Laser Rifle

A ten-tier laser rifle mod for Satisfactory with unique designs, progressive research, and customizable gameplay.

Features

• 10 Tiers (Mk1–Mk10): Craftable rifle variants with exclusive body models, each unlocked through MAM research. Damage scaling follows a tunable curve (default: 1+MkBump)^Mk.

• Per-Mk Body Designs: Each tier features a procedurally-generated unique rifle body with distinct silhouettes and detail levels (Mk1: cobbled/salvage aesthetic; Mk2–5: industrial variants; Mk6–10: energy/futuristic designs). 3D models generated via Tripo API.

• Beam Appearance: Hitscan laser beam with per-tier color progression—amber/warm at Mk1, transitioning through the spectrum to violet and white at higher tiers. Beam intensity increases with tier and heat.

• Visual Effects (Per-Mk):

  • Electrical sparks: Tier-colored radial burst tendrils emanating from the muzzle (amber → violet) during fire and heat buildup
  • Electric arcs: Branching bolts (crackle) that intensify with heat
  • Ground jump: Lightning bolt to nearby terrain when overheating
  • Impact splash: Arc tendrils at beam hit location (Mk4+)
  • Plasma glow and heat-driven smoke

• First-Person Viewmodel: Held orientation optimized per-tier for visual alignment with the crosshair. Muzzle position tuned so the beam emerges correctly relative to the barrel.

• Heat & Overheat Mechanic:

  • Soft overheat threshold ~0.5 cell (configurable)
  • Hard overheat at 1.0 cell (blocks firing; reload/idle cools)
  • Heat builds during sustained fire, cools during reload and idle
  • Low tiers cool faster than high tiers
  • Overheat severity tunable in session settings

• Energy Cell Fuel System:

  • Rifle reloads by consuming the player's highest-portion fuel (extensible table: Energy Cell ~3 portions, Battery ~8 portions)
  • Energy Cell: Mod-owned craftable item, unlocked with Mk1 rifle research
  • Recipe: 5 Wire + 2 Quartz → 1 Energy Cell (2s in Craft Bench)
  • Magazine size: 5–30 shots (Mk1–Mk10)
  • HUD displays current shots, spare fuel count, and pack capacity

• Custom Crosshair HUD: First-person reticle showing ammunition status, heat level, and spare fuel. Scales and updates in real time.

• In-Game Settings (Session Configuration):

  • Heat generation and cooldown speed (per-tier scaling)
  • Damage multiplier and per-tier bump
  • Visual effect intensities (spark/arc sliders)
  • Fire slowdown and overheat penalties
  • Random loadout component (WIP/dev option)

Installation

Via Satisfactory Mod Manager (SMM) or ficsit.app

1. Open Satisfactory Mod Manager or visit ficsit.app
2. Search for Laser Rifle
3. Click Install and let SMM handle deployment

The mod will be automatically placed in your Satisfactory Mods folder.

Manual Installation

1. Download the latest release .zip
2. Extract to C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Satisfactory\FactoryGame\Mods\LaserRifleMod
3. Launch Satisfactory; the mod will load on startup (check the log for ===== LaserRifleMod BUILD ... LOADED =====)

Requirements: Satisfactory ≥ Update 8 (game version ≥ 491125), SML 3.12+

Building from Source

This mod is built using the Satisfactory Modding Loader (SML) and Unreal Engine 5.4 (CSS fork).

Prerequisites

• Engine: CSS Unreal Engine 5.4 fork (C:\Program Files\Unreal Engine - CSS)
• SML: Project at C:\Claude\Projects\SatisfactoryModLoader (FactoryGame.uproject, SML 3.x)
• Source: This repository (C:\Claude\Projects\SatisfactoryLaserRifleMod)

Build Steps

1. Sync the source tree to the SML Mods directory:

   robocopy "C:\Claude\Projects\SatisfactoryLaserRifleMod\Source" `
     "C:\Claude\Projects\SatisfactoryModLoader\Mods\LaserRifleMod\Source" /MIR /NFL /NDL /NJH /NJS /NP
   robocopy "C:\Claude\Projects\SatisfactoryLaserRifleMod\Config" `
     "C:\Claude\Projects\SatisfactoryModLoader\Mods\LaserRifleMod\Config" /MIR /NFL /NDL /NJH /NJS /NP

2. Hold the build lock (check C:\Claude\Projects\_team\BUILD-COORDINATION.md for cross-session serialization)

3. Close Satisfactory (the game locks the deployed DLL)

4. Run the packager (UAT via the CSS engine):

   & "C:\Program Files\Unreal Engine - CSS\Engine\Build\BatchFiles\RunUAT.bat" `
     -ScriptsForProject="C:\Claude\Projects\SatisfactoryModLoader\FactoryGame.uproject" PackagePlugin `
     -project="C:\Claude\Projects\SatisfactoryModLoader\FactoryGame.uproject" `
     -clientconfig=Shipping -serverconfig=Shipping -utf8output -DLCName=LaserRifleMod -build -platform=Win64 `
     -nocompileeditor -installed `
     -CopyToGameDirectory_Windows="C:\Program Files (x86)\Steam\steamapps\common\Satisfactory"

5. Verify the build marker embedded in the deployed DLL:

   # The DLL should contain a timestamped marker from LaserRifleSubsystem::StartupModule

6. Release the build lock and test in-game

Build Gotchas

• Two Source Trees: Always sync Source/ and Config/ from the repo to SatisfactoryModLoader\Mods\LaserRifleMod before building (UAT compiles the Mods copy, not the repo).
• Multiple mods in one project: The shared FactoryEditor target compiles every mod in your Mods\ folder, so an AccessTransformer friend-grant in another mod can trigger a UHT false-positive "unused friend" error (C2248) that fails the whole build — including this one. Workaround: temporarily rename the conflicting mod's .uplugin → .uplugin.disabled_for_build during the build, then restore it. This mod builds cleanly on its own.

How It Works

Research & Progression

• MAM Tree: Mk1 rifle (5 Reinforced Iron Plates + 40 Wire + 10 Cable + 10 Quartz) unlocks the Mk1 rifle and Energy Cell recipe simultaneously
• Tier Unlocks: Each Mk2–10 rifle is researched separately and crafted via Equipment Workshop (cost: 1× previous tier + scaled materials)
• No Base Rifle: The ten tiers form a linear progression; there is no untiered "Laser Rifle" item

Damage Model

• Damage scales per tier: Base × (1 + MkBump)^Mk, where MkBump is player-configurable (default ~0.25)
• No ammunition depletion—damage per shot is consistent until the battery/cell empties
• Headshots and creature type modifiers follow Satisfactory's standard damage pipeline

Firing & Reload

1. Equip a rifle tier (e.g., Mk5)
2. Fire (left-click): Hitscan beam traces to crosshair; consumes 1 shot from the current magazine
3. Magazine: Starts at Mk-scaled shots (5→30); depletes with sustained fire
4. Heat: Builds during rapid fire; cool via reload or idle
5. Reload (R-key): When magazine empties or manually triggered, rifle consumes 1 Energy Cell from inventory (or Battery if no cells), refilling the magazine
6. Overheat: If heat exceeds threshold before reload completes, firing is blocked until cooled (reload/idle)

Settings & Console Variables

Session Settings (in-game mod menu):

• Heat: Shots to Overheat (Mk1 base, scales to Mk10)
• Heat: Cooldown Speed (multiplier)
• Damage: Mk Bump (scaling exponent)
• FX: Spark/Arc Intensity sliders
• Heat: Fire Slowdown penalty at 2× overheat (WIP)

Console Variables (live tuning, not persisted):

• lr.HoldPitch / lr.HoldYaw / lr.HoldRoll: Adjust visual aim offset
• lr.MuzzleDX / lr.MuzzleDY / lr.MuzzleDZ: Nudge beam origin (cm)
• lr.BatteryEnable: Toggle dangling battery cosmetic (default 0 = hidden)
• lr.SparkAmount: Override spark/arc intensity (0–3)
• BEAMDIAG: Log beam tracing for debugging aim issues

Credits

• 3D Models: Generated via Tripo AI (v3.1, detailed PBR textures)
• UE5 Implementation: C++ weapon, effects, and crosshair HUD
• Audio: Wwise integration (laser fire, overheat warning)
• Playtesting & Direction: In-game tuning feedback and hold-orientation refinement

License

This mod is provided as-is for the Satisfactory community. See the included LICENSE file for terms.

Support

• Bug reports & feature requests: open an issue on GitHub
• Modding community chat: Satisfactory Modding Discord

---

Mod Version: 1.0.0 | Game: Satisfactory Update 8+ | SML: 3.12+