Page 53 - 3D World - October 2017

TuTorials
Simulate a Ghost Rider transformation

PRePARe foR the mAPS DynAmicS mAP
07 You’ll need between two and three animated grayscale maps for this 08 This map will control how much of your mesh is
part of the tutorial. Firstly, you’re going to need a simple map, which goes from actually nCloth and how much of it isn’t. Essentially,
total white to total black – let’s call this one Dynamics Map. Secondly, you’ll if the map is all white, no vertex on your mesh will be
need another map that goes from total white to having some black patches dynamically simulated as nCloth. This is very important
but not total blackness – we’re going to call this one Tearing Map. The third if your mesh is deforming. In my case, I made some dark
map you’ll need is a copy of the Tearing Map. You just need to invert the areas appear in the map as the actor was moving to make
colours, offset it by a few frames and then multiply it to the original, getting it more natural. You can use the Fractal Noise in After
the edges of the animation. Effects to generate this.

teARing mAP
09 This map decides
where the skin starts to break
off from. Black areas will break
off completely, meaning every
single vertex in that area will
separate. Create this like a
fabric with white and black
patches. Try to minimise
the blackness but don’t
completely eradicate it. I’d
say a number near 20 per cent
is good. Copy this map and
invert its colours. Multiply this
new map with the original to
create a third map. This will be
used to generate sparks.

think about
using a
render farm
Rendering, for
enthusiasts, is a
big deal. I’d suggest
you find a rendering
farm for this. They’re
cheap, fast and
incredibly effective.

inPut meSh AttRAct teAR the Skin
10 Usually when you turn a mesh into nCloth, you 11Select the actor model and under the FX module,
lose the animation. However, there’s a setting under the go to the nConstraint menu. Click the Tearable Surface
nClothShape node’s Dynamic Properties tab called Input button. Your surface will tear like skin. Among the newly
Attract Mesh. Set it to 1, which disables nCloth simulation created nodes, find one called nComponent and under
on the mesh and follows the deformation caused by the the Glue Strength Map, input the Tearing Map. This way,
rigging. In the next tab, input the Dynamics Map into the your cloth will become weakly bonded and patches of
Input Attract Map to multiply the attribute with your map. skin will start falling or flying, depending on your settings.

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