Basic Concepts

This page introduces the core principles of the Character Management System:

Character Types – Define how characters are structured.
Character Templates – Blueprints for creating characters later.
Character Usage – Scripts to load and manage characters.
Built-in Modular Characters - Modular characters pre-setup and ready for use.
Character Grouping System - Groups used to store and saved characters.
Character Creator – Modular UI framework for building customizable characters in-game.

Character Types

A Character Type is a Scriptable Objects that defines how a character works. There are two kinds:

Type	Description	Best For
Unified Character Type	A single spritesheet containing a fully assembled character. No runtime customization.	Characters with fixed, pre-set appearances.
Layered Character Type	Multiple spritesheets, each containing one visual layer (body, outfit, hair, etc.).	Customizable player characters, dynamic or randomized NPCs.

Character Templates

A Character Template is a Scriptable Object that acts as a blueprint for creating characters later. Templates are supported for both Unified and Layered Characters.

Character Usage

Character Loader Components

Once a Unified or Layered Character has been created, it can be loaded using one the following scripts:

Loader	Purpose
Layered Character Loader	Load pre-existing Layered Characters.
Layered Character Template Loader	Create/load a Layered Character from a template.
Unified Character Loader	Create/load a Unified Character from a template.

Character Shader

Shaders are how the final Unified or Layered Character are rendered. Sprites from the Base Spritesheet defined in the Character Type are used in a renderer component such as a Sprite Renderer.

If a Unified Character is used, the shader takes the single spritesheet of the character and shows that over the Base Spritesheet.
If a Layered Character is used, the shader combines all layers into the final rendered character.

Built-in Characters

Named BlazerTech Layered Characters, they are included with the BlazerTech Character Management System.
However they can also be bought separately at a discounted price.

They are Modular characters made of 4 different layers. Layers include:

Body
Outfit
Hairstyle
Accessory

A Layered Character Type for these characters is already included and fully setup. They are ready to be used in any project.

Additionally a Unified Character Type is setup with a set of pre-made characters made by combining various layer options.

Character Grouping System

Charcter groups are used to sort characters. They're great for organizing characters into meaningful collections, whether that's for a dynamic roster or a fixed group size.

Flexible Group Type

A dynamic list that characters can be added to, removed from, or edited at anytime.

Example Uses:

A roster of playable characters the player can create, edit, and delete.
A collection of background NPCs that will later be randomly selected from.

Fixed Group Type

An immutable list of characters. When the list is created all characters are created immedietely. Characters can then be edited but not removed and new characters cannot be added.