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Walkthrough: make one cooked item discoverable

This walkthrough starts after you have cooked an ItemData asset in a Windows PAK. It shows the smallest RuneSchema connection. For the Unreal project, cooking, and asset dependencies, follow the full PAK authoring guide.

1. Record the permanent identity

Give the item a unique internal name and persistence ID in its cooked data. Record its full object path, including the object name after the dot:

/GoldenArsenal/Items/ITEM_GoldenSpear.ITEM_GoldenSpear

This is an example path. Replace it with the path inside your PAK. Keep the path, internal name, and persistence ID stable after players have saved the item. Do not recycle the ID for a different asset.

2. Put the PAK in its owning mod

RuneSchema/mods/GoldenArsenal/
  assets/10-golden-spear.jsonc
  paks/GoldenArsenal/
    GoldenArsenal.pak
    GoldenArsenal.utoc
    GoldenArsenal.ucas

Keep only files your cook actually produced; not every package has all three extensions. Do not copy the same PAK into the game's ordinary PAK folder as well. Enable GoldenArsenal : 1 in RuneSchema/mods/runeschema.txt.

3. Add one direct item reference

In assets/10-golden-spear.jsonc:

{
  "/GoldenArsenal/Items/ITEM_GoldenSpear.ITEM_GoldenSpear": {}
}

The empty object asks RuneSchema to resolve this cooked item without changing its properties. It cannot create an item missing from the PAK or repair an incomplete cooked class. For very large catalogues, use normal cooked relationships and the supported registry declaration instead of repeating this file thousands of times.

4. Make it obtainable

Item registration alone does not add a crafting recipe. Add a recipes file only when the item should be made at a station, and use the full item path in ItemsCreated. The AddTo target must name a real compatible station table, row, and category or recipe array. Work through the crafting and processing examples.

If your PAK already has a complete native recipe and unlock path, check that path in-game before adding a duplicate RuneSchema recipe.

5. Verify one boundary at a time

  1. Start with only this mod and its required dependencies enabled.
  2. In UE4SS.log, find the mod name, PAK mount, item path resolution, and item registration summary. Fix the first missing step.
  3. Confirm the item can be obtained, equipped or used, saved, and reloaded.
  4. If it is a weapon, separately verify its held actor, attack family, animation, damage, and ammo or spell path. Weapon guide.
  5. If it is wearable armor, verify each authored material and body mesh. Armor guide.

Test a backed-up existing save before release. A mounted PAK is not proof that every item in it joined a live registry.