The Puppet Master: Control Character Groups in Fortnite

Have you ever wanted to make a whole army of characters dance at the same time? Or make a crowd of NPCs (non-player characters) all wear matching superhero costumes? You can do this with the Character Device Controller. It is like a remote control for a group of characters. You press one button, and they all move together. This tutorial will show you how to build a "Character Dance Party" where everyone moves in sync.

What You'll Learn

• What a Character Device is.
• How to use a Slot to group characters.
• How the Character Device Controller makes them act alike.
• How to make them dance with an Emote.

How It Works

Think of a Character Device like a mannequin in a store window. It stands there and can wear different clothes. It can also strike a pose. But a mannequin cannot move on its own. It needs a puppeteer.

The Character Device Controller is your puppeteer. It holds the strings. When you pull a string, all the mannequins connected to it move.

Here is the secret trick: Slots.

Imagine you have three toy soldiers. You give them all the same red badge. This badge is their Slot. Now, if you shout "Red Badge Soldiers!", all three of them will look at you. The Controller uses these badges to know which characters to control.

If you want one group to dance and another group to cry, you give the first group blue badges and the second group yellow badges. The Controller has two remotes. One remote is set to blue. The other is set to yellow. You press the dance button on the blue remote, and only the blue soldiers dance.

Let's Build It

We will build a simple room. In the room, there will be three Character Devices. They will all wear the same outfit. When you step on a button, they will all do the same dance.

Step 1: Place the Characters

1. Open your Creative Island.
2. Go to the Devices tab.
3. Search for Character Device.
4. Place three Character Devices in a row. Let's call them Char1, Char2, and Char3.

Step 2: Set the Slot

Now we need to give them their badges.

1. Click on Char1.
2. Look at the Properties panel on the right.
3. Find the Slot setting.
4. Set it to Slot 1.
5. Do the same for Char2 and Char3. Set them both to Slot 1.
6. Now, all three characters share Slot 1. They are a team!

Step 3: Add the Controller

1. Search for Character Device Controller.
2. Place it anywhere in the room.
3. Click on the Controller.
4. In the Properties, find the Slot setting.
5. Set it to Slot 1.
6. This tells the Controller: "Watch the characters in Slot 1."

Step 4: Make Them Dance

We need a trigger to start the dance. We will use a Trigger Volume.

1. Search for Trigger Volume.
2. Place it in front of the characters.
3. Resize it so it is big enough for a player to stand on.
4. Click on the Trigger Volume.
5. In the Properties, find On Begin Overlap. This event fires when a player steps on it.
6. Select Character Device Controller from the dropdown.
7. Select Play Emote from the list of actions.
8. Choose an emote like "Take the L" or "Floss".

Step 5: Give Them an Outfit

The characters might look like default players. Let's make them look cool.

1. Click on Char1.
2. In the Properties, find Outfit.
3. Pick a cool outfit.
4. Do the same for Char2 and Char3.
5. Now they all look the same!

Step 6: Test It!

1. Play your island.
2. Walk onto the Trigger Volume.
3. Watch the magic! All three characters will start dancing at the exact same time.

Here is a simple Verse script idea. This is not real code you can copy-paste yet, but it shows the logic.

// This is a concept, not real code
// When player steps on trigger
OnPlayerStepsOnTrigger():
    // Tell the controller to play emote
    Controller.PlayEmote("Dance")

In real Verse, you would write code to link the Trigger Volume to the Controller. But for now, the device linking tool works great!

Try It Yourself

Can you make two different groups dance?

1. Add two more Character Devices.
2. Set them to Slot 2.
3. Add a second Character Device Controller. Set it to Slot 2.
4. Add a second Trigger Volume.
5. Make the second trigger play a different emote, like "Cry".
6. Now you have a party where one group dances and another group cries!

Hint: Remember to set the Slot on the Character Devices, the Controller, and make sure your triggers are linked to the right Controller.

Recap

• Character Devices are like mannequins. They need a controller to move.
• Slots are badges that group characters together.
• The Character Device Controller watches a specific Slot.
• You can make groups dance, cry, or pose by sending signals to the Controller.

References

• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite/using-character-device-controller-devices-in-fortnite-creative
• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite-creative/using-character-device-controller-devices-in-fortnite-creative
• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite-creative/using-devices-in-fortnite-creative
• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite/using-devices-in-fortnite
• https://dev.epicgames.com/documentation/en-us/fortnite/fortnite-creative-glossary