# Adding AI States

{% hint style="info" %}
Adding new AI States is similar to adding states for the player. Therefore, this guide will only highlight the differences between player states and AI states. 
{% endhint %}

* The primary distinction lies in the creation of a new state asset. For AI States, select **Create -> C# UHFPS Templates -> AIState Script** to generate a new AI State script.
* The AI state implements the **FSMAIState** class, which includes various methods and references.
* From the **AIState**, you can access essential player components, like the player state machine, player health or player manager.

{% hint style="warning" %}
It is recommended to examine the existing states and methods in **FSMAIState** to get an overview of how the different functionalities are implemented and what you can use in your states. Each method is commented so you will know how and which method you can use.
{% endhint %}

### Adding Waypoints

1. Create a new empty game object and name it **Waypoints** or whatever you want.
2. Add the **AI Waypoints Group** component to the game object.
3. Create a new empty game object and add it to the parent of the **Waypoints** object.
4. Add the **AI Waypoint** component to the parent object. When you add new objects with the **AI Waypoint** component to the parent of the **Waypoints** object, the **AI Waypoint Group** will automatically handle the waypoint list, so you don't need to manually add or remove them.

{% hint style="info" %}
There's no need to assign the waypoints to the **NPC State Machine**. To utilize the waypoints, simply call the <mark style="color:blue;">**FindClosestWaypointsGroup()**</mark> method from the **FSMAIState** class to locate the nearest waypoints based on the NPC's position. You can call this method when you enter a state or whenever you want.
{% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %}
To obtain an unreserved waypoint from the **AI Waypoints Group**, just use the <mark style="color:blue;">**GetFreeWaypoints()**</mark> method from F**SMAIState**. It's a good to reserve the waypoint once you've acquired it, so that when multiple NPCs are present, they won't head towards the already reserved waypoints.
{% endhint %}

{% hint style="info" %}
To reserve a waypoint, assign the NPC object to the **ReservedBy** object within the **AI Waypoint** component. To unreserve it, simply change that reference to null.
{% endhint %}