Birds of War UE 5.6 Mod Kit — Beginner's Guide to No-Code Modding

Birds of War ships with a no-code UE 5.6 mod kit that HexNest Games describes as the studio's bet on community-driven content. The mod kit is a 156 KB ZIP download that integrates with Steam Workshop, and the entire flow — install, design, test, publish — is doable without writing a single line of UnrealScript or Blueprint. The kit is small because the modding ecosystem is built around prefab assets (bird characters, map elements, ability tweaks) rather than full-engine scripting.

This beginner's guide documents the UE 5.6 mod kit from download to first-publish: where to download it, how to install it, how the no-code philosophy works, the directory structure, and the canonical workflow to bring a mod from concept to Steam Workshop.

Why a No-Code Mod Kit Matters

The no-code mod kit decision is the most consequential modding design choice HexNest has made. The implication is that anyone — even a player with no Unreal Engine experience — can ship a Birds of War mod. The trade-off is that mods are constrained to the prefab catalogue shipped with the kit, and ambitious mods (full custom bird kits, new abilities) require the underlying UE 5.6 to be exposed.

The beginner's guide focuses on the no-code path, which is the majority use case. Blueprints and C++ are documented in the custom bird creation guide and the Steam Workshop publishing guide.

Where to Download the Mod Kit

The Birds of War mod kit is hosted on the Steam store page. The download path:

1. Open the Birds of War Steam store page
2. Scroll to the "Mod Kit" section (visible on the right column)
3. Click the download link — the kit is a 156 KB ZIP

The kit is small because it contains only manifests, prefab references, and Steam Workshop integration rather than the full UE 5.6 runtime. The actual UE 5.6 assets are downloaded separately by the workshop integration layer on first mod run.

Versioning and Updates

The mod kit version is tied to the game version. Patch 1.1.5 ships the current 156 KB kit. Future patches (1.1.6, 1.2.0) will ship updated kits, and old mods may need rebuilding to match the new version.

Modders should always match the mod kit version to the game version they are running.

Installation — Step by Step

The install flow is the same on Windows, Linux, and macOS (Proton or CrossOver):

Step 1 — Verify the Game Is Installed

Birds of War must be installed via Steam before the mod kit can be installed. The mod kit's Steam Workshop integration requires a valid Steam installation.

Step 2 — Download the Mod Kit ZIP

Download the 156 KB ZIP from the Steam store page. Save it to a folder you can find later (e.g., Documents/BirdsOfWar/ModKit/).

Step 3 — Extract to a Working Folder

Extract the ZIP to a working folder. The extracted folder structure:

BirdsOfWar-ModKit/
├── manifest.json            # Kit version metadata
├── README.md                # Quick-start documentation
├── prefabs/                 # Reusable bird/map/ability prefabs
├── templates/               # Sample mod templates
├── workshop/                # Steam Workshop publish configuration
└── tools/                   # Helper scripts (publish, validate, package)

The working folder is the mod project root. Players typically keep one folder per mod, or one folder for all mods.

Step 4 — Launch the Kit Picker

The kit ships a small launcher that opens the prefab picker. On Windows, the launcher is BirdsOfWar-ModKit.exe in the extracted folder. On Linux (Proton), run the launcher through Steam's Proton tools.

The launcher opens a windowed UI with three tabs:

• Prefabs: The catalogue of available bird characters, map elements, and ability tweaks.
• Templates: Pre-built mod templates (custom bird, custom map, balance mod, audio mod).
• Workshop: The publish/unpublish/manage interface for Steam Workshop.

Step 5 — Pick a Template

For the first mod, the recommended path is to start from a template. The four stock templates:

The Custom Bird Skin template is the easiest starting point. The rest of this guide assumes the player has chosen that template.

The No-Code Prefab System

The no-code design is built on prefabs. A prefab is a pre-assembled collection of assets — meshes, textures, sounds, ability scripts — that the modder combines to produce a new mod.

The four prefab categories shipped with the kit:

The prefab system is composable: you can take a Crow prefab, apply a new texture (from the texture prefab catalogue), modify its ability cooldowns (using the ability tweak template), and bundle the result as a single mod. The composition logic is built into the templates.

How the Prefab UI Works

The prefab UI is a tabbed panel with drag-and-drop assembly:

1. Left panel: prefab catalogue (bird bodies, textures, abilities).
2. Center panel: current mod assembly (the prefabs you've dropped in).
3. Right panel: properties panel (the tweakable values for the selected prefab).

A modder drags a bird prefab into the center, drags a texture onto the bird's texture slot, drags an ability prefab into the bird's ability slot, and tweaks values in the right panel. The result is a complete mod asset that can be saved and published.

The Custom Bird Skin Template — Step by Step

The Custom Bird Skin template is the easiest first mod. The step-by-step flow:

Step 1 — Open the Template

In the launcher, click Templates → Custom Bird Skin. The template opens a fresh mod project with the basic Crow prefab loaded.

Step 2 — Pick the Base Bird

The template defaults to the Crow, but you can switch to any of the seven launch birds (Seagull, Eagle, Hummingbird, Shoebill, Pigeon, Owl) by clicking the base-bird dropdown.

Step 3 — Replace the Texture

The texture slot shows the base bird's default texture. To replace:

1. Click the texture slot to open the texture picker.
2. Browse the texture prefab catalogue (community-shared textures, official textures, or your own import).
3. Drag the chosen texture onto the slot.

The texture picker supports PNG, JPG, and TGA formats. The recommended texture resolution is 1024×1024 for the bird body and 512×512 for the wing.

Step 4 — Tweak the Bird's Tint

The right panel shows color tinting controls. The recommended controls:

• Base color: the overall bird color (multiplies with the texture).
• Highlight color: the accent color on the wing tips.
• Egg-glow color: the color emitted when this bird carries an Egg.

Step 5 — Save the Mod

Click Save Mod → Save As. The mod is saved as a .boar-mod file (Birds of War mod archive).

The resulting .boar-mod file is the mod asset. It can be loaded in the game (via Steam Workshop) or published to Steam Workshop.

Publishing to Steam Workshop — Quick Reference

The full publishing flow is documented in the Steam Workshop publishing guide. The quick reference for first-time publishers:

1. In the launcher, click Workshop → Publish.
2. Enter the mod title, description, and preview image.
3. Click Publish.

The mod appears on the Steam Workshop within minutes (Steam's review process is auto-instant for Birds of War mods as of patch 1.1.5).

The Mod Kit Limitations

The no-code mod kit has four known limitations:

Limitation 1 — Prefab Catalogue Boundaries

Mods are constrained to the prefabs shipped with the kit. A player cannot import a brand-new bird character from scratch without using UE 5.6 directly (see the custom bird creation guide).

Limitation 2 — No Custom Abilities

Mods cannot add new abilities to existing birds via the kit. Abilities can be tweaked (cooldowns, damage, range) but not invented.

Limitation 3 — Map Size Caps

Custom maps are capped at the prefab-shipping size budget. Very large maps (Coliseum-tier) require the underlying UE 5.6 to be exposed.

Limitation 4 — No Cross-Game Mods

Mods are tied to Birds of War's workshop and cannot be shared across other UE 5.6 games.

Where to Learn More

The modding community for Birds of War is centered on the HexNest Discord — channels #mods, #mod-showcase, and #mod-kit-support are the primary communication layer. The Steam Community hub at steamcommunity.com/app/4223300 hosts the workshop and discussion.

For deeper coverage of each part of the modding workflow:

• Custom birds from scratch: custom bird creation guide
• Custom maps from scratch: custom map building guide
• Publishing to Steam Workshop: Steam Workshop publishing guide
• Community mod showcase: mod showcase

Frequently Asked Questions

Where do I download the mod kit?

From the Birds of War Steam store page — the Mod Kit section. The kit is a 156 KB ZIP.

Do I need to know Unreal Engine to use the kit?

No. The kit is no-code by design. Custom bird skins, custom maps, and balance tweaks are doable without any UE knowledge.

What can I build with the kit?

Custom bird skins, custom maps, balance tweaks (ability cooldowns, damage), audio replacements. New bird characters and new abilities require the underlying UE 5.6 (the custom bird creation guide covers that path).

Is the mod kit free?

Yes. The kit is shipped with the game at no additional cost.

Will the mod kit be updated with future patches?

Estimated, yes. HexNest's responsive patch cadence suggests the kit will be updated with future patches (1.1.6, 1.2.0) and possibly the eighth bird reveal.