Before you start modding The Blood of Dawnwalker, there are a number of tools you may wish to install based on the type of mod you're trying to create.
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| UE4SS | Injectable Lua scripting system, Blueprint & C++ mod loader, SDK generator, live property editor, and general UE4/UE5 modding framework. The Blood of Dawnwalker requires a compatible configuration/version of UE4SS, so use one of the versions specifically configured for the game on Nexus Mods. |
| FModel | Unreal Engine archive explorer and asset extractor. Allows you to browse through the game's files and extract models, animations, textures and other assets for inspection or editing. |
| Unreal Engine 5.5.4 | The Blood of Dawnwalker was created using Unreal Engine 5.5.4. Using the same engine version is recommended when creating cooked assets for the game. |
| Dawnwalker SDK | Community-maintained Unreal Engine project and SDK for The Blood of Dawnwalker. This is the recommended Unreal Engine project to use when creating more complex mods for the game. |
| Nexus Mods Unreal Engine Author Tools | A helpful Unreal Engine plugin for configuring and packaging mods from within an Unreal Engine project. |
Note: You do not necessarily need the Dawnwalker SDK when creating basic asset replacement mods. A standard Unreal Engine 5.5.4 project can be used for basic cooked asset replacement. For more advanced mods, the Dawnwalker SDK is recommended, with the optional Nexus Mods Unreal Engine Author Tools plugin for easily configuring and packaging mods.
This is a short list of general Unreal Engine modding tools that may also be helpful when creating mods for The Blood of Dawnwalker.
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| PSK Import plugin for Blender | A plugin for Blender that allows you to import models in PSK format, edit them and export them to FBX. |
| UAssetGUI | Low-level examination and modification of Unreal Engine asset files. |
| JSON2DA By Tangerie | A Python script written by Tangerie to recreate a Data Asset from JSON information exported using FModel so that it can be edited. JSON2DA User Guide (From Hogwarts Legacy) |
| JSON2DA By Peek | Tangerie's Python scripts edited by Peek6 to recreate material instance information from JSON exported using FModel. Particularly useful when creating appearance mods. JSON2DA User Guide (From Stellar Blade) |
Have an idea for a mod? Great! Here are some of the mod types you might want to make, and the typical programs you would use to do so.
| Mod Type | Use Cases | Likely Tools |
|---|---|---|
| Asset Replacer | Replacing textures, models and other cooked assets | UE Project, FModel |
| Blueprint Mod | User interfaces, gameplay changes and new systems | UE Project, UE4SS, FModel |
| UE4SS Lua Mod | Runtime gameplay changes and scripting | FModel, UE4SS Lua |
| UE4SS C++ DLL | Advanced runtime gameplay changes where lower-level access or performance is important | UE4SS C++ |
Note: While many Unreal Engine games share similar workflows and tooling, every game implements its systems differently. Not every general Unreal Engine modding technique will necessarily work in The Blood of Dawnwalker.
The Blood of Dawnwalker supports loading cooked mod files from the game's Dawnwalker\Content\Paks\~mods directory. This can be used to override assets from the base game with modified versions.
Unreal Engine loads packaged content from the Content\Paks directory; however, it is common convention when modding Unreal Engine games to create and use a Paks\~mods folder to keep user-installed mods separate from the game's own files.
When replacing an existing game asset, the replacement must use the same asset name and internal content path as the original asset.
For example, the general workflow for creating an asset replacement mod is:
.pak, .utoc, and .ucas files.Dawnwalker\Content\Paks\~mods.FModel is particularly useful throughout this process for discovering the game's original asset paths and examining how assets are structured.
Blueprint mods can provide significantly more functionality than simple asset replacements, allowing mods to introduce new logic, interfaces, gameplay systems and other functionality.
Blueprint mods can be loaded into The Blood of Dawnwalker using a compatible version of UE4SS.
For more complex Blueprint development, using the Dawnwalker SDK is recommended.
These are logic-altering mods written using Lua and injected into the game using UE4SS.
UE4SS (Universal Unreal Engine 4/5 Scripting System) is one of the most widely used Unreal Engine modding frameworks. It provides tools that allow modders to inspect, interact with and modify Unreal Engine games at runtime.
UE4SS supports:
Unlike asset replacement mods, UE4SS operates while the game is running. This allows modders to inspect game systems, observe how objects behave, modify properties and hook into existing functionality without directly replacing game assets.
UE4SS is especially useful for:
UE4SS can also be extremely useful when reverse engineering the game and discovering how its underlying systems are structured.
Important: The standard UE4SS distribution may not work correctly with The Blood of Dawnwalker without game-specific configuration. Compatible versions and configurations are available from the game's Nexus Mods page. Game updates may require these configurations to be updated.
C++ DLL mods are considerably more advanced than basic Lua mods, but UE4SS provides the ability to create native C++ mods that interact directly with the running game.
This documentation can be expanded once more Dawnwalker-specific C++ examples exist; however, the following projects provide examples of UE4SS C++ mod development.
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| CppModBase | A barebones project designed to be cloned and used as a base for UE4SS C++ mods. |
| DekitaMod | An example UE4SS C++ mod demonstrating function hooking, reading and modifying parameters, scanning loaded actors for interfaces and hooking interface functions. |
Note: These examples were originally created before the C++ implementation within UE4SS became stable. They may require modification before being usable with current versions of UE4SS.
A dedicated guide for setting up a basic The Blood of Dawnwalker development environment can be found here
For more advanced Unreal Engine development, the Dawnwalker SDK provides the recommended starting point.
You can get working source and packaged files for general Unreal Engine modding examples from here.
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All that's left to do is study these pages, learn from them, then let your developer skills run wild and free.
Happy Modding!!
The intention of this guide is to provide a starting point for new players and modders, and encourage the growth of community-driven documentation, tutorials and resources.
Please consider contributing if you have additional information that could benefit the wider community.