Practical workflows

These workflows start from supplied prefabs. Complete the Quick Start, keep a fixed camera and Directional Light while comparing, and copy each material before editing it. Paths below begin at Assets/FORGE3D/Planets/.

An Earth-like world with a clearer ocean

Start: Terrestrial/Planet_Terrestrial_01.prefab, with its surface and atmosphere intact.

1. Copy Terrestrial/Materials/Planet_Terrestrial_01.mat and assign it to the surface.
2. Compare Clouds Output = 0.279 with 0. Separately compare Cloud Shadows = 0.085 with 0.
3. Choose Water Deep Color and Water Shallow Color with the water exposed. Keep Land Mask unchanged to preserve continents.
4. Restore the cloud contribution you prefer. Change Clouds Tint only after the ocean colors read clearly.

Result: a recognizable terrestrial world with your ocean palette and independently chosen cloud/shadow contributions. See the Terrestrial comparisons.

A stronger atmospheric arc

Start: the same terrestrial prefab, with a white Directional Light.

1. Find the shell using FORGE3D/Planets/Atmosphere and copy its assigned material.
2. Compare Scattering Intensity = 13.27 with 26.54.
3. Reset that setting, then compare Glow Intensity = 0.12 with 0.24.
4. Choose Scattering Color and Glow Color, then inspect after rotating the light.

Result: a stronger colored limb without changing the terrain material. The Atmosphere reference shows the independent comparisons.

Moving clouds without moving the globe

Start: a terrestrial surface material copy with the original cloud maps.

1. Enter Play Mode and view a pole as well as the equator.
2. Change Clouds Top Speed slightly for pole rotation.
3. Change Clouds Middle Speed separately for equatorial panning; use zero to stop either layer.
4. Adjust Clouds Height and Cloud Shadows after the motion reads well.

Result: animated cloud detail on a stationary planet Transform. See Surface and clouds.

A readable night side with cities

Start: the terrestrial prefab with its city textures unchanged.

1. Rotate the Directional Light so most of the camera-facing hemisphere is dark.
2. Change CityLight Color on the surface copy to choose the city palette. Compare with black to isolate the emission.
3. Adjust CityLight Population gradually, keeping it positive and nonzero.
4. Recheck the result with clouds enabled; their shadows participate in the final mask.

Result: texture-based city emission on land, shaped by the night-side appearance.

A brighter frozen world

Start: Ice/Planet_Ice_01.prefab and a copy of Ice/Materials/Planet_Ice_01.mat.

1. Compare Color Boost = 2 with 4.
2. Choose RampLow, RampMid and RampHigh as a coordinated palette.
3. Tune Ice Detail in small steps, then revisit Ice Factor A/B only if the color distribution needs to change.
4. Keep Ice Factor C nonzero and preserve a nonzero remap span.

Result: layered ice detail in a brighter or newly colored palette. See Ice.

A more intense molten surface

Start: Lava/Planet_Lava_01.prefab and a copy of Lava/Materials/Planet_Lava_01.mat.

1. Compare Magma Power = 2.02 with 4.04 to reshape the molten detail.
2. Reset it, then compare Magma Glow = 1111 with 2222 to see the emission change separately.
3. Choose Magma Color Min and Magma Color Max, keeping hot detail visible rather than solid white.
4. To tune the custom highlight, set Specular Color alpha = 1 and compare Shininess = 0.01 with 1 under the same light.

Result: a controlled molten pattern with stronger glow and an optional visible highlight response. See Lava for all three comparisons.

A cooler, more turbulent gas giant

Start: Gas/Planet_Gas_01.prefab and a copy of Gas/Materials/Planet_Gas_01.mat.

1. Compare UV Distortion = 0.076 with 0.5.
2. Compare white Tint with RGBA (0.5, 1, 1, 0), preserving the supplied alpha.
3. Inspect the pole and adjust Pole Color and Pole Boost if needed.
4. In Play Mode, give UV Speed or UV Distortion Speed a small nonzero XY component to animate the respective layer. A zero vector remains stationary.

Result: cooler, more strongly warped gas bands, with motion independent of the object Transform. See Gas.

Softer translucent rings

Start: the gas prefab’s ring renderer and a copy of its Ring Transparent material.

1. Keep Ring Tint RGB = (0.551, 0.503, 0.679) and compare alpha 1 with 0.25.
2. Leave Clip at its preset value while comparing opacity.
3. Tune Shadow Penumbra for a softer shadow transition, then Shadow Vertex to fit it to the planet.
4. Check overlap with the atmosphere and other transparent objects from your final camera.

Result: lighter-looking bands with a separately adjustable planet shadow. See Ring Transparent for red-channel opacity and depth-writing details.

More visible storm lightning

Start: Thunderstorm/Planet_Thunderstorm_01.prefab and a copy of its matching surface material.

1. Compare Lignting Mask Pow = 10.2 with 2 while retaining the original maps.
2. Enter Play Mode and watch multiple flashes.
3. Choose Lightning Color, then tune Lightning Boost.
4. Adjust Lighting A Frequency and Lighting B Frequency separately to change the texture-offset cadence.

Result: broader lightning regions and a chosen flash appearance. It remains material emission rather than illumination from spawned Lights.

Changed recipe: Lignting Mask Pow = 2, rather than the original 10.2.

A coordinated star and corona

Start: Sun/Sun_Blue.prefab, with its child arrangement intact.

1. Copy Sun/Materials/Sun_Blue.mat and Sun/Materials/Sun_Corona_Blue_01.mat and assign them to the correct renderers.
2. Compare surface Surface Power = 1.9 with 3.8. Set Cool, Warm and Hot for a coherent palette, preserving Hot alpha initially.
3. On the Corona copy, compare Corona Falloff = 3.77 with 7.54 and match Corona Color to the surface.
4. Keep Depth Texture enabled and Depth Fade nonzero. Revisit that world-unit setting after scaling the root; the published examples use scale 1200.
5. Add a separate Directional Light to illuminate other scene objects.

Result: a matched stellar surface and corona, with independent scene lighting. See Rings, Sun and Corona.