unity-navmesh

Original：🇺🇸 English

Translated

Add AI navigation in Unity 6: bake a NavMesh with the AI Navigation package (NavMeshSurface), move agents with NavMeshAgent.SetDestination, and handle dynamic obstacles. Use when setting up pathfinding, making an enemy chase the player, baking navigation, or when the user mentions NavMesh, NavMeshAgent, NavMeshSurface, NavMeshObstacle, or Unity pathfinding.

3installs

Sourcegamedev-skills/awesome-gamedev-agent-skills

Added on2026-07-27

NPX Install

npx skill4agent add gamedev-skills/awesome-gamedev-agent-skills unity-navmesh

SKILL.md Content

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Unity NavMesh (AI Navigation)

Give NPCs pathfinding in Unity 6: bake walkable surfaces and move agents around obstacles. Targets Unity 6 (6000.0 LTS) with the AI Navigation package 2.x.

Version trap (Unity 2022+/6): the old built-in Navigation window (Object/Bake tabs) is gone. Baking is now component-based via the AI Navigation package (
com.unity.ai.navigation
): add a NavMeshSurface to your level geometry and click Bake. The runtime
NavMeshAgent
/
NavMesh
API stays in built-in
UnityEngine.AI
.

When to use

Use when an agent needs to walk/chase/patrol to a target, when baking a navigable surface, adding dynamic blockers (
```
NavMeshObstacle
```
), or checking whether a destination is reachable.
Use when the project has the AI Navigation package, a
```
NavMeshSurface
```
component, or scripts using
```
UnityEngine.AI.NavMeshAgent
```
.

When not to use: the decision logic of when/where to move (FSMs, behaviour trees, steering) →

game-ai

(this skill is the Unity movement/pathing mechanism). Force-driven or kinematic movement that isn't pathfinding →

unity-physics

.

Core workflow

Install the AI Navigation package (Package Manager →
```
com.unity.ai.navigation
```
).
Bake a surface: select the static level geometry, Add Component → Navigation → NavMesh Surface, set the agent type/area settings, and click Bake. Re-bake whenever geometry,
```
NavMeshModifier
```
s, or agent settings change.
Add a
NavMeshAgent
to each moving NPC; its radius/height/speed must match the baked agent type, and it must spawn on the baked mesh.
Drive it from script with
```
SetDestination(targetPos)
```
; the agent steers and avoids other agents automatically. Detect arrival with
```
remainingDistance
```
/
```
pathPending
```
.
Handle dynamic blockers with
```
NavMeshObstacle
```
(carving) so closed doors/crates block paths without a full re-bake.
Verify with the AI Navigation overlay (the baked mesh is drawn in the Scene view) and by watching agents path around obstacles to the goal; check
```
NavMeshPath.status
```
for unreachable targets.

Patterns

1. Chase/seek with a NavMeshAgent

csharp

using UnityEngine;
using UnityEngine.AI;

[RequireComponent(typeof(NavMeshAgent))]
public class Chaser : MonoBehaviour
{
    [SerializeField] private Transform target;
    private NavMeshAgent _agent;

    private void Awake() => _agent = GetComponent<NavMeshAgent>();

    private void Update()
    {
        if (target) _agent.SetDestination(target.position);   // re-path toward the target
    }

    // Arrived? pathPending guards the first frame before a path exists.
    private bool HasArrived() =>
        !_agent.pathPending && _agent.remainingDistance <= _agent.stoppingDistance;
}

2. Check reachability before committing

csharp

using UnityEngine.AI;

public bool CanReach(NavMeshAgent agent, Vector3 destination)
{
    var path = new NavMeshPath();
    agent.CalculatePath(destination, path);
    return path.status == NavMeshPathStatus.PathComplete;   // vs Partial / Invalid
}

3. Bake at runtime (for procedurally built or streamed levels)

csharp

using Unity.AI.Navigation;   // the package namespace (NavMeshSurface)

[SerializeField] private NavMeshSurface surface;

// After spawning level geometry, build the navmesh in code.
public void RebuildNav() => surface.BuildNavMesh();

4. Dynamic obstacle that carves the mesh

csharp

// Add a NavMeshObstacle (Carve = true) to a door/crate. While present it cuts a hole in the
// navmesh so agents route around it; remove/disable it to reopen the path — no re-bake needed.

Pitfalls

Looking for the Navigation window — it no longer exists in Unity 6. Use the AI Navigation package's
```
NavMeshSurface
```
component + Bake.
Agent doesn't move / warps to origin — it isn't on the baked mesh, or no surface was baked. Bake the surface and spawn the agent on it (
```
NavMesh.SamplePosition
```
to snap).
Agent ignores new geometry — the navmesh is baked; runtime-spawned obstacles need a
```
NavMeshObstacle
```
(carving) or a
```
surface.BuildNavMesh()
```
re-bake.
SetDestination
every frame is wasteful — for a slow-moving target, re-path on a timer (e.g. every 0.2s) instead of each frame.
Agent radius/height mismatch — if the
```
NavMeshAgent
```
's size differs from the baked agent type, it gets stuck in gaps or floats; keep them consistent.
Agents jitter against each other — tune
```
avoidancePriority
```
and quality, or use an obstacle for truly static blockers rather than relying on agent avoidance.

References

Primary docs: AI Navigation package manual (

https://docs.unity3d.com/Packages/com.unity.ai.navigation@2.0/manual/index.html

) and

ScriptReference/AI.NavMeshAgent

,

ScriptReference/AI.NavMesh

.

Related skills

```
game-ai
```
— engine-agnostic decision-making (FSM, behaviour trees, steering) that uses this.
```
unity-csharp-scripting
```
— the MonoBehaviour structure around the agent.
```
tower-defense
```
/
```
fps-shooter
```
— genres that compose pathfinding with gameplay.

unity-navmesh

NPX Install

Tags

SKILL.md Content

Unity NavMesh (AI Navigation)

When to use

Core workflow

Patterns

1. Chase/seek with a NavMeshAgent

2. Check reachability before committing

3. Bake at runtime (for procedurally built or streamed levels)

4. Dynamic obstacle that carves the mesh

Pitfalls

References

Related skills