Object Properties

This page lists the properties an object may have.

Properties Applying Only to Players

hp_max

• internal type: u16
• default value: 20

Sets the max HP of a player.

NOTE: Decreasing the hp_max value to below the current hp will trigger a damage flash.

breath_max

• internal type: u16
• default value: 10

Sets the max breath of a player.

eye_height

• internal type: f32
• default value: 1.625

Sets the camera height. Measured in nodes above the player's feet.

zoom_fov

• internal type: f32
• units: degrees
• default value: 0

Sets the field of view of the player when they zoom, in degrees. Setting to 0 disables zooming.

Properties Applying to All Objects

physical

• field type: bool
• default value: false

Controls whether the object collides with nodes that are walkable.

collide_with_objects

• field type: bool
• default value: true

Controls whether the object collides with other objects.

CAUTION: physical must be set to true for this to take effect!

NOTE: This works with players as well but you may experience strange bugs.

collisionbox

//This could maybe be linked somewhere else.

• field type: cuboid_def
• default value: {-0.5, 0.0, -0.5, 0.5, 1.0, 0.5}

The collision box of an object. Wanted value is {xmin, ymin, zmin, xmax, ymax, zmax} (in nodes from the center of the object/ object position).

selectionbox

• field type: cuboid_def
• default value: collisionbox's value

The selection box of an object, if not set, uses collisionbox. Wanted value is {xmin, ymin, zmin, xmax, ymax, zmax} (in nodes from the center of the object/ object position).

NOTE: This uses the same format as a nodebox cuboid.

pointable

• field type: bool
• default value: true

Controls whether the object can be pointed at.

visual

• field type: string
• default value: "sprite"

Possible values:

• "cube": A cube that has the same size as a normal node
• "item": similar to wielditem, but ignores the wield_item property
• "mesh": Use a mesh model, see the mesh property
• "sprite": A texture that is flat and always faces the player
• "upright_sprite": A texture that is flat and faces upright
• "wielditem": Used for dropped items, see the wield_item property

Sets what the object will look like.

TIP: The "wielditem" value supports item hardware colorization

mesh

• field type: string
• default value: ""

Name of the file of the mesh, only when using "mesh" visual.

visual_size

• field type: vector
• default value: {x = 1, y = 1, z = 1}

Visual size multipliers. Wanted value is {x = x, y = y, z = z}. If z is not provided, x will be used for the z value.

textures

• field type: string list
• default value: {"no_texture.png"}

Wanted value is {"texture.png", "texture.png", ...}. The number of textures depends on visual:

• "cube": 6 textures
• "item": First texture is itemstring. Deprecated.
• "mesh": 1 texture for each mesh material
• "sprite": 1 texture
• "upright_sprite": 2 textures
• "wielditem": Textures are ignored.

colors

• internal type: ColorSpec list
• default value: {{r = 255, g = 255, b = 255, a = 255}}

CAUTION: This feature is not functional.

spritediv

• field type: 2d_vector
• default value: {x = 1, y = 1}

Determines the number of columns, rows in a spritesheet texture, which is used for animations. Wanted value is {x = columns, y = rows}.

initial_sprite_basepos

• field type: 2d_vector
• default value: {x = 0, y = 0}

Determines the position of the first frame to use in the spritesheet texture. Wanted value is {x = column, y = row}.

is_visible

• field type: bool
• default value: true

Whether the object is visible and can be pointed at, this overrides pointable if set to false.

makes_footstep_sound

• field type: bool
• default value: false

Whether the object makes a footstep sound when it steps on nodes that have footstep sounds.

stepheight

• internal type: f32
• default value: 0

This sets the maximum height (in nodes) that an object can travel up if it collides with something. This allows it to "step" over obstacles and continue traveling.

automatic_rotate

• internal type: f32
• default value: 0

How fast the object automatically rotates along the y axis in radians/second.

NOTE: Does not (yet) work for attached entities

automatic_face_movement_dir

• field type: int or false
• unit: degrees
• default value: 0

TIP: This property can be set to false to disable it.

Make the object automatically face the direction it is moving in, the value is the offset in degrees.

backface_culling

• field type: bool
• default value: true

Whether a model is backface culled (the faces of the model whose backs are towards the camera aren't rendered).

glow

• field type: int
• default value: 0

When calculating the texture color, add this much lighting. Maximum value is minetest.LIGHT_MAX. A value lower than 0 disables lighting.

nametag

• field type: string
• default value: ""

Text displayed above an object, typically used for names. If the object is a player and this value is nil or empty, it will be replaced by the player's name. To remove the nametag for a player, set the nametag_color alpha value to 0. If the object is not a player and this value is nil or empty, the nametag will be removed.

nametag_color

• field type: ColorSpec or false
• default value: {a = 255, r = 255, g = 255, b = 255}

The color that the nametag text will be.

TIP: This property can be set to false to disable it.

nametag_bgcolor

• field type: ColorSpec or false

The color that the nametag's background will be.

TIP: This property can be set to false to not show a background.

automatic_face_movement_max_rotation_per_sec

• field type: f32
• default value: -1

Cap the automatic rotation to this value. If the value is less than or equal to 0, there will be no maximum.

infotext

• field type: string

When a player points at the object, they will be shown the text.

static_save

• field type: bool
• default value: true

Whether the object is saved statically, on the map, if not, it will be deleted when the world block is unloaded.

wield_item

• internal type: ItemString

Only when using "wielditem" visual.

use_texture_alpha

• field type: bool
• default value: false

Whether buggy semitransparency is enabled for the texture.

WARNING: Faces, entities and other semitransparent world elements might not be rendered in the right order for semitransparency to work.

shaded

• field type: bool
• default value: true

Controls whether or not diffuse lighting is applied to the object.

show_on_minimap

• field type: bool
• default value: false

Controls whether or not the object is visible on the minimap.

damage_texture_modifier

• field type: string
• default value: "^[brighten"

A texture modifier that will be appended to the object's current textures for the duration of the damage flash when the object is damaged.

Layout of Object Properties

The way these properties are laid out is in a table.

NOTE: Extraneous properties will be ignored, but might be interpreted incorrectly by future versions of the engine, which is why it is recommended to prefix them with an underscore.

NOTE: This uses regular indexing so metatables work as expected.

WARNING: For all string properties, the maximum number of characters is the u16 max value.

NOTE: Number properties will be clamped to their value ranges.

Example

{
    physical = true,
    collide_with_objects = true,
    collisionbox = {-0.3, -0.3, -0.3, 0.3, 0.3, 0.3},
    selectionbox = {-0.3, -0.3, -0.3, 0.3, 0.3, 0.3},
    pointable = true,
    visual = "mesh",
    mesh = "mesh.obj",
    visual_size = {x = 1, y = 1, z = 1},
    textures = {"texture.png", "texture.png"},
    initial_sprite_basepos = {x = 0, y = 0},
    is_visible = true,
    makes_footstep_sound = true,
    stepheight = 0.4,
    automatic_rotate = 0.0,
    automatic_face_movement_dir = 0,
    automatic_face_movement_max_rotation_per_sec = 0,
    backface_culling = true,
    glow = 0,
    nametag = "My object",
    nametag_color = {r = 255, g = 255, b = 255},
    nametag_bgcolor = {r = 0, g = 0, b = 0},
    infotext = "Hello there!",
    static_save = true,
    use_texture_alpha = true,
    shaded = true,
    show_on_minimap = true,
    damage_texture_modifier = "^[colorize:#FF0000:150",
}

---

This article is originally based on an article from the minetest_docs project: object_properties.adoc by j45, benrob0329, JosiahWI and Lars Müller, licensed under CC-BY 4.0