Got it — UE 5.5.4 👍
Here’s the exact, UE-5.5-specific answer, no guesswork.
There is NO menu in the Details panel (like in your screenshot) to:
- “Make material dynamic”
- “Expose properties”
In UE 5.5, those actions still happen in two separate places:
- Material Editor → expose properties
- Blueprint / C++ → make it dynamic
This is by design and hasn’t changed in 5.5.
This must be done in the Material, not the mesh.
- Open the parent Material of
MI_Debug
- Select a value node:
- Constant
- Constant3Vector
- Texture Sample
- Right-click → Convert to Parameter
- Name it (e.g.
BaseColor, Glow, Opacity)
- Save
✔️ These parameters now appear in:
- Material Instances
- Dynamic Material Instances
This is runtime-only.
- Open the Actor Blueprint
- Select your StaticMesh / SkeletalMesh component
- In Event Graph:
→ Create Dynamic Material Instance
• Source Material: (optional)
- Promote return value to a variable (e.g.
DynMat)
DynMat → Set Scalar Parameter Value
DynMat → Set Vector Parameter Value
💡 UE 5.5 tip:
You can now search for “Create DMI” in the node palette.
If you just want sliders in the editor:
- Right-click Material → Create Material Instance
- Assign MI to mesh
- Edit parameters in Details panel
⚠️ This is NOT dynamic at runtime
That panel only:
- Assigns materials
- Bakes materials
- Manages slots
It cannot:
- Convert to dynamic
- Expose parameters
- Modify runtime values
❌ “I exposed a parameter but can’t change it”
→ You’re modifying the base material, not the DMI
❌ “My changes don’t work at runtime”
→ You didn’t store the Dynamic Material Instance
❌ “I changed the MI but nothing happens in game”
→ MIs don’t update at runtime
| Task | Location |
|---|
| Expose parameters | Material Editor |
| Editable in editor | Material Instance |
| Runtime control | Dynamic Material Instance |
If you want, I can:
- Walk you through one exact parameter setup
- Show UE 5.5 Blueprint screenshots
- Explain when NOT to use dynamic materials (performance)
Just tell me what you’re trying to change (color, opacity, emissive, etc.).