rdInst Tutorial 2.2 – Advanced Auto-Instancing
Last Edited: 18th April 2025
Tutorial created using rdInst version 1.50
There are some options provided by the auto-instancing that can help you customize it to your project.
This is not so much a tutorial as a break-down of these options.
You can change these settings at any time, they’re only used at BeginPlay when setting up the instancing (and potentially when other levels or tiles are loaded in, but the next version).
Use CullDistanceVolume Cull Values : When ticked, the ISMs have the culling distances set from any included overlapping (or infinite) CullDistanceVolumes in the level.
Only Convert with tag: This can be used to only include some actors in the auto-instancing, just add the tag “AutoInstance” to the actors you want included and tick this option.
Include StaticMesh Actors: If unticked, any StaticMesh actors in the level are left as-is.
Include Blueprints: If unticked, any Blueprints in the level are left as-is.
Include Foliage: When ticked, foliage in FoliageActor volumes is converted to rdInst ISMs – this doesn’t really have any affect on performance, and can take slightly longer to convert the level, but then allows you to assign proxies and pickups from those converted instances.
Instance Threshold: This is the number of occurrences of the actor in the level before converting to ISMs. There is a slight overhead in preparing ISMs, so there is a break-even, then break-benefit value – the default is 3 occurrences.
Physics Conversion: Whether to convert actors with simulating physics to proxies, to leave unconverted, or to remove the physics.
Destruction Conversion: Whether to convert actors with geometry collections to proxies, to leave unconverted, or to remove the GC. Note that this is currently not implemented – a fall-back mesh will be needed too.
Process Asset Proxy Settings: If unticked, the Proxy Setup settings are ignored when converting – no proxies are made.
Process Randomization Settings: If unticked the Randomization settings will not be used.
Randomization Seed: The default Random Seed to use for Randomization.
Randomization Theme: The default Theme to use for Randomization.
Along with these options, there are also tags you can use to control the auto-instancing:
- AutoInstance – only includes actors with this Tag when the “Only Convert with Tag” option is set.
- NoInstancing – doesn’t convert actors with this Tag (or ComponentTag).
- NoProxy – don’t use the actors Asset Proxy Settings when converting.
- NoDestruction – don’t use the actors Destruction settings when converting.
- NoRandomization – don’t use the actors Randomization settings when converting.
- AutoTheme – set the Randomization theme for this actor.
- AutoSeed – set the Randomization seed for this actor.
The Proxy, Pickup and Randomization settings (Note: Randomization settings are not currently implemented) can be set from either the actors in the level, or directly on their assets in the content browser (all instances then default to those settings). To find out more on how to set those, check out the next few tutorials.