builder is a powerful tool for real-time editing within the scene generation interface, allowing developers to directly edit, add, delete, and modify various elements' data during game runtime.This real-time editing capability significantly enhances developer productivity and opens up new possibilities for dynamic environment interaction design.

Changelog - Earth3 Builder（Beta）

Interface	Interface Layout Update
Create and Edit Interactions
Icon Update
Road Editing	Add Z-direction Fine-tuning Slider in Edit Panel
Smooth Slope
Operation and View	Intersection Generation Effect
Add Separate Edit Page for Each Element
Add Corresponding Options for Global Element Selection and Movement
Snapping	Add Snapping Sub-items, Vertex and Edge Snapping
90 and 180 Degree Locking When Creating Roads
Model Import	Add Import Button, Batch Import Models
Use Gizmo for Operations on Models in the Scene
Automatically Generate Model Thumbnails

Product Features

3.1. Preparation Work

This section mainly introduces how to configure the Editor plugin package to start using the product.

3.1.1. Download the Plugin Package for UE Engine and Project Data Package

Refer to the official operation guide and download the corresponding plugin package and data package through Earth3 Launcher.

3.2. Basic Operations

This section mainly introduces how to use the quick menu:

Type	Function	Shortcut	Description
	Open Editor	Ctrl + Shift + 1
	Undo	Ctrl +X
	Redo	Ctrl + Y
Camera	General Camera Movement	WSADQE
	Zoom	Scroll
	Angle Rotation	Middle of Mouse
Select	Single Select	Left Click	Select
	Toggle	Ctrl + Left Click	Switch Select
	Add Select	Shift	Add Select
	Frame Select	Left Click and Drag	Select Elements in View
	Delete	Del	Delete Selected Element
	Hide	Ctrl + H	Hide Selected Element
	Revert Hide	Shift + H	Revert All Selected Elements
Transform	Horizontal Move	Hover on node/way + Drag
	Vertical Move	H + Drag
	Spin	Select + Right Click
Brush	BrushRadius	[ ]	Size of Brush
	BrushStrength	- =	Intensity of Brush
Edit/Graph	Point Drag	Click + Alt + Left Click	Duplicate Point on the Current Point
	Straight	L	Straight Line Mode
	Curve	C	Curve Line Mode
	Snap	V	Snap Switch
	UpgradeMode	T	Template Setting
	Intersect Segments	Shift + I	Intersect
	Reverse	Shift + R	Reverse Direction
Menu	Remove from junction	Shift + E	Remove Intersect
	connect	Shift + C	Connect Line

3.3. Feature Display

This section mainly introduces the specific features and tool operations of Earth3 Builder.

3.3.1. Interface and Layout

After entering the builder, you can freely browse the scene. Use WSAD to move the view forward, backward, left, and right; QE to move the view up and down; the middle mouse button to rotate the view; and the left mouse button to click and drag on the ground to pan the view. Double-click the left mouse button to jump to the mouse position.

• After entering edit mode by clicking EnterEditMode on top, you will see an interface with top and bottom toolbars.

• Familiarize yourself with the interface layout, including the top: UNDO/REDO, select editing area, save, exit editing; bottom: select elements, delete elements, and various element editing tools (roads, buildings, water bodies, terrain), etc.

3.3.1.1. Main Processes and Operations

1. Box selection, multi-selection, toggle selection (mouse drag for box selection, shift for multi-selection, ctrl for toggle selection)

2. Hold and drag to move horizontally

3. Adjust point height (PageDown/PageUp)

4. Batch data modification

3.3.2. Basic Menu

3.3.2.1. Editing Mode

• Enter editing mode by moving view to the desired area and click Enter Edit Mode.

• Entering Edit Mode

3.3.2.2. UNDO/REDO

• Click the UNDO icon: Allows you to undo the previous action.

• Click the REDO icon: Allows you to redo an action that was undone.

3.3.2.3.Save

• Click the Save icon to save the current edits.

3.3.2.4. Exit Editor

• Click the Exit icon to exit the UGA Editor.

3.3.2.5. Selection Mode

• Click the leftmost icon of the toolbar below to select any element in the scene interface to move and delete.

1. Batch box selection of elements within the editing area

Before selection

After selection

1. Drag and modify various element data within the range

Element	Before	After	Action
Road			Drag points to modify road outline points
			Drag on the line to change the curvature of the line
			Select points in bulk, offset as a whole
			Modify number of lanes
			Modify lane width
Building			Drag points to modify building outline
			Move the entire building
Water Body			Drag points to modify water outline Offset the entire water body

1. Click to open the attribute panel of the selected entity

3.3.3. Element Editor

3.3.3.1. Road Editor

• Select the Road Editor to display the road toolbox and tool settings panel.

3.3.3.1.1. Road Toolbox

• The road toolbox supports two types of roads: Main Street and Highway.

• Click to select a road template, then left-click and drag in the scene to create a road according to the selected template. The creation will be instantly displayed.

3.3.3.1.2. Road Tool Parameters

• The road tool parameters support pre-setting modifications for different road templates.

• LineType: Includes Straight Line and Curve Line.

• Elevation: Set the road height above ground level.

• Snap: On/off to use road snapping ability.

The icons are, in order: Global Snapping Toggle, Vertex Snapping, Edge Snapping, 90 and 180 Degree Locking.

• : On/off to replace roads with available templates.

3.3.3.1.3. Road Edit Interface Parameters

Road editing has added a slider for fine-tuning the road's Z height. Sliding left or right can move it between -20 and 20. Larger values can be entered in the numeric box on the right.

3.3.3.1.4. Road Edit Right Menu

Command	Before	After	Description
Connect			Select the endpoints of two road segments, right-click ConnectRoad, and merge the two segments into one road.
ToCurve			Convert the line where the selected point is located into a curve. This option will not change the shape of the straight line.
To PolyLine			Convert the curve where the selected point is located into a polyline.
Reset Curve			Recalculate the curve to smooth the entire curve.
Break			Break the road at the location of the selected point.
Select Entity			Select all points on the same line as the currently selected point.
Disconnect Junction			Insert a point at the mouse cursor position on the line.
Smooth Grade			Smoothen the gradient.

3.3.3.2. Building Editor

• Select the Building Editor to display the building toolbox and tool settings panel.

3.3.3.2.1. Building Toolbox

• Click to select a building template, then left-click to draw the outline in the scene. Right-click to end and create the building. The corresponding template building will be created and displayed instantly.

3.3.3.2.2. Building Tool Parameters

• Height: Sets the height of the building.

3.3.3.3. Water Body Editor

• Select a Water Body to display the detail panel.

3.3.3.3.1. Water Body

• Click the button to create a water body.

• Click to select a water body template, then left-click to draw the outline in the scene. Right-click to end and create the water body. The corresponding template water body will be created and displayed instantly.

3.3.3.3.2. Water Body Shape Alternation

• Drag outline in select mode to change shape.

3.3.3.4. Terrain Editor

• Select the Terrain Editor to display the terrain toolbox and tool settings panel.

3.3.3.4.1. Terrain Toolbox

• The Terrain Toolbox supports various terrain brush functions.

• Flatten Brush: Supports terrain flattening in the scene, pushing or pulling all parts of the heightmap to the level below the mouse.

• Smooth Brush: Supports terrain smoothing in the scene by averaging the heights of all points within the brush coverage.

• Sculpt Brush: Supports terrain sculpting in the scene by raising or lowering the heightmap using the selected brush shape and falloff.

3.3.3.5. GLTF Model Import Editor

• Click "Import" to import models into the model library. Multiple selections are allowed.

• Select the imported model and click in the scene to place the imported model.

• Switch to global selection to move and rotate the models in the imported scene.

3.3.3.5.1. Terrain Tool Parameters

• Flatten Brush Parameters

Field Name	Default Value	Description
BrushRadius	1000	Sets the outer radius of the brush
BrushFalloff	0.5	Ratio of the inner to outer range of the brush (inner range reaches the target height value, outer range shows the slope according to the algorithm)
ToolStrength	0.3	Strength of the change, i.e., the speed of change
UseFlattenTarget	Off	Enable/Disable the target height setting function for flattening

• Smooth Brush Parameters

Field Name	Default Value	Description
BrushRadius	1000	Sets the outer radius of the brush
BrushFalloff	0.5	Ratio of the inner to outer range of the brush (inner range reaches the target height value, outer range shows the slope according to the algorithm)
ToolStrength	0.3	Strength of the change, i.e., the speed of change

• Sculpt Brush Parameters

Field Name	Default Value	Description
BrushRadius	1000	Sets the outer radius of the brush
BrushFalloff	0.5	Ratio of the inner to outer range of the brush (inner range reaches the target height value, outer range shows the slope according to the algorithm)
ToolStrength	0.3	Strength of the change, i.e., the speed of change

3.3.4. Attribute Panel

3.3.4.1. Road Attributes

• Description of the attributes of the corresponding road entity.

Field Name	Default Value	Field Definition
	\	Focus on the selected road entity
	\	Delete the selected road entity
GroupId	0	ID value of the corresponding road entity
Reverse	On/Off	Reverse order switch (currently not enabled)
Width	X: 0.0;Y: 350;Z: 0.0	Total width of the corresponding road entity
Level	0	Level of the corresponding road entity
Flag	0	Road flag (currently not enabled)
FClass	secondary	Road type (currently not enabled)
LaneWidth	350	Width of the lanes of the corresponding road
LaneNum	X: 0.0; Y: 1.0	Number of lanes, X for left lanes, Y for right lanes

3.3.4.2. Building Attributes

• Description of the attributes of the corresponding building entity.

Field Name	Default Value	Field Definition
	\	Focus on the selected water area entity
	\	Delete the selected water area entity
Material	\	Water area type (currently not enabled)
Hide	On/Off	Enable/disable hiding water area entity function (currently not enabled)
Depth	0.0	Depth of the water area entity (currently not enabled)
ZOffset	0.0	Height setting of the water surface of the water area entity (currently not enabled)
EdgeWidth	0.0	Width setting of the water surface and riverbank of the water area entity (currently not enabled)
EdgeOffset	0.0	Height setting of the water surface and riverbank of the water area entity (currently not enabled)

3.3.4.3. Water Body Attributes

• Description of the attributes of the corresponding water body entity.

Field Name	Default Parameter	Field Definition
	\	Focus on the selected water Entity
	\	Delete the selected water Entity
Material	\	Type of water (currently not enabled)
Hide	On/Off	Enable/disable hiding water Entity feature (currently not enabled)
Depth	0.0	Depth of the water Entity (currently not enabled)
ZOffset	0.0	Water surface height setting of the water Entity (currently not enabled)
EdgeWidth	0.0	Width setting between water surface and riverbank of the water Entity
EdgeOffset	0.0	Height setting between water surface and riverbank of the water Entity

3.3.4.4. GLTF Model Attributes

• Description of the attributes of the corresponding GLTF Model entity.

Field Name	Default Parameter	Field Definition
	\	Focus on the selected model
	\	Delete the selected model
Location	X: 749691.9375;Y: -1115124.625;Z: -50.0	Model coordinate location
Rotation	0~360	Model orientation
Advanced Options	\	Not yet exposed

3.3.5. Accessibility

3.3.5.1. Hover

Road

Building

Water Body

3.3.5.2. Auxiliary Tools: Length Display, Angle Display, Slope Display

• When creating a road, auxiliary displays for length, angle, and slope are available.

3.3.5.3. Road Endpoint Snapping Capability

• Dragging a road endpoint near another road will snap it to the existing road.

3.3.5.4. Keyboard Alt Key Adding Points Capability

• Hover the mouse over a point, hold the Alt key on the keyboard, and left-click and drag the mouse to add a point to the feature.

Frequently Asked Questions

4.1. Recommended Configuration

This table represents the expected targets, and the current setup can support smooth operation up to 2060.

User Configuration

	Minimum Configuration	Recommended Configuration
Operating System	Windows 10 v.1909	Windows 10 new
Processor	AMD Ryzen 5 1500XIntel Core i5 8400	AMD Ryzen 7 Pro 2700XIntel Core i7 9800X
Memory	16 GB RAM	32GB RAM
Graphics Card	GTX1060 6G	RTX 2080 RTX 3070 RTX 4060 8G
Bandwidth	20Mbps	50Mbps

Client Experience

	Minimum Client	Best Experience Client	Cloud Rendering (showcase)
Note	5G	100G~2T	0
Capacity	5G	100G~2T	0
Required Network Speed	100Mbps	50Mbps~0Mbps	50Mbps
Experience Smoothness	Slow, with delay	Smooth, almost no delay	Moderate, mainly due to streaming loss

4.2. FAQ

1. When selecting NEW, the contained city scene can occasionally be empty.

It is due to issues with download speed. You can restart the Builder to refresh the page and retrieve the data address.

1. Occasionally, the scene selection loading screen may freeze. This is also due to download speed issues.

You need to manually right-click to close the application and restart it to use it again.