Maintenance script: PrefabRenderer wiki

2026-10-20T21:29:32Z

PrefabRenderer wiki

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The 3D view is an extra editor for <code>*.prefab.json</code> files called ''Hytale Prefab 3D View''. It is registered with the priority "option", so prefab files keep opening as normal JSON text. You open the 3D view on demand.

[[File:PrefabRenderer_Screenshot_01.png|800px|center|The 3D view with the sidebar]]

== Opening the view ==
There are four ways to open it:
* '''Editor title bar:''' while a <code>*.prefab.json</code> file is open, click the ''Open Prefab Preview'' button (preview icon) at the top right of the editor.
* '''Explorer:''' right-click a <code>*.prefab.json</code> file and choose ''Open Prefab Preview''.
* '''Command Palette:''' run ''Hytale: Open Prefab Preview''. The command is only listed while the active file is a <code>*.prefab.json</code> file.
* '''Reopen Editor With:''' in the open JSON tab, use ''Reopen Editor With... → Hytale Prefab 3D View''. This replaces the text editor in the same tab.

The command opens the 3D view '''to the side''' of the current editor, so you can see the JSON and the 3D view at the same time. If the file is not a <code>*.prefab.json</code> file, a warning asks you to open one first.

You can open several 3D views of the same file. A view that is moved to the background keeps its state, so switching tabs does not rebuild the scene.

The view is read only. To change the prefab, edit the JSON.

== Live update ==
The view follows the JSON document:
* Edits in the text editor show up about 300 ms after you stop typing, also before you save.
* When the file changes on disk and VS Code reloads it, the view updates as well.
* The camera, the Y slice and the selected block stay where they are. The selection is kept as long as there is still a block at the same position.
* If the JSON is invalid or has no <code>blocks</code> array, the view shows the error message. It goes away as soon as the JSON can be read again.
* A prefab without any blocks or fluids shows the sign <code>∅</code>.

== Camera controls ==
{| class="wikitable"
! Input !! Action
|-
| Left drag || Rotate around the target
|-
| Right drag || Pan
|-
| Mouse wheel || Zoom
|-
| Click || Select the block under the cursor
|-
| Double-click || Move the camera target to the block under the cursor
|}
A short help line with these controls is shown at the bottom left of the view.

''Reset camera'' in the sidebar frames the whole prefab again. The camera is also reset when the view loads a different file.

== Hover and selection ==
* Hovering over a block shows its name next to the cursor and draws a white frame around its cell.
* Clicking a block selects it and draws a yellow frame. Clicking empty space clears the selection.
* Picking works on whole cells. Hovering over the empty part of a cell that holds a small model still picks that block.
* Blocks above the Y slice cannot be picked.

== Sidebar ==
The sidebar on the right shows, from top to bottom:

=== File info ===
{| class="wikitable"
! Row !! Content
|-
| File name || The name of the prefab file
|-
| Size || Width × height × depth in blocks, measured over all blocks and fluids
|-
| Blocks || Number of drawn blocks. Air and filler cells are not counted.
|-
| Block types || Number of different block names in the prefab
|-
| Fluids || Number of fluid cells. Only shown if the prefab has fluids.
|-
| Anchor || <code>anchorX</code>, <code>anchorY</code>, <code>anchorZ</code> of the prefab. Only shown if one of them is not 0.
|}

=== Y slice ===
The slider hides all layers above the chosen Y value. The label shows the current limit, for example <code>≤ 9</code>. Faces that become visible when a layer is hidden are drawn, so you can look inside buildings. When you edit the prefab, the slider stays at its value. If it was at the top, it stays at the top.

=== Buttons ===
* ''Reset camera'': frames the whole prefab.
* ''Reload assets'': drops all cached block definitions, models and textures, opens <code>Assets.zip</code> again and redraws every open 3D view. Use it after you changed textures or block definitions in a mod folder. See [[PrefabRenderer:Asset Sources|Asset Sources]].

=== Selection ===
Details of the selected block:
{| class="wikitable"
! Row !! Content
|-
| Name || The block name as written in the prefab
|-
| Position || X, Y, Z of the cell
|-
| Rotation || Yaw, pitch and roll in degrees. Only shown if the block is rotated.
|-
| Item || The item ID, if it differs from the block name (for example for states or names with a <code>*</code> or <code>|Yaw=</code> part)
|-
| State || The state name, if the block uses a state
|-
| Draw type || The <code>DrawType</code> of the block, or how it was drawn (<code>cube</code>, <code>model</code>, <code>cubeModel</code>, <code>unknown</code>)
|-
| Problem || Why the block could not be resolved or what was missing
|-
| Droplist, Capacity || For chests: the droplist (or ''(no droplist)'') and the capacity, if set
|}

=== Chests ===
All blocks that have an <code>ItemContainerBlock</code> component in the prefab, with their droplist, block name and position. Click an entry to select the chest and move the camera to it.

=== Unknown blocks ===
All block names that could not be resolved, with the number of blocks and the reason. They are drawn as magenta cubes. Click an entry to jump to the first block of that name. If everything was found, the list says ''All blocks resolved''. See [[PrefabRenderer:FAQ and Troubleshooting|FAQ and Troubleshooting]] for the reasons.

=== Block types ===
A collapsible list of all block names, sorted by how often they occur. Hovering an entry shows its draw type.

=== Warnings ===
Only shown if there are warnings, for example a missing texture, an unknown state or an asset folder that does not exist.

=== Asset sources ===
A collapsible list of the asset folders and the <code>Assets.zip</code> used for this view, in the order they are searched.

== Language ==
The view and the command follow the VS Code display language. English and German are included.

{{PrefabRenderer Nav}}

PrefabRenderer:Using the 3D View - Revision history

Maintenance script: PrefabRenderer wiki