Fall

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The Fall ability gives an airborne character its falling and landing animation states. It starts automatically after the character is far enough from the ground and no higher-priority non-concurrent ability is active. During a normal jump, Jump controls the ascent first and Fall takes over when Jump ends.

Keep Fall directly below Jump in the Abilities list. This gives Jump the higher priority and allows a permitted airborne jump to replace an active Fall.

Add Fall to the character

  1. Select the character GameObject.
  2. In the Ultimate Character Locomotion component, expand Abilities.
  3. Select the plus button and add Fall.
  4. Add Jump if the character can jump, then drag Fall directly below it.
  5. Select Fall and keep Enabled selected, Start Type set to Automatic, and Stop Type set to Automatic.
  6. Configure Min Fall Height and the landing options for the required gameplay feel.
  7. Enter Play Mode and test both walking from a ledge and landing after Jump.

Fall defaults to Ability Index Parameter 2 and does not use root-motion position or rotation. Keep those defaults when using the included Animator Controller; change them only when a custom Animator is designed for different values.

Choose settings by gameplay scenario

Ignore steps and very short drops

Min Fall Height is the downward distance that must be clear before Fall may start. Its default is 0.2.

  • Increase it when small steps, uneven ground, or brief airborne frames should remain in normal locomotion.
  • Set it to 0 when every ungrounded frame should be allowed to start Fall.
  • Reduce it when the falling animation starts too late on short ledges.

The check casts downward against solid-object layers, so a nearby surface inside this distance prevents Fall from starting.

Play a hard-landing surface effect

Assign Land Surface Impact when a sufficiently fast landing should produce a surface-aware effect. Min Surface Impact Velocity is the vertical-velocity threshold; its default is -4. The impact plays only when the landing velocity is more negative than this value.

  • Keep a more negative threshold when only hard landings should trigger the effect.
  • Move the threshold closer to zero when lighter landings should also trigger it.
  • Leave Land Surface Impact unassigned when Fall should not create a landing effect.

Wait for a landing animation

Land Event controls when Fall ends after the character becomes grounded.

  • Keep Wait For Animation Event enabled when the landing animation sends OnAnimatorFallComplete.
  • Use a duration when the landing animation should end after a fixed time instead of an event.
  • Disable Wait For Animation Event and set Duration to 0 when Fall should end immediately on landing.

How Fall runs

While inactive, Fall checks that the character is not grounded and that the nearest solid surface is farther away than Min Fall Height. The higher list priority of Jump keeps Fall from replacing an active jump.

When Fall starts, its Animator state is the airborne state and its float data tracks the character’s local vertical velocity. This allows the Animator to respond differently while rising or descending. Fall also prevents Height Change from starting while the character is airborne.

When the character becomes grounded, Fall changes to its landing state, optionally spawns the assigned Surface Impact, and waits for Land Event. The animation event or duration marks the landing complete, then Fall stops. An immediate transform change, such as a teleport that snaps the Animator or places the character on the ground, also clears the active Fall state.

Verify in Play Mode

  1. Keep the Ultimate Character Locomotion Inspector visible and walk from a ledge taller than Min Fall Height. Confirm (Active) appears beside Fall.
  2. Jump and confirm Jump becomes active first, followed by Fall after Jump ends.
  3. Step across a gap or drop shorter than Min Fall Height and confirm Fall does not take over.
  4. Land slowly without crossing the configured velocity threshold and confirm no Surface Impact plays; then test a faster landing and confirm the effect uses the contacted surface.
  5. On landing, confirm the landing animation completes and (Active) disappears after OnAnimatorFallComplete or the configured duration.

Troubleshoot Fall

  • Fall never starts: confirm Enabled, Start Type: Automatic, that the character becomes ungrounded, and that the downward clearance exceeds Min Fall Height. Check whether another higher-priority non-concurrent ability is still active.
  • Fall takes over before Jump finishes: move Jump directly above Fall and confirm Jump remains active for the intended ascent.
  • Fall triggers on tiny steps: increase Min Fall Height so nearby ground keeps normal locomotion active.
  • The landing animation never ends: confirm the Animator sends OnAnimatorFallComplete. If no event is needed, disable Wait For Animation Event and set Duration to 0.
  • The landing effect never appears: assign Land Surface Impact, confirm the landing velocity is more negative than Min Surface Impact Velocity, and verify the contacted surface is configured for the Surface System.
  • The wrong airborne or landing animation plays: confirm Ability Index Parameter 2 and the Fall transitions in the character’s Animator Controller.
  • The character cannot crouch in the air: Fall intentionally blocks Height Change while active. Use a custom ability rule if the game requires that combination.
  • Jump controls the launch and gives way to Fall during the normal airborne sequence.
  • Abilities explains list priority, automatic activation, shared settings, and runtime states.
  • Animation Event Trigger explains event-versus-duration completion settings.
  • Surface Impacts explains the landing effect assigned to Land Surface Impact.

Developer reference

Fall uses these default Animator values and runtime events:

  • Ability Index: 2.
  • Ability Int Data: 0 while airborne and 1 after becoming grounded.
  • Ability Float Data: the character’s local vertical velocity.
  • OnAnimatorFallComplete: completes Land Event and allows Fall to stop.
  • OnCharacterGrounded: switches between the airborne and landing states.
  • OnCharacterImmediateTransformChange: stops Fall after a compatible teleport or Animator snap.