The **NavMesh** system is your go-to for pathfinding and AI movement in 3D environments. Imagine you're baking a map that your game characters can navigate on — that’s what the NavMesh is. You can tweak how characters move, handle obstacles, and even create custom paths.
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### Static Properties
| Property | Description |
|---|---|
| `AllAreas` | Think of this as selecting *everywhere* your AI can walk. |
| `avoidancePredictionTime` | How far in the future Unity should predict AI avoiding each other. |
| `onPreUpdate` | A callback you can hook into right before the NavMesh updates. |
| `pathfindingIterationsPerFrame` | Controls how much pathfinding Unity does each frame. More means better accuracy but slower frames. |
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### Key Static Methods (Chill Teacher Mode)
**1. `AddLink`**
This method is all about creating *custom* paths between two points on the NavMesh — perfect if you want shortcuts or special routes.
```csharp
NavMesh.AddLink(new NavMeshLinkData()
{
startPosition = new Vector3(0, 0, 0),
endPosition = new Vector3(10, 0, 10),
width = 2.0f
});
```
- **Use Case:** You want to build a bridge between two points that aren't directly connected.
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**2. `CalculatePath`**
Wanna know how your AI is gonna move from Point A to Point B? Use this to calculate that path ahead of time.
- **Cool Trick:** You can check if the path is valid or not (`path.status`), which helps avoid bad routes.
---
**3. `FindClosestEdge`**
Ever needed to know where the closest boundary is in your NavMesh? This one’s handy for that!
```csharp
NavMeshHit hit;
if (NavMesh.FindClosestEdge(transform.position, out hit, NavMesh.AllAreas))
{
Debug.Log("Edge found at: " + hit.position);
}
```
- **Why It’s Useful:** It's like your AI has a radar for walls and limits. Use it to keep them in bounds.
---
**4. `Raycast`**
This is like drawing an invisible line to see if the AI can walk straight to a point.
```csharp
NavMeshHit hit;
if (!NavMesh.Raycast(startPos, endPos, out hit, NavMesh.AllAreas))
{
Debug.Log("Line of sight is clear!");
}
```
- **Pro Tip:** Use it to test if obstacles are in the way, so you can reroute AI.
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These examples should give you a good starting point to experiment and make your AI navigation smarter. Keep in mind, you’ll need to bake your NavMesh in the scene first!
