Outliner Tips and Tricks

The Outliner panel, or Outliner for short, displays all actors within a scene in a hierarchical view. You can save time when working in Unreal Editor for Fortnite (UEFN) by using the Outliner shortcuts below.

Make Copies

Creating landscapes or building structures can be monotonous work, especiallly if you're dragging the same prop over and over from the Content Drawer. Instead, use the following workflow to increase your productivity.

1. Create a group of props by selecting and dragging two or more props from the Content Drawer at the same time. They will appear in the viewport, and also appear in the Outliner panel.
2. Press and hold Shift while selecting props from the Outliner. A gold outline appears around a selected prop in the viewport.
3. Press Ctrl + C to copy the selected props, and Ctrl + V to paste them.
4. Use the directional arrows for the pivot point to place the copied props where you want them.
5. Repeat these steps to create large buildings or expansive landscapes.

Another quick way to copy props is to press and hold Alt while translating the props you have selected in the viewport.

Hide and Reveal Prop Groups

If you are designing a visually engaging experience and need to concentrate on a specific part, you can hide the assets you're not currentely working on.

1. Press and hold Ctrl while selecting multiple items from the Outliner. A gold outline appears around the selected prop.
2. Press H to hide the selected items.

To show hidden items again:

1. Press and hold Ctrl while selecting the items from the Outliner.
2. Press and hold Shift and press H. All items will reappear in the viewport.

Duplicate Objects

Quickly duplicate objects by doing the following:

1. Select the object in the Outliner, a gold outline surrounds the object.
2. Press CTRL + D. The object will duplicate in the Viewport.

Rename Objects

To rename an object in the Outliner:

1. Select the object in the Outliner.
2. Press F2. A name field will open in the Outliner over the object name.
3. Type a new name. The new name is automatically saved in the Outliner.

Group Actors

Group props or other actors together to edit, move, and transform as a group.

1. Select the props or actors you want to group together from the Outliner.
2. Press Ctrl + G. A new Item Label will appear in the Outliner panel.

To ungroup, select the group, then press Ctrl + G again. The group will separate into individual actors.

To prevent grouped actors from being edited, moved, or transformed:

1. Right-click on the group and select Transform > Lock Actor Movement. A checkmark will appear next to the selection. This will lock the group to its position in the viewport.
2. To unlock the group, repeat the first step. The checkmark will disappear.

Create a Folder

You can create folders in the Outliner to organize your work.

1. Select the actors from the Item Label column in the Outliner you want in the same folder.
2. Click the Folder icon at the top of the Outliner.
3. Name your folder.

The selected actors are automatically added to the new folder.

Group Edits

Edit a group of devices by selecting them in the Outliner then editing their device options in World Settings. This only works when the selected devices are all the same. After editing the devices in World Settings, save your changes.