MATS3

Mixed Ammo Types Shooting 3.0 (MATS) - Unreal Engine 4 (4.26.2 or later) and 5 (5.0.1 or later) Marketplace product which allows to customize firearm magazine with any combination of suitable ammo types.

Video preview UE4
Video preview UE5
Version 3.0 new features are:

Grid inventory system similar to Diablo, Path of Exile etc. with ability to add columns and rows at any point of time (open inventory (TAB) then click on the appropriate button); also now you can split any stackable item (stack must be >1) in inventory by LMB+SHIFT on such item
New items at the moment: grenades (for demonstration of stackable weapons equip/unequip behavior only, not usable), helmet (armor equip/unequip demonstration) and mods for firearm weapons (2 scopes and silencer for demonstration only, can be attached to suitable slot on firearm weapon widget via drop and detached from weapon via RMB on mod while not dragging anything)

Main menu with basic settings for video, sound, controls and game options, all can be changed and saved. Presets for firearm magazine and all settings, except video, are saved to special "CoreSettings" savegame file which is created in default Unreal Engine save game folder (for example ...\Unreal Projects\MATS2\Saved\SaveGames)

Also main menu provided with the ability to save and load the game (current version only saves location and rotation of your character)

Weapon magazines in this project - are actors.

W-1 weapon (similar to ak-47) requires 6 STR (strength) to fire with one hand, by default player character has 5 STR, wich in enough for one hand usage only for W-2 (similar to FN SCAR-L)

so by default with 5 STR player can take W-2 to each hand and shoot them indepenently (be sure that both weapons are loaded and ready to shoot, because for current version reload is supported only for 1 hand animations)

Default STR can be changed in MixedAmmoTypes/Blueprints/Player_BP - from there go to Variables-PlayerState-Strength (integer, default is 5)

Default STR required for one hand usage for certain weapon can be changed in MixedAmmoTypes/Blueprints/T_Data (data table) - from there find weapon you wish to set new strength for, select weapon row, in row editor (in the bottom) find Data (blueprint map container, name-integer) open it and find line "1HandStr" and set new value in the right side (integer).

For presentation and due to deep connection with inventory system, this product is an example project which consists of example level with items and inventory system with interface.

Project made with blueprints only (no additional C++ code used)
This project requires Unreal Engine 4 (4.26.2 or version or later) or 5 (5.0.1 or later) to run as expected
MATS system is map containers based
Network Replicated: No
Supported Development Platforms: Windows 64, other platforms have not been tested.
Input: Keyboard, Mouse
Disk space 70mb

If you want to integrate this shooting system to your project be aware that for proper functioning data for firearms and data for firearms magazines must be non stackable and contain 3 map containers:

Target loadout map (desired ammo types combination)
Current loadout map (actual magazine condition)
Replacement map (contains replacement list for every limited ammo type)

Basically each firearm magazine have target loadout (which we can customize as we wish) and current loadout which will be filled with available and suitable ammo in accordance with target loadout during reload and firearm shooting is carried out in accordance with current loadout.

Some videos and pictures are from previous project version but are still relevant!

Main features of this product are:

customize the target (desireable) loadout for firearm magazine with any suitable ammo types
reload the magazine in accordance with the target loadout and the ammunition available
set your own sequence (replacement order) for replacing (or prohibit it completly) missing types of ammunition when reloading
shoot according to the current loadout of the weapon magazine
bind weapons and magazines on keyboard shortcuts (mostly inventory feature)
manual reload of magazine with available ammo
save/load of your own templates for firearm magazine loadout

Some videos from previous project version but still are relevant!

During reload, adding new ammo starts with an empty magazine and fills up to the maximum if ammo is enough

Core features might be manually extracted from this project and used in your new or existing one but in this case you will have to integrate them to your inventory system.

E - take item
R - reload current weapon
Z - toggle zoom
W, S, A, D - movement
LMB - attack
RMB - change fire mode
Q - drop current weapon
TAB - inventory
F - main menu (esc resevred by Unreal Engine)
RMB on weapon mod (magazine, scope, chamber, barrel) - detach mod (if not dragging anything)
RMP on weapon with magazine or magazine - open magazine edit menu
LMB+Shift on stackable>1 - open split menu

While playing go to any magazine or weapon with attached magazine (for presentation in this project magazines are attached to weapon's side, not bottom!), target it with crosshair and press "E" to take.
Magazines are placed to inventory and destroyed, weapons will be equiped to hands and added to weapon slot if weapon slot is free or placed to inventory and destroyed otherwise.

1 - All types for this caliber (scrollbox);
2 - Specify the quantity. Contains selected ammo type name (upper line), amount specify menu with "Add" button which adds specified amount of selected ammo type to target loadout (if maximum capacity still not reached);
"Replacement order" button - switches to replacement order menu for selected ammo type (there you can set ammo types sequence for replacing (or prohibit it completely) for selected ammo type when reloading);
3 - Target loadout represents desired ammo types combination (scrollbox);
"Default" - sets default ammo type to maximum capacity (in this project default type is common type, and always matches index 0 in ammo types array for that caliber);
"Reset" - clears target loadout completely;
"Repeat to full" - repeats actual target loadout to its maximum (only if actual condition not empty or full);
"New..." - save target loadout and replacement order with user specified name;
"Find..." - load target loadout and replacement order with user specified name;
"Save" - saves actual target loadout for this magazine, so now it can be used for reload as desired loadout;
4 - Current loadout represents actual magazine condition;
"Reload" - takes all ammo from this magazine and from inventory and reloading this magazine from empty to maximum capacity trying to match its target loadout (also takes into account replacement order for every ammo type), this applies immediately (no animation involved even if you reloading equiped weapon's magazine);
"Unload" - takes out any ammo from this magazine and places it to inventory (this applies immediately);

"Manual reload" - open/close Available ammo panel which contains all ammo types which are currently in inventory and have same caliber as this magazine;
"Set as target" - sets target loadout to same as current loadout;

5 - Available ammo - popup panel which is visable if "Manual reload" is clicked and there is any suitable ammo in inventory; contains all suitable ammo that is currently in player's inventory. Each ammo type widget have:

"Add" - adds specified amount of ammo to the magazine (this applies immediately);
"All" - try to add all available ammo to the magazine (this applies immediately);

Note! "First bullet" sign means first for chamber placement and shooting; "Last bullet" - the last bullet is at the bottom of the magazine and will enter the chamber last. In other words, bullets that are added to an empty magazine first will be fired last.

How to set magazine loadout

In magazine edit menu you can set any desired combination of ammo types suitable for this magazine within the magazine maximum capacity. For exapmle let's load magazine fully with "expanding" ammo type bullets and make last 5 bullets to be "tracer" type:

1. Take a weapon with attached magazine or a magazine and weapon without magazine of the same caliber (they have same color in this project), then take ammo of the same caliber as your weapon and magazine (black boxes with green (expanding) and yellow (tracer) core color) ;

Keep in mind that bullets that are added to an empty magazine first will be fired last!
2. Click "Reset" button to clear target loadout

3. Now select "Tracer" ammo type in Existing ammo types scrollbox on the left side of magazine edit menu, then set amount to 5 and click "Add" button;

4. Now select "Expanding" ammo type in Existing ammo types scrollbox on the left side of magazine edit menu, then click "Fill" button and click "Add" button;

5. Click "Save" button;

6. Click "Reload" button and if you have enough ammo of the required types then current loadout of this magazine will become the same as target loadout;

7. Now if you have weapon equiped press "R" button for reload or to add first bullet from magazine to weapon's chamber, then shoot out full magazine and you will see that last 5 bullets will be tracer (yellow);

Video

In that way you can set any combination with any suitable ammo types for your desireable magazine loadout and reload it accordingly (if you have enough ammo of the required types)

Keep in mind that bullets that are added to an empty magazine first will be fired last!

Items

W-1
7.62mm

W-1 magazine standard (30)

W-1 magazine extended (40)

W-1 magazine drum (75)

W-2
5.56mm

W-2 magazine standard (30)

W-2 magazine extended (45)

W-2 magazine drum (200)

W-1 uses 7.62mm caliber ammo, W-2 uses 5.56mm;
each gun has 3 magazine types with different capacity:
standard (30),
extended (40 for W-1, 45 for W-2)
drum (75 for W-1, 200 for W-2)

7.62mm caliber has 6 ammo types:1) common (black box with white circle core)2) armor-piercing (black box with dark grey circle core)3) expanding (black box with green circle core)4) tracer (black box with yellow circle core)5) incendiary (black box with red circle core)6) exploding (black box with blue circle core)
5.56mm caliber has 5 ammo types (the same ammo types as 7.62mm, except for armor-piercing and its ammo boxes have square core)

How to set replacement order

Open magazine edit menu;
Select the ammo type for which you want to set replacement order (in Existing ammo types scrollbox on the left side of magazine edit menu);
In Replacement menu you will see enumerated list which is order of replacement for selected ammo type, each number of that list is dropdown menu with existing ammo types excluding the selected one, so you just setting this list as you wish.

Keep in mind that bullets that are added to an empty magazine first will be fired last!

"Back" button - return to Ammo type edit menu;"Default" button - sets actual list to default;"Save" button - saves actual list;

There is "-none-" option in dropdown menu, that option excludes possible replacement from the list, so even if there are some ammo types in inventory which are not in replacement list - that ammo types will not be reloaded into magazine!

If all members of the list are set to "-none-" option then replacement for the selected ammo type will be completely prohibited and reloading will be interrupted!

Inventory system

Inventory system (IS) consist of 3 core arrays:

Inventory (data structure array) wich contains item data
Inv_Names (names array) accessory array wich contains list of names for all items with same array index as in Inventory (equiped items in this array will recieve name to slot they are equiped to, for example weapon W-1 equiped to the right hand will recieve name "R")
Inv_ID (integer array) accessory array wich contains list of items ID

So basically when we add new or non-stackable item to inventory we add new data for all 3 core arrays - Inventory with item data, Inv_Names with item name (or equip slot name if we equip this item) and Inv_ID with item ID.

Whole idea of accessory arrays is attempt to speedup search of items in inventory, avoiding use any "loop" blueprint node as they work slower in comparison with "find" blueprint node for arrays. Downside of this method is necessity to reproduce the same actions in accessory arrays when you add or remove inventory items (in order to preserve same index in all 3 core arrays).

This is my own theory and method, effectivness is unknown, so you can change this system as you like

Magazines and firearms with attached magazines are non stackables, but despite that they have amount (quantity) variable which represents actual amount of ammo in the magazine.

Core part of item info (such as icons, mass, mesh, classes, etc.) is contained in data table "T_Data" that is based on NewConstantData structure and a lot of that info is soft references, that means referenced objects are not loaded in the game directly and can be referenced without having to load everything into memory, in order to load them i use another data table "T_RegisterList" that is based on S_RegisterList structure and this table contains only hard references, that table is referenced by level blueprint.

To add new item to level - drag "Item" blueprint (Content/MixedAmmoTypes/Blueprints) to level, then in item details go to "default" tab, then to "ItemData" and set Name to any of row names which you find in "T_Data" data table, then back in details and set "ConstuctItem" to true, then choose if item needs to simulate physics or not and set "SimulatePhysics" accordingly.

Notes

Transfer video guide from UE4 MATS 2.0 version to UE5.
Don't forget to save MainMenu widget blueprint after all changes done and successful compilation.