Layout, shortcuts, auto-save, and workflow tips.

Interface Guide

Layout

The Studio has two layout layers that matter:

  • App shell — a left navigation sidebar for switching sections like Zones, World, Items, and Settings
  • Zone editor workspace — the default screen, with a top toolbar, a left map browser, a center canvas, and a right context panel
  • Pages and modals — content editors open as dedicated pages from the app nav, while tools like Database, Plugins, Build, and some settings open from the zone-editor toolbar
Map editor interface — selection, layer controls, object palette, and active map canvas
Map editor interface — selection, layer controls, object palette, and active map canvas

Keyboard Shortcuts

Press ? (Shift + /) at any time inside the zone editor to open the in-editor shortcut overlay. It lists the live set of bindings for the current mode.

Map Edit Mode — Tools

KeyAction
HHand tool (pan the view)
PPencil tool (paint tiles)
RRectangle tool
CCircle tool
FFlood fill tool
EEraser tool
IEye dropper (sample tile from map)
SSelect tool
GToggle grid
[ / ]Decrease / increase brush size

Event Mode — Tools

KeyAction
SSelect event
PPlace event
MMove event
EErase event
Double-clickCreate a new event (empty tile) or open the event editor (existing event)

Editing & Clipboard

KeyAction
Ctrl+SSave current work
Ctrl+ZUndo
Ctrl+Y / Ctrl+Shift+ZRedo
Ctrl+ASelect all (within the current layer)
Ctrl+CCopy the active selection (tile stack or event)
Ctrl+VPaste the clipboard at the cursor
Delete / BackspaceDelete the current selection
EscapeClear selection, cancel marquee, or close a modal

View & Navigation

KeyAction
Space + dragPan the view
Middle-click + drag / two-finger swipePan
Scroll wheel / trackpad pinchZoom
+ / −Zoom in / out
0Reset zoom to 100%
HomeCenter the view on the map

Player Controls & Loadouts

The included game client supports multiple control styles instead of forcing a single MMO layout.

Control Presets

Projects can ship with presets for:

  • Point-and-click — classic click-to-move MMO controls
  • Hybrid — click movement plus direct-combat hotkeys
  • WASD — direct movement with action bindings
  • Keyboard-only — no mouse requirement for core movement/actions
  • Controller — gamepad-aware movement and camera rotation support
  • Touch — tap-to-move and virtual joystick options for mobile play

Binding Coverage

The runtime control config can bind actions across these categories:

  • Movement — click move, directional movement, run modifier
  • Camera — rotate left/right, face cursor
  • Combat — primary attack, equipment-derived abilities, and hotbar slots
  • Interaction — interact and contextual world actions
  • Panels — inventory, character, skills, abilities, quests, market, pets, breeding, build, world map, and store
  • Social / System — guild, friends, close, keybind reference, and admin actions
Inside the client, players can open a Control Bindings panel to see the active mapping for the current preset.

Hotbar & Loadouts

  • The action bar includes equipment-driven combat slots plus 4 player-configurable hotbar slots
  • Abilities and supported consumables can be assigned to those hotbar slots
  • Named loadouts can be saved and switched to restore hotbar setups quickly
  • Loadout switching is persisted through the game server, so it is part of the runtime, not just a local mockup

Auto-Save

The map editor supports configurable auto-save intervals:

  • Off
  • Every 5 minutes
  • Every 10 minutes
  • Every 15 minutes
Change this in Settings → Auto-Save Interval.

Grid Display

  • Toggle grid visibility in the map editor toolbar
  • Grid snaps to tile boundaries for precise placement
  • Adjustable grid scale for different zoom levels

Undo/Redo

The map editor maintains a full undo/redo stack for:

  • Terrain painting
  • Object placement
  • Object deletion
  • Layer changes
Each undo step records exactly which tiles changed, so even large fill operations can be fully reversed.

Play Testing

Click Playtest in the toolbar to instantly open a game client connected to the embedded server. Changes saved in editors take effect immediately — some changes (like new plugins) require a server restart, which you can do from the toolbar.

Playtesting is also where you can verify player-facing systems that are easy to miss from the editor alone, such as:

  • active control preset behavior
  • keybind reference display
  • hotbar assignment and named loadouts
  • touch controls and mobile-oriented overlays when enabled

Content Lists

All content editors (Items, Mobs, NPCs, Quests, etc.) share a common pattern: 1. A searchable list showing all records 2. Click any record to open its edit form 3. A Create button to add new records 4. Delete with confirmation

Most editors also feature tabbed forms to organize settings. For example, the Item editor has tabs for Stats, Combat, and Crafting configuration.

Interface Guide — ED5 MMO Studio Docs | ED5 MMO Studio