Tools
The 27 built-in Unreal MCP tools - RQL, Blueprints, C++ source, Python, screenshots and console - and example prompts for AI in the Unreal Editor.
This page describes what an AI agent can do in the Unreal Editor with Unreal MCP. The plugin ships 27 tools in 7 families. You rarely call a tool by name: ask in plain language and the agent picks the tool. Knowing the families helps you ask for things the agent can actually do.
For per-tool cards and parameters, browse the Unreal tools catalog.
RQL: one query language for editor data
Unreal MCP does not have one tool per editor operation. Instead, editor data goes through RQL, a query language that reads and changes actors, components, assets, levels and editor state in one call.
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
rql-query | Read-only query over the live editor, with compact table results |
rql-mutate | A query that ends with set or call; all-or-nothing, one undo step, and a dry_run preview |
rql-schema | Lists sources, functions and classes; with a type, lists that type's members and methods |
A few examples of what RQL looks like (the agent writes these for you):
actors | where $ is PointLight | select $ref Label Intensity
actors | where Label == "Door_01" | set Location = "(0, 0, 100)"
editor | call SpawnActor("PointLight")
console | where Verbosity == "Error"Beyond actors and components, RQL reaches:
- Assets and levels: create, copy, move, delete and import assets, create folders and material instances, open, create and save levels, add streaming sublevels.
- Editor state: selection, Play In Editor state, undo history, the editor log.
- DataTables: read and edit rows (
Rows["Sword"].Damage), add, remove, rename and duplicate rows. - Gameplay tags: list, add, remove and rename tags.
- Project Settings and Editor Preferences: read and change config properties, saved to the right
.inifile. - Blueprint graphs: add function calls, variables, events, casts, branches and loops, connect pins, then
call Compile(). - Widget Blueprints: walk and edit the widget tree, add widgets and set layout.
- User-defined structs: add, remove and rename fields.
- Level Sequences: bind actors, add tracks and keys.
Every mutation is one editor transaction, so Ctrl+Z reverts it. The agent learns the language from the unreal-rql skill, which also lists what installed extensions add.
Example prompts:
- "List every point light in the level with its intensity, then double the intensity of the dim ones."
- "Spawn 20 cubes in a 5 by 4 grid, 200 units apart."
- "Add a row Bow with Damage 7 to the DT_Weapons DataTable."
- "Set the game default map to /Game/Maps/Arena."
Blueprint family
Blueprint authoring is Unreal's main scripting surface, and the agent gets a full feedback loop: create, edit, compile, read the errors, fix.
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
blueprint-create | Create a Blueprint class from a parent class |
blueprint-get | Summarize a Blueprint: variables, components, functions and events, parent chain |
blueprint-add-component | Add a component to the construction script |
blueprint-remove-component | Remove a component |
blueprint-add-variable | Add a typed member variable |
blueprint-modify-variable | Change a member variable |
blueprint-set-default | Set a class-default property |
blueprint-add-function | Add a function stub |
blueprint-add-event | Add an event such as BeginPlay or Tick |
blueprint-compile | Compile and return a structured list of errors and warnings |
blueprint-spawn | Place an instance of the Blueprint in the level |
Example: "Create an Actor Blueprint BP_Door with a static mesh component and a bool variable IsOpen, compile it and place one at the origin."
Source / C++ family
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
source-read | Read a project C++ file, in slices |
source-create-class | Scaffold a new C++ class (header and source) |
source-update | Edit a source file |
source-delete | Delete a source file |
source-list | List the module's source files |
source-compile | Compile with Live Coding when it is active, otherwise Unreal Build Tool, and return a structured error report |
All file operations are limited to <Project>/Source/. Example: "Create a C++ component UHealthComponent with MaxHealth and a TakeDamage function, compile, and fix any errors."
Python family
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
python-execute | Run Python in the editor with the unreal module pre-imported |
The last expression is returned as the result, print output comes back as logs, and errors point at the failing line. include adds helper files or folders from <Project>/.ai-game-dev/snippets, and timeout (default 30 seconds) stops a runaway script. The plugin enables Unreal's Python Editor Script Plugin; Python is editor-only and never ships in a packaged game. Blueprint graph wiring is not exposed to Python; use the Blueprint tools or RQL for that.
You can also run Python from a terminal with unreal-mcp-cli exec, see the CLI reference.
Screenshot family
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
screenshot-viewport | Capture the active editor viewport |
screenshot-game-view | Capture the Play In Editor game view |
screenshot-camera | Render from a camera actor |
screenshot-isolated | Render one actor on its own |
Images come back as PNG content the model can look at, 1024 pixels by default and at most 2048 per side. They need a GPU-backed editor; under -nullrhi they return an error. Example: "Take a screenshot from CameraActor_Main and tell me if the lighting looks too dark."
Console and tool list
| Tool | What it does |
|---|---|
console-run-command | Run an Unreal console command or set a console variable |
unreal-tool-list | List every tool, including hidden ones, with optional filter, descriptions and inputs |
Reading the log, Play In Editor state and the selection go through RQL.
Tools the agent never sees
A few system tools serve the CLI and the app and are not shown to AI agents:
ping: checks the plugin, bridge and server chain.unreal-skill-generate: writes oneSKILL.mdper tool into a skills folder (default.claude/skills); the Generate skill files button uses it.unreal-skill-create: generates a new C++ tool file in the plugin's editor module. It needs a source install of the plugin and an editor rebuild before the tool works.editor-quit: saves and closes an editor that a CLI session started.
Prompts and resources
The plugin also ships one MCP prompt, level-design-brief (a level design brief from a theme), and two resources: unreal://project/levels (a JSON snapshot of the active world and its levels) and unreal://project/icon.
Control what the agent sees
Hide tools you do not need in the MCP Tools window, or serve only a fixed set with UNREAL_MCP_TOOLS. See Configuration. To add capabilities, install extensions or write custom tools.
Editor only
All 27 tools drive the editor. Several are powerful (rql-mutate, console-run-command, python-execute), so none of them is compiled into a packaged game. A game that opts into a runtime connection exposes only the tools it registers itself.
Tips for getting the most out of these tools are in the Unreal best practices.