---
title: "Destructibles breakable crates walls and debris"
description: "A crate splinters when shot, a wall crumbles under fire, a barrel bursts. A breakable is the combat health loop applied to a world object: durability in state, damage on hit, break at zero. There is no DestructibleComponent or `HealthComponent` (stripped)."
engineVersion: v1.0.234
date: 2026-09-28
license: "(c) Gessa, proprietary. Cite with attribution to https://gessa.ai/docs/. Terms: https://gessa.ai/terms/."
canonical: https://gessa.ai/docs/knowledge/playbooks/destructibles-and-breakables/
---

# Destructibles breakable crates walls and debris

## When to use

A crate splinters when shot, a wall crumbles under fire, a barrel bursts. A
breakable is the combat health loop applied to a world object: durability in
state, damage on hit, break at zero. There is no DestructibleComponent or
`HealthComponent` (stripped).

## The recipe

Author with `project_apply_script_semantic_patch` using the `ai_safe` op pack.

1. Give the object durability: seed a numeric field in a durable record for that
   object (for example `writeTypedStateValue` a `hp` of 3), keyed so each
   breakable tracks its own.
2. Take a hit: a projectile impact (see projectiles-and-ranged-weapons) or a
   contact trigger. Give the object a trigger `ColliderComponent`
   (`collision:"trigger"`) and `addTriggerHandler` `{ "handlerKey":"onHit" }`, or
   apply damage from the projectile's own hit handler.
3. Subtract durability: `incrementNumericState` `{ "field":"hp", "by": -1 }` per
   hit. `readTypedStateValue` it into a binding to test for break.
4. Break at zero: when `hp` reaches 0, `despawnEntity` the object and
   `spawnEntityFromTemplate` a debris or fractured-pieces prefab in its place;
   fire a burst `ParticleEmitterComponent` (see particles-and-visual-effects) and
   optionally a scorch `DecalComponent`.
5. Drop loot: on break, `spawnEntityFromTemplate` a pickup (see
   collectibles-and-scoring) or `emitCustomEvent` a `broke` event a manager
   listens for.

## Pitfalls

- Store durability in state, not on a component; there is no health field on the
  entity, and a value written only on the entity is lost when it despawns.
- The break must run server-side; a client-only smash desyncs which objects are
  gone across players.
- Debris entities count against the 1000 per-tick budget; despawn debris on a
  short lifetime timer so shattering a room does not flood the world.
- A breakable that should block until broken needs a `solid` collider for the
  intact object; swap or despawn it on break so the path opens.

## Verify

- `simulation_run` (`qa.run.start`) to prove hits lower durability and the object
  breaks into debris at zero.
- `project_get_graph_snapshot` to confirm the hit handler and the break spawn are
  on the graph.