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Warning! This version of documentation is OUTDATED, as it describes an older SDK version! Please switch to the documentation for the latest SDK version.
Warning! This version of documentation describes an old SDK version which is no longer supported! Please upgrade to the latest SDK version.

particles_base

A particles_base material is used for particles. This material supports particles animation.

States

In the States tab you can set rendering passes and available options. Enabling some of the states activates additional textures and parameters in the Textures and Parameters tabs respectively.

The states divide into 2 groups: Passes and Options.

All the rendering passes and options can be either enabled or disabled by ticking the respective boxes.

All the states can be set to default ones - click a Set to parent button near the state (if the state is different from the default one, its field will be highlighted with green).

Rendering Passes

Passes specify during which rendering pass the material should be rendered. They are modified in the Passes field of the States tab.

Deferred Pass

Specifies if the material should be rendered during the deferred pass. Surfaces will be rendered during this pass only if they are opaque or the Depth mask is enabled in the Common tab.

Auxiliary Pass

Specifies if the material should be rendered into the auxiliary color buffer to create a custom post-process effect.

Refraction Pass

Specifies if the material should be rendered during the refraction pass. Surfaces will be rendered during this pass only if they are transparent.

Refraction pass is enabled for particles in the center
Refraction pass is disabled for particles in the center

Ambient Pass

Specifies if the material should be rendered during the ambient light pass. Note that only transparent surfaces will be rendered.

Light Omni Pass

Specifies if the material should be rendered illuminated by the Omni light sources during the shadow maps rendering. Note that only transparent surfaces will be rendered.

Light Proj Pass

Specifies if the material should be rendered illuminated by the Projected light sources during the shadow maps rendering. Note that only transparent surfaces will be rendered.

Light World Pass

World lights rendering pass. Specifies, if the material should be rendered illuminated by the World light sources during the shadow maps rendering. Note that only transparent surfaces will be rendered.

Options

The following options are set in the Options field of the States tab.

Animation Texture

Specifies if a texture with an atlas animation will be used as a diffuse one.

Shadow Shafts

Specifies if volumetric shadows from world lights will be rendered for surfaces with the applied material.

Soft Interaction

Provides a proper interaction of volumetric particles with other objects. It lessens the particles color depending on their position relatively to the object:

  • If the depth value specifies, that the particles are in front or behind the object, they are rendered as usual.
  • If the depth value between the cloud and the object is small, the color is smoothly interpolated.

The depth value can be set using the Interaction parameter. This option allows avoiding moire patterns on the objects.

Soft interaction is enabled
Soft interaction is disabled

Alpha Fade

Specifies if alpha fading between surfaces is used.

Ambient Light

Specifies if the world lighting will be calculated in the ambient light pass. This option should be used for rendering optimization when there is no light sources in the scene except the world light.

Self Illuminated

Specifies if the dynamic environment affects the material.

Disable Receive Shadows

Specifies if polygons, to which the material is applied, don't receive shadows from omni, projected or cubemap (environment probe) light sources.

Disable Receive World Shadows

Specifies if polygons, to which the material is applied, don't receive shadows from world light sources.

Textures

In the Textures tab of the Materials Editor you can:

  • Load the textures - click the Select Asset button near the texture and specify the path to the texture or type the path in the texture field manually
  • Find - click the Show Asset in the Asset Browser button near the texture
  • Open the context texture's details - click a Details button near the texture
  • Set the current texture to default one - click a Set to parent button near the texture (if the texture is different from the default one, its field will be highlighted with green)

Base Textures

Base textures are loaded and modified in the Base field of the Textures tab.

Diffuse Texture

Diffuse map. A texture to define a surface's main color.

The texture is 4-channeled (RGBA):

  • RGB values store a color of the texture.
  • An alpha (A) value contains transparency values.

The diffuse texture can also store an animation atlas that is used to play animated particles (for example, the burning fire).

Notice
To play animation, enable the Animation texture option in the States tab of the material.

Texture with animation atlas

Attenuation Texture

Attenuation map. A texture to define the color and alpha component change throughout the particle's life time, from left to right.

Attenuation texture used for fire effect

The texture is 4-channeled (RGBA):

  • RGB values store a color of the texture.
  • An alpha (A) value contains transparency values.

An attenuation texture can be represented as a set of several textures. By using the 4th component of the Animation parameter you can specify which texture to use for the material.

4 attenuation textures in one

Additional Textures

An additional refraction texture is present only if a Refraction pass of the States tab is enabled. The texture is modified in the Additional field of the Textures tab.

Refraction Texture

Normal map. A texture to store information about a surface's normals deviation.

The texture is 2-channeled (RG):

  • RG values contain two components of a normal
  • The third component's value is calculated from the given components in run-time

Parameters

In the Parameters tab you can set or modify base and additional parameters.

Parameters of different types are set in different ways:

  • expression - vector values can be set either in the field near the parameter or in the dialog window opened when double clicking this field.
  • slider - the value can be set either by smoothly moving the slider of the scroll box or manually in the box near the parameter (if required, the value bigger than maximum one for the slider can be set).
  • color - the color can be chosen in the dialog window, activated after double clicking the color field.

All the parameters can be set to default ones - click a Set to parent button near the parameter (if the parameter is different from the default one, its field will be highlighted with green).

Transformation Parameters

Texture transformation parameters are modified in the Transform field of the Parameters tab.

Animation

Animation coordinates transformation. A vector of the 4 float components:

  1. X, Y - the size of the texture with the atlas animation along the X and Y axes.
  2. Z - the scale of the animation playback speed.
  3. W - Y coordinate of the attenuation texture.

Auxiliary Parameters

Auxiliary color parameter is present only if an Auxiliary pass is enabled. The parameter is modified in the Auxiliary field of the Parameters tab.

Auxiliary Color

A color picker to choose an auxiliary color for the Auxiliary rendering pass.

Shading Parameters

Shading parameters are modified in the Shading field of the Parameters tab.

Diffuse Color

A color picker to choose the color of the diffuse map.

Diffuse = yellow
Diffuse = green

Diffuse Scale

A coefficient to scale the brightness of the diffuse map. The higher the value, the brighter the diffuse map is.

Diffuse = 0.55
Diffuse = 1.1

Base Parameters

Deferred threshold and Auxiliary threshold base parameters are present only if Deferred and Auxiliary passes respectively are enabled in the States tab. The parameters are modified in the Base field of the Parameters tab.

Deferred Threshold

A threshold for the alpha component for the deferred pass. If the alpha component is greater than this value, the particle will be written into the deferred buffer.

Auxiliary Threshold

A threshold for the alpha component for the auxiliary pass. If the alpha component is greater than this value, the particle will be written into the auxiliary buffer.

Soft Interaction Parameters

Soft interaction parameters are present only if a Soft interaction option is enabled in theStates tab.

Interaction

A depth factor that controls the particles color lessening depending on their position relative to the object:

  • Decreasing the value results in rendering in full color of those particles, which are positioned far from the objects.
  • By 0 value, the depth value is considered to be infinity, and thus no particles will be rendered. All of them will be interpolated with the environment.
  • Increasing the value results in rendering in full color more closely positioned particles. The interpolated area lessens.

Refraction Parameters

Refraction parameters are present only if the Refraction pass is enabled in theStates tab.

Refraction Scale

A coefficient to scale the refraction area.

  • By the value of 0 there is no refraction of the light for the material.
  • The higher the positive value, the more distorted the image behind the refracting material is.
  • Negative values invert the direction of distortion: the lower the negative value, the bigger a distortion is.
Scale = 0.6
Scale = 2

Refraction Power

A coefficient to scale the refraction post-processing power. The higher the value, the less intensive (softer) refraction will be.

Last update: 2018-04-26
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