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How-To: Feel-Test Your Ability

last-verified: 2026-07-10 against f9ebdc9a3

Validation proves an ability is wired correctly; only playing it proves it feels right. This page is the loop for the latter.

The PIE loop

  1. Start PIE (Play-In-Editor) from the L_Default level. This matters: the play-preset flow boots through the main menu, and only L_Default has the main-menu controller. From any other level the preset launch fails.
  2. In the Kit Composer → Presets view, select a preset whose kit list includes your ability's kit, and press Send to PIE. Your build spawns in with the ability bound to its input slot.
  3. Equivalent console route: Eternal.PlayPreset <PresetName> (e.g. Eternal.PlayPreset Preset_Momentum).
  4. Play. Watch for the things no validator can check:
  5. Does the hit land where the animation says it should? (If the hit moment feels early/late, move the notify on the montage — see Hand-Finish.)
  6. Do the cues sell each phase (windup readable, impact punchy)?
  7. Is the cost/cooldown rhythm right in an actual fight?
  8. Tweak the Blueprint's feel values, save (validation re-runs), and go again. Montage and notify edits apply on the next activation; you rarely need to restart PIE.

When to reach for a balance sweep instead

The PIE loop answers "does it feel right". It does not answer "is it worth right" — whether the ability over- or under-performs against the rest of the arsenal across levels and builds. For that, run a balance sweep: a faithful headless model of the combat math evaluates whole builds across enemy tiers and levels, so a mis-tuned curve shows up as a number instead of a hunch. See Balance Sweep Workflow.

Rule of thumb: feel-test every ability; sweep when you touch numbers that interact with everything else (damage curves, cooldowns, resource costs) or before calling a kit done.