Move, Rotate and Scale

The transform gizmo moves, turns and scales the selected objects. Select the objects first, then pick a tool with a key or on the transform widget.

The transform gizmo

The gizmo is the set of handles on the selection. Pick a tool with a key or on the transform widget:

Key	Tool
Q	Selection tool: no gizmo, for clicking only.
W	Move.
E	Rotate.
R	Scale.

The keys work with the pointer over the scene view. A tool the selection cannot use is grayed out: for example, splines cannot be scaled.

• Move: drag an arrow to move along one axis, a small square to move on a plane, or the gray center square to move freely. A free move puts the object on the terrain under the pointer. Hold Alt during a free move to put it on other objects too.
• Rotate: drag a ring to turn around one axis, or drag inside the circle to turn freely.
• Scale: drag an axis cube to scale along that axis, or the center cube to scale evenly.

The X axis is red, Y green and Z blue. The handle you drag turns yellow. Hold Alt while you drag an axis to move, turn or scale ten times slower. Each drag is one undo step. There is no way to cancel a drag while you do it: undo it after.

When you move a selected object, its children move with it.

Global or local, center or pivot

Key	Setting	What it does
X	Global / Local	Global: the handles follow the world axes. Local: they follow the last selected object's own axes.
Z	Center / Pivot	Center: the gizmo is in the middle of the selected objects. Pivot: it is on the pivot point of the last selected object.

Rotating turns the objects around the gizmo. Scaling always works from the middle of the selection, also in Pivot mode.

Custom pivots

A prefab's pivot is where the gizmo sits on it, and what it turns and scales around. It starts on the prefab's own origin, where Rust has it. You can move and turn it, for example to the end of a wall so the wall turns around that end.

• A pivot belongs to the prefab, so every copy of that prefab has the same one. Placed monuments can have one too.
• RustEdit keeps your pivots for the next start, in Configuration/prefab_pivots.json.
• A pivot only changes the editor. Maps and scenes still save the prefab's own origin. The Transform panel shows the pivot's position and rotation: hover Position or Rotation to see what the map saves.
• With more than one object selected, the middle of the selection is the middle of their pivots.

Set a pivot in one of three ways:

• Edit Pivot: the move and rotate handles move the pivot instead of the prefab. See the steps below.
• The Pivot panel in the Inspector: type an Offset and a Rotation in the prefab's own space. The panel shows only for a prefab that has a pivot of its own, or while Edit Pivot is on.
• Presets: Bounds Centre, Bottom Centre and Reset to Origin. They are buttons in the Pivot panel, and items under Pivot when you right-click the prefab in the Hierarchy.

To move a pivot with Edit Pivot:

1. Select one prefab.
2. Press T, or click Edit Pivot on the transform widget. The Edit Pivot button turns green, and a yellow line joins the pivot to the prefab's origin.
3. Drag the move and rotate handles. They move and turn the pivot, not the prefab.
4. Press T again, or select something else, to stop.

Each change to a pivot is one undo step. It does not make the scene unsaved, because the scene does not hold it.

The transform widget

The transform widget is the strip of buttons in the scene view. Drag its handle to move it. Right-click the handle to make it Horizontal or Vertical. RustEdit remembers where you put it.

Button	What it does
Selection tool	Selection tool (Q).
Movement tool	Move (W).
Rotation tool	Rotate (E).
Scale tool	Scale (R).
Space	Switches between local and global space (X).
Pivot	Switches between center and pivot (Z).
Edit Pivot	The move and rotate handles move the selected prefab's pivot, not the prefab (T). See Custom pivots.
Center gizmo	Draws the gizmo in the middle of the screen, 10 m in front of the camera, so you can grab it when the selection is far away.
Movement snap	Turns movement snapping on and off. Next to it: Amount and Mode. See Snapping.
Rotation snap	Turns rotation snapping on and off. Next to it: Degrees.
Quick rotate	Two buttons and an axis (X, Y or Z, default Y): turn the selection 90 degrees counterclockwise or clockwise around that axis.
Spline	Turns on spline editing. A spline must be selected. See Editing Splines.
Draw splines	Draws new splines in the scene view. Shows only while spline editing is on.
Show sockets	Shows sockets. Drag from one socket to another to connect two prefabs. Hold Alt and click a connected socket to disconnect it. See Sockets.

Snapping

Snapping makes the gizmo move or turn in fixed steps. Set it on the transform widget.

Option	What it does
Movement snap	On: moves go in steps of Amount meters.
Amount	The step for moves.
Mode	Local snaps the distance you move. World puts each object's pivot on a grid of the world.
Rotation snap	On: turns go in steps of Degrees.
Degrees	The step for turns, in whole degrees.

• Snapping starts off each time you start RustEdit, with steps of 1.
• There is no scale snapping and no snapping to other objects' corners or surfaces.
• The scene view draws no grid. World snap still puts positions on whole steps of Amount. The grid button on the Map panel only draws a grid on the map picture.
• Typed values, quick rotate, Move to Mouse and Snap to Ground are not snapped.

Type exact values

The Transform panel in the Inspector shows the selection's position, rotation and scale. Type a value to move, turn or scale the selection exactly. You can also copy values from one object and paste them onto another there.

To mirror the selection, click the panel's ⋮ button, then Mirror X or Mirror Z, or one of their Turn Around items. Flip turns it upside down. Mirror uses rotation only, so a prefab that is the same on both sides looks mirrored. See Mirror and flip.

Move with the mouse

Keys	Name	What it does
Ctrl+Alt+Mouse Left	Move to Mouse	Moves the selection to the terrain point under the pointer.
Ctrl+Alt+Mouse Right	Move to Target	Gives the one selected object the position, rotation and scale of the object you click (of its top-level object, when the clicked object is in a group).
Ctrl+Alt+Mouse Middle	Snap to Ground	Puts each selected object's pivot on the terrain. Its rotation does not change. Also in Edit›Snap to Ground.

Each is one undo step. Move to Target needs exactly one selected object: with more, it says "You can only clone transform values when 1 object is selected".

Troubleshooting

Problem	What to do
The gizmo is gone or the handles do nothing.	A locked object, or a part of a placed monument, is in the selection. Unlock it, or select the whole monument. The tool may have switched to the Selection tool: press W.
Scale is grayed out.	The selection has splines, or prefabs linked by sockets. Turn on Move Individually in the Sockets panel to scale a linked prefab on its own. See Sockets.
The object does not move in steps.	Turn on movement snap or rotation snap on the transform widget. Typed values and the mouse moves are never snapped.

Related

• Select Objects
• Transform
• Pivot
• Placing Prefabs
• Keyboard Shortcuts