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clusters [2017/09/13 13:19] |
clusters [2021/04/27 09:19] (current) |
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+ | ====== Clusters ====== | ||
+ | {{: | ||
+ | While low triangle counts are essential in real-time trees, maintaining visual aesthetics is also important. Instead of using individual leaf maps on many pieces of leaf geometry in a real-time tree, it is often better to use a texture that includes many leaves with their branch/twig structure to capture the same fullness with much lower triangle count. This is a " | ||
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+ | [[https:// | ||
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+ | \\ | ||
+ | \\ | ||
+ | > **Note**: The term " | ||
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+ | ===== Making a Cluster ===== | ||
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+ | Making a Cluster is similar to making any other tree, but you are only concerned with a single branch structure. You can start one of these from scratch, or you can isolate a branch from a previously-made tree as a starting point. You can isolate parts of the tree by hiding Generators in the [[generation_editor|Generation Editor]], or use [[tree_window# | ||
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+ | ====Setup View==== | ||
+ | {{ : | ||
+ | You will ultimately be exporting textures that will be wrapped on a piece of geometry used in another tree. It is better to model this using an orthographic, | ||
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+ | Change the viewport camera in the [[tree_window|Tree Window]] from Perspective to XY plane, which will give you an above/ | ||
+ | \\ | ||
+ | \\ | ||
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+ | ====Leaf Lighting==== | ||
+ | Having correct normals is very important in order to have a cluster map that lights correctly. Many nuances of individual leaf lighting, such as specular highlights from different angles, can be easily lost when creating a cluster due to texture resolution and mipmap filtering. Leaves that more or less face the camera and have bold normals (where each leaf mostly lights from the same direction) tend to work better. | ||
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+ | {{:: | ||
+ | Use "Local Orientation: | ||
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+ | The " | ||
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+ | ====Collision==== | ||
+ | Too many overlapping leaves can cause a cluster to look more like a solid color from a distance. You can fix this manually by controlling the generation of the branches and leaves, but [[leaf_collision|Collision]] is an easy way to help to alleviate it. Overlapping geometry is automatically removed. | ||
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+ | A special form of Collision called [[leaf_collision# | ||
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+ | ====Texture Adjustments==== | ||
+ | Once the cluster is exported and brought back in as a material, it will be difficult to do [[map_editor|texture adjustments]]. This is because you will be editing a map that has many things (leaves, branches, twigs, etc.) that may not all adjust in the same way. | ||
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+ | For this reason, be sure to do all your texture adjustments before exporting. If you follow the guidelines for making good [[materials_pbr|PBR Materials]] in the cluster file, the final material exported will also work well with PBR. | ||
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+ | ===== Exporting the Cluster ===== | ||
+ | {{ : | ||
+ | Before exporting the cluster maps, enable the [[tree_window# | ||
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+ | The cluster can then be exported by choosing the option " | ||
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+ | ===== Using a Cluster ===== | ||
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+ | Switch to your actual tree and import the cluster maps into a [[materials_assets_bar|Material Asset]] the same way as any other material. You will most likely also want to create a [[cutout_editor|Cutout]] mesh for it to minimize empty space while keeping the triangle count manageable. | ||