3DTexel Portal for Unreal Engine – Documentation

Version 2.0 · Unreal Engine 5.5, 5.6, 5.7, 5.8 · Windows, macOS, Linux · Support: Discord · Overview: 3dtexel.com/unreal-plugin

1. Quick start – works on a new, empty project (2 minutes)

  1. Install 3DTexel Portal from Fab to your engine, then create a new Blank project (no starter content needed) and open it.
  2. If it is not enabled yet: Edit › Plugins, search “3DTexel Portal”, tick it and restart the editor.
  3. Open Window › 3DTexel Portal (or the 3DTexel button in the level editor toolbar).
  4. Click Sign in. Your browser opens the 3dtexel.com sign-in page: sign in or create a free account and confirm. The panel now shows your name and credits. (Click the button again to cancel while it waits for the browser.)
  5. Open the Decals tab, pick any tile tagged Free and click Import. The decal material instance and its textures are created under /Game/3DTexel.
  6. Drag the tile into the viewport onto the floor: a Decal Actor is placed where you drop it. Free assets never cost credits.
Nothing else is needed to see the plugin work: steps 1–6 use only a free account and a free asset, on an empty project. Vegetation › My library stays empty until you export or save a vegetation asset on 3dtexel.com (section 3).

2. The tabs

TabWhat you get in Unreal
MaterialsPBR material instance (base color, normal, ORM, height, emissive) with world-scale tiling, triplanar and parallax options. Drop a tile on a mesh to apply it.
DecalsDecal material instance + textures; drag onto any surface, or use the Decal Brush mode to paint them.
HDRISky backdrop dome + synced Sky Light (image-based lighting).
3D ModelsStatic mesh with its PBR material(s). Re-importing an existing model updates the same assets (no duplicate).
VegetationGrass, wildflowers, leaf litter, bushes, trees and falling-leaves FX, fully set up (see section 3).
TerrainReal-world heightmaps imported as an editable Landscape with a ready material.
BackdropsReal mountain / canyon backdrops (satellite photo + real relief) as a Nanite Static Mesh at real scale, with a simple material instance (tint, haze, contrast…).
MotionAnimation sequences; clips of the same character share one skeleton. Hover a tile to preview the clip.
Auto-RigRigs a Static Mesh with a Mixamo-compatible skeleton and retargets your Motion clips to it (right-click a Static Mesh › 3DTexel › Auto-Rig). The price is shown and must be confirmed; a failed rig is refunded automatically.
LightsIES light profiles (TextureLightProfile): apply to the selected light or spawn a light carrying the profile.

3. Vegetation

On 3dtexel.com, open a vegetation page and click Export to my library (free assets cost nothing; paid assets are charged once), or save a creation from the Foliage Maker. In Unreal, open Vegetation › My library (click the tab again to refresh) and Import. You can also drag a .txveg file into the Content Browser.

TypeCreated in /Game/3DTexel/Vegetation/<Type>/<Name>
Grass, wildflowersStatic mesh with LODs + impostor (LOD distances set), two-sided foliage material with wind, Foliage Type ready to paint.
Leaf litterGround debris mesh(es) with LODs, no wind, one Foliage Type per mesh.
Bushes, treesLeaf and bark materials with branch wind, octahedral impostor for distance, trunk collision capsules (trees), Foliage Type.
Falling leaves FXNiagara system NS_<Name> (one 3D leaf per particle, ground collision, wind). Drag it into the level inside a tree crown; tune SpawnRate, CanopyRadius, Wind in Details › User Parameters.

Paint it

Open Foliage mode, drag the FT_<Name> Foliage Type into the list and paint.

Wind and seasons – the “3DTexel Wind” actor

A 3DTexel Wind actor is placed automatically with your first vegetation (folder “3DTexel” in the Outliner). Rotate it to set the wind direction; set Intensity, gusts and Season (spring, summer, autumn, winter colours) in its Details. It drives every 3DTexel vegetation material and falling-leaves FX of the level, in the editor and in your packaged game (this is the plugin’s only runtime module).

Re-import

Right-click the “3DTexel Vegetation Pack” asset › Reimport, or use the Reimport bar of the Vegetation tab. Update existing materials (default) refreshes only the values the plugin set itself and keeps your own edits; Keep materials leaves the material instances untouched.

Your project stays self-contained

Master materials are copied once to /Game/3DTexel/_Masters/Vegetation; imported assets keep working if the plugin is later disabled (the 3DTexel Wind actor needs the plugin enabled).

4. Credits and costs

Browsing is free and free assets are free. Paid assets show their price on the tile and ask for confirmation before any credit is spent; once owned, re-downloads are free. With an active Library Pass, covered assets show Included. Free accounts have a daily limit on free downloads.

5. Data sent to 3dtexel.com

The plugin only talks to https://3dtexel.com (and the signed download links it returns): your session token, the plugin and engine versions, the project name and a random installation id. No file from your project is uploaded, except a mesh you explicitly send to the Auto-Rig. Caches: <Project>/Saved and %LOCALAPPDATA%/3DTexelPortal.

6. Requirements

7. Troubleshooting