A Guide to 3D Modeling in Unreal Engine with Modeling Mode

What will you learn in this guide?

Unreal Engine Modeling Mode adds tools for creating and editing geometry directly in the editor. This guide covers how to open the mode, create a new mesh, work on existing geometry in a scene, and finalize your edits. You’ll also learn what kinds of tasks the UV, material, collision, and texture baking tools can be used for.

The tools aren’t limited to objects created in Modeling Mode; according to the source documentation, existing meshes in a scene can also be edited. This makes it possible to handle some geometry tasks directly in Unreal Engine while preparing a scene. Epic’s documentation classifies the feature as beta. If you plan to use it in a project for release, it’s important to validate the results in advance using your team’s own content and delivery scenarios.

Requirements and setup

You’ll need the Unreal Engine editor and Modeling Mode. The official guides provided don’t specify a particular Unreal Engine version, so we make no additional claims about compatibility across versions. The source texts also don’t mention any account requirements.

If Modeling isn’t visible in the mode selector, go to Edit > Plugins > Modeling Tools Editor Mode and check whether the plugin is enabled. To open the mode, select Modeling from the Select Mode dropdown or use the Shift+5 shortcut.

The interface includes tool categories, a tool palette for the selected category, tool settings, and shared Modeling Mode options. The Help Line in the bottom toolbar may show shortcut information for some tools. Familiarity with the concepts of Asset, Actor, Component, and Level Editor makes it easier to understand how the objects you create are represented in the scene and project.

Basic workflow, step by step

1. Explore the workspace and categories. Start with the Create category to make new geometry. For detailed edits to an existing model, look at the Model or Mesh tools; to deform a shape, explore the Deform tools. UV editing, texture creation, and other functions are grouped in their own categories. When you select a tool, its settings appear in the Tool Properties panel.

2. Place a new mesh. From the Create category, choose a primitive such as a box, sphere, cylinder, cone, torus, or staircase. Move the cursor over the Viewport to see a preview, then click where you want to place the mesh in the scene. You can edit the shape’s properties in the Tool Properties panel.

   The Output Type setting determines how the object is stored during creation. A Static Mesh is stored as an asset in the Content Browser, with an instance placed in the level. Dynamic Mesh and Volume are stored only in the level. Choose the option based on whether you need to reuse the model in the project.

3. Draw and extrude a custom shape. Extrude Polygon can create geometry by drawing a polygon freehand or from a preset shape, then extruding it. The Extrude Path tool lets you draw and extrude a PolyPath; the source documentation gives walls and ramps as examples of what you can create with this tool. To move the drawing grid used by these tools to another point, Ctrl-click the location you want.

   Unreal Engine meshes are made up of triangles. In the modeling tools, PolyGroups let you work with triangles as groups. For example, PolyGroup Edit can be used to perform box-modeling-style operations on these groups. Understanding this distinction helps explain why you select surfaces as triangles or groups.

4. Work on existing geometry. After selecting a mesh in the level, you can use tools such as Triangle Edit or PolyGroup Edit. The available operations depend on the selected tool; for example, the tool properties may include Extrude, Push Pull, or Cut. Before you begin, check that the correct mesh is selected and review the tool settings in the Tool Properties panel.

   If you’re going to modify a high-resolution model, first create a copy with the Duplicate tool, as recommended by the source documentation. This lets you keep the original mesh separate while editing. This advice is especially useful when experimenting with shape changes.

5. Apply or cancel your changes. Most tools in Modeling Mode show the result as a preview before committing it. If you’re happy with the result, click Accept to apply it; to discard the operation, select Cancel. You may be able to undo and redo individual edits while a tool session is active. However, after you click Accept, the undo system treats the mesh state before and after the tool as the relevant states; it doesn’t preserve the same ability to undo each small move from within the session individually.

6. Prepare UVs and surfaces. The AutoUV tool in the UVs category can automatically unwrap and pack UVs for the selected mesh. UV Unwrap can re-unwrap existing UV islands or PolyGroups to help reduce stretched or compressed areas. Edit UV Seams separates seams in the viewport, while Transform UVs can move, rotate, and scale UV islands.

   The Edit Materials tool lets you add material elements to triangle selections. Bake Textures transfers details from a source mesh to a target mesh as a texture. The source and target meshes need to overlap for texture baking; if you don’t get the expected result, check this requirement.

7. Review the asset type and next steps. The Convert tool lets you switch between Static Mesh, Dynamic Mesh, and Volume. Other categories include tools for simplifying geometry, checking collision, or managing LODs, in addition to UV editing. You don’t need to apply all of these at once: choose the tool that suits the task and review the preview before accepting the change.

Common issues

• Can’t find the Modeling option: First check whether the Modeling Tools Editor Mode plugin is enabled.

• Edits don’t seem to apply: Make sure you clicked Accept to finish the tool session. Choose Cancel if you don’t want to keep an unwanted change.

• UV or bake results differ from expectations: UV tools serve different purposes; also, the source and target meshes need to overlap during texture baking.

• Making risky edits to the original model: Create a copy with Duplicate first, especially when working with high-resolution meshes.

• Overlooking the beta status: The feature is marked as beta, so test and validate it for your specific project before using it in work intended for release.

Next steps for architecture and visualization workflows

Architects, interior designers, and archviz teams can consider Modeling Mode for tasks such as creating volumes in a scene, editing meshes, preparing UVs, or assigning materials. Making simple geometry changes directly in the editor can be useful, particularly when preparing a real-time scene. The provided sources don’t specify hardware requirements, pricing, or licensing terms for these tools, so no assumptions should be made about those topics.

Start with a small test scene. Create a primitive and explore the Output Type options; then try the editing, UV, and material tools separately on a copy of a mesh. For projects intended for release, consider the beta status and assess whether the resulting assets suit your target workflow. It’s more practical to treat Modeling Mode not as a replacement for all modeling software, but as a set of tools that supports geometry operations within Unreal Engine.

Sources and license

This guide is adapted into English from Epic Games’ official documentation titled Modeling Mode in Unreal Engine and Modeling Tools in Unreal Engine. Both texts are marked as license=free in the provided sources.